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Home , Agdenes, April 1940, Gladiators (franchise), Halsa, Narvik, Orkland

April, 1940: has fallen, overwhelmed by the whiplash speed of the blitzkrieg. Now it's Scandinavia's turn. will provide little challenge, but what of ? Gone are the open plains of Silesia, replaced by densely forested mountains and frozen . Will the blitzkrieg work in country where winter doesn't really end until the middle of May?

For the first time, the will come into play - which will prove superior, the heavily-armored might of the British battlefleet, or the precision bombing of the Luftwaffe ? This will be the debut of the true air-sea-land campaign; can the Germans combine all three elements successfully ? And the battle must be quick - the invasion of France will allow no delays.

We'll play the Operation Weseruebung scenario, which runs in three-day turns from the beginning of April to the middle of June and covers the full historical campaign. No variants will be used - both sides will have to play what they've been dealt. For those who are following along, we'll use the Quick Start invasion plan. It follows history, is easier than making up your own, and is pretty much the best plan anyway. (continued on page 26)

April 2,1940: loaded with airplane fuel, three future Allied landing forces. Finally, artillery batteries, and a coastal BB Warspite, CL Arethusa and CV The Germans dispatch 2 AP's defense battery into sea zones Furious (with 2 Skua and 1 Swordfish (Transport ships) towards where the gasoline and artillery points) sail into the to carrying a coastal defense battery and will be very welcome to isolated, provide air support for the soon to be a battery of the 730th Artillery. The hard-fought German garrisons in embattered Norwegians. Norwegian Coast Guard catches the future turns. transport with the coastal battery off The Germans move 15 AP's into the Jutland; the other runs safely into the Now it's the British Navy's turn to carrying three battalions of Norwegian Leads. move, and they must get the heavy the 69th Division, three artillery metal out to sea. Even without batteries, and 3 Supply Points. The : hindsight it's pretty obvious what the Allied die-rolling woes continue, as The five remaining AP's and the five invasion objectives will be, so the the submarines in the Kattegat don't AO's (Tanker ships) make their runs British put together three heavy battle get a single hit. up the coast. An AP with a supply groups to hit the invaders: point and the AO Dollart with 6 ASP's (Air Supply Points) destined for • BB Rodney, BC Repulse, CA Invasion: are caught - the rest make Sheffield, Now the fun begins. We'll cover this it through successfully. The remain- and 3 DD's into the Southern Norwe- group by group: der of the , broken up gian Sea to strike at Trondheim. into invasion groups, sail out into Koln Group lands at Frederickstaad. their pre-invasion Sea Zones. • BB Valiant, CA's Devonshire, The Bolarne battery sinks the TB Berwic and York into the Norwegian point, but the lone German battalion Narvik Group: Leads to hit or . of the 69th division lands safely. CL Emden, 2 DD's & 1 TB in Central (The Germans detect them in the The only opposition is a Norwegian Norwegian Sea Leads, and a flight of Ju-88's artillery battery; the gunners put up Trondheim Group: damage Devonshire.) a good fight, reducing the German BC Gneisenau, CA Blucher, CL's battalion before retreating to Moss Karlsruhe & Konigsberg, and 1 TB in • The Renown (BC) group, already in after the Germans burn one of their Southern Norwegian Sea the Northern Norwegian Sea, will Quisling re-rolls. The Germans Bergen Group: target Narvik. capture the Frederickstaad PB Lutzow, 2 DD's, & 2 SB's in mobilization center, gaining Norwegian Leads CL's Penelope & Emile and 1 2 supply points. Group: French DD steam into the Central BC Scharnhorst, CA Hipper, GT Norwegian Sea to block any possible Scharnhorst Group runs the battery at Bremse, & 2 SB's in Kattegat additional German movement up the Kristiansand unscathed. A heavy Frederickstad Group: coast. Five AP's with 5 Supply Points assault of three battalions from the CL Koln & 1 TB in Kattegat and 1 DD escort sail into the 69th division, with air support from Shetlands, to provide supply for He-Ill's