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FireGroup '97 tournament ratings: Balance: Slightly pro French Excitement: High Analysis author's ratings: Balance: No comments provided Excitement: High Attraction: See introduction

Playing time : 6 hrs

My favorite of the pack, combining city fighting, tricky reinforcements for the French, and an interesting (though limited) German counterattack option.

Something both sides should immediately note; the French win immediately if the Germans player controls < 5 buildings on Board 20. So Board 20 is THE ZONE. Board 41 is useful only in that it protects the German flank and that capture of Board 41 gives the French an extra victory option. So Board 41 is pretty much a secondary Front for both sides until the endgame when the secondary victory condition is likely to apply.

French Disadvantages: Lack of SW, Numerical Inferiority at start, slow Reinforcement schedule, vulnerable transport.

The key to French Victory is effectively getting the reinforcements into play. If the French can bring their main force to bear, then Board 20 should move steadily under their control.

The French setup of the stone rubble is one of the key factors in this scenario, and there are several options open to the French. There are some key locations that deserve Rubble, and really not enough Rubble to go around.

• 20Z3 - aside from breaking up any minefield, it also lets the French see into the rear two hexes of this building.

• 20Y# - really any row Y hex will give a good TEM attack path, rather than crossing an open road. Two would be better!

• 20X2 - a little rubble here blocks the LOS down the long road, protecting the French transports, and allowing Capt. Vial to quickly move to Board 20 if desired, or if the German stage a Turn 1 counterattack.

• 20AA8-AA10 - this is a real bottleneck on the southern flank.

At start, the French simply have to hold the line against a German counterattack on Board 20, and try and ferret out the concealment stacks until the reinforcements arrive to push forwards the assault. Capt. Vial will be launching the first round of the assault, and the French play could decide to ignore Board 41 and push straight into Board 20. However, this really puts all the eggs into one basket, the French must capture all but 4 Stone buildings on Board 20.

The French reinforcements are the key to the French attack, and the French player should put much thought into their deployment. Most importantly, the French transport should not be taken into harm's way until the very last load of passengers is arriving. The French can transport up to 3 squads and two SW per turn, and knowing that there are 14 reinforcing squads, this will take a minimum of 5 turns to get them all on. So really the French cannot afford to exit via anywhere but 20A5. The transports must enter, move up, unload the passengers, turn about and exit off 20A5 all in one MPh. From the unloading point the infantry move forwards on foot. First reinforcements will arrive at the start line on about Turn 3, which doesn't leave much time to get the attack rolling.

Once the French attack does start moving, steady French pressure should roll up the Germans in an orderly fashion. The French should probably steer away from CC, since their advantages of morale are neglected in CC. Setting up the 9-2 with the 2 MMG is also likely to be a room clearer. Unfortunately No Quarter is in effect, so no surrender of disrupted units is possible.

German Disadvantages: Ammunition Shortage, Poor Leadership, Conscripts, ELR:2.

So what's a poor German to do? Pretty much boxed into a 8 x 10 hex box, with a small covering force to the north. Obviously the Germans can't do much falling back. However, with all those concealment counters, they can do a fair bit of hide and seek. They also get the defensive advantage of stone buildings, mines and a fair few automatic weapons. Don't forget the Germans can also fire Panzerfaust at infantry in buildings.

The first thing to do is set up the minefield. My inclination is to mine AA8 - AA10 or the building front Z2-Z4. Remember you can't set up mines in Rubble hexes. The French will almost certainly create rubble paths across the Y road, so use the mines to block their exit if possible.

The next problem is where it set up the AA Guns, since it isn't too likely that they will move. My selections would be 20CC3 (a surprise when the French enter the Orchard) and 41EE10 (covers the north flank). Dragging these suckers into a Stone Building has a +7 DRM (+3 TEM, +4 MF), so at least one and probably 2 non-Conscript squads are needed to push them. If you take this option, leaving it till the last minute is a bit risky.

Placing the bunker is a little easier, since it can set up on roads. I'm inclined to place it on the frontline, like 20Z1 or 20Z6, since this makes it harder for the French to use against you (facing the wrong way!). The problem is once you rout out, it is really hard to get back in.

Putting the MMG in 20AA1 (or the 20Z1 bunker) is a little risky, but may pay dividends in slowing the French reinforcement. Probably worth the risk since you can rout northwards and the board 41 8-1 leader should be ready to rally them or move to them on Turn 1.

Otherwise the Board 20 Germans pretty much get scattered throughout the buildings on Board 20 as seems useful. Mix real units with Dummies, and leave at least two Dummy stacks in the rear to keep the French guessing about what's real and what's not. The German will probably have to fall back from row Z, but can't really afford to trade much more ground.

One consideration for the Germans is to launch a minor Turn 1 counterattack on Board 20. This is quite possible against the small French attack force at start, and may cause them a lot of bother to retake the buildings that they initially started in. Actually attacking the French force head on is probably a bad idea, but crossing into their less protected buildings may really upset the French plans.

The northern force on Board 41 is mostly just a speed bump. Probably a squad on each hill, plus two HS in difficult to reach places will keep Capt. Vial's force occupied for a while, but don't ever stand and fight with these fellows, their job is to slowly fall back and keep the German chances alive.

Ultimately, the French must press the Germans back, either far back on Board 20, or completely off Board 41 and a bit back on Board 20. Casualties are unimportant except in the relative ability of the two sides to hold buildings. The Germans must plan a tenacious defense, and at least one counterattack in the game to keep the French guessing. The French win by a methodical clearing operation, and a methodical reinforcement program, but cannot afford to be too slow, nor to allow the Germans too much latitude in launching counterattacks.