NEW Scenario: Slaughterhouse Halbe

SLAUGHTERHOUSE HALBE**

German Attack - Soviet Defense*
Halbe, Germany*
1800 hrs April 28, 1945*
Turns 20*
Scenario Size: Small**

Design: Henk "Dutchiexx" Neumann*
Dutchiexx@spwaw.com**

MADE FOR ENHANCED**





SCENARIO NOTES:**

After two unsuccesfull tries, on the night of April 28 the Germans tried another mass breakout from around Halbe. They managed to break through the 50th Guards Rifle Division and created a corridor from Halbe to the west but they paid a very high price. During the 28th and 29th the Soviets reinforced the flanks and attacked from the south poring in Katyusha rockets and shells concentrating on the area around the Halbe.*
By this time the Germans were spread over a wide area. The rearguard was at Storkow and the vanguard had linked up with the 12th Army at Beelitz. There were large groups around Halbe. The Soviet battle plan was to split the caterpillar into segments and then destroy each segment individually. The German battle plan was to continue moving west as fast as possible keeping the corridor open.*
The situation in Halbe was desperate for the Germans, orders were still being issued to recognisable formations, but these were by now all mixed up. There was considerable tension between Waffen-SS and Wehrmacht soldiers with both accusing the other of helping their own comrades while ignoring the plight of the other. In Halbe itself some of the civilians took pity on very young solders "kindersoldaten" and allowed them to change out of their uniforms into civilian clothes.*
In one documented case an SS man appeared at the door of a cellar intending to shoot a Panzerfaust into a cellar with about 40 civilians and young Wehrmacht soldiers in it, only to be shot dead by one of the soldiers.*
During the following days, the fighting became more and more confused. If the Germans came into contact with Soviet forces and overran a Soviet position, the Soviets counter-attacked not only with ground forces but with artillery and aircraft. Losses on both sides were very high. By the time the fighting was over, (around the end of April, begining of May), about 25,000 German soldiers had managed to escape to join up with the 12th Army on the eastern side of Reichstrasse 2 the road running north south through Beelitz.*
Although this was the end of the battle it was not the end of the breakout. The 12th and 9th Armies remnants then fought a fighting retreat westwards towards the Elbe so that they could surrender to the Americans.**

PLAYER NOTES:**

Your mission is to break through the Soviet defense line In Halbe. You have to open a corridor to the west.**

NEW ENHANCED 2009 Scenario

Here it is! ENH Luck Out Of Luck. The first attempt by the German Ninth Army to break the Russian vice arounf the Halbe cauldron.

You have two German Kampfgruppes at your disposal. Kampfgruppe Luck (the upper one on the map) and Kampfgruppe Pipkorn. They both consist of infantry, tanks (most of the big cat variety) and sp artillery.

You start off at the right side of the map. You have to cross a large wooded to reach Baruth. If you can grab the Baruth railroad line and the crossroads, you Kameraden of the Ninth Army have a fighting chance to break through to the Twelfth Army and to the relative safety of the west.

You can download the scen right here! Enjoy!

Halbe Cauldron - Luck Out Of Luck

The first scenario about the Halbe Cauldron is being tested. Won't be long 'til it'll be published. For your interest:

• It's a large one
• You command two German Kampfgruppes
• Big cats galore
• And, oh yes... it's designed with and for Enhanced 2009!

Check back!

Halbe Cauldron, teaser...

Here's a little reading about the first scenario on the Halbe Cauldron or Kessel I am working on.

On the evening of April 25, General Busse ordered the two battlegroups or Kampfgruppen Von Luck and Pipkorn, containing 35th SS and Police Grenadier Division 35th SS and Police Grenadier Division, both named after their commanders, to attempt a break-out in the direction of the road centre of Baruth to obtain the use of roads to Luckenwalde and Jüterbog.

Kampfgruppe von Luck consisted mainly of 125th Panzer Grenadier Regiment and tanks from 22nd Panzer Regiment and started from Halbe, while Pipkorn consisted of the remains of the 35th SS Division with tanks from 10th SS Panzer Division, and started from Schleepitz. The orders to Colonel von Luck were to open a corridor and keep it open for the sole use of military units of Ninth Army. No civilians were to be allowed to use it. Von Luck made good progress across the Berlin–Dresden autobahn until it hit the Soviet defenses of 50th Guards Rifle Division at Baruth, which had been reinforced by dug-in Stalin tanks. Pipkorn hit defenses of 329th Rifle Division early on and the battle group was scattered, with some armoured elements including Panther tanks reaching Baruth. A pitched battle developed at Baruth, which was impossible for the German battlegroups to win. Busse ordered von Luck to stay near Baruth but discontinue the attack. When informed of this, however von Luck disobeyed the order and disbanded his battle group, allowing soldiers to try and attempt a breakout individually.

On the following day battle continued around Baruth, and tank-hunting teams blew up some of the dug-in Soviet tanks. Some supply canisters were delivered by air, but the strength of the battle group was insufficient to hold off a Soviet counter-attack. Heavy air attacks, a strike by 4th Bomber Air Corps around noon with 55 aircraft, and repeated strikes by 1st and 2nd Air Assault Corps with 8-10 aircraft each, a total of ca. 500 missions, caused heavy casualties and chaos. The forces of the two battle groups were destroyed, with Soviet reports claiming 5,000 prisoners (POW) taken, 40 tanks and self-propelled guns destroyed, and almost 200 guns and mortars captured. These forces and weapons would be severely missed during later break-out attempts. Pipkorn, the commander of the other battle group, was killed during the battle, and von Luck taken prisoner by the Soviets on April 27. Few of the survivors of the battle reached the Elbe.

Halbe... Again

Right now I'm working on the first scenario in a series about the Battle in the Halbe Pocket at the end of WWII. The first scenario will be about the breakout attempt by a battlegroup commanded by Colonel von Luck. Sources for this series will be:

Slaughter at Halbe: The Destruction of Hitler's 9th Army

Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin

The Fall of Berlin 1945

Berlin Dance of Death

Slaughter At Halbe

Some time ago I told you about the Book "Slaughter At Halbe" by Tony LeTissier about the annihilation of the German 9th Army in and near the town of Halbe. Ther will be one or more SP:WaW-scenarios forthcoming about this tragic episode. Although these will be published next year... ;-)

To give you some feeling about what happened in and near that little town near Berlin I'll include a five piece series from Youtube.