Untitled Document
SUOMUSSALMI, FINLAND,
14 December 1939: Following an easy crossing into Finland the
163rd Ukranian Division was stopped at Suomussalmi. The unit lay
immobile, stretched out for miles along the narrow road lading
into the little village. Out in the countryside, beyond their
pickets, the Finnish 27th Regiment, commanded by Colonel Hjalmar
Siilasvuo, was tasked to surround and cut off the enemy, in the
process breaking the road-bound columns up into smaller encirclements
known as mottis. To accomplish the mission, the Finns carved out
a parallel ice road and used it to array the attacking units.
On December 12th the first road-cutting assault came, cutting
through surprised enemy troops just east of Suomussalmi. Russians
in the village were cut off from the rest of the division, while
others piled toward outlying buildings. On the 13th the Finns
made their first attack on Suomussalmi proper, but were repelled
after discovering the ruins of the burnt-out village had been
dug into by defending enemy troops.With his first probe stopped
in its tracks, Siilasvuo reorganized under the cover of darkness
for another attempt to seize the village. His troops had been
on the move for days and lacked heavy weapons and supporting artillery.
Worse, when fighting for his life Ivan was already beginning to
reveal his toughness as a soldiery. Dug in Russian soldiers, with
supporting armor nearby, clung to the ruins, numerous machine-gun
posts ready for the next enemy onslaught. By afternoon on the
14th the Finns were stymied and had to settle for tightening the
ring around the village. By December 18th direct assaults on the
village of Suomussalmi were called off altogether. The village
would not fall to direct action and Siilasvuo had to settle for
hunger, and ‘General Winter’, fighting this war on the
side of Finland to do their work on the cut-off Ukranians.
BETRAYED BY GENERAL WINTER
uses the counters in Beyond Valor and the Geo Boards provided
in WINTER GEO sets 1-2-3! What's more, the module includes 8 scenarios
in the popular new color format AND another, way cool (er, brrrrrr
cold) WINTER GEO BOARD. As a token of our love of the genre, and
the 'retro-ness' of it all, a FREE gift in the form of a collector's
item > 8" × 5" original-style Finland at War
counters are added at no charge!
