Green Hell (Revisited) - After Action Report

Kieran and I have had copies of "Hit The Dirt" for sometime (in fact I have had a copy since it was published) and had not made a serious attempt to play any of the scenarios. However we recently decided to work our way through the book and play the scenarios as best we could with our available forces. Deciding to start from the beginning we selected Green Hell, the very first Scenario in the book. In Green Hell a well supported German Company must overcome a larger (but poorer) Soviet Force in a large forest in Poland in 1941. Our troop availability dictated a move to 1944 and North-West Europe or Italy (we chose the former) with British and German forces.

Green Hell (Revisited) - a woody part of Normandy July 1944 (from behind German Lines)

A British Company would be attacking (in place of the Germans in the original), and a German Infantry Company would be defending (in place of the Soviets). As we currently had no MMG Sections based up for the British they would instead receive 2 Daimler Armoured Cars to provide MG support (i.e. 4D), and they had two 3" Mortar Sections in support. We also used our own Anti-Tank Rules for the German Panzerfausts which meant the Daimler's were a bit vulnerable if they were too close to the German Squads equipped with these, and our own Sniper rules. The terrain was slightly modified to suit what we had and to provide a more Normandy/French feel (although we still endeavoured to maintain the same ratio and size of terrain features as in the original). Otherwise the scenario was as described in "Hit The Dirt" with the same victory conditions, and such like.

Kieran (on left) planning the German deployment.

Kieran commanded the German Defenders, and I the British Attackers. The game was played with 1/72nd scale figures and models (or 20mm if you prefer). The British began the game with a push up their extreme right, the centre had the look of a killing zone about it (despite all the cover) and a right hook along the table edge was decided as the first step to probing the German positions and strengths.

No.1 Platoon move up the left flank and encounter the first German Defenders.

No.1 Platoon pushed up the right flank (see photo above) and made some initial progress before encountering a German FDL (Forward Defended Locality). The platoon pushed one section (squad) off to the left into the wood to attempt to bypass the defenders, and got lucky initially as their reactive fire failed and causing them to go 'No Fire'.

German Defenders, a Rifle Section from the 2nd Platoon of Kompanie 1. The red ball is a marker
that denotes the stand has gone 'No Fire' through an unsuccessful reactive fire.

However the probe by the leading Section promptly discovered more German defenders; another Rifle Section and a MMG Section in a bunker - needless to say they were forced to go to ground (suppressed) under the combined fire. The British responded in their next initiative by bringing up a Mortar FO (for one of the 3" Mortar Sections) and a Daimler Armoured Car - both took fire being pinned as they approached the German positions. The British Company Commander was still keen to push up the right flank - as it was likely the German defence might be relatively brittle here and a penetration could allow movement in behind the remaining defenders in the bulk of the wood (the classic right hook).

A Daimler Armoured Car and a Mortar FO move up to deal with the thickening German defence.

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