Back against the Seine

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Axis troops:[/u]

Sturmscharfuher Edward McMillan

SGT Theodor Luft
SGT Olaf Maurer

MG Helmuth Gielnik
MG Giselher Lueders

CPL Johann Vicinius
CPL Hannes Oehl

PVT Norbert V. Stein
PVT Walter O. Urlich
PVT Raymond W. Kellen
PVT Frederick J. Bruno
PVT Lance Z. Yohann
PVT Roderick B. Jaegar
PVT Leopold O. Herbert
PVT Franz R. Dolf
PVT Bernard G. Adler
PVT Lukas Huber

Half-track Crew:

PVT Baldur Loewe (DRIVER)
PVT Eccard Stotz (NAVIGATOR/CO-DRIVER)
PVT Anselm Olbricht (GUNNER #1)
PVT Gabriel Ritter (GUNNER #2)

* * *

img696.imageshack.us/img696/9774/seine1.png

McMillan's legs bent slightly to absorb the bumps and holes in the road as he rode contently in the back of his half-track. The scenic route was nice for once. Ever since the Company he was in had broken through the Allied lines so fiercely the going had been easy. They had come through so quickly that the Allies were still trying to regroup and counter attack, but for the time being there were no hostilities directed toward him or his men. Intelligence reports said that they had caught the enemy by such surprise that the objective he had been tasked with should be a lightly guarded one, but Ed was taking that information with a grain of salt. In a few short minutes he would find out they they had it right this time.

Edward cleared his throat and motioned for Luft and Maurer to lean toward him. "Listen up, we still have the element of surprise, the allies have yet to counter attack and we have been tasked with opening up the gap we just created. We have to secure a dock just south of us. Intel says that the Americans have over extended themselves trying to push through France and that there is very little heavy equipment left on this side of the river, so we are moving with small arms and moving quickly, hence the ride." Ed paused for a moment and shucked his newly acquired rifle further onto his shoulder then laid his left palm out flat to use for visual reference. He pointed to various places on his hand as he explained the location and their plan.

"The river sits along this side of our objective and there will most likely be enemy forces in the area. There are a pair of small bunkers along the road we are on which runs by the river here. both bunkers are just off the road to the eastern side about a hundred to a hundred and fifty meters apart. Luft you and your squad will be unloaded just north of the first bunker and we will all advance on it together, once we have secured the first bunker we will repeat the process with your squad Maurer." he paused for a moment to look upon his Sergeants and make sure they were understanding the information they were being given. "Now once we have secured these positions set up your machine guns inside the pill boxes to set up a heavy cross fire over the objective area. Keep your men either inside the bunkers or behind them. I'll be remaining in the half-track so I can easily move between both squads and give orders as needed. Once we wear down one of their flanks I will unload with that squad and take them in to assault said flank, the remaining squad is to dump as many rounds as possible into the enemy so we don't get torn apart crossing the open area. Understood?" Ed was still looking back and forth to his Sergeants as he explained his plan.

Maurer chimed in with a worried tone. "What about the middle? Will they not try to split us in half?"[/i]

McMillan addressed his Sergeants question. "Good point, but we have a pair of MG-42s on this vehicle and I will make sure it stays near the middle of our formation unless I need to relay orders, any enemy troops trying to divide us will have a tough time doing so with this much firepower coming at them, plus I'll be throwing rounds at them as well, I will make sure you are not separated, you have my word. Also the half-track is far more mobile and armored than your men, leave the machine guns in their positions in the bunkers as long as possible, they are slow targets and we need them alive, if the opportunity comes where it is safe to advance them and tactically efficient I will make sure it happens, but plan on them remaining where they are." He said confidently. His senior Non-commissioned officers nodded to his plan and sat back awaiting to be deployed to the battlefield.

As they neared the first bunker Ed checked the front mounted machine gun before banging on the roof of the vehicle that soon came to a stop. McMillan then made his way to the back and checked the rear machine gun, when he was satisfied he dismounted and helped Luft and his men dismount before getting repositioned back in the half-track. As he had planned they all moved toward the first bunker together, and to his amazement, it was unmanned. "Set your men up!" Ed called to the ground troops, and so they did.

As with the first bunker they moved on the second bunker, same story, no one was inside. "Let's get it done!" he shouted as Maurer set about positioning his squad. Once more McMillan signaled to the driver to move, this time in reverse and when he figured he was about as close to the middle of his formation as he could be, he had them stop. "Keep your eyes on the area toward the river, you know where our men are positioned, shoot anyone else you see." he ordered to the gunners. He knew that their presence was more than known to the enemy troops so he pulled out his binoculars to see if he could locate them as well.

[Andrew J. Ryan]

Allied Troops

Sergeant Major Andrew Ryan

CPL Rocky Balboa
CPL Brock Samson

ENG Peter Griffin
MED Drake Elliot

PVT Bull Randleman
PVT Christopher R. English
PVT Eric Stewards
PVT George Stevens
PVT Kris Lincoln
PVT Xavier Lorden
PVT Pete Simons
PVT James Ufi
PVT Danny Corins
PVT Kevin Brians
PVT Cimon Najio
PVT Christopher Allen

---

img708.imageshack.us/i/bats1.png/

September. A month Andrew Ryan paid no particular attention to, neither loving or hating it. The fierce, burning summer sun was retreating swiftly and the world around him was caught in a state of transformation. Autumn was fast approaching and the men were worried. Would they live to see another autumn? Another winter? Such was the fate of the men of Second Platoon, Baker Company. It had been only a handful of days since the armor of Able Company and the men of Able, Baker, and Charlie companies had crossed over the Seine. Only a small contingent of men had been hand-picked to remain behind, protect the rear, and hold the river. And to lead those men, the Sergeant Major had volunteered.

Headstrong, arrogant, and at times ruthlessly violent - Andrew Ryan was expected to be at the head of the assault. This time was different though. Rumors circulated. Maybe the thirty-five year old had seen his share of the fighting for once? Maybe he was too tired to push on? No one knew the answer, not even the Sergeant Major. For some reason or another, he just felt he had to be there. These were his men. Most of them at least. He wasn't about to tag along with a Second Lieutenant across the river. No, he chose to stay behind.

