Finns for Konflikt 47!

I recently found out that I'm partly Finnish (6% give or take), and although I'm slightly averse to playing Axis forces in wargames, The Finnish forces give me an opportunity to play the bad guys kit without all the bad guy baggage that goes along with it. (mostly)

Finland in the second world war was in a very odd position.  Threatened by their border with the Soviet Union, and plagued by territorial disputes for years, when the war started the Finns found themselves facing off against a newly aggressive Soviet Union, who had already taken parts of Poland, and were controlling the territories of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.  Finland had been agreed as part of the pact with the Germans to be considered part of the Soviet Sphere of Influence, i.e neutral but providing a military buffer zone between Germany and the Soviet Union.

After initiating a causus belli themselves, the Soviets invaded Finland on the 30th November 1939, expecting a quick victory in what became known as the Winter War.  However, the Soviets were not prepared for the ferocity and morale of the Finnish defenders, and the harsh winter of 1939 and the crippling of the officer classes from Stalins 'Great Purge' a few months earlier caused them to suffer substantial losses in the early exchanges.

However with renewed effort the Soviets force of manpower and mechanisation overcame the Finns, and they ceded land in the Karelian peninsula with the signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty in 1940.  The Soviets also demanded land in the north of the country, but Finland remained a sovereign country.

Some say that the poor performance of the Soviets gave Hitler cause to think an offensive against the Soviets would be succesful, and with the German invasion of Russia in 1941, Finland became a place of strategic importance to the Soviets Northern flanks.



Finland never signed the Axis pact, and only wanted assistance from Nazi Germany to return the borders to their ante-bellum states, and so the Continuation war against the Soviets began.


Bolt Action
 
In Bolt Action the Finns are ferocious fighters, good at ambushes and fighting in snow, and although I've got some Germans knocking about I didn't want to start a new army when I've still got some stashed in boxes around, however at the club a couple of people play Konflikt 47, and with this in mind I've bought the rule book and the 'Resurgence' edition, and I've put together a little 1000 point force to see how it plays.

Alternate Historyof Konflikt 47

In Konflikt 47, the course of the war has changed slightly with the test explosion of an atomic bomb at Los Alamos, and another atomic bomb dropped on Dresden creating 'Rifts' in space time, through which emerge strange radio signals and information regarding futuristic technology.  Strange, exotic particles also escape from the Rifts, although these cannot currently be harnessed.

Although the US shares this Rift technology with its allies Britain and Canada, the reluctance to share with the Soviets causes a further breakdown in trust between the allies, and Stalin denounces the US as an enemy and begins fighting for their own territorial and ideological aims in Europe.

D-Day still happens, and although the Germans are quicker to realise the technology advantages provided by the Rift, Allied forces push the Germans back to the Rhine by 1946.  Counter attacks and behind enemy lines missions by the germans, their  'Spinne' mechs, Zeus and Thor walkers and legion of zombie soldiers, werewolves and vampires bog down the Allied forces on the Rhine.

Between March and June 1947,  the Germans push back into Holland and go on the offensive in Italy.  The allies hold the line, their own Rift tech battling the forces of the Axis.

Up in Finland however, there exists an uneasy peace between the two forces.  Soviet forces tied up on the Eastern Front allow many Finns to escape north to form a new force in the German Army, the SS Friewilligen Battallion Nordost, adn this force gains recruits and strengthens to Division size, becoming the equivalent of a Finnish army in exile.  With the encouragement of the Germans, the Finns re-enter the fight against the Soviets, albeit with better equipment and the addition of a certain amount of Rift-tech equipment.  There is an internal schism in the Finnish force between the fanatical pro-german Finns and the nationalistic anti-Soviet Finns, which I feel is best served by the addition (or omission thereof) of the Nazi forces such as the Totenkorps (zombies), Shrekwulfen (werewolves) and Nachtjager (vampires).



I like to think that the close forested terrain gives the Finns plenty of scope for lightly armoured fast attacks, so as far as Rift Tech goes, it's Spinnemechs and Falcon Fallschirmjagers that fit the bill. 

The Finns also get bonuses for firing rifles from Ambush, so plenty of Soviet and German rifles, but they have also got plenty of firepower in the form of MG42s.  

