Back in August I had the privilege of attending the Battle of Buckeye Bend Bolt Action tournament hosted by my good friend, Christian Bellitto, in Port Clinton, Ohio. The tournament was hosted at the VFW Post 2480, right in downtown Port Clinton near the shores of Lake Erie. It was Christian’s first time hosting an event and it truly was a day to remember. 18 players vied for the coveted Golden Walleye trophy plus a mix of prize support from Warlord Games, Rubicon Models, and Port Clinton’s own Firelands Games.

Being a regular competitor and attendee at many tournaments across Ohio and Michigan himself, Christian’s event was a familiar format with 3 games at 1,100 points and a cap of 18 Order Dice and featured some really funky missions for players to tackle throughout the day. I have been looking forward to this event for months and was inspired to paint up my metal Paracadutisti squads as the main feature of my army. That’s right – my Italian, fresh off their new book, were ready to take the fight to Ohio. I have always loved my Italians due to how colorful each unit’s paint scheme was. Tri-tone camo Paratroopers, blue Engineers, yellow Bersaglieri with their striking black feathers, and the airbrushed camo patterns of their Tanks. I took some liberties with my custom pizza decals on each of my tanks inspired by the Anzio school logo from the Girls Und Panzer anime.

The stage was set. The sky was clear, the waves were rolling, and I was joined by my friends to play the game we all love. Win or lose, I was riding high with a newly painted army, a fresh pot of coffee, and an easy drive from Detroit along the lake. Let’s roll!

My Force

Rifle Platoon
Platoon Commander – Veteran – +4 buddies, 3x SMGs, Paracadutisti	108tps
x8 Nembo Paracadutisti – Veteran – NCO has SMG, 5x SMGs, 2x Rifles, Stubborn	136pts
x8 Nembo Paracadutisti – Veteran – NCO has SMG, 5x SMGs, 2x Rifles, Stubborn	136pts
x5 Carabinieri Military Police – Veteran – NCO has SMG, 2x SMGs, 2x Rifles, Traffic Direction, Get Back In The Fight	82pts
x7 Bersaglieri Light Infantry – Veteran – NCO has Rifle, 2x LMGs, Rifles, Di Corsa	128pts
Anti-Tank Rifle Team – Veteran – High Rate of Fire, Fixed	39pts
Armored Platoon
CV33 Tankette – Regular – Armor 7, Twin Hull-Mounted HMG – Command Vehicle	95pts
CV33 Tankette – Regular – Armor 7, Twin Hull-Mounted HMG	85pts
M15/42 Medium Tank – Regular – Armor 8, Turret-mounted Light AT Gun, co-ax MMG, twin hull-mounted MMGs, Improved Ballistics, Vulnerable, Ferrea Mole Ferreo Cuore!	145pts
M15/42 Medium Tank – Regular – Armor 8, Turret-mounted Light AT Gun, co-ax MMG, twin hull-mounted MMGs, Improved Ballistics, Vulnerable, Ferrea Mole Ferreo Cuore!	145pts
Total Order Dice: 10	1,099pts

The army was a bit unusual with the all-Veteran Rifle Platoon, in true Chicago Dice style, and was something I wanted to challenge myself to pilot considering the low total Order Dice vs the cap. I was inspired by a constraint from Caleb Addie’s Operation: Unwavering Resolve event requiring the compulsory HQ and Infantry units to be at Full Strength, so I decided to feature the core as a maxed-out Platoon Commander Paratrooper Squad and two 8-man Paratrooper Squads bristling with SMGs.

My Italians have always included an Armored Platoon and the update from the PDF to the full Armies of Italy book saw the humble CV33 Tankette mount twin HMGs instead of its usual twin MMGs. This change in firepower, along with Third Edition allowing tracked vehicles an additional pivot vs Second Edition has been crucial to position and land tough shots where needed. In a few casual games, my pair of CV33s have become a hallmark of my army. Christian dubbed them “the bees” after their constant annoyance against his Americans. Also featured are x2 M15/42 Tanks. They used to be the classic dakka tank back in Second with twin-MMGs in both the hull and turret, but Third changed them to nasty little tanks that punch above their weight with the combination of Improved Ballistics and the Ferrea Mole Ferreo Cuore! Special Rules. Getting Pen +5 within half range and rerolling Advance and Run Order Tests mean these Tanks get where they are needed and fire with enough juice to take out even the mightiest of foes.

The Carabinieri Military Police meshed well with my armor since I tend to favor heavy use of Reserves and Outflank, and their Traffic Direction Special Rule avoids the -1 Morale penalty for any vehicles in Reserves if the Carabinieri squad is also in Reserves when you make the Order Check. The staying power of the Paratroopers, mobility of the Bersaglieri, and synergy between the Armored platoon and the Carabinieri Military Police combine to make quite the potent force. My Italians are mobile, hard to get rid of, and keep their potency as the game progresses.

