German Panzergrenadier Battalion
The final part of the German campaign force is a reduced Panzergrenadier Battalion. When wargamers think of Panzergrenadiers, they often think of the iconic Sd.Kfz 251 series of halftrack and that is exactly what this battalion is all about: a fully mechanized battalion riding armored halftracks into battle. In practice mechanized troops were extremely rare and even in the Panzer Divisions only a single of the four panzergrenadier battalions was typically mechanized (gepanzert). The most common transportation being trucks. For Operation Mjölnir however, the German commander has been lucky enough to have a (reduced) mechanized battalion at his disposal:
- Base
- 1x 12cm Mortar Platoon with Sd.Kfz 251/1 transports
- 2 Panzergrenadier Companies each with
- 3x Panzergrenadier Platoons with Sd.Kfz 251/1 transports
- 1x MG Platoon (rides in the Sd.Kfz 251/17)
- 1x Sd.Kfz 251/17 Anti Aircraft Platoon
- 1x Sd.Kfz 251/10 Anti Tank Platoon
- 1x Sd.Kfz 251/9 Infantry Gun Platoon
At full strength the battalion would have a third company, identical to the other two.
The Battalion while mounted
The Battalion dismounted
Like the regular Grenadier Battalion, the Panzergrenadiers employ the highly effective 12cm Mortar carried in the excellent 251/1 transport. The 12cm Mortar has excellent range and with the 6'x4' tables we use for our battles, does not really need its 251/1 transports. I imagine they will quickly be reallocated to one of the PzGren companies when they start losing transports.
Looking at the individual companies, you see a highly mobile force with a lot of anti infantry firepower. This reflects the very high number of machine guns assigned to panzergrenadier platoons. Where the PzGren company comes up short however is in the anti tank department, where it has to rely on the short range panzerfausts and the obsolete PaK 35/36 mounted on 251/10 halftracks. Panzerschrecks are uncharacteristically completely absent in this otherwise extremely well equipped formation. I have not been able to find any TOE which lists the panzergrenadiers as having panzerschrecks, but I am seriously considering adding them myself. It just seems uncharacteristic that favored units such as panzergrenadiers be left without this essential piece of equipment. If readers can shed some light on this "anomaly" please write in the comment section.
Finally the Panzergrenadier company comes with organic AA capability in the form of the 251/17 as well as fire support from the infantry guns of the 251/9 Section.
Looking at the individual companies, you see a highly mobile force with a lot of anti infantry firepower. This reflects the very high number of machine guns assigned to panzergrenadier platoons. Where the PzGren company comes up short however is in the anti tank department, where it has to rely on the short range panzerfausts and the obsolete PaK 35/36 mounted on 251/10 halftracks. Panzerschrecks are uncharacteristically completely absent in this otherwise extremely well equipped formation. I have not been able to find any TOE which lists the panzergrenadiers as having panzerschrecks, but I am seriously considering adding them myself. It just seems uncharacteristic that favored units such as panzergrenadiers be left without this essential piece of equipment. If readers can shed some light on this "anomaly" please write in the comment section.
Finally the Panzergrenadier company comes with organic AA capability in the form of the 251/17 as well as fire support from the infantry guns of the 251/9 Section.
Stats
Stats are repeated for convenience.
| PzGren Battalion (Average Quality 5+; Cohesion: 4”) | |||||||||
| Unit | Move | ROF | Rng | AI | Notes | Points | |||
| PzGren Platoon | 4 | 3 / 4 | 4 | +1 | AT-Rifle grenade/Panzerfaust | 27 | |||
| MG platoon | 4 | (2 / 3) | 6 | +1 | Improvised/Panzerfaust | 24 | |||
| Unit/Equipment | Move | Armor | Pen | ROF | Rng | AI | AV | Notes | Points |
| 12cm Mortar Platoon | 2x | s | - | - | - | - | - | Indirect/60 | 18 |
| 251/1 (Transport) | 7ht | 0A0 | - | 1 | 6 | -1 | - | Cap 1 | 7 |
| 251/17 (AA) | 7ht | 0A0 | 1 | 2@ | 16@ | -1 | +0 | Cap 1 | 21 |
| 251/9 Section (IG) | 7ht | 0A0 | 4 | 1 | 6 | -1 | +0 | 12 | |
| 251/10 (AT) | 7ht | 0A0 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -2 | +0 | 20 | |
| Improvised | - | - | 2he | 1 | C | - | +0 | - | |
| AT-Rifle grenade | - | - | 4h | 1 | C | - | +0 | - | |
| Panzerfaust | - | - | 8h | 1 | C | - | +0 | - | |
Ingen kommentarer:
Send en kommentar