Produktbeschreibung
Purchase a copy of Stalin's Onslaught during the release weekend and you
will receive a free Feldwebel Dietrich Uthoff miniature. Pre-order your
copy now as stocks are strictly limited!
Feldwebel Dietrich Uthoff is a Warrior for use specifically with the
78. Sturmdivision, with his own set of Ambush special rules. He is an
expert tank hunter and wields the Panzerfaust with skill and precision.
Welcome back to the Ostfront! With Stalin's Onslaught, we return to the bitter fighting on the Eastern Front and follow the course of the largest operation during World War II Operation Bagration. During the weeks leading up to the operation, the Red Army has amassed a massive army. However, the Germans have not been idle - they have spent months preparing for the attack. It is here that we meet the forces of the Soviet Union and Germany in Stalin's Onslaught.
The Soviet war machine is well prepared to assault the German lines. In Stalin's Onslaught, you can command the prisoners of the fearless 8th Independent Penal Battalion as they test the German defences, or be the cutting edge of Operation Bagration with your regiment of IS-2 heavy tanks! Then, follow up your breakthrough with an assault group from the elite 8th Guards Rifle Corps, specially designed to smash the German fortified line.
On the other side of the line is the German 78. Sturmdivision. Each soldier is a seasoned veteran of the Battle of Kursk and they know their enemy well. They are well supplied and armed to the teeth with 7.5cm PaK40 anti-tank guns, Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck anti-tank launchers. A StuG assault gun battery accompanies your Sturm grenadiers with its tank riders armed with assault rifles!
The Battle For Orsha, Operation Bagration, June 1944
During the deceptively calm weeks leading up Operation Bagration, the busy Soviets have amassed their armies for the greatest offensive yet undertaken on the Ostfront.
Three years after the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the Red Army stands as battle-hardened troops, ready to finally push the fascist invaders out of Mother Russia!
However, the Germans have not been idle. They have spent months preparing. Fortress towns are connected by intricate trenches and bunkers in anticipation of the Soviet attack.
A screaming barrage of shells and rockets signals the beginning of Operation Bagration, yet the German defenders hold fast under the terrorizing bombardment.
The Soviet 8th Guards Rifle Corps charges forward to capture the fortress town of Orsha with its heavy IS-2 tanks and specialised assault groups. Here they collide with the German 78. Sturmdivision, veterans of the Battle of Kursk, and armed to the teeth with heavy weapons and StuG assault guns.
The fate of Orsha will be decided here, between these two bitter rivals on the battlefields of Byelorussia!
Touring the Forces of Stalin's Onslaught
The Red Army amassed 2.3 million soldiers and over 2,700 tanks to launch the operation. Stalin's Onslaught focuses on the forces that were involved in the initial battles of Operation Bagration and we've selected three unique units to represent these first waves in Operation Bagration.
Stalin's Prisoners
The 8th Independent Penal Battalion is a special force in Flames Of War. It is based directly on a historical penal battalion involved in Operation Bagration. One of the company commanders of the 8th Independent Penal Battalion was Leytenant A V Pyl'cyn, whose heroic actions deserved special attention in Stalin's Onslaught. So we created the 8th Independent as a force that includes Pyl'cyn and special rules to reflect his role in the opening days of Operation Bagration.
This force is quite flavourful. Your sole mission is to ascertain the enemy's strength, and as such you have been given very limited support. But with what little you do have, the sturdy Shtraf Batalon is near unstoppable as they press forward to redeem themselves!
Zhukov's Sledgehammer
One of the most anticipated forces in Stalin's Onslaught is the IS-2 heavy tank battalion. These monsters will collapse the enemy's defences with their large-calibre guns while remaining reasonably safe with their heavy armour! With Panther and Tiger companies running rampant, who better to put a stop to their marauding than a pile of Soviet heavy tanks? These massive tanks will wipe them away without much thought at all!
Breakthrough Assault!
Now that your heavy tanks have opened a small gap, send in the Guards infantry! Years of brutal fighting on the Eastern Front have left the troops of the 8th Guards Rifle Corps with plenty of close hand-to-hand combat experience and are ready to wipe the Germans from Mother Russia!
Seasoned Soviet players will notice that these Guards Strelkovy platoons in Stalin's Onslaught reflect the reductions due to shortages of manpower. The war on the Eastern Front has taken its toll on the Strelkovy ranks. However, to deal with this challenge, special assault groups have been assigned to each forward division. This added support gives your Strelkovy battalions large numbers of heavy tanks, assault guns, sappers, as well as mine-roller and flame tanks as support options!
