AAR – 2015.2 Battle on the Mississippi

August 29th, 19 Flames of War players descended on Dear Ear Records in LaCrosse WI for the second installment of Battle on the Mississippi. This time a 1900 point Late War action, with 10 themed tables for the Armies to battle for the trophy and prizes. Thanks to Battlefront, Bill, Chuck, Collin, Keith, Matt and Tom for donating prizes.

We’d planned for 20 players but unfortunately we had one player not attend at the very last minute so we were unable to fill the spot. It worked out fine as Joe Abrisz stepped out to help Chuck with running the tournament for which we are very grateful.

Thanks once again to Deaf Ear Records for letting us hold the tournament in “the dungeon.”

The Players – Formation – WWPD.net rank

Thanks to all for making the event, both from near and far. Some new to the game, some old hands, lots of different skill levels made for a great field.  Let’s introduce everyone…

• Paul Gonsowski – British Guards – (unranked)
• Keith Gilmour – Irish Guards Rifle Company – (#114)
• Rick Davies – German Armor from Devils Charge – (#445)
• John Stentz – 101st Airborne – (#151)
• Ben Aehl – Schwere Panzer – (#137)
• Patrick Barkloo – Russian Guards Heavy Tank – (#415)
• Jason Hobbs – US Airborne Rifle – (unranked)
• John Dudkiewicz – German Armor – (#666)
• Tom Gall – Russian Tank Company – (#603)
• Bill Wojahn – Hungarian Hussars – (#624)
• Bernt Snuggerud – Finnish Infantry (unranked)
• Collin Chouinard – German Armor – (#526)
• Matt Vach – German Armor – (#496)
• Joe Lewis – Panzer Tank Company – (#3)
• Adam Trunzo – Panzer Tank Company (unranked)
• Chris Novak – Panzerspäh Company (#23)
• Richard Novak Jr – Russian Tankovy – (#336)
• David Mankin – British Hussars – (unranked)

Chuck Hiner was our tournament director, and Joe Abrisz stepped in to help.

The Tables

For the tables we had a blend of late war areas. Mostly west and east front as well as one Italian table. A very big thank you to those that hauled in terrain from afar, it sure helped out a lot!

It’s always nice to be able to match players to a themed table that would fit their force. One can’t do it all the time, but this is something we try to do.

Berlin, set in an area where historically the Russians had to stage a crossing during the siege.

St Mare-Eglise

Hells Highway, gave the players (if they wanted) a chance to deal with the low country and the hazards of not being able to go off road with armor.

Another west front table set in the low country, Koevering

Anzio, Italy, giving the players the challenge of having to deal with lots of levels of terrain and very few trees.

Bastogne table as it was being setup, roughly set here, which if you look at the street view, you’ll see a tank turret that marks the edge of the siege. One of the organizers had visited the area in person this year.

Poland, along the typical main east / west rail and road that was a critical lifeline for the Germans.

West front, a Normandy town..

Arracourt France

River crossing in Turda Hungry.

The Winners!

1. Joe Lewis (6-1, 6-1, 5-2) German
2. Collin Chouinard (6-1, 5-2, 6-1) German
3. Adam Trunzo (5-2, 6-1, 4-3) German
4. Chris Novak (6-1, 6-1, 3-4) German
5. Paul Gonsowski (6-1, 6-1, 2-5) British
6. Keith Gilmour (2-5, 6-1, 4-3) British
7. Rich Davis (5-2, 4-3, 3-4) German
8. John Stentz (1-6, 6-1, 4-3) American
9. Tom Gall (4-3, 1-6, 6-1) Russian
10. Richard Novak Jr (6-1, 3-4, 1-6) Russian
11. Patrick Barloo (1-6, 6-1, 3-4) Russian
12. Ben Aehl (6-1, 1-6, 3-4) German
13. Bernt Snuggerud (3-4, 1-6, 4-3) Finns
14. John Dudkiewics (1-6, 1-6, 5-2) German
15. Jason Hobbs (2-5, 1-6, 4-3) American
16. Bill Wojahn (1-6, 1-6, 3-4) Hungarian
17. David Mankin (1-6, 1-6, 2-5) British
18. Matt Vach (1-6, 1-6, 1-6) German

1st Place, Joe Lewis based on tie breaker. Would have been fun to see Joe and Collin have a play off even tho they were both playing German.

Best Painted Army – John Dudkiewicz

Best Sportsman Award – Bill Wojahn

The Dreaded Dinosaur for worst roll of the day went to Rick Davis. We’re sure he can’t wait to hand it off at the next tournament.

The Games!

Finns against the Russians as T-34/85 press ahead giving the anti-tank guns on the ridge lots of targets to choose from…. just as the Russian mortars start to rain down.

Chris Novak has a “stay on target … stay on target” moment.

Matt rolling down the road on a date with destiny….

Joe assessing the situation and getting ready to hatch a brilliant plan.

Keith and Adam duking it out on a tough table.

Lots of action in this one, but outside of town given where the objectives were.

Matt with his Panthers on the prowl.

Chris Novak and his “None shall pass” Tiger II on the Berlin table.

 

Getting setup on the Bastogne table during round 3.

 

Americans view incoming Panzer IVJs rumbling across the frozen tundra….

 

Round 1, discussing terrain….

 

Some trees stay up, some trees fall down, but the Americans are ready!

 

 

 

Russian rockets ready to open up!

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but all in all we hope everyone had fun. We’re already preparing for the next one and can’t wait to put it on.

Thanks to those that drove in some cases a pretty long distance to attend. Thanks to Battlefront and their continued support. Thanks to Deaf Ear for letting us play there, we’re getting to that point where we’re considering a bigger location as the participation grows.

Next Up

October 17th, we’ll be having a  themed LW tournament with only the Bridge by Bridge and Market Garden books in use. (Don’t have an army or only a partial list? That’s totally ok! We’ll have standby lead for players to use) Stay tuned!

Likewise there is a tournament brewing sometime in the October / November timeframe that will be up in the Twin Cities. Keep your eyes open for that one as well! Speaking for the locals, we’re excited to make the drive up for it.