Strategy In 'Bitter Victory'
Scenario One: 'Operation Husky'
Part 3: 'By the Skin of Our . . . '
By Doug McNair
December 2006

General Patton gets one more chance to break out and race Monty to Messina in today’s installment of my Bitter Victory replay.

As night fell on July 14th, 1943, two of General Montgomery’s tank brigades were spearheading a drive west from the beaches south of Syracuse that has pushed Axis forces to the banks of the river south of Catania. The German positions along the river are weak, and Montgomery’s southern flank has linked up with the Americans. But Patton’s advance from the southern beaches has gained little ground. He made a bold effort on Turn 2, sending his just-landed 2nd Armored Division north to attack the Hermann Göring Division head-on. But the Germans made an orderly withdrawal north to Piazza Armerina, leaving Patton’s forces reduced and his western flank dangerously exposed to the now full-strength Italian 4th Motorized Division and the twice-as-powerful German 15th Mechanized Division.

With both sides operating with an exposed left flank, whoever gets the initiative on Turn 3 will have a chance to inflict crushing damage on the enemy. The battle for Sicily continues. . . .

Turn 3: July 15 – 17

Initial Segment: The weather clears, so both sides get their full air power allotment, which is one point for the Axis and three points for the Allies (they control four Sicilian airfields now, but two of those are too close to Axis units to fly in fuel and other airbase supplies without danger from flak).

The Allied player rolls on the replacements table and gets one U.S. infantry replacement — a very good thing for Patton’s battered forces. He uses it to bring 2nd Mechanized Division’s infantry regiment back up to full strength so they can have another go at Göring’s men.

The Americans land two supply point markers on their LSTs at and east of Gela, and the British land supply point markers on all three of their LSTs at and south of Syracuse. The Americans leave their remaining LST and Port counter open to receive reinforcements and move away from the exposed American left flank.

The German 4th Fallschirmjäger Regiment flies into the airbase just across the river from where 3rd Fallschirmjäger is holding the line against Montgomery’s northern advance. The 2nd Mechanized Infantry Regiment of the Hermann Göring Division arrives in Messina, meaning Patton must destroy the division’s other two regiments at Piazza Armerina before the third can link up with them and double their combat strength through divisional integrity.

Happy for the help but still worried about Monty breaking out, the Axis player rolls for optional reinforcements and hits the jackpot with a 6. Both regiments of the Italian 135th Armored Division arrive at Messina. This unexpected commitment of extra defense forces drops the Italian victory point total by 10VPs (–23 total), but it does a lot to bolster the Axis’ chances of keeping Montgomery from crossing the river and taking Catania (which would be a blow to Italian morale).

For their part, the Allies receive the Canadian 1st Tank Brigade (reduced strength) and the American 39th Infantry Regiment as reinforcements. They keep the Canadians in the Units Available box since all LSTs in the British zone are busy taking in supplies, but the Americans land the 39th on their LST just east of Licata. Per scenario instructions, the British must withdraw the 40th and 41st Commando Battalions, but that does little to reduce their reserves at Ragusa.

Finally, the Allies pull their Port counter out of the exposed American left flank at Licata and relocate it to the British-controlled major port at Augusta (just northwest of Syracuse). Having a Port counter there will greatly increase British supply and reinforcement intake capacity. Patton will have to hope he can secure his left flank and flip his LST counter at Gela to its Port side to increase his own intake capacity.

This is the first turn that all units must check supply status. The British and Americans spend one supply point counter each to put their HQs in combat supply. They then put Out of Supply markers on all units outside their HQs’ range. All British units are within range of their HQ and are supplied, but the American units of the extreme left and right are out of range and unsupplied. Lots of Axis units are unsupplied since it’s a big island and there are only two Axis HQs, but the just-arrived German and Italian reinforcements are supplied and can move at full speed to join the battle.

The Allies don’t want to plan any amphibious landings with just one reduced-strength tank brigade in the Units Available box, so the players go straight to putting chits in the cup. All HQ chits go in plus the Allied AMPH/PARA chit.

The first drawn is:

Italian XII Corps: This is worst-case scenario for Patton. The full-strength Italian 4th Motorized and German 15th Mechanized divisions charge out of the hills and smash into Patton’s exposed left flank, two hexes southwest of Piazza Armerina. Both Axis divisions have divisional integrity, and with some extra support their attack on the American 15th and 30th Infantry Regiments is at 5-1 odds.

The Axis player rolls a 5, meaning three hits on the Americans to one on the Axis. An Italian recon unit dies (–2VPs), a U.S. infantry regiment takes a step loss, and the Americans have a very tough choice to make. They can satisfy the remaining two hits by retreating two hexes, but that would let both Axis divisions advance two hexes. The German 15th Mechanized could move right into Patton’s rear and become the anvil to Hermann Göring Division’s hammer, while Italian 4th Motorized could keep pursuing the fleeing Americans. No good.

Holding their ground would force the Americans to take two more step losses, wiping out one of their regiments and leaving the other weakened and not exerting ZOC, so one Axis division could run around it to hit the LSTs on the beach while the other destroys it with an overrun attack. No good either.

