Sewers of Budapest – A Crossfire Scenario

A Crossfire scenario for WW2 with Russian scouts fighting through the sewers of Budapest.

Very, Very Draft

Historical Situation

Setting: Budapest, Hungary; Mar 1945

Vladimir Zimakov was a scout in the 90th Special Reconnaissance Platoon of the 180th Rifle Division. He has an interesting description of the German attempts to break out of Budapest:

On the 20th of August [1944] we broke the German front and advanced. All the reconnaissance advanced 30 km ahead of the division. That was the time when Romania capitulated. I should say that Romanians hated the Germans. The Hungarians liked the Germans, but the Romanians didn’t, like we Russians. The Romanians were poor people, very poor. Near Budapest we went on a reconnaissance raid together with the commander of the division. And on the way we were bombed by a group of Yu-87s. There I was wounded for the last time. I was treated in a hospital located in a monastery near the city of Kiskunfelegyhaza.

Three weeks afterwards, we were formed into a platoon and sent to the vicinity of Budapest. The city had already been surrounded. We were a special assault brigade. We were given cannons, submachine and machine guns, nothing else. And we used to be sent into the weakest points of our circle around Budapest. As our fresh forces arrived, we were moved to another point, then to another one. In March the Germans made an attempt to break out of Budapest through the sewer system under the city. The German troops were coming like an avalanche. They were approaching without shooting, but we kept firing at them. Then they started to throw their guns on the ground. I don’t know exactly, but the number of dead Germans was enormous. We had a rest and went further. We saw piles of dead Germans in the forest, five soldiers in a pile. There were mortal battles in Budapest, there wasn’t one undamaged building to be found in the whole city. Everything had been destroyed, absolutely everything! When we were having a rest in Pest we looked around the city–it was absolutely ruined! Everything! It’s like a nightmare. Just a hair stands upward, did we do that? Yes, we did it, because the Germans resisted. I met my friend from the artillery reconnaissance then. He says,

— Your reconnaissance has been killed in the city’s underground, in the sewers. The commander of the division ordered them to take a building and they bumped into the Germans. They wiped out the Germans but perished themselves too.

— Everybody?

— Yes, even the soldiers from the combat trains.

I Remember: Vladimir Zimakov Part II. Scout

Map produced in CC2
Click on the map to the full size version

Map/Terrain

Key features are:

  • Buildings – lots of them.
  • Sewers

Pre-game preparation

German Player (Attacking)

Objective

Forces Available

Morale:

Deployment

Deploys second. Begins scenario with initiative.

Reinforcements

Russian Player (Defending)

Objective

Forces Available

1 x FO for off table 82 mm Mortar (12 FM)

1 x Reconnaissance Company (Veteran)

1 x CC (+1)
1 x HMG
1 x on-table 50 mm Mortar (12 FM)
2 x Scout Platoons: PC (+1/0), 3 x SMG

1 x Rifle Company (Regular)

1 x CC (+1)
1 x HMG
1 x on-table 50 mm Mortar (12 FM)
3 x Rifle Platoons: PC (+1/0), 3 x Rifle Squads

Russian PCs get +1 for close combat but not for rallying.

Morale:

Deployment

Deploys first.

Reinforcements

Victory Conditions

Terrain and Casualty (AD) objectives

Scenario Special Rules

  • Special Rule Sewers are in use.

Weapon stats

Type When ARM ACC PEN MG HE/EFF Smoke HD Spd CC Comment

Notes

References

Source: I Remember: Vladimir Zimakov Part II. Scout

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