Combat Mission: Barbarossa to Berlin

Scenarios, Operations and AAR's

Download Playtested Scenarios for CMBB

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Izyium Diet Plan - The highly volatile period from early 1942 to late 1943 featured a large amount of combat between Kharkov and the Sea of Azov in southern Russia, with powerful offensives and defeats on both sides.  The action depicted here was part of a larger Russian offensive that begin on May 12th, 1942 and raged along the Donets River for much of the war. Russian Lt. General Gorodniansky's 6th Army massed on the northwest corner of the "Izyum Bulge" and was given the task of smashing through the combined German and Hungarian lines, driving northwest to Velikaya Bereka and paving the way for a massed Tank Corps in the second wave to push through and continue on to Kharkov. The Germans did a masterful job of weakening portions of their defenses and moving the forces to key parts of the battlefield. Heavy counterattacks by the 3rd Panzer Division shocked the advancing 13th Guards Rifle Division of the Soviets. This scenario depicts a clash between the 3rd Panzer Division and the 13th Guards on May 15th.

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Early Wittmann - On April 5th of 1937, Michael Wittmann joined the Number 1 Sturm 92nd Standarte of the elite Leibstandarte Adolph Hitler. He had recently left the Army and felt that the SS offered better opportunities for him. In late 1937 he received training on the Sd.Kfz.222 light armored car and shortly thereafter on the Sd.Kfz.232 6-wheeled armored car. In September of 1939 Wittmann was placed in command of an Sd.Kfz 232 in the scout platoon of LSSAH and took part in the Polish campaign.  In February of 1940, Wittmann was transferred into the newly formed SS-Sturm-Batterie (assault gun battery) of LSSAH and was equipped with the Sturmgeschutz Ausf A. Wittmann's panzer career began to take off with campaigns in the Balkans (Yugoslavia and Greece). In Greece Wittmann became a platoon commander.  In June 1941 Wittmann was moved to the Russian front. On July 12th Wittmann received the Iron Cross for valor, and in September was awarded the Panzer Assault Badge for destroying six Russian tanks in a single fight.  Wittman fought in various types of Stug assault guns until June of 1942. This fight takes place in April of 1942 and is meant to depict the type of fighting Wittman's unit was involved in before he fought in the Tiger.

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Absolut Panic - Partisan activity has increased even as the Germans have continued their advance into Russia. In some areas huge fights erupt as the Germans attempt to force their supplies through and the Soviets are just as determined to stop them.  Elements of the famed Grossdeutchland Infantry Division have been pulled off of the line to attack a Partisan held enclave.  Little do they know what the Partisans have in store for them.  This small, 13+ turn attack was designed for the "Triad of Evil" tournament at the Band of Brothers wargaming club.  Extensively playtested, the more experienced player should attack as Axis.

 

Just released in the Stalingrad Pack:

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6th Army Probe - Stalingrad. The name today conjures up history books and television documentaries and not a few movies. Entire armies of men were ground to powder; at the end in the bitterest of winters over 90,000 emaciated Germans surrendered into a future of death and captivity. Only 6000 would return.  In the summer of 1942, however, Stalingrad was simply the next stop on the road to total domination of Russia by the attacking Axis forces. Two German Armies, the 6th and the 4th, were positioning themselves for an attack on a mid sized industrial town on the Volga known as Stalingrad.  In late August of 1942 elements of the 6th Army were ready to begin the assault. The Luftwaffe began to bomb the city night and day and several strong probing attacks were pushed toward the city.  On August 26th, elements of the 16th Panzer Division and the 60th Infantry Division (motorized) began a probe into the factory heavy industrialized northwest sector of the city.

 

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My City of Ruins - October 1942 featured some of the most savage fighting of World War 2. General von Paulus fed division after division into the meat grinder of the city. At one point the Germans held almost 90% of the city, but at a loss rate of one division EVERY FIVE DAYS they were unable to sustain the fight. Late October was the high water mark of the German assault; soon a giant Russian counterattack would drive the Germans on the defensive and eventually lead to the encirclement and destruction of von Paulus' forces.  This battle depicts a German assault on the center of town, supported by armor and rocket artillery support. The Soviets are spread thin, short of supplies and ammunition and barely holding on. They cannot afford to let the Germans succeed in this assault. 

 

Soon to be released through Boots & Tracks:

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Taking the Train - It is summer, 1942 and the Russians are falling back before the Axis onslaught. Sevastopol is still fighting, but about to fall, and on the open steppes Field Marshall Fedor von Bock is preparing to hurl a combined force of 89 Divisions into an assault designed to take the Germans all the way to the Caucasus mountains. There is a lull in the fighting as each side pauses to regroup; both sides are now conducting aggressive patrolling and reconnaissance operations. While this goes on, the Russians are frantically bringing up reinforcements with their train system. Often, these reinforcement trains are escorted by armored trains, some sporting turrets and machine gun bunkers like giant tanks.

There is a sense of expectancy in the air...

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The Christmas Battle - 1941 was a very good year for the Axis forces. Cutting deep into the heart of Russian territory, the only thing that slowed the Axis advance was the onset of winter. Seizing the opportunity, the Russians staged a series of counterattacks with the goal of retaking some of their lost territory while their enemy was paralyzed by the cold.  The men of the Italian 3rd Celere Division were arguably the best division sized force ever fielded by the Italians during World War 2. After months of fighting side by side with the Germans, the 3rd Celere had earned the grudging respect of every Axis commander. Tough, courageous and resolute these soldiers had proved their mettle time and time again, but they were not prepared for the Russian winter. As temperatures plunged well below zero, the 3rd Celere found itself without proper clothing and equipment. Italian vehicles would not start, the lubricating oil used in their weapons congealed into a bumpy, frozen mass and they shivered in their summer issue fatigues.  The Division took shelter in a defensive line of houses in several small villages. As they huddled around campfires sharing what warmth was available, temperatures plunged to almost -50 degrees Celsius amid heavy, driving snow. It was at this moment that the Soviets struck hard. From the area of Nikitino, the Soviet 135th Rifle Corps' troops emerged and attacked up and down the line. As desperate fighting raged, the following Soviet tanks and cavalry threw themselves into the battle. The Germans stripped their lines and sent all available forces to help, but less than half of the 10th Panzer Division's vehicles would even start.