The Combat Medic, Drake Elliot, somberly told Ryan that it had been a mistake. They were backed up against the river, out numbered, and out gunned. The odds were against them. Thoughts of surrender lingered in Elliot's mind, but Ryan wouldn't have any of it. He ignored the man, instead gazing out on the stars. That had been last night. Ryan had awoken early the next morning, before the sun had fully risen. It was a warm, cloudy day and the senior NCO awoke and inspected the troops before seven.

Two trenches had been hastily dug in the time the platoon had to prepare their defenses. They were wide enough for the men to fit in and deep enough for the men to be able to duck down beneath the lip of the trench. But they weren't luxurious or spacious and certainly not comfortable. After digging their trenches, the men had all wet their brow with sweat to deepen a select few of the craters, so that a few of the men could be virtually unseen whilst taking cover. The craters themselves had been the result of light German artillery fire that had been intermittently firing on the Western banks of the Seine, before the rest of the 3ID had silenced the guns.

The khaki uniform of the Sergeant Major had accumulated dirt over the last few days; he was now practically caked in mud. Some mud had smeared across his face and hardened on his skin. He hadn't bothered to clean it off though. With reports of an enemy approaching from the rear, he didn't have time to bother with grooming and cleaning himself.

Bringing the iron sights of the M1 Garand to his right eye and pushing the butt of the weapon against his shoulder, Ryan peeked out from the trench. He saw nothing. No enemy in the distance. No ally in the vicinity. Out before two privates had dug into craters. He had asked for volunteers for the task, which he had hoped would be able to go unnoticed during an attack and surprise the enemy. In reality, they would most likely be used as bait to distract the enemy. But Ryan spoke of such a plan to no one. Similarly to their senior NCO, the men had covered their uniform in mud and rubbed some of it upon their face to aid in camouflaging themselves amongst the dirt of the crater. One of their top priorities was keeping any mud from getting into their rifles.

Out to the south was some more men, led by Corporal Samson, spread out amongst a trench and craters. Dug in and doing their damnedest to hide, Ryan didn't spot any of his men in the southern trench. He ducked back down beneath the grass and attempted to stretch his legs out as he gripped the semi-automatic rifle up against his chest. He spared a quick glance to the wrist watch on his left arm, lifting the fabric of his uniform sleeve up his arm to reveal it. 1520. There was still plenty of day light left.

[PuNk! ™]

Moderation Post

[/b][/u][/color]

***NO MAP CHANGE!***

Allied Units:[/b][/size]

• Sergeant Major, Andrew Ryan
  
• CPL Rocky Balboa
  CPL Brock Samson
  
  
• ENG Peter Griffin
  
• MED Drake Elliot
  
  
• PVT Bull Randleman
  PVT Christopher R. English
  PVT Eric Stewards
  PVT George Stevens
  PVT Kris Lincoln
  PVT Xavier Lorden
  PVT Pete Simons
  PVT James Ufi
  PVT Danny Corins
  PVT Kevin Brians
  PVT Cimon Najio
  PVT Christopher Allen

[/color]

MORALE: AVERAGE[/b][/color]

______________________________________________________________

Axis Units:[/b][/size]

• Sturmscharfuher Edward McMillan
  
• SGT Theodor Luft
  SGT Olaf Maurer
  
  
• MG Helmuth Gielnik
  MG Giselher Lueders
  
  
• CPL Johann Vicinius
  CPL Hannes Oehl
  
  
• PVT Norbert V. Stein
  PVT Walter O. Urlich
  PVT Raymond W. Kellen
  PVT Frederick J. Bruno
  PVT Lance Z. Yohann
  PVT Roderick B. Jaegar
  PVT Leopold O. Herbert
  PVT Franz R. Dolf
  PVT Bernard G. Adler
  PVT Lukas Huber
  
  
• Half-track Crew:
  
  PVT Baldur Loewe (DRIVER)
  PVT Eccard Stotz (NAVIGATOR/CO-DRIVER)
  PVT Anselm Olbricht (GUNNER #1)
  PVT Gabriel Ritter (GUNNER #2)

[/color]

MORALE: AVERAGE[/B][/COLOR]

______________________________________________________________

Actions & Outcomes:

[/b][/size][/center]

The Axis forces moved into position rather swiftly, but not unnoticed; the half-track's engine roared as it towed the weight of twenty-men fully outfitted with equipment and heavy gunnery, immediately catching the attention of all the Allied soldiers entrenched extremely close nearby, before the half-track had even made it into their peripheral vision.

The Allied soldiers kept low, alert and waited for any orders to make it's way up the line. Nobody dared to shoot or break cover, but watched in amazement as the German soldiers fell out from the half-track completely unaware of their presence...

All the Allied soldiers lined up their sights and suddenly became impatient with itchy trigger fingers. Still, nobody dared break from their little cover.

The Germans garrisoned the two bunkers quickly and everyone else performed with a punctual manner, following Edward's orders completely and without fault. Setting up a strong position, with hardly any time to waste, the Axis troops scanned the terrain and made a mental note of all the disturbed ground down the field (craters, ditches, etc...) and didn't rule out the possibility of enemies lurking downrange within them.

However, the Germans were extremely amazed the bunkers had been left unmanned, untarnished, not trapped or even ambushed. Maybe there were no Allied troops here at all? The Germans were suspicious, very suspicious, but unaware of the enemies lurking so close by. Even Edward McMillan didn't notice anything inordinate or out of the ordinary whilst scanning through his binoculars; surprisingly.[/color]

NEXT POST: EDWARD!
~Danny

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Edward scanned the area and raised an eyebrow, he couldn't spot a single living being at all, he glanced over the terrain once more to be sure and again, nothing. "Well that's odd." he muttered to himself before placing the binoculars back into his pack. He stepped over to the front of the vehicle and told the driver to back it up to the first bunker, and a few moments later they were headed north.

