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Page 1: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 2: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 3: Flames of War - Overlord
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- This is a supplement for Flames Of war, the World W'ilr II miniatures game.A copy of the rulebook for Flames OfWar is necessary to fully use the contents of this book.

/l=- ¥tt= ". lI'= ..,. ¥tt= ). ~ lie =-fY

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, srored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by anymeans without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of bIn 'ing or cover other than that

in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.'ft/== ". 11(= ..,. 'ft/== ,. ~ ,,," ---jY

© Copyright Battlefront Miniatures Ltd., 2013. ISBN: 978-0-9922516-7-3

Page 5: Flames of War - Overlord

THE ALLIED INVASION OF FRANCEJUNE-SEPTEMBER 1944

)I' ,lfi ,I\'

Overlord was updated and expanded from Turning Tide byMichael Haught and Phil Yates

Turning Tide was produced by theBattlefront team and friends.

Editors: Peter Simunovich, John-Paul Brisigotti

Graphic Design: Sean Goodison

Cover and Internal Art: Randy Elliott, Michael Taylor,Vincent Wai, and Ben Wooten

Proofreaders: Ed Baldridge, Robert Bothwell, Russell Briant,Paul Kitchin, Bryan Koches, Sean Ireland, Gary Martin,

Michael McSwiney, Gregg Siter, Neal Smith

1

Introduction 2Using a Company Diagram. . . . . . . . . 4Basing Your Army . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6The D-Day Landings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Allied Forces in Normandy. . . . . . .. 14

BRITISH FORCESAirborne Division

6'h Airborne Division 18

Airborne Special Rules. . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Lt-Colonel R G Pine-Coffin . . . . . . . 21

Parachute Company 22Airlanding Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Airborne Armoured Recce Squadron. 32

Airborne Divisional Support 36

CommandosI and 4 Special Services Brigades. . . . 38

Commando Special Rules 41Brigadier The Lord Lovat 42

Lt-Colonel Peter Young 43

Commando (Beaches) 44Commando (Orne) 45

D-Day Assault Divisions3'd Division 'Monty's Ironsides' 51

50'h (Northumbrian) Division 52

CSM Stan Hollis, VC 553'd Canadian Infantry Division 56

Canadian Special Rules 57

Caprain John Treleaven 58

Assault Company Special Rules 59

Assault Company 60Assault Divisional Support 6679'h Armoured Division. . . . . . . . . . . 70

Armoured Divisions7'h Armoured Division. . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Desert Rats Special Rule . . . . . . . . . . 79Desert Rats Armoured Squadron 80

Armoured Recce Squadron 82

Guards Armoured Division 86

CONTENTS~ -= ,lfi

Guards Special Rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . 86II ,h Armoured Division 87

4'h Canadian Armoured Division 88

Armoured Squadron 90Major David V Currie, VC 95

Canadian Armoured Recce Squadron 96

Motor Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 100Lorried Rifle Company . . . . . . . . .. 104

Sergeant Tom Stanley IIIArmoured Car Squadron 112

Armoured Divisional Support. . . .. 117

Infantry DivisionsTank Squadron 124

Independent Armoured Squadron .. 12815'h (Scottish) Division . . . . . . . . .. 136

51" (Highland) Division) 138

British Divisions in Normandy 140Scottish Special Rules. . . . . . . . . . .. 141

Rifle Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 142

Recce Squadron 150

Infantry Division Support 154

Corps SupportCorps Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 157

ArsenalArsenal. 162

Painting British Troops 166

US FORCESAirborne Divisions

82,d Airborne Division 172

Lieutenant Turner Turnbull . . . . . .. 175

10l" Airborne Division 178

US Airborne Special Rules. . . . . . .. 179

Parachute Rifle Company 180Glider Rifle Company. . . . . . . . . .. 186

Airborne Divisional Support 190

D-Day Assault Divisionsl" Infantry Division 1984'h Infantry Division 200

29'h Infantry Division .Assault Special Rules .Brigadier General 'Dutch' Cota .Assault Company .Assaulr Divisional Support .

Rangers2,d and 5'h Ranger Battalions.

Ranger Special Rules .Ranger Battalion (Normandy) .Ranger Battalion .

Armoured Divisions2,d and 3'd Armored Divisions .

4'h and 6'h Armored Divisions .Armored Division Special Rules .Staff Sergeant Lafayette Pool .Medium Tank Company .Light Tank Company .Armored Rifle Company .Armored Recon Company .Cavalry Recon Troop .Armored Divisional SuppOrt .

Infantry DivisionsThe Big Red One .Sreadfast and Loyal .Brest or Busr .29, Lets Go! .Rifle Company .Infantry Divisional Support .

Tank DestroyersTank Destroyer Company .Task Force A in Brittany .Task Force A Special Rules .Task Force A .

Corps SupportCorps Support .

ArsenalArsenal. .Painting American Troops .

214

217

218

219

227228

230231

232

236238244

246

249

252254

258260

262

268

276

280

282284

288

296299

Page 6: Flames of War - Overlord

130 points

170 points

Scale impossible heights with the Rangers at Point du Hocand capture the enemy guns hidden there before diggingin like a tick to defend your positions against a Germancounterattack.

You'll need to break the German lines first though, and that'swhere the infantry divisions come in. Supported by Hobart'sFunnies (AVRE engineering tanks and flail mine-clearingtanks) and plenty of tanks (especially rhe flame-throwingCrocodiles), they'll do the job.

Land with the American 82nd 'All American' or 101 S[ 'Scream­ing Eagles' paratroopers at midnight and delay the enemyso he can't reinforce the beaches. Then move on to a smallFrench rown called Carentan and wrest it from Germanparatroopers to link Utah and Omaha Beaches.

Meanwhile in the English Channel, climb into your landingcraft and hit the beach code-named Omaha. Push your menup the seawall to knock our enemy machine-gun and anti­tank bunkers .

How THIS BOOK WORKSThis book is divided into two main sections: one for theBritish and one for the US forces. Within each of these thereis a section for each stage of the operations in Normandy.Within these sections there are Intelligence Briefings forvarious tank, mechanised, and infantry companies. Allof the forces in this book are based on historical examplesthat fought in Normandy and Brittany from 6 June to mid­September 1944.

Once the beachhead has been secured push inland andspearhead Operation Cobra, the breakour from the beaches.Follow the 2nd and yd Armored or the IS[ and 4th InfantryDivisions into the heart of France as they press on to Paris.Or head west with the 4th and 6th Armored and 2nd and 29'hInfantry Divisions as well as Task Force A as they liberateBrittany and capture the French port of Bresr.

They are all here in Overlord, looking for the right generalto take command and bring the sting of battle to yourgame room.

170 points 1

FLAMES OF WARIn Flames Of ~r you take on the role of a companycommander manoeuvring your troops across the battlefieldsof World War n. This classic period of warfare is broughtto life in your own game room. Overlord provides the corearmies in the form ofIntelligence Briefings. These IntelligenceBriefings allow you to field the American, British, andCommonwealth forces that clashed with the Germans onthe beaches and battlefields of France in 1944.

To play Flames 0f~r you'll also need the Flames Of~rrulebook. The rulebook contains all the rules that you needto fight miniature World War n battles.

WHY COLLECT A FORCE FROM OVERLORD?. Overlord provides Flames 0f~r players with the briefingsneeded to recreate the heroic Allied forces from the bloodyinvasion beaches to the breakout battles in bocage country.

Start with the British airborne assault against Pegasus Bridgeand Merville Battery to cur offGerman reinforcements to thebeaches. Then take to the beaches with British or Canadianassault troops as they smash through Hitler's Atlantic Wall.Break through the beach defences with an elite commandoand head inland to link up with the paratroopers.

Exploit the enemy's disorganisation to make a run for Caenwith the veteran Desert Rats, Just watch out for the Tigersat Villers-Bocage! If that doesn't wotk, send in the Guardsand 11 rh Armoured Divisions, or even the 4th CanadianArmoured Division to smash the Germans.

. ._ --..-~ F -,r-"'-r- ; 1"'-. \;) .,', , , ,

..(J£'~3~'CA~~PIAN RiflE COMPANY

'. ': Company HQ (Compulsory H~~dquarters)

Q Headq'uarters with Troop Carner, ul C mba< Platoon)mRifle Platoon (Comp sory 0 '''.

with 3 Rifle squads and .

Defrocked Priest APCs .'~(iRifle Plato~)I)- (Compulsory Comb~tPlatoon)

with 3 Rifle squads and

Defrocked Priest APCs«!> Rifle Platoon (Combat Platoon)

with 3 Rifle ~uads and

Defrocked Priest APCsCarrier Platoon (Weapons Platoon) . '

. . I f 3 Wasp flame-thrower camel'S and

IWlth 1 patro 0 . 180 oints-·1 patrol of 3 Universal Camel's p

. HMG Platoon (Weapons Platoon) .. 120 pomts

with 2 Machine-gun Sections11\ M Platoon (Weapons Platoon)W Heavy ortar

with 2 Mortar SectionqBreaching Group (Support Platoon) . d

V d 2 Sherman Crab flails tanks ano with I.Sherman an 145 points

0 2 AVRE assault tanksArmoured Platoon (Support Platoon)

Independent . 230 points.,. . h 2 Sherman V and a Firefly VC .W Wit . Total-1355 pomts

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Flames OfWar uses a point system to ensure that games arereasonably fair and balanced. Games are typically played witharound 1500 points, but you are certainly nor limited to anyparticular value. You can play any point value you and youropponent decide from small 600 point games in an hour, tomammoth games using armies that are 3000 or 5000 pointsor more! Once you and your opponent have agreed on apoints limit, you can choose any platoons allowed by yourcompany diagram up to that total value.

r have chosen to field a British Lorried Rifle Company usingthe 7'h Armoured Division (m) variant. I chose the DesertRats (as the 7'h Armoured Division was known), because ofits long history and dramatic story in Normandy.

Reading the instructions box, I need to field at least aCompany HQ and two Lorried Rifle Platoons in the blackboxes. All of my combat and weapons platoon choices musthave the Desert Rats symbol ((l;J).

Then I'll add some of the optional platoons in grey boxes.One of the optional platoons I would like to take is a Lorried

Machine-gun Platoon from page 110. Again, I need to usethe points listed in the column marked (m) to match mydivisional variant.

When building my 7'h Armoured Division force, I use thepoints in the second column marked with my divisionssymbol (mJ.

I'll also need some artillery to help my boys, so I've selected aField Battery (SP), Royal Artillery from page 121. In this casethere are five available variants, so I select the 7th ArmouredDivision variant.

Next, I would also like to take a Breaching Group from page70 to deal with enemy bunkers. This platoon has no divi­sional symbols, but since the company diagram allows it asan option, I can take it in my company anyway.

..Coor.nllrl<tShltOnoiOV=..~ ~..".!I!L.l.!!1

The Breaching Group has no divisional symbol,company diagram says I can include it.

Next, I want to add some tanks. The 7'h Armoured Divisionhas a special option to take a Desert Rats Armoured Platoonfrom page 81, so I'll take that. I could also have taken an 'Armoured Recce Platoon from page 83, but not an ArmouredPlatoon from page 92 as the instruction box says that I can'ttake a platoon from another armoured division.

Only the 7'h Armoured Divis­ion is allowed to take a DesertRats Armoured Platoon.

The 7'h Armoured Divisionisn't allowed to take a Can­adianArmouredReccePlatoonas only the 4th CanadianArmoured Division is allowedthat option.

Finally, I'd like some armoured cars. I'll take an ArmouredCar Platoon from page 114. None of the variants here havemy divisional symbol, but they don't have any other armoureddivision's symbol either, so I can take whichever type I wantin my company. I choose an Armoured Car Platoon from the11 th Hussars (marked Jl).Once I have selected all of my platoons and totalled up mypoints, I just have to gather my miniatures, set up a battle­field, and start playing!

-ADDING WARRIORS TO YOUR FORCE

There are many warriors throughout this book. These are heroic soldiers (many from reallife) who can join your force and help it to victory. For each warrior there is a photo of theminiature and the product code so that you can easily find out where to get the miniatureand add it to your force.

Warriors are available from the Flames Of War website www.FlamesOfW.ar.com andindependent retailers as special order items (BSO### or USO###), blister packs (BR###or US###), or boxes (BBX## or UBX##). Each warrior entry displays the relevantpack code.

In the example to the right you can find the warrior Lieutenant-Colonel R G Pine-Coffinas a Special Order item using the pack code BS0153.

Page 10: Flames of War - Overlord

Battlefront Miniatures packages Flames O/War products to give you everything you need to assemble your force as quicklyand accurately as possible. Our blisters and box sets are packaged to give you all of the options available to build your army.

How TO BASE DIFFERENT TYPES OF UNITS-........:--_~~) ..IIi==~~.,~==---!l..P--~~=7Y-fIt

Every army organises its platoons differently, and the organisation diagrams reRect this. For example, a RiRe squad in anAmerican Armored RiRe Platoon has ten men split into twO RiRe teams of four soldiers and a Bazooka team of two soldiers.Of course, units in combat rarely maintain their theoretical strength. We reRect this by allowing you to take fewer squads.

The fundamental building blocks of an infantry platoon are the various types of infantry teams. The most common ones areshown below with a brief description of their function and organisation.

COMMAND TEAMS

RIFLE/MG TEAMS

~~,\ ~~,\"'-

MG TEAMS

SMG TEAMS

A Command team is made up of an officer, an NCO, and a riReman ona small base. There are often options to upgrade your Command teamwith a different weapon. To do so, simply replace the riReman with thechosen upgrade. You can see an example of this on the following page.

RiRe teams are the basic form of infantry. All the miniatures in a riReteam will normally be armed with riRes. Some squads may have a singlemachine-gun, but its effect is diluted by the number of riRes in thesquad. Base your riRe teams on a medium base.

RiRe/MG teams are organised like riRe teams, except that every squadof twO teams has a machine-gun. Base RiRe/MG teams on a mediumbase with the second base normally modelled with a machine-gun.

MG teams are better armed than RiRe/MG teams. Every MG team hasa machine-gun. Base MG teams with a machine-gun and two to threeriRemen on a medium base.

Some nations equipped entire platoons with submachine-guns. SMGteams are made up of miniatures armed exclusively with submachine­guns. Base SMG teams on a medium base.

A Pioneer team retains the normal characteristics and basing of its type,e.g. a RiRe team on a medium base, and gains combat engineering char­acteristics and abilities such as an increased anti-tank rating in assaultand the ability to clear mines and demolish fortifications.r-----------........................--.......~-Light Mortar teams are made up of a miniature armed with a lightmortar and a loader on a small base.

LIGHT ANTI-TANKTEAMS

Light Anti-tank teams are infantry teams made up of a miniature armedwith a weapon like a Bazooka or PIAT and a loader on a small base

Artillery batteries and machine-gun, anti-tank gun, and infantry gun platoons combine command infantry teams withgun teams. Information on basing gun teams can be found in Basing Your Miniatures on pages 10 to 13 of the rulebook.Essentially, Man-packed gun teams are mounted like infantry teams on a medium base facing the wide edge, anti-tank andinfantry guns are mounted on a medium base facing the narrow end, and artillery is mounted on a large base facing thenarrow end.

PLATOON DIAGRAMSEach platoon diagram indicates the required squads and teams you must have to make that unit combat-worthy. Troops inblack are the core of the uniL Troops in grey are optional supporting troops, weapons, and vehicles that you can add to givethem more punch or mobility. Many platoons also include options that allow you to improve the equipment or capabilitiesof some of the teams. The platoon entry will also list the special rules that the platoon uses. The following example shows anArmored RiRe Platoon from page 240 and how to assemble it using an Armored RiRe Platoon box set (UBX01).

Page 11: Flames of War - Overlord

• • : I ••

HQSection withLight MG Squad,6OmmMormr~_

2 Rifle Squads

1 Rifle Squad•• ••

Command Rifle team Bazooka M3 half-track withRifle team team .50 cal AA MG

HQ SECTION

OPTIONS~",:,"""",,.ReplaceAA MG on any or all M3 haJl:tl'llcIcS with

.50calAAMG for +5 points per half-track._._..Rq>1ace Bazooka team in HQ Section with an

M3 37mm gun at no cost.

fttt tttt fttt ttttRifle team Rifle team Rifle team Rifle team

~ ~~ ~ ~~M3 half-track Bazooka M3 half-track Bazookawith AA MG team with AA MG team

