1944 Operation Bluecoat Ambush

The British breakout from Normandy, Operation Bluecoat, is less famous than its American counterpart, Cobra. In this fantastic 15mm wargame, we focus on the British breakout and the German attempt to defend the critical crossroads of Vire.
Today's episode is a guest post by our fellow wargaming friends at Mark's Game Room, using the Fireball Forward WW2 company-level rules. This exact scenario is available for FREE from the official Fireball Forward website. Learn more about the rules, get the scenario, and watch a detailed game tutorial on their official website: www.fireballfor...
Here at Little Wars TV we love showcasing the great work other historical wargaming clubs are doing. If you want to see more from Mark's Game Room in the future, just us know in the comments below! And if YOU and your club want to get in touch with us, just reach out anytime!

[@JANoll1]

I’m a fan of this new commentary included battle report. Also the video was entertaining and well shot. I’d like to see more of these type of videos. Although I wouldn’t want them to be much longer, 30min is a good length.

[@shawnclarke9414]

Also a best of 3 could be very entertaining

[@Able_Are]

Yes - everything that Joseph said. Also, I'd've liked a short rules explation.

[@sunsettersix6993]

I 100% agree! This was very entertaining to watch! I have always wondered why we don't see wargame replays like this more often on YT.

[@christophermilne6545]

@@Able_Are There are tutorials for Fireball Forward here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqGtmJWIi8icjKs I'm hoping they will post one explaining vehicles, which operate slightly differently. Rules explanations as they play would also definitely help (such as why they are rolling a d20 along with red and white dice). I've played before so understand it, but if you haven't it can be quite strange.

[@charlierichardson613]

“So, armed with this knowledge, I headed out to visit the location and write a wargame scenario about these two halftracks.” What a fantastic way to experience history! And something I'm just not capable of...

[@saltech3444]

Operation Bluecoat was an amazing achievement. It tended to be overlooked even by Montgomery (who spent most of the Normandy Campaign hoping for a breakthrough like that) largely because the battle commenced as a front line initiative by British troops on the spot, rather than something any general had planned. Seizing Mont Pincon and spoiling the Mortain offensive were worthy causes and helped defeat the Germans in Normandy.

[@jonasskinner5536]

I rarely have seen play-by-play battle reports done well, but this one really worked. Would love to see more of them

[@RobJones262]

My Uncle lost his life during Op Bluecoat. Thanks for making this vid, great game. And gorgeous table by the way ;)

[@sean250]

More from Mark's Game Room please, love his videos!

[@tonys4341]

Very nice! Like everyone else, love the colour commentary! But it's also instrumental to note that with a good scenario, how few figures and models you need for a good game. Beginners need to see this, as opposed to the (admittedly spectacular) massive games from veteran gamers.

[@StatsScott]

Really enjoyed the insights into how you came up with the scenario. The running color commentary was also fun.

[@aurthurdent99]

I don't know the rules of Fireball Forward but I really like watching the game in action and the voice overs like a sports commentator. Very cool! I think I'm going to invest in a new rule set. 30 minutes to watch the scenario played out was just about perfect for me. Thanks for sharing!

[@nathantudor5763]

Same here. As soon as I finished watching this I purchased the rules 😋

[@christophermilne6545]

@@nathantudor5763 I've found the youtube tutorials really helped me to grock the rules, which are a bit different from "regular" wargames: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqGtmJWIi8icjKs

[@christophermilne6545]

I've found the youtube tutorials really helped me to grock the rules, which are a bit different from "regular" wargames: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqGtmJWIi8icjKs

[@TheJoyofWargaming]

This is a really great format for these videos. The addition of the color commentary really helps those of us who are not well versed in the rules or period. Thank you for this video.

[@TimDutch]

This match is another example of the vulnerability of tanks when proper combined arms tactics are not used. The infantry was able to freely attack the armoured units. Of course their positioning also comes into play.

[@jonathanpickles2946]

In a role reversal I "took" my parents to Normandy on holiday in about 1980 :) Ian Dalglish, author of the reference book, was a wargamer/ASL scenario designer.

[@JohnLaudun]

I missed this when it was first posted. I think the "director's commentary" (along with the music) was delightful.

