FINAL DESPERATION

Hill 239, east of Lysyanka, dawn of 17 February, 1944: As the breakout continued the Germans found themselves continuously facing the tanks and anti-tank guns of the Russians. Shells were bursting everywhere as the ragged remainder of the XI and XLII Army Corps pushed through the cauldron. Hill 239 was attacked time and again by the desperate Germans but the Russian armor was too strong for the quickly disintegrating infantry. While in the end the hill remained in Russian hands, packets of German infantry succeeded in bypassing it to the south and filtering through to safety.

AFTERMATH: The desperation of the breakout was heightened by the lack of guns and armor. Lieutant Colonel Mueller, astride his horse, led a mad charge of 3000-4000 men across the steppe against the combined arms of the Russians. His motley force and other groups succeeded in breaking out of the pocket only to face another calamity. Many died while crossing the frigid Gniloy Tikich. Of the 56,000 men trapped in the pocket, over half survived the Russian gauntlet. For the survivors it meant another year of a losing war.

VICTORY CONDITIONS: The German player wins by exiting > 35 Victory Points at game end. Prisoners do not count toward VP.

MAPBOARDS

       N
       /\
+-----+-----+-----+
|     |     |   10|
|     |     |     |
|_____|_____|_____|
|xxxxx|xxxxx|xxxxx|
|xxxxx|xxxxx|xxxxx|
|xx 14|xx 18|xxxxx|
+-----+-----+-----+

4x4-6-8, 8x4-6-7, 8x4-4-7, 10x4-3-6, 9-2 (w/horse), 9-1, 8-1, 2x8-0, 2x7-0, dHMG, dMMG, 6xLMG, 4xPSK, Kubelwagen

12x4-5-8, 3x 2-2-8, 9-2, 8-1, 2x8-0, HMG, 2xMMG, 3xLMG, 2x85L ART (85mm P obr. 44), Radio, 4 entrenchments

Reinforcements arriving Turn 3 enter on north edge of board 18: 2x T34 M43 Reinforcements arriving Turn 4 enter on north edge of board 18: 1x KV-85, 1xSU122

1. Falling snow with ground snow is in effect. Russian infantry have winter camouflage (E3.712). EC are wet with a moderate wind blowing to the southeast.
2. Much of the action took place before sunrise, hence, there is an additional LV of +1 for the first 5 game turns (additive with falling snow).
3. Germans suffer from Ammo Shortage. Only German units carrying SW and accompanied by leaders may fire during the PFPh.
4. Russians receive 80 mm OBA battalion mortar (HE or smoke).
5. Human Wave and Hand-to-Hand combat may be declared by both sides. No Quarter is in effect for both sides.
6. Prior to play, randomly place 6 AFV wrecks on board 14, 6 AFV wrecks on board 18, and 6 AFV wrecks on board 10. A dr of 1 indicates that the wreck is a blaze. Alternatively, use the wrecks generated in the related scenarios and roll as above for blazes. Another alternative is to take 16 AFV counters and drop them over the center of the playing area. Roll random direction and distance for each wreck. Any AFVs scattering off the board are removed from the game. Roll for blazes as above.

Carell, P. 1966. Scorched Earth. Ballantine Books, New York, NY, 652 pp. (Part 7: Cherkassy, pages 465-505).

VARIANT: Combine the last two scenarios using the following special rules.

1. Both players choose as their starting force one of the OBs from the two scenarios. Play proceeds according to the reinforcement schedule for the selected force. At Game Turn 6 have the side's force from the OB that wasn't selected enter as shown for their scenario. The game ends after 15 turns.
2. Turns 1-6 are NIGHT, turns 7-11 are DAWN with a LV of +1, turns 12-15 are day.