Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee
With Andrew Duncan

Flamescon 2018 was another typically very well run event by Greg and Gavin held at an Excellent venue in the Onehunga RSA with plenty of space. I took a British force— well, like most British armies of the last 200 or so years, mainly Scottish and Irish with a few English officers.

The force design allowed me to use nearly all the models I have for the British.  By accident rather than design they worked very well together:

  • Chieftains and Milan for the big stuff
  • Scorpions and Scimitars for Spearhead, speed and countering light AFVs
  • Rapier for air defence
  • FV432 mortars for smoke and pinning
  • Mechanised infantry to hold/take ground with FV432s for MGs on exposed troops and pinning.

Running three formations meant a risk of some units running away, but extra chances to roll 2+ for Blitz or 3+ for Follow Me. I did seem to roll a lot of 1s for these but good rolls elsewhere made up for it.

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

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The Scorpion and Scimitar are great to play with.  God knows what they were like to maintain in real life. I think they had the Jaguar XK6 4.2 litre straight six engine from 1948. I had a Jaguar XJ 6 in the latter decades of last century too. What a nightmare to work on. Lovely runner when it was going though. Only things I never had any problems with on it were the glass and roof lining.

I had a good go with the British last year but mainly took a defensive posture. This year I went full out attack. I think Team Yankee and Flames Version 4 suits aggressive play whatever mission posture you end up with. Down with Sitzkrieg!

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

Game One: Wayne Turner's West Germans
Wayne had 3 Leopard 2s and a platoon of Panzer Grenadiers along with 7 Leopard 1s and some support choices.

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

I chose to Attack and I think Wayne did as well. My recollection is that we rolled up Encounter. Wayne held his Leopard 2s in reserve presumably to come on and use their 14” move and two stabilized shots to good effect. I had a couple of platoons of Chieftains and both of my infantry platoons on board. I put infantry on both objectives and tanks to my right.

Wayne’s Jaguars were to his left with his infantry with Leopard 1s on the right hand objective.  I stormed the right hand objective with my infantry and tanks. Wayne’s Leopard 2s came on and killed a couple of Chieftains but were lost to the return fire and driven of the objective for a victory.  Here’s a shot of the table with me the old man on the right and Wayne arms raised in surrender.

Game Two: Alastair Jeffery's British and ANZAC
Alastair had Chieftains, ANZAC infantry, and Scorpions with some helos. Alastair’s army looked really good.

We both chose Attack and rolled up Breakthrough. I won the dice roll to attack.

Alastair set up an infantry platoon mounted to head off to the objective. They were deployed behind a few trees and buildings. He had some tanks and scouts also ready to head off to the other objectives.

I deployed to rush his forces with only the under strength infantry platoon in reserve.

I advanced out of my deployment area and got line of sight on the infantry and his infantry HQ. They were wiped out over two turns. The remainder of his force was rushed and surrounded to break his formations before his reserves could influence the battle.

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

Game Three: Gavin Van Rossum's Dutch
We chose Attack and rolled up Counter Attack with me as the attacker.  Gavin had Leopard 2s, Leopard 1s, and some infantry, AA and mortars with some armoured cars thrown in for recce.

I decided to take the direct route and capture the hill overlooking the objective right in front of my deployment area. The hill was in the central quarter of Gavin’s deployment area. I took the hill with my infantry, moving Milans to the crest.  I swept my remaining forces around the left flank of the hill in wheat fields and engaged his light troops that were supporting the infantry in the village holding the objective.

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

Gavin deployed his ambush of Leopard 2s on the centre line on the road aiming between the hill and town towards my Chieftains under my hand.  Gut instinct told me my 7 Chieftains and 4 Milan would outshoot his 4 Leopard 2s over a few turns.

The Leopard 1s came on from reserve and rushed around the flank to attack my infantry on the hill from the rear.  I won that firefight with Carl Gustav and Scorpion and Scimitar support taking out both units. However, my instinct for statistics must have been wrong as Gavin took out all my Chieftains with his Leopard 2s over 4 turns for only 2 losses on his part.

A final assault on the objective wore his infantry down but the last 2 Leopard 2s saved them and a win to Gavin. This was an excellent game.

Game Four: Leigh Watson's British and German Infantry
Leigh had 34 stands of veteran infantry and 24 Milan.  Obviously all the infantry were a chain gang to set up the testing facility for the Milan.

Our board had several woods spread over the entire left third and large number of multi-storey buildings covering all of the right third with 24”/60cm of open space separating them.  This setup suited two of the three missions (Bridgehead and Rearguard) I would get if I chose Attack and Leigh Defend. The woods would give me good cover if I was advancing down the left side and the buildings cover on the right all the way to any objectives.  It would also and make it hard for Leigh to shift his forces. A good bet.

