75th Anniversary of the Battle of Monte Cassino and Northern Italy (Gaming The Battles)

It’s time to stop the history lessons and start gaming some of the battles. For our first battle, we will look at the US 36th (Texas) Infantry Division’s ill fated crossing of the Garigliano. The assault started on the 20th January 1944 and lasted several days before the 36th was withdrawn due to the high casualty rate. The 36th had seen a lot of action since arriving in Italy having been heavily involved in the Salerno beach landings as well as the costly assault on San Pietro Infine less than six weeks earlier.

Let’s look at the forces which were drawn from Fortress Italy and Road to Rome supplement books from Battlefront. We’ll be using the Flames of War 4th Edition rules for the battle

15th PanzerGrenadiers

            HQ including Panzerschreck team

            3 Platoons of PanzerGrenadiers

                            (Platoon command and 6 teams)

            12cm Mortar Team

                            (4 teams/mortars plus spotter)

            2 HMG Nests

            3 Panzer IV (held in reserve)

In addition to the above, all infantry teams are within trenches/fortifications. Tank traps block the road while barbed wire entanglements are positioned in land from the banks of the river.

Minefields have been placed along parts of the river edge.

US 36th Infantry Division

            HQ (SMG teams)

            2 Assault Platoons (1 held in reserve)

                            (Cmd team, 4 rifle teams, 2 flame thrower teams)

            5 Rifle Platoons (3 held in reserve)

                            (Cmd team, 6 rifle teams and a bazooka team)

            Support Weapons Platoon

                            (4 60mm mortar teams, 4 MG teams)

            Pioneer/Engineer Platoon

                            (Cmd team and 6 teams of engineers)

In addition to the above, Sherman tanks on the other side of the river are providing some fire support. In game terms, this is represented by a total of 3 shots from a Sherman each round, firing at long range. If the Engineer Platoon completes the pontoon bridge during the game, the Shermans can join the battle.

The Battlefield

I’ve created some pictures of the battlefield to supplement the photos. In the images, North is at the top. The River Garigliano runs along the bottom with the black line being the dirt road.

On the left (West) the grey box is a barn with stone walls behind. The brown lines are hills while the red boxes are minefields.

Grey boxes marked OOO are barbed wire and those marked TTT and tank traps.

Game Rules:

To try to recreate the battlefield more accurately, we will introduce the following rules and victory conditions.

German

The 15th PanzerGrenadiers have had time to dig in and prepare their defences. All infantry platoons start the game within trenches offering concealment and bullet proof cover all around.

The defenders have been able to mine the river banks and can place 4 8”by2” minefields anywhere along the river bank.

The 3 Panzer IV tanks must be placed into reserve. They can only enter the battlefield if it is Turn 4 or later AND at least one of the trenches have been overrun by US forces. The tanks must enter the battlefield using the road on the German side of the battlefield. This represents the limited number of tanks available and to only be committed to plug gaps in the line.

The German forces have been subject to a significant artillery and mortar bombardment prior to the battle commencing. All German forces start the game pinned down.

Victory Conditions: 1 VP is awarded for each US Platoon destroyed or withdrawn from the battlefield

US

The 36th Infantry Division are trying to create a bridge head. To assist in this, they need to build pontoon bridges to allow the supporting armour to cross the river. The Engineer platoon is tasked with building the bridge and at the start of each movement phase may elect to commit any number of teams to the task. For each team committed, a dice is rolled with any result of a 6 adding one to the bridge score. Once the score reaches 9, a bridge is in place.

Engineer teams that move or are not within 2” of the river cannot assist in building a pontoon bridge. Teams building a pontoon bridge cannot shoot. If the platoon is pinned, half the number of dice to be rolled, rounding down.

Due to the fast flowing river water and the difficulty in crossing while under fire, US deployment is randomly determined by rolling dice. The table edge is 5’ in length and a first dice is rolled to determine which foot, measured from the US left flank, the platoon arrives, with a roll of 6 allowing the US player to choose exactly where the platoon can arrive. If the result is 1-5, randomly determine which inch of the foot the cmd team should be placed. The rest of the platoon must be placed in base contact evenly around the cmd team no more than two teams deep, spreading out along the bank as necessary.

The 36th receives 3 shots per round from the supporting Sherman tanks on the far side of the river. This is always at long range but there is no limit to how far these guns can fire. It is assumed that the Sherman tanks are dug in and stationery.

Reserves. The US will receive their reserves in the following turns or under the following conditions:

Turn 3: Assault Platoon B with 2nd in Command (AP B & 2iC), Rifle Platoon D (RP D)

Turn 4: Rifle Platoon E with 1st in Command (RP D & 1iC)

Turn 5: Rifle Platoon F

If the Engineers get a total score of 9 on their pontoon bridge score, they can roll for armour reserves. A roll of 6 at the start of any turn results in a Sherman Platoon deploying on the river banks where the bridge is constructed.

Victory Conditions: The US player receives 2VP for completing the Pontoon Bridge, 1VP for each German Trench occupied or overrun. 1VP every turn they hold one of two objectives.

German Deployment

            The Mortars deploy at the back of the board behind a trench line.

            Red Platoon deploys into the barn and trench line beside.

            Black Platoon deploys in the middle

            Green Platoon deploys on the German left flank behind a trench line

            The two HMG nests are positioned slightly further back on the hills between the three PG platoons. The ranges of the HMG are enough to still reach the barbed wire while providing a good degree of overlapping fields of fire

            The spotter deploys on the hill while the 1iC and 2iC HQ teams deploy behind Red and Black Platoons

Key to the image: RP is Red Platoon, BP is Black Platoon and GP Green Platoon. white boxes 1 and 2 are the HMG nests. Box M is the mortar platoon. OP is the observer post for the mortars.

US Deployment

The US have a random deployment along the banks of the river and this results in the following

            Assault Platoon A (AP A) deploys 13” in from the US left flank and partially into a minefield

            Rifle Platoon C (RP C) deploys 17” in from US left flank, partially into a minefield

            Rifle Platoon D (RP D) deploys exactly in the same location as RP C and so will start behind RP C in the river

            Engineers start 49” from US right flank

            Weapons team roll a 6 and choose to position half way along the bank between two minefields.