Cut Price Guadalajara

This Tuesday we had some more Spanish Civil War action, with a game based upon the Italian offensive near Guadalajara, north east of Madrid. This offensive was intended to close the Nationalist encirclement of Madrid and bring an end to the war. It ended in ignominious failure after initial successes as the Republicans were able to switch battle tested International Brigades and tanks from the Jarama front. These were able to move as the Spanish forces under Franco seemed to go into hibernation following their tough offensive, allowing the Republican redeployment which saved the day.

There have been some rule upgrades and "refashioning" since the last game, as I write my notes up. Major modification to the firing system, with the help of Jon F, has got me a slicker process for shooting. I still need to do some work on it, but I'm much happier than I was previously. This evening's game featured Richard and Ian as the Italians, and Jon F as the Republicans.

The Italians had two regiments, each of three battalions - so the size of a British brigade - with an integral battery of mixed field guns and howitzers. They also each had a squadron of tankettes. Off table they had a couple of batteries of heavy howitzers. It's a powerful and fairly nicely balanced force. You'll note that each battalion now requires two trucks to carry it. This is probably fewer than I should be using, but I reckon it's a good balance and it'll stay that way until I go to show and find that bloke who sells 3 Zvezda 1/100 models for £5 so I can pick up a load of Zils and Blitzs.

The Italians have to drive up the table and capture the town in the distance. They are hampered slightly by the fact they have to cross a river, but they've got three crossing points, and some good roads for their mechanised forces. NB The woods to either side don't have walls or fences round them. I just use those to indicate the edge of the area.

The Republicans have a unit of Asaltos and their armoured car in the forward village, and three battalions of Internationalists, one in each wood and one on the town. By the windmill there's a battery of Soixante Quinzes, with an observer in the top of a building in the village. 

The use of Skype sometimes helps in causing a bit of confusion and debate with players on the same side, but Richard and Ian worked out a plan, with Richard going up the right hand road, and Ian having the centre and left. I let them bring on their kit in whatever order they wanted. The Nationalists had the first move, and threw away all they cards from a suit they couldn't use, and passed to Jon. He immediately played a joker, and deployed his armoured reinforcements, which you can just about see top left. The turn then flipped back, and Richard thrust his armour up the road, followed by his artillery. He unlimbered and opened fire on the unit in the right hand wood, as it was just in "open sights" range, and his observer wasn't on yet..

The infantry took a few blast markers, and were pinned (I had forgotten a rule change at this point, and got the number of markers wrong, ignoring the fact they were in cover).

Ian drove on with his armour, and Jon's concealed anti-tank gun in the wood opened fire. I've circled it, as it is quite hard to see. It succeeding in hitting the lead vehicle, but didn't destroy it. Each tank takes three hits to destroy, as they represent more than one vehicle.

To Richard's surprise, Jon now also attacked the lead armour with his Asalto armoured car, closing to within 6" as it only has MGs. The Asaltos are interesting as a police force, as they have integrated MGs and mortars, and are also supported by Bilbao armoured cars. I have some of those made by Minairons on order, but they haven't arrived yet, so another one had to stand in. Alas for Jon it did no damage.

Next up, the observer in the tower, (circled), called in fire from the Soixante Quinze battery onto Richard's guns shelling the wood. Hit first time, and the Italian guns are silenced. Richard now has a motorised battalion on the table, and debusses them. That lonely truck near the bridge is his artillery observer.

Back to Ian, and he trundles his guns on and starts to shell the Asaltos in the village. That's about the end of the first turn.

Second turn, and Richard gets to return fire on the armoured car.

Between them the three CV35s sort it out.

It is all action on Ian's side of the table. So much was going on I missed out on a few pictures. Ian has pushed a motorised column up the road, headed by his armour. They run into Jon's tanks (you can just see the front mudguard of a BT5 at the bottom, next to the wall). The Soviet armour's 45mm guns make short work of the tanks at the head of the column. Ian has debussed, with the aim of not being shot up whilst in his vehicles.

Richard launches a massive Close Assault on the village, supported by armour. The Asaltos suffer heavy casualties, and are expelled from the village. The armour tipped the balance, but took a lot of casualties. This loss has also unseated the Republican observer from his eyrie.

Back to the Republicans, and Jon finishes off the Italian armour. Those cardboard go-karts are no match for proper tanks with turrets.

Richard has brought up more infantry and debussed, and Ian has done the same in the distance. The troops in the far wood have come under fire from off table heavy guns.

What's happening on Ian's flank is clearer from the other side.

Start of the third turn, and the fire on the trees on the left lifts, and Ian charges in. The HMGs inflict devastating damage on the right hand battalion, which stalls. After fierce fighting, the left hand battalion made it to the wood, but was thrown back in disarray.

Undeterred, Ian attacks the other side of the wood.

After a short, sharp, fight, he overruns the position. Hurrah! Telephone Il Duce and tell him of the victory!

In the centre, Ian reorganises one of his battalions, reallocating casualties and deploying into skirmish order to reduce damage from any firing from the tanks.

Advancing through the village, Richard's Italians follow up and Close Assault the Asaltos again. They are defeated and destroyed. The Italians are making progress, but it has been hard and bloody.

Then, just as they think they're getting somewhere you can hear the whine of heavy bomber engines and the Republican airforce, flying from concrete runways and able to take off in the bad weather conditions, plaster the Italian infantry clustered round the bend in the road.

This is where we finished. Jon has launched a counter attack from the town with his remaining fresh battalion, but the Italian off table heavy guns have caught them in the open.

It's a bit nip and tuck. If the Italians can reform, and get their artillery up to anti-tank range they are in with a chance. They still have a fresh battalion in trucks not on the board, and enough bits and pieces to cobble together further attacks. The position wasn't as bleak as they thought it was. The Republican tanks had saved the day, and stopped area being completely overrun, so an accurate game in that respect.

The narrative of the game held together well, and mostly played okay. I still have work to do, however. I need to think further about brigade level assets, which probably need a command stand to make them work right. The game also suffered from a lack of planning in some areas. I was splitting my time between rule writing and scenario development, and the former won out in terms of my attention. 

The lessons from the game in terms of tactics were sound. Standing around in the open in the age of the bolt action rifle and machine gun isn't a strategy for a long life. Targeting artillery correctly, and exploiting its ability to pin the enemy can yield excellent results. Unsupported armour has problems, especially if its protection is about as formidable as a Fiat 500. Whether the game is exciting or not it is delivering a believable SCW outcome, which is what I want.

I really liked getting the Italians out on the table, as they haven't been used with these rules since I finished them. Their reputation from the SCW isn't great, and that is less fair than they deserve. If Franco had kept up pressure of the Jarama then the CTV would probably have completed the encirclement of Madrid, and won the Nationalists a victory. Not that Franco would have wanted Mussolini to have got the credit for winning the war.