For the third mission in the campaign we are going on the offensive! After absorbing the initial East German attack we are going to push back to the east of Hanover..
We start out in HOTEL and GOLF with a FOB (resupply/repair) in GOLF. With 866 "points" to spend, and having upgraded many of the possible selections, I'm feeling pretty confident at this point. Instructions are to secure CHARLIE with optional secondary objectives of securing ALPHA and BRAVO on the flanks...
Immediately GOLF comes under attack by wave after wave of airborne troops ferried in by helicopter. I quickly get smart enough to send some anti-aircraft units and for the duration of this mission the AAA does an awesome job of shooting down every attempted insertion...
The NVA also try some light attacks directed toward GOLF, but a platoon of Leopards is more than enough to stave them off. The close proximity of the FOB is helpful since you can back out units and have them repaired fairly expeditiously...
I also embedded Jupiter support vehicles in a nearby forest to help rearm and refuel the defenders around GOLF...
As I build up my forces of tanks and prepare to roll I also utilize a couple Gazelle helicopters which provide excellent recon capability. Here they identify enemy armor that is sitting in the treeline on the plateau that is objective ALPHA...
Meanwhile, back over at GOLF, an enemy helicopter that is shot down lands right next to the FOB and sets a brush fire that turns into quite the conflagration. I move my units out of harms way and hope the FOB doesn't burn down..
Getting ready for the push on ALPHA I fuel up and arm up the tanks..
The high ground of ALPHA is evident to the right of the screen. I try to keep my tanks in the treeline to get them close enough to snipe at the defenders on the plateau. A platoon of T-55s comes screaming down the road and it is a turkey shoot down the alley as each is killed in order..
When things settle down a bit I order a platoon of Leos across the field to engage the defenders in the treeline while I bring in another platoon of Chieftains from another direction straight up the road and onto the plateau using the "MOVE FAST" command. It works brilliantly and in a few minutes we've secured ALPHA and the enemy FOB on top (we now get to use it). I put tanks on the perimeter woodline to guard against a counter attack.
I make what might be a critical error however and forget for a long time to move a command vehicle up onto the plateau to actually officially seize it. Without a command unit, the sector shows in limbo which means you don't get some point multipliers or something. Later I realize what I've done and I rush a command vehicle up there and the sector becomes ours.
Meanwhile, at GOLF the AAA continues to hold its own as more heli-borne assault squads attempt to land..
Then, inexplicably, things go to hell. The NVA must have been sitting on reserves, and I think I was moving my forces far, far too slow. Despite thinking I have good momentum, I'm soon countered by enemy tanks that drive up onto the plateau and engage in a close range knife fight. My tanks quickly get decimated and I can't generate enough new ones to make a significant difference. As well, enemy armor and mounted infantry are coming down directly down the center and I'm having to split my remaining forces to play defense instead of offense. I watch my points dwindle rapidly and soon I know I'm getting routed. You can use your points to reinforce units, but there is a hard limit on how many vehicles of any one type you can generate with those points. I eventually run out of heavy armor and its down to just infantry fighting vehicles and dismounted infantry.
I lose my initial command point when an APC gets blown up and I'm forced to pull a command vehicle from GOLF all the way across the map to reassert control of the home sector (HOTEL). The jeep makes its way across the map successfully. Without a command vehicle in your starting sector you cannot use your points to call up reserve forces. It's a bit of rearranging the chairs on the deck of the Titanic though since I'm only left with infantry to spawn into the battle and they are just going into the meat grinder as NVA forces converge from three points of the compass..
The infantry in the woods does an admirable job of delaying the inevitable, but it is pretty sick to watch them getting blasted...
After three hours (all played in real time!), the final push is on and the NVA smell victory. They are within striking distance of my final command vehicle and HOTEL falls within minutes...
It's all over with a defeat, so I'll have to replay the mission. I know my playing style does not suit the requirements of the game. One of the carrots in the mission description is added points for finishing with 20 minutes - so it is possible to just push forces forward in a competent fashion and win this scenario handily. Competence isn't one of my strong points with the game however and my 3 hour + strategy was obviously a losing one. Despite accumulating over 4500 points (that is a lot) the end result is a mission fail. All of that said though..it was a great emotional rollercoaster..and fun gameplay. Things turned sour quickly and it was pretty humbling to go from feeling pretty good about the situation to resigned to defeat.
Patton, I am not.
BeachAV8R
Learning slowly! I did notice that 20-minute goal, I might replay the scenario to see if I can do that. I'm sure it's do-able, but with more losses along the way. I took about 43 minutes of game time, but that's with securing everything and leapfrogging and resupply even after firing only 5 shots.
Still trying to figure out the campaigns, but I can tell this one is a real keeper. 