Invasion 1944:
Scenario Preview, Part Three
By Mike Bennighof, Ph.D.
May 2021

The Playbook format seems to suit Panzer Grenadier: Invasion 1944 very well. It’s actually an oversized book, 25% longer than our usual book, but that lets us fit all of the rules and the scenarios under the same cover. With two maps and a full sheet of pieces (including markers) plus the needed charts, is a really fine package and we’re about to unveil similar games for two other series.

But like any other Panzer Grenadier game, its heart is its scenario set. Let’s take a look at some more of them.

In the Bocage
The 29th Infantry Division had managed to clear the beaches and now entered into a 25-square-mile patch of thickets, sunken lanes, forest and the Norman hedgerows described earlier. Their objective was the crossroads town of St. Lo, scheduled to be captured on June 15th (D + 9). Given the progress they had made so far, it didn’t seem like it would take too long to get there.

For the next ten days, the men would advance, haltingly, a field at a time, always looking for the Germans to break and being disappointed when they didn’t. The terrain swallowed both the division and their opponents whole. No matter how far the 29th advanced there was always another field to take and towards the end of the week and a half, the Germans were showing up behind the division, having used the terrain and nighttime to good effect.

Allied planners had ample warning of the difficulty of the terrain in Normandy. In addition to French sources, several British units had withdrawn through Normandy in 1940 and had first-hand experience with the bocage country. Indeed, the withdrawal through Normandy had been relatively uneventful as the terrain, combined with the pending surrender of France, had led to a lightly-pressed retreat.

As the Allies contemplated returning to Normandy, frequent air reconnaissance portrayed a bucolic pastoral setting of fields surrounding by hedges. Once on the ground the reality pointed to anything but a pleasant farmland. General Joe Collins, brought to Europe after fighting the Japanese in the Pacific, likened the bocage to the jungles on Guadalcanal. There were no doubters amongst the 29th.

SCENARIO SEVEN
Saving the Supplies
9 June 1944
With the Allies dominating the air over Normandy, any German movement during daylight became dangerous. This situation along with the Allied advances on the ground greatly disrupted the German supply chain. The 352nd Infantry Division was already unable to provide adequate food and ammunition to its front-line troops and now the supply depot at La Foret was threatened. As the “Dandy Fifth” (the U.S. 175th Infantry Regiment) raced forward, a German battle group of stragglers and rear-echelon troops struggled to delay them until the few supplies they had could be moved.

Conclusion
The makeshift battle group managed to save most of the supplies by holding off the Americans for several hours before slipping away. Anything they could not move was destroyed instead of allowing it to fall into enemy hands. The crater left behind by the German engineers was big enough to park three trucks side by side at the bottom. While not listed in the marketing material for “Cerisy La Foret”, a pleasant modern-day inn in the area, a visit to the crater is almost certainly possible today. La Foret is nearly 2/3 of the way from Omaha Beach to St. Lo. Things seemed to be opening up for the Americans after a very tough four days.

Notes
This is one of those odd scenarios we like to throw into every Panzer Grenadier game. The Germans are trying to escort a supply convoy of both trucks and wagons off the map; the Americans want to stop them and shoot it all up. The Americans have numbers and they have tanks, but the Germans only need to hold out long enough to get their cases of schnapps safely away.

SCENARIO EIGHT
An Ominous Sign
13 June 1944
This is the same scenario as Intro-Two, with some more flags and whistles added for extra fun.
 
SCENARIO NINE
Stonewalled
16 June 1944
The Stonewallers made excellent progress during the morning of the 16th, with the 1st Battalion advancing over a mile by noon. The 2nd Battalion was fighting around the village of La Luzerne while the 3rd Battalion was already putting pressure on Villiers-Fossard. With the 3rd Battalion of the 175th cutting the St. Lo-Isigny highway just outside Les Foulons it looked like the enemy defenses were finally broken. It was an illusion as the enemy had prepared a surprise.

Conclusion
The unexpected attack stopped the Stonewallers cold. After a week's fighting the 352nd Infantry Division's chief of operations, Lt. Colonel Fritz Ziegelmann, gave the the American troops of the 29th Division a convoluted, back-handed compliment: “It may not be completely correct to assert that it probably was the inability to attack with courage and bravery which was the cause of the enemy’s failure to execute his operational plan.”

