AVANTI SAVOIA! Italians vs DAK Free-for-All 71pts

By Dennis Campbell AKA Matt Varnish

Photos by the Author (apart from the propaganda poster, and images by BattleFront from Avanti)

NOTE:  Preview of AVANTI & Video Battle Report is at the end of this article.

I was keen to try out the new Italians out of the AVANTI book, and my good friend Chris Caron obliged by hosting an impromptu game on a weeknight! We agreed on the 2018 Mid-War 71pts, as we are going to be attending Canadian Nationals in September 2018. We rolled Free-for-All, both of us were using forces with 1 Infantry, 1 Tank formation in each, so I rolled highest and was the Attacker. While Chris’ list is from the Afrika Korps book, he has awesome Eastern front paint jobs:

8-Rads Spearhead to allow his AA halftracks good shots at my infantry. This would force me to use the town for my advance

Pzr III’s unit leader is a Schurzten-equipped long gun tank.

Chris’ list:

The yellow and green camo on these PaK-38s really blend in with the crops!

PZR III Formation

HQ PZR III Long
2IC PZR III short

2 PZR III short
1 PZR III Long

GRENADIER Formation
HQ x2
4x MG, 1x pbz-41 AT Rifle
4x MG, 1x pbz-41 AT Rifle
2x PaK-38 AT Guns
2x AA halftracks

SUPPORT
3x Marder III
2x 8-Rad

German infantry, ready to Dig In near the town objective.

My List:

 TANK Formation
HQ M14/41
4x Semovente SP Guns
4x M14/41
4x M14/41

BERSAGLIERI Formation
HQ x2
5x Rifle/MG
5x Rifle/MG
4x ‘Elefantino’ 47mm AT Guns
2x 81mm Mortars

SUPPORT
3x Auto-Blindo 41 Armoured Cars
2x 90mm truck-mounted AT Guns

After the Italian 1st turn.

My plan was to push the town objective with my M14/41s and both Infantry platoons, hoping to use that forest to cover my advance from the Marders.  My right flank, I was hoping to Spearhead the ‘Elefantino’s up to the forested hilltop and use my Semoventes to blunt his tank push.   Mortars and 90mm anchor my center.  I rolled first turn, so couldn’t fire Mortars (Meeting Engagement) but was able to use M14/41s to wipe out his Unarmoured AA halftracks (no Gun Shield meant no Firepower tests).  Six MG shots on the move per M14/41 proved deadly, and I was able to wipe out the platoon. My infantry Dashed/Follow Me their full 16 inches into the town.

 

Chris’ small Infantry platoon fails to Dig In, but fired into and killed 2 stands of my Bersaglieri near that dark brown building, pinning them.

 

 

Turn 2, Concealed Semoventes with their AT-8 guns lock down Chris’ Pzr III flank, while I work my 47mm guns forward (8-inch Tactical speed) near the forested hilltop.

 

My infantry advanced firmly into the town, shooting ineffectually at his Dug-In infantry. My M14/41’s advance right near the 8-Rads in the forest, only bailing one thanks to Concealed & Gone to Ground.

 

Chris’ Marders fail to Blitz again, but the remounted 8-Rad moves back behind the hill crest next to the Marders. Concealed & Gone-to-Ground on the move due to the Scout rule.

 

Turn 3, my Elefantinos move 2 teams forward enough for side armour shots, as well as the two AB-41 armoured cars. He would make all his saves! I love the fact that the 47mm ‘Elefantino’ is an Infantry team, which automatically pass those Cross Checks a normal Gun team would have to make!

 

My Bersaglieri sit tight in the town. The plan is once the Marders and 8-Rads are dealt with, the M14/41s can pin his Grenadiers for my assault.

 

Chris lights up my AB-41 cars with the PaK-38s but leaves one Bailed Out. His Pzr IIIs pin my ‘Elefantino’s but I make all my saves!

 

Chris’ Marders and 8-Rads, hull-down. I put in 8x AT-6 shots, and all I could do was Bail Out one lousy 8-Rad on my Turn 4. Semoventes and my unpinned ‘Elefantino’s fail to do anything to his Pzr IIIs, while the Mortars pin his infantry, and my 90mm guns have only PaK-38s they can see, but fail to hit on 6+

 

 

..but his 8-Rads, pbz-41 AT Rifle and Marders kill 1 and Bail Out 5! Again, bad dice rolling on for his Firepower tests, those M14/41s ought to be destroyed by now. They would, of course, Remount on a 2+ thanks to Determined and Protected Ammo and start cleaning up this flank in short order!

 

His Pzr III HQ unit keeping a house between them and my 90mm guns in the distance. But again, Chris’ constant Blitz failures meant he could barely hit my units with that +1 to-hit penalty.

