Just over three years since Jonathan and James wargamed the Arnhem battle over two days (see blog entry for write-up, photos and video), Jonathan had put together another impressive table of figures, vehicles, buildings and scenery for us to play Operation Comet.
Prior to Operation Market Garden, Montgomery had suggested Operation Comet, a limited airborne coup de main operation that was to be launched on 2 September 1944. Comet envisioned using the 1st Airborne Division, along with the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade, to secure several bridges over the River Rhine to aid the Allied advance into the North German Plain. The Divisional Headquarters for the 1st Airborne Division, with the 1st Airlanding Brigade and the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade were to land at Nijmegen, 1st Parachute Brigade was to land at Arnhem, and 4th Parachute Brigade was to land at Grave. However several days of poor weather and Montgomery's concerns over increasing levels of German resistance caused him to postpone the operation and then cancel it on 10 September.
So to find out what would have happened, Jonathan and James attacked Nijmegen, which was being defended by Kieron and Orhan.
The Brits had to capture the bridge at Grave and the road bridge at Nijmegen (on right) and then attempt to control the road in between to enable ground troops to drive eastwards. They had two main landing zones and a drop zone, but also dropped a glider each right next to the bridge objectives.
Jonathan's glider troops got shot up by the 88, which was then unsuccessfully close assaulted by those left. The remaining soldier found refuge and kept his head down - but kept a British presence near the bridge.
James' first wave of parachutists landed but got decimated by Orhan's troops (only a training battalion but sadly still very capable of rolling sixes most of the time).
Fortunately, there were two more waves but Orhan's troops ensured that British progress was very slow. But the glider landing near the Grave bridge was successful, and once the 88 and 20mm pieces were neutralized, the bridge was taken.
Soon, German reinforcements were arriving from the Fatherland, firstly half-tracks which made a bliztkreig attack by driving right up to British infantry and then engaging in close assaults.
This was followed by a Panzer IV, and the British defensive line south of Nijmegen started to get worn down.
Kieron's German reinforcements had less effect - they arrived into a farmhouse complex, and were rapidly hit by Jonathan's mortars and pressed into a defensive position. Jonathan's troops had dug in around the village of Beek and along the hedgerows - although they themselves were thinned out by German off-table artillery.
The German reinforcements started to push the British defensive line apart.
We didn't play very quickly and got to turn 6 of the 8 turns in Day 1 (so Day 2's reinforcements didn't even get a look in...).
One of the British Jeeps made a last dash towards the Nijmegen road bridge, getting as far as the cross-roads in the centre of town.
The battle had swung back and forward all day. There wasn't a clear victory. The Brits had taken the Grave bridge and many of the buildings in the town, but the Germans still occupied the factory and killed many of the paras occupying buildings in the final turn. There were still a lot of paras on the edge of Nijmegen but could they take the final bridge and town by nightfall?
The Germans were hanging on in Nijmegen and their reinforcements from Germany had changed the position south of the town significantly. But tomorrow morning would bring British armour and reinforcements from the West. Would they save the day or would the Germans ensure this was a bridge too far?
Here's a short video showing the table at the end of the game.
Prior to Operation Market Garden, Montgomery had suggested Operation Comet, a limited airborne coup de main operation that was to be launched on 2 September 1944. Comet envisioned using the 1st Airborne Division, along with the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade, to secure several bridges over the River Rhine to aid the Allied advance into the North German Plain. The Divisional Headquarters for the 1st Airborne Division, with the 1st Airlanding Brigade and the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade were to land at Nijmegen, 1st Parachute Brigade was to land at Arnhem, and 4th Parachute Brigade was to land at Grave. However several days of poor weather and Montgomery's concerns over increasing levels of German resistance caused him to postpone the operation and then cancel it on 10 September.
So to find out what would have happened, Jonathan and James attacked Nijmegen, which was being defended by Kieron and Orhan.
The Brits had to capture the bridge at Grave and the road bridge at Nijmegen (on right) and then attempt to control the road in between to enable ground troops to drive eastwards. They had two main landing zones and a drop zone, but also dropped a glider each right next to the bridge objectives.
Jonathan's glider troops got shot up by the 88, which was then unsuccessfully close assaulted by those left. The remaining soldier found refuge and kept his head down - but kept a British presence near the bridge.
James' first wave of parachutists landed but got decimated by Orhan's troops (only a training battalion but sadly still very capable of rolling sixes most of the time).
Fortunately, there were two more waves but Orhan's troops ensured that British progress was very slow. But the glider landing near the Grave bridge was successful, and once the 88 and 20mm pieces were neutralized, the bridge was taken.
Soon, German reinforcements were arriving from the Fatherland, firstly half-tracks which made a bliztkreig attack by driving right up to British infantry and then engaging in close assaults.
This was followed by a Panzer IV, and the British defensive line south of Nijmegen started to get worn down.
Kieron's German reinforcements had less effect - they arrived into a farmhouse complex, and were rapidly hit by Jonathan's mortars and pressed into a defensive position. Jonathan's troops had dug in around the village of Beek and along the hedgerows - although they themselves were thinned out by German off-table artillery.
The German reinforcements started to push the British defensive line apart.
We didn't play very quickly and got to turn 6 of the 8 turns in Day 1 (so Day 2's reinforcements didn't even get a look in...).
One of the British Jeeps made a last dash towards the Nijmegen road bridge, getting as far as the cross-roads in the centre of town.
The battle had swung back and forward all day. There wasn't a clear victory. The Brits had taken the Grave bridge and many of the buildings in the town, but the Germans still occupied the factory and killed many of the paras occupying buildings in the final turn. There were still a lot of paras on the edge of Nijmegen but could they take the final bridge and town by nightfall?
The Germans were hanging on in Nijmegen and their reinforcements from Germany had changed the position south of the town significantly. But tomorrow morning would bring British armour and reinforcements from the West. Would they save the day or would the Germans ensure this was a bridge too far?
Here's a short video showing the table at the end of the game.
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