out of Denmark, hammers The British send the BC Renown the Norwegian 1/3 battalion. The and four DD's into the Northern Norwegians retreat to Kjevik, Norwegian Sea, and 1 DD into leaving the Germans to capture the the Norwegian Leads, to lay mines. Kristiansand battery, the mobilization center, and the Norwegian TB in : the port. Northern Zone: Foul Central Zone: Fair Lutzow Group - The Bergen battery is Southern Zone: Cloudy caught completely by surprise, not even getting a chance to fire on the The hard-working Norwegian coast invaders. The attack by 3 battalions guard captures the AO Moonsund of the 163rd division originally goes with 6 ASP's in the Kattegat and an badly, but the second Quisling re-roll AP with a coastal battery in the routs the Norwegian 1/9 battalion. Norwegian Leads. The remaining The Germans capture the TB in ships of the Export and Tanker Bergen and advance after combat into Echelons slip through safely. The Ulven, capturing the trucks and result of mournful Allied detection mobilization center therein. die-rolling, this will be key later on in the game - the Germans have Gneisenau Group - The managed to move four tankers battery damages CL Karlsruhe. The

cruiser's cargo, a now depleted Oscarburg Group - The paratroopers Stavanger, and the airfields at battalion of the 163rd division, are destroyed on landing. Fornebu, Sola, and Vaernes with light captures the battery. Two more casualties in both ships and men. battalions of the 163rd assault Group - This company of Now the drive north will begin. Trondheim, capturing the city along paratroops lands safely (the only ones with its trucks and mobilization to do so), capturing the Bolarne The Germans end the turn with +83 center. The fourth battalion captures coastal battery and Norwegian Victory Points. Vaernes airbase; the Norwegian ML Trygvasson. Fokkers stationed there escape to a : frozen lake airbase at hex 3417. Once safely ashore, the Germans expand their lodgements. The three This is the turn in which the Allies Emden Group lands unopposed, battalions at Fornebu attack must respond, and with the three capturing Elvesgardsmoen and with air support from He-Ill's out of battle groups they have the muscle at Narvik, including the two , driving the Norwegian sea to do it. They must run in and hit Norwegian CD's in the port. HKMG battalion out of the city to the German ships as they lie vulner- Taking the mobilization center at Kjeller - they barely miss capturing able in port, at the same time setting Elvesgardsmoen is particularly King Hakkon. The Oscarburg the stage for their own counter- important, as this gives the mountain battery surrenders. invasion landings. troops two valuable supply points to use in the lean weeks ahead. The Norwegians dutifully begin Unfortunately, the turn begins on a mobilization. The 1st, 4th, 5th and gloomy note for the Allies, as German Now for the air portion: 6th Brigades put a thin line together Ju-88's flying out of Denmark avoid a in the forests north and east of Oslo. hail of flak to damage BB Valiant in Sola Group - Allies detect them flying The 7th and 8th block the Setesdal the Norwegian Leads. While the over Jutland and intercept with two highway, while the 10th forms a solid Valiant staggers off to for Skuas from CV Furious, but the Ju-88c defense around Voss and Kinsarvik. repairs, the British pull BB Warspite escorts fight them off. The parachute Far to the north the 16th Mountain away from escorting Furious, and company, however, is destroyed on Brigade begins to mobilize at together with CA's Berwick & York, landing. The Transport Assault Bardofuss, awaiting promised Allied run in to attack Bergen. The Bergen battalions land, capturing the airfield reinforcements. The only British battery damages Berwick, but the with the last Quisling re-roll. The response to all this is a Night Bomb- Royal Navy ships continue un- Norwegian TB in Stavanger escapes ing raid on Denmark by their heavy daunted, sinking the entire German to Flekkefjord. bombers. As a fitting ending to these Bergen Group - PB Lutzow, 2 DD's & 2 lamentable three days, all miss. SB's, although at heavy cost - Fornebu Group - All three battalions Berwick & York are both sunk. of the 69th division land safely, Overall, the invasion has gone very followed by two supply points. The well. The Germans have captured all BC Renown steams into Elvesgoeden, Norwegian Gladiators escape to an of their major objectives - the ports of sinking CL Emden. The four British Ice Field at 3817. Narvik, Trondheim, Bergen, Oslo and DD's move on Narvik, sinking 2