The Americans split the difference and take a second step loss (leaving both regiments reduced), and then retreat one hex southeast to maintain the ZOC line guarding the beaches from German attack. German 15th Mechanized crosses the river from the west and advances into hex 0518, and in the Mechanized Movement Phase it overruns the Americans.

If the overrun wipes the Americans out, the Italian 4th can exploit the breach and move down to threaten the LSTs on the beach. The Germans overrun the Americans at 3-1 odds . . . and the Americans hold! The Germans roll a 2, which means no hits on either side, so they have to retreat back to the hex where they came from and stay there.

Instead of following the Germans into the breach, the Italians turn around and drive southwest through Caltanisetta and Canicatti to pin down the three American infantry regiments still on the beaches around Licata. There are now three Axis divisions strung out along the American left flank . . . but it’s holding!

Italian XVI Corps: The other Axis HQ activates, and the Axis defenders make an orderly retreat across the river south of Catania. More units move in to establish a strong river defense, including the just-arrived Italian 135th Armored Division, which takes up position on the coast just south of Catania. In the Mechanized Movement Phase, the last regiment of Hermann Göring Division joints its brethren at Piazza Armerina, and the Axis line is just about as strong as it can be. . . .

U.S. II Corps: Patton activates. He’d really hoped the 82nd would have airdropped that damn regiment behind Axis lines by now, but he’s gonna play the hand he’s been dealt. Even with three Axis divisions breathing down his left, holding position is not an option!

Patton does the ol’ switcheroo, telling his infantry and commandos to get the hell out of the way so he can attack the bastards northwest of Caltagirone. Most of the battered grunts move south and west to reinforce the American left flank (a commando unit stays behind to screen for the attack), and then Patton’s tankers move one hex southeast (out of Göring Division’s ZOC), then one hex northeast — right into the hex the commandos just left!

Second Armored attacks the weakest point in the Axis line: two Italian recon regiments, the Brac motorized infantry regiment, and the German 504th Heavy Tank Battalion. After all modifiers the attack goes in at 5-1 odds, and Patton gets a 1/2 result. The American commando unit dies (+3 VPs), but so does an Italian recon unit (–2 VPs), which means the Italians have now lost eight units and get a further penalty on their morale roll (meaning more than just coastal divisions can surrender now). The three remaining Axis units retreat one hex northwest, Patton advances northeast to hold the door open for the Brits.

British XIII Corps: The Brits give Patton a cheer as they flood in behind him (Monty’s back at HQ so he has plausible deniability). Six infantry brigades and the 4th Tank Brigade surge across and around the river behind him and hit the fleeing Axis units from the west and southeast simultaneously. The Canadians come up from the south to link up with 23rd Tank Brigade and hit the next Italian position northeast on the river line, and four more infantry brigades move opposite the two Fallschirmjäger regiments at the airfield northwest of Lentini while the Royal Navy gathers off Catania.

The main British attack on the fleeing German goes in at 6-1 odds after all mods, and rolls a 3, scoring two unanswered hits! Preserving the ability to exert ZOC is all important to the Axis now, so the German heavy tank battalion dies (–4 VPs) and the remaining Italian regiments retreat northwest across the river and maintain the line.

Three British infantry brigades and the 4th Tank Brigade advance into the vacated hex. Then 23rd Tank Brigade and the Canadians attack the two Italian regiments across the minor river just to the east. The 4-1 odds attack rolls a 2, scoring one hit per side. The Italians cannot afford to give ground — that would breach the river line and give the Allies the back road to Catania — so the two-step 108th Motorized Infantry regiment takes a step loss, as does a Canadian regiment.

The British have used up all their air and supply points supporting attacks, and the Fallschirmjäger-held airfield is outside battleship range, so the northern British units decide to hold the line rather than attack. With Axis ZOC still intact in the center of their line, the British tank brigades can’t advance in the Mechanized Movement Phase. Monty joins his front-line units (putting him two hexes closer to Messina than Patton), and . . .

AMPH/PARA: The airborne units finally decide to join the party. British 2nd Airborne Brigade drops on target into hex 1123, right behind the Fallschirmjägers and the Italian 135th Mechanized Division manning the northeast end of the river line. It doesn’t take damage from drop disruption, so it will be in a position to outflank the river line next turn.

Then the American 504th drops on target into hex 0821, which was behind Axis lines before Patton’s switcheroo — but is now right on top of an advancing British infantry brigade just to Patton’s right, and (even worse) in full view of Monty! General Montgomery sends the paratrooper colonel his compliments, the brigadier offers him a cup of tea, and Patton sends him an invitation to a tongue-lashing.

All chits have been drawn, so the turn ends with Patton having just barely held off an overwhelming flank attack while executing a right hook to the Axis center. With British help he pushed back the Axis line but it just barely held, at a huge cost in lost units (the Axis VP total is now –28).

With the Axis center and the Allied left weak and battered, whoever gets initiative next turn will have a chance to smash through enemy lines and drive deep into their rear. Who will it be? The answer awaits in our next action-packed episode!

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