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Game 1 – Timely Objectives v
Ben (Canadians)

The game was Timely Objectives that yielded Victory Points from Turn 2 onward to whoever controlled them. The objectives were sticky, so there was an incentive to take the objective early and hold on for dear life. Ben’s list featured four units of Vet Fieldcraft Tough Fighters with serious SMGs in Scout Cars, two 75mm Gun Motor Carriages, and two Crusader AA Tanks with twin Light Autocannons. The objectives were placed all on the right flank with one in the center of the table. I threw four units into Outflank on the side with Ben’s home objective (two M15/42s, one Paratrooper Squad, and the Carabinieri) with the remaining force going into First Wave. Ben opted for his whole force to be in First Wave.

Turn 1 – We each claimed our home objectives and threw Pins all around – no casualties on either side.

Turn 2 – I pulled the first Order Die and rushed up the middle with my Bersaglieri to secure the center objective, and I was surprised that they weathered blistering Heavy Machine Gun and Autocannon fire from the tanks and transports with five men still standing. Bad dice from Ben saw the Bersaglieri stick around, unyielding to the last!
End of T2: Jackson – 2 // Ben – 1

Turn 3 – My Outflanking M15/42s destroyed a Crusader and a Half-track. Ben’s Scout Car team, which had been prepping to secure the center, fell back to defend their home objective when my eight-man Paratrooper Squad threatened to take it. Further struggling dice from Ben allowed me to continue to hold the center in Turn 3. The Bersaglieri continued to weather blistering fire, but had three men left with a whopping eight Pins on them… I really hoped I got the first pull to rally my squad.
End of T3: Jackson – 4 // Ben – 2

Turn 4 – Ben charges my Paratroopers on his back objective. Rolling seven Tough Fighter dice to my five Tough Fighter dice, he has the advantage, but the dice critically fail him! I got three kills to Ben’s two, even after re-rolls and the Paras take the back objective. In the center, Ben finally destroys the Bersaglieri and swamps the objective with a Vet Squad and three AFVs. My Tanks pepper his Armored Gun Carriers with Pins forcing his M3 with the 75mm to FUBAR and run off the table.
End of T4: Jackson – 6 // Ben – 3

Turn 5 – I have all vehicles and Ben has one squad of his infantry left. Shots from the Crusader kill a squad of Paras on my home objective, but my M15/42 counters and immobilizes the Crusader. I now hold both edge objectives with Ben holding the center.
End of T5: Jackson – 8 // Ben – 4

Turn 6 – After all is said and done, there wasn’t much to clean up. A final assault from Ben killed my Platoon Command Squad, but they could not stomach the whole Italian army around them.
End of T6: Jackson – 10 // Ben – 5

Result – Italian Victory

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Game 2 – Sectors v
Mike (Late-War Germans)

The game was a combination of Sectors and kill points with table quarter deployment. This jungle table was dense. It featured no less than eight sources of Dense Terrain from woods and a few ruins and buildings and that led to very few consistent firing lanes. Mike’s list featured a seriously deadly combination of a Veteran Kugelblitz (Medium tank with double Heavy Autocannons), and a Vet Panzer IV with Heavy AT Gun and Panzer Ace granting it a +1 to penetrate armor and a +1 to the damage roll – if I got hit with any of these, my tiny Tankettes and Vulnerable Light Tanks would be easily split open.

In this game, both players were required to throw half of their army in Reserves, so I opted to have my both M15s, both CV33s, and the Carabinieri in Reserves to minimize fire from Mike’s Tanks. Mike put two Half-tracks loaded with SMG-armed Vets and Panzerfausts in Reserves to counter my armored threats and make the most of the Dense terrain.

Turn 1 – All Infantry moves onto the table. Mike’s Tanks take position, but advances his Kugelblitz deep into no man’s land and kills 1 man in my Platoon Commander unit.

Turn 2 – Mike pulls the first die and advanced up the Kugelblitz into close range of my Platoon Commander and fails to kill them. I spring into action and my first M15/42 comes on from Reserves and blew up the Kugelblitz with a point-blank shot.

Turn 3 – My CV33s advance on the opposite board edge and Mike’s mechanized infantry disgorge two Fausts into my tankettes. Two hits, followed by two 1s! … ouch. The CV33s survived two Panzerfausts and multiple Panzer Ace Heavy AT gun shots – Mike only rolled 1s to Pen or Damage with them. Brutal. They weather the storm and the legend of the Bees lives on.

