Last Ally, Last Victory ETO (id:#59887)
Multi-Man Publishing (ASL Starter Kit #3 ID: S26)   [next]   [previous]
Designer: Pete Shelling
Starter kit scenario?:    Deluxe scenario?:
 
Balance:
GermanRussian
33.75%

Overview:

As the Red Army steamrolled towards Hungary, heavy German tank formations were increasingly rare. By the end of September, Cavalry-Mechanized Group Pliyev had crossed the border near Oradea, and was threatening the agricultural center of Debrecen. To make matters worse for the Axis cause, many Hungarian units were beginning to defect to the Soviet side. The Germans needed a victory to stop this, and the 6th Armee under General Maximillian Fretter-Pico reformed with three Panzer Divisions just as Marshal Malinovsky was driving into Hungary's northeastern plains with the three corps of Cavalry-Mechanized Group Pliyev. Neither side was aware of the other's disposition as Germany's campaign to save her last ally reached fever pitch.
Attacker: German (1st Panzer Division/SchwerePanzer Abteilung 503 and 23rd Panzer Division)
Defender: Russian (33rd Rifle Corps/6th Guards Tank Army/71st Heavy Tank Regiment, 6th Guards Tank Army)  
6.5 turns
    Players: 2     OBA: None     Night: No
Unit Counts:
Squads: A:15.0 D:16.5
AFVs: A:8
PzKpfw VG x 3
PzKpfw VIB x 2
PzKpfw IVJ x 3

AFVs: D:9
T-34 M43 x 2
IS-2 x 3
T-34/85 x 4

Guns: A:0 D:1
57mm PTP obr. 43

Victory Conditions:

Exit VP: Building Control VC: Area Control VC:
Unit Based VC: LOS Style VC: CVP Cap:
Misc Rules: D: Russian 6-2-8 Elite units are not subject to ELR.
Overlays: NONE
Errata (source)
Players wanting to play this game/Request a match:

Scenario info

Last Played:
DateReporterOpponentBal.ResultTimeComments
2024-09-19(D) Justin DiSabatino vs A Russian winGermans were off to a strong start, Group 1 entering first with the German AFVs moving to occupy the Russian AFVs north/north-east of the village. The German infantry moved along the southern edge towards the hills to enter the village from the south. On Turn 2, Group 2 took a similar tack to try to keep the Russian AFVs focused elsewhere so the infantry could make the village. The HIP Russian 57LL took out a Tiger and PzIVJ, blunting Group 2's support and letting the Russian AFVs start to encircle and eliminate the German AFVs.

The AFV battle lasted until Turn 5, at which point all of the AFVs but one Russian T-34/85 remained and moved to harass the rear of the German advance. The German infantry had been stymied by the collapsing Russian defense and was too slow to take the necessary buildings, falling two short.
2023-09-23(A) Bob McKenna vs Lou Padilla Russian winGerman infantry bogged down outside the town. German immobilized tank took out a few T34. Russians knocked out a Tiger. Too many 628 in the town. Russians win, great planning.
2023-06-15(A) Andreas R vs Jenny German win
2023-01-28(D) Craig Renier vs Bob W Russian winThe German tanks easily cut down the Russian AFVs, but the infantry was slow to close the distance to the VC buildings. Trying to make up time, the German infantry made risky moves and paid the price. With few good order squads facing numerous GO Russian squads in stone buildings, the Germans conceded.
2022-09-01(A) Jack Wilson vs Ken Walsh Russian winMy first FTF with this one. Some consider it the "Final Exam" for SK1-3, and is, IMO, the closest thing SK3 has to a monster scenario: eventually there will be 31.5 SE, 17 AFVs and one hidden AT on the board. As a result, it plays slow, but is still interesting. As evidenced by the recorded plays, this one is heavily tilted toward the Russians. Which is too bad, because it has all the makings of a great scenario.

As usual, Ken had an excellent setup. I came on the board a little too aggressively and paid the price. By turn two I was down to 1 Tiger and 1 Panther, while the Russians had only lost 1 of their cruddy T-34s. Ken hid his 57LL in an ideal ambush location. Combined with my ham-fisted maneuvering, his rate tears and low TH DRs, it alone knocked out four tanks including one Tiger. Ouch!

I made a little bit of a comeback, and by turn 4 had knocked out two more tanks. But my infantry forces were pretty much shot to pieces. I only had about eight squads in position to try to capture the last 7 VC buildings. Buildings, btw, brimming with Russian infantry and shielded by Russian tanks. I resigned at the end of my turn four.

Having learned the error of my ways, I would play this again with the Germans (taking the balance) with a more cautious and deliberate approach. I think the key for the German is to protect his infantry with a screen of armor to give them a chance to cross the large swaths of OG, and not get drawn into tank battles until those squads are safely into the edge of the village.

Again, fun scenario. Win or lose, you will find it a helpful tool for working on infantry-armor combined tactics.
View all or balance report
ActionDate
Turuk Added a playing2024-09-19 15:38:21
hoxson1 Modified the misc. rules2024-08-16 17:10:16
BobMcKenna1966 Added a playing2023-09-25 12:00:45
antro Added a playing2023-06-23 09:03:15
Heloanjin Added a playing2023-01-28 19:54:59
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(!germ-soviet.png)Imagehoxson1962
PzKpfw VG - "Panther" (PZ VG panther.png)Imagehoxson11014
(S20map.JPG)Imagey.nakano1063
VASL Log file (S26 Mark vs Tony Turns 2-7.vlog)VASL Game Logacfe696
(S26.jpg)Map ImageTwirling1474
VASL TemplateVASL Templatehistoryhead965
VASL SetupVASL (via template) save filehistoryhead982
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PzKpfw VG - "Panther"
 
Statistics:
Avg Rating: 7.68Votes: 40
Views: 6095
To-Play list count: 5
Estimated Play time: 9.3 hours
Recorded Games: 35
Archive recorded plays:
German10
Russian24
Drawn:1

ROAR Data: (as of today)
Last Ally, Last Victory [Confirmed]
[A] German 17
[D] Russian 29
All Rights Reserved. (c)2022 Dave Ramsey.