This project is currently on a break due to lack of resources and time, but worry not! We'll get back online later on!

Best regards, TBFN-team

Donner und Blitzen! The D-Day will soon begin by an aerial assault on the Pegasus Bridge! I have now written the rules for the mission and it is now ready to play, only waiting for me to paint the rest of the miniatures I will need. Here you have the rules so if you manage to play this mission before me, leave a comment below and tell me how did it work and would you like to have some changes.

Alright, here it comes!

PEGASUS BRIDGE

Forces

The battle (or more like a skirmish) for the Pegasus Bridge was a clash of a small elite force, a German bridge garrison and a few tanks from the 21st Panzer. For this reason, the game should be played on a small battlefield and with a very low point limit, for example that of 1000 points.

To reflect the historical circumstances as well as possible, I'm going to play this battle at 725 points and plan the both army lists so that they match the actual forces that fought on the Pegasus Bridge that day.

All British troops are held back from the table until they enter through airlanding. Germans may place their infantry normally in the deployment phase but all armored units must be held in delayed reserves.

Deployment

The battlefield is divided into two halves by a river and this river is crossable only by going over the Pegasus Bridge. The other side has a guard post and is considered German deployment zone. The another one is a landing zone for the British glider planes. Only the German player deploys in the deployment phase. The British troops enter the battle in their first turn through airlanding rules.

The Germans do not suspect an attack so the mission uses meeting engagement and delayed reserves special rules. Delayed reserves -rule does not apply for British platoons that left the table because of the airlanding rules.

The British have the first turn.

Airlanding rules

You can find the rules for this from the following link: http://www.flamesofwar.com/Portals/0/Documents/Scenarios/Airborne-Assaults.pdf

I have done the following changes to the rules:

• The landing zone is limited to the British side of the bridge.
• Using glider planes does not increase the point cost of platoons.

Objectives

The Germans have planted explosives on the bridge so the Brits will want to seize the bridge as soon as possible. By the end of turn 6, if there are no German teams and at least one British team on the bridge the Brits have secured the bridge and won the mission. In any other case, the Germans have managed to blow up the bridge and cripple future Allied advance over the river.

Effects on the campaign map

British victory:

• A airlanding platoon is placed on the campaign map in the Pegasus Bridge territory.
• The bridge stays intact and is fully usable in the future.

German victory:

• The airlanding platoon is completely annihilated and is not placed on the campaign map.
• The bridge is destroyed. Crossing the river in the future is a painstaking process as pontoon bridges or similar must be built. It is now slower to move troops over the river on the campaign map.

 

 

For those who want more frequent updates

I have good news for those who want more frequent updates on the progress of my project. By liking TBFN-Project on Facebook ( https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Battle-for-Normandy-project/1561549484073468 ) you will get to see some behind-the-scenes action (such as terrain building, miniature collecting and painting) and can also share your ideas about how I should develop the project.

All the important stuff (battle reports, sneak peeks, rule updates and such) will still be posted on this blog only. This is because this is the project's official channel.


Rangers lead the way!

Sneak Peek: The first battle of D-Day - Pegasus Bridge

Right after midnight, June 6th 1944, three Allied glider planes enter the French airspace. On board,

British elite paratroopers prepare for their mission. Their objective is to secure Pegasus Bridge, a key objective to the Allies. Their landing force will be needing the bridge to move further inland after the landings. The Germans have placed an explosive system on the bridge and will blow up the whole thing if the Brits don't capture the place swiftly enough.
Just as planned, the gliders hit the ground only about 40 meters from the Pegasus Bridge. The paratroopers then quickly embark their transports and instantly start an assault on the bridge.
Shouting battle cries, the Brits run over the bridge and catch the German sentries off guard. The first Allied shots of D-Day are fired by lieutenant Den Brotheridge, killing a German sentry. Only a few seconds later he is struck by a burst of a German machine gun. He soon becomes the first Allied casualty of Normandy landings.
The Germans are surprised by the fierce attack and retreat from their positions. The Brits must now hold the bridge until the reinforcements arrive. Possessing only two PIAT-antitank weapons, they are scared of the possible counter attack by nearby 21st Panzer division. If they recapture the bridge, the whole attack to France will be seriously delayed, giving the Germans time to bring in their reserves and endangering the whole succeed of Operation Overlord.

What you just read was a piece of history. The first battle simulation of my project will be fought on the Pegasus Bridge, conscious of the facts above. I'm now writing the mission rules for the Battle of Pegasus Bridge and starting to construct an awesome miniature version of the bridge. Once I'm done, I'm going to show you what I have achieved, publish the mission special rules, fight the battle and publish the battle report. Looking forward to that!

Ready to build the battlefield

Pegasus Bridge

How is this project played?

This game project is played on three different levels:

The first level is what you see below. A map of Normandy. This map is used by high commanders of both sides to move large units such as armies, corps, brigades, battalions and divisions around the Normandy.




The Normandy map is then split into smaller regions. These regions form the second level of the game and include areas like cities, towns, hills, forests and airports. On this level, numerous companies, led by their commanders, are manouvering in order to advance the line.




When hostile companies meet each other we must move down to the third level. Hundreds of miniatures are placed on the table, each representing for example invidual soldiers, tanks, artillery, aircraft, pillboxes. These troops will then fight against each other, placing devastating ambushes, defending their positions against ferocious assaults, launching murdering hails of bullets and doing everything they can to accomplish their missions, seize their objectives and annihilate their enemies.