Leigh dutifully chose Defend.  However, when we rolled for mission we got No Retreat.  Great—24”60cm of open ground to advance over! Leigh placed his objective in a building in the far right corner. I placed my objective at the edge of the woods on my left as close to me as possible and as far from the other objective as practical.

Leigh deployed a short mechanised platoon on the rear objective with Airmobile Milans in ambush.  He then placed his large mechanised platoon and 2 airmobile platoons around the left objective along with some mines.

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

I spent some time thinking about the statistics of the casualties I could inflict on the mass of troops dug in around the left objective.  I gave up crunching the numbers and went hard right. Scorpions, Scimitars and FV432s flat out down the road. Mortars smoked across the open ground and only a couple of Milan could fire ineffectually in his first turn.

Nearly my entire army fired on the troops defending the objective.  A few desultory shots were sent towards the troops moving from the left for support with the mortars pinning them.  I took the forward line of vacant buildings in turn two and assaulted in turn three inflicting some casualties but being driven back.  The depleted infantry recovered in turn four and went in again driving the defenders out, and having started within 4”, winning the game.

Game Five Sofia Chambers Red Thunder
We both chose Attack and got Free for All. This suited me as it gave plenty of room for my recce to Spearhead.  The right of the board was heavily wooded and gave lots of space to use Spearhead deployment.

I deployed an infantry platoon and some tanks on my left objective. I took the right hand side wood on halfway, facing at musket range another wood behind which sat Sofia’s objective. I deployed infantry, Scimitars, and Rapiers in this cover. Chieftains sat behind it ready to Blitz out to the right for support fire.

I deployed an infantry platoon and some tanks on my left objective. I took the right hand side wood on halfway, facing at musket range another wood behind which sat Sofia’s objective. I deployed infantry, Scimitars, and Rapiers in this cover. Chieftains sat behind it ready to Blitz out to the right for support fire. I moved Scorpions and the HQ Chieftain onto the central hill ready to support my right.

Flamescon 2018: Team Yankee

Sofia put T64s, ZSU 23-4s, Storms, BMP-2 recce, and the BMP-2 infantry unit on my right.  The left was held by the BMP-1 infantry, AA missiles, also perhaps Spandrels and BRDMs.

Sofia got first turn and T64s, BMPs (transport and recce), infantry, and ZSU 23-4s rushed my forces on the right. Sofia’s plan was obviously to take out the Rapiers and let her Hinds have free rein. She got 2 Rapiers in the first turn of shooting.

My reply was brutal. Blitzing Chieftains, Scimitars, Milan and Carl Gustavs took a heavy toll on the BMP-2 transports and ZSU 23-4s killing half and bailing most of the rest.  An assault by a section of infantry and the deadly light mortar team captured the remainder. 13 models down on turn 1. You can see the pile of wrecks and bailed tanks on far right.

On the left my infantry and Chieftains advanced, sniping a couple of BMP-1s. On the right the exchange continued with the remaining Rapier going down.  I replied over two turns taking out the T64s and Recce BMP-2s with Scimitars and Chieftains and Milan.  My infantry and FV432s and other MGs took a heavy toll on the Soviet infantry.

On the left the Hinds arrived and over two turns took out the Chieftains and halted the infantry taking a casualty to either Milan or Carl Gustavs. I pressed forwards on the left, assaulting Sofia’s infantry and wiping them out.  The Hinds shifted to the left but a couple more died to Milan, Scimitars, and Carl Gustavs. The Storm were driven off the objective and remaining Soviet reserves swinging over from the left, Spandrel I think, brewing up to Chieftain and Scorpion fire.

British fire was devastating and took out all but 7 infantry stands, a Hind, and the Gashkin. The Chieftains on the left were lost to a diversionary attack and the Rapier went down to strategically targeted massed fire, and a few casualties were taken across the remainder of the force. I think, surprisingly, that the Light Mortar (apparently the most dangerous job in the British military) may have survived the blood bath.

Game Six: Greg Lockton With HUMVEEs and Leopard 2s
We got Breakthrough for this game. It was the same board I had played Gavin’s Leopard 2s on in Counterattack.  Playing Gavin I had learnt my lesson about the superiority of German technology and wasn’t going to let my Jaguars (I mean Chieftains) suffer the same fate against Mercedes (Leopard 2s) again.

Greg had Leopard 2s and some HUMVEES and I put the small infantry platoon into reserve. I won the roll to attack and sent my Scorpions after one HUMVEE troop while my Chieftains, Infantry and Scimitars sought to surround the Leopard 2s that were deployed in a similar spot to where Gavins appeared in game 3. This time I got my Chieftains on the hill and my Scimitars and infantry outflanked.

Weight of fire took out the Leopard 2s over three turns with Chieftains to the front and Scimitars and Milan to the flank perhaps aided by an infantry assault on bailed out vehicles. The remaining HUMVEES were chased down and the game concluded in my favour.
~Andrew