• • • • • •

~~~ ~!.~ ~!.~M2 60mm mortar M1919 LMG M1919 LMG

~ ~~ ... ~~M3 half-track Bazooka M3 half-track with Bazookawith AA MG team .50 cal AA MG team

LIEUTENANT

LIEUTENANT

Bazooka team

M3 half-trackwith AA MG

•••

Rifle team

Bazooka team

M3 half-trackwith AA MG

• ••

I, .~,.,. A"'" ~.. ""f.Iii.\'''''' ~,!'..6_ ~-.~.';?'\..... §/:'\ -= '"T\-:~."',..._.tf_>!l . . ~ i." ~~~.~

M3 37mm gun OR Bazooka team,•.._..iiie- .:..i-~';"!'~o"':..

• •

Bazooka team

• • • •••

,~

.•.~! 4-- ~._~ 1:.-" ';n.,.,• .-.A

M1919 LMG

Page 12: Flames of War - Overlord
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ommand of General George S Patton. The Germans werempletely taken in. Even after the Normandy landings had

taken place, Hitler refused to allow reinforcements to Betransferred from the Pas de Calais region" believing that thelandings were merely a diversionary attack.

While the Allies laid their plans and marshalled their forces'_he defenders of Hitler's Atwntikwall, the coastal fortifica­

tions of North Westem Europe, were not idle. Since' 1942Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt had been in commandof all German Forces in France, Holland and Belgium. This

~ included Army Group B, which controlled Seventh Army,defending Brittany and Normandy, and Fifteenth Army inthe Pas de Calais region.

-'~=-:---

In November 1943, command of Army Group B was given~".'''""'T',- to field Marshal Rommel, the famed 'Desert Fox', with

orders to ready the neglected coastal defences for the longexpected invasion. Rommef added stfongpoints and tooksteps to deny landing fields to airborne invaders. Well sited

-a:nti-tankobstacles,and extensive minefields were constructedto hinder the invaders. However, weaknesses remained. Thedefences along this part of the coast mostly had to rely onobsolete ex-French, Russian and Czech weapons, and therewas a notable lack of depth in defence once the initial coastal'crust' was broken.

The German defensive plan involved infantry formationsholding the defensive line alongrhe coast, with an armouredreserve held further inland. The bulk of the infantry forcesmanning the fixed defences were static divisions, comprisingtwo infantry regiments of variable quality supported by twoattached Ost battalions made up of former Soviet soldiers.The all-important armoured divisions, critical to the sw;::cessof any counterattack in the event of an invasion, wernominally part of Panzcrgruppe U7es·t, directly ,controUedvon Rundstedt. However, Rommel did manage to get threearmoured divisions placed under his direercontrol.

This confusing German command structure, and theneed to obtain the authority of Hitler himself to moV!key formations, was to significantly hamper the Germanability to react swiftly when the time came. On the day 0

the invasion, von Rundstedt~s efforts to move I SS PanzerCorps closer to the invasion beaches had to await Hitler'sapproval. This was not given until 1600 hours. Bven thenAllied air attacks significantly delayed the movement 0

most reserve formations. In the months preceding D-Day,the Allied air forces had smashed the French railway system,reducing its capacity to move troops to the front. TheGermans were forced to commit the few remaining Luftwajfe(German Air Force) aircraft to its defence against overwhelm­ing odds. The Luftwaffe was crushed in the process. On theday of the invasion the Allied air forces would have the skiesto themselves.

Page 14: Flames of War - Overlord

As D-Day approached, the weather in the English Channelworsened forcing General Eisenhower to postpone thelandings by 24 hours. Finally, after consulting the meteor­ologists Eisenhower made the fateful decision. The weatherwas not perfect, but it would have to do-the invasion wason.

The poor weather had lulled the defenders into a false senseof security. As the invasion got under way many of the seniorGerman commanders were absent from their posts, attendingwargames in Rennes or on leave in Brussels and elsewhere.

~IRBORNE INVASIONIn the early hours of D-Day, paratroopers of three airbornedivisions-the US 82nd 'All Ametican' and 101 St 'ScreamingEagles' Airborne Divisions, and the 'Red Devils' of theBritish 6th Airborne Division-dropped into Normandy tosecure the flanks of the seaborne landings. The more fortu­nate landed near their drop zones, but many were dispersedas a result oflow cloud and anti-aircraft fire.

In the Cotentin Peninsula, on the western flank of theinvasion beaches, the US airborne divisions secured key areasinland of Utah Beach. On the eastern flank, the British para­troopers struck at targets between the Orne and Dives rivers.Vital bridges over the Orne and Caen Canal were seized byan audacious glider assault at the outset of the operation.

Although not always successful, the parachute and gliderlandings proved crucial in confusing and delaying theGerman defenders, securing inland routes from the invasionbeaches, and capturing key bridges and crossroads.

At 0300 hours, nearly two thousand Allied medium andheavy bombers hammered the German coastal defences. Thisairborne onslaught was followed by a massive naval bom­bardment from seven battleships, 18 cruisers, 43 destroyers,plus gunboats and monitors. A follow-up raid by anothert1].'Ousand American bombers wrought yet more destruction.

SEABORNE LANDINGSUnder cover of darkness thousands of landing craft ap­proached the Normandy coastline. The Allied amphibious

force would come ashore at five beaches, running fromwest to east they were codenamed: Utah and Omaha-thelanding beaches of the US First Army-and Gold, Juno, andSword-the landing beaches for the British and Canadiantroops of the British Second Army.

UTAHUtah Beach, at the base of the Cotentin Peninsula, was wideand flat, and behind the beach was a marshy plain that hadbeen deliberately flooded by the defenders. The Americanselected to land an hour earlier than the British, using thelower tide to overcome the problems of submerged beachobstacles designed to destroy landing craft. At 0630 hours,under cover of a bombardment from rocket-firing landingcraft, 8th Regimental Combat Team (RCT) of 4th 'Ivy'Infantry Division led the beach assault. A navigation errorput the troops ashore two thousand yards south of theprojected landing site. Fortuitously, however, the Germandefences were even weaker in this sector of the beach.

Supported by amphibious Sherman DD tanks (28 of the 32launched made it ashore) the infantry quickly overwhelmedthe 919th Grenadier Regiment of 709th Infantry Division.The 4th Infantry Division secured its objectives at a cost of200 casualties-far fewer than anticipated. As the rest of theUS VII Corps poured ashore, the Division linked up withparatroopers of the 101 St Airborne Division who had seizedthe exits from the flooded plain further inland.

OMAHAIn contrast with Utah, the going at Omaha Beach was muchtougher for the assaulting American troops. Bad weathermeant that tides were running higher, swamping landing craftand pushing them onto submerged obstacles. Preparatory firehad missed most of the beach defences, sited on a high bluffoverlooking the beach and losses to enemy fire were heavy,with most of the combat engineers and supporting ShermanDD tanks lost before they reached the shoreline.

To further complicate matters, the assaulting troops of16th RCT, from the veteran 1St 'Big Red One' InfantryDivision, and 116th RCT, from the inexperienced 29th 'Blueand Grey' Infantry Division, found themselves facing not only

Page 15: Flames of War - Overlord

the anticipated 726th Grenadier Regiment of the 716rh Infan­try Division, bur also the veteran 914'h and 916rh GrenadierRegiments of the 352nd Infantry Division, who had occupiedthe beach defences undetected by Allied intelligence. Theassault forces were pinned down on the beach until mid­afternoon, suffering heavy casualties. By nightfall they hadadvanced no more than 2000 yards inland.

A few miles to the west, near the Vire River estuary dividingOmaha and Utah, the 2nd Ranger Banalion carried our adaring assault from the sea directly up the cliffs at Pointe duHoc. The mission was intended ro knock our a German coastalbattery that threatened the invasion beaches. However, aftera successful but cosdy assault, me rangers discovered that thecoastal guns had already been removed by the Germans.

GOLDAt 0725 hours the first troops from the British SecondArmy began landing. At Gold Beach, 69 and 231 BrigadeGroups of 50'h (Northumberland) Division lead the assaulrwith support from commandos, artillety, and specialistarmour-the mine-clearing, flame-throwing, and engineer­ing 'funnies' allocated ro the British beaches. The invadersmade good progress against the defenders from the 736rh

Grenadier Regiment of the 716'h Infantry Division. By earlyafternoon, all of 50th Division was ashore, with elements of7'h Armoured Division landing behind them later in the day.

JUNOImmediately ro the east of 50'h Division, it was the task ofthe 7 and 8 Brigade Groups of 3rd Canadian Division tostorm ashore at Juno Beach. The Canadians were supportedby the commandos of 4 Special Service Brigade. Mindfulof the debacle at Dieppe in 1942, which had cost so manyCanadian lives, the Canadians anticipated heavy casualties.In the event, their objectives were taken with comparativelylight casualties after hard fighting against elements of the736rh Grenadier Regiment of the 716'h Infantry Division.

By mid afrernoon the entire 3rd Canadian Division wasashore, quickly linking up with 50th Division.

SWORDAt the easternmost beach of the invasion, Sword Beach, 8Brigade Group of British yd Division led the assaulr, sup­ported by the commandos of 1 Special Service Brigade. Thelandings suffered from high tides caused by the bad weatherand also tough resistance from German troops of the 736'hGtenadier Regiment of the 716'h Infantry Division. TheBritish troops fought their way through the beach defencesand began ro exploit inland. On the German side, the716'h Infantry Division was practically obliterated, reducedro an effective strength of only two battalions.

The yd Division had been allocated very ambitious objec­tives, including the capture of the city of Caen, a crucialroad and rail junction some ten miles inland. The divisionduly cleared the invasion beach and linked up with the para­troopers of the 6'h Airborne Division, having advanced some6 miles inland-one of the furthest advances on D-Day.

The unexpected arrival of the 21" Panzer Division sropped3 rd Division's advance and threw them on the defensive. Astrong defence by the British and Canadian divisions pre­vented me 21" Panzer Division from exploiting its success,despite reaching the sea between Juno and Sword Beaches.However, its anack had frustrated the initial drive on Caen.Their failure ro capture Caen was ro have far reaching conse­quences for the Allies.

NIGHTFALL, 6 JUNEBy nightfall on 6 June the Allies were ashore, but in someplaces their beachhead was no deeper than 2000 yards.Certain vital D-Day objectives-most notably Caen-hadnot been captured. Yet enough men and material had beenbrought ashore mat the local German forces could not hopeto push mem back into the sea. Still, the task that lay beforethe Allied forces was considerable. They must link up theirbeachheads, capture Cherbourg (the only major port in theregion) ro guarantee resupply, and push inland to Caen and.Sf. La, before breaking through the difficult bocage country­side of Normandy and into the more open terrain beyond.

Page 16: Flames of War - Overlord

+++D-l, Mereorologisrs forecasr sho[[ break in bad wearher+++

Page 17: Flames of War - Overlord

+++D-l, 0330 hrs: Eisenhower gives the green light. Invasion fleet sets sail+++

Page 18: Flames of War - Overlord

6TH AIRBORNE DIVISION ?-

PARACHUTE COMPANY (page 22) The elite parasof 6th Airborne Division dropped on the flank of theD-Day landings to destroy coastal guns overlooking thelandings, and to capture the vital Orne bridges.

AIRLANDING COMPANY (page 26) The airlandingbattalions landed on the afternoon of D-Day,reinforcing the paras. The airlanding battalions heldthe Orne bridgehead until the breakout in August.

AIRBORNE ARMOURED RECCE SQUADRON (page32) The 6th Airborne Armoured Recce Regiment wasboth rhe division's eyes and ears and, with its Tetrarchlight tanks, its mobile punch.

1 AND 4 SPECIAL SERVICE BRIGADES

COMMANDO (pages 44 and 45) The commandoslanded on D-Day to destroy strongpoints and linkup with the paras and the Americans, then joined the6th Airborne Division holding the Orne bridgehead.

ASSAULT COMPANY (page 61) Two Britishand one Canadian assault divisions hit the Normandybeaches on D-Day supported by amphibious tanksand specialist armour. Having penetrated the GermanAtlantic Wall, they fought their way inland, hedge byhedge, village by village.

RIFLE COMPANY (page 142) More British andCanadian divisions landed in Normandy over thefollowing weeks. Lavishly supported by armour andartillery, and even Kangaroo armoured personnelcarriers, they defeated the best of the German Army.

RECCE SQUADRON (page 150) The infantrydivision's recce regiment is its eyes and ears. Theirarmoured cars and scour carriers probe enemypositions, backed by the full might of the divisionshould they get into trouble.

DESERT RATS ARMOURED SQUADRON (page 80)ARMOURED SQUADRON (page 90) The core ofthe armoured divisions are their armoured quadronsequipped with versatile Sherman and Cromwell tanksbacked by Fireflies with their powerful 17 pdr guns.

ARMOURED RECCE SQUADRON (page 82)CANADIAN ARMOURED RECCE SQUADRON(page 96) Using fast Cromwell tanks (and theubiquitous Sherman tank in the case of the Canadians),the armoured recce lead the division's advance.

MOTOR COMPANY (page 100) The riflemen of themotor company are mounted in half-tracks so they cankeep up with the fast-moving tanks. Their task is to

clear troublesome infantry from villages and woods.

LORRIED RIFLE COMPANY (page 104) The lorriedrifle companies hold what the tanks take againstGerman counterattacks, providing the tanks with afirm base to prepare for their next advance.

ARMOURED CAR SQUADRON (page 112)The armoured cars operated ahead of or on the flanksof armoured attacks, seeking enemy weaknesses.

SECOND ARMY TANK BRIGADE ~t;

6 GUARDS TANK BRIGADE ~

TANK SQUADRON (page 124) The heavyChurchill heavy tanks were designed to support theinfantry in crushing the German frontline.

4 TH/7TH ROYAL DRAGOONS *SHERWOOD RANGERS YEOMANRY 02 CANADIAN ARMOURED BRIGADE ..

INDEPENDENT ARMOURED SQUADRON(page 128) The independent armoured regiments intheir amphibious Sherman DD tanks landed ahead ofthe infantry on D-Day, then fought inland with them.

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82ND AIRBORNE DIVISION ~~

101ST AIRBORNE DIVISION ...

PARACHUTE RIFLE COMPANY (page 182)Your paratroopetS of the 82nd 'All Ametican' or the10l st 'Screaming Eagles' Airborne Divisions are to landahead of the D-Day landings. With these elite troopsyou should have no problem capturing the vital linksbetween the beaches, preventing German reserves frombreaking through to the beaches. Your troops are toughand well-prepared for their mission, as they are theArmy's best of the best!

GLIDER RIflE COMPANY (page 186) Your riflemenof the glider companies fly into combat in ricketyWaco gliders to reinforce the paratroopers. Your glidersallow you to deploy a lot more heavy equipment,such as anti-tank guns and artillery, making them aformidable defensive force.

1ST INFANTRY DIVISION4TH INFANTRY DIVISION ~

29TH INFANTRY DIVISION ,

ASSAULT COMPANY (page 208) It's time to takethe fight to Hitler. Your infantry battalion has beenreorganised into specialist assault companies equippedwith demolitions, flame-throwers, mortars, and lightmachine-guns to bust through the Atlantic Wall. Assoon as your landing craft's ramp is lowered, you andyour men will assault the beach and push inland,destroying any German fortification in the way!

2ND AND 5TH RANGER BATTALIONS <>RANGER BATTALION (page 218 and 219) Rangers,lead the way! The motto of the Rangers was earnedon Omaha Beach, and your men have not forgottenit since. Trained by the British commandoes, theyfearlessly climb impossible heights and knock outtough fortifications in the name of victory.

RIFLE COMPANY (page 262) Taking the lessonslearned from the beaches, these 'doughboys' of the RifleCompany will be essential to victory. Through theirefforts the front line will move without fail towardBerlin. Follow the 1st and 4 th Infantry Divisions eastafter the breakout from Normandy, or head west withthe 2 nd and 29th to reduce the Brest pocket.

MEDIUM TANK COMPANY (page 232) The M4Sherman is the backbone of the armoured division.Using these reliable tanks, you will spearhead thebreakout from the Normandy beaches and on to Parisin Operation Cobra.

LIGHT TANK COMPANY (page 236) Unlike itsBritish counterpart, the US Army still relies on M5AlStuart light tank companies to exploit gaps in theenemy line. As a Light Tank Company commander,you will need a lot of bravado and cunning, but thereward is often worth it as you sweep around theenemy and capture the objectives before they canrespond.

ARMORED RIFLE COMPANY (page 238) Thearmoured riflemen, or 'armored doughs', follow thetank companies during the spearhead attacks in theirhalf-tracks, smashing enemy strongpoints with theirextremely well-equipped platoons.

ARMORED RECON COMPANY (page 244) 1beArmored Recon Company is the eyes and ears of the2nd and 3td Armored Divisions. Your armoured carswill search for enemy ambushes and detect gaps in theenemy line to protect the spearhead attack.

CAVALRY RECON TROOP (page 246) The CavalryRecon Troops provide the 4th and 6th ArmoredDivisions with their intel. Your armoured cars will keepan eye on the enemy so the tanks can safely advance.

TANK DESTROYER COMPANY (page 276) Tankdestroyer units were among the first ashore inNormandy to support the infantry divisions. Yourtank destroyers are equiped with hard-hitting guns andspecial tank-killing doctrine to help blunt and destroyenemy counterattacks.

TASK FORCE A (page 284) Task Force A has been puttogether from cavalry, tank destroyer, engineer, andinfantry units to scout in front of the spearhead andoperate deep behind enemy lines to secure importantbridges and cause havoc. Your task force is an armyunto itself, with its own artillery, engineers, tanks, andreconnaissance. Now get out there and cause sometrouble!

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The paras are hand-picked volunteers. Years ofhard training have made them some ofthetoughest troops on the battlefield. A Parachute Company is rated Fearless Veteran.

.'Company Command 2iC Command

SMG team SMG team

." .

SUBALTERN

t;~ -ra-lCommand Rifle/MG team PIATteam

."':1••1."',...--..-•• ~.~ • 1~.~1~ ............ I~'~ • 1~#,1___ ............ I~.! .1~#,1___

t~" t~" t~"Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

-1", -1", -1",Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

, • 111~n.. ,.111~n.. .

.111~n..

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t~K ~~Command ObserverRifle team Rifle team

• •

~" ~" ~" ~"ML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk I1 ML3" Mk 11mortar mortar mortar mortar

CommandRifle team

~l' ~l'Vickers HMG Vickers HMG

~l' ~:t'Vickers HMG Vickers HMG

•PARACHUTE MACHINE-GUN PLATOON

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MOTIVATION AND SKILLAirLanding troops are not volunteers, but they are put through the same intensetraining regime as the paras. This weeds out the weaklings, leaving an elite fightingforce. An Airlanding Company is rated Fearless Veteran.

Company CommandSMG team

2iC CommandSMG team

COMPANY HQ

: . .tt~ -.--l kJa-lCommand PIATteam Light mortar

Rifle/MG team team

...,:r••[.r "'. .

t~t' ~'t, t~t' ~'t,Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team. .,.,...,t_ . .'11""--.

t~'t'Rifle/MG team

.1......{.1.'..1ta--

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.' .t;~

Command PioneerRifle team

."':1•• 1 •

.t~'t t~'t t~,t

Pioneer Rifle team Pioneer Rifle team Pioneer Rifle team

ASSAULT SQUAD

CommandRifle team

• •

Vickers HMG Vickers HMG Vickers HMG

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: . . .J:4:.1..· ... ..Command Cromwell IV CromwelllV

• .r "'. .11411.· ... ..

CromwelllV CromwelllV

..CommandRifle team

•Troop Carrier

•• t _.t ,

~" ..ML 3" Mk 11 Mortar Carriermortar

~" ..ML3" Mk II Mortar Carriermortar

~: The Motorcycle Rifle teams ofan Airborne Recce Platoon

.. 'Use the Motorcycle Reconnaissance and Solo Motorcycles~

. rules on pages 196and 197ofthe rulebook. The CommandMotorcycle Rifle team is mounted in a Jeep, but operates inthe same way as the other Motorcycle Rifle team.

••..- ~ ....Command Motorcycle Universal Carrier

Motorcycle Rifle team Rifle team with extra hull MG

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MOTIVATION AND SKILLDivisional support is a mix ofairborne units and regular troops assigned to support themafter landing over the beaches. Unless noted otherwise, all divisional support Platoons arerated as Fearless Veteran.

CommandRifle team

OQF 17 pdr gun

• •

OQF 17 pdr gun

ANTI-TANK SECTION

SUBALTERN

~t, -Command Pioneer

Rifle/MG team ...,..n.r "\. . .

t~'t t~'t t~'t t~'tPioneer Pioneer Pioneer Pioneer

Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team.... . .J~__ .. It t • .U'Ia--.

t~'t t~'tPioneer Pioneer

Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

.. ' It • .J~_

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i47 (ROYAL MARf~i:) COMMANDO'.~ I ... J"', ...., _

Perhaps the 4 Sped~ :Servics Bta,gade?s J;Ilost important .0- ~

'day .objectiV'e was rhe cQsta:! town of J?ort-een-Bessi-n. Thisnamral port would not only serve as the liI:lk-up poi~,r

oetween Ehe Amedcan and British sectots, bUt would alsobe the:N0f!'U<anqy t~rrll.in.usofP·:L'uTa, the Pipe liRe Dnder ...The Ocean, w.hich would fuel the Allied ad:vaflce with petro.L ­pumped direcdy across the channel. Lieutenant-ColonelPhiUps chose-:t:o l;uld on Gold ~each and ma.rch. overland. toaottack POut-eU'-B€ssin fmffi:rhe rear ratner than.arrempt a cosBX

·tJontal assaUlt on rhe well-fbrtified pOft. .

At apRroximarely ff700 hours., 'No,47 (RM) CommandobGa.r:d~d tneirhlflq.lng craft and began theIr mn:in to ~hebeaoh. fromrhe sea they could see the 50 th. Infamry Division ,"_=0..1141

.struggling on the beach and Phi:llips edirected his landincraft to avoid getting mired. in. a time-consuming beaGh

.. assault.

'Despite this, the commandos' landing craft Were severdibat'teJied on their way into the-new beach. Five of their craftsank an€! by the time they reached the sij.ore, five officers

'(j,ncluqing .:Lieutenant-Colonel PhiUips) and sev!eaty-oI1eol:her ranks were mi~sin.g ~nd most 0fthose who did mak~ itasho-re..liad 1051 their weapons. .

GUGe ashore, they encountered a neaVily mined coastalroad. Un'!hJk to lo<;a~P.hillips, the ~econd in cotnmauM:,Major DonfJ.ell, ted his men off the 'beach and followed ;rhadvancing £herman -Crab 'through t~e minefield, When theyreached .the v,iHage of Buhof, 'they discovered their com-~

mancling OffilO-et, Lieutenimt-Cotonef; PhiUipsy had managedto swi~ as-ho e from his sinking landing crm.

The· commandos srealrhi:ly pu-she4 Oft, occasionally encoUfrterJ:ng snipers- and sma;lll;lnit$. O-rigin;tlty l:h€ attack on Pmt­ep-:B~ss:itlwas pian1.J.ed to'Qe suppotted by Amerkan artilleryfrom Omaha Beadl; but havin.g no wc;>rking radio JP.ade ihisimpossible. Mowever, the cCornmand(}s' lu<:k _changed withthe arrjval c;yf~ rep1acemsnf observatiou·a,fficer whp' manage~

to get through. tfi) -tbe navy ships offLshore fmd .call in §resup-port. -

Once the port's outer ring of defences had beep. breached,.the coro-rnandos ~ss?-lJ;lted'the toWfJ. irs<ltfhuli'were ambus4€~and tllfshed Dack when two· German Jlak ships <il.ocked Inthe pori: openec1 rue with their rapid fire Callfi(!)fiS. PhilHpsoroeren his men to attack the flak ships, bu.t th€ Germansailor:s onse a ain repeHed them.

Seeing their comrades falter, the captains of the destroyersHMS Ursa ~.d the Pe'lisn ORP Krakowiak aJ'lproached the .,....L,..~F.-;!f;pOJ;t to shell the .auk ships, but were unable to do so due tQ

v ~ .....r.the pods COJ;1cr-ete aI;ld stone bre~aq:r. De~erat2to offerassistance, both s.hips formeg boarding par-des,. launchedtheir motorboats, a,nd attacked th€ flak ships. The assaultw0Tke<! iludon:ce t'he ships' parties had sileuGed the-Germans:hi'ps,. the commandos attacked rhe {~ermin blockhQ e....forcing rhe defender; t{) surrender. .

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~t,CommandRifle team

• •••••• • .t '.'. ...•. ~

~A' ~A' ~A'Vickers HMG

MG SECTION

CommandRifle team

•ObserverRifle team

•.' '.'.1. .' '.'.

SUBALTERN

Command Sherman V

.t '.' I..

.' .. ' .

Lacking in experience,but determined, a RoyalMarine Armoured Sup­port Platoon is rated asConfident Trained.

..Centaur..Centaur

..Centaur..Centaur

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· . - Bmish. t;roops.qtiickly.overrun, the G~rmaQ;.defences..jn-ilepth........

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Command Rifle team

• •

~'" ~'"Observer ObserverRifle team Rifle team

~,t ~,t ~,t ~'tML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk II ML3"Mkll

mortar mortar mortar

.t .. »

ObserverRifle team

ML3"Mkllmortar

.. .. '

~'tML3" Mk 11

mortar

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~t,CommandRifle team

• •

~l' ~l'Vickers HMG Vickers HMG

~l' ~l'

SUBALTERN

aoft m.achine-gun com.pany includes a platoon oH.2" h.eavyori'ars. These provid€ the infantry of weir brigade with,

immediate, heavy fire sl!lpport. 1he platoon's LoyJ Carriersall0W the mortars to move forward quickly as the infl\fltry. dvance inland> supporting attacks on G~rmanSH~-\1gpoints

bypassed by the leading waves.

Command ObserverRifle team Rifle team

ML4.2'" mortar ML4,2'" mortar

ML4.2'" mortar ML4.2'" mortar

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The Recce Patrol and Scout Patrols operate as separateplatoons, each with their own Command team.

SUBALTERN

: . .

•Command Humber IV

.......;l••'.~.~r.l.r~.::II. ..: . . : . .. ..- . ..-

Humber IV Humber LRC Humber IV Humber LRC. .1"'1___ . .1"'1___

RECCE PATROL

• •

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., .,Command SP anti-aircraft SP anti-aircraft

• •., .,SP anti-aircraft SP anti-aircraft., .,

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Combiningyears oftraining and combat-experienced officers with their vast desert experi­ence, the armoured regiments ofthe Desert Rats are as good as any ofRider's Panzers. An

Armoured Squadron from the 7'h Armoured Division is rated Reluctant Veteran.

.'

Company CommandCromwelllV

2iC CommandCromwelllV

. '. .

... ...Command CromwelllV CromwelllV

•e' I.'. .' '.'.... ---..

CromwelllV Firefly VC

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Command Crusader A/A Crusader A/A

.i. • '.i.

...Command Stuart

e

r• 1~J~•• j

. eJ:Ule' ... ..Stua rt Stuart

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.. ..Command Sherman Sherman

•et •• , . .' .. ' ... ----.

Sherman Tank

Command Firefly VC

•• J I •• ~

Firefly VC

Firefly VC

Firefly VC

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The South Alberta Regiment have moved beyond their recce role into close infantry support

of 10 Canadian Infantry Brigade. lhe two have become an inseparable team in thehedgerows and villages ofNormandy.

A Canadian Armoured Recce Squadron is rated Confident Trained.

.. ..Command Sherman V Sherman V

•.' .. ' . .' '.' ... ..Sherman V Sherman V

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~..y,CommandRifle team

• •

~l' ~l'Vickers HMG Vickers HMG

~l' ~l'Vickers HMG Vickers HMG

CommandRifle team

~OOF 6 pdr Oate) gun

~OOF 6 pdr (late) gun

~OOF 6 pdr (late) gun

~OOF 6 pdr (late) gun

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~f" .........,~ .........~Command PIATteam Light Mortar

Rifle/MG team team

• ••. _.t. ...•. ,

t~'t' t~,t,Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

t~'t' t~,t'Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

• •• • •••• •• ·4

t~'t'Rifle/MG team

t~'t'Rifle/MG team

• • •

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SUBALTERN

Command Rifle team

• •

~k ~kObserver ObserverRifle team Rifle team

~,t ~'t ~,t ~'tML3"Mkll ML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk 11

mortar mortar mortar mortar

.' .I.'

ObserverRifle team

ML3" Mk 11mortar

e' .I.'

ML3" Mk 11mortar

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: . .~t,CommandRifle team

...,:1:••(.

. .~ ~

OQF 6 pdr (late) gun OQF 6 pdr (late) gun

~ ~OQF 6 pdr (late) gun OQF 6 pdr (late) gun

•l"'__ . .l"'.....SERGEANT

~OQF 6 pdr (late) gun~

OQF 6 pdr (late) gun

ANTI-TANK SECTION

Command Pioneer PioneerRffie~am RffieWam

• •

Pioneer PioneerRifle team Rifle team

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~.-r,CommandRifle team

• •

~l' ~l'Vickers HMG Vickers HMG

~l' ~l'

SUBALTERN

Command ObserverRifle team Rifle team

• •

ML 4.2" mortar ML 4.2" mortar ML 4.2" mortar ML 4.2" mortar

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: ' . .J~4:l.· ,

~1" l'~'t'Command Pioneer MG team Pioneer MG team-. - -..-.

Daimler Dingo White Scout Car

....';..Il. ".1:411.'. '.-

1he Daimler Dingo is a Transport team rather than a Ttmkin the Armoured Car Support Platoon.

11TH HUSSARSAn 11'h Hussars Armoured Car Support Platoon is aReconnaissance Platoon. It may Combat Attach oneSupport Squad to each Armoured Car Platoon.

The support tro:ep are an all~purpose unit. Th<;y can operate- as. d.ismounted S~9uts, they can clear mim:s, and if n()cessary,;"they can assault troublesome mti-tank guns.

~:,rol;:-

The 11 ID Hussars, having found their Scout Troop (as. theycalled the Support Troop) so valu-ahle in Tunisia, expandedit tD ~low one section to be atEached to each -ari;noured cartroop, giving them the ability to tackle any obstacle.

The Canadians tended to use meir own Ford -Lynx ratherthatI the British Daimler Dingo scout car. The. Lynx W;;lS

a Ford copy of the Drngo, differing in the engine and anU)nbeJ; ofother details.

•••• '.1.

l'~'t,Pioneer MG team-..-.White Scout Car.... . '.

.' '.'.l'~,t,

Pioneer MG team-..-.White Scout Car

• •••

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Between years of training and experienced officersrotating back from the desert, British tank squadronsare wellprepared to meet Hiders best head on. A TtmkSquadron is rated Confident Trained.

.'Company Command 2iC Command

Churchill V CS Churchill V CS

WIll.Churchill VI

." .

: . ,

WIll.Command Churchill

•.

.I~.!.l.· ,WIll. WIll.

Churchill VI Churchill III or IV (Iatel.

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\1ii1ien the Firefly VC entered service jqstmopths before the .~:i:~~~J;)~Day lapdings, rhere was considerabfe debate as to the best

way t6 u~e them. Whiie me armoured divisions reorganised '~ into troops of fOl!lr taI).ks, one of which was a Fi-r~fly, tne

armo\lred bDigades tended to group .their FireHies into one.gun tmop in each squadfofi.

Command Firefly VC

• .... ' ...

Firefly VC

Firefly VC

Independent Regimental Recce Platoons are ReconnaissancePlatoom.

The. independent' a,rmoured brigades had oIdes equipmenthan the armoured divfsions. They still use€! tFte old-style"

<.EIoney' Stuart HI used in the desert, long'out ofservice withthe US Army. Despite their age, rhese tanks gave sterlingser:vice throughout the .ca:mpaig~.

Command Crusader AlA Crusader AlA, t t ...

.

---Command Stuart III

• .,

• l:~ll••. .J~~~. I ...

--- ---Stuart III Stuart III

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7'h Armoured" Division

Guards Armoured" Division

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e of the HigWand Dlv;.sion plust not t:es~ tiQ we:ha'Ve fteed our. kith and 1dn of the- St. Yalcry HigWand Divisionand aveng~ their niisfortnne~othe full. ~.MajlJr-Ge.neral T GRen~, commander 51" (fl~ghland)Division

the Germans. An attack on the vfllages of Sainte-}fortodne­la-Chardonnerettct and Dempuvilie Ot! the morning 9f13 June was typical.. of ·th~ frustrating and deJIloraIisingperiod. The Germans dropped a heavy aniHer-y bombard'-­ment on the Scots~ start line before the att:;lck began. Despitethis, the Yillag was taken, only to be lost; again followinga .German counterattack supI?ortecl by the tankS of the21'" am-er" Div' ion. Another attack en 1-6 June wasequaIly\1nsttcc~ssful, and it wasn't untiL ;l,hird attadc on 22 lu~ e

at the :village was captured. -

OPERATION TOTALIZEWith Major-General Rennie's arrival, the 51 st (Highland)Division was placed under the command of 2 CanadianCorps for Operation Totalize. The Canadians were tasked

The Highland Division spent the next two months in theOrne bridgehead in heavy, but inconclusive, fighting with

}st fIjighl:;lnd) Divisipn was rebuilt in Britain from .the Qll:Iing:rhis<per;od the whole aivisfl<lfl.'S rn0raLe,plummetecl asing 154 Brigaae and the 9th (Higlila.Fla) Division, a the contintfaus fub.ffibardments and slow prqgres , Gombinedd Line Territorial copy of the-51 st {HighlaIld) Division. with ths: division being split up to support other units, took

new divisiclIl underwent intense training in 1941, and in it'5 tolL lt tatne !ilLto a .head on i 1 July, when thdiigtuandJU11 .942 was olice more sent to the front, this Jime taking Division attemp'ted to take the factory area of CQlombelles-,

aJ;: in the Notth Afric. campaign. There mey gained a abl'lut a mile east of Caen. The towering chimneys there hade uration for good orga,nisation, morale, fighting prowess~ given the German observers.,a.wide view of the surrounding

staff worK during the BanIe of El Alamem in OctobeL countryside ror the preceiling momh. The attack went inovembe~ 1942. at OHIO hr. Once again, heavy GermaFl artiller-y bombard,-

ments, stiffres-istance.by the 21st Panzet Division, andstroagon,g with the :New Zealand Divis1on, they led the plllsuit

1 .coll'QteraHacks threw the Highlanders back, suffering con-o e defeated German AftikaKorps across North Africa siderable losseswi-thout achieving their objectives.o if'unisia. Looking to his veteran divisions, General

ntgomery selected the Highland Division as one of the The divis~oH's reputation had been -tarnished. 'They had notal'11rQivisions f<or -rh landings on SiciLy, 10 lllJile 1943. performed up w· their own high expectatio s, nor thoseer conquedng the island,' Monrgomery orrce again ex- of their superior~. In ,particllla>r .the 50,h (Northumbrian).

p. essed his wntldefiee in the division by seleering 1't, the Division, whiE:h had shared -many of the -51 st bivlsions1) (Northumbrian.) Divisip1'l and the 7cli-Armoured Division e~per.iences 1n Wor..tn. Mrica and Sicily; 'had adapted to the

tetum to Britain for the D-Day landings. There !!hey came challemges ef the .bocage and close terrain of Norm.andyit the command of Major~Ge-neralD C Bullen-Smith, mote confidently than the Highlanders. Maj(')r-Generil

gd E:om~andeet ,the ISm, (Scottish) Diyisi'oIl. during. Bullen-Smith was replaced with M;tiot-GeneralT G Rennie·ning. ' • wrr6had been captured" wldiJ. the Highland Division in

~ 1940; but escaped -and commanded 154 Brlgacl-e in Sicify.,He commanded the 3rd Division from ~he D:.Day landingsUIl~il he wasc wounded.. Now mpsdy recovered, t):lOugh hisaqn was still in a sling, he arrived to take the wmmand ofthe division.

eleading elements ofthe Highland Division began l!O lindIn Normandy late on D-Day, 6 June, but did not see actionuntil the next day when the 5m Black Watch attacked the,radar station at Douvres, being driven off by heavy defensivefire. The rest of the division crossed Pegasus Bridge, teinforc­ing the 6mAitborne Division's bridgehead there.

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Command Rifle team

• •

~k ~kObserver ObserverRifle team Rifle team

~,t ~'t ~'t ~'tML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk 11 ML3" Mk 11

mortar mortar mortar mortar

ObserverRifle team

ML3" Mk 11mortar

• ' J."

ML3" Mk 11mortar

MORTAR SECTION

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" Recce and Scout Patrols are Reconnaissance Platoons.

Recce and Scout Patrols operate as separate platoons, each

with their own command team.

SUBALTERN: . .

ACommand armoured car

-......:(....!.'t'~(.l.ltl:.. ..: . . : . .

A...- A..-Armoured car Recce car Armoured car Recce car.

.I~-. .l~___. I.

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SUBALTERN

ommand Rifle team

• •

~OQF 17 pdr gun

~OQF 17 pdr gun

•CORPS ANTI-TANK PLATOON,

ROYAL ARTILLERY

~OQF 17 pdr gun

~OQF 17 pdr gun

ether from ambush or a prepared position, towed' 17 pdranti-tank guns will stop any enemy armoured assault cold inits cracks.

Dig these large guns in to protect them from artillery nreand reinforce them with infantry and heavy machine-gunsto keep enemy soldiers from them. Once the position issecured, the enemy will not be able to break through.

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~ft ~"tCommand Staff teamRifle team

• ' .. '

·,

· ,

~ft ~k .-Command Observer OP CarrierRifle team Rifle team

HQ SECTION

OQF 25 pdr gun

OQF 25 pdr gun

OQF 25 pdr gun

OQF 25 pdr gun

Although 4 Corps Field Battery, Royal Artillery is a singleSupport choice, each Gun Troop operates as a separateplatoon with its own Command team. The Commandteam and Staff team of the HQ Troop must be attachedto a Gun Troop from its battery at the start of the gamebefore deployment, see the British Artillery special rules onpage 248 ofthe rulebook.

<"-"

• •, .. '

·,

·'

~ft ~k .-Command Observer OP CarrierRifle team Rifle team

• •

OQF 25 pdr gun

OQF 25 pdr gun

•GUN TROOP

OQF 25 pdr gun

OQF 25 pdr gun

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CommandRifle team

Staff team

• ••••·.·.

CommandRifle team

•Observer OP CarrierRifle team

• •... '

·.·.

Aft ~k .-Command Observer OP CarrierRifle team Rifle team

• •Although a Corps Medium Battery, Royal Artillery is asingle Support choice, each Gun Troop operates as a separateplatoon with its own Command team. ]he Command teamand Staffteam o/the HQ Troop must be attached to a GunTroop from its battery at the start o/the game before deploy­ment, see the British Artillery special rules on page 248 0/the rulebook.

~BL 5.5" gun

~BL 5.5" gun

~BL 5.5" gun

~BL 5.5" gun

~BL 5.5" gun

~BL 5.5" gun

~BL 5.5" gun

~BL 5.5" gun

•GUN TROOP

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13+

.'1

3+

"

2

3 11 4+

8

Co-ax MC, Protected ammo, Unreliable.Smoke.Smoke bombardment.

1 Co-ax MC, Hull MC, Protected ammo, Tow hook.3+ Smoke.5+ Smoke bombardment.

_-"'-'--'-'~-""~-~71,""--Co:~lyfG, Overloaded, Protected ammo,- ow hook.No' HE, S-em,i-indirC£tfire.

Co-ax MC, Hull MC, Tow hook.5.!~i-indirect fire, Smoke.

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2 6

05+ ..,

. ., 5+5'1;

06

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No HE.

eep • O· 0 AA MG, Recce;.8'720cm - 1"0 5+ Hull-mounted

Wheeled I 0 0 Co-ax MG, Recce.24',/60cm 2 7 4+

I:l4+

4+

Gun shield, Smoke, Turhtable.Smoke bom!>ar(!jnent.

I+ Bunker buster.2+

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4'/lOcm

16"/40cm

.8"/20cm

2

Wheeled

2

0

l- 0

0

Standard Tank 0' ,0.-. .

Half-tracked 0 0 0

0 0'

6

6 I

8

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THE 'ALL AMERICANS' IN NORMANDYthe time of the Normandy landings, the 82nd Airborne

ivision was a battle-hardened outfit with many veterans inits ranks. The 'All American' Division, as it was known, hade Ea reputation for hard fighting in the Sicily, Salerno, and

zjo landings in the Mediterranean. For Operation Neptune,e Allied amphibious and airborne invasion of ormandy,

82nd was reorganised to include two new regiments,placements for the 504'h Parachute Infantry Regiment

w@ch had only recently arrived in England fmm Italy and wasill regrouping. Under the command of General Ridgway

were Colonel Ekman's 50yh Parachute Infantry Regiment,Colonel Millet's 507'h Parachl!lte Infantry Regiment, ColonelI ·ndquist's 508'h Parachute Infantry Regiment, Col01te

ewis' 32yh Glider Infantry Regiment, and sUPBor ing arms"ncluding Lieutenant-Colone D'Allessio's 4 th Paraohute

ield Artillery Battalion.

Dense fog and heavy anti-aircraft fire led to Widespreadispersion of the parachute drops, as the young pilotsuggled to maintain speed, formation, and direction. Many

uckIess paratroopers fell into recently flooded areas wherethey struggled to rid themselves of their harnesses and heavyquipment. Even the fortunate ones who landed on firm

ground found themselves many miles from their specifieddrop zones (DZs) and faced with the daunting task of formingup in the dark and reaching their assigned objectives.

The 50yh had the furthest to go, tasked with seizing the criticalroad junction in the town of Ste. Mere-Eglise. The 50yh's 3ro

Battalion under Lieutenant-Colonel Krause landed relativelyintact on its correct drop zone, just outside the town. A dozenparatroopers had landed on the town itself and were mown(lown y tlie German garnson (one survived, hanging fromthe church spire). Inexplicably he garrison then returned totheir barracks. Krause's troops attacked immediately usingonly bayonets and grenades. By (lawn a large US flag, specially

roughE the commander for the occasion, was flutteringver the to square.

Back in Ste. Mere-Eglise, German armoured vehicles andparatroopers of 6 FaLlschirmjagerregiment (6th ParachuteRegiment) counterattacked at 0930 hours, pitching USparatroopers against their opposite numbers for the firsttime. Krause's men held off repeated assaults, Krause beingwounded twice in the process, and the key objective remainedin American hands.

Upon landing, Lieutenant-Colonel Kellum's 1SI Battalion ofthe 505 th moved on their objective, the strongly defendedbridge over the Merderet River at La Fiere. Three determinedassaults by the paratroopers failed to dislodge the Germans.

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evening of D-Day, the largest landing involving 176 Hos.f~'ll ,",':.;;s

and Waco gliders. Unfortunately, few of these gliders fou,their landing zones and many were destroyed in crash landihitting trees, hedgetows, cattle, and specially emplobstacles known as Romtnel's Asparagus. Despite the chaq j;

these landings, Colonel Lewis was able t9 gather the bulk; ofhis men and the 325 ili played a ~ey part in capturing La Fie-- ........""' ...1lL.

In the days that followed D-Day, the 82nd was reinforced lJground troops moving up from the invasion beaches. Th"division consolidated its positions, gathered in stragglersand received further supplies. Whilst their airborne role WI sover, their part in the fighting was not. The division s ruckwestwards to cut off the Cotentin Peninsula, swinging sou hthrough Etienville, crossing the Douve river and caprur'Hg"the high ground overlooking La-Haye-du-Puits. On 11 JilIll'the battle-weary 82nd was relieved and placed into rese e,before being sent back to the UK to refit. The division's lossesin Normandy amounted to 46 percent in killed, missing>and evacuated wounded. In his post-battle report Gener\ll~n,"J

Ridgeway summarised the hard-fought campaign withtaciturn eloquence: ' ...33 days ofaction without relief, wi$outreplacements. Every mission accomplished. No ground gainedwas ever relinquished.'

After reorganising, the 82nd took part in the disastrolisOperation Market Garden, dropping by daylight to capturkey bridges in the Netherlands. In this operation menthe 82nd conducted an opposed river crossIng to captutebridge at Nijmegen, a bloody and heroic action that·prompGeneral Dempsey of the 2nd Army to say upon meeting ,82nd's commander, "I am proud to meet the commander ofcile;greatest division in the world today."

When Kellum was killed leading one of them, Major McGintytook command only to lose his life also. General Gavin arrivedafter capturing Chef-du-Pont bridge and, with a force of 500men from various units, captured the La Fiere bridge. Theparatroopers pressed forward in the hope of linking up withthe 507 ili and 508th who had landed to the west, but theiradvance was beaten back by German forces, who retook thewestern end of the bridge. Despite reinforcements, all effortsto recapmre rhe western end failed. It wasn't until the night ofthe 8/9 June with the arrival of a special task force containingtanks and artillery under veteran paratrooper Colonel Raff thatthe La Fiere bridge would be captured once and for all.

The 507th was particularly badly dispersed, Millet's menlanding largely in marshy ground west of the Merderet andunable to assist the fight for La Piere. Lieutenant-ColonelTimmes, commanding the 2nd Battalion, assembled 50 menbut became pinned down in an orchard north of Cauquignyby superior German forces. The remnants fought on in smallpockers, ambushing and harassing the defenders to grear-effect,though Millet himself was captured after being split from hismen whilst moving toward Amfreville.

The 508 ili , nicknamed the 'Red Devils', fared slightly better.Their task was to secure the left flank of the 82nd's landings,including the bridges over the Douve river. Only 124 troopetshit their drop zone, whilst others landed in the 101st's area,some only narrowly avoiding plunging to the"ir deaths in theEnglish Channel. Lieutenant-Colonel Shanley, commandingthe 2nd Battalion, was able to gather two companies ofmen andmove on the bridge at Pont l' Abbe. His force ran into strongopposition short of the bridge and were forced to dig in onHill 30. Eventually, the 508th was able to gather several hundredmen and capture the approaches to Chef-du-Pont, hamperingGerman efforts to reach Ste. Mere-Eglise. Paratroopers fromthe 508 ili also ambushed the staff car of General Wilhelm Fallyof 31. Luftlandedivision (Airlanding Division), giving him thedubious honour of being the first German General capturedin the invasion.

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The men doubled across the countryside in the early morninglight. Little tivulets of sweat ran from beneath the helmet,and across the young face of Lieutenant Turnbull. Even here,miles inland, the salty taste of his sweat mixed with saltyair and reminded Turnbull of the struggle which must beuiifolding right now on the landing beaches. The thought

iffened his resolve. His battalion commander had charged'm with a mission, one that had been meant for the entire

battalion, but must now be completed by only Turnbullnd the forty-odd men of his platoon. As they approached

their objective, Neuville-au-Plein, the men fanned out. Theyskirted the hamlet, coming to a stop at its northeastern edgeatop a rise that commanded the road running north.

, cm men dig-in behind that hedgerow, I want firingp,ositions facing north at intervals of ten yards. Hardy... youand Dykes take up a firing position with the bazooka at theedge of that building over there, cover the road and keep low.

ichaelman, take your men and the machine-guns and getover to the orchard across the road. I'm reckoning if you getone under that tree and the other about three hundred yardso the northwest you should be able to set up a pretty goodrossfire converging on the road. Get to it men.'

his men worked Turnbull moved from position toposition, his keen eyes surveying the fields of fire at each'point. An hour later all was in readiness. All eyes trainednorth, in expectation of a counterattack.

Mid-morning Lieutenant Colonel Vandervoort arrived ina 'eep towing a 57mm gun. Turnbull had his men set up

.T"............... L e gun by a house with the road stretching away before it

"l'Ou men dig-in behindthat hedgerow, I wantfiring

positionsfacing north atintervals often yards. "

like a shooting gallery. Along that road somebody was nowapproaching. Through his binoculars Vandervoort couldsee a large party of men and vehicles, possibly a battalionin strength and undoubtedly German. Apparently they wereprisoners, for flanking them were a few men in the baggygreen garb of paratroopers waving aircraft recognition flags.

"Lieutenant, I don't haveany reinforcements to giveyou. l'Ou must stop these

bastards here... "

'I don'i: like it, sir' said Turnbull.

'I don't like it either,'· responded his superior. 'Have yourmachine-gunners fire a burst across their bows.'

Turnbull gave the instruction, and a machine-gun barkedrudely at the strange column. Instantly it dispersed, the'POW's' deploying efficiently on either side of the road astwo self-propelled guns rushed to the fore. Within secondsall hell broke loose, machine-gun and mortar fire whizzedand whistled towards the hamlet, followed by the loud reportfrom one of the self-propelled guns.

'Hell!' said Vandervoort as he and the Lieutenant dove forcover. Already Turnbull's men were replying in kind, and awell-aimed shell from the 57mm knocked out one of theself-propelled guns. Above the rising crescendo of gunfireTurnbull heard his commander: 'Lieutenant, I don't haveany reinforcements to give you. You must stop these bastardshere ... all day long if you can. I'll get back to Ste. Mere­Eglise and see what I can do.'

'Don't worry about us. If you'll excuse me, sir.' With thatTurnbull was up and running towards the anti-tank gun.

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Rifle/MG teams in any platoon commanded by Turnbullmay re-roll any failed To Hit rolls when conductingDefensive Fire.

For eight long hours Turnbull and his men held firm again ,overwhelming odds, their numbers ever dwindling until, almostout of ammunition, the survivors withdrew to US lines. .. -

With little time for rest, Turnbull again led the remnains q£his platoon into battle on 7 June. As he manoeuvred thro 'gnthe hedgerows the shrill whistle of a mortar bomb heraL edthe end. He was killed instantly. Lieutenant Turner Brashe sTurnbull was posthumously awarded the Silver Star.

MASTER TACTICIANTurnbull is an exper-t at siting his platoon's weapons so asmaximise their fuepower in defence.

Turner Brashears Turnbull III was born in Durant Oklahomain 1921. The youngesr of three children, he was raised intoa proud Native American family. His father was a full bloodChoctaw whilst his mother was Scottish.

Fighting in Sicily he was seriously wounded and spent fourmonths in England regaining his strength. Refusing to accepta ticket home Turnbull rejoined his men in preparation forthe invasion of France.

At the age of 18 he enlisted in the Oklahoma National Guardand the following year, 1940, was drafted into active service.Excelling as a natural soldier and leader, a young SecondLieutenant Turnbull found himself a home in the fledgling82nd Airborne Division. -

In the early hours of 6 June 1944, Turnbull and his comradesof the 2nd Battalion/505'h parachuted behind enemy lines topave the way for the massive seaborne invasion. As the bat­talion formed up to head towards their objective, the littlehamlet ofNeuville-au-Plein, they were urgently summonedto assist in capturing Ste. Mere Eglise, a vital communica­tions centre. The battalion commander, Lieutenant-ColonelVandervoort, tasked Turnbull and his single platoon withestablishing the defensive line at Neuville-au-Plein.

Turnbull quickly and expertly set up his platoon on the highground at the northern end of the hamlet. No sooner hadthey dug in than the Germans launched a counterattack.

Page 178: Flames of War - Overlord

5015 PARACHUTE NFANTRY REGIMENT

The 1" Battalion's commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Cartol,was killed very soon after landing, so Colonel Johnson had to

take direct command. The battalion's objective was a heavilydefended lock at La Barquette. The defenders, assisted by

The 501"'s 3'd Ba talion, under Lieutenant-Colonel JuJianEwell, headed e to clear a path off the beaches at Poppeville.The were JOIned by a small part of the widely dispersed 2nd

attalion led by Lietenant-Colonel Robert Strayer. After bitterfighting, the paratroopers secured the inland access critical tothe success of the amphibious landings.

The 3'd Battalion dropped well off course, landing in the 82nd 'sarea. Lieurenant-Colonel Robert Cole gathered approximately250 men and marched hard through the nighr to occupy

"""'''''''-''s'''o''m''e''''''orme a eway {ha Wj·re rheir objective. They were,despite their march, the'lirs airborne troops to welcome the4th Infantry Division ashore

D MINUS ONE WITH THE 'SCREAMING EAGLES'

olonel Mosely's 502nd was assigned the northernmo rapzone of the 101". They were to clear the German defenc

ound St-Martin-de-Varreville and secure causeways leadingup fromlhe invasion beaches ahead ofthe 4'" Infantry Division.

e regiment's 2nd Battalion assembled quickly and capturede town wirhour difficulty, also securing an abandoned coastal

~un position. The 1" Battalion converged on Le Mezieres, to

find the German garrison still in their barracks earing breakfast.illSergeant Summers and 15 paratroopers armed with small

arms, bazookas, and grenades stormed the buildings, inflicting~O casualties.

Page 179: Flames of War - Overlord

CARENTAN

The seizure of their D-Day objectives was not the end of' 10 In's

role in the campaign for Normandy. Next the division wastasked with capturing the town of Carentan, a crucial roadjunction between the Utah and Omaha Beaches. On 11 June,on the way to Carentan, Lieutenant Colonel Cole's 3'd Battali..onof the 502nd ran into strong German opposition. The lightartillery available made no significant impact on the defenders,so Cole ordered his men to 'fix bayonets' and charge. Co eand the men near him did so but many other paratroop rsremained where they were, pinned down by heavy Germanmachine-gun and mortar fire. Cole and his men swept throughthe defences wiping out the startled defenders. Their actionwas one of the rare bayonet charges by the US Army in WorldWar n. Cole received the Medal of Honor and Major Stopka,Cole's Execuative Officer, the Distinguished Service Cross...The lOlst now attacked the town from the northeast anasouthwest. Von der Heyclte's formidable but much deple.t· .6. Fallschirmjagerregiment defended grimly but the tou.1iUS paratroopers finally evicted them. The 17. 'Gotz vBerlichingen' SS-Panzergrenadierdivision (armoured infantrydivision) counterattacked and drove back the paratroopers,but the 'Screaming Eagles' held on until reinforced by (he2nd Armored Division. Cafe~tan was finally secured12 June.

The 101" was evacuated back to England by sea the followin~

month, having suffered 4670 casualties. The 'ScreamingEagles' had proved themselves to be soldiers of the hare-1estkind through a trial of fire.

The 2nd Battalion landed largely in the 82nd 's sector, well offtarget, and had to march over 20 miles (32km) to consolidatenear Ste-Marie-du-Mont. Those who managed to converge onthis point then set off, endUring an ongoing struggle with theubiquitous Fallschirmjiiger on their way to St-Come-du-Mont.By the time they reached their objective, the Houdienvillecauseway, troops of the 4th Infantry Division had alreadyoverrun it.

Of the three parachute infantry regiments Colonel Sink's 506th

fared the worst. Low cloud and anti-aircraft fire broke up theformation of transport planes carrying the regiment, resultingin a chaotic drop. The 1" Battalion was badly scattered inits drop near Foucaville and Beauzeville-au-Plain near thenorthern tip of Utah Beach. The weakened battalion capturedtheir objective, the Poupeville causeway, but the towns in theatea were heavily defended and the battalion was pinned downnear Haut Fournel until· relieved by troops coming up fromthe beaches.

S06TH PARACHUTE INFANTRY REGIMENT

On the afternoon ofD-Day paratroopers from the 2nd Battalionfought a famous small unit action at Brecourt Manot. Led byLieutenant Winters, the men attacked and disabled a Germanbattery of four 105mm guns that were firing onto one of thecauseways leading off Utah Beach.

The 3'd Battalion landed north of the Douve and east of St­Come-du-Mont. The local German defenders had correctlyidentified the area as a likely drop zone and ringed it withfiting positions, setting fire to several barns to provideillumination. Into this trap the battalion now literally fell. Thecommander, Lieutenant-Colonel Wolverton, was killed as thedefenders picked off the paratroopers while they floated down.

Page 180: Flames of War - Overlord
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Bazooka team

)AAAM2 60mm Mortar

• ••

~111, ~111,Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

CommandRifle/MG team

• •

• ••

Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

~111, ~111,Rifle/MG team Rifle/MG team

MOTIVATION AND SKILLAll paratroopers have undergone some ofthe most intensive training in the US Armyand as a result they are very proftssional soldiers. Furthermore, as an all volunteer unit,the men are willing andproud to serve their country, even if that involves jumping outofa plane into combat deep behind enemy lines! A Parachute Rifle Company is ratedFearless Veteran.

All company commanders took pride in their units, but

parachute company commanders take that even further.They expect more from their men and in return theofIicersare willing to give everything for the company.

The men of the parachute infantry regiments representthe cream of the American military. Unlike the conscriptarmy of citizens, in the airborne every man's a volunteer­fitter, tougher, more motivated and better paid than theaverage dogface soldier.

If you've gotta' go to war, you may as well·make sure yourbuddies are the best of the best, even if that means beingprepared to jump out of planes to get at the Krauts. Withthe best equipment and a never-say-die attitude, these guysare ready for all corners.

Page 182: Flames of War - Overlord

M181mmMortar

M181mmMortar

~~l~~lM1919 LMG M1919 LMG

~~l~~lM1919 LMG M1919 LMG

CommandCarbine team

CommandCarbine team

• •

M181mmMortar

M181mmMortar

~~l~~lM1919 LMG M1919 LMG

~~l~~lM1919 LMG M1919 LMG

weight of fire of the infantry's heavy water-cooled M1917machine-guns, having eight in the platoon more than makesup for it.

A Parachute Machine-gun Platoon may make CombatAttachments to Parachute Rifle Platoons.

anding by parachute means evetything needs to be light, I

including your machine-guns. The ait-cooled BrowningM1919A4 light machine-guns of the parachute machine­un platoon fit the bill perfectly weighing just 41lb (l8.5kg)

eomplete with tripod.

ey provide the airborne troops with a weapon capable ofla}{ing down a steady stream of fire to keep Fritz's head down,ju t when you need them to. Although they don't have the

s the battle develops, you'll want access to mote and more:fire support to take your objectives. First to respond is always

. e Ml 81mm mortars of the battalion's mortar platoon.Quick to deploy, mobile and accurate, it's likely these menwil1 have fired their whole mission before the big boys on the

each will have got the sand our of their radios.

Page 183: Flames of War - Overlord

Recon Sections and the Support Section operate as separateplatoons, each with their own command team.

DISMOUNTBefore deployment you may choose to dismount the wholeplatoon. Ifyou do this, then all of the Recon Sections andthe Support Section of an Airborne Divisional ReconPlatoon, operate as a single infantry platoon. Designate any

one ofthe teams as the Platoon Command team. The entire

platoon remains a Reconnaissance Platoon.

Ifyou dismount, all ofthe platoons vehicles are permanentlyremoved from the game. Dismount the Support Section asnormal. Replace all ofthe vehicles in each Recon Section withany two ofthe following teamsfor each Section:

• Carbine teams

• .50 cal MC teams

• up to one Bazooka team per Recon Section.

A A A ACommand .50 cal .50 cal Recon Command .50 cal .50 cal Recon

Recon Jeep Jeep Recon Jeep Jeep

A A A A.50 cal Recon .50 cal Recon .50 cal Recon .50 cal Recon

Jeep Jeep Jeep Jeep

• • • •

Recon Sections are Reconnaissance Platoons. Pioneer Jeepsare Motorcycle Reconnaissance teams that dismount as

Pioneer Carbine teams. The Mortar Jeep dismounts as anM2 60mm Mortar team.

The 82nd Airborne brought its recon platoon in well after theinitial landings. The platoon saw sC?me limited action in thdivision's final days of combat in France.

Page 184: Flames of War - Overlord

You may replace any or all Pioneer M1919 LMC teamswith Pioneer Rifle teams at the start of the game beforedeployment.

The parachute engineer combat platoon lives up to thecombat part of its name. Not only are the engineers expectedo carry out the standard military engineering tasks of the US

my, they are also expected to fight anywhere, any time. Ontop of that, they have an unusual way of getting to work!

J\~~Command Pioneer

Rifle team

."':1.11.. .

~il~ ~il~ ~il~ ~il~Pioneer Pioneer Pioneer Pioneer

Rifle team Rifle team Rifle team Rifle team

---.-.. .. • llr.u..- ---.-.. ' . .llr.u..-

SERGEANT

