New Guinea 1942: AAR

We played a game of A Sergeant’s War on Saturday at Stronghold Games in McAllen, TX.  The scenario was based on the American 32^nd Infantry Division’s operations on New Guinea in November/December 1942, when they fought against well entrenched Japanese forces.  The game was hard fought, with sharp Japanese counter attacks, heavy fire from MG bunkers, and point blank shots from US Stuart tanks.  Pictures below, mixed in with a description of the game after.  Here is a link to my blog, where I have included a full order of battle, notes, and a map. 

The Americans, with two understrength infantry platoons, a pair of M3 Stuarts, and a battery of offboard light mortars, had to force a crossing of a jungle creek.  The Japanese, with three MG bunkers, a 37mm gun bunker, several units of infantry, and some offboard arty, were to stop them. 

The Americans advanced across a broad front and throughout the game shifted the Stuarts from flank to flank to reinforce infantry units who got bogged down against Japanese defenses.  First contact occurred on the Japanese left, where an LMG bunker and artillery observer directed fire against the US center and supporting riflemen fought Americans coming up the flank.  On the Japanese right flank, the US infantry advanced head first into a kill zone created by two MG bunkers and the 37mm gun.  US infantry suffered heavy casualties here and Stuart was first forced back by massed HMG fire, and then again by the gun. 

Late in the game, the Americans broke through the Japanese left flank and endured several counter attacks.  A squad of GIs also pushed up through the middle of the board, encountering a section of Japanese riflemen and an LMG who stoutly defended a line of spiderholes.  The Americans and Japanese, neither strong enough to defeat the other, were stuck in a three-turn short ranged fire fight, suffering few casualties but unable to move anywhere.  The Americans brought up a Stuart and a .30 cal LMG to provide support, and this sufficiently pinned down the Japanese for the infantry to force the Japanese out with grenades and the bayonet.

With their left flank and center crumbled, the Japanese player (me!) called for a general retreat.  Casualties were high for both sides.  US losses included 15 infantry (with several leaders) out of 54.  Japanese losses were 13 out of 26.  Most US casualties were suffered before the Americans really got stuck in—losing troops at a distance to ranged fire.  Most Japanese losses occurred when the Americans were in close and pounded the Japanese with superior firepower and infantry assaults. 

Thanks for looking!  I plan to run a modified version of this game at Millenium Con in Round Rock, TX, in November.

Scenario information:

NEW GUINEA, 1942

US Objective:

You must take and hold a crossing point on the stream and establish a bridgehead on the other side.

Terrain:

Areas of brush, trees, and high grass are Cover (-1) and Difficult Terrain.  Vehicles must take a Bog Check.  Maximum LOS in the areas is 6”.

The stream is Very Difficult Terrain and impassable to vehicles, except at Fords, which are difficult terrain.

Forces: 

All are Quality 4, Morale 4.

Your force represents two platoons of infantry, understrength from earlier combat and jungle diseases, with armored support.  They enter on turn 1 from the south table edge.

4x Leaders

2x Radiomen

5x BAR sections (4 men each, Firepower 2+1 )

5x Rifle sections (5 men each, Firepower 1+1)

1x .30 cal LMG team (3 men, Firepower 3)

2x M3A3 Stuart tanks (see below)

Fire Support:

Light artillery: Strength 4, Radius 3”, 5 missions HE/smoke

Each rifle section carries enough satchel charges for one firefight. 

M3A3 Light Tank “Stuart”

Type	AT	Armor F/S	Speed	HE/MG	Other
M3A3 Stuart	2	2/0	20/Trkd	1 / 2	Cupola MG?

Japanese Objective:

You must hold the creek and prevent an American crossing.

Terrain:

Areas of brush, trees, and high grass are Cover (-1) and Difficult Terrain.  Vehicles must take a Bog Check.  Maximum LOS in the areas is 6”.

The stream is Very Difficult Terrain and impassable to vehicles, except at Fords, which are difficult terrain.

Concealment and Fortifications

All of your troops begin the game Well Concealed. Use a map or dummy counters.

You have 4 bunkers for use by LMGs, HMGs, or ATGs. One bunker also counts as having wired communications and may call for artillery fire.

Your remaining forces may deploy in Hard Cover (slit trenches/foxholes).  You may also deploy 2 back up entrenched positions, each big enough for 5 troops.

Each bunker has a 90 degree arc of fire and can only be engaged if the enemy can draw an LOS to the firing slit (or are in a fire fight with the bunker).  All bunkers have a secondary position within 2" of the bunker, that counts as hard cover but not a bunker.  The occupants of the bunker may move into the secondary position. 

Forces: 

All are Quality 4, Morale 3.

Your force represents a platoon of infantry, understrength from jungle diseases, with some fire support.  It may deploy anywhere north of the dotted red line.

2x Leaders

3x Rifle sections (4 men each, Firepower  1)

3x Grenade discharger teams (2 men each, Firepower 1; either attach out to rifle sections or, if massed together, count as firepower 4 and may fire smoke)

2x LMG teams (2 men each, Firepower 2; firepower 3 if in a bunker)

1x HMG team (3 men, Firepower 5; firepower 6 if in a bunker)

1x Type  94 37mm gun (4 crew) (see below; must be in a bunker)

            If a leader is present, a rifle section need not test morale to try and assault an American     tank.         

Fire Support:

Light artillery: Strength 4, Radius 3”, 5 missions HE/smoke.  Against targets within 12” of the creek, +1 accuracy.

Type 94 gun

Type	AT	Armor F/S	Speed	HE/MG	Other
Type 94 37mm	1	-	-	1

The table is 4'x4', assuming 15mm or 20 miniatures.  The grey squares indicate fords.