Into Africa - 10/17/73 - DAR (no Crossroads)

[berto]

TURN #10

The situation at the end of Turn 10, first Side A (Israeli) phase:



A lucky Israeli artillery strike obliterated the Egyptian rifle platoon at the railroad (magenta circle).

Crossroads managed, as expected, to destroy all my units south of Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan (turquoise circle).

More lucky tank fire wiped out, in a single shot, one of my BTR-60PBs to the north (red circle).

The mayhem continues. [:(]

Over to my turn, screen shot below.

As it happens, I was able to load the Egyptian MRL artillery piece onto the heavy trucks (magenta box). I need to move them to rear for safety.

I have decided to fight for the 50 VP hex at Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan. Not a last stand, because I don't want to trap between the rivers too many of my units there.

I remain mystified by what may or may not happen on my left. Where are those cross-Canal Israeli tanks?

After my Side B move (Side B is this scenario's second side), the situation at the end of Turn 10:



My mood has switched back to pessimism. My self-styled "moral victory" (denying Crossroads a Major Victory) looks to be less and less likely.

[berto]

TURN #11

The situation at the end of Turn 11, first Side A (Israeli) phase:



Crossroads moved his forces cautiously forward and took aim at the units on my right, focusing mainly on my T-54s (turquoise box). Artillery fire (magenta circle) Disrupted the Egyptian Armored 71B, and subsequent small arms fire forced it to retreat (magenta box).

Anticipating my every move (?), Crossroads was careful not to advance his units to the hexes (red circles) where I had focused my artillery fire. Except for the one HMG (red box), where an artillery strike (lower red circle) scored a 1 SP hit and drove it back. The Israelis continue to evade my gunners.

Over to my turn, screen shot below.

I was able to truck my MRL to relative safety in the rear (gray box) but used up enough APs in so doing as to prevent off loading.

My reserve rifle platoon (green box). I really want to keep it available for my left, as I continue to fret about what Crossroads might have planned for me there. Note that the Israelis have finally taken that 25 VP Rubble hex (blue circle) to the southeast. Does Crossroads have some mobile forces that might speed their way up the road and surprise attack me to my rear? Worry, worry.

But no, I committed that reserve rifle platoon to my right, as I now also worry about that stack of Israeli tanks (magenta box). Is Crossroads positioning them for a lightning attack against my weak right flank?

I have a BTR-60PB on my far right (turquoise box). The unit is weak defensively. No match for any tanks. But at least it provides me some reconnaissance.

Some shuffling of my units in the center. I am moving the Egyptian commando platoon up to defend that 50 VP village hex at the center front. I continue to think that maybe I can hold that position. Doubtful, though.

I plot my artillery fire. Will I get lucky one of these turns and have Crossroads walk right into a shower of falling shells? It is to laugh.

After my Side B move (Side B is this scenario's second side), the situation at the end of Turn 11:



Crossroads currently scores a Major Victory. If I can deny him taking any more objective hexes; if I can inflict some serious SP losses; maybe I can slip him back under that threshold. It is to hope.

[berto]

TURN #12

I am astonished and dismayed to see how easily Crossroads makes mincemeat of my carefully prepared defensive position.

The situation at the end of Turn 12, first Side A (Israeli) phase:



He is now firmly lodged in the village hexes NW of Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan. I have little hope of throwing him back.

Perhaps worse, by his taking that one village hex closest to the river, he has blocked my escape across that bridge (red circle). The forces in my center are now trapped!

I continue to mismanage my special units. Crossroads took some easy potshots at my T-54s, scored 2 SP hits, and forced their retreat (magenta box). His tanks outnumber mine!

Long expected, and feared, I am now seeing Israeli advance on my left (turquoise box). I might hope that the Israelis lack any mobile units in that vicinity.

Over to my turn, screen shot below.

The Egyptians fired back, scoring a few hits.

Perhaps foolishly, I ordered the Egyptian comandos to assault the Israeli parachute infantry platoon across that bridge. No dice, the assault is repulsed, now the commandos are Disrupted (magenta box). Useless!

The situation is looking grimmer than ever.

After my Side B move (Side B is this scenario's second side), the situation at the end of Turn 12:



About the only positive I can report is that I gave almost as good as I got this turn, 3 of his SP loss to my 4. Too little, too late.

And for you 3D fans, the scene in 3D:

[berto]

TURN #13

The Israeli juggernaut rolls forward.

The situation at the end of Turn 13, first Side A (Israeli) phase:



Assaulting from the west and the south, the Israelis forced the Egyptians (green box) out of Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan. A master class in combined arms tactics, with Crossroads the teacher and me the pupil.

