Surviving Sealion, Scenario 1

I've very much enjoyed playing Surviving Nam and I wondered about using the mechanics for WW2 (using French partisans or German werewolves in lieu of the Viet Cong). As I looked through my old 1/72-scale collection, I decided that this might be an interesting way to game Operation Sealion (cue flurry of painting). 

I've gamed Sealion before (board game, map game with miniatures, programmed miniature campaign at the company level) but the possibility of a programmed skirmish campaign that I could do solo was attractive. I played the game as written and just thematically adjusted in my head (so an RPGer popping up becomes Gran with a petrol bomb). I may create thematically appropriate cards later on. I did add in six blank cards to slow the resistance down slightly (I'd reduce that to four next time).

The premise (whatever you want to make of it, historically) was the Germans have landed in September of 1940 and pushed out of Kent. I made up three squads (so basically a platoon) that has been pulled out of combat to refit and engage in anti-partisan activities. Each game is one week apart and there could be four to 12 games). Game 1 sees the platoon enter the board (from left to right above) organized as squads good, bad and ugly. Their mission was to cross the table and secure the church.

They got three moves down the road when the resistance materialized out of the fog (which almost immediately became rain). 

There were a few regulars with some dad's army types carrying ammo.

 

The rest were from Local .303 of the Welcome Wagon. As the dice played out, most appeared either immediately behind the visitors or around the church that was the objective.

The better squad dropped into a rear-guard position to try and thin out the most threatening group of English guerillas. The other two squads moved down the road to try and seize the church before things got too hot.

Initially, the greener squad did well, cleaning out a couple of riflemen holed up in the belltower.

An indecisive firefight continued with the MG keeping the largest group of saboteurs pinned but then a British bunker revealed itself just as the middling squad crossed the small stream so the commander began a fighting retreat with the MG to go help them out. Other Brits began to pop up in annoying places but a fortunate mortar barrage wiped out the dad's army types before they could bring their MG into play.

The advance outside the church stalled as members of the first two squads started to get caught in a crossfire and go down. The bunker was, however, eliminated.

Eventually, the MG caught up and started to thin out the opposition, although petrol bombers and snipers continued to make it hard for the Germans to seize the objective and get their wounded comrades out of the line of fire.

Eventually, the Germans occupied the church and also neutralized the remaining Brits, just as the rain stopped. 

The squads, especially the worst squad, over on the right)  took a lot of casualties. There was one outright KIA, a couple of game-missing wounded, and a few guys got to go home with a million dollar wound. Replacements weakened the good squad (the MG went from veteran to green) and turned the worst squad into a nightmare of FNGs.

I'm not sure what the next game might be. Maybe a patrol through a town to capture some informants for the Colonel?