~~~ ~~~Pioneer M1919 LMG Pioneer M1919 LMG

WEAPONS SQUAD

AIRBORNE ENGINEERCOMBAT PLATOON

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M1Al 75mm Pack howitzer

M1A175mm Pack howitzer

Staff team ObserverCarbine team

·.

HQ SECTION

CommandCarbine team

M1A175mm Pack howitzer

M1A175mm Pack howitzer

Vital to the survival of the airborne division is the air-trans­portable parachute field artillery battery equipped with theM lAl 75mm pack howitzer.

Each gun can be broken down into nine parachute loads.These are all tied together and dropped as a single aircraftload. If all goes well, they'll still be all together on landing.The bundles can be quickly located by the crew and as­sembled so as to go into action in support of the parachuteinfantry regiments immediately. Of course, that's how it goes ..in the drills. In combat, in the dark, things don't necessatilygo so smoothly. .

Once the Gls have joined up with your men, the parachute .artillery can requisition trucks for long moves. Getting every­thing loaded and unloaded takes a bit of work though, as thecannon has to be loaded in the back with the crew because itis too fragile to tow.

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(INFANTRY COMPANY)

You must field one platoon from each box shaded black and may field one platoon from eachbox shaded grey.Support platoons can be from any division but all platoons with an armoured divisional symbolmust have the same symbol.

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Rifle team

Rifle team

•••

~"A.Bazooka

team

~1~1 J\11~Rifle team Rifle team

~-l1~

Rifle team

CommandRifle team

Rifle team

Rifle team

• ••

~1~1 J\11~Rifle team Rifle team

~-l1~

The US Army does not consider a glider rifle company tobe any different from any other rifle company, aside frthe need to cut down on numbers to fit in gliders. Theuniformed, equipped, and paid as normal riflemen, drequiring them to land and fight behind enemy lines.

MOTIVATION AND SKILL

When your number's up, your number's up! Your regimenthas been assigned the dubious honour of going to war inwood and canvas flying boxcars. Still, you've got a job todo and a vital role to fulfil. Those 'glory boy' paratrooperswouldn't survive five minutes without all the men and equip­ment arriving in your gliders.

The glider rifle platoon is basically the same as its standard'leg infantry' cousins. Aside from normally having one of the 'weapons platoon's mortars attached, the only difference isthat there are only two rifle platoons in each company. Thismakes the battalion small enough to be transported in smallWaco gliders.

With its own bazooka for anti-tank work, each glider rifle I

platoon is a self-contained unit able to hold a position alone 1

until reinforcements arrive. .

The 327'h and 325th Infantry Regiments have been selected to become gliderbornetroops to accompany the new paratrooper regiments.

A Glider Rifle Company is rated Confident Trained.

Armed with Ml Garand semi-automatic rifles and BrowningAutomatic Rifles (BAR), the platoon can lay down a consid­erable volume of fire when advancing into an attack as well.

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~~t ~~tM1917 HMG M1917 HMG

CommandCarbine team

~ftCommand

Carbine team

• •

~;\;\ ~;\;\M260mm M260mmMortar Mortar

~;\;\ ~;\;\M260mm M260mmMortar Mortar.. •

~~t ~~tM1917 HMG M1917 HMG

.......~;\M1919 LMG

.......~;\M1919 LMG

When making your own assaults, move the weapons platoonup into a concealed position overlooking the enemy defencesand keep up the fire to pin the enemy down as the riflemenadvance into the assault.

Always make sure that your weapons platoon is in a centralposition where it can cover both rifle platoons' frontage. Putthe machine-guns forward with the command element andsite the mortars back where they can fire without being seen.That way you can harass the enemy as they advance withoutdrawing fire. Once the enemy closes, use the machine-gunsto drive off their assaults while maintaining pressure withthe mortars.

A Glider Machine-gun Platoon may make CombatAttachments to Glider Rifle or Glider Weapons Platoons.

, glider rifle company relies on the support of its weaponslatoon for immediate firepower. The platoon's two Browning

M1919A4 light machine-guns and four M2 60mm lightmortars are always at its disposal to back the rifle platoons.

The weapons platoon is even more important in the glider. rifle company than in a normal rifle company, as the only ,

ay to make up for the missing rifle platoon is with betteruse offirepower.

nitially the mortats were permanently assigned out with one. each rifle platoon and only two in the weapons platoon.

xperience soon showed that a more flexible approach wasdesirable and the mortars were centralised and allocated outs needed.

~though one mortar with each platoon is still a commoneployment when a wide frontage needs to be held, when

the company is operating on a smaller frontage a single,.,....;_... _ffiore powerful mortar section can pay dividends with its

concentrated firepower.

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M181mm M181mmMortar Mortar

••

M181mmMortar

LIEUTENANT

.' .I'

CommandCarbine team

M181mmMortar

.' .I.' •

~AA ~AAM181mm M181mmMortar MortarLight artillery, such as mortars, is a vital asset to airborne

troops as there is never enough real artillery available. Theshort range of the mortars is more than made up for by theirspeed of response and flexibility.

They can keep up with the rifle companies when advancing,thanks to the folding hand carts they .use to carry weaponsand ammunition, and drop a heavy bombardment at amoment's notice.

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~. . J..Recon Jeep. ., ..

Ml 57mm Anti-tank gun

GUN SECTION

HQ SECTION

~ftCommand Carbine team

Command .50 cal Recon Jeep

GLIDER ANTI-TANK PLATOON

~Ml 57mm Anti-tank gun

Ml 57mm Anti-tank gun

The divisional reconnaissance group has two glider-landedreconnaissance platoons. Equipped with machine-gun-armedjeeps, they are ideal for scouting for enemy counterattacks oras part of a mobile reserve.

Before deployment you may choose to dismount all ofyourjeeps. Ifyou do this, all ofthe platoons vehicles are perma­nently removedfrom the game. Replace each:

Recon Jeep with a Rifle or M 1919 LMC team..50 cal Recon Jeep with a Rifle or .50 cal MC team.

Designate one ofthe teams as the Platoon Command team.The platoon remains a Reconnaissance Platoon.

t; divisional anti-tank battalion has heavier British airborne57mm (6 pdr) guns landed in British Horsa gliders-anexcellent example of inter-allied cooperation! The heavierguns give the division real punch when the panzers startro ling.

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PioneerRifle team

Howitzer

Howitzer

PioneerRifle team

.. ' .

• •

PioneerM1919 LMG

LIEUTENANT

• ••

PioneerRifle team

Howitzer

Howitzer

PioneerM1919 LMG

~ft ttf~t ~'"Command Staff team ObserverCarbine team Carbine team

• •

~;t ~;tHowitzer Howitzer

Command PioneerRifle team

PioneerRifle team

You may replace any or all Pioneer M1919 LMG teamswith Pioneer Rifle teams at the start of the game beforedeployment.

The men of the Glider Engineer Combat Platoon are able tolay and clear mines, barbed wire, and other obstacles to allowthe Glider Rifle Platoons to get on with the war.

They must have all the military engineering skills of theirmore glorious parachuting brothers-in-arms, but be preparedto enter the theatre in about the most dangerous methodsome egghead could think of.

Unlike the parachute field artillery battalion that falls fromthe sky in several pieces, needing to be located and as­sembled, the glider field artillery battalions arrive as whole I

units, complete with their own transport. This makes themmore powerful in the long run, although they are slower todeploy.

Another difference is that with only two battalions to ,support, the glider field artillery battalion has just two six­gun batteries instead of three four-gun batteries.

The final advantage of the gliderborne artillery is the abilityto fly in the larger M3 l05mm light howitzer. While stillsmall for an artillery piece, it is big by airborne standards.

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Aboard the Allied fleet, two American divisions boardedtheit landing craft. The 1SI 'Big Red One' Infantry Division,also nicknamed the 'Fighting First', was a veteran of severalamphibious landings and campaigns in North Africa andSicily. Its men were tested and ready for battle. They wereto land to the east on beaches codenamed Easy Red and FoxGreen to secure the El and E3 draws north of Collevi11e.

The other Allied division at Omaha was the green 29ch 'Blueand Gray' Infantry Division made up of part-time soldiersfrom the National Guard, now turned professional. Filledwith men who had previously been friends and neighbours,the unit was well ttained, eager and ready for the task athand~despite being new to combat. The '2gers' had beenassigned Dog Green, Dog White, Dog Red and Easy Greenbeaches. Their mission was to secure the D 1 and D3 drawsat Vierville and Mont les Moulins.

The Germans had long suspected that the Allies would landat high tide and had built their beach obstacles with this inmind. Instead, the Allied plan for Omaha Beach called fora landing at low tide at around 0630hrs. This would enablethe assault troops to sweep ashore in the early morning whilespecially trained and equipped combat engineers blastedaway the beach obstacles to allow the follow up waves toland as the tide rose. Specially constructed Sherman DuplexDrive (DD) tanks, 'Oonald Ducks' to their crews, with acanvas screen around the tank and propellers so that theycould swim to the beach, were to land just ahead of the firstwave of assault troops to give them armoured support untiltank landing craft could reach the beach.

Like every plan, the attack began to unravel even before thefirst troops landed. Bombers, naval gunfire, and rockets all

THE PLAN UNRAVELS

H-HoUR 0630 HRS, D-DAY 6 JUNE 1944

THE ALLIED PLANBy the beginning of June 1944 the beaches of the tranquilFrench coast of Normandy had been transformed by theoccupying German Army into something not nearly sopicturesque. A dozen bunker complexes dotted the highbluffs overlooking the five kilometre-long crescent of sand

.."...--....'~ between Vierville-sur-Mer and Co11eville-sur-Mer, litteredith obstacles designed to punch holes in any landing craftilling to brave them. At each end, fotbidding cliffs linede water's edge, making an assault there impossible. Four

~uUies, 'draws' to the Americans landing there, sliced throughhe forbidding bluffs. These wete the only way off the beach

for vehicles, and the most heavily fortified points. The most.mportant of the draws were the two to the east called D 1nd D3 by the Allies, as both had roads winding up inlandrom the beach. The beach the Allies codenamed Omaha hadecome the outer wall of Hitler's Festung Europa, Fortressurope, and the English Channel its moat.

cross this countryside wind and rain came in a dark gteymass that blotted out the sun. Weather reports from the

erman meteorologists predicted much the same for the restof the week. With the stormy weather and the lack ofAlliedactivity many of the Axis commanders were away from theirposts, confident that the expected invasion was sti11 far off.Ifhe defenders were thus shocked to see the Allied fleet offthe coast in the early morning hours of 6 June.

.or the Allies the day would begin with an equally nasty~li.~I""'Iio-";S rprise. Allied intelligence services expected the defenders of

maha Beach to be a single second-rate battalion. Their mapsut the we11-trained and equipped 352. Infanteriedivision352nd Infantry Division) at St. Lo far to the rear. Unknown

to e Allies, the division had moved forward, taking over thebeach defences at Omaha months earlier. What they alreadyexpected to be a hard fight had become even harder.

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What had started as a plan with well-defined regiments anddivisions soon disintegrated into fights by small teaifls ofmen. The American formations coming ashore were hQW~­

lessly muddled and disorganised. For the Germans, the,average strongpoint garrison was just 30 men, cut off andfighting alone. The side with their leaders at the front wouldbe the one that prevailed.

It was into this quagmire of death and destruction that m@nlike Brigadier General Cota, Deputy Commander of the29th Infantry Division, walked like the heroes of antiquitY-.General Cota made his way to the beach to .ascertain whawas happening ashore. Gathering about him a group 0

men from the 116th Infantry Regiment and the 5th RangerBattalion, he formed his own ad-hoc platoon. Soon his menbegan to slowly make their way inland through gaps in thwire by going up the bluffs rather than the well-defedraws. Cota's men finafly reached the top of the bluffs beh'Hamel-au-Pretre at approximately 0900hrs.

No matter where they landed, the dazed and confused tTOO sfaced an uphill battle. A long line ofdead and dying com'radesmarked their path up the beach. E,:ery:where platoon andcompany commanders were missing .or dead. Reaching t

cover of the seawall, the assaulti'ng troops froze under tunexpected weight of fire. ~

LEADERSHIP

screamed over the men in the boats leaving some of themto wonder if there would be anything left for them to fight.Yet, the bombs, shells and rockets caused remarkably littledamage to the defenders. When the troops hit the beach theyfound the defences were intact and fully manned.

The tanks that were to rumble ashore ahead of the infantryran into their own problems. For the 741 st Tank Battalionsupporting Big Red One, it was a disaster. Commandersmade the call to launch the tanks to swim ashore in theheavy seas. Some plunged like stones to the sea bottomupon launching. Others floundered closer to the shore. Ofthe 32 Sherman DD tanks allocated to Big Red One, onlyfive made it to the beach. The commander of the 743'd TankBattalion in support of the 2gers, made the opposite call.Instead oflaunching the tanks in the heavy seas, he sent theirlanding craft straight to the beach. As a result, the 2gers hadfull tank support on their beaches with all 32 tanks making itashore, albeit well behind the infantry they were to protect.

The infantry had even bigger problems than their lack oftanks. The fast current and billowing smoke from brush firesmade navigation difficult for the landing craft. Some units,such as Big Red One's Fox Company of the 16'h InfantryRegiment, hit the beach in the correct spot. Others like the2gers' Easy Company, 116,h Infantry Regiment missed theirbeaches completely, ending up on the same section of beachas Fox Company, kilometres from their assigned area.

The bloodiest introduction to France was that of AbleCompany, 116th Infantry Regiment, in the Dog Greensector. The company literally ceased to exist in a few minutesof heavy fire. Yet for other units there would be mixed bless­ings. Brush fires on the bluffs overlooking the beach blindedthe defenders in places. George Company, 116th InfantryRegiment, landed in good order, suffering few casualties inreaching the seawall that ran the length of the beach.

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_---~~~ Landing craft approach.

First gaps in beach obstacles.

5'h Company

Cl Panzerstellung

MGTobruk

itl Field/AT gun

3'd Battalion

Barbed Wire

~:I Gun in casemate

o Mortar Tobruk

Obstacles (hedgehogs, stakes, ramps etc.)

___---~.. German reserves movement.

Main resistance at the end of the day.

German units

915. GrenadierregimentAble Company2"d Battalion

Allied penetrations by noon.

_----~ Allied movement to the end of the day.

--- ) Positions at the end of the day.---US units

116'" Infantry Regiment

Page 198: Flames of War - Overlord

1ST INFANTRY DIVISION

26TH REGIMENTALCOMBAT TEAM

General Omar Bradley personally requested the veteran1sr Infantry Division to hit Omaha Beach. Bradley's requestwas granted, which probably prevented a catastrophe on thebeaches.

The 16th Infantry Regiment was selected to lead the way,having an excellent combat record from the amphibiouslandings in Sicily the year before. Assault companies wereassembled and loaded into their landing craft.

As the Alii troops moved forward so did the 1sr InfantryDivision. ts final Sicilian battle would be at a small towncalJed Trom im the mountainous central region. Aftersuffering heayy losses the division finally launched another ofits famous 'ght attacks on 3 August. Against four defendingGerman di i ions the attack very nearly succeeded. Havingdelayed rh division for a week, the enemy slipped from thetown and li t eat across the straits to the Italian mainland.

H-HOUR 0630 HRS, D-DAY 6 JUNE 1944Attacking at night towards the Ponte Oliva Airporr norrhof Gela, the division caught the German garrison bysur r·se. However, the division weathered the continuousr;;.;;.;.,;;==,,-......;;,;;,;Jt=;......~eounteratt-ac's for days afterwards before advancing oncemore.

e Germans came out of the hills around Gela in force.me thirty tanks and truckloads of grenadiers attempting

to push between the landings. The 16th Infantry Regiment's€annon Company with supporr from the naval ships offshoreblasted the Axis troops and sent them fleeing.

nder Major General Terry Alien, the u i took parr'IT Operation Torch, the invasion of Norr' rica. On8 November 1942 the division landed near I ran as a partof the Central Task Force. After the landing th division wassplit up and parcelled our to British divisio ,s in Tunisia.Finally in mid-February the division was reunited. Shortlythereafter Rommellaunched his attack at Kas eliine and the

~'!!!r."",,:ivisionbecame involved in the desperate 6.ghtti g. The menof the Big Red One would become hardened veterans by theime the North African fighting was over.

9~'lli'le the men thought of home, the generals planned theext operation. General Patton specifically req ested the

i sr Infantry Division for Operation Husky, the inva'o ofSi<tily. On 10 July 1943 the division embarked a,gain OJ;!

the LCVP landing craft that would take them once moreonto the beaches of another land. Storming ashore at Gelame 1sr Infantry Division brushed aside the token Italianifesistance. The next day however would find them toe to toe

ith a far more formidable foe.

