We will fight them on the beaches

Sword Beach scenario set up

 Back to Memoir '44, the Richard Borg game using his card driven war game mechanic in a number of Second World War scenarios specifically related to the Overlord invasions of Europe on 6th June 1944 and their aftermath. Last week saw us tackle the first two scenarios which were based on the airborne Allied landings to secure important inland targets: The Ox and Bucks Light Infantry glider landings to take the Pegasus Bridge and the taking of Saint Mere-Eglise by the U.S. 505th Parachute Infantry.

Miss, retreat, any unit, infantry and armour.

 This week the scenario was the actual landing at the beach codenamed Sword, where British troops supported by Commando units and amphibious Sherman tanks were landed. The set up of the scenario includes all these elements arriving together which is historically accurate as the weather prevented the plan to land the tanks first.

I played the Axis side in our first game and from where I sat the Allied forces arrayed against me looked formidable. The main element in my favour should have been the artillery, dug in a fortification and ready to rake a wide area around it with its long range and immunity to line of site restrictions. In the event this unit got off very few shots owing to the lack of suitable cards and it was quickly over-run as Crabro's troops forced their way straight up through the centre of my lines.

I had the advantage of most of my forces being in good defensive positions such as woods, towns and bunkers which were particularly good against his Shermans which were already up against "hedgehog" tank traps strewn along the beachhead. In the end I took two commando units, a tank unit and two of his ordinary infantry units to give me the game. Despite poor results from a barrage card and some of the usual problems with not having a card to command the units most needed, I had some good rolls, and a close assault card allowed me to finish the job.

Plastic prototype of Crabro's dice tower is useful

 We then changed sides and played the scenario again, allowing me to experience just how difficult it was to make use of the tanks, which were nearly always rolling at -2 dice against troops firing out of good defensive terrain. I made some good gains on the left flank taking me up to 3 of the victory points needed and poised to take a unit and town for the final two...when I ran out of left flank cards. Tantalisingly these final targets remained and were never to fall to the Allies. The Axis played well to recover strongly and at the point when we broke for lunch, each army had four of the five medals required.

Terrain player aids and Shermans

 It was obvious that my next move had to be the win or the Axis would secure victory in the following turn. It fell to two units, one tank and the other infantry, to attempt to wipe out a unit of infantry on the right flank. At the same time I moved a severely depleted unit another step away from the artillery. The tanks scored a hit and his damaged unit retreated but they were still in range of the infantry who luckily finished the job.

Air power wasn't much help to me as Axis player

A completely different game as, far from thrusting up the centre like Crabro, I had as far as possible given the artillery a wide berth which was intact and facing an empty vista at the end of the game.

We are both now big fans of these Borg games and have played Battle Cry and Commands and Colors: Ancients. Memoir '44 is now wetting our appetite for Battlelore.