New Russian WW2 Project - Reconnaissance in Strength

I have spent the last few days pouring over various scenarios and books seeking a suitable game to kickstart my WW2 Russian front project. As you will have seen, inspired by the new figures from 2D6 Wargaming, I felt that it really was about time I involved myself in some Soviet action. It is one of those theatres of war that I have always intended to play, but apart from a brief foray almost 50 years ago using Airfix figures, it never made it to the tabletop.

The criteria I used to select the scenario was that it was not just to be interesting and fun to play, but also with orbats where I could use the goodies being produced by 2D6 and also the new sculpts from Heroics & Ros. I did not want to be in the position of waiting for months, if not years, for the required figures and vehicles to be available (yes H&R do just about everything but many of their products have yet to be updated).

Having gone through my collection of books including some great scenarios in the Rapid Fire Scenario book 3, as well as the extensive scenario listings in Panzer Grenadier (thanks Kevin), I struggled to find what I was looking for.

I then had that Eureka moment. A book caught my eye on my bookshelves that I have used far too rarely over the years. The excellent "Programmed Wargames Scenarios" by Charles Grant.

It contains a mini-campaign "Reconnaissance in Strength" which fits the bill and should be great to play. This book is tailored for solo-play and I could foresee it being ideal to report in a fun way on my blog.

Jack Diomede did an ACW version of this campaign a couple of years ago on his Tabletop Commanders blog and can be found here http://tabletopcommanders.blogspot.com/2017/11/micro-table-battles-part-one.html

Jack showed the versatility of 6mm in that each table was just 17" x 17"! If you really are pushed for space this shows what can be achieved in this scale.

For my game though each table will be much larger. I have yet to determine the precise dimensions but want it to be sufficient for each table to present a decent challenge to a WW2 force.

These are the 10 tables to be reconnoitered by the Russians. Tables 3 - 9 are randomised. The maps in the book provide the basic topographical features allowing the gamer to add any detail necessary for the period wargamed. I will probably add quite a few features and terrain details to provide cover and interest.

The basics of the scenario are that several Russian reconnaissance in strength forces explore various mountain passes in preparation for a major offensive. This is one such pass representing a long valley in which they must travel.

In my game I will play the Russians with an AI opponent playing the Germans defending the valley. My force will be based around a motorised infantry brigade accompanied by a medium tank battalion along with various supports including artillery and recce units. The way I intend to report the action on my blog will be through my eyes as the Russians tentatively advance along the valley not knowing what they face.

I will go into more background detail when the campaign starts proper. My order has gone into 2D6 and it will be a small matter of painting the goodies before I start!

I am conscious that this is yet another project. In order to avoid spreading myself so thin that nothing ever gets done, I will be limiting the number of projects to those already listed in the "My Collections and Projects" tab above. This mean that something has to give. Sorry to say for those lovers of the 2mm scale, I will have to mothball that one for now.

As with my other projects, I will periodically report on my preparation progress and I have created a label "WW2 Recce in Strength" for ease of accessing the relevant posts.