The Soviet Combat Recon Patrol

 So over the next couple of weeks I've decided to play a bunch of small games to test out a few rules and concepts.  These will all involve various NATO reconnaissance units being used as a screen or covering force, well in advance of the main NATO line.  Here's an example of a US Recce Screen. 

In this case it consists of 4 Bradly CFVs, each with two dismounts.  There is a Stinger Team mounted in a HMMWV and off-table support from a M106. 

The mission of the NATO force will be to engage a Soviet Combat Reconnaissance Patrol - or CRP as I'll now refer to it.  My first assumption for the mission is that the CRP has come from a Soviet Motor Rifle Division/Regiment.  

So as I understand it, a Soviet Division has a Recon Battalion – which has a HQ and Support Company, a Light Recon Company, 2 Heavy Recon Companies and a Radio/Radar Recon Company.  I believe it is that their role is to recon well in advance of the division.  For the purposes of what I'm doing, they are well past my tabletop - either wandering about in NATO rear areas, or being beaten up close to the actual Forward Line of NATO troops.

At the Regimental level there is a Recon Company which has an HQ, BRDM Platoon, Motorcycle section and a BMP-2 platoon.  My understanding is that their role is to recon well in advance of the regiment up to 5-20km ahead of them.

As the regiment advances towards contact, lets say they try and run down two parallel routes with a Motor Rifle battalion advancing down each route and the third MR battalion and tank battalion behind ready to follow the MR battalion that is having the most success.

Each advancing battalion splits into at least 3 components.  Furthest back would be main body of the battalion.  From the main body they would split off a company plus other battalion/regimental assets (including a 4 vehicle tank platoon some arty support like a section of 3 2S1 or 120mm mortars, air defence like a ZSU-23-4 and a SA-9) to form the Forward Security Element (FSE) or in British Army terminology, the Advanced Guard.  

From the FSE they would split off the Combat Recon Patrol (CRP).  This would primarily be a platoon of MR Infantry in BMPs or BTRs and a tank from the platoon attached to the FSE, plus other assets as determined by the mission and what the commander agrees to release – examples include some kind of recon engineer support to check bridges, culverts etc,  perhaps some chemical recon like a NBC BRDM, artillery FO team etc.  The CRP can be up to 10km ahead of the FSE which is 3-5km ahead of the main body.  Other CRPs can be split from the main body to provide flank security as required.  This is my core CRP:

To that I've decided to add some engineers in a BTR-80, an NBC BRDM-2 RKhB and a MTU-55 Bridgelayer.

So the CRP has one platoon of motor rifle infantry from say Company A and the FSE has the other two MR platoons that make up Company A plus the Company HQ.  The Main body has MR Company B and MR Company C.

Different documents I've looked at describe the CRP differently – I assume because apart from the core MR infantry platoon everything else is adjustable according to what the Battalion Commander thinks is required, based on whatever intel he’s received from his Regiment’s Recon Company and whatever the division has willing to pass onto him from their recce!

So that's a brief simplistic (best I could do) explanation of the CRP.  For the purposes of the exercise I'll now show you the table.  Firstly from the CRP table edge:

For the purposes of the game the pontoon bridge is not there.  It is however a previously reconnoitred spot that the commander has designated for the MTU-55 to lay the bridge.  The river is considered deep and the banks to steep for vehicles in the water to climb.  The Soviet aim is to exit the opposite table edge.  They start the game with just the MR Platoon on the table the rest are available from the start of turn 2.  The Soviets have just D3+1 orders per turn for this size game.

Here's a beauty shot of the river and bridges:

Remembering the pontoon bridge is a figment of your imagination!

Here's the end that NATO has to defend:

They will start the game with 2 Bradleys anywhere on the table from the river to the NATO table edge.  They are in contact with the off-table mortar from the first turn and will generally start the game on the Ambush Fire order.  The rest of their force is available as reinforcements the turn after the shooting starts on a D6 roll.

I didn't use any objectives for this game, but may change that in the future.

Next post - the first attempt at the game.

Thanks

Richard