German DD's, 1 TB, and 2 AP's for Norwegian Leads, and Jutland the loss of two DD's of their own. sea zones with their short range. For the British, the bad news at sea continues. Stukas from Sola find BB The most powerful British battle The Germans enjoy more success Warspite sailing alone in the Norwe- group - BB Rodney, BC Repulse, on the ground. The 69th Division, gian Leads. The British intercept and CA Sheffield tackle Trondheim. with motorized support from the with Skuas off Furious, but the The Agdenes battery damages 13th MG battalion and the 40th Stuka's Me-109 escorts make short Sheffield, which goes on anyway to Panzer company, shatters the weak work of them. With pinpoint sink CL Karlsruhe. Rodney & Repulse Norwegian defenses north of Oslo, accuracy, the Stukas sink Warspite. sink BC Gneisenau, but are themselves advancing all the way to Tretten by This is a very heavy blow to the damaged and withdraw without turn's end. Elsewhere, the 3rd Allies, as Warspite was one of their finishing off the remaining Mountain Division links up with the strongest units. The lesson, of German ships. Frederickstad invaders, while the course, is that lone ships without 196th Division clears the coast heavy air or AA support are little While this is going on, the first between Christiansand and more than sitting targets for British troops arrive in Norway - Stavanger. At Trondheim the 163rd the Luftwaffe. two battalions of the 148th Brigade Division advances south against land at Andelsnes to support light Norwegian opposition. The Allies will have their revenge, the Norwegians blocking the however. The German decision to Gubransdal highway between The situation has now changed leave their ships in Trondheim proves Oslo and Trondheim. somewhat. The Kriegsmarine set the to be disastrous as BC Renown, CL's charges ashore successfully, but now Penelope & Emile Berlin, and 2 DD's The Germans can do very little to most of the German Navy is rusting attack the port. The Agdenes battery avenge their sunken ships. The gently at the bottom of the Norwe- damages Penelope, but the Allies surviving vessels at Trondheim, CL gian Sea. The Allies have already manage to sink CL Konigsberg, CA Konigsberg, CA Blucher, 1 TB, 5 AP's, begun to bring their land forces to Blucher, 1 TB, 4 AP's, and AO and AO Euroland remain in port, bear - only two weak battalions now, Euroland for loss of both destroyers hoping that the Luftwaffe will reduce of course, but a pre-cursor of more to and damage to Renown. the Royal Navy enough to allow follow. They will have to hurry, them to run for safety next turn. however, as the Germans have The Allied build-up around Narvik Unfortunately, a combination of already broken out of Oslo and the begins. An amphibious assault on cloudy weather in the Central Zone Norwegians don't show many signs the port is contemplated, but believ- and accurate AA fire frustrates of being able to stop them. ing that the German defenders are German air attacks on the host of too strong, the Allies decide on a Allied targets now at sea. More German +63 VP's more conventional approach, landing significantly, the Germans transfer two battalions of the 24th Guards several flights of bombers to Norway, : brigade at Salengen and Sorreisa, and including 4 points of deadly Ju-87 Northern: Foul a battalion of the 5th Demi-Brigade of Stukas to Sola, allowing them to Central: Cloudy Chasseurs at . The French are reach the Southern Norwegian, Southern: Cloudy blocked at the Harstad ferry by the