Once they arrived at the first bunker they came to a halt Sergeant Luft jogged over to the side of the half-track to receive his orders. "Tell your men inside the bunker to pick separate firing lanes, I want them to fire on my command. But only for a brief moment, see if we can't attract some attention." the Sergeant responded with a quick nod as he patted his hand of the side of the vehicle and went off toward his position, then Ed told his driver to move to the southern bunker and off they went.

When they arrived McMillan gave the same orders to Sergeant Maurer, who responded in a similar manner and went back to his men to relay the orders. The half-track slowly started backing up to take position near the middle of their formation and Ed kept his eyes glued over the objective area. He was skeptical about this being so easy so far, but he wasn't about to think the day was through. He leaned over the cab of the half-track "Hand me a couple tufts of padding out of your seat Loewe." The driver thought the request slightly odd but followed the simple order just the same. Ed took the small wadding and told Loewe and his co-driver, Stotz to cover their ears for the first shot, they complied and waited for what was coming. Ed stuffed the padding into his ears, he turned to the gunners in the back of the vehicle. "Cover your ears for this one." he said as he brought his PTRS around off his shoulder and brought it to bare. He pulled it up to his shoulder and placed his sights onto the boat house before squeezing the trigger. With a loud 'BADOOM' the rifle sounded off, jolting back into Ed's shoulder, he wanted their first shot to be heard loud and clear by anyone in the area, they were there to do a job and would not be playing any games.

Ed stepped back from the edge and pulled his rifle back to rest against the seat and threw his free hand forward to motion for the gunners to fire off a few rounds, they pulled their fingers from their ears and leaned into the respective MG-42s and let several rounds fly out. The machine gunners in the bunkers joined in as well along with some sporadic rifle fire. In less than ten seconds it was over with and Ed pulled the padding out of his ears and slid the pieces into his breast pocket for later use if need be. He sat atop his perch in the back of the half-track and waited to see if anything would happen.

(there is no map change as all positions on the current map are the same as my final positions. NPC fire was separated out to cover a large portion of the area, nothing well aimed.)

[PuNk! ™]

Moderation Post

[/b][/u][/color]

*** NEW MAP ***

Allied Units:[/b][/size]

• Sergeant Major, Andrew Ryan
  
• CPL Rocky Balboa
  CPL Brock Samson
  
  
• ENG Peter Griffin
  
• MED Drake Elliot
  
  
• PVT Bull Randleman
  PVT Christopher R. English
  PVT Eric Stewards
  PVT George Stevens
  PVT Kris Lincoln
  PVT Xavier Lorden
  PVT Pete Simons
  PVT James Ufi
  PVT Danny Corins
  PVT Kevin Brians
  PVT Cimon Najio
  PVT Christopher Allen

[/color]

MORALE: LOW[/b][/color]

______________________________________________________________

Axis Units:[/b][/size]

• Sturmscharfuher Edward McMillan
  
• SGT Theodor Luft
  SGT Olaf Maurer
  
  
• MG Helmuth Gielnik
  MG Giselher Lueders
  
  
• CPL Johann Vicinius
  CPL Hannes Oehl
  
  
• PVT Norbert V. Stein
  PVT Walter O. Urlich
  PVT Raymond W. Kellen
  PVT Frederick J. Bruno
  PVT Lance Z. Yohann
  PVT Roderick B. Jaegar
  PVT Leopold O. Herbert
  PVT Franz R. Dolf
  PVT Bernard G. Adler
  PVT Lukas Huber
  
  
• Half-track Crew:
  
  PVT Baldur Loewe (DRIVER)
  PVT Eccard Stotz (NAVIGATOR/CO-DRIVER)
  PVT Anselm Olbricht (GUNNER #1)
  PVT Gabriel Ritter (GUNNER #2)

[/color]

MORALE: AVERAGE[/B][/COLOR]

______________________________________________________________

Actions & Outcomes:

[/b][/size][/center]

Edward gave clear and precise orders to the fellow sergeants commandeering and overseeing the two pillbox bunkers; without fault once more, they waited patiently for the said command to fire. The signal of firing couldn't have been any-more coherent and clear though, as Edward brought the huge PTRS-41 to rest atop of the half-track and expend the first round downrange and towards the boathouse in the near distance.

A tremendous explosion erupted and even Edward was surprised by the deafening noise and kick from the AT-Rifle; even with pieces of seat padding stuffed into his ears, Edward still suffered a minor ringing of deafness that lasted thirty-seconds before his hearing came back properly. Everyone in the half-track jumped from the explosive gunshot and were temporarily stunned, having not known what to expect. However, everyone in the half-track now knows what to expect next time around...

The boathouse seemingly imploded in the distance from the PTRS round cutting straight through the wooden structure (assuming it's wooden, you never specified) and blew a large sizeable hole through both sides of the structure where it had entered and exited. The rest of the structure has remained standing, but is unstable.

The Allied soldiers flinched in their trenches from the PTRS round hitting the boathouse and everyone for a brief moment suspected they were up against a light tank or field artillery, but nobody raised their heads from the trenches to see otherwise, frozen in fear... This has had a serious impact on their morale.

The German MG teams opened up fire prematurely, a few seconds after the PTRS round had been fired (assuming that was the signal) and everyone strafed fire downrange upon the suspected Allied position. Turf and dirt blew up from all around the American soldiers huddled down in their trenches and cover, suppressing them further than they already were from the fright of having to face a field artillery piece or light tank.

It was here that the Allied frontier broke their nerve and a couple of men popped up courageously and began to expend rifle shots from their M1 Garands towards the general direction of the pillbox bunkers (these were drawing their attention the most). Although these soldiers popped off a few rifle rounds, they are still severely suppressed and attempting to be courageous under fire, which may lead to mistakes or worse...