Page 199: Flames of War - Overlord

f

At 0:;45 h:01lrS, 6 June 1944, the warshi~s ofthe US an British navies commenced theirpreliminary bombardment. The landing craftheaded toward Omaha Beach only to be mixedup on the way in and deliver their troops in asemi-jumbled up mess on the beach.

Many troops were delivered straight intothe strongest defences on Omaha Beach.However, with no time to waste, the veterantroops stormed ashore.

The German bunkers opened up on thetroops, however as casualties mounted, thedetermined troops only became more resolvedand their efforts to silence the enemy gunsdoubled. The enemy fortifications provedstrong, but the Americans took their time,reducing each bunker, one at a time.

By 0730 hrs the first penetrations were madethrough Hitler's Atlantic Wall, and slowly theGerman beach fortifications were flanked.

OFF THE BEACHThe division took the first hit on thebeachhead, but quickly rebounded. Once thebeaches were secure, the Big Red One tookless then a week to outpace the other D-Daydivisions, carving a twenty mile swath in theGerman defences and creating the 'Big RedOne Bulge' in the German lines.

Suddenly, the 1se Infantry Division was haltedin the bocage country, small fields outlinedby tall and formidable hedgerows. The terrainheavily favoured the defending Germans.Bradley wrote, 'Across the neck of Normandy peninsula, thehedgerows formed a natural line of defence more formidablethan anyeven Rommel could have contrived'. Enemy machine­guns and anti-tank guns were easily concealed and caused allsorts of trouble for the advancing American division.

The 'Big Red One' now found itself in a dangerous positionsurrounded on three sides by the 5th Fallschirmjager Regimentof the }'d Fallschirmjager Division, the 40th PanzergrenadierRegiment, and the 38th Panzerpionier Battalion of the2nd Panzer Division. Rather than pull back, the Americans

dug in until the other beachheads caught up and, t eyawaited the German attack

German artillery began firing and much to the surprise ofthe'Big Red One', the shells contained leaflets instead of highexplosives. The propaganda tried to convince the veteranunit that the situation was hopeless and they should give up.The troops promptly ignored the leaflets and continued,towait for the attack they were sure would come. It never did,and they were soon relieved by the 5'h Infantry Division andshifted west to participate in the.bFeakout operations there.

Page 200: Flames of War - Overlord

D-DAY

, 29TH INFANTRY DIVISION, TASK FORCE '0' ,

THE BAPTISM OF FIRE OF THE 'BLUE &GRAY'Then in July of 1943 a new commander arrived, MajorGeneral Charles H Gerhardt. His style of leadership em­phasised total knowledge of all your subordinate's warfighterskills. So, starting with his senior officers, he held a boardof inquiry. There he grilled the regimental commanders onbasic infantry tasks. When it was over the officers knew whowas boss, and what the boss expected.

Training began in earnest on the moors ofEngland to preparethe division for its critical role in the D-Day invasion. As apart of this training the 116th Infantry Regiment was pickedto lead the assault into Fortress Europa. Immediately theinfantry of the regiment commenced training in explosivesand demolition to prepare them for their new missiontasks. -

This was a time of great pride for the division. Having beenselected to lead the way, time would tell all too soon if it wasup to the tas on 6 June 1944.

e 29th Infantry Division started out as a National Guardivision from the states of Maryland and Virginia, states

that had fought against one another in the American CivilWar. This is where it derived its distinctive name a~- patch,-'Iue for the 'Yankees' of Maryland, grey for t e 'Rebels' of

Virginia.

e heritage of the division could be trace~ by its threei fantry regiments as well. The' andy 5th' or yh InfantryRegil)1ent traced its roots to the evolutionary War where it~rved in the Continental Army and was said to have saved

Washington's Army at the batt e of Long Island.

lIhe 116'h Infantry Regiment~ traced its lineage to theevolutionary War as well. But the regiment's real clai to

fame came from the Civil War while serving in 'Stonewall'ack~on:'s Brigade at the Battl~ of Manassas. This Civil Waregacy had earned them the title of 'Stonewallers', a name

-they carried into the Second Wi rld War.

inally, there was the 115th Infancry Regiment coming fromthe western part of Maryland. Its lineage went back to theRevolutionary War, but was fracture during the Civil War At H-Hour on 6 June 1944, the 116'h Regimental Combats both the Confederate and Union Armms raised their own Team led tHe way onto Omaha Beach. Their landing craft

115th Regiment. Brother would fight against }rother as both came un er fire before they even hit the beach, many hittingr giments came from the same area. - u,nclerwater obstacles and mines. German machine-guns

swept the beaches. Mortar fire and anti-tank guns wereOn 11 October 1942 the division ar-rived in Britain to begin

zeroed in on the beach causing more mayhem.l'3 eparations for entering the war. At the time no one was

-, ce tain where they would head to next, but as each battle The regiment's assault momentarily stalled. General Cota,((ame and went, the morale of the division plummeted-the the division's assistant commander yelled, 'Hell, men, we'rem n asking when and where the division would finally get getting killed here on the beach. We might as well go a littleo fight. farther in and get killed there!' The men got up and pushed

in, reducing German strongpoints along the way.

Page 201: Flames of War - Overlord

General Gerhardt was ashore directing the landing from1300 hrs, and set up his CP in a rock quarry. With that, thedivision settled in for their first night in France.

The following day the division lost no time resuming theoffensive, capturing Vierville-sur-Mer and St Laurent. Asthe 116th closed in on Grandchamps, they were halted byintense machine-gun fire. When artillery could not silencethe Germans, Technical Sergeant Frank Peregory moved inalone to knock them oue.

As the sergeant worked his way up one flank, he stumbledinto a German patrol of eleven men. He killed eight withhand grenades forcing the remaining three to surrender.Peregory continued his mission to take our the machine-gunpost and caught them totally.offguard. The sergeant captured32 more troops, including the crews of the machine-gunsholding up the 116th Regiment. He would ·be awarded theMedal of Honor posthumously, after being killed in actionsix days later.

Omaha Beach extracted the most terrible casualties from theBlue and Grays, but the lessons learned there would remainat the heart of the division, making them a tough unit.

ST. LOOnce the beaches were secure the 29th pressed inland intoNormandy, through the bloody hedgerows and on to St. La.Fighting in the hedgerows was pure hell as the doughboysof the 29th fought from hedge to hedge, rardy knowing forcertain whether friend or foe occupied the adjacent field.

On 11 July the division was moving again. The 116th racedahead and cut the St Lo-Bayeux road, while the rest of thedivision positioned itself to take St. La.

General Cota, commanding Task Force C, headed straightinto St. La on 18 July and captured the city after fiercehouse-to-house fighting.

BREAKOUTOn 26 July the division teamed up with the 30th InfanttyDivision and the 2nd 'Hell on Wheels' Armored Division ansiezed the towns of Percy, Tessy-sur-Vire, St. Germain deTallevande, Vire, and Villbaudon in quick order.

Later that month, the Germans launched counterattackS t,

cut off the American advance into the Cherbourg peninsThe 116 Panzergrenadierdivision hit the 29th at PercyVillebaudon. The Blue and Grays threw back each emattack, inflicting maximum casualties. The Germans werenow forced ro give up any chance 9f halting the 29th and jt.,.._· .OL> .....

fellow Allied divisions .in Normandy.

The division was finally pulled out of the line after 63 day'in combat on 15 August. The division received badly need,edsupplies and replacements while it waited for its next assign-'ment, which would be 'ust ound rhe corn , .

,',-. oft

Page 202: Flames of War - Overlord

THE FIGHT FOR UTAH BEACHunder Leutnant ]ahnke, a veteran of the Eastern Fronc. Thepreliminary bombardment had severely damaged the Germande ences, knocking out most of their anti-tank gullS, and theUS infantry and tanks quickly overwhelmed the position.

'Ph . clmgs had been successful, with remarkably lighrualties for the attacking Americans. On D-Day, more

t 20,000 troops and 1700 vehicles along with thousandsf rollS of supplies were landed at Utah Beach.

A. COMBAT TEAM 8 A"(Y (8TH INFANTRY REGIMENT, 4 TH INFANTRY DIVISION) "<Y

Page 203: Flames of War - Overlord

inland, long after their comrades in the 29th and 1sr Infant.r.y.Divisions reverted back to standard rifle companies.

All three regiments were supported by the 70m and 746rh

Tank Battalions, providing good firepower to the infantas they reduced the German strongpoints in the area. eexperienced 899th Tank Destroyer Battalion also reinforcedthe 8th and 12th Infantry Regiments as they attacked Germanpositions around Sainte Mere Eglise and helped bolster theline in the event of a German counterattack.

The division called upon their 29m, 42nd, and 44m Fiel

Artillery Battalions as well as the 65'h Armored Field ArtilleryBattalion to help dislodge enemy troops. These batteries wer.":?L.c ""'.o.situated inside the 4m's beachhead and could reach anywherme division attacked.

By afternoon, the division had linked up with the 101Airborne Division and shortly thereafter they made cont c ­with the 82nd • These two airborne divisions had playedcritical part in the relatively few casualties incurred by theup to this point. However, as the sun set on 6 June 194 : tFourth's fight was only beginning. .

FINAL POSITIONS, EVENING OF 6 TH JUNE

GERMAN FORTIFIED POSITION

LANDING ZONE 'W' 325TH

) GLIDER INFANTRY REGIMENT

•(

8TH INFANTRY REGIMENT

~ 22NO INFANTRY REGIMENT

~ 12TH INFANTRY REGIMENT

With the beaches secure 'and the rest of the divisionashore, the 4m Infantry pushed inland to link up with the82nd Airborne Division around Sainte-Mere-Eglise and the101 sr Airborne Division in Sainte-Marie-du-Mont. BrigadierGeneral Roosevelt greeted each regiment as it came ashoreand directed it inland to their respective objectives. He did alot of his own reconnaissance. When he found the best routeof advance, he declared, 'We'll start the war from here!'

The division's regiments moved north and west, each withtheir own objectives. The 22nd Infantry Regiment movednorth to secure the coastline. The 12m pushed directly westtoward Sainte-Mere-Eglise. The 8th moved southwest toSainte-Marie-du-Mont and then turned due west. Uniquely,the assault battalions of the 8th Infantry Regiment main­tained their assault company configuration during the attack

Page 204: Flames of War - Overlord

e Dieppe raid in 1942 taught the Allies many lessons aboutvading beaches while under fire. Later, after the successes inorth~Africa, Sicily, and Italy the Allies felt they were ready

!O .take on Fortress Europa. Careful study of the defencesong the coast showed there were weaknesses inherenr in

'''"J.o_ ...,;~'. S structure, and, if the men had rhe right equipmenr andtraining, exploiting those weaknesses was possible. Anyfivading force would have to overcome wire, minefields, and

b nkers if it was to be successful. Thus the planners set aboutt create the perfect mix of men, equipment, and training.

'The US Army now embarked on a program of reorganisingand training the infantry formations that would assault the

l;$"'ll!I"~_l eaches. After careful study, an organisation began to take

shape in the minds of the planners. Starting with the basic.nfantry company of three combat platoons and one weapons

. platoon, the force designers sought to create multiple inde­pendenr organisations.

is organisation had to be able to act on its own withoutrther company level support. Furthermore, it had to be

ablJe to fight its way through wire obstacles, overcome enemy'n:fanrry, and destroy enemy bunkers.

However, the most important restriction was the size of theanding craft, which could only hold 31 men in full 'battleatde'. With a standard US infantry platoon being just over

4Cl,.individuals it was necessary to change the structure of thep atoons to fit in the small boats that would take them to the

each. Thus, the first change was to go from the four large, , latoons in a normal infantry company to six smaller boat

edions in an assault company.

':Il1order to deal with all of the expected defences, the plannersI aded the boat sections up with weapons and equipment.

eygave them mortars from the weapons platoon to knockput machine-gun nests, bazookas from the company HQ. 0 take on tanks, and Rame-throwers from the ChemicalBranch to silence bunkers. For barbed wire, they gave them

angalore torpedoes, long pipes filled with explosives to blowaps for the troops. To finish off bunkers, they had demoli­

don charges and plenty of good old TNT to blow things up.ere wa§ no quick fix for minefields though-they simply

had to take their chances there.

ile each boat section was designed to be a self-conrainedunit, the battalion's support weapons, such as the M 1917hea;yy machine-guns, and M1 81mm mortars, were reor­

anised into support sections. Like with the infantry, thelatoons were broken up and distributed across six landing

}; ft.

cv ...,-,.,.,E<»ach Support Boat conrained one machine-gun, one mortar,"the guns' crews, and some additional riRemen to help withclearing obstacles. Medics, artillery observers, and other'u port personnel were also carried ashore in the support

tions.

NEW ASSAULT KITThe men of the boat sections not only needed the weaponryto deal with the defences and defenders, but they also neededto carry enough supplies and combat gear for three days ontheir back. Since a soldier can only carry 701bs/32kg (atmost), working out what to take and what to leave behindwas tricky. The planners solved the problem with a 'belt andbraces' approach and loaded the troops up to the limit.

Part of their solution was the assault vest with pockets formuch of the extra equipment. The assault vest was inrendedto replace the standard combat webbing, however in theend it proved too cumbersome and was discarded soon afterlanding on the beach.

Another consideration was the inclusio,n of anri-chemicalwarfare equipmenr beca.use it was feared the Germans wouldstop at nothing to repel an Allied invasion in France. Assaulttroops were issued gas masks. The infanrry assigned toOmaha Beach had their normal uniforms impregnated witha solution that prevenred chemicals from soaking inro thefabric. The 4th Infantry's troops received special HBT (her­ringbone tweed) uniforms that were worn over their normaluniforms, which were discarded after the landings.

TRAINING FOR COMBATEven with equipmenr, an organisation is incapable of actingwithout training on that equipmenr. For monrhs before D­Day, the assault regimenrs practised their craft. Mastering theuse of explosives, they became proficient at advancing underfire against a stubborn, well-entrenched enemy. Inregratingthe use of the weapon systems and the new skills they hadlearned, the infanrry platoons became masters of combinedarms manoeuvre at the lowest levels. With inregrated heavyweapons at the platoon level, they were able to suppress theenemy while parts of the unit manoeuvred to a good positionto launch an assault from.

THE COAST GUARDEach boat was crewed by members of the US Coast Guard.Many of the crews belonged to Coast Guard Flotilla 10, aveteran unit from the Sicily and Salerno landings. The CoastGuard not only provided pilots for landing craft on most ofthe beaches, they also put their sea-rescue expertise to gooduse, saving over 400 shipwrecked souls on D-Day alone.

THE BIG SHOWAll of these changes, modifications, and training were putto the ultimate test on 6 June 1944 when the infantrystormed ashore at Utah and Omaha beaches. All of the at­tention to detail and training stood the men in good stead,however nothing could prepare them for the horrors of anopposed landing, such as the one on Omaha Beach. Massconfusion and navigation errors plagued the invasion, butthe independenr nature of the boat sections helped the menovercome these troubles and win the day.

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An AssauLt Company recezves a Ground-attack Aircraft

FLight on a roLL of6 instead of the usuaL 5+. However, its

Air Support wilL successfULly intercept enemy Ground-Attack

Aircraft FLights on a roLL of5+ instead ofthe usuaL 6

CLEAR THE SKIESOn D-Day the situation was so confused and the front linesso close together that ground-attack air support missionswere difficult to coordinate. In an effort to avoid killing theirown troops the US Army Air Force left the beach defencesalone.

However, the extensive fighter cover ensured that enemy airsupport could have little effect either. During the battle onlytwo enemy aircraft managed to buzz the beaches, causing nodamage.

Company ALways Attacks another Infantry

Rifle teams in Boat Sections and Support Sections count as

Pioneer teams when attempting to cross or gap Barbed Wire

EntangLements and when assauLting Bunkers.

%e assault company is fully equipped for the assault with~ enty of wire cutters, Bangalore Torpedoes and demolitioncharges. Not only does it have the equipment, but it also has

e training to use it.

AD assault company is task-organised for an assault and willalways be attacking. Its sole mission is to carry the fight to theenemy, fortifications or not. Once it establishes itself on thegbjectives then it digs in and fights off any counterattacks.

US rifle companies in the first wave assault groups were reorganised into assault companies so that they can fit into the-",.,--....lapding craft. This made each boat a small army unto itself with automatic weapons, flame-throwers, bazookas, and plenty

of demolition charges.

Assault Company (page 208) uses all of the American special rules found on pages 236-240 of the rulebook. In addition,also uses the special rules below.

Page 207: Flames of War - Overlord

Brigadier General Norman 'Dutch'Cota was Assistant DivisionalCommandet of the 29th InfantryDivision during the Omaha landings.A career soldier, with 27 yearsmilitary experience, Cota could haveopted for a desk job, but believedhis job as a soldier was to die for hiscountry. At 51 he was possibly theoldest man to set foot on the sandsof Omaha Beach on D-Day. Cotalanded in Dog White sector in themidst of his men and under heavyfire during the second assault wave.

With a cool head and little regardfor his own safety, Cota led his menfrom the front, galvanising the shell­shocked and pinned-down survivorsinto action. He opened one of thefirst vehicle exits from the beach,personally leading a steady stream of soldiers inland.

Cota never wavered, never hesitated and never thought twicein his resolve to get his troops off the bloody beaches, main­taining it was better to go inland and risk being killed thanto stay on the beaches and die for certain.

Encountering a unit pinned by heavy fire near Vierville,'Dutch' Cota enquired as to the unit's identity. '5 th Rangers'

GET OFF THIS BEACHCota moved up and down the beaches motivating the troopsto get up and press the attack to sweep the enemy aside.

Cota starts the game off table. In the Starting Step whenyou would normally rollfOr Reserves, roll a die fOr Cota ifhe is offthe table.

• On a roll of5 +, if Cota has not been Destroyed, he isplaced adjacent to the Platoon Command team (ifpresent,otherwise any team in the platoon) ofany platoon in anAssault Company anywhere on the table.

• On any other roll, Cota remains offthe table.

RANGERS, LEAD THE WAY!When Cota encountered a group of pinned down Rangershe encouraged them to attack and break the German lines.

Any platoon led by Cota will pass Motivation Tests on arollof3+.

came the reply, to which Cota famously replied 'Wdldamn it Rangers, lead the way!', words forever immor:,t~

as the Ranger motto.

'Dutch' Cota was awarded the Distinguished Service - ­for his heroism on Omaha Beach. He survived the wa:r andlived to see his exploits recreamdon ,the silver screen, bein""'E~~iiI

portrayed by Robert Mitchum In 1he Longest Day. '

I WON'T BE ABLE To DO IT FOR YouNEXT TIMEWith his job done, Cota moved along to the next beach 0

help the men pinned down there.

In the Starting Step when you would normally roll fOrReserves, roll a die ifCota is on the table.

• On a rollof3+, Cota remains where he is.

• On any other roll, Cota has finished what he came todo and moves offto another part ofthe battlefield. Removehim from the table. Next turn rollfOr him to return agairs,.using the Get Offthis Beach special rule.

THAT'S How IT'S DONE

Page 208: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 209: Flames of War - Overlord

2iC CommandCarbine team

Rifle team

LIEUTENANT

COMPANY HQ

BOAT SECTION

..

Company CommandCarbine team

}\~~ ~1~1Command Rifle team Rifle team

'ji1~ }\11~Rifle team Rifle team

~il ~ilBazooka team Bazooka team

)AAA *11~M2 60mm Mortar Flame-thrower

team

You may only field two LMC teams znCompany.

1he 'Big Red One' division has made more amphibi­ous landings than almost any other US division. AnAssault Company from the 1" Infantry Division is ratedConfident Veteran.

1he soldiers ofthe 4th and 29'h Infantry Division are welltrained, but have notyet fought. 1hey have been waitingfor their opportunity to get into the fight and now is theirchance. An Assault Company from the 4th or 29'h InfantryDivision is rated Confident Trained.

The men of the 16th Infantry Regiment (l se InfantryDivision), the 8th Infantry Regiment (4th Infantry Division),and the 116th Infantry Regiment (29 th Infantry Division) arespecially trained and organised for the Normandy invasion.

Due to the limited load capacity of the landing craft, everyman is critical. The new HQ reflects this by being austereand lacking any combat attachments.

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4&56

81mm Mortar Team1 Observer: sight, binoculars, oompass,

flashlight, 5 mortar rounds,Ml carbine, sound powered phone.

2 Gunner: bipod, Ml carbine, soundpowered phone.

3 Assistant gunner: mortar tube withaiming stakes inside, Ml carbine.

4 Baseplate, Ml carbine.Ml carbine.

5 Ml carbine, 7 mortar rounds, 400yards ofoommunication wire.

6; 7&8 Ml Garand, 7 mortar rounds.

Demolition Team1-5 MI Garand, 50' primacord, at least

4 detonators, 6 blocks ofY2Jb TNT,7 pack charges, 3 pole charges,demolition kit with crimpers, knife,rape and oord, 2 fuse lighters, I smokegrenade, 2 nag grenades.

Assistant BoatTeam Leader (NCO)

~~~ ~1~1 ~~~ ~1~1Command Rifle team Command Rifle team

Carbine team Carbine team

\ji1~ ~11~ \ji1~ ~11~Rifle team Rifle team Rifle team Rifle team

@;\t ~AA @;\t ~AAM1917 HMG M181mm M1917 HMG M181mm

Mortar Mortar

.'.' • I'.' •

RiHeTeam1,2&3 Ml Garand, 1 smoke

grenade, 2 nag grenades, wire currers.1 fTag grenade, M7 grenadelauncher, 3 riRe smoke grenades,12 AT riRe grenades.

4&5 Ml Garand, 2 smoke grenades, 5 fraggrenades, M1938 wirecurrer

Wire CuttingTeam1-4 Ml Garand, 1 smoke grenade, 2

Bangalore Torpedoes, 2 wirecutrers,2 large searchnose wire cutrers.

HMGTeam1 Tripod, pistoL2 M1917Al HMG, carbine.3 Warer chesr, ammo box, spare parts

kit, carbine.2 ammo boxes, carbine.2 ammo boxes, carbine, binoculars.

Support Sections from a Support Boat Platoon operate asseparate platoons, each with their own Command team.

lust as the riflemen in the rifle and weapons platoons wereeorganised to fit efficiently into their assault boats, so too

was the battalion's weapons company. The company was splitinto five boats called Support Sections, which in turn were

arcelled .out to the assault companies.

Each support boat had one of the weapons company'sortars and machine-guns along with ammunition andFa riflemen. This configuration helped guarantee that

heavy weapons were distributed well and didn't tisk all ofthem together in a single boat, should the worst happen.

Page 211: Flames of War - Overlord

Ttmks in a DD Ttmk Platoons do not use the Ttmk Telephonespecial rule on page 230.

A DD tank's uniqueness comes from its ability to swim. Its'canvas screen and propellers allow it to swim. ashore ahead ofthe infantry without a landing craft. However, not all of thetanks were equipped with DD gear, and rest would arrive infollow-on waves, landing directly from landing craft. Since onlytwo normal Sherman tanks and one Sherman dozer with extraammunition in armoured trailers can fit in a landing craft, theplatoon is three tanks strong.

The 70th and 741 st Tank Battalions were equipped withDuplex Drive Shermans and assigned to Utah and OmahaBeaches to lend fire support. The 7415['S tanks supportedthe 1st and 29 th Infantry Divisions' assault waves on OmahaBeach whereas the 70[h was attached to a single infantryregimental combat team from the 4[h Infantry Division onUtah Beach.

1he 7(Jh Ttmk Battalion is a veteran unit from the NorthAfrica and Sicily campaigns and as such, a DD TtmkPlatoon supporting an Assault Companyfrom the 4th Infan­try Division (marked ) is rated Confident Veteran.

..Tank..Tank

•Tank

..Tank..Tank

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H-HOUR 0630 HRS, D-DAY 6 JUNE 1944The successes of the British commando units made animpression on the US Army, which began to form its own<i:ommando force called Rangers. These troops would berained in the same way as their British counterpart

<;;enauct dangerous missions in difficult terrain.

NO RANGER BATIALION AT POINTE DU Moe.' e invasion planners had the perfect target for th newod Ranger Battalion-destroy the coastal gun batteryointe du Hoc. The fortification, part of Germany's Atlanticill defences, contained six casemates, which reportedly

housed six 155mm guns that could fire onto US troops atboth Utah and Omaha beaches. The Rangers were taskedwith eliminating this threat.

Before the invasion, the US 9lh Air Force launched a massive. ombing raid on the objective and in the early hours of D­

Day, the battleship USS Texas brought its 14-inch guns to.ear on the defences, its huge shells carving up the Frenchcountryside into a lunar landscape of bomb crarers andupturned earth.

en, Dog, Easy, and Fox Companies, under the command ofleutenant Colonel James Earl Rudder, landed at the foot of

die imposing cliffs at Pointe du Hoc and scaled them despitemtense enemy fire. They battled overwhelming odds andfought their way through to the coastal gun emplacements.- owever, much to their surprise, the guns had been removedftom their original positions.

The resourceful Rangers quickly assembled search parties andthe battery was located and destroyed. Ar almost the same

e a large explosion rocked the ground and a tremendousreball filled the sky. A team of Rangers had discovered the

unition dump and finished it off.

e Rangers, isolated from the rest of the Allied forcesin Normandy, settled in to defend their ground. Germanreinforcements from the914. Grenadierregiment(914lh InfantryRegiment) descended on the Rangers. Over and over the ever­

inning ranks of Rangers fought them off.

en further enemy reinforcements arrived, the Rangerswithdrew behind the captured German fortifications to.make a final stand. After two days of relentless assaults, the29th Infantry Division broke through from Omaha Beach

cl relieved the besieged Rangers at Point du Hoc.

Elsewhere, Able, Baker and Charlie Companies of2nd Rangeratralion and the 5rn Ranger Battalion landed with the

rh Infantry Division at Omaha beach.

-.Pi ned down by the horrendous fire coming from the bluffs

above the seawall, the Rangers waited with the rest of thesurvivors of the 116lh Infantry Regiment. Their wait wouldnot be long.

With General Cotals words still in their heads the Rangersscrambled 0 er t e seawall and through the wire obstacles toscale i:h ·luffs. They led the way into the French countrysideant the way to the town ofVierville, helping to take thedraw that would allow vehicular traffic to begin to Bow intoFrance from the beaches. This effort would save OmahaBeach, and allow the Allies to begin the buildup that wouldmake Operation Overlord successful.

Individual courage, guts, and determination allowed theRangers to accomplish the task at hand, a testament to theirtraining. To this day the motto of the Rangers remains thefamous words of General Cota, 'Rangers, lead the way.'

A BRIEF MOMENT OF RESPITEMter the success ofOperation Overloard, the Rangers pausedto rebuild their strength and receive reinforcements, such astheir M3 75mm GMC half-tracks from the cannon platoon.After their brief rest, the Rangers were soon on the marchagain to support the next major US offensive in Brittany.

BRITTANYWith the Normandy beaches secure, the Allies needed a deepwater port to ferry in supplies and reinforcements. There wereseveral suitable ports located in Brittany, including Brest,Lorient, and Saint azaire making it the next US objective.

The US VIII Corps launched its offensive in late July, a fewdays after the beginning of Operation Cobra. Progress wasswift until it hit the heavily defended port cities where theGermans made a final stand.

When. the Rangers arrived in Brittany, they were brokenup into small units, usually consisting of individualcompanies or groups of companies, and given specific tasksto accomplish. These missions usually consisted ofassaultingand knocking out a troublesome German strongpoint orgathering intelligence from behind enemy lines.

TASK FORCE ARNOLDTask Force Arnold, comprised of A and C Companies,2nd Rangers, and some tank destroyers from the 644th TankDestroyer Battalion, was organised under Ranger CaptainEdgar Arnold and sent out to operate three miles northof American lines. They were reinforced by the local FFI(Free French of the Interior) including a company of WhiteRussians, which had defected from a German Ostb4,tallion(East Battalion).

Page 215: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 216: Flames of War - Overlord

ike the 2nd Ranger Battalion, the 5'h operated largelylth the 29th Infantry Division, conducting sweeps and

econnaissance for the infantry.

On 2 September, the battalion anacked Fort Toulbroc'h,but met serious resistance. The battalion was forced to backoff, prompting a major German counterattack against thethinly-held Ranger positions. The battalion called up everyman it could to help fend off the counterattack, including

e Ranger's headquarters company and with the help ofclerks and cooks, the Rangers held their position.

y following day, D and B Companies launched a finalssault on the position with the support of strafing aircraft.

e 60 Rangers that stormed the fort captured it in sixinutes, taking over 240 German prisoners.

and F Companies were left behind to guard the forts whiletHe remainder of the battalion moved west to join Task Force

ugar on the Le Conquet peninsula.

the other Ranger task forces completed their missions theymoved south and formed Task Force Sugar (also known as TaskForce Sheppe, or simply TFS). The main objective ofTFS was

e imposing 280mm guns of the Graf Spee Battery. These>US had been ripping into the advancing American forces

itflOut remorse and needed to be removed immediately.

1h ~ were oefenqed by a m Slve rtffication networkincluding barbed wire, underground tunnels, blockhouses,machine-gun and FlaK bunkers, and trenches. They all formedindividual strongpoints that would each have to be reduced inorder to claim the ultimate prize, the Graf Spee guns.

Reinforced by the addition of a battalion from the 116th

Regiment, 29th Infantry Division, Task Force Sugar crawledits way up the peninsula, capturing strongpoints with the helpof Sherman tanks, tank destroyers, and M12 self-propelled155mm guns in direct support. Air strikes knocked out twoof the four 280mm guns, but the remaining guns kept upthe demoralising bombardments.

On 9 September a small patrol of four Rangers, led byLieutenant Robert Edlin, was dispatched deep behind enemylines to scope our the battery's local defences. They stumbledacross a German pillbox. The Germans had no idea theAmericans were so close and were caught by surprise andsurrendered. An English-speaking German lieutenant agreedto take Edlin to the battery command post.

Edlin was taken to Colonel Furst, the battery commander.Edlin told Furst that Americans had his bunker surroundedand that he should immediately surrender. Furst was notconvinced and called the Ranger's bluff.' Without wastinga moment, Edlin grabbed a grenade, pulled the safety pinand held it against Furst demanding, 'Surrender or die' andcounted to three. Furst saw the fire in Edlin's eye and finallyagreed to surrender the battery.

With the surrender of the GrafSpee battery, the Le Conquetpeninsula was secure and the TFS was disbanded on11 September. As Corps reserve troops, the Rangers contin­ued to help reduce German strongpoints around the city ofBrest until the Germans surrendered on 19 September.

Page 217: Flames of War - Overlord

CBattery .

A Battery

36x M2All05mm howitzer

12x Ml155mm howitzer

A Company

12x Ml0 Tank Destroyers

.B Battery

2241h field Artillery Battalion(29th Infantry Division)

~it.il

227th field Artillery Battalion(291h Infantry Division)

~C.Battery

644th Tank Destroyer Battalion

DCompany

Ignore the first Destroyed Ranger Platoon, Ranger MortarPlatoon, or Ranger Cannon Platoon in a Ranger Battalion(Normandy) or a Ranger Battalion when determiningwhether it is necessary to take a Company Morale Check.

Ranger Infimtry teams may move At the Double (using theTruscott Trot) through Slow Going and Difficult Going(but not through Obstacle ftrtifications).

RANGERS LEAD THE WAY

Ranger units are close-knit organisations. In order to fit intolanding craft for raiding operations, each company has onl~o small platoons. These companies are too we~ f<iF .dependent operations,'but the Rangers' comrad~shipillthem to work closely together.

While the infantry practised speed-marching, the rangerstook it a step further. They speed-marched through tHetoughest terrain they could find!

I SHALL NEVER FAIL My COMRADES

Weapons Compaily

A·C Companies

2nd Battalion,1161h Infantry Regiment

~11~ ~A~

42x M4 Sherman tanks,17x M5A1 Stuart light tanks

12x M2 4.2" Chemical mortars

A Company

A·C Comp/lnies

861h Chemical Mortar Battalion

550x soldiers.: 25x bazookas, 6x M1919lMG, 9x 6umm Mortars, 3x 57mmAnti-tank guns, 6x 81 mm mortars,

8x M1917 heavy machine-guns,6x M3 105mm cannons

ETroop

Cannon'Platoon

A Troop

2nd Ranger Battalion

1si Platoon, A,Company

23x engineers, 4x bazookas,2x M1917 heavy machine-guns

861h CavalryReconnaissance Squadron

At ..

121 sI Engineering Battalion

11 x M8 Greyhound armoured cars,6x M8 Scott assault guns

538x Rangers, 18x mortars, 12x bazookas4x M3 75mm GMC self-propelled guns

Ranger Infantry and Man-packed GunMountaineers (see page 61 o/the rulebook).

Ranger Platoons and the Ranger Cannon Platoon use theGerman Mission Tactics special rule (see page 242 0/ therulebook).

Ranger Infimtry teams hit on a roll 0/3+ in an assault.

" "* t 'M ss,a\l!tc ,iQ4i$!HI if! 'It .. ,

KNOW THE MISSION

No OBSTACLE Too TOUGH

Rangers need to be well-briefed to conduct the extremelydifficult missions they are asked to complete.

... _ T , ~ '., _ _ ,...

RANGER SPECIAL RULES- ...,. -

GET TOUGH!Rangers were tough, brutal fighters. They fought with abso­lutely no holds barred and with any weapon' close at hand.

Task Force Sugar had an extraordinary amount of firepower available to it. The Rangers could rely on infantry, tanks"tal(lledestroyers, engineers, cavalry, and artillery. They also had anything VIII Corps attached to it for special purposes, such as theM12 155mm GMC for bunker-busting dury. Considering rhar rhey were fighting on a fronr.3qou;t 2. miles (3km) wide in theLe Conquer peninsula, this small task force was one of the most well-armed of its kind during the entire operation!

Rangers are trained in climbing cliffs and other seeminglyimpassable obstacles allowing them to go anywhere.

A Ranger Battalion (Normandy) (page 218) and a Ranger Battalion (page 219) uses all of the normal US special rules foundin the rulebook on pages 236-240. In addition, they also use the following special rules. S

Page 218: Flames of War - Overlord

(INFANTRY COMPANY)

You must field one platoon from each box shaded black. You may also field one platoon fromeach box shaded grey.Support platoons can be from any division but all platoons with an Assault or Rifle Companydivisional symbol must have the same symbol.

SUPPORT PLATOONS

Page 219: Flames of War - Overlord

(INFANTRY COMPANY)

You must field one platoon from each box shaded black. You may also field one platoon fromeach box shaded grey.

Page 220: Flames of War - Overlord

Rifle team

Rifle team

Rifle team

..

..

