1405-1410 hrsThe initial German shelling of the Knoll comes to a close, and the dust and smoke begins to settle. Things are still very quiet on our left flank, with the only activity being B Co continuing to move into the woods. They are eventually adequately spread throughout the woods and begin to dig in for whatever may come.
The North Slope is also quiet. However, that quiet is shattered when a couple of artillery spotting rounds fall into an empty wheat field just north of the slope. A scout team arrived at the bocage that borders the field no more than a minute before the two spotting rounds hit, much to their surprise. The scouts observe where the rounds impact, and it appears the Germans may be targeting a cluster of farm houses and barns just to the east of the wheat field. None of our troops occupy those buildings, however.
The bulk of the action is still happening on our right flank near Vimoutiers Road. Grykiel, the leader and remaining member of the sniper team, continued to be pinned by intense MG and rifle fire from the Germans. He hugged the ground as close as he could, but momentarily looked up to peek through a gap in the low bocage. He froze. Just on the other side of the bocage lay a German soldier.
Their eyes locked for an instant. The German, already having his weapon shouldered, fired a burst from his MP44.
Unable to get his rifle up in time, Grykiel was severely wounded when the burst hit him.
With both members of the sniper team wounded, and the Germans obviously occupying the bocage, the teams that were sent to help the snipers change their plans. One team dashes across the orchards and fields in front of the Germans and takes up a position in a wheat field, allowing them to confront any Germans that may try to sneak along the edge of the map.
The Vickers team comes under fire as they reach the position where they were supposed to set up their MG.
Realizing that doing so would be bad for their health, they fall back to the south and hope the Germans believe that there are defensive positions in that area. They decide to set up in a copse of trees giving them a good field of fire that covers the edge of the map and portions of Vimoutiers Road.
Meanwhile, the scout team that was left behind to watch the center portion of our right flank engages in a deadly game of whack-a-mole with German mortar fire. Forced to leave their initial observation post due to incoming mortar rounds, they arrive at a new position 50 meters forward of their first one. They have no time to settle in, however. Within minutes, spotting rounds begin to hit nearby.
Waiting until the last possible second in order to keep the German mortar crews interested, they finally run to a new position 100 meters to the northwest as mortar rounds impact right on their heels. While they know what they're doing is crazy, they also know they're causing the Germans to waste their mortar rounds.
The scout team finds a good position to observe from, and within seconds they spot the hulking form of...something. A tank, perhaps? The leader takes out his binoculars and focuses in on the object. He stops breathing momentarily as he realizes what he sees. A Panther.
Situation at 1410 hrs:
All of our troops are in position. A Co has occupied the Vimoutiers Road objective, and B Co has occupied the woods to the south of the Knoll. Scout teams are far enough out to observe what the Germans are up to. All armor is in their designated positions, and we also know that the Germans brought some Panthers along with them. Now to kill the cats.
