First off, this series is being done as a bit of a lark as wargaming has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas so if anyone is offended, please just stop reading now. Also, I know that traditionally the 12 Days of Christmas happen after Christmas Day (starting on December 25th and ending on January 5th also known as Twelfth Night) but I want to do this in a lead up to the holiday.

On the 1st day of Christmas War Gaming, my true love gave to me…

A Lone Service Troop Holding a Bridge

There are a bunch of different tactical systems out there, and most of them are very good, but some are much better than others. There is always a new designer that will add some new tricks to the established formula and make a new experience. Such is the case with Wolfgang Klein and Erich Rankly and the Assault System from Assault Games. Their newest offering in the series is an expansion to their 2024 game called Assault Sicily ’43 – Gela Beachhead, which adds lots of new scenarios and gives players the opportunity to fight as the German or British paratroopers at Primosole Bridge over the Simeto river in July 1943. Assault Sicily ’43 – Primosole Bridge Expansion is a very good addition to an already fantastic series and we had the chance to play a scenario of the new expansion while attending SPIEL Essen in October.

The scenario chosen was a frontal assault on Primosole Bridge and it was a tough situation for both sides. The Germans were setup nicely with a bunker, building and trenches to hide their units awaiting the British to cross over the bridge. I played as the Germans and had my Pak 40 pointed at the bridge in such a manner as to be able to cover the entire approach and then had an MG 42 team hidden in the building facing the oncoming troops. I had one elite Fallschirmjäger rifle and a few ad Hoc Service Troop platoons who were pressed into service and placed on the front line. Alexander’s Brits had a Valentine Mark 10, a couple of Armored Cars and a Bren Carrier with a mounted Piat with 3 parachute squads and a sniper. This was going to be a tough one!

Alexander deftly used his smoke assets to obscure his units approach and crossing of the bridge but I was able to eliminate a parachute regiment and reduce an armored car but my Service Troop, who are simply cooks, supply managers and logistical support and are not crack units, had been placed on the front line to defend the off ramp of the bridge and to cause the Brits to have to worry about their advance. These Service Troops are not elite units nor are they very good, and frankly shouldn’t have been placed in this position but I wanted to save my elite Fallschirmjäger unit to advance on the British as they got off the bridge to hold them while my artillery and MG teams wiped them up.

Well, what do they say about plans? The best laid plans of mice and men….I guess, as my poor Service Troop got wiped out, although they fought bravely and actually died in an frontal close assault attempt that failed by the slimmest of margins, and my Fallschirmjäger followed up their brave attempt by doing their own close assault but were bested. In the end, the Brits crossed the bridge fairly easily and captured the 2 objective hexes to win the scenario. Smoke is a really powerful tool in this series and Alexander used it well to create a very difficult time for my troops to actually hit anything. This game is just so good! I love the custom dice and the Formation cards and the system is just so very clean and playable. It always creates such a great narrative and is fast and furious to play!

If you are interested in Assault Sicily ’43 – Primosole Bridge Expansion, you can order a copy for €69.00 ($79.18) from the Sound of Drums website at the following link: https://soundofdrumsgames.com/shop/assault-sicily-43-primosole-bridge/

-Grant