No casualties have been sustained on either side, yet.
The Germans now know of the Allied presence...
[/color]

NEXT POST: ERIK/RYAN!
~Danny

[Andrew J. Ryan]

Dirty
Clean

Out in the distance something enormous seemed to explode and the sound traveled into the tranches. Ryan flinched slightly, surprised by the suddenness and magnitude of the weapon's sound. It was like thunder had struck violently on a clear, blue day. He and his men were already well aware of the sound of the half-track that seemingly patrolled the road, but now they were nervous the Germans were heavily armed. There was no time to contemplate though, the Germans amped up the firepower. Bullets tore up the landscape around them, throwing dirt and grass into the air as the men tried to burrow down into the trench. The weapon of choice was distinct this time though: Hitler's Buzzsaw. The MG-42s wreaked havoc on morale and rained dirty down upon their backs.

Not one for cowering, the Sergeant Major lifted himself from the muddy trench and stabilized his Garand up against his right shoulder as he unloaded a clip of ammo in the direction of the pillboxes where some MG fire was suppressing his men. He noticed, out of his peripherals, some of the men had joined in with him. But they were quickly suppressed and Ryan too dropped back down after turning his head to try to get a good scan of the area. He only spotted a blur towards the middle of the road, which he figured was the half-track he had heard earlier.

"Looks like we got company. And Jerry brought his big toys," Ryan commented, trying to calm the nerves of the men around him. The truth of the matter was, he wasn't so calm himself. He couldn't recall ever having ever heard the sound of such a weapon, he would have hoped he could identify if it were a tank or artillery round or something else completely. "Reload boys. We're going to hunt some more Krauts in just a moment," he ordered, as he placed another en-block clip into his empty Garand.

Concealed in the crater directly in front of Ryan and his men was Private Randleman and further out was Private English. "Randleman! English! We're going to try something here. Randleman, on my signal, I want you to unload a clip on the pillbox to the north. English, I want you to take a few shots at that half-track. Just try to distract it for a few moments." Ryan yelled across to the men in the craters. "What's the signal going to be Sergeant Major? Randleman inquired, as he begin to slowly move towards the top of the crater. Ryan contemplated for a moment. "How about 'fire'?" he said, jokingly.

"Stewards, come over here. Let's see if that ole' helmet on a rifle thing works. I want you to take off your helmet and raise it up it's visible. And keep your head down, son. If he takes the bait, we might have a good distraction. If not... we'll shoot anyway," the Sergeant Major commanded the private at the end of the trench, who moved a few feet towards the NCO. "The rest of you, except Stevens, give that northern pillbox hell when I tell you to. Looks like that MG was in the center window, so focus fire there," Ryan called out, letting the message move down the line quickly. He then called out to the soldier in the crater to the south, Private Lincoln. "Lincoln! Try to spread the word to Samson! When you hear firing, start firing on your pillbox too!"

After he was confident the orders had spread sufficiently and he had given enough time for Randleman and English to prepare themselves, he signaled for Stewards to carry out his order. The Private lowered himself and removed his helmet before placing it atop his rifle and slowly raising it above the trench. Ryan waited and hoped for the MG to take the bait, before he roared out "FIRE!" The Americans sprang up from the trenches with their M1 Garands at the ready and took aim and fired off as many bullets as they could towards the pillbox. The southern flank followed suit, firing off scores of bullets toward the second pillbox. And in the middle, Randleman and English tried to keep their hiding places hidden but also fired several rounds toward the pill-box and half-track. The entire thing was over in moments, as the men again ducked down beneath the trench to avoid fire and reload.

(P.S. Happy burfday, PuNk.)

[PuNk! ™]

Moderation Post

[/b][/u][/color]

*** NEW MAP ***

• Units with one line through them = wounded
  
• Units with a cross on them = deceased

Allied Units:[/b][/size]

• Sergeant Major, Andrew Ryan
  
• CPL Rocky Balboa
  CPL Brock Samson
  
  
• ENG Peter Griffin
  
• MED Drake Elliot
  
  
• PVT Bull Randleman (DECEASED)
  PVT Christopher R. English
  PVT Eric Stewards (UNARMED)
  PVT George Stevens
  PVT Kris Lincoln
  PVT Xavier Lorden (DECEASED)
  PVT Pete Simons
  PVT James Ufi
  PVT Danny Corins (**INJURED/LEFT ARM**)
  PVT Kevin Brians
  PVT Cimon Najio
  PVT Christopher Allen

[/color]

MORALE: LOW[/b][/color]

______________________________________________________________

Axis Units:[/b][/size]

• Sturmscharfuher Edward McMillan
  
• SGT Theodor Luft
  SGT Olaf Maurer
  
  
• MG Helmuth Gielnik
  MG Giselher Lueders
  
  
• CPL Johann Vicinius
  CPL Hannes Oehl
  
  
• PVT Norbert V. Stein (**INJURED/THROAT WOUND**)
  PVT Walter O. Urlich
  PVT Raymond W. Kellen
  PVT Frederick J. Bruno
  PVT Lance Z. Yohann
  PVT Roderick B. Jaegar
  PVT Leopold O. Herbert
  PVT Franz R. Dolf
  PVT Bernard G. Adler
  PVT Lukas Huber
  
  
• Half-track Crew:
  
  PVT Baldur Loewe (DRIVER)
  PVT Eccard Stotz (NAVIGATOR/CO-DRIVER)
  PVT Anselm Olbricht (GUNNER #1)
  PVT Gabriel Ritter (GUNNER #2)

[/color]

MORALE: AVERAGE[/B][/COLOR]

______________________________________________________________

Actions & Outcomes:

[/b][/size][/center]

During the exchange of fire (at the beginning), Sergeant Major Ryan and the few courageous soldiers popping off rounds had no real effect on the Germans, due to a lack of accuracy and barely scratched the enemy's suppressive dominance over them.

Giving direct and clear orders from his entrenched position thereafter, the Sergeant Major had a slight difficult time in passing on precise orders to the men fielded upfront in the craters/foxholes, as the enemy MG teams continued to spray sporadic bouts of fire the whole time and unknowingly masked the shouting orders he attempted to pass on.