[@CoryJMcNeil]

Felt like the World Series of Wargaming, just needed the running odds of victory calculator graphic for both sides, Great Job!

[@ericturner7173]

Loved the colour commentary. It really added to the video. Very entertaining. Thanks for posting !

[@oblomovbruce9979]

Glad to see Fireball Forward get some love and a video! Look forward to gaming this scenario (eventually).

[@davecrater878]

Amazing job at both scenario design philosophy and construction of the game itself. Thank you.

[@LittleWarsTV]

I love how Mark and his guys found the spot where that historical 1944 photograph was taken of the burning halftracks. Such a cool inspiration for a scenario.

[@scalehistoryslc819]

I very much liked this one! The game was entertaining but the commentary just elevated it even higher! The Brad Pitt cutout super imposed on Alex was top notch

[@samb2052]

Great to see some Fireball Forward at last. Excellent video production and AAR format.

[@joshburton4062]

Very cool inspiration for this game, with the on location photos paired with the historical photos. Using the actual locations terrain and some vehicles from that spot is a great touch. I do have to say that I would take the actual scenario back to the drawing board though. You took a picture of two knocked out German vehicles and turned it into a scenario that I personally didn't ever feel like the Brits had a chance. A tight turn limit in an ambush game like this really makes it almost impossible for the attacker. I also have to say that while for the most part I didn't mind the commentary, I thought they stepped over the line a few times being overly mean to the British player.

[@SimonJohnOwen]

Agreed, I don't think the British player had any chance in this one

[@PalleRasmussen]

Tell your father that if he likes the Normandy so much, WW2TV with Paul is a must to follow. Paul is an English historian and Normandy Guide and he has various expert guests to talk on lots of WW2 subjects- many of them obscure. But most of all, Paul knows his Normandy.

[@markgrehan3726]

Really enjoyed this, ticked all the boxes and the off-table commentary was awesome well done to all involved.

[@andrewdad10]

I loved the play by play commentary. That was an amazing way to showcase this battle report.

[@Apocolovids]

The combination of commentary and battle footage makes it abundantly clear how Tom Clancy found the inspiration from wargaming to write Red Storm Rising. Awesome stuff

[@matiaq]

I have to echo the many comments below: BRILLIANT commentary which helps newbies like me have a better understanding of the game as well as lending the video a lot of energy and humour. Well done, team 👍🏼

[@richardglady3009]

Great video. I love that you visited the actual location of the scenario. I like the detail you discuss as you set up the game. Thank you.

[@jumpmaster82nd.]

Excellent job boys! Good, historic scenario and set up nicely! Hope you have more to roll out!

[@chriscookesuffolk]

Superbly presented aar, Chris from Model Dads.

[@brunswicklord6365]

The lush flat green field was just too much for the British infantry not to park up the half tracks, brew a strong cup of Typhoo Tea, get out the cucumber sandwiches and have a jolly good game of cricket. Unfortunately it was "Howzat" for the Shermans. Knocked for six and couldnt avoid the follow on. Well at least the companies first eleven are doing somewhat better in the field, currently 45 for no loss off 10 overs.

[@SundborgModelRailway]

Loved the "sports commentators" :-D

[@christophermilne6545]

Thank you for posting this! FBF is such a great system. The tutorials are A1, and I would like to see more around how Snipers, vehicles, and special terrain works. It's fast, and allows company level operations but at a smaller level that most "company" level :)

[@redmist1122]

Wow...just blown away on this video overall! Love the intro, I enjoyed the commentary as to explain the rules a bit. The graphics were spot on too. Not a player of this game system, but it can easily be converted to Chain of Command 4-player game. Will this be a new format for LWTV game videos? I'm good with either one. Thanks again for a entertaining video. Take care.

[@slartybartfarst55]

Excellent game. And great format with the commentary

[@Stumptonian1]

Interesting scenario - added the rules to my wishlist.

[@guardman6806]

My grandfather was captured in this operation by the british spearhead. He was part of the SS division mentioned. He never told us much about his service, but he left us a book were he marked the places he fought.

[@ilmarsgromuls7467]

This format was fun! Thank you!!!

[@AUGUSTOOCTAVIO1]

Really nice job! I enjoy the commentary report and the explanation of the rules! Its a big plus!!

