Interesting beginning.
First off, we have advanced to our initial locations and haven’t spotted any Russians. There was a bit of a traffic jam that slowed down the half-tracks up north (which was my fault for bunching them too closely in the set-up), but given the terrain it won’t be an issue getting them aligned quickly and how the pioneers would like them. The next jump of movement will be significant, I think, so be clear about your intentions.
North:
From pskov’s tank:
Two of
sachmo71’s armored cars have good hull-down viewpoints on the small hills near the road and haven’t seen anything. It
might be worthwhile keeping watch from these two spots for another minute.
Center:
Views from armored cars:
Then there’s the south. The good news: most elements advanced to their targeted terrain features and are ready for the next advance. The bad news: the Russians dropped a pre-plotted artillery barrage on our jump-off spot in the wheat field. Poor Blade had two of his three squads get clobbered (they are in command range of DataKing, who may want to stick around to get them settled down before moving up).
A nasty surprise!
We suffered no other casualties or damage, however, which is fortunate – it was a heavy batch o’ hurt.
It’s likely that the Soviets recognized the attractiveness of this area as a jump-off point and nailed it for that reason, but it’s also possible that they have a hidden artillery spotter somewhere who can see us.
South:
Some views from the lead elements:
Please give me your movement instructions. Remember the different types of movement, and that vehicles cannot go through woods. Ask any questions!