Blow the Bridge - another game using this scenario for CoC

I wrote a scenario for Coc last year called Blow the Bridge. I wasn't completely happy with the scenario as written, so I tweaked it a bit to try and rebalance the odds.

Here is the scenario;

It is 1944, the Allies have broken out of France and are advancing towards Germany. The British are advancing across the relatively flat and open countryside of the Netherlands. A reconnaissance group  has been sent in front of a tank squadron to probe the German defences along a canal which is an obstacle to any further advance. Their objective is to capture a bridge over the canal, which will allow armoured units to cross and outflank the main German defensive line.

The British force consists of;

1 rifle platoon (HQ plus three sections)

1 recce section (3 Universal carriers, 1 with a PIAT team and a junior leader and 2 with Bren teams)

1 Cromwell Mk IV tank with a 75mm gun (this will only deploy on the 4^th British phase, representing the advance guard of an armoured squadron)

The defending German force is;

1 standard rifle Zug (HQ plus three sections)

1 tripod-mounted MG42

1 4-man engineer section, carried in a half-track without weapons. Their role is to plant charges, not fight. If fired upon, they count as being in light cover. They will initially deploy from the table edge as a team without a leader and once deployed can only be activated by the German senior leader or on a command dice rolling a 1.

The Germans also have two lengths of barbed wire and two small prepared defensive earthworks. These will be placed after the Patrol Phase.

 The Germans can also call on support from a single SdKfz 250/9 with a 2cm auto cannon and a co-axial MG34 in an open turret. This can only be deployed by using a CoC dice and will enter from the German table edge.

The British objective is to attack the bridge and secure it before the Germans can destroy it.

To win the scenario, the British must have neutralised the engineers, driven back the defenders and have at least one section on the bridge itself.

In the patrol phase the Germans will use three patrol markers and the British will use four (because they are attacking). The British will also have two free patrol moves before the patrol phase properly commences.

The game will be play across the width of the table. The canal will be down the centre of the table, with the bridge placed in the central third of the table. The canal can only be crossed by using the bridge.

The British will start the patrol phase from either the left corner or the right. (roll 1d6 1-3 left, 4-6 right)

The Germans side of the table will be in three sections left, centre and right To see where the Germans will start the patrol phase roll 1d6 (1-2 left, 3-4 centre, 5-6 right)

So, this time the British force is somewhat stronger, having some armour appearing during the game. The Germans have also been slightly strengthened by the addition of the SdKfz 250/9.

In this game, Brian was the defending German leader, while I was commanding the British.

The table was laid out like this. Clearly the RAF has been doing some bombing and there are craters and gutted buildings near the canal. You can see how the Patrol Phase ended in these pictures.

Our Force Morale rolls favoured the Germans, who had a FM of 11, with the British being somewhat less motivated at FM 8. The Germans wasted no time in deploying a section right on the edge of the canal, protected by an earthwork.

Access to the bridge was made difficult by two sections of barbed wire. The engineers began to drive towards the bridge, protected by a tripod-mounted MG42 behind an earthwork in front of the walled farm.

The recce carrier section was the first British unit to appear. The idea was to dash forwards to seize the bridge.

I also deployed a rifle section in the ruins close to the bridge, placing them on Overwatch. I had a JOP placed just behind the ruins, which I hoped would let me get troops forward quickly.

I got another section on the table, moving them tactically in support of the carriers towards the bridge.

The Germans by the canal began to open fire on the section I had stationed in the ruined buildings, causing both shock and casualties. Over time, this would be a real problem for me.

The second section closed on the bridge, but was unable to cross because of the wire. The carrier teams dismounted, leaving the drivers in the vehicles. The rifle section on Overwatch fired at the engineer half-track, causing enough shock to make it withdraw.  Unhappily, this drew a lot of fire from the Germans in response, inflicting both shock and casualties.

The Germans were also deploying across the canal, with a section in the trees near the walled farm. My rifle section in the ruins was having big problems from accurate fire from two directions, with the MG42s causing many casualties, finally causing the few survivors to flee. This caused my FM to drop to 6. Luckily, by this point, a tank from the lead troop of the advancing squadron made an appearance. I hoped that this would turn the fight to my advantage. So far, the engineers hadn't managed to start working. I had also deployed my remaining rifle section, close to where the other one had fled, but out of sight of the Germans. The appearance of the tank led to the withdrawal of the German engineer section. 

To the right of the bridge, the tripod MG42 was hitting the recce section, with extra fire coming from a German section in the trees closer to the bridge. Luckily, my Senior Leader had also arrived with the platoon 2" mortar. Smoke time!

The smoke enabled the recce sections to get back on board their carriers and they drove forward over the wire obstacles (shown here by them being removed from the road). The Cromwell was also firing HE at the Germans, with a liberal dose of co-axial MG fire too. This was beginning to weaken the defenders, but I was worried about Panzerfausts and the even more nasty Panzerschreck. The armour of the carriers proved to be an impermeable barrier to the MG42, which was firing at the recce section now holding the bridge.

The SdKfz 250/9 now appeared. This was more of a problem, as its 2cm autocannon was capable of defeating the weak carrier armour. Luckily the Cromwell's commander was able to direct fire at the half-track and drive it off with shock and a wounded commander.

Another cross-canal firefight developed and my rifle section took up station in the ruined buildings. Combined with HE and MG fire from the Cromwell, this section was much more successful and the Germans were suffering losses now, with shock building up too.

Things were now looking pretty impossible for the defenders. The British had the recce carriers on the bridge, with a rifle section just behind and a Cromwell tank ready to blast anything that might appear from the walled farm, especially the half-track full of engineers, so the Germans pulled back, leaving the British in control of the bridge.

Well, this time the scenario delivered a British win, mainly because of the armour.

I am still not fully happy with the scenario. The tweaks I've made seem to have shifted the balance towards the attackers, but possibly too much so. I have thought about this again, and perhaps the answer might be to give the Germans a second tripod MG42 or maybe a second Panzerschreck? 

Alternately, perhaps the answer might be to leave the forces the same but play the game along the length of the table, with the canal closer to the German end, leaving the British with more ground to cover? In that scenario, the Germans could deploy in depth, forcing the British to fight along a longer approach to the bridge, with more opportunities to delay them until the engineers could place charges and blow the bridge. Currently, I like this idea better.