Private Randleman barely caught wind of what was expected of him, but Private English didn't hear anything and huddled down in cover during this period, waiting for something to happen that he could react too perhaps.

As Private Stewards raised his helmet on a rifle in a bid to distract the enemy, it drew the fire of both pillboxes for a split second. Private Steward's rifle and helmet were ripped to shreds and the rifle is damaged beyond repair, as well as his helmet.

As the Allies raised for a counter-fire, Private English stayed low in his cover, failing to distract the half-track and Private Randleman suffered because of this. Raising from his position, the half-track MG immediately zeroed in on his position and sprayed a quick double tap burst; bullets ripped through Private Randleman's torso, instantly killing him after he'd popped off to inaccurate shots from his rifle.

A majority of everyone else (minus a few failing to receive orders, bad communication on the line) raised from their covering positions and expended rounds towards the two pillboxes as their counter offensive, the following has occurred...

Northern Pillbox:
The firing team shooting at the northern pillbox have forced the machine-gunner to re-evaluate momentarily, forcing him to involuntary duck and lean back against his MG42 as .30-06 Springfield rounds hailed against the bunker's exterior and bounced through the opening.

A private standing beside the machine-gunner took a ricocheted stray bullet directly to the throat, slicing across the left side of his neck, causing a deepened slash orientated wound that has begun to spurt blood as he stumbled backwards falling off balance. This wound is not immediately serious, but left unattended for too long and blood loss will occur (a soldier has been randomly named as the casualty, if you have a specific soldier to be named, please specify).

Everyone else in the bunker remained cautious and unharmed, more casualties being avoided as the machine-gunner immediately took action to open fire once more.

Southern Pillbox:
Alike the northern pillbox, the hail of fire caused the men within to dauntingly take minor evasive action; however, the machine-gunner never seized firing and was able to take out a private popping up from the entrenchment simply at the wrong time; three bullets zipped through the Private's face, blowing the man's head into chunks and killing him instantly (this soldier has been automatically named, specify a name otherwise).

During this exchange of fire, the half-track spurted it's own sporadic fire over the battlefield. Although acting more suppressive than accurate, it did cause a casualty, as two bullets ripped through a soldier failing to duck in time behind cover. The first bullet ripped a chunk of flesh from off his left bicep/upper-arm and the second bullet thudded close by and into the soldier's forearm just below.

This has left the soldier with a mangled left arm (plenty of torn flesh and a bloody mess), with the soldier screaming in agony as he crumpled into his foxhole in pain. This unit will bleed out or fall into shock if left untreated.

Although the Allies showed strength, they have failed to break their suppression due the sheer strength of the MG42s on the field and their constant bout of fire. The Allies have been pushed back into submission and their morale remains tattered and continuing to drop, unless they have a breakthrough soon.
[/color]
NEXT POST: EDWARD!
~Danny

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Edward squinted his eyes slightly and looked out over the beach. Dirt was flying up sporadically in random locations, a stream of bullets here, the random shot there. Then all of a sudden enemy forces popped in a few locations, the first guy showed only his helmet and was cut down in moments. Edward was quite impressed with his men, they had moved fast enough to catch the enemy off guard and set up fire superiority rather well. Almost brought a smile to his face. He pulled his binoculars up to his head once again and looked to the southern bunker commanded by Sergeant Maurer, everything seemed well enough. Then he turned toward the northern bunker lead by Sergeant Luft, something was amiss, but before he could figure it out the Sergeant was waving his arm in the air. Edward lunged toward the cab. "Northern bunker, MOVE OUT!"

Slowly but surely the half-track made it's way to the northern bunker. "What's the issue Sergeant?! We're leaving the middle wide open!" McMillan shouted, almost upset at having to be called away from his location. The half-track and it's MG-42s were serving a vital role the way he saw it.

"Sir, Private Stein has been hit!"[/i] the Sergeant reported to his superior.

Edward became slightly concerned, but this was combat, it happened and you couldn't focus on it. "How bad is it Sergeant?" He asked quickly.

Luft swallowed hard before replying. "Hit in the neck sir, stray round, doesn't seem to be fatal though!"[/i] Then he stood there as if he knew not what to do.

"Sergeant! Start leading your men as if you had been trained to do so! Place a bandage over the wound with a bit of pressure! Tie it off under his opposite arm so that you do not choke the man! Also, do not call me off of the line for anything you cannot handle yourself, I have faith in your abilities, do not convince me I have placed said faith inaccurately! Keep the heavy fire on for a bit longer, when you hear my rifle again, cease fire!" McMillan turned to the cab yet again and banged on the roof. "Southern bunker Loewe!" He shouted, and swayed slightly as it lurched forward to the southern bunker. While en route McMillan ordered his gunners to fire few bursts themselves, but motioned for them to stop shortly before reaching the southern bunker.

"Sergeant Maurer!" Ed started. "Continue firing at the enemy positions until you hear or see that I have fired once more! Understood?!" He asked. The Sergeant motioned that he comprehended the order and took position on the exterior steps of the bunker door to watch his commander and be sure he knew when to cease fire. "Back to the middle Loewe!" By now Loewe was probably tired of shuttling Edward back and forth and back and forth. But it was better than crossing an open field under fire.

When they arrived back at the middle McMillan surveyed the ground before him once more before pulling the stuffing from his breast pocket and shoving the pieces into his ears. Then he waved his arm out in front of him so his gunners cold take notice and ceased fire right before plugging their own ears. "Loewe, Stotz, cover your ears again!" The Sturmscharfuher called out before leveling off his rifle. Yet again he would be firing at the boat house, he had yet to see any enemy troops at the location, but it didn't mean they weren't there. Plus any cover Ed could take away from his enemy was alright in his eyes. This time he placed his sights on the closest corner of the building and slowly exhaled before holding his breath for a moment and squeezed the trigger. Once again there was a loud report from the weapon and bit of kick. Edward stayed where he was for a moment to survey any damage from the round before stepping back to the right side of the rear transport area and pulling the padding from his ears once more.

