Background
The battle in Berlin was an end phase of the war against Nazi Germany. The battle encompassed the attack by three Soviet Army Groups to capture not only Berlin but the territory of Germany east of the River Elbe. The outcome of the battle to capture the capital of the Third Reich was decided during the initial phases of the battle that took place outside the city. As the Soviets invested Berlin and the German forces placed to stop them were either destroyed or forced back The city’s fate was sealed. Nevertheless, there was much heavy fighting within the city as the Red Army fought its way, street by street, into the center.
On 23 April 1945, the first Soviet ground forces started to penetrate the outer suburbs of Berlin. By 27 April, Berlin was completely cut off from the outside world. The battle in the city continued until 2 May 1945. On that date, the commander of the Berlin Defense Area, General Helmuth Weidling, surrendered to the commander of the Soviet 8th Guards Army, Lieutenant-General Vasily Chuikov of Marshal Georgiy Zhukov’s 1st Belorussian Front.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_in_Berlin)
Situation:
Elements of the German LVI Corps and supporting SS units guard the German Reichstag from units of the Soviet 1st Belorussian Front’s 3rd Shock Army.
The Game
Terrain:
The terrain is heavily urbanized with intact and destroyed buildings along the edges with the Reichstag and the Kroll Opera House in the center with open space in between (Konigsplatz). (See the enclosed map for the special terrain rules).
Special Rules:
- Play was edge to edge on the table.
- 11 objectives are spread around on the table. Victory for the Soviets is possession of at least 8 objectives; otherwise a victory for the Germans.
- Each player receives 1750 points. Units must be built out of the Berlin or Desperate Measures Books.
- The German units start with half their units deployed on the table, with one platoon in ambush (all dug in). The remaining units are immediate reserves.
- The Soviet forces march onto the table at the beginning of the game as immediate reserves at the points designated on the battle map.
- The Red Banner Company in each force can reconstitute using the Human Wave Rule from the Barbarossa Book.
- The Germans roll each turn to see if they received direct 105mm AA fire support from one of the Berlin Flak Towers off the table (5+ on 1D6).
- The Soviets receive free Air Power on a roll of 5+ using 1D6.
- The Soviets receive the first move.
Forces:
The Germans consisted of a two Panzergrenadier companies centered on the Reichstag; In addition the Germans had HMG, Pak40 AT guns, STuH 42, Panther and tube and rocket artillery support. The German units were rated Confident Veteran.
The Soviets consisted of two Red Army Strelk infantry battalions with armor and artillery support. The Soviets were mostly rated as Confident Trained with several attached units of Guards (Fearless Trained).
Narrative:
On Turn One: Soviets entered their infantry and moved forward to engage sporadic German snipers and observers which promptly called Nebelwerfer barrages on their forward troops. Soviet Scouts entered from the north, along with an infantry company to move towards the one objective near the river. Sensing an opportunity, The Germans sprung an ambush, a Panzergrenadier platoon into the flank of the Strelk Company, routing it off the table.
On Turn Two: The Soviets continued to move through their sectors towards the German Main Line in the Tiergarten. On the flank, the Soviets surged a reserve SMG Company to counter assault the pesky Panzergrenadiers, killing all but the command stand. Meanwhile, German reserves consisting of the STuH 42 platoon and one Panzergrenadier platoon moved to hold two of the objectives near the Spree River. Two objectives to the Soviets!
By Turn Three: Soviets moved their reserve 3 tank M-4 Sherman Company to counter the STUH 42s. The Germans countered by springing two Panzerfaust traps. The Panzerfausts and STuH 42s promptly destroyed the Shermans. The Soviets began to exchange fire with the Panzergrenadiers holding the Tiergarten, causing losses on both sides. Soviet 120mm mortars knocked out some of the German Pak40s.
On Turn Four: The Soviets moved OT-34 flame tanks against the Panzerfaust traps, killing one. Further, the Soviets finally were able to kill the pesky last Panzergrenadier command stand, seizing another objective. The Soviets took their last Strelk infantry and moved it with the scouts towards the Reichstag. Now the firefights were in full play.
Over the next several Turns, the Soviets were able to destroy the German reserve Panthers at the cost of several of their own units. The Soviets managed to plink both 88mm Flak Guns with lucky rifle fire. A push to take the Kroll Opera House was wiped out by Nebelwerfer fire. The Soviet flanking force was down to four of its original seven units, so he had to pause to reconstitute and maneuver survivors into better positions. The 120mm mortars continued to attrite German units along the edge of the Konigsplatz.
By Turn Eight, the Soviet units were too weak to continue the assault on the Reichstag. The Soviets held only 4 victory objective points, giving the Germans a counterfactual victory! Until the next wave of Soviets arrive!
– Manteuffel