~~~M260mm

mortar

)~Jl~M260mm

mortar

Rifle team

tit1 7\111,Rifle team Rifle team

~i1~

..

HQ SECTION

BATIALlON HQ

Company CommandCarbine team

•RANGER PLATOON

LIEUTENANT

RANGER PLATOON

CommandRifle team

CommandRifle team

Rifle team

Rifle team

Rifle team..

..

Rifle team

ti~1 7\111,Rifle team Rifle team

~i1~

At the start ofthe game before Deploymentyou may replaceRifle or RiflelMG teams (aside from the Command team)in each Ranger Platoon as follows:

• Replace up to two teams with Bazooka teams.

• Replace up to one team with a Pioneer Rifle team.

• Replace M2 60mm mortar with a Rifle or RiflelMGteam (matching whichever the platoon is equipped with).

Ranger Platoons operate as separate platoons,their own command team.

%e Rangers in Europe traded their M1919 light machine­guns for Browning Automatic Rifles. In assault operationsthe loss of firepower was acceptable because the light-weight

uipment made them lighter and faster.

Page 221: Flames of War - Overlord

LIEUTENANT

Mortar

•et .'Mortar

~ftCommand

Carbine team

• •

~AA ~AA ~AA ~AAMortar Mortar Mortar Mortar.' " • .' .' •

The fact that each mortar can be broken up into small loadand carried on foot keeps them moving at the fast pacedemanded by Ranger missions.

Each Ranger battalion has six Ml 81mm and six M2 60mmmortars in its headquarters arsenal. When needed, one of thebattalion's companies would' operate the mortars in supportof the operation.

The platoon's smoke and high explosive ammunition were es­sential components to the success of the mission. Having theability to expand the battery to six weapons means that theRangers can cover a large area. They will be able to provideinstant support for your troops, knocking out enemy guns,infantry, and nests, or screening your advance with smoke.

Page 222: Flames of War - Overlord

24 JULY - 4 AUGUST 1944Since the initial landings on D-Day, Ametican forcesin the west of Normandy had been fighting their waythrough hellish bocage country. Each bocage-lined fieldwas another battle, to be taken against fierce German op­position, before moving on to the next for more of thesame. Wheeled and half-track vehicles were forced intothe narrow country lanes where they were vulnerable toambush, and tanks ran the risk of exposing their vulner­able belly armour every time they attempted to cross thehorrendous stone-reinforced hedgerows.

The more this went on the more time the Germans had toorganise themselves, even in spite of the best efforts of theAllied Air Forces, which made German troop movementsduring the day all but impossible.

1he Allies were desperate to utilise their advantage inmobile warfare. The bocage country, and the creepingstalemate it had caused, voided many of their advantagesin numbers, tactical air power, mechanised infantry, andlogistics. They needed to break out of the bocage countryand into the open country to the south where these advan­tages could be brought to bear. Operation Cobra was theplan that would at long last open a decisive gap.

General Bradley, commanding the US First Army, workedout a strategy using aerial saturation bombing over alimited area to briefly destroy defences. The resultingbreach would then be exploited by the infantry divisionsof the US VII Corps. The US VIII and XIX Corps wouldthen carry out diversionary attacks to prevent the Germansmoving reinforcements to the breach. Mter some debate athis headquarters, Bradley amended his initial phase threeobjective from merely seizing the Cotentin peninsula andcutting off the Germans there, to heading further southand potentially heading for Brittany and the Atlanticports. 1ne target area he chose for the start of OperationCobra lay between the villages of La Chapelle-Enjugerand Hebecrevon, a few kilometres north of the main roadbetween Saint-Lo and Coutances.

LAUNCHING OPERAlION COBRAInitial plans called for the operation to begin on 18 July,however due to poor weather the start was delayed until24 July. On that day visibility for aircraft still proved poor

Page 223: Flames of War - Overlord

On 30 July, the American 6th Armored Division crossedthe Brehal and passed Granville without stopping.4th Armored Division, still leading the advance, capruredAvranches the same evening, cutting off the Cotentin penin­sula. The next day the division succeeded in securing a vitalbridgehead over the Se/uneat the Pontaubault BridgtL.1KeAmericans had arrived in Brittany.

~ ,Meanwhile in eastern Normandy, the Canadian Corps'attack .pinned down potential German reinforcements, nQtallowing them to be moved to face the Americans in thewest. In less than a week US 1st Army troops had broKenthrough German lines' and penetrated sixty kiloQletres andtaken 18,000 prisoners. We stalemate had come to anand the war of attrition' of the bocage had suddenly and>matically been replaced by a war of movement. .)

The success of the operation was so great that on 4 Aug'1sMontgomery, overall Allied ground commander, ord.ered, amajor change to the follo}'li.up operation plan. Most of f 'enewly formed US yd Army; co~manded by Patton, was se 'east rather than into Brittany. General Courtney Hodge .1st Army also attacked east. Bradley now commanded ul:i:e U

newly activated 12th Army Group in overall command' xboth American armies. In the British and Canadian seZ2rsthe Commonwealth forces continued to push east and s8i!fl'i.The encirclement of the German forces in Normandy labegun and would ultimately climax at Falaise.

By 25 August all four Allied armies were on the Seine and theCampaign for Normandy had been won.

The following day the attack went ahead, but unfortunatelysome bombers were off target once again and further casual­ties were inflicted on the assault troops. However, for threehours, 1500 B-17 and B-24 heavy bombers pummelled thetarget zone, supported by medium and fighter-bombers.

The Germans had suffered badly leading up to an:d includ­ing the aerial bombardment. The Panzer Lehr division wasreduced to a third of its fighting strength and other units inthe target area had fared little better.

The initial movement of the attacking US infantry wascautious, over a month of bocage fighting had left themweary, but as they broke through the weak German opposi­tion the advance sped up. Fi<:rce fighting continued through­out 25 July, as efforts were made to open up a passage for thearmoured vehicles.

For the operation the tanks had been fitted with Cullin Pronghedgerow cutters. These had been highly secret until theopening of Operation Cobra and now rhe new devices allowedthe tanks to rip their way through the bocage with ease.

On 26 July VII Corps advanced six miles (lOkm), takingSaint-Gilles, then Canisy, after crossing the Coutances-Saint­Lt> road. Gaps started to appear in the German front lineand the defence finally collapsed the next day. The first day'sadvance made 4000 yards and on 26 July they made a further8000 yards.

On 26 July, the breakthrough armoured divisions werereleased and were soon sweeping south and westwards.Marigny, Lessay and Periers were taken that day.

General Wood's 4th Armored Division liberated Coutances, amajor road junction beyond the German lines, on 28 July.

Entire German units were encircled in places like theRoncey Pocket, while other units simply collapsed under the

THE BREAKOUT

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NORMANDY, FRANCE, 2S JULY 1944Operation Cobra commenced at 1100hrs on 25 July 1944~en 1800 heavy bombers and 750 medium and fighter­bombers of the US Army Air Force laid a carpet of bombs ontHe German front lines west of St. Lo. The attack advanced

OOOm on the first day through terrain described as a 'moon­se pe' Ilfter the bombing.

The second day saw faster progress, and by evening UStroops had advanced over 5000m, capturing St. Gilles. Thearmoured divisions took over the lead the next day. Thecombat commands of the 2nd and 3rd Armored Divisions ledthe way. Two days later, they had trapped two German SS­Panzer divisions in the Roncey Pocket.

Page 227: Flames of War - Overlord

er the division had smashed the Germans in Norman y,r. ,~MrtIII!'Il.:

t ey pursued the retreating enemy through BelgiurruNo ever, theit rapid advance came to a halt when they hithe Siegfried Line and the Roet dams, Here they fough adeterm'ned enemy, which bogged down the Allies.

IYuring the Battle of the Bulge, the division joined the Alliedorthern counterattack, hitting the 5'h Panzer Army at

Dinant. The 'vision halted and then destroyed the Germanearheads of t e 2nd and 9th Panzer Divisions.

Two-thirds of C;;:CB was committed to the defence al ~P.r."'il.~~

WIth th :>J. th Reg.[mental Combat Team of the 30 th InfahDIvision. e orde was given that positions would be heldat all costs. During ur days of fierce fighting heavy losseswere sufrered byboth ides, but the Germans were stoppedand forced to withdraw on 12 August.

With the German counterattack halted, it will not belong until Spearhead was ce again advancing rapidly;through France and on to Bedi' . Victory looked assured BChristmas!

The 2nd Armored Division was raised on 15 July 1940under the command of Majot General Charles L SCOFt.Later that year Scon was promoted and command of !:hedivision fell to one Brigadier General George S Pano . Thedivision trained hard, prompting Panon to boast mat the2nd Armored Division would be 'Hell on Wheels' when imet the enemy-the nickname stuck.

The 3'd Armored Division was activated on 15 April 1941as a heavy armoured division with over 230 medium tan sand 158 light tanks (instead of the normal 160-odd medi mtanks and 80 light tanks of a regular armoured divisio . Ttwas made up of over 15,000 troops.

The 3rd Armored began landing in Normandy 0 2!i± Juns;and by 29 June elements of Combat Command 'A (CCA),under Brigadier General Doyle Hickey, engage' e enem}5Their action near Villiers-Fossard was as part of VII Corpsof the First Army. CCAsuffered heavy losses in the fightibut achieved its objectives. This early success, com ine withmany small battles leading up to and i eluding 0 et: rionCobra, earned the division its nickn e'Spearhead'.

Operation Cobra was launched n 25 July to end thehedgerow hell which had piagued the Allied advance. Thebreakout was preceded by on of the heaviest bombinganacks ever seen. The damage caused allowed the Spearheaddivision to shatter elite Ger an unirs and lead the way.

The division landed in Normandy , n 9 June 1944 and wentstraight into battle under the command of Major GeneralEdward H Brooks. Along with e 3'd 'Spearhead' ArmoredDivision, 'Hell On Wheels' I _ the American assault duringOperation Cobra on 25 July 1944, exploiting far behind theGerman lines.

'HELL ON WHEELS' IN NORMANDY

Page 228: Flames of War - Overlord

'NAME ENOUGH'

THE 'SUPER SIXTH' IN BRITTANY

UTSIDE BREST

Rennes well defended. General Troy Middleton, commanderof VIII Corps, ordered the 4th to take and hold Brittany'scapital city, but Patton countermanded the order and im­

ediately released the 4th to head west to Lorient and cut theBri tany Peninsula completely.

86th Cavalry Recon Squadron (A & E Troops), the 777th Anti­aircraft Artillery Battalion (A Company), and 1Sf Battalion,

8th Infantry Regiment.

TIie Brassiere Boys were tasked with convincing the Germansthat the city was surrounded by a much larger force. Severalclashes) including a cunning German raid to free some POWs

om the French resistance, broke out along the front but therassiere Boys succeeded in keeping Brest contained.

On 9 August General amke, commander of Germanforces in Brest, assembled a assault force consisting of twoFallschirmjiiger (paratrooper) companies and two platoonsfully equipped with Panze1aust anti-tank launchers.Supported by artillery and naval flaK batteries, Ramke per­sonally led the charge. The assault ushed our a ways beforeit was aIte ana rurneCibac y die rassiere Boys. Withoutthe aid of Ramke's paratroopers, the 266. Infantriedivisionwas cur to pieces by the 6 th Armored Division.

The division then headeli west and reached the port city ofLorient on 7 August. Onc again, Wood encountered resist­ence that his division could ot handle on its own, but therewas no spare infantry to sena. The Fourth had to stay putuntil relieved by the 6th Armoreld Division on 15 August.

On 15 August the 4 th burst out of . rinany and joined in the£----------------r-a-ce~t-o~tl·ie renc -German or er. From there it cur into

France's Lorraine country. It would be here that the Fourthwould fight some of its most famous battles of the war.

6TH ARMORED DIVISION

%e 4th Armored Division was activated on 15 April 1941.flhe unit completed a rigorous and total training period.

e division was expertly led by the very able General John'p ofessor' Wood who had a sixth sense when it came toleaoership and putting the right people in command. any'historians argue that the 4th Armored was easily the !:lest

mored division in the US Army during the war.

With Avranches secure, the division attacked south into therinany Peninsula until it hit Rennes. The Americans found

The 6th Armored Division was formed on 15 February 1942and arrived in England two years later on 11 Feburary 1944.\lhe 6th then landed on Utah Beach in Normandy on 19 Jul)!1944 and immediately went on the offensive in the CotentinPeninsula in support of the Normandy campaign.

omhat Command A (CO ), of the 6 th Armored DivisionBad the job of containing the Germans inside Brest, earninghem the nickname, 'The Brassiere oys. consisted oflie 50 th Armored Infantry Battalion, the 68th Tank Battalion

o c9.mpanies), the 603td Tank Destroyer Battalion,

e 'Super Sixth' advanced through the middle ofdie pen­ninsula, while the 4 th took the southern route. Their advancew;is'so swift that they arrived outside Brest before the retreat­ing Germans.

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The 'Super Sixth' could not enter the city due to the well­prepared German defences, but instead conrinued to screenthe city preventing any German reinforcements from gettingin. Soon the 8 th, 2nd , and 29'h Infanrry Divisions arrived andestablished a perimeter around Brest, freeing the 6th ArmoredDivision to head south to Lorienr. In early September thedivision was released to head east and made the first link­up with American and French troops which had invadedsouthern France in August.

GERMANYThe division reached the German border on 6 December,and took part in the Battle of the Bulge later that mon{where it was heavily engaged near Bastogne.

in 1945, the Super Sixth pressed on into Germany, breachingthe Siegfried Line and helped liberate the notoriol,lS Germanconcentration camp at Buchenwald.

----Rail

40

--. 4'h Armored Division

'>Cl='='U' RoadsTowns

--. Task Force A

6'h Armored Division

o MIlES 20- -- - -o KILOMETRES SO

Page 230: Flames of War - Overlord

When a tank fitted with a hedgerow cutter attempts to cross

a Bocage Hedgerow, it successfUlly crosses on a roLL of 2+rather than a SkiLL Test. Ifit fails, the tank Bogs Down onthe hedgerow as normal, but ignores the Belly Up rule (seepage 58 ofthe rulebook),

If it crosses successfully, then any other Fully-tracked Tankteams adjacent to the hedgerow can foLLow it through on aroLL of2 + instead ofa SkiLL Test as weLL.

The US First Army had learned the hard way that fightingin the Bocage hedgerows of Normandy was exceptionallydifficult. Even tanks had great difficulty in crossing thehedgerow's high banks, which were reinforced by the rootsof the trees growing on them.

By Operation Cobra they had the answer-hedgerowcutters. These devices were remarkably simple. Just a fewlengths of steel welded on the bow of a tank allowed it totear out a section of Bocage hedgerow. Hedgerow cutterswere simultaneously invented by several units, but TechnicalSergeant Curtis G Culin is the most famous (giving theBritish version its name 'Cullin Prong', even though theygot his name wrong!). Tanks fitted with the cutters areappropriately known as 'Rhinos'.

The new Rhino tanks were considered Top Secret beforethe start of Operation Cobra, so when they were used, theywere a total surprise to the Germans who suddenly foundthemselves outmanoeuvred, with no alternative but todesperately cling to their positions to buy time for a mobilecounterattack.

Ifother tanks in the platoon fire, they must have their ownInfantry team pointing out the target, or continue to treatthe target as Gone to Ground.

ALL Stuart and Sherman tanks (except those in a DD TtmkPlatoon) are equipped with Tank Telephones.

If a Tank team with a Tank Telephone and an adjacentInfantry team did not move in the Movement Step and arenot Pinned Down, the Infantry team can use the Eyes and

Ears rule (see page 195 ofthe rulebook) to Reveal one Goneto Ground enemy team to that Tank team as ifthe Infantryteam was a recce team.

e 'Hell on Wheels' and 'Spearhead' Armored Divisions ledHe breakout during Operation Cobra. They were in action

and moving forward before the enemy knew the attack wason. The pace of their attacks kept the Germans on their heels,lUJ.able to coordinate a defensive line before being overrun.

The ability to alter the Combat Command gives the divisions excellent flexibility perfectly suited for rapid mobile advancesin Operation Cobra. This co-operation will allow your force to spearhead the US Army's assault.

Medium Tank Company (page 232), a Light Tank Company (page 236), an Armored Rifle Company (page 238), aArmored Recon Company (page 244), and a Cavalry Recon Troop (page 246) uses the following special rules in addition tothe normal US special rules (see pages 236-240 of the rulebook).

HEDGEROW CUTTERS

n the dense terrain of the Bocage it is very difficult fortanks to find targets and almost impossible for infantry toavance without proper tank nre support. The solution thatas evolved is to weld a box containing a neld telephone on

me rear of each tank. When they need fire support a braveinfantryman runs up to the back of the tank and tells theank crew where the target is located.

Anyforce from the US 2nd or 3 rd Armored Division (but noti the 4'h or 6'h Armored) Always Attacks.

When they are attacking, the player may make a SpearheadDeployment move (see page 261 ofthe rulebook) with oneplatoon that is not a Reconnaissance Platoon.

Page 231: Flames of War - Overlord

Lafayette Pool, a tall, lanky Texan, served just over 80 daysin combat. His combar career was so successful mat manyhiswrians consider him w be not just the greatest tank aceof World War II, but the greatest tank ace evet-destroying258 enemy vehicles and twelve tanks (mostly Panthers).

Pool was what me army calls a 'hard charger'. As a boxingchampion, he even fought an exhibition match with the greatJoe Louis. He was a demanding taskmaster who twice turneddown promotion so he could train his men.

His tank crew called him 'War Daddy' and he called them his'Pups'. The first tank they rode inco combat was an M4A1Sherman named 'In the Mood'. During Pool's wur in combathe had three tanks of that name shoe our from under him.

Pool was known as the 'Spearhead of the Spearhead Division'.He led his unit inco 21 full-scale acracks and his preferredtanic was w charge in close and mix it up, even againstpowerful opponencs like me Panmer. However, Pool's luckfinally ran our on me night of 19 September 1944 when 'Inthe Mood rn' was ambushed by an '88' anti-tank gun. Thetank was hit twice, destroying me turret. His crew receivedonly minor wounds, bur Pool lost a leg.

Staff Sergeanc Pool left Europe wim me DistinguishedService Cross, Legion of Merit, a Silvet Star, and a PurpleHeart-as well as 17 bits of shrapnel in hisneck, and an artificial leg. In 1946 hetejoined the army w train anew generadon oftankers.

Pool is a Warrior and an Independenc team. He is ratedFearless Veteran.

Pool may join any Medium Tank Plawon or Medium TaQj{­Plawon (76mm) in a Tank Company (page 232) taking overany tank in the plawon, except the Plawon Command ,ank,for +25 poincs.

HARD CHARGERJust like when he was a boxer, Pool relies on speed, precisi nand careful footwork w stay alive. Despite always leading,and losing three tanks in the process, Pool's formula fsurprise and good shooting has kept him alive.

IfPools tank moved at least 6"/15cm towards any enemyteam or objective in its previous Movement Step, and ishit in the enemy Shooting Step, roll a die for each hit he isallocated.

• On a score of5+, Pools headlong charge puts the enemyofftheir aim and the hit is ignored.

• Otherwise the hit is resolved as normal.

EYEBROWS OFF A GNAT'Ground Hog' Oiler is an excellenc gunner. Combined wiPool's seeing the enemy first and 'Baby' Richard's f:plfootwork, he hits his targets just as wt;1l on the mo,;.stopped. 'i>

Pools tank may shoot using its Stabiliser without incurringthe normal +1 to hit penalty. .

Page 232: Flames of War - Overlord

In July 1944, the US First Army issued orders that every tank was to be camouflagedwith irregular black swatches or stripes. As the official guide on how this was to be donedid not appear until October, three months later, the style of camouflage varied fromunit to unit. Both 2nd and 3'd Armoured Divisions complied with this order prior toOperation Cobra.

During Operation Cobra many tanks and half-tracks still retained their yellow 'speednumbers' painted on the side of the turret or troop compartment side. These took the

," form of Company letter, platoon number, tank number, e.g. B-23, or F-31.

~!IJJIBI_

Page 233: Flames of War - Overlord

MEDIUM TANK PLATOON

The standard M4 Sherman cank is the best tank for thecoming breakout. Its speed and reliability will outmanoeuvreenemy strongpoints and lead the way ro vicrory.

The Germans may have heavily armed and armoured tanks,but there is strength in numbers and cunning tactics. Usesmoke screens put down by your battalion's mortars or thecompany's 75mm tank guns ro mask your troop's movement.Then, gang up on the target with as many tanks as possibleand pound the enemy's side armour with a volley of fire.

Sherman

Sherman

Command Sherman

• •

Sherman

Sherman

Page 234: Flames of War - Overlord

Command M4Al (76mm) Sherman

• •

Page 235: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 236: Flames of War - Overlord

Unlike the British, the Americans still operated tank companies equipped with Stuartlight tanks. Their speed allowed them to get to where rhey were needed rapidly and holddown the enemy until rhe heavier Shermans could arrive.

While the tankers themselves would have preferred a more prorecred mount, theirpresence was nonetheless appreciated by beleaguered infantry such as isolared paratroop­ers. The presence of lighr tanks could insrandy turn the ride of batde, helping ro breakup machine-gun nests and exploiting gaps opened up in rhe enemy line.

Page 237: Flames of War - Overlord

LIGHT TANK PLATOON

M5Al Stuart

6-M5A1 Stuart...

Command M5Al Stuart

• •

M5A1 Stuart

...M5A1 Stuart

•Others send the light tanks swe.eping· around the rfi .enemy effort in a flanking manoeuvre to draw the enemforces away as he scurries to protect now vulnerable artillery,transport and anti-aircraft ppsitjons.

Although the M5Al Stuart light tank still petfotms the tra­ditional cavalry role against infantry quite well, its functionhas evolved since the landings in North Africa two yearsago. While retaining its ability to scout on the flanks andmove rapidly to exploit breakthroughs, it has developed itsown support role based upon manoeuvrability and speed to

counteract its lack of firepower.

Some commanders have used the speed of the light tanks tocharge enemy tanks and anti-tank guns, acting as a distrac­tion while the medium tanks follow up firing on the move.Facing the difficult choice between engaging the light tanksthreatening to overrun your position and the more danger­ous mediums behind them, many German commandershave stumbled and done neither effectively.

Page 238: Flames of War - Overlord

The 41 se Armored Infantry Regiment and 17'h Armored Engineer Battalion of the2nd Armored Division and the infantry of the 30th Infantry Division were all issued newcamouflage uniforms prior to D-Day. These uniforms are more famous for their useby the US Marine Corps in the Pacific Theatre and were undergoing their first trials inEurope.

While the uniform generally worked well, it had one major drawback-other Americantroops had learned to assume that anyone wearing camouflage was a German soldier.Unfortunately, this led to a lot of 'friendly fire' casualties.

Most troops stopped wearing the camouflage uniform soon after the Falaise Pocket wasdestroyed.

Page 239: Flames of War - Overlord

An Armored Rifle Company from the 2nd 'HeLL OnWheels' or 4'h Armored Division is rated ConfidentVeteran.

An Armored Rifle Company from the 3rd 'Spearhead' orBh 'Super Sixth' Armored Division is rated ConfidentTrained.

Page 240: Flames of War - Overlord

~M3 half-track with

.50 cal AA MGRifle team Bazooka

team

• •CommandRifle team

tttt tttt tttt ttttRifle team Rifle team Rifle team Rifle team

~ ~~ ~ ~~M3 half-track Bazooka M3 half-track Bazookawith AA MG team with AA MG team

• •• • • •

~~~ ~!.~ ~!.~M2 60mm mortar M1919 LMG M1919 LMG

~~~ ~ ~~M3 half-track Bazooka M3 half-tra ck with Bazookawith AA MG team .50 cal AA MG team

ismounting from their M3 half-track, the armouredinfantry lay down a withering fire with their machine guns,mortar, semi-automatic Garand rifles, and bazookas.

ach armoured rifle platoon is an army unto itself. Itupports its infantry with heavy weapons such as the excel­ent 60mm mortar and the M 1919 light machine-gun. These

will guarantee that your troops will not only make it to their.objective, but also hold it against enemy counterattacks.

-As your infantry secure the ground, send in the tanks to dealith enemy tanks and dug-in machine-guns. The enemy

cannot repel such a well co-ordinated assault!

Page 241: Flames of War - Overlord

• •

~Jeep

M2 half·track with.50 cal AA MG

~Ml 57mm gun

~

~Ml 57mm gun

~M2 half·track with

.50 cal AA MG

~ftCommand Carbine team

• •

M2 half·track with.50 cal AA MG

~Ml 57mm gun

~Liberally armed with bazookas and 57mm guns, thearmoured anti-tank platoon provides added punch for thearmoured infantry.

Deploy the platoon in ambush and hit the enemy when theyare not expecting the full fury ofyour anti-tank guns. Knockout or bail our the enemy's tanks at close range and thenassault the remaining survivors with your bazooka teamsto mop up. Alternatively, mount them up and send themforward with your infantry to help keep enemy tanks awayso you can secure your objective.

Whether holding newly-acquired positions or covering thebacks of the advancing infantry, anti-tank guns and bazookasprotect against armoured counterattacks.

Armored Anti-tank Platoons may make CombatAttachments to Armored Rifle Platoons.

Page 242: Flames of War - Overlord

HQ SECTION

M2 half-trackwith .50cal AA MG

CommandRifle team

fttt ..-Rifle team

•Rifle team

•Jeep

Page 243: Flames of War - Overlord

Command MS Scott HMC

• •

M2 half-track with.50 cal AA MG

Q'A:t.tM1917 HMG....Q'A:tJ

M1917 HMG

Command M2 half-track withCarbine team .50 cal AA MG

• •

MACHINE-GUN SECTION

M2 half-track with.50 cal AA MG

Q'A:tJM1917 HMG....

Armored Machine-gun Platoons may make CombatAttachments to Armored Rifle Platoons or Armored Anti­tank Platoons.

Whether supporting dismo~nted rifle teams or holding adefensive position, M1917 heavy machine guns, mountedon the side of half-tracks or deployed in good cover, willdampen the spirits of all but the most fanatical Germans.Adding a bazooka or two won't hurt either.

The MS Scott HMC assault gun complements your mortars,either by performing direct fire from its 75mm gun to knockout machine-gun nests, or by joining the mortars in keepingthe enemy's head down while the riflemen close.

MS Scott HMC

•MS Scott HMC

Page 244: Flames of War - Overlord

The 2nd and yd Armored Divisions had an unusualorganisation for theit reconnaissance. While the lightarmored divisions had cavalry reconnaissance squadrons,the two heavy armored divisions still had their originalarmored reconnaissance batralions with two large patrolsin each platoon rather than the three small patrols of acavalry recon platoon. They also had an assault gun ineach armored recon platoon. These were often groupedinto a single assault gun platoon, but could be returnedto their platoons if the need arose.

10u may disband the Assault Gun Platoon and returntheir M8 Scott HMC assault guns to the Armored ReconPlatoon. Each Armored Recon Platoon may only have oneM8 Scott HMC assault gun which counts as part of theplatoon in every way.

Page 245: Flames of War - Overlord

2iC CommandM8 armoured car

LIEUTENANT

COMPANY HQ

LIEUTENANT

Mortar Jeep Recon Jeep

Mortar Jeep Recon Jeep

Company CommandM8 armoured car

ARMORED RECON COMPANY HQ

....Command M8 armoured car M8 armoured car

.- A

....Command M8 armoured car M8 armoured car

.- A

Armored Recon Patrols operate as separate platoons,with their own Command team.

