Silly After Action Report - Ariete on Totensonntag

 Tenente Luigi di Gustation stopped papering over the cracks in his tanks armour and peered over at the lines of the 15th Panzer division.

"What the hell are they doing over there?  It looks like they're lining up for a military parade."

"Well it is Totensonntag," replied his driver who was busily packing sandbags onto the front of the vehicle.

"Toten what now?"

"Totensonntag, when the Germans commemorate their dead."

"If they attack like that they'll be joining them."  Di Gustation turned to a newly arrived staff officer.

"What are the Germans playing at?"

"Preparing for an attack," replied the staff officer.

"Well sooner them than us," replied di Gustation with some relief.

The staff officer gave an evil smile and produced an order.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me."

Richard Weilly kindly pandered to my predilection for the Italians and agreed to play MM33 - Ariete on Totensonntag.  The scene is the western desert (although technically all desert is west of somewhere) and we're neck deep in Operation Crusader.  Here the Germans decided to forgo all of that tedious tactical stuff and simply charge flat out at the South Africans holding positions to the south of Sidi Rezegh.  Because misery loves company they managed to "persuade" a decent amount of the Italian Ariete tank division to go with them.

The objective of the scenario from the Italian perspective is to capture or destroy three South African 25 pounder guns.  Of course to do that it is necessary to get past the rest of the defenders as well.  The Italians have a combined arms force made up of tanks, infantry and some almost self propelled guns.  My forces are as follows; three M13-40 tanks and three lorries carrying four squads of bersaglieri, two officers and a single light machine gun enter on the south and or west of board thirty.  On turn three (of five) four 65mm guns mounted on the back of captured Morris trucks.

To protect his precious 25 pounders Richard has three first line squads led by a single 8-0 leader and equipped with an lmg and an antitank rifle.  For some reason these three squads only get two sangars to shelter in.  In addition are the three 25 pounders themselves (again with only two sangars).  The 25s can only fire HE but even so have a decent chance of taking out the M13s.  Also on turn 3 a pair of Crusader I tanks roll on from the northwest to bolster the defence no doubt crumbling under the Italian hammer blows.  Light dust is in effect and wrecks (some of them burning) from previous attempts to do what I'm currently trying to do litter the battlefield.  In retrospect that should have been a warning.

End of Italian turn 1

Above is the situation at the end of Italian turn 1.  I brought my guys in from the west using the dust to hopefully screen the large and completely unprotected trucks.  Nevertheless my bersaglieri leapt from their vehicles with distinct sighs of relief and started inching their way towards the sangars that barred their way to the guns.  Richard took some shots with two of his guns but for the moment movement, dust and distance kept me protected.  His third gun remained invisible pretending that it wasn't in the only piece of scrub within his set up area.

My plan in case you're interested and as if it mattered was to take out his infantry and shift my tanks to the hillock in the northwest behind which they would hopefully hold off the reinforcing Crusaders.  With his infantry cleared away and my freshly arrived gun trucks providing support I hoped to be able to take out the guns.  

Anyway enough of such nonsense.  My troops crept forward towards the sangars while the tanks and trucks trailed their coats in front of his 25 pounders.  Devoid of their infantry my trucks were now dust generators until, inevitably, they got shot to pieces.

End of Italian turn 2

So far casualties had been light, a couple of trucks put out of action, but it has to be admitted that little had been achieved as well.  Richard's infantry still barred the way to my bersaglieri and my tanks had contributed little although they had amassed quite a collection of acquisition counters on themselves.  

In the British turn two things kicked off when I managed to break the MA of one of my M13s, that was a good start and I consoled myself with the thought that it wasn't much of a loss when Richard destroyed the thing with a 25 pounder shot a little later.  Richard also immobilised a second M13 and the crew declined to stay in their stationary metal box so I was suddenly reduced to one tank.  In the next turn that would break its MA too.  Despite the evaporation of their armoured support my infantry would leap into close combat with the most convenient South Africans and would actually succeed in killing them.  My gun trucks arrived just in time for Richard to run out of other things to shoot at.

Things have turned decidedly worse

Somehow the game stumbled on to the final turn (five).  Richard managed to destroy three of four gun trucks and his Crusaders turned up in time to kill my remaining largely impotent M13.  A parthian shot from my surviving gun truck did indeed break one of his gun crews but I had no way of getting to the others although my infantry (and a truck) did try.  Eventually I had to accept that the other two guns were beyond my reach.  According to the scenario card the Ariete were actually successful in this engagement, I'm not entirely sure how.  If I had my time again I might just try and charge directly for the guns and pray that he misses.

 

Some people win their games.  Those people are called "my opponents"

Tenente di Gustation looked around the battlefield for signs of his division.  Finding none he looked around for someone to surrender to.  Being equally unsuccessful in this endeavour he returned to his crew who were sheltering behind the wreck of their tank.

"Did we win?" asked his driver.

"I'm not sure anybody did," replied di Gustation.  "If anyone has reception can you call us an uber?