Freitag battalion of sailors, but the seaplanes arrive from Orland, For several days, the Allies have been Guards, together with the Norwegian carrying another supply point. This planning an amphibious operation 14th brigade, launch their first attack will turn out to be the decisive point to regain the initiative in the south. on Elvesgardesmoen, inflicting heavy in the campaign, as the Allied failure An invasion flotilla, escorted by BC losses on the German defenders. to stop their arrival will doom their Repulse, CLA Curlew, and CA's The Allies also land two battalions efforts to take Narvik by siege Birmingham & Manchester lands the of the 146th Brigade and the 1st or assault. 27 Demi-brigade de Chasseurs at Royal Marine battalion at Stavanger. Defended only by a and , in position to move The relentless German motorized battalion of the 196th Division and a against Trondheim or assist the hard- column (4th, 13th, & 14th MG mobile coastal defense battery, pressed Norwegians holding the battalions, with two companies of capturing the port will gain the Allies Gubransdal highway. the 40th Panzer) captures Dombaas, valuable victory points and allow destroying the 1st Royal Marine them to base Hurricanes where they The Germans finish off the last battalion and driving the remnants of can intercept German bombers flying Norwegian remnants in the south- the 146th Brigade back towards off the Norwegian airfields. Addi- eastern corner of the country, Halsa. With the fall of their main tionally, there's a good chance of including the 1st Brigade, supply depot, most of the remaining capturing the German aircraft surrounded and destroyed in its Norwegian units in the southern half stationed at Sola, including the mobilization center at Mysen. To the of the country surrender in the dangerous Stukas. This last goal is north, the invading spearheads reach following days. thwarted when the Ju-87's intercept Otta and Stor Elvdal. Without some the flotilla in the Leads, damaging Allied help soon, the Norwegians will The British 15th Brigade, with their Repulse and returning to Vaernes. certainly crack. all-important Anti-tank guns, arrive The remainder of the operation, on the eastern coast. Originally however, goes smoothly. The heavy Faced by increasing Allied pressure earmarked to add more weight to the cruisers suppress the coastal battery, on Narvik, the Germans make a bold forces attacking Trondheim, instead and with air support flying from the decision. All the remaining German they are fed into stopping the newly arrived CV Royal Oak, the ships - BC Scharnhorst, CA Hipper, German meatgrinder on the highway. Chasseurs capture Stavanger, CL Koln, GT Bremse, and 2 SB's set The 148th brigade launches an attack catching four points of Ju-52's out from Germany carrying two against the German 163rd Division at at the airfield. battalions of the 196th Division and . With Swordfish support 3 supply points bound for Narvik. from Furious (and much to their This changes everything. In one They make it to the Southern surprise), the attack succeeds, stroke, the Allies have gained a firm Norwegian Sea undetected. pushing the defenders back into foothold in and Trondheim. As the northern, ended the unchallenged Luftwaffe Germans +68 VP's Norwegian half of the operation, domination of the Norwegian Leads. the 3rd Dragoon battalion hits the The Germans, however, react quickly, : Berger naval battalion at Agdenes, moving four battalions of the 196th Division, previously garrisoning the Northern: Fair but the land-locked sailors hold on, southern ports, to surround Central: Fair driving the dragoons back with Stavanger, while He-Ill's from Southern: Cloudy heavy losses. Denmark and Germany converge to hammer the city. They inflict 3 hits of The unusually mild weather for a German +76 VP's damage on the port, destroying all Norwegian April continues, much to of the supplies that the Chasseurs the dismay of the Royal Navy, as the : brought with them. deadly Stukas from Sola sink BC Northern: Foul Renown in the Southern Norwegian Central: Cloudy To the north, the German 214th Sea as she tries to make it back to Southern: Fair Division breaks the last Norwegian Scapa Flow for repairs. The British pull together a makeshift defenses at , opening up the supply line to Trondheim. The The Scharnhorst Group, with the all- battle group to run into Narvik and Allies decide to evacuate all of important reinforcements for Narvik, hit the ships there. CA's Glasgow & their remaining troops in the is intercepted by BB Rodney in the Devonshire, CL's Emile Berlin & central region. Central Norwegian Sea. He-Ill's Enterprise, and CLA Curacao go in, flying from Fornebu damage Rodney damaging CA Hipper, CL Koln, and : before she can engage, and the sinking 1 SB, while losing Glasgow. Northern: Foul battleship breaks off the attack. The The German ships slip out of port Central: Cloudy Germans make it into port otherwise that night, running south into the Southern: Fair unscathed, landing their troops and Southern Norwegian Sea. supplies. Later this turn, He-59

