Bob Chandler
The Finns faced off against the Russians twice on Saturday. Both games went to the last turn.
I must admit...I felt pretty confident after my Finnish set up...almost feeling sorry for the frostbitten Russians...but then...how can you not feel confident playing the Finns?
Sure...the Russians had tanks, more troops than I could count, and artillery...but the Finns had skiis, stealth, winter camo...and...Self Rally.
With only 1 plowed road to move down, I felt Finnish resolve could carry the day...who cares how many Russians there are?
But what I didn't see during set up was:
How VERY LONG 13 turns...13 turns!!!...can be when facing such a numerically superior force...
George moved the Russian horde through the cover of the woods around the road and I had no choice but to give ground or be overwhelmed...he took the roadblock position with ease, cleared it with an efficient demolition crew using a Set DC, and put my Finns in danger of being surrounded.
The Finnish roadblock defense was in disarray with the Russian armor unleashed...only the Finns could have pulled off an organized withdrawal to new lines...some key rallies and some cross country skiing and we were ready for a new wave of Russian attacks...
George sent his Russians out of the woods both at us and around us...there's just too much ground to cover...too many Russians...and too few Finns...
Once again...with Commie tanks firing point blank and Russians throwing demo charges...my MG position went down and the line was in danger of collapse...
But fortunately...Russian maintenance was finally showing the effects of winter...and the lead tank platoon suddenly malf'ed ALL it's weapons...MGs and MAs on both tanks all disappeared in a turn. The Finns picked them off with the 20mm ATRs (1 manned by a hero) and managed to pull their HMG and MMG to new positions where they managed to hold back the Russians long enough for the win...
This one is definitely pro-Finn...don't let the Russian numbers fool you...but George kept the Russians in it until the last turn...not bad for a bunch of guys used to vacationing on the Black Sea coast. :)
The Russians probably need something other than a couple of squads for the balance provision...2 more don't really help when you already have so many...maybe a few more MGs or leaders instead.
Good game George!
Bob Chandler
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