Great Synopsis of PzC Anzio Campaign Scenario

[KG_Norad]

This was written by Bill Peters over at Panzer Campaigns Club. It offers great insight into the strategy played in Panzer Campaigns Games.


Hey guys, how many of you have finished Anzio or are in the midst of it and want to share your experiences of the game.

Mike Bangert and I are at turn 80 something or other out of 275 turns and man oh man what a brawl.

Allied advantages: airpower, artillery, navy, centralized defense perimeter.
Allied disadvantages: morale, morale, morale, sicky firepower, so-so armor.

German advantages: GREAT firepower, GREAT morale, mechanized forces, better armor.
German disadvantages: Dont move on roads during day, lack of airpower, so-so artillery, road system is there but cant use it during the day.

Allied mistakes to make: going after the big objectives early on and getting out of range of seapower. Stretching forces too thin. Units getting cut off and wiped out.

German mistakes to make: trying to build a defense line too close to the shore too early on. Being overly offensive early on. Trying to move all of your forces on the road in daytime turns.

Goals: early on the Allies want to get a line built in good terrain. There is no reason to shoot for Rome. Folks may criticize the Allied commander all they want - he just didnt have enough forces to get the job done. Unlike North Africa where the Allies usually enjoyed numerical superiority (by sometimes 3:1) they botched this one terribly. Thus the "Beached Whale" title should belong to Clark and Churchill. Churchill would have lead his forces to Rome and certain destruction.

Scenario corrections: the scenario needs more VPs on the Alban Hills, Rome and further back from the lines. Yes, these may not be obtainable to the Allies right away but the goal was to liberate Rome and get a deeper beachhead going. The Germans wont be helped by owning them but they have nothing to lose by pulling back but everything to gain by attacking. This goes counter to the situation at hand. YES, its very much impossible for the Allies to even think of the Hills or Rome by the middle of the game but a good Allied player might be able to take them by turn 200 or so.

The key to this game is force conservation. The German is a fool to move ALOT of forces by road in the daytime while the Allied player is an idiot if he leaves ONE or TWO battalians at one hex range of EIGHT German battlians. Its a quick way to MAX FATIGUE or worse. The Allies have a good replacement rate and need to take advantage of this. If your units get over 100-150 points fatigue try pulling them out of the line. I was able to recoup artillery losses pretty well too. I dont have the manual in front of me or the PDT view but 75 percent of full strength seemed to be the most amount of guns I could recoup.

Its a LONG game. Both players need to play for time. The German player has a couple of options. He can dig in further back or he can go for the beach. Trying to play it somewhere in between will get his head kicked in.

The Allies need to consolidate their gains and hold out until 2 Feb when the last of their reinforcements arrive. By then if they still have a good force they can try and offensive somewhere along the line. (added by edit) The Allies also need to use their great artillery as best as possible. I like to centralize my artillery as much as possible and have spotters from as many formations at key points in the line as much as possible so that I can play the Anzio Concerto as I call it on as many German units as possible. I believe the highest loss I had on any ground unit was 120 men but I dont keep an accurate count and it might be higher or lower. Just an estimate.

If the Germans have pulled back then they will have the roadnet and air superiority on their side but poor terrain in many cases in which to fight. If the Germans are close up they will be able to use their ships. A small advantage at best at time but a well placed shot on a T-Mode unit ... well you get the picture. Otherwise they are just another artillery asset. Airpower is always available but watch out for large German stacks. Avoid them if you can.

If the Allies are hurting (my case currently) then you are in for a tough fight. Luckily I wiped out alot of German infantry early on but probably should have played a more conservative game. The 26th Panzer Division gave me a tough handling for the last 20 turns and my perimeter has shrunk as a result. The Devil's Brigade is arriving and next day I get the last of my Allied units. From now on its a war of survival. Mike typically will fight to the last man so we will see if this is the case and if I can hold off his onslaught (he IS resting some units in the rear).

I believe that of all of the campaigns that Glenn and his team have put out this particular one is the MOST even. Its not a case of Beat the Clock - knowing that you have only so many turns in order to win. The game rewards the player that uses his head the most and keeps his units from being wiped out. There is no one-time die roll that blows a bridge that changes the course of the game. Both sides will need to figure out how best to maximize their potential. Each is different and VERY challenging to play.

Mike and I have started up a second game. I am playing the Germans. We will see if both of us can do a better job in this one.

TIP for Allies: DONT use those two British bridge engineer units on the front line. You may need them later on and if they are wiped out there goes your bridge making capability.

Its not a show stopper but will slow down your ability to reinforce one sector of the line at a crucial moment.

Both sides can conceal units for a surprise attack but the Allies have the advantage in this dept. due to recon planes and road net usage.

Crack one of these campaign open if you havent played it yet. Its a real challenge for both sides.