Fictional Citadel : July 9, 1943

 July, 9, 1943, PanGermania, led by the decorated General Fichte, pushed northward despite the lack of support from the exhausted Phantom and 1st Panzer Grenadier divisions. For the Soviets, only 1st Tank Corps was in good enough shape and position to respond. 

1st Panzer Grenadier (the grey 1st Inf on the map) managed to recover 1 SP for being on the baseline at the start of the turn which took them out of exhaustion. However, they were still in bad shape, so I kept them there, but moved them East for a possible flanking move later.

Early deployment - 1st and 2nd Tank Brigade advance to meet the oncoming Pan Germania. 1st Panzer Regiment and 2nd Tank Brigade engage in a shootout, with 1st Panzer Regiment coming out on top, in part due to support from PanGermania's artillery.

Systevo is quickly captured by the 1st Panzer Grenadiers. The division's pioneers make their way north to capture the woods.

On the German left, the Soviets are having a rough time, but on the right 1st Tank Brigade forces the pioneers from the woods and 3rd Tank Brigade forces 1st Panzer Grenadier to abandon the village/

Overhead view of same.

The pioneers recapture the wood but they meet multiple assaults from 1st Tank Brigade and then 3rd Tank Brigade. Once again the German artillery delivers the finishing blow and 1st Tank Brigade evaporates, leaving the Pioneers to face off with the 3rd Tank Brigade.

With 3rd Tank Brigade forced to retreat, 1st Tank Corps recon unit forced to seek shelter out of range of 1st Panzer Regiment and 1st Panzer-Jaeger Regimen, Division Commander Ouspensky orders withdrawal.

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This was a crushing victory for the Germans, who lost but 1 Strength Point to the 5 lost by the Soviets. Despite this impressive performance once again by PanGermania (they were not rated elite or anything like that but overall outperformed every other unit on the battlefield - friend or foe - for this campaign), I have decided to call off Fictional Citadel. 

Although1st Panzer Grenadier are at one srength point greater than exhaustion, they'd have to hang on the baseline to earn enough to possibly challenge any of the Soviet divisions. Phantom needs two more turns on the baseline before they can even advance, let alone have any real chance.

The Soviets have three units out of four exhausted, but 2nd Infantry Division is just above exhaustion, and is poised to challenge PanGermania. Even if PanGermania won that battle, the other Soviet divisions would be resupplied soon enough (it's their home turf so they have resupply advantages).  

More concerning though is that my rules don't allow exhausted units to end a turn next to a not-exhausted enemy and at the start of a turn, they must retreat from a non-exhausted enemy that moves into an adjacent space. If PanGermania wins, as they may very well do, then what follows is a game where PanGermania advances and pushes Soviet units back without any combat, in what feels like a very gamey way to "win". 

The real Operation Citadel was called off due to the allied invasion of Sicily. So, I don't feel too badly about calling of my Fictional Citadel. 

Besides, as much as I have enjoyed playing The Portable Wargame, I am itching to play a lower-level game again with this collection so I can make use of my support stands.  

I would like to return to using my 2" bases as units in and of themselves as I have done in the past. I'm thinking some Crossfire or 5Core Company Command, where I field a company, but also maybe Morschauser or Blitzkrieg Commander or David Newport's Tactical Commander (available for download via Lone Warrior), where bases are platoons and I field at most a battalion.  

I do like the grid though and The Portable Wargame, so I may come back to those for the lower level game as well. That's something I'll sort out when the time comes - I'm spoiled for choice as they say.