Notes
The Americans are on the attack, and they need to seize their objectives quickly and dig in to hold them, because a bunch of German paratroopers are on their way and they are very angry. The Americans start out with a serious edge in numbers and firepower, and they’ll want to use that to chew up the Germans they initially face so they’re not around to help out the airborne.

SCENARIO TEN
A Costly Mistake
16 June 1944
And this scenario is also Intro-Three, once again with some more advanced concepts added.

SCENARIO ELEVEN
Jitters
17 June 1944
On the morning of the 16th the Stonewallers had advanced almost to their objective, the town of St. Andre de-l’Epine. The advance halted outside the town as many of the troops encountered enemy armor for the first time. The 116th’s commander, Col. Charles D.W. Canham, was livid when he discovered that the “enemy armor” blamed for halting the advance totaled two assault guns. “If you allow your unit to bunch up behind a hedgerow and wait for hours you are playing into Jerry’s hand,” he reproached his battalion commanders. “It’s time to get over the jitters and fight like hell.”

Conclusion
Once again the paratroopers proved too much to overcome and they still controlled St. Andre de-l’Epine when darkness fell. Even the commitment of the 115th Infantry Regiment had failed to change the situation on the battlefield despite Canham’s irate insistence. Shot through the wrist several days before, the colonel had refused evacuation and still wore a field dressing as he exposed himself to German fire to inspire his troops forward. “Get your ass out of there,” he screamed at officers cowering under cover, “and show some leadership!”

Notes
In the dense Norman terrain, elite infantry can be very difficult to dig out of their positions, but that’s what the Americans have to do here. They have the numbers and as always the firepower, but the paratroopers aren’t ready to go home just yet. This is going to be a tough fight.

SCENARIO TWELVE
More Jitters
18 June 1944
With his division stalled, Maj. Gen. Charles H. Gerhardt assembled eight artillery battalions (almost 100 guns) to lay down massed fire in front of his regiments. Before the infantry jumped off, six battalions opened up with an intense seven-minute hurricane bombardment of the German positions. Or at least of those places where American observers believed the Germans to be.

Conclusion
Even with the massive artillery support the attack accomplished little except creating even more casualties. “Everyone is done out physically,” reported the executive officer of the 116th’s 1st Battalion. “No leaders left. No reorganization possible.” His boss told Canham that he could not renew the attack because he “had hardly anyone left.” V Corps told Gerhardt to call off the attack, and the front remained quiet for the next two weeks.

Notes
The Americans are back to try again, this time with lots and lots of artillery. It still might not be enough; the Germans are really tough and they have very defensible ground.

Post Script
The two weeks following the landings in Normandy were full of short-lived excitement and ultimate frustration for the American command. Once off the beaches, the absence of significant mobile defenders provided the Americans with the opportunity to advance quickly and provide substantial security and operational depth for the follow-on forces. Their inability to obtain a breakthrough created substantial concern amongst the planners as they watched the expected phase lines (e.g. D+10, D+14, etc.) move farther and farther away from reality as time wore on.

Meanwhile the German commanders facing the Americans were told that the mobile forces necessary to push the Americans back were on the way and would arrive any time now. They just needed to continue to hold in place until those forces could arrive. Somehow, though, those forces either ended up facing the British or strung out along the roads in disorder.

At the end of ten days, St. Lo was tantalizingly close but there simply was no division left with which to attack. Losses had been heavy, but even more telling, commanders were found wanting. There were few, if any second chances in the American Army. If you were found to be less than enthusiastic or exhibited cowardice, incompetence or even cautious hesitation the hook came quickly. While the process was brutal and many decent, good commanders were sacked along with the duds, the result was a much better group of commanders as time went on.

The 29th absorbed their replacements and new commanders starting on the 19th in the middle of a terrible four-day storm. As a result of the storm and events elsewhere it would be nearly a month before the Blue and Gray Division got in the saddle again.

You can order Invasion 1944 right here.

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Mike Bennighof is president of Avalanche Press and holds a doctorate in history from Emory University. A Fulbright Scholar and NASA Journalist in Space finalist, he has published vast numbers of books, games and articles on historical subjects. He lives in Birmingham, Alabama with his wife, three children and his dog, Leopold. Leopold actually wrote most of those.