- Local time
- 6:56 PM
- 154
- 209
OPERATION:
VERBORGENE BEDROHUNG
Mortain
We had gained not only the town of Mortain but a little over a kilometer to the East. A once beautiful kilometer of rolling hills, steep cliffs, dense forests, and thick hedgerows. Now a scarred mess of roadblocks, buildings turned to rubble and half collapsed trench systems. News reached us that an Axis push was to come soon, with armor and artillery superiority to boot. Not exactly good news but out here it rarely is.
There were three strongpoints we knew of that the Germans required strategically to continue their assault. There was the Destroyed German Convoy; a tangled mess of burnt out vehicles and supplies that we hadn't yet the time to fully scavenge for ourselves. The Petit Chappelle Saint Michel; a quaint little steeple atop a cliff. Truly a picturesque sight if not for the aftermath of war and the handiwork of shovels. Finally our Forward Medical Aid Station; nestled into the hillside and along a roadblock. To enter Mortain effectively, control of each of these locations in succession was necessary.
Now everything I've said so far makes sense to me, I understand it. However this second aspect of the battle is something I don't even think Battalion fully understood. Throughout the countryside we had placed these structures that defied explanation. Apparently they were created, or perhaps found by some Dr.Jones fellow. A professor of antiquated things, a curator of museums, a fearer of snakes. Well we were told that the Germans physically couldn't enter Mortain as long as they weren't destroyed. How does that work you ask? I couldn't tell you Sir but when I saw a truck with a busted axle repair itself beside one I decided not to question the OPORD.
I was tasked with leading a team in constructing defences around the final of these mysterious Repair Stations. Thats what we called them I don't know what they really were, I dont know if anyone really does. While the battle started out to the East at the Convoy my squad, Baker Squad set to building a fortress. We triple stacked barricades around it, we spun a dense web of barbed wire out from the Repair station and built towering bunkers at crossroads. The funnels created and killzones littered with Anti-Personnel mines gave us peace of mind. The goal was 360° coverage of the area. From within and out a true zone of control to repel any infantry that dared to come near this weird relic.
Our solution to the threat of Armor was twofold. An ambushing antitank gun hidden within a compound to the North. Paired with a long range gun built within Mortain itself. This provided overwatch to both the Repair Station and the Medical Aid Station and gave us great confidence for dealing with what was to come. Furthermore along the roads, intersections, and gaps in the hedgerows we propped up a myriad of hedgehogs and Anti-Tank mines to block and pop man and machine. Truly a thornbush to match the countryside, a bold display of logistics and elbowgrease.
As we swung our hammers, as we turned our wrenches, bashed our knuckles, and gingerly placed hidden explosives we could hear the sounds of shells pounding closer. While we ripped our uniforms on barbed wire, piloted trucks laden with supplies, and hoisted sandbags ever higher we noticed the influx of activity at the Aid Station.
While placing the last of our mines, and making the final connections to our backline Garrison network fresh cracks of gunfire rang out like a town crier. The already Destroyed German Convoy must have been obliterated. Despite almost an hour of holding the high ground the Petit Chappelle must have been toppled. The Germans were on their way. No the germans had arrived.
VERBORGENE BEDROHUNG
Mortain
We had gained not only the town of Mortain but a little over a kilometer to the East. A once beautiful kilometer of rolling hills, steep cliffs, dense forests, and thick hedgerows. Now a scarred mess of roadblocks, buildings turned to rubble and half collapsed trench systems. News reached us that an Axis push was to come soon, with armor and artillery superiority to boot. Not exactly good news but out here it rarely is.
There were three strongpoints we knew of that the Germans required strategically to continue their assault. There was the Destroyed German Convoy; a tangled mess of burnt out vehicles and supplies that we hadn't yet the time to fully scavenge for ourselves. The Petit Chappelle Saint Michel; a quaint little steeple atop a cliff. Truly a picturesque sight if not for the aftermath of war and the handiwork of shovels. Finally our Forward Medical Aid Station; nestled into the hillside and along a roadblock. To enter Mortain effectively, control of each of these locations in succession was necessary.
Now everything I've said so far makes sense to me, I understand it. However this second aspect of the battle is something I don't even think Battalion fully understood. Throughout the countryside we had placed these structures that defied explanation. Apparently they were created, or perhaps found by some Dr.Jones fellow. A professor of antiquated things, a curator of museums, a fearer of snakes. Well we were told that the Germans physically couldn't enter Mortain as long as they weren't destroyed. How does that work you ask? I couldn't tell you Sir but when I saw a truck with a busted axle repair itself beside one I decided not to question the OPORD.
I was tasked with leading a team in constructing defences around the final of these mysterious Repair Stations. Thats what we called them I don't know what they really were, I dont know if anyone really does. While the battle started out to the East at the Convoy my squad, Baker Squad set to building a fortress. We triple stacked barricades around it, we spun a dense web of barbed wire out from the Repair station and built towering bunkers at crossroads. The funnels created and killzones littered with Anti-Personnel mines gave us peace of mind. The goal was 360° coverage of the area. From within and out a true zone of control to repel any infantry that dared to come near this weird relic.
Our solution to the threat of Armor was twofold. An ambushing antitank gun hidden within a compound to the North. Paired with a long range gun built within Mortain itself. This provided overwatch to both the Repair Station and the Medical Aid Station and gave us great confidence for dealing with what was to come. Furthermore along the roads, intersections, and gaps in the hedgerows we propped up a myriad of hedgehogs and Anti-Tank mines to block and pop man and machine. Truly a thornbush to match the countryside, a bold display of logistics and elbowgrease.
As we swung our hammers, as we turned our wrenches, bashed our knuckles, and gingerly placed hidden explosives we could hear the sounds of shells pounding closer. While we ripped our uniforms on barbed wire, piloted trucks laden with supplies, and hoisted sandbags ever higher we noticed the influx of activity at the Aid Station.
While placing the last of our mines, and making the final connections to our backline Garrison network fresh cracks of gunfire rang out like a town crier. The already Destroyed German Convoy must have been obliterated. Despite almost an hour of holding the high ground the Petit Chappelle must have been toppled. The Germans were on their way. No the germans had arrived.
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