Ridge Line Reconnaissance

Kevin White
(Originally Published in Lone Warrior 186)

This scenario is set in World War 2, but would easily transfer to any other period.

Situation
You command a small reconnaissance force consisting of one infantry battalion (3 rifle companies, 1
support company, 1 HQ company) and a recce squadron (2 Daimler armoured cars, 2
Humber armoured cars).

The army is pushing into enemy territory and has made significant gains. Your task is
to recce a long low wooded ridge line which dominates a route that your main force has
to pass in order to continue the advance (see diagram). You must clear the route of any
enemy forces. The main force is not far behind you.

Intelligence
Because your force is moving fairly quickly the intelligence picture is a little hazy.
You know that there will definitely be some opposition, but exactly what lies before
you is unknown. It could be just a small infantry force. There may be some armour in
support and there may also be some anti-tank guns.

Setting up
In this scenario I took the allied side consisting of an American infantry battalion and a
British recce squadron. I split the squadron in half and sent two armoured cars up the
left hand side of the table whilst the other two scouted the right hand side. The infantry
were tasked with scouting the ridge itself.

I set up the table and put my forces on the table and then thought about where the enemy might be and
what their force may consist of.

I had three options for choosing the enemy forces, using a mix of counters, some blank and some marked
with an X.

Option 1 10 units and 5 blanks

Option 2 8 units and 7 blanks
Option 3 5 units and 10 blanks

Decide which option you would like and put the correct counter mix into a cup and mix thoroughly.
Roll two six sided dice and draw that number of counters from the cup and place them on the table where
you think the enemy forces may be deployed. Discard any blanks. At this stage all you have on the table
are your forces and a number of counters representing the enemy.

I decided that my troops could spot and attempt to identify the enemy at a range of half the width of my
table (two feet), so no enemy forces would be revealed until my guys came within that range and
successfully spotted them. Once they were spotted I checked the Enemy Force Table and placed the
relevant troops on the table. Immediately they are placed on the table they may take a turn (move and/or
fire).
Enemy Forces (roll 1D10)
1 1 Tiger Tank
2 1 Rifle Company
3 1 Support Company
4 1 Recce Squadron
5 1 Tiger Tank
6 1 Rifle Company
7 1 Support Company
8 1 Anti-tank Gun
9 1 Rifle Company
10 1 Support Company
The orders for the enemy are very straightforward. Their task is to delay you and cause as much damage
as possible whilst taking minimal casualties themselves (shoot and scoot).

After five turns you may receive some reinforcements. This represents the beginnings of your main body
entering the table. Roll 1D6 to see how many units are arriving. Once you know how many units are
coming roll again on the following table (1D10) and place them on the start line.

Reinforcement Table
1 1 Sherman Tank
2 1 Rifle Company
3 1 Support Company
4 1 Anti-tank Gun
5 1 Sherman Tank
6 1 Rifle Company
7 1 Support Company
8 1 Anti-tank Gun
9 1 Rifle Company
10 1 Support Company

How the game played

I chose Option 1 for my counter mix and ended up with seven enemy units on the table, three rifle
companies, two support companies and two Tiger tanks. The two Humber armoured cars thundered along
the left hand side of the ridge and suffered no damage, but failed to spot an infantry support company
(mortars and machine guns) on their side of the ridge. This proved costly for one of my rifle companies
later in the game. The Daimler armoured cars were unlucky enough to spot two Tiger tanks on their side
of the ridge. One of the armoured cars was disabled and abandoned by its crew after receiving very
accurate fire from one of the Tigers and the other just couldnt find a way forward (consistently failing
morale tests).

The infantry were making slow progress along the ridge, eventually wiping out one infantry company and
forcing the rest of the opposing infantry to start pulling back, but at the cost of losing one of their own
rifle companies.

After five turns I was looking forward to receiving my reinforcements. I rolled a 1! Fortunately I
received a Sherman tank and set it off along the right hand side of the table to counter the Tigers. My
gunner was on good form causing damage to both the Tigers before they could reply. As they started to
withdraw I decided to call an end to the game.

I counted it a small victory for the allies. Both sides had suffered a similar amount of casualties and
damage, but my forces were still advancing towards the opposing table edge, albeit slowly. Had the
Tigers made a stand, it would have been a very different game.

It was a good game that played out in about three hours. It has lots of potential to be replayed with
different force options on both sides; and as we noted at the beginning it could also transfer to any other
period.