Bolt Action: Campaign: D-Day: British & Canadian Sectors

By Warlord Games and Peter Dennis

After the historic D-Day landings comes the fight to liberate France and the rest of Occupied Europe. This campaign book focuses on the push inland from the Commonwealth beaches of Gold, Sword, and Juno culminating with the battle for Caen and the Falaise Pocket. Containing new scenarios, Theatre Selectors, and units, including rules for the Canadian Army in Europe and their adversaries, this book has everything players need to continue the liberation of Europe.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Release date: Jan 21, 2021
• ISBN: 9781472839114

Warlord Games

Warlord Games is one of the world's leading producers of wargaming miniatures, as well as the publisher of the successful Black Powder and Hail Caesar rule sets. Their Bolt Action range of 28mm World War II miniatures is the most extensive on the market and continues to grow and develop.

Book preview

Contents

Introduction

Campaign Overview

D-Day – Pushing Inland

Scenario 1: Riva Bella – Fighting In Coastal Villages

The Aftermath

The Logistical Challenge and the Mulberry Harbours

Scenario 2: La Bruyere Woods

The Aftermath

Villers-Bocage and the Race for Caen

Scenario 3: Villers-Bocage

The Aftermath

Tactical Objectives Inland

Scenario 4: Battle Of Douvres Radar Station

Aftermath

Scenario 5: V Weapon Raid

The Aftermath

Renewing the Assault on Caen

Scenario 6: Operation Epsom

The Aftermath

Scenario 7: Operation Windsor

The Aftermath

Bloody Caen – Carpet Bombing and Street Fighting

Scenario 8: Operation Charnwood – The Outskirts of Caen

The Aftermath

Fighting Them In The Hills – The Assault Of Hill 112

Scenario 9: Operation Jupiter – The Second Attack On Hill 112

The Aftermath

The Great Offensive

Scenario 10: Operation Goodwood/Atlantic – 18–20 July

The Aftermath

The Canadian Offensive

Scenario 11: Operation Totalize

The Aftermath

Scenario 12: The Death of The Black Baron

Stop The Advance

Kill Wittmann!

The Aftermath

Breaking Out

Scenario 13: Operation Tractable

The Aftermath

Falaise – The Gamble Paid Off

New British And Commonwealth Units

Infantry

Infantry Squads and Teams

Artillery

Anti-Aircraft Guns

Vehicles

Self-Propelled Artillery

Armoured Cars

Transports and Tows

Ambulances

New Vehicles and Options

New German Units

Infantry

Infantry Squads and Teams

New Theatre Selectors

New British And Commonwealth Theatre Selectors

Late-War British Army Anti-Tank Reinforced Platoon

Late-War British Army Mortar Reinforced Platoon

Late-War British Army Machine Gun Reinforced Platoon

Mid-/Late-War Royal Artillery Gun Troop Reinforced Platoon

British/Canadian Self-Propelled Artillery Platoon 1944–45

British And Commonwealth Armoured Divisions

Army Special Rules

Divisional Characteristic

Late-War Allied Armoured Division NW Europe Platoon

Per Ardua – The RAF Regiment In Normandy

Armoured Car Squadrons

RAF Regiment Armoured Car Squadron (Armoured Platoon)

New German Theatre Selectors

Static Division Remnants

Panzer-Lehr Division, Normandy 1944

Armoured Observation Post Vehicles

Armoured Op Special Rules

Allied Vehicles

German Vehicles

New Officers and Chaplains

Intelligence Officers and Sections

National Rules

British Intelligence Section

Support Officers

New Unit Special Rules

Chaplains

British and Inter-Allied Commandos

Army Special Rules

New Units

Infantry

Headquarters Units

Infantry Sections and Teams

New Characters

Theatre Selectors

The Early Raids

‘A Reign of Terror Down the Enemy Coast’

Bolstering the Front Line

Late-War Commando Troop

Direct Support

The Canadian Army

Army Special Rules

New Units

Infantry

Headquarters Units

Infantry Sections and Teams

Artillery

Field Artillery

Vehicles

Tanks

Self-Propelled Artillery

Armoured Cars

Anti-Aircraft Vehicles

Theatre Selectors

Canadian Army 1939–42

Canadian Infantry Division 1943–44

Canadian Infantry Division 1945

Canadian Airborne 1944–45

Canadian Armour

12th SS Hitlerjugend

Playing The 12th SS Panzer Division ‘Hitlerjugend’