Ed looked out to each bunker to make sure his men followed their orders. Both of his gunners were still looking at him and he pointed hastily down range. "Watch for movement!" he stammered at them.

[PuNk! ™]

Moderation Post

[/b][/u][/color]

*** NEW MAP ***

• Units with one line through them = wounded
  
• Units with a cross on them = deceased

Allied Units:[/b][/size]

• Sergeant Major, Andrew Ryan
  
• CPL Rocky Balboa
  CPL Brock Samson
  
  
• ENG Peter Griffin
  
• MED Drake Elliot
  
  
• PVT Bull Randleman (DECEASED)
  PVT Christopher R. English
  PVT Eric Stewards (UNARMED)
  PVT George Stevens
  PVT Kris Lincoln
  PVT Xavier Lorden (DECEASED)
  PVT Pete Simons
  PVT James Ufi
  PVT Danny Corins (**INJURED/LEFT ARM**)
  PVT Kevin Brians
  PVT Cimon Najio
  PVT Christopher Allen

[/color]

MORALE: LOW[/b][/color]

______________________________________________________________

Axis Units:[/b][/size]

• Sturmscharfuher Edward McMillan
  
• SGT Theodor Luft
  SGT Olaf Maurer
  
  
• MG Helmuth Gielnik
  MG Giselher Lueders
  
  
• CPL Johann Vicinius
  CPL Hannes Oehl
  
  
• PVT Norbert V. Stein (**INJURED/THROAT WOUND**)
  PVT Walter O. Urlich
  PVT Raymond W. Kellen
  PVT Frederick J. Bruno
  PVT Lance Z. Yohann
  PVT Roderick B. Jaegar
  PVT Leopold O. Herbert
  PVT Franz R. Dolf
  PVT Bernard G. Adler
  PVT Lukas Huber
  
  
• Half-track Crew:
  
  PVT Baldur Loewe (DRIVER)
  PVT Eccard Stotz (NAVIGATOR/CO-DRIVER)
  PVT Anselm Olbricht (GUNNER #1)
  PVT Gabriel Ritter (GUNNER #2)

[/color]

MORALE: AVERAGE[/B][/COLOR]

______________________________________________________________

Actions & Outcomes:

[/b][/size][/center]

• Sergeant Luft hurried into the bunker with a fellow private who was accompanying him outside to help attend to the wounded soldier after hearing out what was needed to be done by the SS-Sturmscharführer.
  
  Applying pressure to the wound and breaking open a bandage to tie around his throat and loop under the opposite arm (as they were told), they stemmed the bleeding momentarily and once stabilized enough, dragged the wounded man from out of the bunker and rested him outside.
  
  The bleeding on Private Stein's throat has been stemmed momentarily and is stable despite the pain.
  
  
• Meanwhile, both MG42 teams in the pillboxes continued to fire sporadically over the field ahead, but the enemy's activities had dulled considerably and retaliation fire was becoming thin across the Allied line.
  
  
• The Half-Track's gunners found it a little difficult to stabilize a means of fire during their continuous move up and down the roadway, but attempted to fire downrange nonetheless.
  
  
• The Allies are heavily suppressed and facing a constant drop in morale (mainly due to the fact they're facing four heavy machine-guns) and with casualties slowly occurring, they need a plan or breakthrough to happen soon in order to boost morale.
  
  
• Suddenly, the southern pillbox stopped firing prematurely to Edward's cease fire order. Inside the bunker, the MG42 had become jammed from a miss-fed cartridge (not overheating) and panic quickly arose within the bunker.
  
  Barely able to touch the main length of the MG42 due to the heat that had built up, they attempted to remove the cartridge from the weapon quickly.
  
  
• Edward fired his PTRS-41 once more and the thunderous crackle engulfed the air and as ordered, the rest of the MG42s on the field seized firing.
  
  The northern pillbox MG42 could be heard smouldering inside of the bunker, but the battlefield became eerily silent for a brief moment. The faint cries from an Allied soldier could be heard in the distance, but the German front had paused completely for a few seconds.
  
  Then came the toppling noise of debris, as the boathouse collapsed on one side from the second anti-tank round blowing into the wooden building.
  
  
• The Allied soldiers stayed low and were too fearful to move, despite the enemy having stopped firing completely, but the second light tank/artillery noise that stormed the air, did lift their morale ever so vaguely to see it was only an Anti-Tank rifle or some sort of mounted weapon to the half-track from their distant view.
  
  The fact it wasn't anything more than a rifle raised their spirits a little. Regardless however, the Allied soldiers remained extremely low and waited for some sort of order to be given, none of them daring to chance shooting and drawing the MG42's fire.
  

[/color]
NEXT POST: ERIK/RYAN!
~Danny

[Andrew J. Ryan]

Slightly Dirty
Very Clean

"Well, shit..." the Sergeant Major murmured as he dropped back down into the trench. There was a momentary chaos as a few men cried out in agony after taking shots. No doubt a few had been wounded and others killed. Ryan reloaded his semi-automatic rifle with an en-bloc clip, before signaling to Stewards. "Stick close to me, boy. If the trench is charged, I'll cover ya," he assured the young man, who was now only armed with his bayonet.

The sporadic firing of the MG42s continued, the roar of the guns ripped into the sky like thunder and the bullets shredded the ground. And then, a second explosive shot came, the same as before. It tore the boathouse down into a pile of debris and his men cowered further into their trenches. But at least it was clear it was only an AT rifle and not an actual tank. Ryan's day wasn't going well already, there was no need to worsen it with Tigers.

"So what's everyone looking so sorry for? You didn't come into this war thinking it would be rainbows and unicorns, did ya'? Excluding our dear Mr. Stevens that is,"the Sergeant Major chuckled, trying to defuse the situation. "Elliot will come by and tend to the wounded. He always manages to. And we'll hold tight for now and try to wait this out."

"Who knows? Maybe some boys from the Big Red One are already heading our way to reinforce us? I'll be damned if we give up without a fight to a bunch of worthless Krauts though," he grunted. "So unless any of you want to give it a shot at high-tailing it out of here and swimming the Seine, we're in this one together. And we'll get out of it together, we always do," Ryan reassured the men in his trench, hoping Corporal Samson would attempt the same in his own trench.