A German convoy carrying three Royal Navy can operate in that region seriously impede the invaders. battalions of the 214th Division relatively free of molestation. They towards Christiansand is detected take advantage of the situation to German +92 VP's C by CA's Suffolk & Manchester. But land the French Foreign Legion BC Scharnhorst rushes in to intercept Brigade at Stavanger. After this, May1: from the Norwegian Leads, damag- however, the rest of the turn is an Northern: Fair f ing Manchester and seeing the convoy unmitigated Allied disaster. Central: Cloudy safely into port. A swarm of bombers Southern: Cloudy again pounds Stavanger, inflicting 3 In a running fight through the more hits (for a total of 5) and Norwegian Leads, the injured Hipper This is a crucial turn. The Invasion of destroying all of the supplies that and Koln damage CL Effingham and France begins right on schedule, the Chasseurs have on hand. Rein- make it to Denmark safely. Ju-88's which means that the bulk of the forced by the newly arrived battal- home in on the two British cruisers German bombers and almost all of ions, the Germans attack Stavanger in Jutland, damaging Suffolk and their Ju-52 transports are withdrawn. from the landward side, destroying 2 sinking Manchester. The Germans now have to deal with a French battalions. Allied reinforce- weakening of their previously ments arrive in the form of the 2nd The British successfully evacuate the unchallenged air superiority, and Royal Marine battalion ferried in 148th Brigade from Heim and Halsa. the reduction of more than half of from Strand , but Stavanger is But the British 15th Brigade their transport capacity. The Allies definitely besieged. rearguard is in a tough spot. At only lose a few cruisers and destroy- the German motorized ers initially. However, in the coming The Allies evacuation from the units hit them head on, losing an turns almost all of the surviving central region begins. Covered by entire company of tanks to the British French units will be taken away. the 15th Brigade, the remnants of anti-tank guns. But a battalion of ski the 146th escapes out to sea. The troops sweeps around their flank to In an effort to once again gain the Germans hit the rearguard hard, hit them from the rear. The British initiative, two Polish battalions from driving them back five miles roadblock collapses, and the the BPCP Brigade are landed at and capturing Sunndal. pursuing panzers overrun the and Kinsarvik, immediately cutting survivors. The entire 15th Brigade - off Bergen. Their plan is to land the Germans +79 VP's all three battalions - is lost. remainder of the brigade next turn and then assault the heavily garri- With central Norway now free of soned (two battalions of the : enemy troops, the Germans are free 163rd and a Naval battalion) port. Northern: Foul to send troops south to Stavanger, Just north of there, a destroyer Central: Stormy while the relief effort towards slips out of Allesund , bearing Southern: Fair Narvik resumes with the 3rd Moun- King Hakkon and his Guards tain and 163rd Divisions leading the back to England. The weather finally rallies to the way. The Norwegian 14th Brigade Allied cause. With the Central Zone puts up a stiff fight at Majavatn, but More reinforcements arrive for shut down to air operations, the they just haven't got the strength to Narvik. FW 200's from Vaernes

parachute in a Mountain Company to Hurricanes escape to Scapa Flow, the attack on April 5, which was more join the garrison, while long-range French tanks and artillery leave than made up for by their daring run Do-26 seaplanes bring in a supply Stavanger by ship, while the up the coast with reinforcements for point. A commandeered Norwegian rearguard, a beat-up battalion of Narvik. As for the rest, skillful freighter also slips into port carrying the French Foreign Legion, slips away deployment of the Luftwaffe bombers more supplies - the Allies respond to after nightfall to an AP waiting at (particularly the Stukas), the this by landing the Royal Marine Strand, only to find that the