Eisenbach Gap: Scenario 1 - First Moves

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Lock 'n Load Publishing's World at War series began a few years ago with their first product, World at War: Eisenbach Gap, which is a real gem of a game.  It features platoon-level combat set in a 'what if' war between NATO and the Warsaw Pact in 1985.

The game is exciting and fun as each side has a host of interesting decisions to make regarding command and control in the face of unpredictability.  Every turn, the players take turn pulling counters or 'chits' out of a cup to see who can move their units.  To represent NATO's greater command and control ability back then, they get two chits in the cup while the Soviets only get one.  But fear not, the Soviet player gets more units to throw at the NATO player, which means that both sides have to use their different advantages carefully in order to pull off a win.

Over the next several days, I'll be doing battle reports of some scenarios from this game and I hope you enjoy it.

Soviet 1st Tank Division ready to push towards Eisenbach. May 14th, 1985.

The first scenario features a fairly straightforward battle where the Soviet 1st Tank Division must take the town of Eisenbach to the east (yeah, it sounds like the Russians are going in the wrong direction but it works anyways).  The tank division consists of 12 T-72 tanks, which are pretty devastating in their own right.

Soviets approach Eisenbach from the west.  NATO is prepared near the town.
The NATO force, Team Yankee, consists of two M1 platoons, some infantry with anti-tank (AT) launchers, an ITV and an M-113.  I positioned them on the hills near Eisenbach in hopes of getting off some shots as the Russians crept towards the town.

Complete Soviet domination.
By the end of the game, the large Soviet force had utterly defeated Team Yankee and taken Eisenbach.  An American ITV managed to survive the Soviet push but the use of close assault tactics by the Russians sealed the Americans' fate.



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