Army Special Rules

New Units

Infantry

Headquarters Units

Infantry Squads and Teams

Special Character

Theatre Selectors

12th SS Panzergrenadier Platoon

12th SS Panzer Regiment Platoon

12th SS Heavy/Mortar Platoon

Luftwaffe Field Division

Playing a Luftwaffe Field Division

Army Special Rules

New Units

Infantry

Headquarters Units

Infantry Squads and Teams

Artillery

Anti-Aircraft Guns

Vehicles

Tanks

Tows and Transports

Theatre Selectors

16. FD(L)

Luftwaffe Defence Force

Luftwaffe Field Division Machine Gun Platoon

Luftwaffe Flak Platoon

Appendix: Special Rules

Dug In

Dug In Rules

Dug In Vehicles

Dug In With Hidden Set-Up

Dug In Vs Preparatory Bombardment

Dug In Vs Tank Assault

Digging In During A Game

Fortifications

Minefields

Effect of Minefields

Anti-Tank Minefields

Mixed Minefields

Dummy Minefields

Minefields in Water

Concealed Minefields

Clearing Minefields

Rubble

Movement in Rubble

Shooting in Rubble

Command and Control in a City Fight

Credits

This campaign book is a supplement to Bolt Action, the 28mm scale tabletop wargame set on the battlefields of the Second World War. This campaign book focuses on of some of the key clashes fought in Normandy in the summer of 1944 as British, Canadian, Polish and other Allied forces engaged in desperate battles against a dedicated and determined German opposition. As well as summarising the history, this book also details a number of scenarios inspired by the engagements within the Normandy campaign, and the special rules required to play them. The reader may need access to both the Armies of Great Britain and the Armies of Germany supplements in order to represent all the units involved in these battles. However, this book also gives a number of new options for Bolt Action players fielding British, Canadian, Allied, and German forces, in the form of new units and new Theatre Selectors, including units that were in service earlier or later than the Normandy campaign.

CAMPAIGN OVERVIEW

Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of occupied Normandy in June 1944, is perhaps the most famous and evocative campaign of the Second World War – at least as far as the western world is concerned. It is therefore sometimes easy to forget the sheer global scale of the conflict, and its context in all the conflicts of the summer of 1944. For many in Southeast Asia, the Second World War was simply an extension of the Second Sino-Japanese War that erupted in July 1937, resulting in estimated death of over 35,000,000. Whilst the western allies planned their invasion of northern France, war was being waged in the Pacific with the forces of Imperial Japan: some 8,000,000 Japanese soldiers, sailors and airmen facing 14,000,000 combatants in mainland China and over 3,000,000 American servicemen, 2,000,000 Indian soldiers, and over 1,000,000 British, Australian, and other Commonwealth allies across the Pacific. In Eastern Europe a savage and violent war was raging across hundreds of miles along the border between the Soviet Union and Axis Germany and her allies, resulting in the deaths of 5,000,000 German soldiers and estimates of up to 10,000,000 Soviet servicemen and women.

However, Operation Overlord was the largest amphibious assault the world had ever seen and considered key to an Allied eventual victory. Over 150,000 soldiers from the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, France, New Zealand, Australia, Norway, Greece, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Poland and many other nations faced a solid, layered defence, years in the making, supported by some of the most experienced soldiers in the European theatre. It had been planned to the finest detail, with early concepts beginning as far back as 1940; Joseph Stalin kept increasing political pressure on the western allies, arguing that the Soviet Union was suffering millions of casualties in a vicious land war against Germany, and that a second front against Germany was absolutely vital if an Allied victory was to be achieved. The invasion consisted of some 7,000 naval vessels, 14,000 sorties flown by Allied aircraft and a first wave of 18,000 paratroopers in advance of main amphibious assault. It was only possible to achieve due to the pressure applied from other fronts, such as the Allied landings in Italy in 1943 which forced thousands of Axis soldiers from Northern France south to keep the Allied advance at bay. Operation Overlord was a truly international effort on a scale that was inconceivable only a year before.

However, just as it is easy for those in Western Europe and the United States to misunderstand the scale of the fighting that raged on the far side of the world, it is also easy to misunderstand the true focus of Operation Overlord. D-Day was just one day. It secured beachheads, but nothing more. The true task was to liberate France and push over 2,000,000 Allied soldiers east for the invasion of Germany itself, and the final assault to defeat Adolf Hitler and end the war in Europe. This campaign book tells the story of the British and Canadian contribution to this monumental task, and the stoic German resistance they faced. It guides Bolt Action players from the latter stages of D-Day, beginning with the fierce fighting in the coastal towns off the beaches at Gold, Juno and Sword, through the violent clashes around the strategically vital city of Caen, and to the march against Germany itself.

