The next theme for our weekly WW2 Flames of War games was “Special Operations”. This theme was partly inspired by the “Raids” volume in the “Forgotten Battles” series of scenario books (which we’ve managed to misplace, so this report is entirely from memory…!).
Operation Archery took place on 27 December 1941, and was a British joint operation against German-occupied Norway, featuring sea-borne commandos supported by land-based aircraft. The primary targets of the raid were the fish oil factories located in the town of South Vaagso, on Vaagso Island. (The glycerine derived from fish oil was an important component of munitions.) Secondary targets were the German coastal defenses in the area, as well as any German merchant vessels that were encountered by the Royal Navy. Perhaps more important than the physical objectives was that this operation also served as a “proof of concept” to demonstrate how land, sea, and air forces could make coordinated attacks on German occupied territory, which paved the way for future operations. The psychological impact on the Germans was possibly the most important result of this raid, as they reacted to it by committing many more troops to guard their coastlines.
Here is a link to a contemporay after-action report of the raid:
To achieve victory in the game, the British had to replicate the success of the actual raid. Thus they had to eliminate the German defenders and destroy all the factories plus the signal station, within a very limited number of turns. (The raid had to be concluded quickly due to the time needed to reembark the commandos, along with their wounded, any prisoners, plus any Norwegian civilians who wished to escape to Britain.) Any lesser result would be a German victory.
Our 14 X 5 foot table was laid with the long axis running north-south, and represented the SE corner of Vaagso Island, where the town of South Vaagso is located. The town itself runs most of the length of the table along the coast. The town’s church and two hotels are on the southern end of town, and the remainder of the town is mostly small houses. The targets lie along the waterfront on the eastern side of the town. From south to north, those factories are: the canning factory, the signal station, a fish oil factory, the “red” factory, the power station, a fish oil factory, and the “herring” factory (wow, this town must reek of fish!). Outside of the town, the western side of the table is covered by steep, wooded hills, and a coastal road runs through the town from the NE corner of the table to the SW corner. Although there was snow on the ground at the time of the raid, we opted to use our non-snowy terrain because our figures are not mounted on snow bases.
German Forces and Deployment:
The German defense of South Vaagso consisted of a company of second-line troops billeted in the town. Two of these platoons were deployed in their historical billets — the hotel and the herring factory. We allowed the German players to choose where the third platoon would be billeted, and they split the platoon between the canning factory and the church. The defenders were supported by a mortar battery, plus two heavy machine guns and two light FlaK guns in weapons pits along the coast. A broken-down Pz.II tank was parked in the power station, along with its crew. Fortunately for the defenders, they were stiffened by a platoon of battle-hardened veterans who happened to be there (with their small arms) on leave from the Eastern Front. These “vacationers” were quartered in some houses in the center of town. Other than the HMG and FlaK crews, none of these men were deployed and ready to fight when the game began. The British would be unaware of the strengths and locations of the defenders until they spotted them.
British Forces and Deployment:
Historically, the British commandos were split into five groups. The British players opted to use the historical plan of attack:
Group 1 would land off table to protect the left flank of the operation. Two platoons of this group would enter the table as reserves from the SW corner on the coastal road.
Group 2, consisting of four platoons, would be the main assault force and would land on the south coast, just outside of the town. This landing would be supported by a smoke screen dropped on the southern end of the town by British bombers.
Group 3 would land on nearby Maaloy Island to neutralize a battery of German field artillery located there. This group would be unavailable for the game.
Group 4 would serve as a floating reserve and two platoons would be on call to reinforce the main landing if needed.
Group 5 would land off table to protect the right flank of the operation. Two platoons of this group would enter the table as delayed reserves from the NE corner on the coastal road.
Supporting the landing would be two British destroyers, which could fire directly into the town from the sea (this fire would be summoned and directed via radio contact with the shore party).
Action Report:
The landing on the south coast by Group 2 went well. The commandos had no trouble climbing the steep slope along this section of the coast, and all four platoons got their feet firmly on the ground. The smokescreen landed almost on target, screening the landing from most of the town.
The German reaction was limited to some fire from the church and the canning factory, which pinned one of the commando platoons.
Group 2 then split up, with three platoons moving directly toward the church and the canning factory, while one platoon moved to bypass the church through the wooded hills. The British were very fortunate that Group 1 appeared early on the coastal road, and fell in behind Group 2 as it advanced on the town.
Group 2 came under heavier German small arms and mortar fire as it neared the town. These fires caused some casualties and pinned the commandos, but barely delayed them. British assaults soon cleared the defenders from the church and the canning factory.
The Germans received a bit of good luck when the Panzer II crew managed to get it started. The Panzer then drove out of the power station to bolster the defenders in the center of town.
Two commando platoons from Group 2 followed up their initial success by assaulting the hotel. These assaults also succeeded, but the assaulting platoons suffered additional casualties to the point of becoming ineffective. Only two platoons in Group 2 were still unscathed; both of them were now moving unopposed around the town through the woods.
Fortunately for the British, Group 1 had run through the German mortar fire to reach the front and could provide fresh impetus to the attack. The British also committed their floating reserve, landing it at the dock of the canning factory.
These fresh forces converged on the center of town. The Pz.II was knocked out by a shot from an anti-tank rifle, which left the mortar battery unsupported, and the battery was swiftly overrun. The surviving Germans started to pull back toward the power station, naming it “the last redoubt.”
While all this was going on, the Royal Navy began shelling the “red” factory, which eliminated the 20mm AA gun there. Otherwise, the naval guns had little impact, due to a lack of visible targets and poor radio communications.
As the end of the game drew near, Group 5 finally appeared on the coastal road in the NE corner of the table. There was only enough time for this group to attack the herring factory at the northern end of the town, which the commandos cautiously approached in extended order. The commandos were able to secure this objective by game’s end.
The final acts would take place at the power station, where the survivors of various German platoons had gathered. The commandos advanced on the station from three directions. The defenders were very fortunate to beat back the first assaults, but on the last turn of the game, the last defenders were overwhelmed, giving the British a victory by the skin of their teeth!
The British then set fire to all the objectives and brought their landing craft forward to the docks, reembarked everyone, and departed. Very much like the historical outcome.
- TJ