Turn 4 – I rush up the table and do some chip damage on his squads and kill his Anti-Tank Rifle Team with the pair of M15s. The CV33 attempts to line up a point-blank shot on Mike’s Vet squads and FUBARs! Mike fired 6 HMG shots into the rear of the companion command tankette and rolled snake eyes on damage – double Crew Stunned! The Panzer IV lines up a shot on an M15/42 but misses its mark.

Turn 5 – Both M15s shoot the Panzer IV and Improved Ballistics really pulled its weight with one glancing hit from each Italian Tank. The Panzer IV was Stunned and On Fire, but passed the Morale Check to stay in play.

Turn 6 – I rushed Mike’s deployment zone to capitalize on sector points and finally managed to kill the Panzer IV with a penetrating shot from the M15. Mike was tabled and the game was over. Win 20-1

Result – Italian Victory

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Game 3 – Modified Priority Targets v
Jay (Early-War Germans)

Jay and I have been wanting to play each other for a while. We both are regulars at AdeptiCon and events throughout the Midwest. Back at Jeff Ashley’s tournament in Parma, Jay and I played on tables next to each other for the whole day and managed to both go undefeated that event, but he won the tiebreaker and thus claimed first prize. I knew that Jay and I would have a game where each decision was carefully thought over and no mistake would go unpunished. Christian offered grudge matches for Game 1 but Jay and I had a goal that our rivalry would be settled in Game 3, and as fate would have it, we were matched up on the top table!

The game was modified kill points going off of what was spent on each unit rather than 1pt per Order Dice killed (e.g. a Vet ATR Team would provide 39pts). Each player chose three Priority Targets that would yield double points if killed. All Priority Target units were required to be in the First Wave. This caveat forced a true mind game of what to decide to kill, as we had to balance what was an easy target and cheap vs what was an essential contributor to the game and expensive.

Priority Targets for me to kill: Panzer III G (Medium AT Gun), Inexperienced Panzerwerfer Command Vehicle, and one squad of Vet Feldjagerkorps on motorcycles.

Priority for Jay to kill: Command CV33, both M15/42 Tanks.

We played on a bombed out city table with plenty of dense cover but many open firing lanes due to unobstructed roads throughout the table. I opted to place just my CV33 that was unmarked and my Carabinieri in Outflank to show up on the right side.

Turn 1 – The first turn blew by quickly as we both played cagey and limited firing chances since both of our armies could counter any threat the other threw out. Pins were given across the table, but no casualties.

Turn 2 – Both of my M15s got Immobilized and my Command Tankette Stunned thanks to lucky Light Mortar fire (thanks Vulnerable… haha) and a good shot from the Panzerwerfer. Against all odds between Jay’s dice rolls and my Cover Saves where applicable, still no casualties were taken by either of us. Hard Cover was abundant and we both had a highly Veteran forces.

Turn 3 – My Carabinieri start the show arriving from Outflank and target the marked Feldjagerkorps on motorcycles but yield limited kills. Jay then springs into action and catapults his motorcycles up the board and advances a crazy 24″ on the road to fire a single Panzerfaust at my Command Tankette and destroys it. My tankette then arrives from Outflank to counter and destroy the FJKs.

Turns 4, 5, and 6 – All had theme of cagey and conservative play since any jabs would be immediately countered by both parties. Jay would shoot, hit, but not convert his hits into casualties. My dice were consistent and steadily crept an advantage over the late game, though any point could change since most of my kills were small (Light Mortar Teams, AT Rifles, etc.).

After a mind-boggling six turns of throwing haymakers at each other, the steady advantage I built in the mid-game snowballed into a victory where the points belied the game. I won ~729 to 190 (win by 200pts), but each roll of the dice could have gone either way. Jay was a fantastic opponent and I am looking forward to our next chance for a rematch.

Result – Italian Victory

Results and Final Thoughts

Well folks… we did it! Three challenging games saw the Italian Paratroopers emerge victorious and claim the Golden Walleye trophy. I had a wonderful time with everyone and am so thankful to Christian for running a fantastic event. It is not easy to coordinate venue, army submissions, prize support, mission design, and he handled all aspects with character becoming a world-class TO.

Throughout the day, veterans from the VFW hall came by to watch games and talk to us about the history behind the battles we were playing. It was great to show them our games and the staff and members eagerly welcomed us back anytime. They even voted for Best Painted and broke a tie between Jacob Staverman’s US Airborne and David Naugle’s winter Soviets, though I suspect the “we gotta support our troops” line from the vets caused David to lose out in the voting, haha.

I had a fantastic day of gaming and am excited for the next event. Port Clinton has been a mainstay of Ohio Bolt Action for years now thanks in large part to the support of Firelands Games and TOs like Christian. There was a great mix of experienced players and several folks who were participating in their first ever tournament! It is exciting to see and be a part of the growth of the hobby in the area. Lake Erie in the summertime is a beautiful part of the country and is certainly worth the trip.