 Their equipment is equivalent to the late war Grenadier stuff, so it's winter (white, blue and green) coloured Zeltbahn over plain white tunics, grey trousers and plenty of fieldcapsin white or grey.

Where Stalhelms are worn, most Finns will adorn them with the Skull symbol.  Frontline forces were often quite dishevelled, living off the land, so plenty of light stubble and rough, worn clothing.

I've not played K47 yet, so I'm not sure of the subtle differences between it and Bolt Action but I'm hoping to get a game in soon!

Snow Days and Paras

So, a rare Snow day and an opportunity to work from home catch up on some figures, but as my youngest son who was off school as well and looking for something to do after rolling around in the snow, I suggested a game of Bolt Action and set it up while he warmed up.


After the last Chain of command game pitting Paras against Panzer Grenadiers, I'd painted up about 500 points of late war germans and nicked an MMG from the Afrika Corps chaps to make up a 550 point list.  I thought we'd have a defensive game, the germans holed up in a farm house protecting a fuel supply.  Some British Paras have arrived nearby and are looking to claim it for their own!

the lists were - Ze Germans...

a Vet 2nd Lt and 1 man with SMGs
2 squads of 10 men, an NCO with an SMG and 2 LMGs
1 Sniper (unfortunately the second model has an STG44 for some reason, which had quite an effect later on)
1 MMG tripod MG42 with three crew

set up to take these germans on was a platoon of British Paras

1 Vet 2nd Lt and one man with SMG's
3 squads of 8 men, 1 NCO with SMG, 2 SMG's a Bren gun and the rest rifles.
1 light mortar team.

I set up the Germans in pre planned positions and offered my son the choice of playing the Germans or the Brits, and he chose the Germans, defending the farm at the top left of the picture.

The British arrived at the opposite narrow edge, the light mortar covering the road, two sections on the left and one on the right flank.  I wanted to use teh smoke to blind the german firepower and then move up and strike close up.

The first thing Oberleutnant Freidrich did was move his MMG team from the position covering the road to the farm buildings on his left flank.  The plucky brits moved into the road and up to the hedges.  A german sniper had taken up residence in the  upper floors of the farm house, and took a pot shot at the British Lt, but fortunately missed.

The german MMG took up position in the corner of a hedgerow, and openend fire on the approaching para section, who were hunkering down hiding from the sniper in the farm house. The para section lose two rifles, and starting with smaller 8 man sections, this will prove to be costly.

The paras tried to drop smoke to cover their approach.

But it misses, covering the approach of the other section.  The section on the left flank move up and start firing on the sniper in the building, pinning him, but he fires back - although he's too close for the Sniper, so uses his rifle and his assistants STG44!!  The extra dice for the Assault Rifle do well, killing the Section leader. The Platoon CO and Sgt move up with them, clearing their pins (from the german MMG) and also opening fire on the snipers, killing them and clearing the way for a charge into the building.  My other sections are holding up the ground on the right, hoping to draw away one of the Grenadier Sections.

Unfortunately for Paras, covering the sniper nest was the German CO who pops out from behind the farmhouse and sprays the lead section with SMG fire, casuing another two casualties and some more pins. The section is now down to three men.

On the right, I'm trying to get my Paras to move up and over the hedges without getting withered by LMG fire from a section of grenadiers who have taken up position in the building.

Using the hedge as cover, the Paras wait for smoke to cover their approach and it does!  To counter this, the Germans rush out of the building but can't draw line of sight to the Paras, who charge over the hedge - but, just too far to initiate combat they open fire with their Bren and sten guns!  Masses of lead pour towards the germans in the open, but the Germans manage to avoid taking any casualties, and the first dice of the next round will decide who initiaties combat.

Its British who have the initiative, and the Paras, surprised at the lack of german casualties from their fire, pile in.  I'm going to get first attack, but these Grenadiers are Veterans of the Eastern Front, and they only take two casualties from my attack.  They reply with a devastating 4 kills, and my section are removed from the battle.  The Grenadiers consilidate into the hedgerow and start looking for other targets.  My second section are still covered by the smoke from the mortar, and they bravely charge towards the farm hoping to reach cover.

The grenadiers open fire, but fortunately the Paras only take a pin and the MMG packs up and moves around to get a better position for the next turn.