To the west of the river, slow but steady Israeli advance.

In the Info Box, note where the Visibility has now increased to 7.

Taking advantage of that, Israeli armor (in the vicinity of the turquoise circle, now out of LOS) targeted an Egyptian SA-7 Grail MANPAD far to the rear. That is a unit that for most of the scenario I assumed was for AA defense only and had no effectiveness against ground forces. Wrong. It's something I could have brought into play earlier but didn't.

To the east, the cross-Canal Israeli armor (magenta box) made its reappearance, took aim, fired, and destroyed the Egyptian LMG east of Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan (magenta circle).

One, and only one, bright spot in this phase: In a long-awaited move, Crossroads snuck an Israeli tank platoon up the Canal road and positioned it on the knoll to the northeast (red circle). My saggers (red box) opportunity fired at and destroyed the Israeli tanks, all 2 SPs of them! Crossroads' remark: "I knew that would be one hill too far."

That in a nutshell is perhaps the main story of this scenario. I have had special assets -- saggers, tanks, RPG, BTRs, artillery -- that I have mismanaged in a woeful display of fecklessness. Before they could get any shots in, over and over again Crossroads took the initiative to the target and destroy those special assets first. Wasted opportunity after wasted asset. So here we are: too few defenders facing too many attackers. It's my bad they are still so many.

Over to my turn, screen shot below.

I hold my stance, and fire back. Retreat is not an option!

As I feared, those two Egyptian infantry platoons (magenta box) are now cut off from the main force. Too weak to retake Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan, all I can do with them is trade fire with the Israelis.

I have two APC units (turquoise boxes) as my mobile reserve. I continue to fear sneak Israeli flank attack.

Those saggers on my left. I attempted, but failed, to force march them up to the relative safety of that village. "Failed" as in: The Adaptive A/I die roll was bad, so they gained no extra movement reach from their exertions. The saggers are now in a Fatigued state and out in the open. I fear they will be an easy mark for the cross-Canal Israeli tanks next turn.

After my Side B move (Side B is this scenario's second side), the situation at the end of Turn 13:



SP wise, I am giving as good as I get. Too late, though. I should have been scoring hits much earlier in the scenario!

[berto]

TURN #14

Unmitigated disaster!

The situation at the end of Turn 14, first Side A (Israeli) phase:



One problem with having a near stationary defensive line is that it's easy for the attacker to plot his artillery barrages. At the outset, Crossroads' artillery hammered my forces, scoring 4 or more SP hits in the shelling.

Then the Israeli ground forces had their way. More hits, more retreats, more disruptions. By now, just about all of my frontline units are disrupted. (See the magenta Disrupted highlights.)

The master class continues. Near the Sweet Water Canal, Crossroads advanced his tanks (turquoise box), fired, then retreated them back to safety. "Scoot and shoot" -- that's a tactic I'll have to remember.

Oddly enough, for whatever reason, the cross-Canal Israeli tanks (blue box) declined to target the Egyptian saggers (green box).

Over to my turn, screen shot below.

The Egyptian position is nearing total collapse. Time to start heading for the exits. I moved one loaded truck unit to the map's north edge and did a Units > Remove from Map there (magenta circle). Likewise, I have two more loaded trucks, loaded with artillery units, that I intend to do the same. Removing units from the map costs me no VPs, but deny them to the enemy, should he destroy those units. I'm not willing to take that chance.

I reposition and fire the defending Egyptians as best I can.

The sagger unit. Rather than move it back to safety, beyond the reach of the Israeli tanks, I choose instead to fire at the tanks across the Canal. Swing and a miss. Crossroads will likely destroy the saggers next turn.

I have had one or two earlier airstrikes recalled. I plot airstrikes, also artillery fire, at the knoll to the east of the Canal. Hope springs eternal.

After my Side B move (Side B is this scenario's second side), the situation at the end of Turn 14:



I have a bit of a surprise in store for Crossroads. Can you guess what it is?

[berto]

TURN #15

From unmitigated disaster to utter catastrophe!

The situation at the end of Turn 15, first Side A (Israeli) phase:



The battle in the center ends. The Israelis obliterate the remaining Egyptian defenders east of Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan (red circle).

No better to the north. Losses and retreats everywhere, my right is nearing collapse (magenta circle).

In a surprising move, an Israeli mechanized infantry platoon appeared on my far left (turquoise circle), fired at my saggers in the village there, but missed. The Israelis then retired out of sight from the saggers (hiding in and among the Vineyards in that vicinity).

