A few weeks after we began the Battle of the Telefonica scenario, John and I were able to get together again to continue. Unfortunately, we were still without Chris, but we hope he can join us next time.
We picked up the game at the start of Round 7. At this juncture, the CNT-FAI received reinforcements, and in particular, fifty anarchist militants who had spent the morning fighting along the Ramblas to the East of Plaça Catalunya. John received three groups of ten workers, arriving here in the South-East corner of the table. They would rush across the Plaça to bolster his beleaguered defense groups, who had faced the brunt of the army's attack during our last outing.
In the North-East corner, Beunaventura Durruti himself arrived at the head of twenty militants, to join the defense of the Telefonica and to coordinate the anarchist forces there.
The mutinous army, led by Comandant Lopéz Amor, were due to receive their own reinforcements in the following round, but for now they prepared to set up their cannon on the hill, from which HQ had conducted the battle thus far. In the photo below, you can see one truck with the 70mm cannon heading toward the hill, while a second truck carries machine guns toward the courtyard, intended for the rooftops at the corners of the Plaça.
While the mutinous soldiers' ranged weapons were in transit, John was able to attempt a dynamite toss during the ranged round. The worker at the side door of the Hotel Colón lit the stick of dynamite, and threw it at the rooftop of the long gray building across the street. Up on top of that building, the 1st Infantry Platoon had spent the previous round firing down at the workers behind their barricades, contributing to the clearing out of the CNT-FAI defenses.
Unfortunately, the roll of the die determined a short throw. The explosive landed in the street between the buildings, killing the dynamiter, and causing the full 6 damage points to both buildings and the nearby barricade. During the skirmish phase, the Infantry Platoons and workers defense groups traded volleys, resulting in three dead workers and four dead soldiers.
After witnessing the 75mm cannon being unloaded on the hill just across the street, the workers' Attack Group 2 abandoned the blue building through the same window they came. They raced back toward the red house where Attack Group 1 covered their retreat.
At the start of Round 8, the army continued to maneuver toward their objectives. The military rebels received their own reinforcements. A battery from the 7th Regiment of the Lleuger d'Artilleria arrived, and headed toward the Plaça.
Machine Guns 1 and 2 reached the gray buildings at the South-West corner of the Plaça. Crewmen unloaded the trucks and carried the weapons inside. The artillery crews set up their cannon on the hill by the headquarters section.
Additionally, a squad of ten Assault Guards would arrive from the subway, and assist the workers holding the barricades by the radio station.
Most of the surviving workers from the defense groups on the other side of the buildings withdrew. They found cover in the courtyard of the U-shaped, gray building. Two of these workers, however, remained pinned at the barricades beneath the gray buildings. Infantry Platoons 1 and 2 held the two gray buildings, and the 3rd Platoon controlled the barricades at the intersection.
Across the table in the north, the falangist unit had crossed the long building and were nearing the radio station, which was their primary objective. Between the fascists and the radio building, however, stood the two-story, dark gray building which John's Northern defenders had fortified. Other defenders held the intersection with barricades, and across the street, my Attack Group 1 still held onto the red building.
On the street behind the dark gray building, my Attack Group 3, which had fought against the falange earlier before being forced to withdraw, gathered to regroup.
Commandant Lopéz Amor's cannon was ready to go at the start of Round 9. The 70mm fired at the thirty workers of John's reinforcing group, who had been running west along the southern end of the Plaça when the shell crashed nearby. Two were killed, and the rest took cover inside the 1-floor building.
The road ahead was now clear for Lopéz Amor's forces. He ordered the artillery battery to turn the corner and head into the Plaça.
At the site of the army's first real victory, where the three infantry platoons drove back the workers defense groups, the 3rd Platoon captured the two pinned workers, who could not win a morale roll to try to flee. These poor souls were marched back into the ally and summarily executed; the sort of justice Franco's side became famous for.
The last workers in the sector around the South-West corner of the Plaça, a handful of anarchists in the Hotel Colón, retreated as well. They're dynamiter tried to throw one last bomb at the enemy, but the fuse wouldn't light.
In the Skirmish Phase, the falangists traded shots with the defense groups at the North-West corner of the Plaça. The fascists killed four workers. John's defense groups kill five in return. My Attack Group 1 fired from the red building, but could not hit anything. The group now only had two rounds of ammo left per fighter.
Finally came the Regroupment Phase. Attack Group 2, who had some moderate success attacking from the blue building, had been retreating toward the red house and Group 1. Instead, they turned west and entered the tavern, from where they intended to cause some chaos in the coming rounds.
With that, Round 9 and our game for the day came to a close. The army continued advancing, but with casualties. Amor's forces had reached the entrance to the Plaça both to the North and South of the Hotel Colón. The main thrust, in the South, captured the barricades and pushed back the workers. In the North, the falangists chased the workers from building to building, and could now see their objective: the Radio building.
On the other side, the workers continued to put up a hard fight and to grind down the attacking forces. While the defenders in the South had been hit with the brunt of the Infantry rush, as well as cannons and machine guns, they were not broken. They were thrown back, with heavy losses, yet thirty more defenders would soon reach their position, where they could hold buildings and make it difficult for the army to capture the open Plaça.
The plan of the Attack Groups in the West, to cause damage behind the lines and draw soldiers North to spread them out, continued to be successful. While these guerrillas didn't kill very many attackers (unlike last time when, in the opening action, a lone dynamiter destroyed most of the 4th Infantry Platoon), they had certainly drawn the falangists into a choke point where workers' defenses were strong.
When we resume, and commence Round 10, the rebellious soldiers will have even more trouble on their hands. Forty more militant workers, this bunch from the small and autonomous socialist party called the POUM, were approaching the Plaça Catalunya.
Check back next time. Will the fight spill into Plaça Catalunya? Will the Telefonica come under the guns of Comandant Lopéz Amor? Can Durruti and the Barcelona proletariat defeat the army?
Will Chris join us?
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