ABRAMS’ FOLLY
SINGLING, LORRAINE, DECEMBER 6, 1944: Lt Colonel Creighton Abrams directed Task Force Abrams, consisting of units of the 37th Tank Battalion and 51st Armoured Infantry Battalion, 4th Armoured Division. On the the 6th December a battered tank company and understrength infantry company came up against superior German forces in the small farming community of Singling. The assembly and staging area of the 37th Tank Battalion that morning was muddy from all of the recent rain. The halftracks were having difficulty maneuvering and the infantry were ordered to ride on the rear deck of the tanks for the attack on Bining. When Company B/37th was ordered to divert to Singling the infantry went with them unaware of the change of plans. The attack was hasty and unplanned. Intended to remove flanking fire from Task Force Abrams’ drive towards the German border, the attack was nearly a disaster for the Americans.
YOUR ORDERS
GERMAN: You command a battlegroup of the 11th Panzer Division. After a long retreat from the south of France now is your chance to give the Americans a bloody nose.
AMERICAN: A late change of plans mean that you haven’t been able to do any recce on the new objective – the village of Singling. Let’s hope that the krauts are still on the run.
PREPARING FOR BATTLE
1. Set up the terrain using the map as your guide.
2. Place the German troops in their various deployment areas.
3. The US troops move on to the table in the marked entry area on turn one. The Armoured Rifle platoons must start riding on the tanks. Their halftracks are available as per the transport rules the turn after the infantry debus.
4. The US player has the first turn.
ENDING THE GAME
The battle ends when:
1. The US forces control all buildings in Singling village.
2. One of the forces fails a Company Motivation Check.
DECIDING WHO WON
The German player wins if they end the game in control of any of the buildings on the board, or if they force the Americans to leave the field of battle. The US player wins if they manage to control all the buildings in Singling village, or have forced the Germans to leave the field of battle.
SCENARIO MAP
1. The table size is 6 x 4 foot.
2. There are three contour levels (0, 1 and 2 on the map), with each level being approximately the height of a one-storey structure. Crossing a contour line counts as slow going for vehicles.
3. The main east-west road is a tarred highway, with the other roads being rural dirt ones.
4. The highest point in the village is the church steeple, which can accommodate an observer team.
5. Vegetation is a mixture of woods, orchards to the south of town and hedgerows which all count as difficult going. The orchards are surrounded by stone walls.
SCENARIO FORCES KAMPFGRUPPE 11th PANZER DIVISON (CONFIDENT VETERAN)
DEPLOYMENT GROUP A
Company Command: CinC SMG/Pzfaust team
1st PzGrenadier Platoon: Command SMG/Pzfaust team
6 x MG/Pzfaust teams
2nd PzGrenadier Platoon: Command SMG/Pzfaust team
6 x MG/Pzfaust teams
3rd PzGrenadier Platoon: Command SMG/Pzfaust team
6 x MG/Pzfaust teams
MG Platoon: Command SMG/Pzfaust team
2 x HMG
DEPLOYMENT GROUP B
AT Platoon: Command SMG/Pzfaust team
2 x Pak40 75mm guns
Bunkers: 2 x HMG nests
DEPLOYMENT GROUP C
1st Panzer Platoon: 3 x PzV Panthers
2nd Panzer Platoon: 3 x PzV Panthers
DEPLOYMENT GROUP D
Mortar Section: 2iC SMG/Pzfaust team
2 x 8cm Mortar
1 x Observer team
Tank Hunter Platoon: 4 x JgPz IV (75mm L48)
Pz Artillery Battery: 3 x Wespe
1 x Staff team
1 x Observer team (in Church steeple) TASK FORCE ABRAMS (CONFIDENT VETERAN)
Company B/37th Tank Bn Command: 1 x M4A3 76mm (late) CiC
1 x M4A3 75mm 2iC
1st Tank Platoon: 2 x M4A3 76mm (late)
2 x M4A3 75mm
1 x M4 105mm
2nd Tank Platoon: 2 x M4A3 76mm (late)
2 x M4A3 75mm
3rd Tank Platoon: 2 x M4A3 76mm (late)
2 x M4A3 75mm
Platoon, 704th Tank Destroyer Bn: 1 x Command Carbine team with Jeep
2 x M20 Scout cars
4 x M18 Hellcat
1st Armoured Rifle Platoon: 1 x Command Rifle team
5 x Rifle teams
2 x M1919 LMG teams
5 x Bazooka teams
5 x M3 HT
2nd Armoured Rifle Platoon: 1 x Command Rifle team
5 x Rifle teams
2 x M1919 LMG teams
5 x Bazooka teams
5 x M3 HT
OFF TABLE
94th Armoured Field Battery: 3 x M7 Priest with Staff team 3 x M7 Priest with Staff team
1 x on-table Observer in M4 OP Sherman