Teams ftom the Armored Recon Company HQ are Recceteams.

DISMOUNT

Designate anyone of the teams as the Platoon Commandteam. The platoon remains a Reconnaissance Platoon.

As the scouting elements of US armoured divisions, to.armoured recon platoons were able hold their own agai1'}stlighr enemy forces. The M8 armoured ,c¥s sport a 371ll.'main gun and a pair of machine gun . This firepower allo'you to scOut ahead with your 'reto~ 'peeps' il.fid, if they e~-counter superior enemy forces, c~ver the peep's withdrawal

Armored Recon Patrols are Reconnaissance Platoons..__~__-----_,-_,..,.J with the armoured cars and mortars. Or better yet, pin downenemy i.t)faqtiy 'le more powerful combata ts arrive to

"ne en t." .

Before deployment you may choose to dismount all ofyourArmored Recon Platoons. Ifyou do this, all ofthe Armored

Recon Patrols ftom the same platoon operate as a singleplatoon.

Ifyou dismount, all ofthe platoons vehicles are permanentlyremoved ftom the game. Replace all of the vehicles in eachPatrol with any three ofthe following teams for each Patrol:

• Carbine teams

• up to one M1919 LMC team per Armored Recon Patrol

• up to two .50 cal MC teams per Armored Recon Patrol

• up to one Bazooka team per Armored Recon Patrol

• up to one M2 60mm mortar team per Armored ReconPatrol

An Armored Recon Company ftom the 3,d 'Spearhead'Armored Division is rated Confident Trained.

An Armored Recon Company ftom the 2nd 'HellOn Wheels' Armored Division is rated ConfidentVeteran.

The M8 armoured car is rhe workhorse of rhe reconcompanies. They scout ahead of the spearhead and reportwhat they find to HQ with their powetful FM radios.

Page 246: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 247: Flames of War - Overlord

DISMOUNT

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

••••

2iC CommandMS armored car

Mortar Jeep

Mortar Jeep

Mortar Jeep

LIEUTENANT

-

LIEUTENANT

COMPANY HQ

. .

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CAVALRY RECON PLATOON

Company CommandMS armored car

Command MS armored car

Command MS armored car

Command MS armored car

Cavalry Recon Patrols are Reconnaissance Platoons.

Cavalry patrols operated over large areas of ground, con­stantly reponing on German positions, [esring and securinbridges, and making contact with local resistance group •The informarion collecred by these patrols and transmitteusing the cavalry's powerful radios helped guide the tanks,Atmored Doughs, and infantry into [he best posirions foattack.

11

11

••••

11

11

11

: I ••

3 Cavalry Recon Patrols

2 Cavalry Recon Patrols

1 Cavalry Recon Patrol

2 MS Greyhound

HEADQUARTERS

Company HQwith:

PLATOOll

• M1919 LMG teams

• up to one .50 cal MG team per Cavalry Recon Patrol

• up to one Bazooka team per Cavalry Recon Patrol

• up to one M2 60mm mortar team per Cavalry ReconPatrol

Cavalry Recon Patrols operate as separate platoons, eachwith their own Command team.

Teams from the Cavalry Recon Troop HQ are Recce teams.

Designate anyone ofthe teams as the Platoon Commandteam. The platoon remains a Reconnaissance Platoon.

OPTION

• Equip any or all Jeeps with a HullMG bv ..S pointsper jeep.

Before deployment you may choose to dismount all ofyourCavalry Recon Platoons. Ifyou do this, all of the CavalryRecon Patrols from the same platoon operate as a single

platoon.

Ifyou dismount, all ofthe platoons vehicles are permanentlyremoved from the game. Replace all of the vehicles in each

Patrol with any two ofthe following teams for each Patrol:

• Carbine teams

Page 248: Flames of War - Overlord

CAVALRY ASSAULT GUN BATIERY

MS Scatt HMC

..MS Scan HMC..

LIEUTENANT

Command MS Scatt HMC MS Scatt HMC

• •

M8 Scan HMC

..MS Scatt HMC..

Cs r igh-explosive ammunition makes it ideal for knocking.enemy"guns and nests. Finally, its primary weapon is

~[I!(lrtrt:[~te~a in; turret. This means that it can fire bombard­stantly :;lud anywhere in a 360 degree firing arc­

at cavalrymen deep behind enemy lines wereed ro.

I:!J'ke_ the squadron's cavalry platoons, E Troop's MS ScattM. C assault guns usually fight over a large area, oftensending pairs of guns to support this attack or another.However, there are times when it is beneficial to group all ofthe troop's guns together to form a small artillery battery to

support a large operation.

e MS Scott has a number of advantages that are some­times overlooked. Its largest advantage is its speed. Built on

""~.:lf1.M5AlStuart chassis, the Scatt can get places quickly. It isalso fully-tracked so it can get places towed artillery cannot.-,

Page 249: Flames of War - Overlord

MOTIVATION AND SKILLSupport platoons from the 2nd 'HelL On Wheels' or4th Armored Division are rated Confident Veteran.

Support platoons from the 3,d 'Spearhead' or eh 'SuperSixth' Armored Division are rated Confident Trained.

The self-propelled battalions, such as the 78rh Armored FieldArtillery Battery of the 2nd Armored Division, helped breakup several of the German counterattacks during OperationCobra.

Mobile artillery readily supported advancing armourcolumns while they slashed through enemy lines. Theirmobility not only let them keep up with the Allied advances,it also allowed them to quickly relocate to support which­ever bteakthrough the division commander saw as the mostimportant.

In some cases the M7 Priest HMC self-propelled gunsutilised their powerful l05mm howitzers in direct fire.These were useful for blasting enemy strongpoints in theNormandy hedgerows as well as in cities and villages. Thisadded firepowet was helpful, but requited protection fromenemy anti-tank guns and infantry.

CommandCarbine team

M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

Staff team

HQ SECTION

ObserverM4 Sherman OP

tank

~M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

Page 250: Flames of War - Overlord

LIEUTENANT

J\~~Command Pioneer

Rifle team

• ••

PioneerRifle team

PioneerRifle team

.. '.• ••

PioneerRifle team

• •

••••

PioneerRifle team

rJ:'At~t rJ:'At~tPioneer Pioneer

M1917 HMG M1917 HMG

You may replace all Pioneer HMG teams with Pioneer Rifle

teams at the start ofthe game before deployment.

The armoured engineers kept [he way open for the tanks,specially in [he thick hedgerow country of northernormandy. Once through the bocage maze, the engineers

. epr roads in order, rebuilt demolished bridges, and generally!:Lld whatever they could to make sure that [he breakthrough

r~es Hushed on.

Page 251: Flames of War - Overlord

There were five American armoured divisions in northernFrance between June and August 1944. The 7'h ArmoredDivision arrived in mid-August and saw a little action atthe end of the month, but we have ignored the division forthe time being as they became particularly active once theSeptember campaigns kicked off.

Apart from the two 'heavy' armoured divisions (the 2nd and3'd), the remaining three (4th , 5th, and 6th

) were. organisedidentically as 'light' divisions. They played an importantrole in the breakout operations during Opeqtion Cobraand kept on the heels of the retreating Ger ans during::;thAugust pursuit.

The yh 'Victory' Armored Division anived in France onD+49 and went into combat on 2 ~ugust L94.4 duringOperation Cobra. The division took part in. the destructionof the German 9. Panzerdivision (9' Armoured Division).

Following Cobra, the division broke out into the Frenchcountryside and raced to the Seine River in August. In lateAugust the division switched from Third Army to the Firstand helped liberate Luxembourg in September before takingparr in the bitter and bloody fighting in the Hi.irtgen Forestduring the autumn of 1944.

Following a period of rebuilding, the division went back intoaction in February 1945 and fought in the Roer and Rhine'~"""~

campaigns through March. The division reached the ElbeRiver and had nearly reached Berlin when the war ended inMay 1945.

To field a force from the 5th Armored Division, simplybuild your force using the 6th Armored Division symbol(marked A), ratings, and special rules.The 5th Armored has -----------­

been waiting for an op­portunity to finaLly getinto the fight. It is ratedConfident Trained.

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FROM THE BEACHES OF NORMANDY TO GERMANYcut off the Brittany Peninsula. The 'Big Red One' and CCAcovered Patton's left Bank as his army made the sweepingmanoeuvre (0 head east.

Mo ain finally fell to the US 30th Infantry Division and'Big Red One' turned back north (Oward Argentan.

eanwhile, the British were attempting to close the FalaisePocket from the north, and on 19 August the two armiesfinally met, capturing more than 70,000 Germans.

On 31 July the 1" Infantry Division ran into the enemyguarding the Sienne River. Under the cover of darkness, they

r;:====:;!~te:!m~p.~ted-tocross the river. Suddenly, a Bight ofGerman Ju88bombers hammered the crossing sites with and-personnelbombs. Nearly every unit in the division was hit, includingthe divisional headquarters. However, the Americans pressedon. The 'Bi, Red One' and a task force from me yd ArmoredDivision ea ttired the town of Brecey on 1 August.

With B e<eey secure, they turned (Oward Mortain,encounte iog stiff resistance as they slowly closed in. TheGermans ~)llght hard, knowing that to fail there woulddoom th it army to' be captured in the Falaise Pocket.Harrassed Hy German artillery by day and bombers by night,the 1" Infahtry Division was shifted away from Mortaintowar , "ayenne.

KEY

o MILES 3- -- -o KILOMETRES 4

Elements of2. SS-Panzerdivision

and17 SS-Panzerdivision

IS! Infantry Division ~

2rd Armored Division ~

3 rd Armored Division ~

4 rd Armored Division ~

6 td Armored Division

As the premier US infantry division, the 'Big Red One'ugged off the heavy casualties of D-Day, leading the

way out of Normandy and across the French and Belgianountryside to the German city ofAachen. In less than three

months after landing in Normandy, they were knocking opicier's front door.

The division was pulled from the line on 14 Jul 0 preparefor the Cobra breakout. The 1" Infantry Divisia was thenassigned to VII Corps. They stood by as the US 9th Infantry, ivision smashed open a hole in the German ines. Then

:.f'Z1.M.-the 'Big Red One' exploited through and he ded for its

oDjectives.

-y 27 July, the 1" had taken the (Own of M ignyandwas heading west (Oward Coucances. Du~in~ e battleor Coutances, the division was paired with! Combat

Command A (CCA) from the 3rd Armored DiviSlli> . At thisFrench town, the division suffered more casualties fig tinghouse to house than they had since Omaha Beach.

On 28 July, the division finally met up with the US4 th Armored Division coming from the north. Once the twoforces met up they joined the rest of Patton's Third Army to

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The fighting continued as the division moved towards dieRoer River and the West Wall. They faced portions of th eGerman divisions including the yd FaLLschirmjiiger Divisionand were stopped a few miles short of the river. Althougn

.,,~.......they had failed (0 breech the West Wall, they had movenearly twenty miles into Germany.

ARDENNESOn 9 December the 1st Infantry Division was back nearAachen hoping to get a rest. Howevet, on 16 December,they were sent to face the northern spearhead of the GerIl,lanArdennes Offensive. They were now in a race with theGerman 12'h SS-Panzer Division to seal the gap on thenorthern Bank. They clashed with the 25th PanzergrenadierRegiment near the (Own of Butgenbach on 18 Decemh .The initial German attack isolated two US companies Buta counterattack by the US 18,h Infantry Regiment solidifiedthe lines. The Germans lost 44 panzers and were forced totry elsewhere for their breakthrough. The Germans werecontent to let the 1SI Infantry Division hold the northernedge of the battlefield.

By the end of the war, the 1st Infantry Division had suffi'! "21,023 casualties with 43,743 men having served in \ranks. Their soldiers earned a total of 20,752 medals anaawards, including 16 Medals of Honor. They also had tak,enover 100,000 prisoners. Following the war, the Big Red Oneremained in Germany until .1955. when the division finally.~~~feturned to Fott RileYI Kansas. . . .

~ro gli f\uprst and eptember the.1 SI Infantry Division heldits position to the left ofThird Army as it raced across Franceand into Belgium. They reached Mons on 2 September aftercapturing thousands ofretreating Germans. On 11 Septemberthe division found itself to the right of the 30,h InfantryDivision along the Meuse River. Next stop: Germany.

HORTGEN FOREST

The plan to enter Germany called for a breakthrough of theWest Wall, the tough German border fortifications, and anencirclement of the city of Aachen. By 15 September the1st had cut the roads leading southeast from Aachen andwere moving northeast (0 assist the 3,d Armored Division intaking 5tolberg and Munsterbusch, two (Owns directly eastofAachen (0 sever it from the rest of Germany.

It was at Munsterbusch where the 1st Infantry Division raninto two battalions from the German 12,h Infantry Divisionrecently re-fitted and rested from the Eastern Front. TheAmericans drew the ring around Aachen tighter and tighter asthe Getmans failed (0 break through to the beleaguered city.After fierce house-to-house fighting, Aachen finally fell tothe Allies on 21 October 1944.

After Aachen the Big Red One moved south (0 the northernedge of the Hi.irtgen Forest. Seven American divisions andone armoured combat team tried to break through theHi.irtgen Forest, but all came out mauled. Only the 1st

Infantry Division, skirting the northern edge, and the 78'hInfantry Division ever made it all the way through the forest.Reinforced with a battery, of 155mm self-propelled guns, t!ie

AACHEN

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THE 4TH INFANTRY MOVES INLANDThe 'Ivy' (IV being four in Roman numerals) Division wasactivated in 1940 as the only mechanised division in the S

my. h eventually [Ook on the form of a regular infantrydivision, but still retained an aggressive and mobile doctrine.

The Ivy Division, under the command of Major Generalaymond Bar[On, was the first US division [0 land in France attah Beach on D-Day, 6 June 1944. It then moved south and

relieved the 82nd Airborne Division at Sainte-Mere-Eglise.

The division remained in constant battle until 18 July whenit was removed from the frondine for some well-earned rest.It had suffered 60% casualties, including its famous assis,t­

.. ~,,",, ...~ ...a,nt commander, Brigadier General Roosevelt, more thanany other division in VU Corps. The fight had worn out the. ivision-it was time for a rest.

o sooner had the troops of the 4'h settled in [0 train their000 replacements, than they were ordered to get back into

e fight on 19 July, More infantry was needed to help witht e breakout so the 4'" was sent [0 help the 9'" and 30'" In­fantry Divisions wedge open the German lines so that the2nd and 3rd and Armored Divisions could exploit through andencircle the enemy.

\The battered Ivy Division was given a small 2000-yard wideportion of the line berween the 9'h and 30'" Infantry Divisions.Their position in the centre was small, so the division onlyneeded rwo of its regiments for the attack. The third, the 22nd

nfantry Regiment, was assigned [0 the 2nd Armored Division[0 give the tankers some extra infantry support. The remain­i g regiments, the 8'h and 12'h, would attack in column withthe 8th leading the way.

To ensure the mission's success, the 8'" Infantry Regimentwas heavily reinforced. ormally regiments had a singletank company and pethaps some tank destroyers in support.However, the 8'" had nearly the entire 70'h Tank Battalion(three companies, less D Company), a company ofMlO tankdestroyers, a company of 4.2" chemical mortars, and rwocompanies of combat engineers, [0 suPPOrt the attack.

The regiment also had the bulk of the division's artillery aswell including rwo 105mm and a 155mm howitzer battalions.The 70'h Tank Battalion's six M4 105mm Shermans were alsotied into the firing program, taldng up the vacant positionof the division's third 105mm battalion which was support­ing th~ 22nd Infantry Regiment elsewhere. "The division alsoFeceived extra heavy artillery from VII Corps.

All of this firepower was then concentrated [0 support the8'" Infantry's 1 Battalion, giving that unit's three rifle com­panies an extraordinary amount of firepower. Finally, just forgood measure, the US Army Air Force was to carpet bombthe area in front of the 8'" Infantry [0 soften up the Germandefenders. The plan was set [0 begin on 24 July 1944.

ST. LO-PERIERS ROADThe 4'h Infantry Division's initial objective was the St. Lo­Periers road, then march forward to secure the corridor,Despite the bombers of the USAAF dropping their bombsshort onto the 4th Infantry Divisions starting positions,the Ivy men stormed forward at 1100 hrs, making goodprogress. They reached the road unopposed, but the quiet wasdeceiving as the Germans rallied from the US preliminarybombardment.

, .

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To THE BITTER END

Mter Operation Cobra, the next Allied objective was Pari.Many Allied commanders advocated bypassing the Frenchcapital, fearing the Germans would destroy the hisroric cityin bloody street fighting rather than sLltrender it. However,General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French, insisteand General Phillpe Leclerc's 2nd French Armoured Divisionwas given the honour of liberating Paris.

Leclerc's attacks met with resistance on the approaches ro'Wcity, so the Allies sent the battleworn 4th Infantry Divisi nforward ro help. Together the two divisions pushed into PaIl's­with the help of the local FFI (French Forces of the Interioli :-

To PARIS AND BEYOND

Barron wisely called off the attack and ordered the division tdig in for the night along the high ground outside the city7 -

The 4 th ceased offensive operations at 2300 hoLlts. The mentthe 8th had been fighting non-srop for twelve hoLlts, but eyhad achieved their goals. The 2nd and 3rd Armored Divisionswere able to exploit through the infantry's gains and success'"fully complete Operation Cobra.

The liberation of Paris marked a significant turning po~t' itithe fortunes of war in Europe, but the 4th Infantry Divis'onstill had a long way to go. After Paris, the division headed~asro help crack the German Siegfri'ed Lin~ in the Hiirtgen Forestand go on ro play an important part in halting the Ardennesoffensive on the southern shoulder. The 4th celebrated the endof the war' Ba ari~ in 1945,

LA CHAPELLE-EN-JUGER

The Ivy troops hit the main line of resistance just beyond theroad. Remnants of the German 5th Parachute Division andthe Panzer Lehr's 901 St Panzergrenadier Regiment had dugin their tanks and built formidable defensive line along thehedgerows and sunken roads. The riflemen assaulted, but thethick and broken bocage, massive ctaters, and unexploded or­dinance left behind by the US bombers, stalled the infantry'stank suPPOtt. The Ivy men were on their own.

Desparate hand-ro-hand battles were fought one hedgerow ara time. Without US tank Ot tank destroyer support, Germanarmor ruled the battlefield where ever they were present. Lonebazooka men fought deadly duals with the German tanks,silencing them only after difficult games of cat and mouse.

Eventually the tanks of the 70th Tank Battalion arrived ro helpspeed up the battle and propel the infantry assault into thenext hedgerow. Although fighting as a battalion, many riRecompanies found themselves fighting alone,· separated fromeach other and left to overcome steep odds to secLlte objec­tives. Still, the Ivy men pressed on and won their battles.

As the evening approached, the 8th Infantry Regiment wasgiven emetgency orders ro attack La Chapelle-en-Juger. Thiswas as critical objective fOt the bteakout that was otiginallyassigned to the 9th Infantry Division. However, it was clearby the evening that the 9th wasn't in position to take it bynightfall, while the 4th had a shot.

At 1930 hoLlts the 8th Infantry Regiment wheeled toward itsnew objective, however as night rilpidly approached, General

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Roads

121" Infantry Regiment,8'h Infantry Division

50'h Armored InfanrryRegiment. 6'h ArmoredDivision

KEY

9'h InfanrryRegiment

23"' InfantryRegiment

38'h InfantryRegimenr

Towns

The bloody hedgerow battles of Normandy led the US Armyto the city of Saint-Loo This city was important because it waspositioned on a critical road and railroad hub. If it could becaptured, the Americans could break out into the open groundbeyond. The infantry divisions led the attack.

The Indianheads were tasked with capturing Hill 192, thehighest elevation in the Saint-La area. The Germans wereusing it to observe American targets for their artillery. Severalattempts to take the hill were pushed back until finally, on 11July, the 38'h Infantry Regiment assaulted the hill backed bytwo Sherman medium tank companies, one Stuart light tankcompany, some engineers, and the division's artillery. Whenthe Indianheads charged, the German mortars hit, taking a tolland stalling the attack. .

The Indianheads also received a limited supply of ex­perimental fully automatic Ml carbines. The feedback wasmixed as some reports indicated they were inaccurate anddidn't have enough firepower. Clever field modificationsincluded extending the magazine from 15 rounds to 30 andinstalling a compensator to help curb the gun's tendency topull up when firing, improving its accuracy.

THE 2ND INFANTRY DNISION IN FRANCESAINT-Lo

The 2nd Infantry Division received a number ofThompsonsubmachine-guns as an experiment to test their worthin city fighting. The submachine-guns were given out tocompanies which were free to use them as they saw fit.Some companies equipped all of their rifle platoons withThompsons, while others were a bit more conservative andissued them in conjunction with the more powerful rifles.

1943 the division, under the command of Major Generalalter Robertson, moved to England and it landed on Omaha

each on 7 June (0+1) 1944. The Indianheads set to worksecuring the beach and mopping up German resistance.

ne2nd Infantry Division was first formed in 1917 duringWorldWar One. During that war, the division earned its nickname,'Iriilianhead', based on its divisional symbol. Between the wars

It division remained active. It was used as a test bed for newinnovations in warfare, leading the other divisions in anti-tanka~cics and air mobile concepts. It became the first divisiono be reorganised with the modern triangular formation with

ee separate regiments, giving them greater flexibility on thebattlefield. After the 1941 Louisiana Manoeuvres, the division

moved to Wisconsin where it trained for four months inwinter warfare.

Page 259: Flames of War - Overlord

locati<m, nicknameu 'Kia t Corner, ermparatroopers pilmed down the Americans from concealeddugouts and tunnels. Frustrated, the Indianheads called upSherman tanks fitted with bulldozer blades and simply buriedthe Germans-soldiers, weapons, and all-and then movedon. Very few prisoners were raken at Kraut Corner.

BRITTANYAfter Saint-Lt)' the 2nd and 29<h Infantry Divisions were trans­ferred to Brittany as part of the newly formed VIII Corps.During the breakout, the 4th and 6th Armored Divisions crashedinto Brittany and raced for the region's seaports, however theywere not equipped to assault heavily defended cities. VIII Corpsmoved in with its infantry divisions: the 2nd, S<h, 29th

, and theS3'd. The Indianheads were assigned the eastern approach toBrest and the Plougastel-Daoulas Peninsula.

TASK FORCE B AND THE PLOUGASTELThe Plougasrel-Daoulas Peninsula sticks out into the ocean justsouth of Brest and contains high ground overlooking the city,which made it a prized objective for AmeriCan artillery. The2nd Infantry Division assembled Task Force B, built aroundthe 38th Infantry Regiment with support from a company ofSherman tanks, a company of tank destroyers, three battalionsof artillery, and Task Force A.

On 22 August Task Force B attacked and captured its firstobjective, the heavily fortified Hill 154 using flame-throwersand hand grenades. The fight was swift but deadly. With thepeninsula secured, the 3S<h Infantry returned to the mainlandfor the attack on Brest. Task Force X (later known as Ivory X)took their place, based on the 174<h Field Artillery Group. Ithad a battalion each of 155mm howitzers, M7 Priest HMC,and 155mm guns. The group was further reinforced by 57.50 cal machine-guns, eight 40mm anti-aircraft guns, and12 rank destroyers. From their positions Ivory X was able tobombard the Germans in Brest from across the bay.

A Rifle Company from the 2nd Infantry Division uses all ofthe normal US special rules found on pages 236 to 240 ofthe rulebook (except for Truscott Trot) as well as the follow­ing special rules.

WINTER TRAININGThe Indianheads received winter tramlllg in Sparta,Wisconsin. They trained intensely for four-months duringthe freezing winter conditions and blizzards of the Americanupper-Midwest.

Platoons from the 2 nd Infantry Division (marked C'I ) donot use the Truscott Trot special rule.

Instead, Infantry and Man-packed Gun teamsfrom the 2nd

Infantry Division may move At the Double through SlowGoing (but not through Obstacle fortifications).

On 1 September the 23'd Infantry\Regiment attacked H' 10,which was the key to defeating the German defences outsi ethe city. Companies A and C of the 5<h Rangers and Ivowere attached to help. After a hard fight, the Americans po edaround and over the top, capturing the important objective.

The 2nd then advanced to the city itsel£ The journey was painfully slow, as the Germans had seeded the approaches withthousands of mines and booby traps, including rigged n walshells and torpedoes. Amongst these were concrete machine­gun emplacements, but the ever-resourceful Indianheads calledupon M12 155mm self-propelled guns to blast them apart atclose range.

When the Indianheads reached the city they fought str et­by-street eliminating German strongpoints one-by-one. THeadvance was slow, but progress was being made, until they Hitthe ancient city wall on 16 September. Brest's city will wbuilt in medieval days. It was 35 feet (1Im) tall and 60 feet(ISm) wide in some places, making. it impervious to artilleryfire. The Germans had also cleared everyfhing in front of thewall out to 300 yards, giving them excellent fields of fire. The!yall frustrated the India,nheads until a patrol found a neglectepart that was only eighr feet (2.4m) tall and only a foot (30qp,)thick. The Indianheads blasted through and breached thGerman defensive line.

Soon the Indianheads met up with their comrades fro e29<h Infantry Division and the two pressed home the attack.Finally the Germans ran up the whi~e flag: General Robertsaccepted the surrender ofFortress Brest'on IS September 194only 39 days after Hitler had demanded the city resisr for theemonths.

The 2nd Infantry Division left Brittany as an extremely we1torganised and highly professional unit. During the battle .theIndianheads had suffered 2314 casualries, but capture ..13,000 prisoners, nearly half of the total taken at Brest.

IVORY XAnti-aircraft and tank destroyer platoons linked up with ~eIvory X's staff ream to coordinate fire on enemy targets. Overthe course of the battle Ivory X peppered the city with 0 er ahalf million .50 calibre bullets!

A Rifle Company from the 2"d Infantry Division maypurchase an Ivory X Staffteam for +10 points. An Ivory XStaffteam is an Independent Team.

Any Towed Tank Destroyer Platoon that deployed its TankDestroyer Section at the start of the game, and any Anti­aircraft Artillery Platoon, can use the Ivory X Staffteam to '.fire Artillery Bombardments. In order to do this they musthave their Command team within 6''115cm ofthe Ivory XStaffteam. They cannotfire Artillery Bombardments underany other circumstances.

Ifany team in a Towed Tank Destroyer Platoon or Anti­aircraft Artillery Platoon has moved at any time in thegame, that platoon permanently loses the ability to fireArtillery Bombardments.

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THE 29TH INFANTRY DIVISION IN BRITTANY, 1944On 15 August, the 29th Infantry Division was pulled off theline after 63 days in action. For them the battle ofNormandywas over, but soon the fight to liberate Brittany from theGermans would begin.

The collapse of the German army in Normandy had forcedany of the defenders west into Brittany where Germanoops held out in critical towns.

However, by mid-August, most of these had been capturedand the 29th Infantry Division, part ofthe US VIII Corps, wastasked with capturing the major port city of Brest. In their

ay were over 20,000 determined German paratroopers andgrenadiers, well protected in bunkers and backed by severalmassive naval guns-the Battle for Brittany had begun.

e rapid advance ofVIII Corps reached Brest in late Augustand the 29th Infantry Division took up the far right flank,

ext to the 8 th and 2nd Infantry Divisions. The 2nd and 5th

Ranger Battalions were attached to the division and formedTask Force Sugar to deal with the German strorrgpoints to

e rear, freeing up the rest of the division to focus on thecity itself.

As the 29th Infantry Division closed in on the city they movedto capture the high ground known as Hill 103, which had ac' mmanding view of the city.

The hill was defended by German paratroopers from the2nd FaLlschirmjager Regiment supported with several anti­aircraft guns. They were dug in deep with a myriad of wireentanglements and machine-gun bunkers.

The 175th Infantry Regiment led the way, blowing up thewire with pole charges and storming up the eastern edge ofthe hill, pushing the Germans back. Then the FaLLschirmjager(German paratroopers) counterattacked and regained someground but failed to push the Americans off the hill. For thenext few days troops from both sides fought from foxhole tofoxhole.

The stalemate was finally broken when the 3rd Battalion ofthe 115 th Infantry Regiment arrived equipped with flame­throwers, extra pole charges and special demolition training.They demolished the enemy positions, and forced theGermans to withdraw.

FORTS KERANROUX AND MONTBAREYAfter Hill 103, the 29rh Infantry Division destroyedstfongpoint after strongpoint until they hit two mutually­supporting forts called Keranroux and Montbarey. Thesewere placed directly in the path of the 29 th Infantry Division'spush to Brest and had to be dealt with in order to continue.

The first target was Fort Keranroux. The division's86th Chemical Mortar Battalion put down a heavy smoke

Page 261: Flames of War - Overlord

With the forts captured, the 29tk was free to tighten its, gr'on the city. The 116'h and 175 th closed in on the city, while cl5.e115 th and 5'h Rangers forced their way through strongpointo reach their objective, the submarine pens.

At 1900 hrs on 16 September, the 17yh scaled the old ciD'~~~~

walls and became the first American troops to enter the ciThe troops switched to street fighting as they went house to

house clearing the defenders out.

The 115'\ 116th, and the 2nd Rangers cleared the far rightflank with the assistance of tank destroyers. The 115 th

broke through to the submarine pens and encountered amajor defensive network of pillboxes connected by tunnelswhich were in turn connected to the heavily fortified pensthemselves.

On 3 September the battalion returned to the division andwent straight to work cracking the stalemate at Hill 103.The battalion was called upon many times to clear difficultpositions, including the formidable Fort Montbarey.

Following the battalion's success, the 29th Division furthertrained itself in dealing with fortifications, earning areputation as the division to call upon to crack the enemy'sdefences.

The l1yh brought up M12 self-propelled 155mm guns toblast the bunkers at point blank range, but even they werenot tough enough to crack the bunker line. The Rangersfinally developed a method that worked by pouring thickenedgasoline down ventilation shafts and detonating it. The effectwas demoralising on the Germans who soon gave up and rhsubmarine pens were captured.

The city's defences began to crumble on 18 Septembe a.I1

soon Germans were surrendering enmasse. The 29 th Divisiowas pulled off the line and for the first time since D-Day; Itwas allowed a well-earned rest.

The 29th Infantry Division and its ~ttached Task Force S~gar

had captured 27 major strongp.oints and taken over 13,00,.::O~".....,.."."prisoners of war, while suffering 2646 casualties.

During the battles of Normandy and Brest the divis~on ~'<, ;'iearned an excellent reputarion for being able to take heaViftfortified lines. Their special assault training was critical inBrittany, and was soon called upon once again to attack heGerman's mighty Siegfried Line.

Finally, engineers packed 2000 pounds (910kg) of T Tinto a tunnel beneath the fortress and blew out the entirenorthern face of the fort. Realising that they could not resist,the German paratroopers finally ran up a white flag andsurrendered the charred and broken fort.

bombardn;renr and the 175 th Infantry Regiment diatged thfort, taking it in 15 minutes. The rest of the division moppedup the immediate area and then set its sights on Montbarey.