[@pod1977pod]

This format should be standard. Makes it very watchable!

[@JohnWise-vg3zj]

Great job on the miniatures and play area!

[@FingonNZ]

Great video, AAR and commentary! Well done!

[@billmasters385]

I wish there had been a few more turns. It would have been interesting to see f they could have held the town and exited eventually, although that would have also left those British troops that remained very vulnerable.

[@Vlad65WFPReviews]

Scenarios in which you have to drive a good length of the table against units in ambush is ALWAYS a very very tough assignment. Both playing and watching I almost never see the attacker being successful - and as one player mentioned, time constraints add to the difficulty. Nice looking game, though.

[@andygass9096]

Excellent presentation ,Master class on how to make a war game interesting to non war gamers

[@robertdelaney4332]

Enjoyed the video and the format. But so Americans to go out of our way to learn about the British actions in ww2 only to have the commentary turn it back to american Brad Pitt Fury references for the British 😁

[@markmatzeder6208]

That tall ship watching in the background is cracking me up

[@hamsteronthepaintingtable6465]

Loved this scenario and game play, lets have more 👍🏻😊

[@stuartliddle7228]

Great battle report, easy to follow and lovely fair play.

[@gwggamingwgaravaglia]

my favorite table top episode of ALL TIME ! 5 thumbs up ;)

[@joeokabayashi8669]

Excellent format! Bring on more of these, please.

[@DeePsix501]

Wonderful stuff as usual Mark!

[@scottmellon4549]

That was a great battle report. I'm usually bored, but the 'announcers' were awesome.

[@jefflamb5218]

Loved this, having a play by play man and a colour commentator worked for me?

[@dancingpotplant]

A really engaging game and some of the best commentary. More please!

[@Joel-ym3ij]

The Large red D20 is a ‘spindown’ style dice. One side is all the low numbers, other side is all high. Not allowed in some tournaments with other game systems because they generally aren’t as fair. Enjoyable game otherwise. Thanks

[@CZ350tuner]

In the "Panzergranate" ruleset, the Sd.Kfz.250/9 player have the option of pumping up to to 10 rounds of 20mm. autocannon burst fire into the bare 38mm. flat side armour of the M4, with a 6% chance of penetration with each PzGr.39 APCBC-HE shot hit & 28% chance of penetration with each PzGr.40 APCR shot hit. Only a few rulesets allow autocannons to fire in bursts, some with diminishing accuracy penalties with each round fired, making them more realistically effective.

[@polaris30000]

It's always interesting to see a historical or semi-historical reenactment play out. A friend and I recreated the latter half of the Battle of Arnhem with the benefit of hindsight. I played the Germans advancing on the town and him the British commandos defending. Despite knowing how things went and him knowing that he needed to get close and put his superior close range fire to use, I still ended up absolutely stomping him by playing to the strengths the Germans had.

[@peterfiser]

Production quality is out of this world, as if Mark spent some years on the telly or something.

[@alejandroojeda1129]

Very new to this channel and will watch the rest of the video later. But I just had to comment where did you get those minis and what is the scale? They look amazing. Would definitely be interested in buying a couple and doing a similar paint scheme if there is some type of guide.

[@frankdonatelli343]

Another fantastic video from you's. Happy Easter friends.

[@HeavyH2006]

Interesting set of rules. I’ll check them out. A great scenario. Big thank you & happy Easter to all!

[@LittleWarsTV]

We are big fans of Fireball in our club. We "discovered" them about a year ago, though they are quite a bit older! Reminds me a lot of an updated version of Crossfire.

[@HeavyH2006]

Yeh Crossfire is my go to rules. Good to know.

[@marshallwhitlock6240]

@@LittleWarsTV My god I would LOVE to see a Little Wars video featuring Crossfire.

[@michaelmanning5379]

Awfully big dice for such wee models. A great scenario. I'd like to try this with my 20mm models

[@filipinorutherford7818]

At 9.28 did the guy just drawing the card look at the next card on the top of the deck and put it back? Naughty naughty.

[@filipinorutherford7818]

@@charlemagne5377 Ok its in the rules ha ha.

