Destroy the Bridge/Capture the Bridge Mission

NATO Situation Report

The Soviets have launched across the Inner German Border into your divisional area.  Your battlegroup is part of a Covering Force that is pushing out to engage the Soviets and force them to slow down, to make time for the units to your rear to pull into their prepared defensive positions.  Ahead of you there is a small recce force, which has already been in combat with the Soviets.  You have been ordered forward to the front edge of a small village to the east of a significant canal (or river).  The village has three bridges over the canal, each of which is being protected by a small Combat Team from your parent Battalion.

You are to move over your assigned bridge and through the village and engage any enemy units to you front.  While you do so, be prepared for the Recce screen to collapse through your position and cross the bridge.  A unit of Combat Engineers will be preparing the bridge for destruction.  It will take 7 complete turns for them to be finished.  You must then successfully withdraw your force over the bridge before Soviet forces can cross.  You must stop all Soviet forces from crossing the canal.

Soviet Situation Report

After a period of increase tensions, and continuing provocation of the NATO Imperialists, the Politburo has wisely decided to pre-empt the inevitable NATO attack and go on the offensive first.  You division has crossed the Inner German Border and is leading the fight into the Capitalist heartland.

Your battlegroup is part of a Forward Detachment rushing to capture as many bridges as it can over the Canal.  Ahead of you lies the Northern edge of a small village, which lies to the east of the Canal.  The village is currently being surveilled by our recce elements.  Intel predicts that NATO is likely to defend this area only until it is able to destroy the bridges.  While this will not stop our advance, it may slow our forces down and create targetable bottle necks at the surviving bridges and force our combat engineers to conduct a deliberate river-crossing operation.  All this will slow the division down and all NATO to better dig in ahead of us.

You must defeat the NATO covering force and capture the bridge as quickly as possible as it will take NATO engineers 7 turns to prepare the bridge for destruction.

Terrain

The photographs below show a sample view of the table showing the road network and the village.

All terrain should be set up in a similar mutually agreeable fashion.

Victory

• If NATO forces the Soviets to exceed their Battle Rating, NATO wins
• If all remaining NATO forces have withdrawn off the table via the road to the bridge, by the end of NATO turn 8 the bridge can be considered blown.  If there are no Soviet forces within 10” of the table edge of the road to the bridge, when the bridge is blown – NATO wins.
• If any Soviet AFV exits the table on the road to the bridge before NATO turn 8 – the Soviets win.

Deployment

1.         Determine Table Edges

The canal table edge is the NATO table edge.  The Soviets enter the table from the opposite table edge.

2.         Additional Fire Support

Note the location and timing if required of any Pre-Registered Targets, Timed Strikes or Timed Air Strikes.

3.         Place Objectives

There is only 1 objective – the table edge where road leads to the bridge.

4.         Weather Conditions

Roll a D6.  On a 1, it is raining and miserable.  Only All-Weather air assets can fly in this weather.  Any other air assets do not arrive. 

5.          Place Defending Forces

The NATO player places all his Reconnaissance units anywhere in his half of the table, but not within 10” of the table centre line.  He may place the West German police unit anywhere within the boundaries of the small village.  The NATO player can also place up to 2 choices from his Defence choices from his list on the table.  All his other units are reinforcements.

6.         Place Attacking Forces

The Soviet player places all his Reconnaissance units anywhere in his half of the table, but not within 10” of the table centre line.  All his other units are reinforcements.

7.         Scout Battle Phase

Roll a D6.  For this number of turns only the Reconnaissance units (and the Police unit) will be on the table.  At the end of the scout battle phase, both sides reinforcements will start to arrive.  Note – the scout battle phase does not count towards the turns needed to prepare the explosives on the bridge.

8.         First Turn

The Soviet player has the first turn.

9.         Reinforcements

After the Scout Battle Phase is complete, D6 units, freely chosen by the commander from his battlegroup arrive as reinforcements.  The Soviet player may place these on the Soviet table edge and they can then be given orders from there as normal.

The NATO player must place them on the table on the road from the bridge and they can be given orders from there as normal.

Players continue to roll for reinforcements at the start of each of their subsequent turns until their entire battlegroup is on the table.

NATO Player Special Rules

The NATO player may choose to deploy up to 2 Defences from his army list in the game.

The NATO player must have the following unit as part of his list.

Bundesgrenschutz Squad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  35 pts   3-i BR

Unit Composition:          

1 Bundesgrenschutz Rifle Squad – 5 men with G3 assault rifles and 1 Pzf44

1 Bundesgrenschutz GPMG Team – 3 men with a MG3 GPMG

Soviet Player Special Rules

The Soviet player may not place a Pre-Registered Target, Timed Strikes or Timed Air Strikes within 15” of the bridge exit off the table.  Soviet High Command want the bridge captured, not destroyed!

The Soviet player may take a 122mm Timed Strike at no points cost, in addition to his standard army list.