Montbarey was surrounded by a series of bunkers and athick belt of barbed wire. Grenadiers and non-combatant'volunteers' manned the outer defences while veteranFallschirmjager troops manned the fort itself.

When the 115'h Infantry Regiment attacked, the 3rd Battalionled the way armed with their special training and extrapioneer equipment. They quickly overcame four of the majorpillboxes, opening the way for an assault on the fort itself.However, the battalion was halted by intense fire from theGerman defenders.

The 116'h Infantry Regiment relieved the 115'h InfantryRegiment and brought with them a squadron of Britishflame-throwing Crocodile tanks from the 141 se Royal TankRegiment, Royal Armoured Corps. The British sent thesquadron to demonstrate the usefulness of such tanks toreduce enemy fortifications. They immediately set to workflaming the German positions in the forrand impressingAmerican brass.

After the ordeal at Omaha Beach, the 29th Infantry Divisiondecided to take what it had learned and specialise one of itsbattalions to breach difficult enemy fortifications.

Ar the end of August, 3'd Battalion, 115'h Regiment waspulled out of the line to receive specialist training and alarge quantity of flame-throwers, Bangalore Torpedoes(a tubular demolition charge for cutting wire) and otherexplosives.

The Germans had no anti-tank weapons and were helplessagainst the onslaught. The only thing that saved them wasthe discovery of a pile of old gas masks in the basement of thefort, which helped them survive the smoke and fumes.

Still, the flame attack allowed the 116th to get up to thefort and knock the barricaded door with a 105mm cannon.The British Crocodiles and some tank destroyers plasteredthe building with flame and high-explosive shells. Still theGermans resisted all attempts to storm the fort.

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Rifle team Rifle team

Rifle team.. ,

~ilBazooka

team

~1}1 J\11~Rifle team Rifle team

~-l1~

RIFLE SQUAD

RIFLE PLATOON

CommandRifle team

Rifle team

Rifle team.. ,

~1tl J\11~Rifle team Rifle team

~-l1~

For the men of the 4th, 2nd, or 29'h Infantry, they are

still learning the ropes as they fight hard in Normandyand Brittany. A Rifle Company from the 4th, 2nd

, or 29'hInfantry Division is rated as Confident Trained.

A Rifle Platoon from the 2nd InfantryDivision (marked C'I) or 29'h Infantry Division(marked '- ) may replace up to one SMG or Pioneer Rifleteam per Rifle Platoon with a Flame-thrower team at thestart ofthe game before deployment.

This is not the Big Red Ones first rodeo. They've been inaction since North Africa and now they're here to finishthe job. A Rifle Company from the 1" Infantry Divisionis rated as Confident Veteran.

Drawing on their vast experience, the soldiers of the Big RedOne know how to fight. Perhaps their greatest advantage lies inthe fact that they comb the replacement depots for their ownveterans returning to duty, preserving their esprit de corps.

The fresh troops of the 2nd and 29th Infantry Divisions arelearning on the job, as they deliberately and methodicallyreduce German strongpoints in Brittany. They have access to

special equipment and training, such as Rame-thowers andsubmachine-guns, for bunker and street fighting missions.

Page 264: Flames of War - Overlord

•• ••

i;1'A~tM1917 HMG

i;1'A~tM1917 HMG

HQ SECTION

• ••

CommandCarbine team

• •

CommandCarbine team

I~Jl~ ~A~M2 60mm mortar M1919 LMG

AA~~ AA~~ ~A~M260mm M260mm M1919 LMG

mortar mortar.' .' •

i;1'A~tM1917 HMG

i;1'A~tM1917 HMG

may make Combat Attachments to

Machine-gun Platoons may make Combat Attachments toRifle or Weapons Platoons from a Rifle Company.

The 60mm mortars of the weapons platoon are excellenttools to knock our improvised bunkers and dug in rroops

ith their high-explosive rounds. Alternatively, you cang oup them togerher and fire bombardments to shatterenemy troops caught in the open.

e plaroon's pair oflight machine guns are an essential assetto give your rifle platoons additional firepower and support.You can 'acquire' some additional machine-guns to supple­ment your firepower, as many other companies have done.

achine-guns are critical to any defensive line, capable ofeeping even the most determined enemy at bay. They are

also excellent support weapons in the attack to help keep theenemy pinned down as your troops assault.

lWhen defending put your machine-guns just behind therward line of your own troops where they can sweep

tlie ground in front of your position and stop the enemyfantry. In the attack use the guns on a flank, advancing

'n 0 cover within range of enemy infantry, and opening upo keep the enemy's heads down while your own infantry'saults to clear the objective.

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M181mmMortar

~~~M181mmMortar

.. ~.

• •

~~~Ml 81mm Mortar

LIEUTENANT

.t '.' J. .t '.' i.

{itl {itlPioneer Rifle team Pioneer Rifle team

1\11~ 1\11~Pioneer Rifle team Pioneer Rifle team

.t J.' •

CommandCarbine team

• •

Ml 81mm Mortar

.. .' .

Command PioneerRifle team

M181mmMortar

~~~M181mmMortar

j,11~Pioneer Rifle team

Pioneer Rifle team

American mortars provide and quick accurate fire for yourinfanrry teams. While they' don't have their own observer,each platoon leader and the company c.ommander hasbeen trained to call for fire and has some of the finestcommunications gear available to do it with. This gives yougreater flexibility when calling for fire than any other nation'sarmy.

Place them between your heavy guns and your infanrry andgive them a good view of the battlefield. From there, theywill be able to lob rounds on top of the enemy, keeping thempinned down and unable to resist your infantry assault.

The Ammunition & Pioneer Platoon blasts away the enemy'sfortifications with a wide assortment of assault gear. Theywill blast, burn, or smash open a hole in the enemy lines,allowing your rifle platoons to flood in and capture the ob­jective. Alternatively, they are excellent tank-hunters, withtwo bazookas and enough explosives to open enemy tankslike tin cans!

Page 266: Flames of War - Overlord

Recon Jeep

• ••••

• •

GUN SECTION

Command .50 cal Recon Jeep

• •

ANTI-TANK PLATOON

CommandCarbine team

INTELLIGENCE & RECON PLATOON

Recon Jeep: ....

~Ml 57mm gun

& Recon Platoon is a Reconnaissance

BefOre deployment you may choose to dismount all ofyour

jeeps. Ifyou do this, all ofthe platoons vehicles are perma­nently removedfrom the game. Replace each:

• Recon Jeep with a Rifle or M 1919 LMC team.• .50 cal Recon Jeep with a Rifle or .50 cal MC team.

Designate one ofthe teams as the Platoon Command team.

The platoon remains a Reconnaissance Platoon.

good commander knows that it is foolhardy to go intobattle blind so he will always have a small contingent of

scouts to lay me brickwork for me forthcoming attack.

nemy tanks are always a problem that infantry has tocontend with bur US rifle companies have excellent anti­ank guns and bazookas to keep me tanks at bay. Unlike the

tank destroyers with their longer range, your 57mm guns arefor point defence of vulnerable areas. Dig them in behinderrain so the enemy can't shoot memo Wait for the enemy to

orive into your kill zone where you can get point blank rangeflank shots into me advancing armour. Wim their high rateof lire your 57mm guns will keep enemy tanks away fromyour infantry.

Page 267: Flames of War - Overlord

GUN SECTION

LIEUTENANT

~~~M3105mm light howitzer

~~~M3 105mm light howitzer

•Observer

Carbine team

~~~M3 105mm light howitzer

~~~M3 105mm light howitzer

~~~M3105mm light howitzer

CommandCarbine team

~~~M3 105mm light howitzer

The cannon platoon is equipped with light 105mmhowitzers. These guns offer quick-response artillery and

support infantry attacks by masking assaults in a large smokescreens.

The guns are not meant to sustain long artiltery strikes liketheir divisional counterparts, but instead to pin down theenemy and lend quick and decisive firepower to the attacking

infantry. "Ihat having been said, the cannon platoon cantie itself into the division's artillery network and lend theirtubes to a much larger bombardment. The combination of >

a half-dozen cannon with your d.ivisional artillery will resultin a massive barrage combined with the excellent firepoweroffered by the 105mm shells.

In desperate times, the M3 is light enough to man-handleinto a position to fire over open sights. This happened inBrittany when the 29th Infantry Division attacked FortMontbarey. The infantry's l05mm cannon were brought upto fire on the fort's door while British Crocodile flame-tankspinned down the defenders. The combination worked. Thefort's door was knocked in and the infantry poured inside to

capture the stronghold.

Page 268: Flames of War - Overlord

THE INFANTRY'S TANKS

.....$1 :a Ri z $ qUifF'

]he Ttmk BattaLiom assigned to the 1", 2"d, and 2!Jh

Infantry Divisions are fighting their first battLes and assuch, an Independent Ttmk PLatoon supporting a RifleCompany from the 1" (marked'), 2"d (marked ~ ),or 2!Jh (marked'- ) Infantry Divisions is rated ConfidentTrained.

The 741" started its combat service as DD tanks in supportof the 1" and 29'h Infantry Divisions' assault waves onOmaha Beach. Soon thereafter the battalion was assigned tothe 2nd Infantry Division and remained with the Indianheadsthrough the hedgerow fighting, where they worked closelywirh the infantry and engineers to tackle tough objectives.

The 74Th Tank Battalion arrived on D+1 and joined the29th Infantry Division in Normandy. The 747'h didn't followthe 29th into Brittany, so elements of 141" Royal ArmouredRegiment (Crocodiles) and the 709'h Tank Battalion wereborrowed from the 8th Infantry Division instead. The 74Th

rejoined the 29th for the race to Belgium in September.

]he 7(Jh Ttmk BattaLion is a veteran unit from the NorthAfrica and SiciLy campaigns and as such, an IndependentTtmk PLatoon supporting a Rifle Company from the4th Infantry Division (marked. ) is rated ConfidentVeteran.

Elements of the 70 th Tank Battalion landed in support of the1St Infantry Division in North Mrica and Sicily. As an experi­enced unit, the battalion supported the 4th Infantry Divisionon Utah Beach equipped with DD and normal tanks. On 10

ugust, the unit became the first separate tank battalion to

raw down M1A1 76mm Shermans, which were all assignedoACompany.

1}1e 745 th Tank Battalion was assigned to the 1" InfantryDivision. It landed on D-Day in the division's assault wavesand provided the Big Red One good tank support. Duringthe breakout the battalion worked closely with the infantryto push through the hedgerows of Normandy, out of theSattlefields of Saint-Lo and Falaise, and in to the cauldronaround Aachen.

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INDEPENDENT TANK PLATOON

Independent Ttmk Platoons use the Tttnk Telephone specialrule on page 230.

Each infantry division had a tank battalion, which providedthe troops with their own armored spearhead. Each bat­talion made their own field modifications to cope withthe hedgerow fighting. Some (but not all) installed tanktelephones to furthet improve cooperation, others usedsandbags as improvised armour, while others installed Cullinhedgerow cutters.

..Tank..Tank

Command Tank

• •

..Tank..Tank

Page 270: Flames of War - Overlord

ReCOil Jeep

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

Mortar Jeep

Mortar Jeep

Mortar Jeep

LIEUTENANT

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

Command M8 armored car

Command M8 armored car

Command M8 armored car

Cavalry Recon Patrols operate as separate platoons,with their own Command team.

DISMOUNTBefore deploymentyou may choose to dismountyour CavalryPlatoon. Ifyou do this, aLL of the Cavalry Recon Patrolsfrom the same platoon operate as a single platoon.

lfyou dismount, all ofthe platoons vehicles are permanentlyremoved from the game. Replace all of the vehicles in each

Patrol with any two ofthe following teams for each PatroL:

• Carbine teams

• M1919 LMG teams

• up to one .50 cal MG team per Cavalry Recon Patrol

• up to one Bazooka team per Cavalry Recon Patrol

• up to one M2 60mm mortar team per Cavalry Recon

Patrol

Designate anyone of the teams as the Platoon Commandteam. The platoon remains a Reconnaissance Platoon.

\The cavalry provided me US Army with its eyes and ears.[his was critically imporram in the confused hedgerows(j)f Normandy and Brittany. The cavalry were usually thefitst to find the Germans and scope out their srrengths and

eaknesses. The armoured cars and jeeps were also fast andnimble, allowing them ro rush though small gaps in theGerman lines ro quickly secure bridges and vital crossroadsso when the infamry caught up, they could exploit further.

CAVALRY PLATOON

Cavalry Recon Patrols are Reconnaissance Platoons.

The M8 Greyhound was a six-wheeled armoured car withreasonable road and off road speeds. Armed wim a 37mmami-tank gun, the cavalry could engage enemy gun teamsand lightly armoured enemy vehicles. Anything heavier thana German half-track or armoured car would have ro be dealtwith by me infantry, tanks, or artillery.

Cavalry patrols were also excellent spotters for the arrilleryand could use their superior radios ro contact the field bat­teries and bring fire down on German positions.

Page 271: Flames of War - Overlord

ENGINEER COMBAT PLATOON

.,.1;rA~t 1;rA~t

Pioneer PioneerM1917 HMG M1917 HMG

• ••

PioneerRifle team

PioneerRifle team

• ••

• • •

PioneerRifle team

•• t.

PioneerRifle team

You may replace all Pioneer HMG teams with Pioneer Rifle

teams at the start ofthe game before deployment.

The combat engineers provide heavy engineering supportwhen the infantry's own ammunition and pioneer platoonis not enough. Chief among the engineets' responsibilitiesin the Normandy break out was blasting through bocagehedgerows with explosives or pushing through the obstacleswith field-modified armoured bulldozers. There is nothingthe Germans can do that can't be undone with TNT and alittle Yankee ingenuity!

Page 272: Flames of War - Overlord

TRUCK SECTION

DUKW truck

• • t

DUKW truckDUKW truck

• •• t

TRUCK SQUAD

DUKW truck

•• t

Command DUKW truck

4TH INFANTRY DIVISION TRUCKSA Truck Section may make Combat Attachments to Rifleand Weapons Platoons from a 4th Infantry Division Rifle

Company (marked ).

A Transport Section follows the rules for Transport Platoons

found on pages 47 and 48 ofthe rulebook.

The foot soldiers of the US infantry divisions are luckier thanmost other armies as they are often issued enough trucks to

carry all of the troops across the battlefields. With the frontlines expanding from the beachhead, the need to get thetroops forward and into the fight becomes critical.

The famous 'Deuce and a Half' (2Yz-ton) trucks line theroads delivering men, ammunition, and supplies to the frontlines.

The amphibious version of the 2Yz-ton is the DUK\Xl,de igned for wading in shallow water. The 'Duck' was quiteuseful for crossing the many French rivers and soldiered oneven when there weren't water obstacles to cross.

Page 273: Flames of War - Overlord

ROCKET LAUNCHER BATIERY

VIII Corps ser up a pair of 90mm ami-aircraft guns on rhetip of the Daoulas Peninsula and began pounding the cityfrom afar. Unfortunately, the flat trajectory of its fire meantthe gun had to be deployed in view of the German artillery,which prompdy opened fire in retaliation."The guns wereeventually withdrawn and placed back in the main line asnormal AA guns.

During the Brittany campaign, the 12,h Field ArtilleryBattalion of the 2nd Infantry Division was given experimen­tal ground-mounted T27 4.5" rocket launchers instead oftheir normal l05mm howitzers. The battalion found themsomewhat effective, but the launcher system lacked thevolume of fire needed to dislodge the enemy. However,having these weapons allowed them to continue supportingthe rest of the division during a time when a severe shortagein l05mm ammunition wowd have left them idle.

Following the campaign, the battalion returned the experi­mental weapons along with their field report. This led to thedevelopment of the T32 Xylophone launcher system, whichdoubled the launchers in the battery and moumed them inthe beds of 2Y2-ton trucks.

}\~~Command

Carbine team

T27 4.5" Launcher

T27 4.5" Launcher

~l\Observer

Carbine team

T27 4.5" Launcher

T27 4.5" Launcher

Page 274: Flames of War - Overlord

~kObserver

Carbine team..-Jeep

~kObserver

Carbine team--Jeep

M7 Priest HMC

..M7 Priest HMC..

~ililM2Al105mm howitzer

~ililM2A1105mm howitzer

~HtStaff team

~HtStaff team

FIELD ARTILLERY BATIERY

M7 Priest HMC

3/J - ton truck

~~~Command Carbine team

..M7 Priest HMC..

HQ SECTION

~~~Command Carbine team

~ililM2A1 105mm howitzer

~ililM2All05mm howitzer

e field artillery supports the infantry with fire on enemyformations and strongpoints giving your tanks and infantryteams a chance to move forward.

ith its large ammunition supply and fire direction centrea field artillery battery can continue firing on an area in­aefinitely. Going through a fire direction net does reduce theesponsiveness of the artillery, but is a small price to pay for

Clevastating firepower that destroys the will of the enemy tofight, or forces them to flee the area under fire.

e DUKW amphibious trucks deliver the M2A1 105mmhowitzers directly to their firing positions after swimming

shore.

e 8'h Infantry Regiment was allocated 160 LCT (LandingCraft Tank) for its attack on Utah Beach compared to0maha Beach's 147 (split ovet two assault regiments). These~x ra landing craft enabled the Ivy Division to replace allo the towed 105mm howitzers in its 29 th and 42nd Field~tillery Battalions with M7 Priest HMC self-propelledhowitzers. The 44'h (l05mm) and 20'h (l55mm) Field

illery Battalions remained towed.

ese self-propelled guns provided the division with mobileartillery that was reasonably well protected, which fit well

- with the division's quasi-mechanised status.

e 4th Infantry Division was further reinforced by theth Armored Field Artillery Battalion, giving them evenre self-propelled guns to support their attacks.

Page 275: Flames of War - Overlord

~ttObserver

Carbine team

M1155mm howitzer

Ml155mm howitzer

..-rk Jeep

••

Ml155mm howitzer

Ml155mm howitzer

J\~~ ~HtCommand Carbine team Staff team

Now that the beaches are secure the division has broughrin irs heavy equipment, including the formidable and trust­worthy Ml 155mm howitzer. These heavy guns of rhe fieldartillery bartalions offer excellent support for our doughboysand will prove rhe bane of any German hapless enough to

poke his head out.

Use these heavy guns to dig out rhose Germans cowering inrheir holes, rhen send in your troops to clean out the rest!The guns are also powerful enough to knock out heavy tanks,which will help break up enemy armoured assaults.

FIELD ARTILLERY BATIERY (155)

Page 276: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 277: Flames of War - Overlord

A Tank Destroyer Companyfrom the 899'h Tank Destroyer

Battalion is rated Confident Veteran.

A Tank Destroyer Companyfrom the 644rh Tank Destroyer

Battalion is rated Confident Trained.

M20 Scout cars from a Tank Destroyer Company HQ are

Recce teams.

The command structure of a tank destroyer battalion isideally set up for providing the core for mobile task forces.

Company Command 2iC CommandM20 scout car M20 scout car

COMPANY HQ

TANK DESTROYER COMPANY HQ

Page 278: Flames of War - Overlord

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

The Gentian attack was halted and thetank destroyer men Once :l;gain sho~ed

that they could meet and stop an enemyta~ assault.

LIEUTENANT

RECON PATROL

RECON PATROL

Command M8 armored car

Command M8 armored car

reconnaissance teams guided the M 1Osaround 5he enemy's flanks and soon thetide was turned as Panther after Pantherwas lit up in a fury of flame and smoke.

.J L PANZER LEHR, r DIVISION

Destroyer Recon Platoon IS a Reconnaissance '

The first tank destroyerin Normandy was the 899[h TankDestroyer Battalion, the veteran victorsof El Guettar, They stormed ashoreon Utah beach, made contact withthe 82nd Airborne Division, and thenattacked up the Cotentin Peninsulato help liberate the ciry of Cherbourg.They then moved south, joining theUS army's push through Normandy'sdeadly hedgerow country.

In early July the main American objec­tive was St. Lo, an important communi­cation and transportation hub. Duringthe fighting a small gap had developedin the US lines and the Germans seizedthe opportuniry to attack.

During the night of 10 July 1944,Panther tanks of the Panzer LehrDivision drove straight through thegap and toward the small villages ofle Desert and la Charlemenerie. The899rh rushed its A and C Companiesforward to confront and stop theGerman tank assaults.

Initally the MlOs str;uggled to pen­etrate the thick frontal armour of thePanthers, but the veteran tank -destroyermen used the hedgerows to' concealtheir movement. The tank destroyer

. . ~........=_.....,.;w.~.~

899TH TANK DESTROYER BATTALION

The tank destroyers and Panzers foughthard during the night, shooting at eachother's muzzle flashes.

ach battalion has its own reconnaissance company to scoutout further than the securiry sections and warn of enemyambushes and offer prime targets,

, Recon Patrols ofa Tcmk Destroyer Recon Platoon operate as·, separate platoons, each with their own Command team,

Page 279: Flames of War - Overlord

The 644'" arrived in Normandy on 10 July 1944 equippedwith M 10 tank destroyers. During the month ofJuly the bat­talion was attached to the Slh Infantry Division and followedthat unit into Brittany.

During the Breton campaign the infantry did not havemuch tank support, but what they did have was lots of tankdestroyers. The 644 lh took up the slack admirably, and wasused extensively to help reduce enemy strong points andblast enemy-held buildings in Brest. The 644rh would findthemselves attached to just about every task force in Brittany,offering its help wherever they were needed.

TASK FORCE SWhile the US infantry divisions tightened the noose aroundBrest, Task Force S (or 'Sugar'), a small Ranger task force,was dispatched to reduce the outlying German strongpointsoutside the port city. Many of these strongpoints had well­protected nests for guns as well as trenches and other earthenfortifications. To help tackle these, A Company of the 644rh

supported Task Force S, during the operations to clear theLe Conquet Peninsula. The concentration of firepower inthis small task force was staggering, with tank destroyers,medium tanks, light tanks, self-propelled artillery, and plentyof towed artillery.

The reduction of major German fortifications required a bitof finesse. However, where straight firepower failed, such as atthe imposing Graf Spee Battery, guile and boldness overcamethe Germans. The tank destroyers of A Company gave theRangers the mobile firepower they needed to hit the enemyhard and fast. They were a lethal combination for the manyGerman stongpoints on the peninsula.

Following their service from Task Force Sugar, A Companywas attached to the 29'" Infantry Division. The rest of thbattalion was attached to the srh Infantry Division in me

7J"IL,;,;'r.....J

centre sector, replacing that division's lost Sherman tcompanies lent to the 2nd and 29rh Infantry Divisions.

The company went into action as improvised assault guns,working closely with the infantry they were supporting. Theopen topped tank destroyers were vulnerable to small armsfire and falling debris, so they kept back, letting the infantrY.;clear the way ahead of them.

LESSONS LEARNEDThe 644 rh gained a lot of experience fighting in the Brittancampaign. Chief among them was adding close infantrysupport to their doctrine-something the creators of Seek,Strike, and Destroy explicitly forbade. However, in Brittany,there were not enough tanks to go around three infantrydivisions, bur they had plenty of tank destroyers, so the fie!€Ommanders had to be flexible.

This prepared them well for the fights they were headit1toward, such as the tough battles in the Hiirtgen Forest andecisive battle of the Twin Villages in December 1944 durmgthe German Ardennes offensive.

Page 280: Flames of War - Overlord

The unit was formed on 31 July 1944 and based aroundBrigadier General Herbert Earnest's 1" Tank DestroyerBrigade. This brigade had a special organization in that therewere only two- of its kind ever assembled. The second onewas dishanded before it saw combat.

The 1" 'Tank Destroyer Brigade was organised to coordinatethe operations of tank destroyer battalions in the eventof a large enemy, armoured offensive. The Germans nevergot around to launching such an attack, but the brigade'scommand structure was ideal to base a small task forcearound withotJt having to beg, borrow, or steal personnelfrom other divisions.

Although the overall command structure of the task forcewas bas d around the tank destroyer brigade, the individualcombat elements were organized around the cavalry squad­r s. This allowed the smaller components of the task forceto communicate with each other using the cavalry's morepowerful radios. The task force could break up into smallforces and cover a lot more ground while also being able toquickly come together to meet a greater threat.

The 705th Tank Destroyer Battalion was directly attachedto the task force to provide heavy support for the lightarmoured cars. It was equipped with the very fast and mobileM18 Hellcat tank destroyer, which could keep up with thearmoured cars.

Combat elements were usually company-sized, and variedin composition depending on the situation, however theyalways included cavalry platoons. Engineers and tank de­stroyers were included where ever they were needed.

THE BATTLE FOR BRITTANYAs the Allied war machine sped across France in OperationCobra, it became more important than ever to secure thedeep sea ports along the French coastline. Task Force A:sjob was to run along the northern coast of Brittany andsecure the way ahead of the armoured divisions. It was onlyexpected to operate tor a week at most, but ended up doinga lot more than 0 . inally intended.

SPEARHEAD OF THE BRITTANY CAMPAIGNBUILDING A TASK FORCEallowing the invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944, the

lied advance came to a halt as it got bogged down in theneagerow country of northern France. To cur through tobetter terrain, the US launched Operation Cobra to breako t of Normandy on 27 July. The attack succeeded: inbreaking the deadlock and suddenly the American army was

n the move towards Paris.

I the west, Operation Cobra let loose the 4<h and 6th ArmoredDivisions toward the French coastal ports of St. Nazaire,Loriem, and Brest. If the Allies captured one of these ports,they could open another supply route to launch much largeroperations against the Germans.

e importance of the ports was not lost on tHe eermans,o had fortified the cities and planned to fiercely defend

hem against any Allied attack.

eAllies were also worried that the Germans would demolishe few vital bridges over the rivers and marshes of northwest

rance. Thus, Task Force A (or TFA) was organised to speedahead of the 4th and 6th Armored Divisions to secure t . wa;

aqd make sure the bridges were captured intact.

e task force was specially built for the mission. Fastarmoured vehicles would escort engineers to the objectiveso that they could secure the bridges and prevent them from

being blown up.

Page 281: Flames of War - Overlord

On the way it became clear that the Germans were mor,concerned with retreating to their fortress than demolishing '""i

bridges, so Task Force A changed its tactics. TFA began op ~

ating with the FFI (Forces Franfaises de I1nterieur, or FrencnForces of the Interior) to harass and delay the Ger. ,swherever possible, while still securing the road for the fol-lowing US forces. ~

The task force set about securing bridges and cutting offGerman troops. On several occasions rhey relied on the FEllto supply infantry support, but were often disappointedwhen the partisan fighters would sometimes disappear at tj1e"",""''''''Jfirst shot.

On 9 August the task force was within sight of the city ofBrest, but was recalled east to dear rhe town of Guingampwhere the Germans had held up. The task force and the B Ilaunched a successful attack on the town on 14 August. fl.sprearranged by the French and TFA, the partisan fightersreceived all ofthe captured equipment, while the TFA secureall of the prisoners to keep them safe from vigilantes.

The task force moved west once again and took up positioto contain the Germans in Brest. They did not have to wallong for the 6th Armored and 83rd Infantry Divisions to arrivand relieve them. TFA then moved south to the DaoulPeninsula to help secure the southern Rank of Forrress B <;sFrom there they joined the new Task Force B and was gWe.nwhole new mission to help secure t:he Daoulas Peninsul'.

While only intended to operate' for a week, the task forcestayed in the field for 53 days, capturing, over 5600 prisonersofwar, while itself losing 55.kilied, and 201 wounded.

---Rail

40

~ 4<1> Armored Division

.....- .......- Roads

Task Force A

6'h Armored Division

o MILES 20- -- - -o KllOME1ll.ES SO

The task force got under way on 2 August 1944 and headedwest. Initially they were to follow the 6th Armored Divisionfor the first few miles.

Thinking that the tankets ahead of them had cleared the way,TFA moved rapidly for the first leg of the journey. However,unbeknownst to them, the 6,h Atmored had veered southearlier than expected and the task force ran head-long intoa German ambush. The task force's M8 Scott assault gunswere called up and quickly silenced the enemy guns, but theGermans reinforced the roadblock. Finally, Earnest orderedthe road block to be bypassed and left to the 83 rd InfantryDivision which was following close behind.

Although off to a rocky start, the task force pressed on totheir first objective, Saint-Malo. The Allies were concernedthat the Germans in Saint-Malo would retreat to Brest. SinceBrest was the main objective of the campaign, it becameimportant to prevent any reinforcements from reaching thecity. "Therefore, TFA was ordered to contain the enemy inSaint-Malo until the 83rd Infantry could arrive to surroundthe city.

The task force began probing the lines, but the Germans dis­patched some small gun boats to shell TFA along the coast.They also flooded the lowlands, restricting the task force'smovement to the roads. Nevertheless, TFA managed to keepthe Germans occupied long enough so that they could notescape to Brest.

With the arrival of the 8yd Infantry Division, TFA resumedits race west. Earnest left a company of tank destroyers to helpthe infantry division and in exchange he received a companyof infantry and a field artillery battery to help overcome allY,other pote tia! roadblocks.

Page 282: Flames of War - Overlord

e Forces Franraises de l1'nterieur, or French Forces of the'terior (FFI) was the military arm of the French resistance

movement. Before the Allied invasion of Normandy, it wasa secret organisation, conducting sabotage and small raids

the enemy. However, once the Allies landed, the whole,rganisation took to the streets, woods, and bocage to riseup and fight their former oppressors.

~~~~..uefore the invasion, the Allies landed Jedburgh teams intocupied France to coordinate and make sure that the FFIet the Allied operations were not at odds. These teamsnsisted of three French-speaking operatives.

In Brittany, ten Jedburgh teams were dropped in ahead ofthe- US forces. These teams set to work training and armingthe partisans. Former French military officers joined theranks to add some limited training. The result was a verywide mixture of quality in the FFI troops. Some were quite

ave and capable troops, while others broke after the firstsliots were fired, only to reappear after all of the fighting was

one to claim victory.

S troops often commented about their lack of discipline,nd were shocked by the FFI's brutality against the Germansnd suspected collaborators. To prevent this, Allied troops

f€ached an understanding that the FFI would receive allca cured German equipmenr and the Allies would secure allprisoners of war.

Despite these darker aspects, the FFI played an important role. liberating France. Starting in September, the FFI began torganise itself into a more proper army, armed with captured

GeJ'man equipment and wearing early French uniforms.%eywere instrumental in the siege ofSaint-Nazaire, freeing

p regular Allied troops to assault inro Germany.

When a corps commander needed a special assignmentpleted, they formed a task force. These purpose-built

rmations went out ahead of the tanks and infantry of theular divisions to secure the route of attack, reconnoitre

e area or outflank and cut off enemy troops.

Task Force A AlwaysAttacks. Combat andWeapons platoons

that are not Reconnaissance Platoons may make Spearhead

Deployment moves (see page 261 ofthe rulebook).

It is estimated that over 5000 FFI troops participated inthe Brittany campaign, helping to secure the vital bridgesand towns as well as providing valuable inrelligence to UStroops.

NEVER OUT OF TOUCHTask forces expected to operate behind enemy lines wereusually based around a cavalry group to utilise their powerfulradios. This gave the task force remarkable flexibility, allowingit to break down into small units to cover more ground, aswell as being able to quickly come back together again.

