Despite the initial attraction, I just could not get into this battle. It sat on the table for several days, after which I packed it all away - maybe I was just not in the mood!
Douglas Miniatures Logo
Friday, 6 July 2018
Operation Goodwood - Abandoned
I have always wanted to play a game that represents one of the big WW2 battles and have had an enduring interest in OP GOODWOOD fought after D Day in 1944. Looking on line, I found the Memoir '44 game that attempts to simulate this action. So I set about converting the M '44 map to my wargame table. I looked at 20mm figures to start with, but this just did not look right, and so I set it up using 1/300 models. This is the battlefield as laid out, the allies are on the right, Germans on the left. The central village representing the town of Cagney, Caen would be off the table at the top:
The view from the other (Caen) end:
Having set it all up I began to play, but after the initial moves I felt that I just wasn't getting the feel of such a big operation. The scenario had no allied artillery in play - yet the allies deployed a huge amount, and two Corps worth of armour and infantry were represented by just 6 units of tanks and a similar number of infantry on the British side. This means that three models represent roughly a brigade and one model a regiment/battalion.
Despite the initial attraction, I just could not get into this battle. It sat on the table for several days, after which I packed it all away - maybe I was just not in the mood!
Despite the initial attraction, I just could not get into this battle. It sat on the table for several days, after which I packed it all away - maybe I was just not in the mood!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Plan, setup, envision, and then pack away; this has happened to me as well during solo play. Sometimes, I can envision how the game will likely play and decide there is no need to actually play!
ReplyDeleteAgreed, but this game just did not feel right when it was set up; however, I would like another crack at Goodwood, but not this particular scenario.
DeleteBob, I think you are likely falling victim to the heat :-)
ReplyDeleteMaybe doing a Random events chart that includes all the bits of history that you think are missing and then at the start of every turn or whenever certain type cards are played, roll against the table and implement.
an interesting thought, although in this case it seemed like a couple of battalions posing as a couple of Corps. I think with some mods this scenario could work, perhaps using markers rather tahn figures?
DeleteI have trouble translating such big actions to the table top. To be able to see and control such a large force over such a large area puts you at such a high level of command that you really shouldn't be doing anything but setting things in motion, getting reports, and committing reserves. (hmm multi-player game).
ReplyDeleteI'd be tempted to break it down into a series of smaller games.
Ross, your last comment does sound attractive - fight a big action in a series of small bites, rather like a mini campaign. The outcome of each bite determines the odds for the next action.
DeleteI've done Goodwood at two levels, one various Tactical actions at battalion and brigade level (Memoir 44 is good for these). IveI also done the entire battle at an operational level, I did just the Armoured divisions with battalion stands using Megablitz, and I did the whole thibg including the Canadians with brigade sized stands using my homegrown Panzer gruppe rules. The latter was played on a square grid at approx two miles per square.
DeleteApart from tge breakthrough, the mass of allied artillery was irrelevant as it was positioned so far back the attackers rapidly outran it.
ReplyDeleteThat's interesting and maybe why it is missing from the scenario. What about air power?
DeleteBob, you must be a hard man to please! But seriously, I liked the look of your set-up, and made a rough sketch of the scenario. It sure caught my interest at any rate! Tonight I played it solo as Memoir 44 game.
ReplyDeleteInteresting action in its way. Very early in the piece the Germans drew an 'Air Power' card. Bombed several tank units with some success. But the Allies had a 'Counter-attack' card, and visited a retribution that did some hurt to the 'SS' panzers near Frenouville.
Early infantry attacks swiftly cleared Emieville and Cagny, and the general advance in the centre drew up before the wooded country between Frenouville and Grentheville, where four tank and two infantry units came under fire from German infantry in the woods (most of the Cagny garrison had escaped thereto, having received a heck of a lot of flags in the earlier action). Then came panzer counter-attacks from both flanks. German infantry had seized an early moment to occupy Gretheville betimes, which tended to stymie the Allied advance on the right. At the end of the action, that unit was still in the town, though much reduced, facing 3 Allied units.
Overall the key was the German artillery, which I used to prepare powerful armoured attacks that three times led to overruns and heavy Allied losses. In the end the Allies found themselves in a killing ground between the woods, Cagby and Gretheville. The Germans did not get off lightly, not one armoured unit survived the battle, but it was still a defensive success: Germans 6 Allies 4.
Now, I enjoyed that game, but I do agree in one particular: the want of Allied artillery. On the other hand, how much should there be, and where should it be deployed? In the first two rows, it won't be very effective, except against those two towns on the left..
There was one difference in I made to the original scenario: I gave the Germans just 4 cards - quite accidental, I simply guessed the Allies would get 5 and the Germans one fewer.
The thought occurred to me, though, that instead of artillery for the Allies, the German garrisons of Emieville and Cagny should be given just 3 figures, to represent damage taken from the preparatory barrage. Alternatively, the Allies should get an artillery unit on each of the black squares along the base line. Some thoughts anyhow...
Meanwhile, I am thinking of developing a similar scenario to be played on my 4-foot-square hex-board...
Thanks for the very full battle report of this action. It appears to be quite a nicely balanced game. Perhaps I was a little too hasty in deciding to abandon the game. Now that I have read your report I might take another look at this scenario.
Delete