Hannut for Eisenhower

The Germans have taken one Objective
but they are Worn and time is running out.

Ian and I are working on the Hannut scenario I converted from Rommel to Eisenhower.

Having only two Formations a side worked perfectly well. Fellow players will note that the forces were spread thinly in comparison to other Eisenhower scenarios, but that's the way it was.

The German advantage in Ops, Stockpiles and starting with the Momentum was augmented by banning the French defenders from starting Prepared. That was to reflect the historical Belgian failure to build the expected defences, but as the two forces are more-or-less identical, this is a tough job for the attackers who usually enjoy more points. 

If the Germans fail to take one or more Objectives early, it becomes impossible for them to win the game.

Of course, a scenario doesn't have to be balanced. For competitive purposes you can swop sides, play a second game and add the scores together, but we are working on ways of giving the attackers more of an advantage, including Barrage cards and forcing some of the French to arrive as Reinforcements.

Once it's more developed, I'll post the map, OOBs and further details.

3mm 1940 for Eisenhower

It was in 2013 that I first mentioned my interest in doing 3mm French and German armies for the Battle of Hannut in May 1940. This developed into the Rommel project before being abandoned, but I've recently been mining the lead mountain and am now processing a fraction of the accumulated Oddzial Osmy 3mm kit for use with Eisenhower. 

The photo shows the entire armies for Hannut: two German and two French armoured divisions. Although historically the largest tank battle then fought, it's small for a game in which there is normally a minimum of three formations (divisions) a side. Each base represents a battalion of tanks or motorised infantry. The German tank battalions were of mixed type. Although the obsolete Panzer Is and IIs predominated, I’ve modelled them as Panzer IVs (the cutting edge) as this makes them more useful for later campaigns.

Hannut scenario for Rommel

I haven't even played a game of Rommel yet but I have helped to draft an historical scenario, a demonstration of chutzpah that even I find a little embarrassing! It's based on the Battle of Hannut in May 1940.

It all started with the need to decide what to buy and paint in the model area, but with the encouragement and substantial input from RobH this curiosity grew into a draft scenario.

It's a work in progress. You can download all the current files here and follow discussion on the Rommel board of the Honour forum here.

It basically reflects our best attempt to create an historically based map, historical OOBs (mostly the work of Rob) and the historical circumstances. The scenario is completely untested for game balance but we have some ideas in reserve.

Given a map, OOBs and some understanding of a battle, designing a Rommel scenario is straightforward if a little fiddly. Using generic OOBs would have been a lot more straightforward but I have absolutely no regrets about going historical in the detail.

Besides the historical research and game-creation  aspects, this project has also involved resuscitation of graphic and database skills, the latter being utilised to create a set of unit cards. I don't have much free time during the day but insomnia is a great aid to productivity.