Sunday, September 16, 2012

1939 Russo-Finnish War Game...


...using Battlefront Rules.  Bob Scripp hosted the game at our weekly Army of Central Maryland club meet.

General setting was an attack by a Finnish infantry battalion upon a hastily dug-in Soviet position occupied by two companies and supported by two T-26 and a 76mm Artillery Battery.

As a Finnish player and also the photographer, all the photos are from the Finnish perspective.  

There are four objectives the Soviets are defending.  The Finns need to hold all four to win. The Finnish companies are arrayed left to right in 1,2,3 order.  A mortar section backs us up.

Finnish company three set out to capture two lightly held objectives, the village and the hill behind it.

The Finnish companies 1 and 2 set out to grab the other two objectives, another village and a hill.

Company 3 advances through the light woods towards an objective.

Company 1 moves around the Soviet right.  Company 2 prepares to assault a hill objective.  Scouts are moving out front to draw Soviet fire.

Company 3 moves towards village and hill objective.  No fighting yet but moving across the open is sure to draw some type of fire.


  Company three before and after an artillery strike.  Casualties evacuated, but the Finns keep advancing.

The Finns go up the hill and eventually take out and disorder the mortar section behind the hill but the Soviet battalion commander on the hill gamely takes out more Finns.


Companies 1 and 2 going in on the assault.  The Soviets surprisingly evacuated the hill rather than take the cross-fire.  The Soviet tanks have meanwhile begun to menace the Finns left flank.

Soviet counterattacks come in against the Finnish company 3 trying to hold two objectives and having taken 25% casualties.  This is going to be close.

Mortar and rifle fire pin down one Soviet attack but the other destoys a hapless Finnish squad.  The remaining Finns at the hill have moved behind the hill to make the Soviets come and take it.

Back with Company 1, it takes some casualties but enters the Soviet lines.  But here come the T-26's looking for trouble.

In the ensuing tank vs. infantry fight, one T-26 is destroyed and one Finnish squad is destroyed.

At this time the Soviets tossed in the towel.  The tanks were facing a tough maneuver roll, one infantry company was panicked with 75% casualties but the other was still in good shape but going to be facing Finns on two fronts.  It was still a close run thing.

Good game!


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