Yup - Indy and I had a rompin', stompin' match of ASL G42 THE YOUTH'S FIRST BLOOD. Sadly (from the perspective of Canadian pride) history was not altered and the North Nova's and Sherbrooke Fusiliers were badly mauled by the 12th SS. Here're the salient points as I remember them, I trust Indy will chime in with his remarks.
[In case you're wondering, I had the German side]
0. The platoon sets up on the north edge of town, ready to fall back pronto. The MMG is not in the steeple but a HS with two "?" is, to make it look like the MMG's therein. The MG's are set up to lay FL through the east (MMG) and west (LMG) grainfields towards the roads.
1a. Four Stuarts with Riders on board 16, t'other on board 33. Rest of the North Novas up the middle. Some blood spilled but nothing obviously catastrophic.
1b. German pulback begins.
2a. More pushing and shoving in the town. German regulars, except for a couple of death-dealing HSs, start to crack. Two Stuarts unload their Riders at the small clump of buildings on Board 33. Kurt Meyer (OBO) zeroes the SR on them.
2b. Pz IVs split five board 16, five board 33. Infantry up the middle. OBO FFE Shocks a Stuart and irritates the infantry. SS enter with no casualties.
3a. Reinforcements enter north edge of 16 [EXC: SFCP enters on board 10]. Except for HS in steeple, German presence in Authie virtually extinguished. DFPh starts payback time as both Stuarts on Board 33 brew up and a third, containing the 8-1 AL also gets wrecked. The FFE chases the infantry guarding the crossroards on 33.
3b. OBA breaks the infantry on board 33 and the panzers surge forward. The board 16 panzers swing onto board 10 to help the panzergrenadieren. Lone Stuart facing this lot kicks into Motion.
4a/b. The wind suddenly kicks up, blowing from the west. One Firefly, containing the 9-2, heads through Authie to the Boards 10/33 zone to cover the Board 33 wheatfield; 9-2 gets it in the shoulder from the German sniper. T'other Firefly works its way around the north end of Authie; the Sherman V sits tight in the northern grainfield of board 16. The penultimate Stuart blows up. Kurt Meyer switches the 100+ OBA to the centre of Authie. Ex-Riders on board 33 are hunted down and routed off the edge of the world. The 9-2's Firefly gets swarmed and blows up after taking a 75 mm round up the wazoo. The HS hangs on in the steeple. Last Stuart malfs the MA. By this point two Pz IV have done likewise.
5a/b. The SFCP draws a red whilst trying to land a SR next two a PzIV that is just a tad too deep in the wheatfield to see; that was the extent of its OBA activity as it spent most of the remainder of the match broken. Firefly takes up blocking position in Authie. Stuart gacks the MA and scarpers; both Pz IV repair their MA. Mad dash to satisfy one of the three VP by exitting > 4 AFV off north edge prior to turn 6 leaves one Pz IV on board 33 with a thrown track and another burning in front of the smoke-engulfed Firefly. Meyer's OBA continues to fall in Authie...smoke all over the place...action confused.
Turn 6 further dooms the Canucks as the Firefly gets slammed and panzers swarm behind the North Novas.
Turn 7 sees the Novas withdraw but the Germans have sufficient armour to satisfy the +31 Exit VP - towel thrown-in.
Brent Pollock