New Toys & Improved Weapons
A new vehicle to the game is the PT-34 mine-roller tank, which is quite effective at clearing fascist minefields! This tank can rely on its massive rollers to protect the crew from incoming fire, increasing the front armour on a PT-34 to 7 rather than the normal 6 on a typical T-34.
Soviet assault guns have received some special rules to help bring them into line with the breakthrough flavour of Stalin's Onslaught. They will pulverize German gun teams, allowing your infantry to get in close and assault what is left of the enemy!
Finally, the Soviet Katyusha Rocket Mortar launchers have received a massive upgrade. A full Katyusha battery now consists eight launchers which will deliver a Devastating Bombardment using an enormous 12"x12" template!
German Forces
Lining up against the Red Army is the German 78. Sturmdivision. These hardened veterans are equipped with the best equipment available. They have spent months been preparing their defences for the impending Soviet assault. Your Sturmkompanie will be able to bring fortifications to help them defend. They can also set up their anti-tank guns in a deadly Pakfront to confound enemy armour.
Panzerfaust
The Deadly 78th
We've all been waiting for the Panzerfaust to arrive en masse, and now here they are! The Sturmkompanie is festooned with Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck anti-tank launchers, 7.5cm PaK40 anti-tank guns, and machine guns; more heavy weapons than any other German company on the line! Each platoon is issued with plenty of MG34 light machine-guns, and enough Panzerfaust anti-tank launchers to stop a Soviet tank company cold. Though small, this company is a tough force.
StuG Counterattack!
Stalin's Onslaught also features the 189. Sturmgeschützabteilung (or 189th Assault Gun Battalion). This battalion offers the 78. Sturmdivision its very own assault guns to use as a mobile reserve, plugging any holes that the Soviets manage to make. This force is a very fun and exciting company to play. It is well equipped with the new Begleit (or escort) troops. These tank-riding troops ride into combat atop their assault guns, armed with new StG44 Assault rifles and helping the tanks as they counterattack!
Feldwebel Dietrich Uthoff
The German hero in Stalin's Onslaught is a vicious tank killer. While fictional, Uthoff represents the many German soldiers that took to the battlefield bent on halting the Soviet armoured assault. Uthoff creeps from crater to crater waiting for a hapless Soviet tank to trundle by before blasting it! He is quite skilled at ambushing enemy tanks with his Panzerfaust anti-tank launcher. Enemy tanks will never be safe while Uthoff prowls the battlefield!
New Toys & Heavy Weapons
You will need heavy support to take down all the heavy equipment the Soviets are likely to throw at you! Stalin's Onslaught gives you just the right reinforcements to help! Support your 78. Sturmdivision with a Tank-hunter platoon equipped with the powerful Hornisse or call in the new Hs 129B3 fighter-bombers armed with the same 7.5cm cannon as a Panzer IV! These options are exactly what you need to crack the thick armour of the Soviet heavy tanks!
Closing Thoughts
Stalin's Onslaught was my first project with Battlefront and I am very proud of the result. It was fun to get excited about the Eastern Front and learn more about the Soviet and German armies. We had a great time developing this book and we hope you will enjoy it as much as we do!
Stalin's Onslaught contains everything you need to launch your own miniature Operation Bagration. So, gather your Shtrafniki, Heavy Tanks, and Guards infantry and assault the German line, held by a determined and well armed Sturmkompanie or StuG Batterie!
Inside you will find
- History of the battles for Orsha.
- History and complete organisation of the Soviet 8ya Gvardeyskiy Strelkovy Korpus, well armed with specialised assault tanks, massive Katyusha batteries, and determined shock troops.
- Options to field a Soviet Shtraf Batalon, a Gvardeyskiy Tyazhelyy Tankovy Polk, and a Udarny Strelkovy Batalon.
- History and complete organisation of the German 78. Sturmdivision. Assemble your storm force with heavy weapons, assault guns, tank riders and plenty of Panzerfaust anti-tank launchers!
- Options to field a German Sturmkompanie and a StuG Batterie.
- Follow Feldwebel Dietrich Uthoff as he charges into the jaws of Soviet steel, or Leytenant A V Pyl'cyn he leads his 8ya Ordyelnaya Shtrafnoy Batalon as they battle for honour and the Motherland!
- Three new scenarios to be played separately or as part of a campaign: Reconnaissance in Force, Breakthrough Assault, and Onslaught at Orsha.
- Inspirational colour photos. |
