I didn't expect to get a game in this weekend, but Jage and I ran a FFT micro armor game at Eagle and Empire. It was again, Brits and Soviets. Jage played the Brits and I played the Soviets. The Brits had a slightly understrength brigade group (1 understrength squadron of Chieftains, another of Challys and a Warrior Company, backed up by a small recon squadron of Scimitars, 3 batteries of 155 and a pair of Javelin Stands). The Soviets were two regiments, one BMP-1 and 1 Tank Regiment of T-80 (the tank regiment didn't have their RAG, but I put some off-table 180mm at the disposal of the Soviets, along with a pair of Hinds and a couple of MiG-27 airstrikes). Victory conditions were to get a regiment off the table.
The game started slow, with me dropping smoke and the AT battery of the MRR scaring off a Chieftain along the open flank (most of the river was unfordable), Jage quickly took out both launchers but the smoke landed and helped screen my movements a bit (they've got thermals, so there was a limit to that), but the T-64 battalion soon died in exchanges with the Brits in the woods, with little to show for it. The Chieftains were really taking their toll, and the Challys were backing them up as well. I was holding my Tank Regiment back as the town right in front of the bridge had the other Chally squadron and the other Chieftain unit there, with the Warrior company in the woods overwatching the bridge, and an FO also in attendance. All in all, straight in wasn't the way to go, I brought the Hinds in, and though there was some Blowpipe fire, it was rather desultory, and as such, I lucked out and got them into position with the BMP Regiment trying to turn the flank...needless to say, other than firing their rockets and missiles, they did little more than scare off a single Chally. My artillery even got wacked Turn 2 as I rolled horribly for counter battery, with the MRR RAG losing four of it's six batteries and the other two fleeing. The 180mm lost two batteries as well.
I then figured, the direct approach was best as I had laid smoke to cover the bridge, knowing I wanted to set up for the one-two punch. Well, it soon became my only option, as the BMP regiment had lost a third of it's numbers, and the Tank battalion was dead. I tried calling in air..nada, so a battalion of T-80s, already depleted from 155mm fire, charged across the bridge, pushing a wrecked BRM out of the way, another battalion turned off the road to cover the flank, the British having shot their bolt this turn. Lo and behold, I got some flank shots on those hated Challys, and fireballed two of them, the last one fleeing. The Hinds finally scored as well, forcing both surviving Chieftains off as well. At that point, British 155mm fire landed on the road junction short of the bridge, and forced two T-80 battalions to test, those two ran for it. My remaining battalions wouldn't have been enough to decide the issue in the town beyond, but my BMPs would have taken the flank woods, and Jage was moving a Chieftain company to reinforce the woods position. We agreed it was probably a British Marginal Victory. The Brits stopped the Russian advance, but at a pretty high cost, over half their armor either failed QCs or was outright left burning. I taught Jage, the real arm of decision for the Soviets in FFT is artillery. Your tanks aren't good enough to beat NATO one-on-one, and BMP/BTR are bullet magnets. Artillery forces NATO off your objectives, smoke buys you that extra -1 against thermal and no Soviet Commander should leave home without it. All in all, much better than last time.
Here some pictures! (All taken by Jage and used with his permission)