I have two entrucked arty units (green boxes) that I need to retreat off map.

Over to my turn, screen shot below.

And retreat they did (magenta circles). In the Status > Strength dialog, I verified that I lost no SPs for their removal. (But is that really so? See below how huge my SP losses were this turn.)

I have another howitzer unit that I'd like to take off map (magenta box), but I am prevented from doing so, because it is Fixed.

It's entirely possible that Crossroads might destroy all or almost all of my remaining on-map forces next turn. The only question is: Before the end of scenario, can I somehow still deny him taking that 50 VP Objective hex (turquoise circle)?

After my Side B move (Side B is this scenario's second side), the situation at the end of Turn 15:



Compare the SP losses from a turn ago (see post #25 above). Nearly 20 Egyptian SP loss vs. *zero* Israeli SP loss. Utter catastrophe indeed!

[Crossroads]

What a fight! I have just now send my final turn to Berto. No peeking yet at my DAR though, before the final move [:-] [:D]

That bridge next to Ezab Abu Zeid Hasan is a Light Bridge. I think it is a mistake, should be a Medium Bridge instead to allow for Trucks and IFVs. I tried to enter to area via it as well, to no avail.

[berto]

If any of you are waiting with breathless anticipation to see if Crossroads indeed wipes my forces entirely off the map, you will have to wait a while longer. I am hard at work focusing all of my time and energies on the forthcoming ME 1.01 update. I'll get to posting my game-ending turn 16 moves later this week. Sorry for the delay.

[berto]

TURN #16

The end is near.

The situation at the end of Turn 16, first Side A (Israeli) phase:



Crossroads did his usual: advance, fire, retreat. More Egyptian units destroyed (red circles).

With my sole remaining sagger unit (magenta box), I hope to get a shot at the Israeli mechanized infantry unit atop the knoll near the Canal (magenta circle).

Over to my turn, screen shots following.

The saggers? I moved them forward, but the vineyards around that village obscured visibility to the Israeli mech infantry on the knoll. No shot taken. [:(]

I advance my sole surviving BTR-60PB unit (magenta box, second screenshot following), and manage to score a hit against the Israeli parachute infantry across the river to the southeast.

Remember a few posts back where I wrote:

ORIGINAL: berto

I have a bit of a surprise in store for Crossroads. Can you guess what it is?

Here is the surprise:



Yes! Crossroads forgot entirely (did he?) about that one Egyptian desert infantry platoon, survivors of the early fighting around Abu Sultan. For most of the scenario, the Egyptians remained in hiding in the villages to the west of Abu Sultan, waiting for just this opportunity -- retaking the Objective hex at the crossroads (ha!) just south of the town. 25 VPs reclaimed. A small matter, but facing a loss this big, any success is a consolation.

After my Side B move (Side B is this scenario's second side), the situation at the end of Turn 16, and the end of the scenario



Most of the opposing Israeli forces are out of sight, located somewhere within the large turquoise circle -- or so I believe. Are there are any to the northwest? It's been a continuing mystery to me why Crossroads never tried to outflank me on my far right (green circle). Apart from his tanks -- not one SP of which I managed to destroy! -- is perhaps Crossroads otherwise running low on units?

Here is a (doctored, composite) screenshot showing the end-of-game Strength Dialog:



Crossroads might be running low on parachute infantry about now. As for me -- I've run out of just about everything!

In the map, again note the 25 VP Objective hex I managed to retake around Abu Sultan. For most of the scenario, the Egyptian desert infantry platoon was hiding in the vicinity of the blue circle. If you recall, at the very beginning of this DAR I had thought:

ORIGINAL: berto

My T-54s, I will hide them to the west. Good for a surprise flanking attack (Visibility is only 4), if and when the Israelis advance northward up the railroad.

I now wish I had stuck to that original plan. In addition to the desert infantry, I wish now I had kept the T-54s in hiding west and southwest of Abu Sultan. How cool it might have been to unleash my T-54s against an unsuspecting Crossroads late in the game!

As you can see in the screenshot above, the final score is 515 Total Points, Israelis. An Israeli (Side A) Major Victory. If I had not mismanaged my T-54s and other special forces so badly, if I had gotten in more kills earlier in the game, if I had not committed my forces piecemeal, I do believe I had an excellent chance to deny Crossroads a Major Victory, I would have had my self-styled moral victory. But no, my poor generalship squandered the chance.

With the scenario now concluded, I will of course read my opponent's DAR here and also here at Grogheads.

Bracing myself for some embarrassment...