The Battle in Berlin Bolt Action Combat Patrol Tournament at Gamer’s Realm in New Berlin, WI. Using the AdeptiCon Combat Patrol format for this event, 16 players arrived for what promised to be an exciting day of Bolt Action. Quick overview with some of the event rules:

• 1 Combat Patrol Platoon, 450pts, 8 Order Dice max
• No free units of any kind
• Max HE 2″
• Max Armor 8

Our Forces

Andrew – My British Combat Patrol force was inspired by the Late War Royal Marine Commando Troop (Burma) Theater Selector from Campaign: D-Day: British & Canadian Sectors. I brought two units of six Commandos, a Light Mortar Team, a Boys AT Rifle, a Stuart Recce (out for its first field test), led by a 2nd Lt. This all Vet force is just six Order Dice and bit light on AT but the two squads of Commandos are not to be taken lightly. I also could not wait to get the Stuart Recce on the table! This little open-topped tank is something I’ve really been looking forward to using.

John – I brought a well-balanced force that I’d used in a few practice games. It combines a solid core of
three squads of six riflemen with the mobility of two Early War Motorcycles and sidecars with LMGs and the heavy weapons of a 25-pounder and the small-but-might Vickers Light Tank Mk VI C.

Zak – I brought a Motorized Polish list with a 7-TP tank and Ursus Armored Car plus some Inexp Green troops (AK Militia from Campaign: The Road to Berlin). There was another Polish player there who had the more typical “Horses with Lancers” list. We joked that my army list was what happened to his list after two months of fighting!

Game 1 – Contact

Andrew – Game 1 was against Josh S and his US. The game opened up with a big move from Josh as he threw a Transport Truck 20″ down a road, hopped out his Engineers and torched the building my Commandos were holding. Sadly, the single Commando left standing failed his Morale Test and I had to scramble to recover. In the end I managed to secure a win (7-5) but the entire game was very close. Great game with a great opponent.

John – In the first game of the day I squared off against Josh T’s German force that included two Waffen-SS squads with a couple of Assault Rifles each, a Flamethrower team in a Kubelwagen transport, an ATR team, a Panzer I, and the new Gewehr 43 Sniper Team from Campaign Italy: Tough Gut. This enhanced sniper can fire twice per turn if the first shot hits and it succeeds on a 4+ dice roll.

Since we were provided with the mission packet ahead of time, I knew what to expect with this game. To secure a victory I would need to utilize the speed of my three vehicles to get across the board and score points, while using my infantry and artillery to halt the enemy advance. Things got off to a rocky start when I made an overly cautious move and put one of my forward-deployed rifle squads Down to minimize the damage from the advancing Panzer I. This prevented them from reacting to the Kubelwagen that charged at them later in the turn, unloading the flamethrower which proceeded to torch my rifle squad who failed their Morale Check and fled for their lives.

I settled the score when my Vickers managed to destroy the Panzer I with two autocannon shots
into its side. My tank now had a clear path to get to the far side of the board and score. Although
both of my Motorcycles were destroyed while attempting to make it into the scoring zone, my
Lieutenant was able to make a mad dash after defeating the Flamethrower team in close combat, giving me two scoring units by the end of the game. I successfully prevented Josh from getting any units across the table, using my remaining rifle squads and the 25-pounder to keep them pinned down.

Zak – My first opponent was a fellow Za(c)K (there were three of us there in total). Zach J was running a pretty brutal Soviet list with a GAZ AAA (four MMG truck!) and a squad of bomb dogs (sad but powerful!). Polish vs Soviets is often a very thematic battle and this one was no different. The game started off well for Poland, a Soviet squad was trapped in some ruins due to the strong firepower from the 7-TP and the AK squads in cover. Things continue going well with the Ursus using its Low Velocity Light AT Gun to destroy the GAZ AAA. Things change with a disastrous Turn 3 which featured a Panzerfaust rolling the 6 to Hit and exploding the Ursus followed by the bomb dogs unleashed and exploding the 7-TP removing all Polish armor from the board. From here the game moved firmly to the Soviets who mopped up the remaining Polish rebels and won handily!

Game 2 – Pre-sighted

Andrew – In Game 2 I faced Rob S (the TO) and his French Army including a unit of six Vet Cav. This game was on the razor’s edge the entire time with neither of us able to really get the upper hand. I had a lucky break on Turn 1 when the Stuart Recce removed Rob’s Light Howitzer with a combination of HMG and MMG shots at Long Range. Rob countered by assaulting the Stuart not once, but twice with this Cav but failed to damage on both occasions. An incredibly close game that ended in a Draw.

John – The US force I matched with for Game 2 was 100% Inexperienced and included three large squads of infantry, two MMG teams, a Bazooka team, and a medium Anti-Tank Gun. The mission required us to capture or contest the three objectives on the board. We played on a dense, urban table, leading to challenging movement and sight lines throughout the game. Again, my plan was to use my army’s superior mobility to contest two of the three objectives while holding control of the third. The mass of GIs proved to be difficult to get through and this game went back-and-forth from start to finish, with each of us jockeying for position on the objectives. While my opponent focused on the center objective and the one on his side of the table, he was unable to effectively challenge control of the third objective. Meanwhile, my aggressive maneuvering with my vehicles kept the Americans on the back foot, causing them to play defensively.