Over on the Paras left flank, the CO charges forward to engage the enemy commander, and orders his now two man section to 'Snap to Action!' and open fire on the enemy officers.

Unfortunately, the section respond with a raspberry and two fingers and run back towards their own lines!  The CO is lucky my Fubar roll didn't involve them unleashing the fire back at them!  The German CO and his trusty sidekick engage the British Lt in hand to hand to hand fighting, and brush them aside without further ado.

 


The Second section move towards the Farmhouse under the Grenadiers fire.  THe mortar takes a pot shot with HE at the MMG team who have moved out of  cover, and hit it directly first time, destroying the unit.

AShamed of their lack of spirit, the beleagured bren gunner turns round and finishes off the enemy commander, and move up towards the farm.  The Grenadiers jump over the hedge and assault the paras, and after two brutal rounds of combat the Germans lose, and the british are down to two men.  The Mortar team are the only useful unpinned unit left, and they sprint towards the farm as well.

The two battered Para sections manage to hold off the few remaining Germans, and the mortar team move into the farm and take the objective, but with such a high price paid we decide to call it a draw.

 

 

Chain of Command - Para Support!

Continuing the theme of the Para list from Chain of Commands 'Pint Sized Campaign' Kampfgruppe Von Luck, the support options for the British Paras defending the town are quite limited, but I can cover them with most of the figures from my BA British Para list.

In the campaign, the Brits are very short of numbers and support and subsequently would probably struggle to play a battle with many of these options present at the same time, so there may be a crossover of figures within the support lists.

Medic.  Medics work quite differently in CoC, and are only there to protect your Senior Leaders from getting wounds and/or dying.  There is also the option to have another PIAT team if required or a 2" mortar team.

You can also select an extra section as two seperate teams, a Bren team and a rifle team.  If you select both teams, they come as a full section with a Junior Leader with a Sten gun.  This section is not part of your platoon, and are considered to have been picked up.  I like to think of these chaps as having battled through the enemy positions after a bad drop, and picking up a few injuries and souvenirs along the way.

 More expensive support options are available, in the form of a 3 man Flamethrower team.  

 a Forward observer for a 3" Mortar Battery - (the wounded para is there to represent the Senior Leader if he is wounded in a game, he carries the wound for the entire campaign)

and finally the 6 pounder ATG.  The Germans in this campaign have access to a 15cm Self Propelled Howitzer, the Lorraine Schlepper.  This Airborne 6 pounder only comes with 3 crew, so I've borrowed some others from the 75mm Pack Howitzer teams I use for Bolt Action.

Chain of Command - Paras!

So I've been interested in trying out Chain of Command for a while, it seems the Bolt Action scene isn't everyones cup of tea, and people who think perhaps the dumbing down of BA is detrimental often suggest CoC as an alternative.

Gone are tournament style DIY lists of Volksgrendadiers with STG44s and MG42s coming out of their noses, gone are the Banzai Ghurka SMG spam lists and in with what seems to be, on cursorary inspection, a fast flowing and well thought out ruleset for WWII Skirmishing.

Those of us who have BA armies will of course wonder how those lists gravitate over to this new game, and in the main the answer is very well.  As an example, I've picked my 1500 odd point para list  for BA to see what I can squeeze into the scenario based Para lists.  The 4 army lists in the rules book only cover Late War (Normandy and onwards) German, US, British and Soviet equipment, but individual campaign booklets often have their own lists for players to choose from.

The Leadership aspect of the game is such that, you cannot make a list of troops to play a battle with but must rely on a basic platoon plus any support you can muster either based on the strength of your opponent, or on an individual and accurate ToE for that battle and a bit of luck!

Talking of Luck, one of the campaign booklets deals with Kampfgruppe Von Luck's attack on the British Paras at La Bas de Ranville not longer after D-Day, where scattered and battered platoons of the 6th Airborne Division attempt to hold back the 21st Panzer division from the bridges over the Orne.  I'd like to play through this campaign, so wanted to make sure I could cover the basic forces presented here, with an eye to playing it through at some point.

The basic list is a Senior Leader, representing our Platoon commander, and another Senior Leader representing our Platoon Sergeant.

With these in the HQ group come a 2" mortar, a PIAT team and a Sniper.

