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Meanwhile, the American officers, who were having a staff meeting in the centre of the town, scrambled to get onto the trucks, liberate the heavy weaponry there, and move to better defensive positions where they could aid their men. It is not, perhaps, the smartest move to stay out in the open during an attack! They gave up their chance of firing first thereby, and unfortunately it gave the Germans a chance to break an important stack of machine-gunners in the building 3Y8, cutting off a key part of the American defence. In response, the Americans dived for cover.

A small detachment of Germans moved due east, planning to make a flanking manoeuvre around the village. (As it was winter, the lighter fields were all considered as open ground). I moved the Germans down the road towards the American positions, keeping them mostly out-of-sight until the eventually advanced into firing positions in the trees just to the north of the Americans. I’m afraid the green American counters don’t show up very well on this picture – I’ll try and give some close-ups as the battle continues. The Germans are to the north on a road leading into the town of Buchholz, while the Americans are completely unprepared for the German attack – they’re on the road lined up for a meal! This was part of the opening of the Battle of the Bulge, and took place on December 16, 1944. The set-up is fixed, so there’s no choice of where individual units set up. I’m really not sure what to do with the trucks in this scenario…

The Americans also have a Jeep, a Half-Track and a couple of Trucks. The scenario gives a generous 10 turns for this scenario to play out, although there are only 12 squads on the German side and 12 on the American side, with a number of them being crews. Otherwise, the Germans can win by advancing 7 troops off the southern (bottom) edge of the board. If either side loses 10 squads, leaders or AFVs it loses. There are a few victory conditions for this scenario. As with most of my Squad Leader games, this one was played solitaire. Low of Morale (but good at rallying), I’ve used them a lot in the later Advanced Squad Leader, but this is the first time I’ve played them in their original incarnation. Scenario 7 of the original Squad Leader game adds the Americans to the game.