Bottleneck at Onhaye - France ´40

From SC: France ´40: The ghost division

This weekend we played the second game in France ´40 . the Ghost Division. For this scenario Magnus had painted some lovely armor for his german, Panzer II and Panzer 38(t) and I had tried to do a french 47 cm AT gun, a model that no one does in 1:56 scale.

As the tanks started to come across the Meuse at the small bridgehead elements of the 7th infantry regiment was tasked with clearing a way for the german panzer through the difficult terrain at Onhaye. A miscommunication between Rommel and the regiment leader colonel Bismarck, lead to Rommel committing 30 tanks to the engagement at Onhaye. The french forces of 5th infantry division just had to hold their ground for a short while until the 1st armoured division would be available.


The objective was for the germans to get one AFV or 10 infantry of the western edge in 10 turns.

I had:

• One command squad with 5 man
• One infantry unit with 12 men
• One 47mm sa mle 1937
• One mortar with observer

Magnus had:

• Two infantry units with 10 men each with trucks
• One machinegun with a kübelwagen
• One panzer 38(t)

I started with my big infantry unit on my north flank, to hinder the germans to sneak passed my in the dense forest. In the center I hid my AT gun protected by my lieutenant and his squad. The south flank and the more open part of the battlefield was "protected" by the mortar.

Magnus put the infantry on the north flank to use the trees for cover during his advance. He was both unlucky and lucky in his rolls for his armored thrust. He didn't receive any extra tanks (even though he could modify his roll on account from his last victory), but the one he did get arrived early in the battle. He committed the panzer 38(t) carefully in the beginning, not to expose it to the hidden anti tank gun hidden in the wooded are in the middle of the battlefield. Soon its machine guns had annihilated the command squad. Meanwhile the germans machine guns in the infantry squad had withered down the french riflemen on the northern flank, which tried to make tactical withdrawl but was cut down. The french mortar had a good opportunity early in the battle to but a stop to the german advance, but after a great hit I didn't kill any germans and rolled just one PIN.

As the germans began their advance through the forest the panzer took a chance and rolled out of the eastern woods in front of the 47 mm, just to get destroyed seconds later by a well placed shoot.  But the battle was still slipping through my hands as the germans advanced to the objective. I quickly redeployed both my AT gun and my mortar, the AT guns was cut down in a one volley from a germans squad. I suppose the french soldiers hadn't learned to use they gun shield.

My last chance was to pin down one squad so that it could leave the battlefield. Through a series of well placed mortar rounds I did manage to kill of the medium machine gun crew, but the other two squads was to well drilled to let some close explosions stop them from achieving their goal.

Comments on the scenario for Bolt action

• We reduced the number of tanks just by the germans (halved their numbers), we did the same with the number of AFV needed to complete the objective.
• Artillery from batteries as detailed in many Skirmish campaign need some adjustment to conform to Bolt action rules, we decided to take away the percentage and instead use the rules for Forward observer as detailed in the Bolt action rules.
• The scenario is really in the germans favour, to make the scenario more "even" we suggest to add maybe another infantry unit for the french.