---

Combat Medic Drake Elliot awaited the inevitable in his own personal crater. He waited for the screams: of pain, of death, of suffering. It was not long after the exchanges in volleys of fire, that the screams came. Something needed to be done and Elliot was the man who could do it. The tricky part was getting there.

The Medic cringed as the boathouse came toppling down upon itself after an explosive AT shell blasted through the wooden structure. But the calm silence that followed the chaos was the perfect moment. Ever so slightly, the medic rose from his crater with his hands high in the air to insure there were no sudden shots at him before the Germans spotted his Red Cross. He hoped for the best as he stood there in the crater, hands up and spread to show he was not handling any weapon. But it was his duty to take risks in order to save lives and he took that duty seriously.

After a good few seconds had passed by, Elliot carefully stepped out of the crater and slowly walked along the curve of the southern trench in search for wounded soldiers. None. Except for a poor bastard who had his head blown clean off in the chaos of battle. Elliot could barely manage to keep his composure as he spotted the corpse, but he continued onwards until he came across Private Lincoln who had crumpled up into his foxhole in agony, screaming about his butchered arm. "Doc! Doc! Can you help me, Doc?" the private cried out as he spotted Elliot and the Red Cross upon his helmet. "Yeah, yeah I can help you bud. Just hold still," Elliot said smoothly in a hushed tone, as he reached into medical bag.

[PuNk! ™]

Moderation Post

[/b][/u][/color]

*** NEW MAP ***

• Units with one line through them = wounded
  
• Units with a cross on them = deceased

*** Erik's “clean” map has been used above, but I'm unsure as to why his medic has been placed next to the dead unit, rather than the wounded? If this is an error, please advise the next poster to change this on the map for next round. ***

Allied Units:[/b][/size]

• Sergeant Major, Andrew Ryan
  
• CPL Rocky Balboa
  CPL Brock Samson
  
  
• ENG Peter Griffin
  
• MED Drake Elliot
  
  
• PVT Bull Randleman (DECEASED)
  PVT Christopher R. English
  PVT Eric Stewards (UNARMED)
  PVT George Stevens
  PVT Kris Lincoln
  PVT Xavier Lorden (DECEASED)
  PVT Pete Simons
  PVT James Ufi
  PVT Danny Corins (**INJURED/LEFT ARM**)
  PVT Kevin Brians
  PVT Cimon Najio
  PVT Christopher Allen

[/color]

MORALE: LOW[/b][/color]

______________________________________________________________

Axis Units:[/b][/size]

• Sturmscharfuher Edward McMillan
  
• SGT Theodor Luft
  SGT Olaf Maurer
  
  
• MG Helmuth Gielnik
  MG Giselher Lueders
  
  
• CPL Johann Vicinius
  CPL Hannes Oehl
  
  
• PVT Norbert V. Stein (**INJURED/THROAT WOUND**)
  PVT Walter O. Urlich
  PVT Raymond W. Kellen
  PVT Frederick J. Bruno
  PVT Lance Z. Yohann
  PVT Roderick B. Jaegar
  PVT Leopold O. Herbert
  PVT Franz R. Dolf
  PVT Bernard G. Adler
  PVT Lukas Huber
  
  
• Half-track Crew:
  
  PVT Baldur Loewe (DRIVER)
  PVT Eccard Stotz (NAVIGATOR/CO-DRIVER)
  PVT Anselm Olbricht (GUNNER #1)
  PVT Gabriel Ritter (GUNNER #2)

[/color]

MORALE: AVERAGE[/B][/COLOR]

______________________________________________________________

Actions & Outcomes:

[/b][/size][/center]

• Sergeant Major Ryan's “pet talk” to the men within his trench vaguely raised morale, but they entrusted the Sergeant Major's judgement still, they indeed did know this wasn't going to be a walk in the park after all.
  
  However, morale is still extremely low.
  With no means of radio-communication for reinforcements (or even on the line) and any external support to their current situation, did not help. Neither did the fact that they had no real means of appropriate weaponry to combat an enemy half-track or heavy machine-guns; not even grenades were in supply.
  
  
• Combat Medic Elliot took a chance within the unpredictable situation. Slowly raising from cover, nearly everyone on the German line noticed the man standing from his entrenchment down-range and lined up their iron sights. If it wasn't for the cease-fire order given moments before, Combat Medic Elliot would have been shot before the red-cross emblems could have been identified.
  
  
• Reaching Private Corin, Combat Medic Elliot attended to his wounds (you never specified how? This is important) and attempted to bandage the wound clumsily, causing Private Corin to shriek in agony as his tattered left arm was mercilessly squeezed and pulled about by Combat Medic Elliot trying to bandage it up and stop the mass bleeding.
  
  Side-Note: If you require a more detailed sketch of the soldier's wounds, please advise so. In short, his left arm has encountered various bullet penetration and exit wounds, that have left large chunks of flesh torn from the arm and mass bleeding. The private is in agonising pain and losing blood rapidly.
  
  
• The southern pillbox MG-Team are still trying to remove the jammed cartridge from the barrel (is wedged in an awkward position and the feeding belt isn't helping them do it quicker).
  
  
• Private N. Stein has remained stable with his throat wound, but does still require medical attention preferably soon.
  
  
• No shots were fired by either side this round.
  

[/color]
NEXT POST: EDWARD/JT!
~Danny

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

Edward continued to watch over the enemy positions, his Stg 45 pulled into his shoulder and pointed toward the floor of the cargo area of the vehicle. Then something caught his eye and he swung his rifle up as he turned toward the movement. Hands raised! Ran thought his mind as he pulled his finger slightly away from the trigger guard. A few short seconds later he noticed that the man was a medic. "HOLD YOUR FIRE! HOLD YOUR FIRE!!!" He shouted out. His men must have all done something similar to their commander because no shots were fired. Giving the quick order couldn't hurt though.

