Playtest:
Matt Unsworth has successfully tested this battle with his students.Historical Background: The German invasion of the USSR in 1941 was, at first, a smashing success. However by 1943 the German army was on the brink of disaster. The Soviet army had stopped Germany's momentum, most notably at Stalingrad. The Red Army was gaining strength, adding the men and machines it would need to go onto the offensive. Hitler decided to gamble on a massive armored assault designed to force the Soviets out of the war before the Allies could open a new front in Western or Southern Europe. The Soviets anticipated the German attack at Kursk and prepared the battlefield with dense mine fields, trenches, and well hidden gun positions. They also assembled an enormous reserve force. Their plan was to grind down the Germans in the defenses. When the German attack was exhausted, and the last of their reserves were committed, the Soviets would launch a massive counterattack. The plan worked. The Soviets absorbed the ferocious German attack, then went on the offensive. They would remain on the offensive until the fall of Berlin. The battle of Prokhorovka, near the end of the Kursk campaign, was the largest tank battle in history.
Playtest:
Matt Unsworth has successfully tested this battle with his students.
Building the Armies: You can get relatively cheap plastic 1/72 tank models, but they are much too large to use in this battle. Micro-scale tanks are available from specialty stores, but they are expensive. I would suggest looking for small cheap toys, such as those found in the board game Axis and Allies. Here are some paper tanks you can print and use. Tanks should be placed (not glued) in a wedge formation on round bases. These can be easily made from construction paper. German medium tank units should include 3 tanks on a 5" base, heavy tank bases should include 4 tanks on a 5" base. Russian medium tank units should include 3 tanks on a 4" base, heavy tank units should include 4 tanks on a 4" base.
Deployment: The Soviets and Germans deploy as shown on the map.
The Map: The battle was played on a 4' x 6' table. The battlefield is mostly open ground. The woods, hills, and village of Prokhorovka should be represented on the battlefield. They can be drawn with marker, outlined in felt, or modeled in detail. The rail line and Psel River did not have much effect on the battle, and don't have to be modeled.
Orders of Battle: The order of battle is simplified, and leaves out the infantry and anti-tank guns.
GermanyII SS Panzer Corps Medium tank units have 3 tanks, Heavy tank units have four tanks |
USSR5th Guard Tank Army Medium tank units have 3 tanks, Heavy tank units have four tanks |
Turn Sequence:
1. Draw cards
2. Play cards
3. Activation
4. Air & Artillery Strikes
Draw Cards: Divide deck of playing cards into black (German) and red (Russian) suits. Players draw 1 card per unit each turn.
Play Cards: Players place cards on the table. The unit with the highest card goes first. Ties go to Germans. Play continues until all units have been activated or destroyed.
Activation: A turn continues until all cards are played. Units are activated once per turn. Activated units move OR fire.
Movement: Heavy tank units can move one base in any direction (5" or 4"), medium tank units can move 2 bases (10" or 8") in any direction. Facing is irrelevant. Movement through woods and town is not allowed.
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| German Heavy Tanks (Tigers) |
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| German Medium Tanks |
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| USSR Heavy Tanks |
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| USSR Medium Tanks |
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Shooting: German Heavy tank units (Tigers) roll 3 dice when shooting, all other units roll 2 dice. Target units, not single tanks. There are no range limits, if the shooting unit can trace a line of sight to the center of the target's base then it can shoot. German tanks hit on a roll of 5 or 6, Russians hit on a roll of 6 outside of 4", on a roll of 5 or 6 at 4" or less. 1 hit removes 1 tank from a base; Tiger units save hits on a roll of 4-6 on shots from outside 4".
Opportunity fire: Units that have not yet activated can shoot at an enemy unit that enters their line of sight: A unit is allowed only 1 opportunity fire during an activation. Opportunity fire counts as an activation. Units using opportunity fire only hit on 6s.
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Range: |
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| Opportunity Fire |
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| German Heavy Tanks (Tigers) roll 3 dice per unit, all other units roll 2 dice | ||
4. Air & Artillery Strikes: Umpire rolls 1d6 to determine if there
will be any air or artillery strikes. If the roll is 1 - 4 there
are no strikes for either side. If the Roll is a 5 or 6 roll again
to determine the type and number of strikes.
1-4: No outside support for either side
5: German strike, roll 1d6: 1-2=1 air strike; 3-4= 2 air strikes;
5-6=1 artillery strike
6: Russian strike, roll 1d6: 1-2=1 air strike; 3-4=1 artillery
strike; 5-6=2 artillery strikes
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Air Strike Procedure: Mark target unit for air strikes. Roll 1d6 for each unit attacked. 1-Oops, KO nearest friendly tank; 2-3: Oops, miss; 4+ Hit target unit, remove 1 tank.
Artillery Strikes: Mark target formation. Roll 1d6 for each tank in formation, remove 1 tank for each 5 or 6 rolled.
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Oops! Nearest friendly tank eliminated |
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Useful Resources: