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"I'm really sorry about your hat Mr Mainwaring"
"That's government property that you've destroyed Pike"
"Uncle Frank said I had to put the dynamite in something Mr Mainwaring"
"Stupid boy"

And with that the pier at Walmington on sea disappeared in a noisy cloudy explosion, with obviously, hilarious consequences.

Cue titles

"Who do you think you are kidding Mr Hitler?"

Dad's Army episode 1 "the Golf Course"

This time Paul and I were going to play using the Chain of Command rules.

Britain was invaded. The King and his family had relocated to Balmoral, the Government to Birmingham.
A desperate line of defence was hastily being constructed just south of London, hoping to stop the Germans advancing from the Kent coast.

Paul had devised an extremely interesting mini campaign.

The Germans needed to capture a large secure landing zone, to help land bigger equipment, and also to repair the pier, so that ships carrying armour could be unloaded. With these objectives in mind, Paul's German Falshirmjaeger platoon was moving to secure the local golf course, so that it could be used as a landing zone.
The course had the sea on one side and the river Stour on the opposite. A line of sand dunes lined the seaward side of the course.
The Germans quickly moved onto the course, 2 sections on their right, and the final section behind the sand dunes on their left.
The Home Guard then moved 1 section on my left, 1 in the centre, and 1 on the right.
The left opened up on the Germans opposite, killing one, so first blood to the British.
A regular section then moved up to support my left.
The Germans responded by opening up , but only managed to cause a couple of points of shock, basically they ducked their heads.
It was at this point that I forgot that that in Chain of Command, there is no max range to weapons, and a Home Guard section dashed out into the open, from the centre towards the right.
The Germans let rip again across the front, killing a couple on my left, and nearly half of the squad out in the open.
Captain Mainwaring came on to command my left flank, the Home Guard section firing, whilst the Regular Army section moved forward. The section caught in the open doubled up and got into cover on my right , where Sgt Wilson was waiting for them. The section on my tight flank moved into the dunes and fired on the Germans they found there. I then managed to bring my sniper forward and placed him on my left flank.
The Germans fired again, smashing into the Army section, and the home guard.
On the German left, the section moved down the dunes and fired at the Home Guard, killing a few.
The sniper fired, hit a target, but failed to cause any casualties.
The survivors of the army section, moved into cover behind a wall, firing as they did so.
On my right the section in the dunes, withdrew to cover behind the dunes, an MMG team setting up to cover them. They managed to fire before I had taken too many casualties, and my platoon withdrew, leaving the golf course to the Germans.

You have been watching.....
With the Home Guard in retreat to regroup, Leutnant Springen takes a view of Princes Golf course where he hopes the long fairways and beach will enable some glider landings to bring additional support.

He takes stock of his men. His first squad took the brunt of the Regulars Bren fire and four of them will continue with some minor field dressings in place that wont stop them fighting. Their squad leader Obergefreiter Ebene was not so lucky, he got hit two or three times and though his wounds are minor he still needs to recover for a few hours. Soldat Kabelbaum gets a field promotion to lead the squad until he returns.

By now Springen is hoping the rest of their support cannisters have been found and opened, he wants the 80mm mortars and observer available to provide supporting fire, but when he checks on available support, he learns some of the kit landed in the river and some is floating on the tide. Shisten... ...and the reserve platoon recalls its loaned squad to help with the search. That's ten men less to push on with. Then again he hadn't wanted to shell the fairways, with his own handicap in single figures these courses look good for a game once controlis established. Oh to be back at the bank! (He was a bank manager on civy street...)

Advancing ahead there is another golf course to clear, St Georges, more relatively open terrain to cross, but this time in the distance is a club-house and some prepared defensive positions - outposts. These are likely to prove more tricky. Hmm... Prepared defences and a squad down for this advance, a double challenge for Springen...

Still, if he can get through this, he can rely on additional support to arrive to help with the assualt on their main defences.

"Zey do haf main defences don't zey...? After ze Pioneers arrive and fix ze pier, ze final mission iss to take zis Valmington Castle... Hah, stupid Inglanter, iz probably just name of ein public houzen... commander play joke on poor Springen, it is just celebration beer-fest, ha!"
Having withdrawn to the nearby St George's golf course, it was time to dig in, and reorganise.
Captain Mainwaring was in a black mood. It had been his order to number 2 section, to strengthen the right flank, that had resulted in the deaths of Armitage, the gravedigger, and Tully, a retired policeman. 5 others were wounded, and had to be evacuated to a first aid post . The section of regulars from the 4th battalion, the Staffordshire Regiment, had also taken the brunt of the enemy fire, and they too were moved to the rear.

It was time to stop the German advance,and as Mainwaring surveyed his surroundings, with the club house and bunkers, this might just be the place to do it.
Scenario 2 - Advance on St Georges Golf Club

[attachment=2170]
Scenario 2, the British defending a golf course club house, the Germans needing to push the Brits further inland, to consolidate their landing zones.

My British force consisted of

Captain Mainwaring Home Guard
2 8 man sections of Home Guard
2 3 man Lewis gun teams
2 10 man sections of Regular infantry

Paul's German force

Lt Springen Fallshirmjaegar
3 10 man sections of Fallshirmjaegar
A 2" mortar team

The Germans deployed in the woods to my left, with the mortar team and a further section behind the sandbar to my front.
I had a regular section, a Lewis gun team and Cpt Mainwaring in the clubhouse. A home guard section behind the clubhouse, and my other Lewis gun team behind the walls to my right . On my right flank I placed Sgt Wilson, with a section of Home Guard and the remaining Regular section.

The Lewis gun team opened up on the woods after seeing movement, the Germans on the receiving end , digging in deeper, and returning fire.
The section Lewis joined in, as this was the only Germans they could see, and this combined fire started to take it's toll , and the Germans started to take casualties.
The German mortar opened up in support, hitting the Lewis gun behind the wall.
The British tried a flanking move on the right, with 2 sections running for the cover of the sand bunkers.
The Germans were quick to see the danger, and the section behind the sandbar moved to intercept, and laid down a withering curtain of fire.
A home guard section were caught in the open, and half were cut down, the remainder panicking , and led by Cpl Jones, ran away.
On the left , the Lewis guns continued to smash led into the woods, their target could only keep their heads down. Another German section, started to move down the track behind the woods, to get into a better firing position on the clubhouse.
On the right Sgt Wilson ran from cover to rally Cpl Jones's survivors, but as he did so, they were hit again by the massive German firepower, wiping out the section, and wounding Wilson.
The regular section in the bunker, returned fire, forcing the Germans to dive into the sandbar for cover.
In the centre mortar fire and the occasional burst from the woods, wiped out the Lewis gun team behind the wall, the other Lewis gun team also taking a casualty from a second enemy section that had pushed nearer through the woods.
The British switched targets to this new threat , and the Germans started to get hit.
A machine gun duel was developing. The German section in the woods, versus the Lewis gun team in the clubhouse, and the section in the sand bunker.
Both German sections in the woods were being whittled down,but they also killed the Lewis gun team.
The British replaced the Lewis gun team with the Bren gun team from the regular infantry .
The section in the bunker were now joined by the wounded Sgt Wilson, and their fire was very accurately taking out the Germans in the woods.
The British then got over confident, and a section of Home guard, and the rifle team of regulars in the clubhouse, tried to outflank the Germans on the left, but took murderous fire as they dashed out into the open, the Homeguard getting wiped out, and the survivors of the regulars returning back into the clubhouse.
The Britsh had been reduced to a regular section in the clubhouse, and another in the bunker. Both had good fire arcs on the Germans.
The Germans now had 3 reduced sections, and was steadily taking casualties.
Lt Springen decided to preserve what was left of his command, and withdrew his forces.

Unfortunately time ran out on us, and we called the game, declaring a draw.
We had both taken lots of casualties, with the Germans taking at least 2 per turn towards the end.
It was a fantastic game, very tactical, trying to get better fire arcs.
A good , dug in position and accurate firepower did result in success, and really caught a realistic approach to the the battle.