Once each turn, you may re-roll one die rolled to receive

Reserves for your Task Force A company.

In a mission using the Scattered Reserves special rule, once

per turn you may also re-roll one die rolled to determine

where a platoon will arrive from Scattered Reserve.

Page 283: Flames of War - Overlord

-

Teams from an FFI Company are always Gone to Ground,unless they move At the Double, shoot, or assault.

An FFI Company with a Jedburgh Carbine team is notconsidered an Alliedplatoon.

OPERATION JEDBURGH

Whenever a rule in the Flames Of War rulebook talksabout a platoon, read that as an FFI Company.

CENTAINEIdeally a Centaine (hundred) consisted of 100 men loos lydivided inro three Trentaine (thirty) groups. However, sirregular troops, they were often just grouped rogether froml'...oi-.JU

whatever volunteers and weapons they could muster.

Before the invasion of France, the Allies planted Jedburghteams throughout the country ro coordinate partisanoperations with the greater Allied cause. The three-manJedburgh teams, typically one British, one American, andone French, supplied partisan companies with weapons dserved as liaison officers between Allied troops and the FFI.

LIFE IN THE MAQUISInitially the partisan war in France was fought in the maqilla type of high ground covered with scrub growth. The Fwas extremely adept at using the terrain to their advan?f; .

FIFTEEN DIVISIONSRoll Irregular

1 Confident Conscript

2 Confident Conscript

3 Fearless Conscript

4 Reluctant Trained

5 Reluctant Trained

6 Confident Trained

nft.1riTijp i.f("411 fl,/)!1t(~ ;fm IJr. ,,;~. V/!iJ:i. i{J1l1@,4Jr""O/Jutlf}llr ~

·:tv, 1/- .tl ~hi(of<l/"'J!' ftIGb,,'

To reflect the variable quality ofthe French partisans, FFIcompanies are rated as Irregular. After deployment, butbefore the first turn, roll a die for each company and consultthe Fifteen Divisions table to determine their Motivationand Skill characteristics.

FIFTEEN DIVISIONSGeneral Eisenhower commented that the FFI was worthfifteen infantry divisions in the field for what it was ablero accomplish in the liberation of France. However, manyGIs despaired about the inconsistent quality of the FFI.Nevertheless, it cannot be ignored that the French played akey part in defeating German troops in France.

Page 284: Flames of War - Overlord
Page 285: Flames of War - Overlord

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

Recon Jeep

Mortar Jeep

Mortar Jeep

Mortar Jeep

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CAVALRY RECON PATROL

CommandM8 armored car

CommandM8 armored car

CommandM8 armored car

As Task Force A fanned out across Brittany, the cav f}J

platoons split into small patrols. These small patrols operarfar from each other deep behind enemy lines. Some wereinforced with elements from the task force for diffimissions where enemy resistance was expected.

DISMOUNT

Task Force Cavalry Recon Patrols are ReconnaissancePlatoons.

Teams ofa Task Force HQ are Recce teams.

Task Force Cavalry Recon Patrols operate asplatoons, each with their own Command team.

Before deployment you may choose to dismount all ofyourTask Force Cavalry Recon Platoons. Ifyou do this, all oftheCavalry Recon Patrols from the same platoon operate as a

single platoon.

Ifyou dismount, all ofthe platoons vehicles are permanentlyremoved from the game. Replace all of the vehicles in each

Patrol with any two ofthe following teams for each Patrol:

• Carbine teams

• M1919 LMC teams

• up to one .50 cal MC team per Cavalry Recon Patrol

• up to one Bazooka team per Cavalry Recon Patrol

• up to one M2 60mm mortar team per Cavalry ReconPatrol

The combat elements ofTask Force A were organised aroundcavalry squadrons in order to utilise their more powerfulcommunications systems.

Page 286: Flames of War - Overlord

• ••

PioneerRifle team

M20 scout car

2 Y,-ton dump truck

PioneerRifle team

.. '.

---i1iiM18 Hellcat

• I---..SECURITY SECTION

• • •

PioneerRifle team

TANK DESTROYER SECTION

LIEUTENANT

M18 Hellcat

2Y2-ton dump truck

TASK FORCE ENGINEERCOMBAT PLATOON

.. '.

PioneerRifle team

J\~~Command Pioneer

Rifle team

Command .50 cal Recon Jeep M20 scout car

Jeep with.50 cal AA MG

• •

Pioneer Pioneer 2 Y,-ton dump truckM1917 HMG M1917 HMG.,. ...

You may replace all Pioneer HMG teams with Pioneer Rifle

teams at the start ofthe game before deployment.

A Task Force Tank Destroyer Platoon uses the US Tank

Destroyers special rules on page 238 ofthe rulebook.

Task Force A included the 705'h Tank Destroyer Battalion.This afforded the task force plenty offirepower. The battalionwas one of the first equipped with the new M 18 Hellcat tankilestroyer. The vehicle's small profile and powerful gun made'r a quick success. They wete also fast, which made them

erfectly suited to keep up with the task force's Greyhoundsthe roads of Brittany. Uniquely, with a shortage of M 18s

to replace losses, the 705'h drew M4Al Sherman (76mm) asreplacement vehicles.

The 159th Engineer Combat Battalion provided the task forcewith its infantry support. Their trucks helped them keep upwith the rest of the task force.

When TFA encountered a roadblock or enemy bunker, thetank destroyers would blast the vision openings blinding it.Then the engineers would assault and knock it out.

The task force lacked any intregal anti-aircraft, so eachlatoon had to provide their own coverage. The engineers

solved this by equipping their trucks with extra .50 cal Anti­ai craft machine-guns.

Page 287: Flames of War - Overlord

••Rifle teamRifle team

~)~~Rifle team

~)~~~)~~Rifle team Rifle team

~)~~~)~~Rifle team. , ..

a aCammand M8 Scat! HMC M8 Scat! HMC

• •

a aM8 Scat! HMC M8 Scat! HMC

Rifle team

FFI COMPANY

GUN SECTION

..?il1CammandRifle team

CAPITAINE

• •

. , ..

~)~~Rifle team

~)~~~)~~Rifle team Rifle team

~)~~~)~~

Rifle team Rifle team

~)~~Rifle team

~)~~~)~~Rifle team Rifle team

~)~~~)~~

The FFI provided the task force with valuable intelligeFland extra manpower. FFI battalions were joined by SAS'ass teams inserted well before the ~nv~sion to preparethe liberation of France. These ·'Jedburgh' teams were essen­tial for getting the FFI and .,'\.lli~darmies to work together.

I I

I I

II

3 Rifle Platoons

2 Rifle Platoons

1 Rifle Platoon

HQ Section with:

OPTIONS

• Add a Jedburgh Carbine team for +20 points.

• Add a Weapons Section for +90 points.

An FFI company uses the FFI ratings and special rulesfound on page 283.

An FFI Company is unusual in that the composition ofthe company can change from game to game. The WeaponsSection is made up of Weapons teams. There is no actualteam called a Weapons team. Instead these can be any ofthefollowing types ofteams:

• SMG team,

• Pioneer SMG team,

• MGteam,

• PIAT or Bazooka team,

• Captured HMG team,

• Captured 81mm mortar,

Captured Anti-tank gun team

An FFI Company cannot have more than two Weaponsteams ofthe same type.

You must choose the composition ofyour FFI Company foreach game before deployment begins.

COMPANY

The MS Scott HMC used its speed to provide the task forcewith its own artillery bat·tery. The Scorrs are from the cavalryand are split amongst the task forces's troops so there is noshortage of support from these weapons where ever they areneeded.

Page 288: Flames of War - Overlord

CORPS LIGHT TANK PLATOON

Sherman

M5Al Stuart

...M5A1Stuart...

..Sherman..

Command Sherman

• •

Command M5Al Stuart

• •

Sherman

M5Al Stuart

CORPS TANK PLATOON

...M5A1 Stuart...

..Sherman..

Corps Light Tcmk Platoons use the Tcmk Telephone specialrule on page 230.

¥ery tank battalion had a company of M5Al Smarts forank security and rapid reinforcement. In Normandy and

Brittany, independent Smart platoons were ideal to attach to

the fast-paced task forces, especially when paired up with fastellcat tank destroyers.

Page 289: Flames of War - Overlord

SECURITY SECTION

Recon Jeep

~M5 3in gun (Iatel

~M5 3in gun (late)

Recon Jeep

)\~~Command Carbine team

~M5 3in gun (late)

~M5 3in gun (late)

Command .50 cal Recon Jeep

Corps Ttmk Destroyer Platoons use the US Ttmk Destroyersspecial rules on page 238 ofthe rulebook.

Towed Tank Destroyer Platoons use the US Tank Destroyersspecial rules on page 238 ofthe rulebook.

Tank destroyer doctrine called for some of the tank destroyerbattalions to be converted to towed 3" anti-tank guns. Theseare much easier to conceal than a self-propelled gun and packa mean punch.

The M5 3in gun is the same gun found ~ the MID self­propelled gun. It is able to penetrate most German tanksfrom the front, making them an essential component to anydefensive line backed by infantry. The platoon has excellentambushing potential as well. Whatever tanks the 3" guns failto destroy, the four bazookas will certainly tidy up!

When on the offensive, the platoon's 3" guns are good fordefending a flank and keeping German tanks from taking onyour troops in the open.

Self-propelled tank destroyers are ideal weapons to navigarethe treacherous hedgerows of Normandy. Using this cover,they will execute perfect ambushes and help-turn the tide ofthe battle in your favour!

Page 290: Flames of War - Overlord

Naval ADP

Warship

ObserverCarbine team

A~~~M2 4,2" Chemical mortar

A~~~M2 4.2" Chemical mortar

HQ SECTION

•et .•

..

CHEMICAL MORTAR PLATOON. -

NAVAL GUNFIRE SUPPORT- - .

CommandCarbine team

A:'Jl~M2 4.2" Chemical mortar

A~~~M2 4.2" Chemical mortar

The US Navy provided heavy fire support to the assaulttroops in Normandy with battleships, cruisers, light cruisersand destroyers. Fire was controlled from both group.d ob­servers and ai, observation Rosts.

~~......---,

Ifyou have Naval Gunfire Support, yourforce willfield anNGFS Air Observation Post or NGFS Observer Rifle teamthat can only Spotfor an artillery battery offour ConfidentTrained Naval Guns. The guns are not deployed on thetable, but have the range to hit any target on the table.They do not have a Staffteam.

When firing an Artillery Bombardment with NavalGunfire Support, position the Artillery Template with thesides parallel to the table edges.

;]he chemical mortar platoon provides US forces with theuick and accurate fire support of a mortar combined with

the explosive payload of large-calibre artillery. Able to blast€tug in troops and guns from the cover of trenches, the large I

mortars add tremendously to the volume of fire supportingaur troops.

i their short range, the mortars must be placed close to

tlr'e enemy, so position them behind cover to keep them safeom direct fire. Their only real disadvantage over normal

a tiillery is their lack of a fire control centre and plenti­ammunition supply. This limits them to short, sharp

bombardments.

Page 291: Flames of War - Overlord

~ttObserver

Carbine team...,Jeep

M1155mm howitzer

Ml 155mm howitzer

~ililM2Al 105mm howitzer

~ililM2Al105mm howitzer

~HtStaff team

••

•CORPS FIELD ARTILLERY BATTERY

Ml155mm howitzer

M1155mm howitzer

J\~~Command Carbine team

J\~~ ~Ht ~ttCommand Carbine team Staff team Observer

Carbine team...,Jeep

• •

~ililM2A1 105mm howitzer

~ililM2A1 l05mm howitzer

II

II4 M2Al l05mm

2 M2Al 105mm

omON• Add ¥4-<ton and 2lh-to~ trucks fur +5 points fttt the

battery.

Their accurate barrages keep the enemy pinned down andsoften them up for the assaulting infantry. Use them to

prepare the way for your assauIr or to break up enemy attacksbefore they hit your line. Your riflemen should be able tomop up whatever is left!

The M2Al howitzer has proven itself time and again through­out North Africa, Sicily; Italy, and now in Normandy. Thefield artillery batteries are well-trained to deliver massedfirepower on top of the German positions with devastatingresults.

The heavy Ml 155mm howitzer and MIAl Long Tom gunsare extremely powerful weapons. Their shells will dig oureven the most determined defender and leave their fortifica­tions a rangled mess of wire and mud.

The heavy bombardment of 155mm shells is also quite deadlyagainsr enemy tank formations. Their very presence on thebardefield will force tank platoons to spread out, making itmuch easier to ambush them with your anti-tank guns.

Page 292: Flames of War - Overlord

CORPS ARMORED FIELDARTILLERY BATIERY

-Day planners felt the invading infantry needed immedi­ate fire support while coming ashore and artillery that could

ove forward across the shingle bank at the top of the beachwithout engineering support. To meet thi$ need the plannersgave armoured field artillery batteries to the infantry for theandings. In a pinch they could be used as assault guns by

fir,ing directly at bunkers blocking the beach exits.

CommandCarbine team

~M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

Staff team

• •

ObserverM4 Sherman OP

tank

~M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

~M7 Priest HMC

Page 293: Flames of War - Overlord

J\).~ ~Ht ~t\Command Carbine team Staff team Observer

Carbine team--Jeep

• •

The 174th, 258th and 987th Field Artillery Battalions' M12

155mm Gun Motor Carriages were rare beasts as only 100of the vehicles were ever built.

M12 155mm GMC M12 155mm GMC

The long 155mm guns are the pinnacle of artillerydevelopment with their great range and firepower. Evenheavy battle tanks are not safe from their heavy shells. Thesebig guns have a secondary role as bunker busters whenGerman fortifications slow down the advance.

The 174th Field Artillery Battalion (155 Gun SP) was taskedwith supporting the 6th 'Super Sixth' Armored Divisionand the 8yd 'Thunderbolts' Infantry Divisions during the

Normandy breakout. The 258th Field Artillery Battal·.n(155 Gun SP) supported the 2nd 'Hell On Wheels' a3rd 'Spearhead' Armored Divisions. The 987th was tas'with supporting the 9th 'Old Reliables' Infantry Division.

BUNKER BUSTER PLATOON(155 GUN SP)

The 174th Field Artillery Battalion (155 Gun SP) brokeoff some of their M12 155mm GMC guns and sent themto support the 2nd

, 8th, and 29th Infantry Divisions as well

as several Ranger units. Their firepower helped knock outGerman bunkers. Some German fortifications were so toughthat the M 12 crews had to position their vehicles at pointblank ranges in order to blow them up.

Command M12155mm GMC

•M12155mm GMC

Page 294: Flames of War - Overlord

j•

~~lBOfors

Anti-aircraft gun

•Command

Carbine team

~~lBofors

Anti-aircraft gun

During the final assault on Brest, Ivory X fired over 72,000rounds of .50 calibre ammunition in one afternoon. Overthe course of the battle Ivory X peppered the city with over ahalf million .50 calibre bullets!

CORPS ANTI-AIRCRAFTARTILLERY PLATOON

After Task Force B cleared the Daoulas Peninsula, the174th Field Artillery Group moved in and organised Ivory X(named afrer the group's code name: Ivory). This battery grewin size as the battle for Bresr wore on and eventually included57 .50 calibre machine-guns, eight 40mm anti-aircraft guns,and 12 tank destroyers in addition to its normal guns.Ivory X tied itself into the 2nd Infantry Division's artilleryand received fire missions to support the Indianheads' opera­tions on Brest.

Each M49 quad .50 cal AA gun (Ivory X) counts as twoweapons when firing an Ivory X bombardment.

The high rate of fire from a M49 Quad .50 cal could put four'times as many rounds in the air as a single .50 cal.

Page 295: Flames of War - Overlord

Having swept the Luftwa.ffe, the Getman Ait Force, fromthe skies, the Allied Air Forces have exposed the GermanArmy to their fighter-bombers, The ability to hit and destroytargets anywhere on the battlefield with near impunity hasmade air support an expected and welcome addition to de­feating German ground forces.

Each artillery battalion has a pair of Air Observation PostL4 Grasshopper aircraft. These planes teport enemy trooplocations and call in artillery srrikes, making them the baneof German troops across Normandy and Brittany.

FLIGHT LIEUTENANT

AIR SUPPORT ,."

The P-38 Lightning relies on its speed to get in and deliverits payload on the enemy, while the P-47 Thunderbolt usesbrute force. Both are equally devastating and respected bythe Germans who have to live under their bombardmentsall day long!

FLIGHT LIEUTENANT

L4 Grasshopper ADP

..'

AIR OBSERVATION POST

Page 296: Flames of War - Overlord

ArmourMobility Front Side Top Equipment and Notes

Range ROF Anti-tank FirepotlJer

LighrTank 4 2 1 Co-ax MC, Hull MC, AA MC.24 ''/60cm 2 7 4+ StabiLiser.

4 or M4Al Sherman Srandard Tank 6 4 1 Co-ax MC, Hull MC, .50 ca! AA MC.1:4375mmgun 32',/80cm 2 10 3+ Smoke, Stabiliser.

M4Al Sherman DD Srandard Tank 6 4 1 Co-ax MC, .50 ca! AA MC, DD rank.M375mmgun 32 ''/80cm 2 10 3+ Smoke, Stabiliser.

M4 or M4Al Sherman dozer Srandard Tank 6 4 1 Co-ax MC, .50 ca! AA MC, Bulldozer.M375mmgun 32 ''/80cm 2 10 3+ Smoke, Stabiliser.

M4Al (76mm) Sherman Srandard Tank 7 4 1 Co-ax MC, Hull MC, .50 ca! AA MC, Prorected ammo.M176mmgun 32 ''/80cm 2 12 3+ Stabiliser.

M4 81mm MMC Half-rracked 1 0 0 Optional .50 ca! AA MCM1 81mm mortar 24 ''/60cm 2 2 3+ HuLL mounted, Portee, Minimum range 8 ',/20cm, Smoke.Firing bombardments 40 ''/1 OOcm 2 6 Smoke bombardment.

375mmCMC Ha!f-cracked 1 0 0M189775mmgun 32 ''/80cm 2 9 3+ Hull mounted, Smoke.

M8 SCO(( HMC LighrTank 3 2 0 .50 ca! AA MC.M1A1 75mm howitzer 16''/40cm 2 6 3+ Smoke.Firing bombardments 64''/160cm 3 6

Srandard Tank 7 4 1 Co-ax MC, Hull MC, .50 ca! AA MC, Prorected ammo.24',/60cm 1 9 2+ Breakthrough gun, Slow traverse, Smoke.48 ''/120cm 4 4+

Srandard Tank 4 2 0 .50 ca! AA MC.32 ''/80cm 2 12 3+ Slow traverse.

LighrTank 2 0 0 .50 ca! AA MC.32 ''/80cm 2 12 3+

Jeep 0 0 .50 ca! AA MC.

Srandard Tank 0 0 .50 cal AA MC.24',/60cm 9 2+ Hull mounted, Breakthrough gun, Smoke.72 ''/180cm 4 4+ Smoke bombardment.

M12 155mm CMC Srandard Tank 0 0 0M1918Ml155mmgun 24',/60cm 1 13 1+ Awkward layout, HulL mounted, Bunker buster.Firing bombardments 104''/260cm 5 2+

Srandard Tank 6 4 1 Co-ax MC, Hull MC, .50 ca! AA MC.32 ''/80cm I 10 3+ Smoke.

Wheeled 1 0 024',/60cm 4 5 4+ Anti-aircraft·

Ha!f-rracked 1 0 016''/40cm 6 4 5+ Anti-aircraft·

Wheeled 1 0 0 Co-ax MC, .50 cal AA MC, Recce.24 ''/60cm 2 7 4+

AA MC, Recce.

.50 ca! AA MC, Recce.

Recce.2 Hull mounted, Minimum range 8''/20cm.

Page 297: Flames of War - Overlord

MACHINE-GUNSM2 .50 cal MG Man-packed IG"/40cm 3 4 5+

M1919 LMG Man-packed IG"/40cm 5 2 G ROF 2 when pinned down or moving.

M1917 HMG Man-packed 24"/GOcm G 2 G ROF 3 when pinned down or moving.

MORTARSM2 GOmm mortar Man-packed 24"/GOcm 2 3+ Minimum range 8"/20cm.

Firing bombardments 32"/SOcm G

Ml 81mm mortar Man-packed 24"/GOcm 2 2 3+ Smoke, Minimum range 8"/20cm.

Firing bombardments 40"/l00cm 2 G Smoke bombardment.

M2 4.2in Chemical mortar Light 48"/l20cm 3 4+ Smoke bombardment.

ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNSM2 .50 cal AA gun Heavy IG"/40cm 4 4 5+ Anti-aircraft, Turntable.

M49 quad .50 cal AA gun Heavy IG"/40cm G 4 5+ Anti-aircraft, Turntable.

M 1 Bofors gun Immobile 24"/GOcm 4 G 4+ Anti-aircraft, Turntable.

M190mmgun Immobile 40"/100cm 2 13 3+ Heavy Anti-aircraft, Turntable.

ANTI-TANK GUNSM3 37mm gun Light 24"/GOcm 3 7 4+ Gun shield.

M157mmgun Medium 24"/GOcm 3 10 4+ Gun shield, No HE.

M5 3in gun Immobile 32"/SOcm 2 12 3+ Gun shield.

ARTILLERYMIAl 75mm pack howitzer Light IG"/40cm 2 G 3+ Smoke.

Firing bombardments G4"/lGOcm 3 G Smoke bombardment.

M3 105mm light howitzer Heavy IG"/40cm 7 2+ BreakthrOl;gh gun, Smoke.

Firing bombardments 5G"/140cm 4 4+ Smoke bombardment.

M2Al 105mm howitzer Immobile 24"/GOcm 9 2+ Breakthrough gun, Gun shield, Smoke.

Firing bombardments 72"/180cm 4 4+ Smoke bombardment.

Ml 155mm howitzer Immobile 24"/GOcm 10 1+ Bunker buster, Gun shield, Smoke.

Firing bombardments 88"/220cm 5 2+ Smoke bombardment. ,h.,MIAl 155mm Long Tom gun Immobile 24"/GOcm 13 1+ Bunker buster, Smoke.

Firing bombardments 104"/2GOcm 5 2+ Smoke bombatdment.

T27 4.5" rocket launcher Heavy 48"/120cm 2 5+ Rocket launchet.

IVORY X ARTILLERY (SEE PAGE 259)M2 .50 ca! AA gun (Ivory X) Heavy IG"/40cm 4 4 5+ Anti-aircraft, Turntable.

Firing Ivory X bombardments 40"/100cm

M49 quad .50 ca! AA gun (Ivory X) Heavy IG"/40cm G 4 5+ Anti-aircraft, Turntable.

Firing Ivory X bombardments 40"/100cm Counts as two weapons.

M 1 Bofors gun (Ivory X) Immobile 4 G 4+ Anti-aircraft, Turntable.

Firing Ivory X bombardments

M5 3in gun (Ivory X) 'Immobile 2 Gun shield.

Firing Ivoty X bombardments

Page 298: Flames of War - Overlord

Pioneer teams and teams equipped with Gammon Bombs are rated as Tank Assault 3.

\Optional Passenger-fired AA MG or .50 ca] AA MG.

Optional Passenger-fited .50 ca! AA MG.

Optional Passenger-fired .50 cal AA MG, Amphibious.

Optional Passenger-fired .50 ca! AA MG.

Optional Passenger-fired AA MG or .50 cal AA MG.

Passenger-fired.50 cal AA MG.Hull mounted.

oo

4+

Notes

Automatic rifles.

ROF 2 when pinned down.

Full ROF when moving.

Tank assault 4.

Tank assault 4.

oo7

13

ArmourFront Side Top Equipment and NotesROF Anti-tank Firepower

Anti-tank Firepower

1 6

2 6

2 6

1 6

10 5+

10 5+

Jeep

MobilityRange

Wheeled

Wheeled

Standard

ROF

1

1

3

3

Half-tracked

Half-tracked24"/60cm

Range

8"/20cm 1 6 Automatic tifles.

16"/40cm 2 6 Automatic tifles.

16"/40cm 2 6

4"/lOcm 1 6 Full ROF when moving.

8"/20cm 10 5+ Tank assault 4.

4"/10cm 6 Flame-thrower.

16"/40cm 2 6 Automatic rifles, Moves as a Heavy Gun team.

16"/40cm 2 6 Automatic rifles, Immobile.

Range

8"/20cm

16"/40cm

16"/40cm

4"/10cm

8"/20cm

8"/20cm

Mobility Range ROF Anti-tank Firepower Notes

Man-packed 24"/60cm 6 2 6 ROF 3 when Pinned Down or moving.

Man-packed 24"/60cm 2 2 3+ Minimum range 8"/20cm.

40"/l00cm 2 6

TRANSPORT TEAMS '

~DDlTlONAL TRAINING AND EQUIPMENT

~ECOVERYAND ENGINEER VEHICLES

~RMOURED PERSONNEL CARRIERS

M5 high-speed tractor

M31 TRV recovery vehicle Srandard Tank 5 3 0 Recovery vehicle.

32 TRV recovery vehicle Standard Tank 6 4 0 .50 caJ AA MG, Recovery vehicle.

Turretless M4 Sherman dozer Srandard Tank 6 4 0 Bulldozer, May assault bunkers.

ID? Bulldozer Very Slow Tank 0 0 0 Bulldozer, May assault bunkers.

Pioneer Supply Truck Wheeled

Rioneer Supply Handcart Wagon

~IDDITIONAL TRAINING AND EQUIPMENT

lliFANTRY

~- - - - ---=--- -- -~ ~- - ----=--= ---~-~- -

, FFI ARSENAL---~~-- ~ -- ~ - ~-~= ----~ ~-~---- --

.. Jeep or Jeep with Trailer

odge %-ton, Dodge I'I2-ton, GMC 2'12-ton,

or 2Yz-ton Dump truck

Page 299: Flames of War - Overlord

US Field Drab (873)Alternate trousers

US Tan Earth (874)Camo colour

Brown Violet (887)Vehicles, towed guns, equipment

Khaki (988)Jacket

Khaki (988)Anklets

Black (950)Gas mask bag

Flat Brown (984)Boots

US Dark Green (893)u'ousers

Flat Flesh (955)Exposed skin.

US Dark Green (893)Assault vest

Flat Brown (984)Helmet strap

~OO%

Beige Brown (875)Rifle wood

All colours listed are fromthe Vallejo Model Colorrange available from FlamesO/War stockists.

All US vehicles were paintedin overall olive drab (BrownViolet). Many of the tankslanding on D-Day had ad­ditional camouflage of broadirregular tan earth stripesrunning across the vehicle.The Allied star was paintedon the top and side of almostevery vehicle. Tanks couldhave stars on the turret, thehull, or both. Many tanksalso had a star painted on thefront transmission housing aswell. Names and registrationnumbers on the sides of thehull complet<; rh ir markings..

~... !"':'l

Brown Violet (887)Helmet

Green Grey (886)Rifle sling

Gunmetal (863)Gun metal

Green Grey (886)Webbing

Page 300: Flames of War - Overlord

GLIDER TROOPS UNIFORM

Helmet: Brown Violet (887), Jacket: Khaki (988). Webbing/Gaiters: Green Grey(886). Trousers: US Field Drab (873). Boots/Helmet Strap: Flat Brown (984).

bribed his unit parachute rigger to sew patches over theelbows and knees. The material commonly used for this wascotton duck from old parachute packs and was olive drab incolour (US Dark Green 893).

After the US airborne forces were withdrawn from Normandythey were refitted and brought back up to strength ready forthe next mission. This included the Widespread issue of thebrand new M 1943 olive drab uniform to the veterans ofthe 82nd and 101st divisions. This wasn't just a paratroopuniform but the beginning of the US Army's push to stand­ardize the combat uniform. All airborne units received theM1943 uniform, even the glider troops, but the paratrooperswere q'uick to modifY theirs by adding bigger leg pockets.

The new airborne divisions arriving fresh from the Statesalready wore this new uniform and it was the uniform seendropping from the sky, or climbing out of a glider, duringMarket Garden in Holland and Varsity over the Rhine andinto Germany proper.

Helmet: Brown Violet (887), Camo - Khaki (988)

Vehides/Guns/Binoculars/Grenades: Brown Violet (887)

Uniform: 50/50 mix ofKhaki (988)1 Green Grey (886)

Webbing/Backpack: Green Grey (886)

Gloves: Desert Yellow (977)

Boots/Blade Handle/Holsters: Flat Brown (984)

Skin: Flat Flesh (955)

Rifle Butt/Entrenching Tool: Beige Brown (875)

Rifle Barrel/SMG/Machine Guns: Gunmetal Grey (863)

The gliderborne troops wore basic US infantry uniform of the RifleCompanies. The only allowance for airborne duties was the issue of jumpboots to some fortunate troopers, other than that you can paint your glidertroops as ordinary infantrymen in the M1941 uniform.

The Paratroopers taking part in combat jumps in NorthAfrica, Sicily, Italy and Normandy wore this uniform andven one battalion that jumped during "Market Garden" inolland was still wearing this uniform. This uniform was

made from light cottOn that was a pale greenish-tan colour.r>ue to the vagaries of the manufacturing process the shadecould vary greatly.

Being made from lightweight cottOn, the knees and elbowstended to wear out quickly so many an airborne trooper

:-------~----~~~~~

1942 variation 1. (A) Brown Violet 887 shading colour, followed by CB) 50/50 mix of Khaki 988/Green Grey 886 basiccolour. Cc) Highlight by mixing a little White 951 into the second step colour. CD) Completed uniform.

e hrst combat uniform issued to US airborne troopers,the M1942, was purpose designed for airborne troops by

aj. Williarn Yarborough (who was also the designer of theS Airborne parachute wings). The design included features

,uch as pockets cur on the diagonal to allow easy access while:w aring webbing equipment and large, expanding, bellowssgrle leg pockets that became a trademark of the wartimeUS airborne trooper. The M1942 uniform was used only byparatroopers and wasn't issued to glider troops.

elow you'll find a comprehensive painting/uniform guide to help you get your Parachute Rifle and Glider Rifleplatoons into action with the correct colours as soon as possible.

11';

Page 301: Flames of War - Overlord

ocBA

A

A

M1942 variation 2. (A) Brown Violet 887 shading colour, followed by (B) Green Brown 879 basic colour. (C) Highlight w·thKhaki 988. (D) Completed uniform.

M1943. (A) German Camo Dark Green 979 shading colour followed by (B) Dark Green 893 basic coat. (C) Highlight byadding a small amount of Green Grey 886 into the basic colour. (D) Completed uniform.

HELMETS AND EQUIPMENT

Helmet. (A) Brown Violet 887 base coat. (B) Camo strips Khaki 988, followed by a light dry brush of Green Grey 886 (C).Equipment. Grenades (D), bazookas (E), guns, binoculars and vehicles Brown Violet 887.

SKIN TONE

Webbing. (A) Khaki 988 shading colour, followed by (B) Green Grey 886. Boots. (C) Flat Brown

Gloves. (C) Shading colour Beige Brown 875, basic colour Desert Yellow 977.

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