The 3rd Battle of Souk el Arba

January, 18, 2004, at Game Central

 

Overview of the battlefield; Italians hold the town and orchard, US enters right, British enter at bottom

 

British mechanized force with much recon enters the map; motorized infantry debus

 

Italian tank battalion pops out of orchard, then pops back in after destroying an infantry company

 

British armored recon probes the town

 

Allied fighter bomber attacks and destroys British recon carrier in the open

 

British support company is shot to pieces by roving Italian tank battalion

 

The very same Italian tank battalion, after taking fire from Allied artillery and tanks

British Valentine tanks finish off the Italian M14/41's; Crusaders with 6-pounder guns may be seen in the far background

 

The US artillery force as it appears for the entire game: carefully hidden

 

Renewed aggressive British scouting uncovers Italian Semoventes

 

British Crusaders hold a firing position as lorried infantry move to assault the town

More British recon armored cars attack an Italian AA gun position in the town

 

British units move out to assault the town in earnest

 

Suddenly, the Italian armored cavalry enter the board and cause great damage to the Allied lorried infantry

 

And in turn, the British armored headquarters unit attacks the Italian armored cars from behind

The battle ends as the light Italian recon is forced to abandon the map after disrupting the British attack

 

They just can't believe what happened in Tunisia today

 

This battle can be characterized as a series of unexpected blows and counter blows. While the British infantry were mauled by direct fire from Italian tanks and armored cars, the Valentines and Crusaders, supported by effective US artillery fire, dominated the battlefield. The Valentines in particular were a tough nut to crack. Twice they were attacked en mass by Italian armor, yet suffered no casualties. In contrast, the Italian tank battalion was destroyed in a single turn. Allied air power turned out to be a hazard for the Allies, the only casualty of air attacks being a British recon carrier. Once again, Italian armored cavalry proved deadly, but unable to force the Allies from the map. As the last Axis units fled, the British invested the town.