[@M_Holien]

Really enjoyed it thanks for posting. Counting the days down to HCon. See you there.

[@jerfurdt1118]

Another great video. It’s good to see other the War from Allied point of view.

[@Urlocallordandsavior]

Do the War of the Spanish Succession or the Wars of the Roses!

[@LJ-gu2dj]

Excellent video, great commentary and looks like a great game!

[@billd2635]

Thanx for this. More please.

[@johnmichael3740]

Really interesting game, may try to convert to CoC. This video was well put together. I hear Fireball Forward is a good ruleset, but as I get older it is harder and harder to play multiple different rulesets as I get them confused!

[@ndyaarthurmartha8748]

I've played similar games, the way the damage is shown is cool.

[@waltdog123]

Loved this!

[@jmaccsarmiesofArda]

Great vid. Massive fan of fireball forward its the rules we use at our club. Did they do the tank moral check when the first one brewed up?

[@chrisrobinson196]

Really fun video, great players and fun commentary.

[@algiz21]

awesome! but i do wish you had used the jagdpanther vs churchill scenario which mark felton made a video about.

[@stevepetersen7697]

Isn't the purpose of infantry in this kind of operation to recon and deal with enemy infantry so that the armor WON'T get ambushed?

[@mikemhz]

Yeah I was thinking how I'd play it. My spidey senses would tingle near the hedgerow, so I'd send some infantry left and right to clear forwards.

[@stevemercer952]

Very good video and very enjoyable. If you'd like to find out how british armour and infantry really worked in Normandy I would recommend you read 'Tank Action' by David Render who was a tank platoon commander in ww2 and speaks from experience. We'll done for a good video.

[@stevenwynn819]

Great video, Mark!

[@TheRendar]

Great video ! Please do more on the channel.

[@Myke...]

now the players need to swap armies and try the scenario again

[@frankday8720]

Thanks Mark, great video.

[@Kili121416]

Great battle report, well presented.

[@majormuckup373]

Good vid, thanks for posting

[@WARdROBEPlaysWWII]

Agree with other comments here, great format.

[@willy03yo]

awesome video!

[@marshallwhitlock6240]

Curious what scale this is? At first I thought 15mm but now I doubt myself.

[@taccovert4]

This is like "Mystery Wargame Theater 3000"

[@brucewilliams4152]

What is missed the British not only fought the paneer divisions but beat them in a battle of attrition. When the break out finally came 30corps were the fastest advancing unit any where in the allied army including patton

[@davidgeister]

Bravo!

[@theofficerfactory2625]

This is basically a wonderful example of what happens to tanks who go against infantry unsupported.

[@ericgray6227]

Great Bat rep!

[@steveholmes11]

I also recall games where an opponent forgot the victory conditions.

[@lunchmoneydnb]

what is this awesome i have just stumbled upon...

[@mikemhz]

I'm impressed by how similar this feels to the Men of War PC games

[@WARdROBEPlaysWWII]

Seems like a nice small game

[@SimonJohnOwen]

I think this scenario was almost impossible for the British player to win, the victory conditions were too harsh and the time limit was too tight.

[@Afcwfan]

Please do a world war 1 war game i really want to see it

[@mathiasgustum858]

Nice! btw, what kind of mat are you using as a base for the terrain? :)

[@rwcowell]

Brad Pitt was a "Bad Brit" despite the panzerschreck taking him out. I'm sure Angie Jolet will be heartbroken by that. The German panzerschreck operator deserves the Iron Cross for his heroics. Overall, pretty cool game. Looks like it would be fun to play.

[@indianajon7980]

Enjoyed this game although not certain about the commentary and speech overlay. I think edited for one or the other would have been more effective. Just goes to show how tough a nut the Bocage was though.

[@Redwhiteblue-gr5em]

Note to British. Send your infantry in first to engage the German infantry. Then the tanks

[@pacificostudios]

What is the scale of the board? Allied doctrine was to keep tanks at least 75 yards apart during a road march -- In a situation like this, 100, 150 yards would not be inappropriate. The Allied player should have spaced the tanks at least 12 tank-lengths apart from each other. Then the enemy would not have been able to attack the entire platoon at once. No reasonable platoon commander would have bunched up his tanks in this situation.