 

Chris wisely keeps his 8-Rads near his infantry and the objective (broken-down Carro Comando), to provide Defensive Fire MG shots for my assault. I would eventually Bail Out both 8-Rads and press home the assault.

 

Hilariously, the lone not-in-Good Spirits AB-41 scout car continually makes its Remount tests (4+), and Last Stand checks (5+) and would eventually contest the objective, forcing the Pzr III HQ unit to back up to the objective or else lose the game!

 

 

Chris has had enough and opts to Tactical/Follow Me his infantry to assault my 47mm ‘Elefantino’s. I kill 2 teams in Defensive Fire, he kills one gun in the assault, and again, because they are Infantry teams with a Tactical move of 8-inches, I am able to Break Off from the assault and later pummel the German survivors after unpinning.

 

The lone AB-41  would score a Bail Out result on the side of a Pzr III and the Semoventes would Double Bail it, forcing the platoon to break, which causes the Formation to be wiped out! Who says there is no more ‘Unknown Hero!!’   On the other flank, my assault in the town would seal the deal for the Italians. Veni Vidi Vici!

Well, a solid win for the Italians, however, I feel that if Chris’ luck had not been so terrible on Blitz attempts and Firepower tests, my M14/41s would simply not have been able to remount and exact revenge. Still, my plan worked out, with my weak flank holding out against the Pzr IIIs thanks to the threat posed by the Elefantino guns and the 90mm guns, while my assault eventually won the day in the town.

I took a little of everything in my list just to see how things fared, so lets review:

M14/41s did very well because I put targets with weak armour in front of them. The Remount on a 2+ is crazy, combine with the HEAT rounds, and against tanks, the best tactic might be to NOT close within 16 inches and keep that extra Front Armour for long range, while denying it to your enemy. Always being hit on 4+, 5+ at range provides extra damage mitigation.   Also, 6x MG shots per tank on the move is incredible.

Semoventes, similar to the above, I think keeping at range and in Concealment is critical.  They have higher AT but shorter range, and can Bombard should you be facing lots of guns or infantry. Their Front Armour of 4 goes up to 5 at range, which makes them more survivable.

90mm gun trucks: In our game, these killed a whopping 1 infantry team, but caused Area Denial, making Chris have to keep moving and making sure something blocked LOS to his advancing Pzr IIIs. He might have flanked my Semoventes were it not for the 90mm guns. With Sherman’s, T-34s, and Churchill tanks in upcoming Mid-War books, the Italian general will have to invest points in these AT assets, as the M14/41s will not cut it. I would personally go with the ’88 Gun team (can dig in vs Artillery) rather than the truck-mounted version for the same points, but I think every list will have at least 2 guns.  I’m sure we will also see some nutters taking the maximum of eight ’88s !

47mm Elefantino guns: Again, in our game, the threat they posed to Chris’ flanks for his Pzr III units meant he expended resources to killing them (Infantry, PaK-38 shots, Pzr III shots) even though with only AT 6, it would take a lucky shot to bail out a tank in the front arc. The fact they are infantry teams and not gun teams means they have good mobility, no cross checks, 360-degree field of view, can shoot from any portion of the base and can escape from an assault. As they are not Gun teams, they are also free to go in and out of buildings. I think you will see these in every Italian list.

AB-41 Scout Cars: They are a cheap platoon, provide Spearhead, and the gun has fewer shots, but, is otherwise on par with an 8-Rad.   Obviously I got very lucky with the lone survivor in this game (bailing out a team, forcing the double bail, forcing the Last Stand check, and breaking the tank formation) but still, they are handy to provide a side-armour threat.  They are hampered by the 8 inch tactical though, could have been more for my tastes.

81mm Mortars: Two stands for 3 points is great, re-rolling every hit because of 2-guns is not great.  Not sure 5 pts for 3 is worth it but might be if you have no other way to reach the enemy guns to pin them. In this game, mine were lackluster.

Bersaglieri Rifle teams: I’m not convinced they are worth their points when compared to the infantry of other Nations (who have some way of killing armour) but the improved Follow Me, especially if you roll Elite at the beginning, means you can be assaulting really early on.  If you have a favourable avenue of advance, maybe use a Spearheading AB-41 to have them start even closer?   In my game, they ended up winning the game, but I think they are slightly over-costed.  That being said, 9 stands of infantry is still 7 stands you have to kill before they are not in Good Spirits.

 

Enjoy a Video Battle Report, to see the Hero Scout Car shenanigans!   

 

Matt Varnish, AKA Dennis Campbell, plays Team Yankee, Flames of War, and Black Powder in the frozen wastes of Canadia.   Check out my youtube channel for hundreds of Battle Reports if you like here: