AAR: Contracting Trouble

I've got 4 AAR's to write up after a series of Force on Force games were played at our fortnightly meetings at the HKSW.

This is the second game and final game played on 4 Feb 2012.
The scenario is taken from the Force on Force rulebook, I have no idea who makes the buildings, they were an eBay purchase. The miniatures are by Elheim and painted by Piers Brand.

(N.B. The game was a spur of the moment choice after the first game ended early [more on that later!]. So I didn't have an SUV for the contractors, so I just used a BMD which was in my bag.)

Two contractors and their vehicle have come under attack while moving through the neighbourhood in one of the city's red zones. Two USMC fireteams have been sent in to recover the two contractors, their vehicle is out of action and they are running low on ammunition.

Intel indicates that a large number of insurgents are converging in on the contractors (The scenario has an 'automatic' insurgency level, which means insurgent reinforcements arrive at the end of every turn.), with this information, the Marine commander decides that speed should take priority above all else, race towards the objective, secure the contractors and exfil.

The marines arrive into the sector and immediately come under fire from an RPG, although the fire was ineffective, the mission goes FUBAR as the troopers are warned of an imminent gas attack, donning their gasmasks and sealing up their MOPP suits, the troopers find their situational awareness reduced and lose a significant part of their effectiveness as a combat unit. (The marine player rolls a one on his first reaction test and that's the first Fog of War card drawn before the Marines get a shot off.).

Nevertheless, the marines stick to their plan and sprint towards their objective, coming under heavy fire, with their abilities hindered by the heat and limited visibility offered by their gas masks, their shooting. While several threatening insurgents are taken out, including a dangerous RPG team, they fail to pin and suppress the larger groups of insurgents with small arms.

One of the USMC troopers is shot and killed as the marines reach the objective.
The contractors are assigned to the group with the casualty, to leave one Marine fireteam fully maneuverable.

However, as the team moves out, the sight of what is now a very large crowd of insurgents closing in on the squad from all sides, leaves the combat fireteam with a sense of dread and that something terrible is about to happen. (Another fog of war card).

The fireteam escorting the contractors and carrying a casualty are hit again, with another trooper seriously injured.

During all this, a sandstorm blows across the town and grounds all UAV assets for the marines, leaving them in the dark as to where the insurgents are arriving. Using this to their advantage, the insurgents growing in number and taking advantage of their knowledge of the local streets and allies bypass the marines setup a blocking position on the one road leading back towards the green zone.

The Marines fight their way forwards, but come under heavy fire, pinning the squads and slowing their progress to a crawl.

The blocking position proves effective as it allows a large group of insurgents to organise and prepare an ambush near the exit.

With the combat fireteam focused on eliminating the stubborn insurgents blocking the road, they fail to notice the group of 10 fighters advancing on their flank.

At the right moment, the fighters charge, the hand to hand combat was close with neither side gaining an advantage at the start, however, the insurgents, with numbers on their side kill 3 members of the fireteam and capture the remaining member. The remaining fireteam weighed down by dependants and casualties fail to make it out as the game ends.