Gold Beach, the central landing area of the five beaches and the westernmost of the British sites, was assaulted by the British Second Army at 0725 on the morning of 6 June, led by 69 and 231 Brigade Groups of the 50th (Northumbrian) Division and supported by the specially modified assault vehicles of ‘Hobart’s Funnies’ and 4 Special Service Brigade, composed entirely of Royal Marine Commandos. The assault on Sword Beach was led by 8 Brigade Group of the British 3rd Division, also supported by ‘Hobart’s Funnies’ and the elite troops of 1 Special Service Brigade. They landed at 0726, charged with pushing forward off the beach and advancing some 10 km inland to capture the vital city of Caen. In between these two beaches was Juno, where soldiers of the 3rd Canadian Division, supported by the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade, ‘Hobart’s Funnies’ and the Royal Marine Commandos of 4 Special Service Brigade, landed at 0755 after being delayed by poor weather. Opposing the British and Canadian soldiers were the men of the German 716th Infantry Division, a unit that had existed for three years but had very little combat experience.

In some places, due to the high tide, the beaches faced by British and Canadian soldiers were as narrow as 15 yards, leading directly over seawalls and into the built-up areas of coastal towns and villages. In stark contrast to the long, open beaches faced by American soldiers at Utah and Omaha, British and Canadian soldiers were able to quickly close with and engage the German defenders.

Map of the frontlines at the end of the day June 6, 1944 © Osprey Publishing Ltd. Taken from Campaign 143: Caen 1944

German Heer Heavy Mortar Team

SCENARIO 1: RIVA BELLA – FIGHTING IN COASTAL VILLAGES

D-Day; British and Canadian forces have advanced off the beaches, across the seawalls and are now engaged in bitter combat with German soldiers of the 716th Infantry Division in the coastal towns that intermittently span the length of the invasion sites. Allied forces are keen to break through and solidify their foothold, whilst the German defenders are eager to cast the attackers back into the sea or, at the very least, hold the defensive line until reinforcements arrive.

OBJECTIVES

The Allied player is attempting to destroy defending German units and move further inland.

The German player must hold position and destroy the attackers.

SET-UP

This scenario is played on a 6' x 4' gaming surface. Scenery should be exclusively urban with two roads running directly across the board from the centre of both the long and short table edges to form a crossroad in the middle. An open town square is located centrally whilst the remainder of the board is made up of small buildings.

DEPLOYMENT

The Allied player sets up first. Up to half of their force must be set up within 6" of the Allied table edge. The remainder are held in reserve (see page 132 of the Bolt Action rulebook).

Up to half of the German player’s force must be set up within 12" of the German table edge. The remainder are held in reserve.

Outflanking is only permitted by the Allied player, but only up to a maximum 24" along the short table edge.

Scenario 1: Fighting In Built Up Areas

SPECIAL RULES

NAVAL BARRAGE

The intense barrage from Allied naval vessels filled the air along the coast with smoke, which took hours to disperse. At the beginning of each turn roll 2D6 and add 12 to the result to determine the maximum distance, in inches, that line of fire can be drawn by any unit.

BURNING BUILDINGS

The naval barrage set numerous fires among the buildings. Before play begins, players take turns in selecting four buildings (i. e. two each) that are ablaze. A blazing building blocks line of sight from any point within 1 of its structure, and units cannot move to within 1 of them. The German player chooses first. Only one burning building may be selected in each quadrant of the table. These buildings remain ablaze throughout the game.

FORCES

This scenario is played with equal forces; the Allied player is the attacker whilst the German player is the defender.

British and Canadian reinforced platoons are chosen from the Normandy Reinforced Platoon list on page 81 of the Armies of Great Britain book, the Canadian Infantry Division 1943–44 Reinforced Platoon list of this book, or the Late-War Commando Troop list of this book.

German reinforced platoons are taken from the 1944 – Atlantic Wall Resistance Nest list on page 94 of the Armies of Germany book, or the Static Division Remnants list of this book.

This scenario represents the very lead elements of infantry forces of both sides dashing to engage each other, so no artillery or vehicles can be selected.

GAME DURATION

Keep a count of how many turns have elapsed as the game is played. At the end of turn 6, roll a die. On a result of 1, 2, or 3 the game ends; on a roll of 4, 5, or 6 play one further turn.

VICTORY!

At the end of the game calculate which side has won by adding up victory points as follows:

• The Allied player scores 1 victory point for every enemy unit destroyed and 3 victory points for each of their own units that has moved off the enemy table edge before the end of the game.

• The German player scores 2 victory points for every enemy unit destroyed.

• If one side scores at least 2 more victory points than the other, that side has won a clear victory. Otherwise the result is deemed too close to call and honours are shared – a draw!

Grenades followed by bursts of lead! House clearance British Army-style in Lion-sur-Mer.

THE AFTERMATH

By dusk on 6 June, all three British and Canadian beaches were secured with men and machines pouring off landing craft at an increasing rate. Whilst the sites were secure and the initial day’s main objectives had been achieved, in places the Allied beachhead was as slim as only one mile inland and German reinforcements were rapidly bolstering the defensive line. One of the most vital objectives of D-Day – the capture of Caen – had not been achieved. Post war estimates of British casualties were quoted at up to 3,000 dead, wounded and missing, whilst Canadian casualties were at least 1,096 (RCN casualty records were lost), 381 of whom were killed. German casualty estimates from actions against both the British and Canadians, and the US Army, vary between 4,000 and 9,000. Whilst the first day was undoubtedly a success for the Allies, the overall success of Overlord was far from assured.

