Command Ops : Battles for the Bulge : The Assault on Steinebruck Bridge
When we last left our forces they were listening to the bombardment echo through the hills of Belgium. Now it’s time to send out troops into battle. I’m going to make an order to the Division HQ and task them with securing the crossing. I’m not entirely sure how well this will work. Normally I direct each Battalion myself, but in this case I want to test out the AI. Can it perform the task?Later on I’ll have to direct each battalion once multiple objectives appear. But until then… here we go!.imageframe-2 img{border:5px solid #afafaf;} 
I’ve set the attack to begin at 07:03. The troops will move in an arrowhead formation. And, on the bottom, I’ve checked Secure Crossing. Now the orders have to propagate, and in a worst case scenario some of the units might not get the order. I could have set the time longer, but I want this crossing now, and I want Lommersweiler just as quickly. Once we have those objectives secured we can work on Breitfield.
But first, we take the bridge!.imageframe-3 img{border:5px solid #898989;} 
Within a few short minutes the Division HQ has sent orders out and the locations for each Battalion is set. I’m surprised, usually it takes longer. Maybe it’s how close they all are?.imageframe-4 img{border:5px solid #a5a5a5;} 
At 0639 the assault starts to roll into place..imageframe-5 img{border:5px solid #b7b7b7;} 
The Division commander is being overly cautious. Elements of the 51st, 25th, and 318th are assaulting. Alone. This just will not do. I’m stepping in and having that armor slam into that battle. I’ve got two battalions doing nothing..imageframe-6 img{border:4px solid #898989;} 
I can’t very well blame the AI on this one. The game is designed that I fill the role two levels up. So I should be directing these battalions. So, my fault, but I will leave the exact movements up to the battalion commanders. So I’ve ordered attack moves along with a full artillery bombardment of the position. Here we go!.imageframe-7 img{border:4px solid #dd3333;} 
Damn, lose my first unit. They got nailed by some 88’s..imageframe-8 img{border:10px solid #81d742;} 
There we go! Now they’re moving into position and the assault begins. This is going to be tough, by letting those units get across they’ve been able to bring in nine PanzerSchrek 88s! On top of that they have a platoon of 7.5cm Pak 40 anti-tank guns..imageframe-9 img{border:4px solid #7a7a7a;} 
We’ve driven back an assault gun company, and a platoon of Stug III G! I didn’t even know the Stug’s were there. I knew we should have assaulted the bridge right away, letting the German’s get dug in was a bad idea. So far we’ve had non-stop barrages of artillery and its still been slow going..imageframe-10 img{border:10px solid #81d742;} 
Finally! An Airstrike! I’ve shifted my attacks but we’re taking heavy losses. I’ve reshifted all of elements for another assault. Hopefully this airstrike can dislodge those AT guns..imageframe-11 img{border:10px solid #dd9933;} 
The airstrike worked wonders. Not only did we dislodge the AT guns, but we had a second airstrike shortly after that hammered another AT gun emplacement. Then nightfall came and only one of my units started the assault. Oh sweet Jesus… The 318th are going in and run into Stugs, a Battalion HQ, and two infantry companies. To make matters worse the rest of my units decided to rest. Assault time!.imageframe-12 img{border:10px solid #dd3333;} 
I knew the German line couldn’t take much more. All we needed was a concerted effort. Time to go all in. Against the recomendations of my Battalion commanders I ordered a night strike. Full aggressiveness, maximum rate of fire, full artillery support and whammo. We pushed them back.
But it was costly. I’ve lost my anti tank company and an armored company. In fact when it comes to tanks I’ve lost at least half. This crossing gave us one hell of a beating.
The big lesson here, be aggressive!
The next objective will be Lommersweiler itself. In two hours I have a Close Combat Brigade and elements of the 4th Armored Division coming in as reinforcements. This will add another 2200 troops to the battle. For now my units will get a few hours of rest and the reinforcements will spearhead the assault.
This is the third time I’ve played this scenario and its the most intense so far. I never had losses like this before, I’m really excited to see how the rest is going to turn out. I took a damned mauling, hopefully I can make up for it. Time is running out…
