Cooks to the front!*
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Series: 2nd Battle of Kharkov
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_Soviet Union*
_____vs.*
__Germany*

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Date: 16th of May, 1942*
0830 Hours*
Location: South of Kharkov*
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Designed By: Ts4EVER*
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Background 2nd Battle of Kharkov: Following the successful winter offensives in 1941, Stalin was keen to keep the pressure on the enemy, hoping to preempt another assault on Moscow with his own offensive. He was especially in favor of going on the offensive in the Kharkov sector, the city having fallen to the enemy in the summer of 1941. The attack was to be undertaken by the South-West-Front in a pincer movement, from the Barvenkovo salient and the Stariy Saltov bridgehead. Once massed artillery had broken through the German line, mobile group would be fed into the breaches to encircle AOK6 and reconquer Kharkov. However, due to supply issues, especially with artillery ammunition, as well as the undetected presence of German mobile reserves, the plan soon proved ill-advised...
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Briefing: Early this morning an infantry company from the 610th Infanterie Regiment was suddenly attacked and overwhelmed by Russian cavalry that had approached the city of Krasnograd under the cover of darkness. They have seized the north-eastern part of the town and are advancing towards the city centre. You command a scratch force from Sperrverband Ziegelmayer, namely: the remnants of the defeated infantry company, a platoon of cooks, signallers and costruction troops and a platoon from Pionier-Bataillon 260. A motorized company of observation balloon specialists is also on its way. Furthermore, you control the three surviving 15cm guns of our artillery battery and as the weather clears up, Stukas from StG77 will become available. You are to stop the Russian advance and then counter attack, pushing them out of the city limits and restoring our position.
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The enemy force is a lightly armed cavalry battalion of the 49th cavalry division.
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Historical Scenario, designed to be played as the Germans.
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POSSIBLE SPOILERS
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Amazingly, the hastily organized counter attack managed to push the Russian cavalry out of Krasnograd. Sperrverband Ziegelmayer was still heavily outnumbered, having only 1600 troops against up to 15000 Russians. However, the lightly equipped cavarly lacked the necessary heavy artillery to attack a major city, as well as the manpower for bloody house to house fighting. On the evening of the 16th, elements of the 576th Infanterie-Regiment moved into the town, reinforcing the defenders even further. The Soviets had missed a golden opportunity.