Fronte Russo Scenario 44
Blackshirts Ambushed
By Ottavio Ricchi
with developer’s commentary by Doug McNair
December 2007

The next in our series of bonus Fronte Russo scenarios from Ottavio Ricchi takes place during the Soviet offensive across the River Don in late August 1942. The Italians put up a spirited defense and launched what counterattacks they could, but the Soviet human waves quickly rushed into every gap that appeared in Axis lines. One attempt to stick a finger in the dike was made by a motorized battalion of the Tagliamento Blackshirts Legion, but it drove straight into an ambush by overwhelming Soviet forces. The Blackshirts made a long, fighting withdrawal and eventually escaped to Italian lines after taking many casualties. Scenario 44 lets players game-out this encounter.

The scenario begins with the Blackshirts about to unload from their trucks, occupy a hill and use it as a strongpoint against the Soviet advance. But unbeknownst to the Blackshirts the Soviets have already arrived, and a Red Army infantry company is dug-in and hidden on the hill while the rest of its regiment is lurking in the woods just to the northwest. The Soviets automatically get initiative on Turn 1 since the Blackshirts have no clue they’re there, and they can call in a massive mortar and artillery barrage before the Blackshirts can do anything. That and the +1 column shift bonus for hitting loaded trucks will likely disrupt (or worse) a few Blackshirt units despite their high morale. The Soviets then will charge out of the woods to engage the Blackshirts, cut behind them and make for the southeast edge of the board so they can exit there and drive farther into Axis lines. Whichever Blackshirts survive the initial barrage in good order need to pull back quickly and unload around the hill in the southeast corner of Board 5. There they’ll need to form a defensive line and dig-in to keep as many Soviets as possible from exiting the board, and then try to withdraw from the board themselves before the end of play to get back to Italian lines. The Soviets have a huge numerical advantage, but the Blackshirts have the benefits of higher morale and superior mobility due to their trucks. The Soviets also have a high VP bar to clear for victory, so the Blackshirts have a shot at stopping the Soviet wave and winning the game IF they can hold morale.

Fronte Russo Scenario 44
Blackshirts Ambushed
21 August 1942

Ten more Soviet battalions crossed the Don overnight, and by August 21 their numbers began to overwhelm the Italians. On CSIR’s left flank, Sforzesca Division’s 53rd Regiment started falling back, and a gap appeared between it and its sister regiment. The Soviets began infiltrating the gap, and the Italians rushed in a motorized column consisting of the 79th Battalion of Tagliamento Legion to plug it.

Note: This scenario uses boards and pieces from Eastern Front.

Game Length: 24 turns
First Turn: 1230
Other: Treat all rivers as gullies (see Fronte Russo special rules). Treat all town hexes as road hexes, and also treat hexes 1101 and 1102 on Board 7 and 0301 on Board 1 as road hexes.

79th Battalion, Tagliamento Blackshirts Legion
Set up first in road hexes 0303 to 0307 on Board 1. All Leaders, INF and HMG units must begin loaded on trucks, and no more than two trucks may set up per hex.
8 x INF (Blackshirt)
2 x HMG (Blackshirt)
10 x Truck

Leaders: 1 x MAG, 1 x CAP, 3 x TEN

Morale: Germans 8/7, Italians 8/6
Initiative: 4
Off-Map Artillery: none

610th Regiment, 203rd Rifle Division
Set up second, in hill hexes on Board 4. All units and leaders may set up dug-in and hidden (16.6).
2 x INF
1 x HMG

Leader: 1 x LT

Set up second, in woods hexes on Board 6.
18 x INF
6 x HMG
3 x SMG
3 x ATR
4 x 82mm
1 x RECON

Leaders: 1 x LT COL, 1 x MAJ, 2 x CAP, 4 x LT, 1 x KOM

Initiative: 4
Morale: 7/6
Off-Map Artillery: 2 x 10

Special Rules
1. Italian initiative decreases by one for every 4 steps lost (trucks don’t count).

2. Soviet initiative decreases by one for every 5 steps lost.

3. The Soviets automatically get initiative by two activations on Turn 1 (do not roll for initiative). Roll for initiative normally from Turn 2 onward.

4. Units of both sides can exit the east edge of Board 5 on or south of the road, or the south edge of Board 5 at or east of the gully. They can do this at any time and are not considered eliminated if they do so. However, the area off the edge is not considered “safe” hexes, and demoralized units cannot flee off the edge.

Victory Conditions
Each player scores 1 victory point for each enemy step eliminated (trucks don’t count), and 1 VP for each friendly step that exits the board per Special Rule 4 by the end of play (trucks don’t count). The Soviet player wins if he or she scores at least three times as many VPs as the Italian player. Any other result is an Italian victory.

Conclusion
The Soviets infiltrated the gap far faster than the Italians had anticipated. The Blackshirts made for a hill with the intent of digging-in there, but they discovered it already was occupied by Soviets when the two lead platoons had to bail out of their trucks due to heavy machine-gun fire. The Blackshirt commander ordered his troops to press forward and take the hill, but he soon found his right flank under attack by more Soviets and even more Soviets moving to cut his retreat. He ordered a withdrawal and the Blackshirts retreated in good order, giving as good as they got. Eventually they found a good defensive position and dug-in, but the Soviet infiltration continued. That night the Blackshirt commander determined (correctly) that his unit was isolated, and ordered his men to break contact with the enemy and reach friendly lines. 79th Battalion escaped under cover of darkness, but the long day’s fighting had decimated its ranks.

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