German Heer Artillery Observer Team

THE LOGISTICAL CHALLENGE AND THE MULBERRY HARBOURS

Every strategist is well aware that winning isolated battles alone will never win wars, and that a robust, sustainable logistical chain to frontline forces is absolutely integral to success. For Great Britain, its geographical isolation had proven to be a strength for centuries; as a maritime, island nation cut off from mainland Europe it was exceptionally difficult for any invading force to maintain support to armies managing to establish a foothold on British soil. Even if the Luftwaffe had managed to achieve air supremacy in 1940, any invasion force attempting to cross the English Channel, and its subsequent waves of logistical support, would have been decimated by the sea superiority firmly established by the Royal Navy.

Canadian troops attack elements of 12th SS Panzer Division ‘Hitlerjugend’ by Peter Dennis © Osprey Publishing Ltd. Taken from Weapon 28: The Bren Gun

However, for the Allied invasion of Normandy in 1944, this geographical strength was now a major constraint. With German forces dominating mainland Europe and Britain being used as a springboard for the invasion, the English Channel was now a huge hurdle to overcome rather than a safety barrier for Britain. Fortunately for the Allies, the first stage of sea superiority had already been established. Allied warships from many nations secured the flanks of the invasion force, whilst maritime air power hunted the seas for prowling German submarines and patrol boats.

The main logistical problem in advancing off the beaches lay in the establishment of major resupply routes. A trickle of relatively lightweight supplies could be brought in by air, but to ship across thousands of soldiers as well as heavy stores such as tanks and artillery guns, it was vital to take and hold deep water port facilities with enough depth to bring in large cargo vessels.

In 1943 an evaluation team had trialled three British designs for portable harbours that could be used until French ports on the coast of Normandy were captured and secured. After a fortuitously timed storm smashed into the three competing designs and wrecked two of them, Lt. Col. Everall and Major Beckett’s design was chosen. Two separate portable harbours, named Mulberry A and Mulberry B, were built to be moved to Omaha Beach and Gold Beach respectively. The Mulberries were towed across the channel on D-Day itself in over 400 separate parts, weighing some 1.5 million tons. ‘Corncob’ blockships were used as breakwaters, whilst concrete ‘Phoenix’ caissons were sunk to form the foundations. These installations were protected by anti-aircraft guns and barrage balloons.

With construction work still underway, a devastating storm tore through the harbours on 19 June, even more formidable than the storm which had been weathered by the prototypes the previous year. Mulberry A was completely destroyed, but Mulberry B at Arromanches survived. In a testament to the design and the skill of the engineers involved, Mulberry B operated for 10 months despite its design specification calling for it to last only 3; it was used to land 2.5 million men, half a million vehicles and 4 million tons of supplies. Some parts of the Mulberries are still intact and remain in place to this day.

Waffen-SS Goliath demolitions team

SCENARIO 2: LA BRUYERE WOODS

The North Shore Regiment landed on Nan Red sector of Juno Beach on 6 June and were initially tasked with securing St. Aubin-sur-Mer. The preliminary bombardment had left the German defences largely untouched, resulting in difficult fighting. The battalion cleared the area after four hours fighting and then, began moving inland toward the village of Tailleville around 1100, supported by the Duplex Drive Shermans of C Squadron, Fort Garry Horse. Their objective was to pass through Tailleville and secure the high ground overlooking the Douvres radar sites in preparation for a battalion attack. It took six hours of hard fighting to clear the village. Tailleville was secured by early evening and some 61 German POWs were taken.

The North Shore Regiment had suffered 124 casualties on D-Day and was still short its B Company, which remained dug in at St. Aubin. In addition, C Squadron, Fort Garry Horse was ordered to withdraw to a regimental concentration area. The CO, Lieutenant Colonel Buell, decided to dig in at Tailleville, regroup, and prepare to attack the Douvres sites the next morning. C Squadron obtained permission to stay with the battalion for the night but was ordered to return to the Fort Garry Horse concentration area at first light.

The plan for 7 June was divided into two phases. In Phase 1, A Company was to advance south from Tailleville, clear La Bruyere Woods and secure the high ground overlooking the radar sites. Phase 2 was an attack on the strong points.

A Company set off at 0700 hours and immediately came under fire from positions in a wooded area just south of Tailleville. The woods were quickly cleared with the support of one troop of the Fort Garry Horse and 38 German prisoners were taken. The remainder of C Squadron circled La Bruyere Woods to the west and came up from the south onto the high ground