I was worried we were headed for a draw when the Med. Anti-Tank Gun immobilized my Vickers a few inches from the far-side objective. But once again, my Lieutenant came to the rescue. Charging through a barrage of enemy fire, he was able to get close enough to the far objective to contest it. The game now hinged on the center objective and whether or not the Americans could destroy my Motorcycle that was contesting that objective. Fortunately for me the bike survived and we finished the game with me in control of one objective and the other two contested.

Zak – My second opponent was a friend, Alex W (Hi Alex!) who was running Partisans with two units on horseback. The Lt was also on horseback (it sounded reasonable). I play Partisans in addition to Poland and know that the lack of reliable AT for the rebels is often a huge issue. With this in mind I decided to have my motorized units split off in different directions with the 7-TP slowly moving up the middle of the board blasting as it went (horses are countered by MMGs who knew?!) while the Ursus used a cheeky recce to run down to the board and eventually tuck itself in the corner mowing down Partisans who couldn’t fight back. The battle was a total route for the rebels. The lack of AT was enough for the Polish armored vehicles to win the day!

Game 3 – Taking Ground

Andrew – The third and final game – this time against Zach J and his Soviets. Zach brought along a Dog Mine AT Team and the dreaded Quad Maxim Gaz-AAA! Zak warned me about the power of the Dog Mines (they played in Game 1) and I was extra cautious. Luckily the Stuart Recce on Ambush was able to just barely take out the Dog Mine Team when they tried to launch their AT mines. Sadly the momentum swung dramatically in Zach’s favor and at the end of Turn 6 I only had a single unit remaining. A well fought and resounding victory for the Soviets!

John – Having narrowly won my first two games, I expected the third and final game to be the most challenging yet. My opponent Andrew was using a Japanese force consisting of three infantry squads, a scout team, a Sniper, a Light Mortar, and a Type 95 Ha-Go Light Tank. Our armies were pretty similar on paper and we were playing on a nearly symmetrical board with five evenly placed objectives – the perfect setup for a nail-biter. I kept my three vehicles in Reserve, and set the Motorcycles on Outflank – one on each side. The plan was to use them to swoop in and capture or contest objectives towards the end of the game.

I secured an early advantage when some lucky rifle fire eliminated the IJA Sniper who had deployed in a watch tower. This allowed one of my rifle squads to run into a building in the center of the table, just in time to unload on the scout squad hiding on the other side. My right flank was in trouble, however, when another of my squads fell a volley of Japanese rifle fire, leaving the right-side objective lightly defended by nothing more than my 25-pounder. I had to divert my tank to ensure I wouldn’t lose the objective. Fortunately, one of my outflanking Motorcycles arrived just in time to capture an undefended objective on the far side of the table. With two objectives firmly in my control, one heavily defended by my opponent, and one bitterly contested, the outcome of the game would be determined by who could capture the center objective.

My rifle squad in the center that had earlier eliminated the scout squad was now in the open, having left the building to provide fire support for my left flank – a move I thought was necessary to halt the Japanese advance towards one of my objectives. This action left them exposed and within range of a Banzai charge. As my opponent moved his squad into close combat, we both realized that this moment would decide the game. If my soldiers were overrun, the center objective, and the game, would be lost.

Our squads clashed across three grueling, tense rounds of combat. The Japanese fanaticism ensured they would fight to the last man. But when the dust settled, two of my soldiers remained, having managed to hold off the blood-curdling assault. With the center objective secured, and two others in my control, I was once again able to eke out a victory by the slimmest of margins.

Zak – My third game was against another familiar face – the TO himself, Rob S! They had a French list that seemed fairly stock but was well practiced. Rolling up to the match I felt good about my chances, his only AT was a single Light Howitzer and surely my speedy vehicles could avoid that! How wrong I was! This battle was just absolutely brutal, a miscalculation on my end left the 7-TP in clear sight of the French Howitzer which destroyed it with a single hit. The Ursus got to the middle of the board but proceeded to fail three Order Tests in a row, trapping itself in the rubble as the rest of the Polish army was eliminated to the man. Perhaps the most brutal defeat I have received in a game of Bolt Action.

Final Thoughts

Andrew – I ended the day 1-1-1. In Game 3, I had a chance to take Best Allies, but Zach’s Soviets proved to be more than a match! Rob did a fantastic job running the event. Everything was on time and went smoothly, and the missions were well-designed and fun to play. The tables were also excellent. A big shout-out to the WI group that brought the tables for the event. I was impressed with the space as well – Gamer’s Realm was a great place to spend a day of gaming. If Rob hosts another event, I’ll be sure to make the drive up!

John – This was a great event! The players, tables, and missions were all top tier. Rob ran a well-organized tournament that even finished on time – no small feat! I was surprised and thrilled to go 3-0 on the day, earning me the Best Allied trophy. Each of my games could have easily swung the other way but the combination of my well-balanced list, favorable mission set ups, some lucky dice rolls, and a handful of clever tactical decisions, ended up tipping things in my favor.

My MVP was not a unit at all, but rather the Rapid Fire National Characteristic. This rule meant that my 6-man rifle squads fired 8 shots, allowing them to punch well-above their weight. I think this National Characteristic is often overlooked by the other, flashier options. But in a Combat Patrol game when forces are very restricted and firepower is limited, getting that 33% boost to a unit’s output was critical to outshooting my enemies.

Zak – Vehicles are good but having all my eggs in a basket that can get one-shot was punishing time and time again. Tanks are powerful but difficult to use. I played far too aggressively when I should have played more cagey and used my mobility when needed (instead of just all the time). In the end I liked the list and I am not sure I would change anything aside from my own playstyle!