CSI MEMOIR 44 - SWORD BEACH

[MagnusNygaard]

https://boardgamearena.com/table?table=312939848

One of the best basic scenarios, and possibly the best official beach map in general: SWORD BEACH.

Edocentric proved too strong - but it was an amazing and nothing was certain until the very end.

[edocentric]

Just a little personal background on this scenario - this is the scenario that gave me the Memoir 44 bug and as such will always hold a special place in my heart. When I was learning how to play Memoir 44, I started from the top with Pegasus Bridge (felt OK, but was sure I made some mistakes) then went to Sainte-Mère-Eglise. I was very underwhelmed with the Sainte-Mère-Eglise scenario and was thinking to myself "That was really meh - I don't see the hype behind this game" But I flipped the page to the next scenario Sword Beach and said I'd give the game one more shot and "hey look - there's a beach, maybe this will be different" Playing Sword Beach in Memoir 44 for the first time was one of the most enjoyable board game experiences I have ever had and really catapulted me into the world of Memoir 44. While other scenarios have leapfrogged this one in terms of enjoyment, I will always fondly remember the first time I played Sword Beach. The one thing I really like about this scenario is that it is well balanced with lots of options for both players - and the medal count is at the right level. Just high enough that both players have to make a push, but not too high that the game turns into a slog.

Allied Strategy: my default strategy on this map is to attack the left flank and try to stay out of 2 dice range of the artillery in the middle. With two German infantry / 1 German armor / town of Riva Bella on the left flank that gets you 4 medals of the 5 needed for victory. With that strategy you'll see why I was pushing hard to move my armor to attack the bunker on the left flank. Good timing on receiving Armor Assault / Firefight / Their Finest Hour cards allowed me to soften up the two bunker positions and good luck with Air Power dice allowed me to put a huge dent on the Germans on the left flank. I ran out of gas on pressing the left flank and when my armor fell there, I had to refocus on knocking out the artillery which I was able to do with some lucky dice rolls. Magnus almost came roaring back and I escaped with a 5-4 victory in the first round.

German Strategy: the key thing for the Germans is to pound the Allies with their artillery as much as possible and get their lone armor in the field as quickly as they can. The Germans being scattered on the map allows for some flexibility in maneuvering and blunts the impact of the Air Power card. Magnus was pushing hard on his right flank and was also able to capture the town of Riva Bella using Behind Enemy Lines (a truly devastating card for the Allies in this scenario). I had Medics & Mechanics from the onset so I was waiting for Magnus to damage my armor unit to get him into action (which never happened). Luckily, I drew a General Advance card which combined with some lucky dice rolls really turned the tide of battle. One note is that late in the game on the 2nd round (move 299) I made a mistake moving my armor from B9 to C7 resulting in a loss of line of sight - moving too quickly and didn't do that final check! Luckily was able to overcome that snafu and pulled out a 5-2 victory over Magnus in the second round.

Of the beginner scenarios, this is by far my favorite and a good way to get new players infected by the Memoir 44 bug (like me many many moons ago). A tense match all around with Magnus in this one!

[MagnusNygaard]

Sword beach is one of those scenarios I never regret playing. It can be won by both sides, and even if a well placed BARRAGE against the German artillery (41% to kill it, btw, them's the odds) can make it very tough, it's still possible to win with creative and patient play.

First game was a close one - Edocentric kept his distance and used his armor to snipe at my infantry who stupidly kept sticking their heads out of the bunkers to take a look.
As the Germans there are two "no brainer" moves to be done if possible: getting the infantries out of cover on either flank into cover pronto. But apparently the Royal Airforce was in the air and picked at my infantry hiding in the forest. So, while it wasn't a disastrous start, I was already feeling nervous. No cards, and the allies kept hitting my infantry.

And so, dear commanders - one piece of advice: RECONs are often preferable to PROBEs when you have few units and especially when you have a weak hand. If you have time, creating a useful set of cards can be vital.

OK, but my opponent had planned his attack well and soon I was in serious trouble.
Down 4-1 it was a long careful cat and mouse for me. I had to get as many medals as possible to have a chance in round 2, so I kept trying to snipe here and there on the map. Almost got it too...

Round 2 I had an interesting hand - but I needed make sure Edocentric didn't realize that I couldn't sustain my attack on the left flank. I wanted to lure him over there, then play INFANTRY ASSAULT in the center and distribute my units to the flanks.
But then i picked up BEHIND ENEMY LINES and came up with a new plan. Corner the Axis armor in the left hand corner while I made the real attack on the right flank. Unfortunately Edocentric had already comenced his attack and didn't get distracted too much by my move.

Any way - we slugged it out - but in the end I couldn't get anything solid started, and while I always felt I had a chance, my opponent was just too solid in his play.

For those of you who takes this game as serious as I, there's a comprehensible analysis of Sword Beach in the MEMOIR44 STRATEGY GUIDE by Praxeo.

Goodnight from Copenhagen.

[Jeronimon]

Reading through the CSI files

German Strategy: the key thing for the Germans is to pound the Allies with their artillery as much as possible and get their lone armor in the field as quickly as they can.

I do agree with edocentric that the German armor must be in play as soon as possible. But engage it sparingly, it must survive to be threat to all English troops landing. My most usual move is to move it into town and not into the forest as from the town hex it can reach the hex bordering the center and right flank. Thus being able to be ordered by more cards and not be tempted to go forward out of the forest and catch a lot of fire. You can the also "hide" behind the bunker so fewer English units can shoot at you.

[quote=MagnusNygaard post_id=124981 time=1667083741 user_id=1342688For those of you who takes this game as serious as I, there's a comprehensible analysis of Sword Beach in the MEMOIR44 STRATEGY GUIDE by Praxeo.
[/quote]
Could not agree with you more (also a good piece in the book about saving your armor for as long as possible )