 Sections are treated a little differently in CoC, as seperate 'Teams' operating as a 3 man Bren Team and a 6 man team with 5 rifles and a Sten gun, all ably lead by a Sergeant (with a Sten Gun)


First Section

Second Section

 

The third section in the Platoon contains the other Bren gun, and is made up of two sections of 4 men with a Bren gun and a Sten, lead by a Sergeant with another Sten.

 This is the basice set up of the Para Platoons in this scenario, all happily covered by my Bolt Action British Para Platoon.

Next up, Support Options!

 

Kingforce - 28mm Desert Churchill Mk IIIs

I've had a Churchill Tank Troop box sitting on the shelf since March last year, ostensibly for some Normandy Tank War fun, however I've dragged out my 8th Army chaps for their first game and thought they could do with a Churchill for some (Heavy) moral support.

When I started looking into the history of the Churchill in North Africa, I remembered the story of Kingforce, 6 Churchill Mk IIIs that took part in the 2nd Battle of El Alamein wearing a rather snazzy two tone camo look.

Following their good showing at El Alamein,  more Churchills took part in battles in Tunisia and performed very well under the circumstances - much more so then they had on the beaches of Dieppe.

The Warlord/Italeri Churchills are very simple to put together, and look excellent.  The body/tracks are consistent across the marks, and it comes with two turrets and a selection of guns.  A slight bit of drilling is required to make a Mk III, and I'll add a couple of little bits on to reference the Desert nature.

Pictures of Kingforce are hard to come across -there is this one that pops up - 

And these two

There is some debate about the actual colours used on the Kingforce tanks., whether it was black over stone grey, or dark chocolate over light brown.

This photograph has been coloured but might well be more representative of an accurate colour scheme.

At El Alamein, Churchill crews suffered due to the large fan positioned beneath the drivers compartment sucking in dust and sand, so some Kingforce tanks have a front skirt of rubber to try and alleviate this problem.  A more permanent solution was found when the Churchills fought in Tunisia.

Embed from Getty Images

Bolt Action AAR - Clash in the Desert!

At the Lenton club, I was fortunate enough to be able to play the main man James' Italians in a game of Bolt Action.

I took 1000 points of Desert Rats based around 1941, with 15 order dice, three small sections, an MMG, a mortar,, a sniper, a 25 pounder, three Bren Carriers and a Crusader Mk 1 tank.  

James had 1000 points of Italians, a couple or three big sections, a mortar, an MMG, and anti tank gun and a M11/39 light tank.

We only played a Meeting Engagement as I was a bit rusty with the rules, and although we made a couple of mistakes (there are no rolls to hit in Hand to Hand for example) it was a good game, a pretty close thing with us both losing around 4 or 5 units.  A nice terrain, great venue and a nice bunch of chaps that I am hoping to play more games with in the future!

Battle of Arras Cont... Germans!

So for the Battle of Arras, and inspired in no small part by this picture

...we need some Germans.

And here they are!

Nothing fancy, those Valiant miniatures take the paint well enough.  Panzer 38s from PSC, the IIC's are from S-Models, Halftrack is a Revell I think and the 251s are from Armourfast.  88 from Zvezda.
 

Bolt Action Shots, - Escalation league

Action Shot!

An actual game of Bolt Action broke out!  This is from May I think, a group of us have a little escalation league thing going.  This was my 1940 Commando Raiders list, snatching a draw from the jaws of victory against Sams (of Down Order fame)  Fallschirmjagers.

It was the scenario where you have to hold objectives, the two bunkers top and bottom of the above pick where the objectives.  It was a close game, the closest I've come to winning a game of Bolt Action!

These two shots were from a game against the most excellent Ian Davies and his German Assault Rifle and General Nasty VolksGrenadiers list.  There was a farm house, and everybody died if I recall correctly.  Fun game though!

These last two shots were my last game in the league (before the football season started and I'm driving children around all over the East Midlands) against Sam Dales Frenchies Foreign Legion list.  I managed to knock out one of his MG trucks with a mortar, but then got bogged down behind those pretty walls.  We were pressed for time and just played the kill! mission, I called it after 5 turns I think as I was getting nowhere.

I think the overall feeling from this commando list I played was that they were much better when asked to deal with an objective, rather than a killy list, so playing  kill! missions didn't really do them any favours, a bit like my Paras in the tournament a few years back.