Team Yankee Battle Report: Flanking Attack

A couple weeks back we played the third and final scenario in the campaign contained in the "Leopard" expansion for Team Yankee. The first two games had not played out spectacularly for the West Germans but they had been close-run and we were looking forward to a good finale to the campaign. We posted a report on the first one, "At the Forward Edge of the Battle" (must have been translated direct from the German, eh?)

The scenario was called "Flanking Attack" and involved the Germans catching a Soviet battalion mostly unaware, laagered in the box at centre-upper left. The German objective was to hold one of the two markers - one just visible above the trees at centre left, the other in the treeline at top left. The Germans deploy in the box at top centre right, with reserves coming on the table at bottom centre of photo, along the long edge.

The West Germans - three Leopard platoons and HQ, Panzergrenadier platoon with three Marders, and two BO-105 attack helicopters.

Soviet forces - yikes!! Look at all the T-72s!!! Fortunately they all start bailed out except for the Carnation battery.

Commissar Greg surveys the battlefield.

Soviet deployment. As noted, all vehicles are bailed except the Carnation SP guns at top left. Leopards have deployed at top right, headed straight at the Soviets.

"Da, it is good. Decadent Western Leopards are no match for Soviet steel."

Here come the Leopards...

And here's what they're facing...

Contact made! Leopards light up the BMPs along the irrigation ditch line. T-72s enter action at top right.

T-72s get some flanking shots in on the lead Leopard. Ouch!

Meanwhile, the T-72 crews begin to mount up and move out.

Bailed Leo in the background - first Leo platoon swings to face the main threat while second platoon lines up shots through the woodline.

This was a pretty good roll but I can't for the life of me remember what it was for!!

Over to the southern front - the last Leo platoon and Marders have come through from reserve and rolled up to the objective.

Milans and 120mm Rheinmetall guns blaze away and light up the T-72s ... but there are too many, too close to the objective.

One turn too late with the big push. Swamped by numbers, the West Germans prepare to sell their lives dearly in defence of their fatherland!

End of game - The West Germans came close to securing the objective (just visible at short table edge centre top left) but are overwhelmed by Soviet numbers...

This was a fun game with lots of back and forth swings. At the beginning the Leopards rolled across lighting up BMPs and T-72s at will, but as the Soviets started to remount their vehicles but by mid-game the Soviets had awoken and were making things tough for the Bundeswehr. The last two turns in particular were a bit of a slog with every Soviet hit on a Leopard causing a distinct wince... Even one tank knocked out created significant problems in German morale - the two- and three-tank platoons are quite fragile!

In the end the German reserves came on just a turn too late. If they could have held the objective while the Soviets were still mostly bailed out, they could have gotten the win. As it was, a few more gun tubes in the right spot might've made the difference but there were just too many Soviets!