PBI Championship, Portbury, Summer 2007
I took my fearsome Belgian army
It was:
Platoon 1
Commander (SMG)
3 BAR LMG teams
6 Rifle Groups
1 Light Mortar group
Platoon 2
Commander (SMG)
3 BAR LMG teams
5 Rifle Groups
1 Light Mortar group
Platoon 2
Commander (SMG)
2 BAR LMG teams
5 Rifle Groups
1 Light Mortar group
Support Platoon
Commander (Rifle)
3 HMG teams
AT Section
2 towed 47mm guns
Tank Section
3 T13's (47mm gun)
1 T15 (HMG only!!!)
Game 1
We defended against equally defensively minded Volksturm, with 2 veteran PzIV's and 2 towed guns. After a protracted pre-game recce phase, with both sides desperate to defend, the Volksturm accidentally shot off the end of the recce phase rolling forwards about 30 squares in one go, and attacked from the left with a massive advantage in units. This was exacerbated by all three of my infantry platoons ending up as reserves, meaning I only had 2 guns, 3 HMGs and 4 tanks to occupy the table
The blockhouse objective housed a brave HMG team
and my guns bravely held on to their right.
As I don't know the rules to well and PBI is quite fast moving (with both players firing in each others turns) I didn't manage to take any other photos of this game. But suffice to say the German attack stalled, partly due to heroic Belgian defence (especially from the Belgian armoured Corps, who's sole HMG armed tank took out a rather surprised German Pak 40 team after ambushing them whilst they were still limbered) , and partly due to brave resistance from my HMGs.
Game 2
This time the Belgians had again held on until the Battle of the Bulge in 1944, and were defending a small town comprised of Russian-style buildings against some more Volksturm... and 2 King Tigers!!
The Belgians were able to set up a great defensive position in and around the town, and forced the Germans to attack from the right. Fierce HMG fire pinned down the rather cowardly German old men and children (erm...)
Whilst the Belgian tanks skulked unenthusiastically at the back....
German infantry on their right flank were totally pinned down, coming under fire from AT guns, tanks and Belgian infantry.
Brave Belgian LMG teams supported by armour
As more and more Germans funneled onto the board they found themselves in a traffic jam under fire
But the King Tigers were bravely standing out in the open, daring to face the possibility of shots from Belgian 47mm AP ammunition that had lain in storage for the past 6 years. Woo-hoo!
They fired up their engines and advanced
One Tiger even got as far as advancing straight past the town - when an unsuspecting T13 failed to notice it, and unwittingly presented its thinner rear armour to the Nazi behemoth. With only 11 dice scoring hits on a 3/4/5/6 against my 4 saving rolls on a 5/6, things ended up very bad for the poor Belgian driver.
However as the game went on the Germans started to get disheartened
With time again running out, the Germans had made no real headway against the well entrenched lowcountrymen, and another victory was racked up for the entrenching Walloons.
Game 3
This time the Belgian Foreign Legion fought against a tide of Italians in the desert. A good pre game recce phase saw nearly all the Belgian troops on table, and they dug in across a road, as the Italians entered from the north
It was a formidable line to attack, with the powerful guns of the T13s providing overhead firepower. Once the two Italian tankettes were despatched, the Belgian armour was in the rare situation of being Kings of the Battlefield
A strong position with buildings either side saw the two forces trading shots across a road for much of the game.
The Italians attempted several desperate assaults, but in close hand to hand fighting the Flems flung them back time and time again to hold out for a short (4 rounds) but decisive victory for the Belgian army, leaving me in 2nd place overall.
Portbury Knights Club (the gracious hosts)
True North Minis - where my Belgians came from