Germans formation of a powerful mechanized Battery at Balangen, which promptly have emplaced a mobile coastal column to break through to sinks the next two captured ships battery at Skundenshavn. BB Trondheim, and the rapid utilization trying to slide past. Resolution and CL's Montcalm & of reserves at Stavanger and Hide Vindictive move in to suppress the guaranteed a victory. The Allies besieging Narvik, rein- battery. In the ensuing battle the forced with the KOH Tank Platoon battery scores a critical hit on Allied Player and Norwegian ski troops from the Montcalm, which sinks with the The Allies have been taught some Finnmark, make a major effort to take loss of all hands. The Legionnaires hard lessons by this campaign, the Elvesgardsmoen. Backed by the barely make it out of port ahead of a most important being the pre- tanks, the British Guards launch a German mountain battalion advanc- eminence of airpower. Even the heavy attack while a battalion of the ing overland, but the AP is detected strongest ships are vulnerable when Chasseurs attempts an amphibious and sunk by Stukas from Vaernes. operating near an enemy shore landing. The result is disastrous - the This episode - desperate, improvised without good fighter cover, as the French are chopped to pieces before tactics, carried out bravely in the British learned by losing both they can even come ashore, while the face of massive air superiority, Warspite and Renown to short-range overland attack is halted with heavy ultimately culminating in failure - German dive-bombers. losses on both sides. The only good represents the entire Allied Norway result, from the Allied perspective, is campaign in microcosm. The other lesson, which they never that the Norwegians cut the rail-line really learned, in Norway or later, from , frustrating a German Germans: + 108 VP's is that scattered, improvisational attempt to send in supplies from the tactics will not work against a well- neutral country - they arrive in May 3: prepared, centralized enemy. By Trondheim instead. The German Northern: Foul spreading their landings up and relief column captures . Central: Fair down the coast - Narvik, Trondheim, Southern: Fair Stavanger, Hide - the Allies German: +99 VP's dissipated, rather than concentrated, The Allied High Command is now their land-bound strength, which the May 2: forced to take a long look at the Germans were able to counter Northern: Stormy Norwegian theatre - their only through skillful employment of Central: Fair remaining footholds are an increas- reserves on interior lines. In Southern: Cloudy ingly futile (and costly) siege of retrospect, reinforcing Stavanger Narvik, and an isolated half-brigade after it became obvious that they More Allied ships leave for France. of Poles at Hide. The Germans have would never be able to expand their Taking advantage of the reduced AA now reached a Decisive level of beachhead was repeating the error of Gallipoli, doing little more than cover, Ju-88's from Fornebu damage victory, and the Allies don't have providing the Germans with a CV Glorious. enough forces on hand to effect this result. Slowly, reluctantly, they reach steady stream of victory points through reduced battalions and The Germans now have elements the decision to withdraw their sunken ships. These forces might of three divisions - 69th, 196th, and remaining troops. The Battle for Norway is over. have been better off withdrawn and 181st - around Stavanger, and they employed elsewhere. make their heaviest assault yet. With no supplies on hand, the German: + 108 VP's Decisive German Victory Allied command of the air might depleted French garrison can't have overcome these two significant even fire support missions from Analysis factors (as it would later in the war). their artillery. In hard fighting they Without it, the Allies were doomed lose two battalions outright as the from the start. Germans drive to within one mile German Player of the city. Faced with disaster, To win in Invasion: Norway, the and finally unwilling to pour more Germans have to fight a nearly troops into the port, the Allies decide flawless campaign, and this time they to evacuate. did. Their only serious mistake was leaving their ships in Trondheim after The evacuation itself is epical. The beating off the initial Allied naval