As the Medic slowly made his way around the enemy positions Ed was trying to make a mental note, every hole he knelt down to or jumped inside of had to be the position of an enemy soldier or two. Most of the craters were very small, but Ed had come to notice a couple of trenches from his slightly elevated position. He kept his rifle close to the ready in case the enemy troops would be using this opportunity to make a move.

"Stay calm, stay calm! It's just a medic!"[/i] Sergeant Maurer assured his men. "The enemy are not firing heavily on us and that man out there is unarmed. Let a little time pass for the machine gun to cool off...here."[/i] The Sergeant pulled out his canteen and poured it's contents over the barrel, creating quite a bit of steam as the water collided with the hot metal. "That should help a bit, little bit of a breeze hits that and we'll be back in business momentarily."[/i] His men nodded and took a few deep breaths, they looked up to Maurer in this scenario. They had never been in combat with the man, but so far he seemed to be handling things very well, but this was so far an easy engagement.

McMillan continued to watch the enemy medic, if he started moving ammo or equipment for the enemy then he forfeited his right to safe passage and Ed would gun him down himself. On the other hand though Ed really wouldn't mind having a medic at his disposal at the moment. His man to the north had been stabilized for now, but the wound was not pretty, he would need professional help in the near future, but for now, all he could do was wait and hope that his wound would hold for the time being so that Ed could get him back to safety.

(No change in the map)

[PuNk! ™]

Moderation Post

[/b][/u][/color]

*** NEW MAP ***

• Units with one line through them = wounded
  
• Units with a cross on them = deceased

*** Erik's “clean” map has been used above, but I'm unsure as to why his medic has been placed next to the dead unit, rather than the wounded? If this is an error, please advise the next poster to change this on the map for next round. ***

Allied Units:[/b][/size]

• Sergeant Major, Andrew Ryan
  
• CPL Rocky Balboa
  CPL Brock Samson
  
  
• ENG Peter Griffin
  
• MED Drake Elliot
  
  
• PVT Bull Randleman (DECEASED)
  PVT Christopher R. English
  PVT Eric Stewards (UNARMED)
  PVT George Stevens
  PVT Kris Lincoln
  PVT Xavier Lorden (DECEASED)
  PVT Pete Simons
  PVT James Ufi
  PVT Danny Corins (**INJURED/LEFT ARM**)
  PVT Kevin Brians
  PVT Cimon Najio
  PVT Christopher Allen

[/color]

MORALE: LOW[/b][/color]

______________________________________________________________

Axis Units:[/b][/size]

• Sturmscharfuher Edward McMillan
  
• SGT Theodor Luft
  SGT Olaf Maurer
  
  
• MG Helmuth Gielnik
  MG Giselher Lueders
  
  
• CPL Johann Vicinius
  CPL Hannes Oehl
  
  
• PVT Norbert V. Stein (**INJURED/THROAT WOUND**)
  PVT Walter O. Urlich
  PVT Raymond W. Kellen
  PVT Frederick J. Bruno
  PVT Lance Z. Yohann
  PVT Roderick B. Jaegar
  PVT Leopold O. Herbert
  PVT Franz R. Dolf
  PVT Bernard G. Adler
  PVT Lukas Huber
  
  
• Half-track Crew:
  
  PVT Baldur Loewe (DRIVER)
  PVT Eccard Stotz (NAVIGATOR/CO-DRIVER)
  PVT Anselm Olbricht (GUNNER #1)
  PVT Gabriel Ritter (GUNNER #2)

[/color]

MORALE: AVERAGE[/B][/COLOR]

______________________________________________________________

Actions & Outcomes:

[/b][/size][/center]

• Combat Medic Elliot continued to deal with Private Corins, whom anguished the pain of his wounds and shrieked uncontrollably, demanding pain-relief or anything the medic could offer.
  
  
• The northern pillbox's MG42 team took initiative of the moment and cooled off their MG42 with the use of Sergeant Maurer's canteen, causing the barrel of the weapon to sizzle slightly and puff a minor plume of steam.
  
  The weapon has successfully cooled some, but the barrel continues to remain slightly hot.
  
  
• The southern pillbox MG42 team have finally removed the jammed cartridge from their MG42's loading chamber. The men exchanged a faint laugh of relief, locking and loading the ammunition belt back into the MG42, prepped to fire once more.
  
  
• The German line continues to remain silent, merely waiting. A few of the men are slightly irritable however, wondering why Sturmscharfuher McMillan is allowing the enemy medic to attend to the wounded.
  
  This has not had a direct impact on morale, but rather a few of the men are getting itchy fingers by doing nothing.
  
  
• The Allies continue to stay low, too fearful to move without a good enough reason. If Sergeant Major Ryan isn't able to form a plan to get them out of their situation, a breakdown of discipline may occur.
  
  NOTES:
  The Allie's morale is dropping slowly towards rock-bottom, even though it's already low. Faced with four MG42s, enemy light armour (halftrack), numerous enemy infantry and no formulated plan or retreat, the men may start taking matters into their own hands.
  
  I guess it is here, that I should advise an immediate retreat. I've held out this long, because I feel you have the manpower to counter-attack the formidable Axis positions with enough strategic planning.
  
  However, the longer a mounted attack or some sort of retaliation plan is delayed (you haven't told the men much of your plans), the less likely they are to rely on you and with morale dropping grimly low, so quickly, you may lose ultimate control.
  
  

[/color]
NEXT POST: ERIK!
~Danny

[PuNk! ™]

Moderation Post:

[/b][/size][/center]

This is an official warning to[/color] Andrew J. Ryan for inactivity and failure to post. You have been warned prior with kind regards, but I must prompt a more serious warning due to it being 1 Month & 10 Days since the last moderation post was made within this thread.

If you fail to post soon, preferably within the next couple or few days, a more serious penalty will be incurred, that may involve you missing your turn to post this round or possibly removal from the thread altogether.

Thank you,
~Danny

[Edward"Butcher"McMillan]

If my opinion matters, I vote missing a turn over removal from thread.

-JT