Battlelines®: Stalingrad Upper Echelons Expansion
Product Information
The Stalingrad Upper Echelons Expansion contains everything needed to customize play decks from the Battlelines® World War II card game. This is not a stand alone set and one Ready to Play set of Battlelines® is required for use with this product.
Included:
- Cards from four Higher Echelons and two reinforment divisions
- 116 unique Upper Echelon cards
- 56 replacement cards
- 8 campaign cards
- Color example of play and campaign rules
Price:$39.95
History
6th Army and 4th Panzer Army
The Axis forces of Army Group B swept across the steppes of Soviet Russia in
the summer of 1942. Lacking the strength to advance along the entire front, the
Axis launched "Operation Blue" along the Southern portion of the vast Russian
front. Army Group B was tasked with the capture of the Volga River port of
Stalingrad, a center of manufacturing and transportation. The 6th Army
with fifteen divisions was to clear the Chir and Don river bends and advance
across the Volga-Don land bridge into the city of Stalingrad. The 4th
Panzer Army advanced along the Rostov-Stalingrad railroad into the southern
portion of Stalingrad.
384th Infantry Division 1941/44
The 384th Infantry Division, formed in the winter of 1941–1942, was transferred
to the Eastern Front in May 1942. After a baptism of fire at Kharkov as part of
the 1st Panzer Army, it sat out the "Drive on Stalingrad"
and was transferred to reinforce the 6th Army during the fighting in the "Streets
of Stalingrad". Although the division’s headquarters avoided
encirclement at Stalingrad in November 1942, most of the division was trapped,
fighting there under the command of the 44th and 376th Infantry Divisions until
destroyed with the rest of the 6th Army in
early 1943.
Southwest Front and Stalingrad Front
Opposed to Army Group B was the Soviet Southwest Front. Badly
mauled by early summer fighting in and around Kharkov, most rifle divisions and
tank corps in the Southwest Front were below 50% strength. This left the "Drive
on Stalingrad" a mere formality. By the time Army Group B reached
Stalingrad, Southwest Front had been all but annihilated. STAVKA—the Soviet
High Command—formed Stalingrad Front to hold the city as part of a plan by
General Zhukov. His plan was simple—hold the city and shift the tactical
conditions to attrition warfare where the Red Army could combat the Wehrmarcht,
and prepare for a massive winter offensive to encircle and destroy the Axis
forces committed to the capture of Stalingrad. A plan worthy of the Mongol
armies that had roamed the southern steppes five hundred years earlier.
192nd Mountain Rifle Division 1940/45
This unusual division was raised at Rostov as part of the general Soviet
mobilization in late 1940 and assigned to the 12th Army in the Kiev Special
Military District in June 1941. Despite being organized and equipped as a
mountain unit, this hard luck outfit never saw combat in a mountainous area.
During the German "Drive on Stalingrad" the 192nd
Mountain Rifle Division saw action with the Southwest
Front in the Don River bend as it attempted to delay the German
6th Army and 4th Panzer Army.
Outcome
The capture of the city proper was a nightmare of close actions and desperate
fighting in the "Streets of Stalingrad" that lasted
for months.
More engineers and siege equipment moved into the city fighting each
day. When at last Stalingrad was secured the Soviet trap was sprung—"Operation
Uranus"—crushing the soft flanks of the salient. The only answer was to
call for Manstein and have him work another miracle. Even his brilliantly led
operation "Winter Storm" failed when
General-Feldmarschall von Paulus refused the order to break-out. The 6th Army
was lost.
Among forces on each side were: 9th Panzer,
11th Panzer, 1st Rumanian Armored,
100th Jäger, 384th Infantry,
18th Tank Corps, 1st Guards Mechanized Corps,
192nd Mountain Rifle, 4th
Cavalry Corps, 112th Rifle Division
Card List
Axis Upper Echelons Expansion Deck
The Battlelines Stalingrad campaign Axis Higher Echelon contains cards from the 6th Army and the 4th Panzer Army. Cards from either command can be used to customize an Axis unit deck prior to play. The deck construction rules for each class of card is found on card number 59 the Unit Information card found in each unit deck. Cards from the unit deck may be removed during customization as long as the completed unit deck has 55 cards or more and that the count of each card category is in the range specified on the Unit Information card.
| Card Name | Card Type | Card Name | Card Type |
| 6th Army | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation Cards | Actions | ||
| II/40th Heavy Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Close In! | Tactics |
| III/109th Siege Gun Battalion | Artillery | Finding the Way | Tactics |
| II/63rd Heavy Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Pin Them and Go Around | Tactics |
| 29th Fortress Battalion | Troops | Flamethrowers | Tactics |
| IV/46th Heavy Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Direct Fire | Tactics |
| 659th Engineer Battalion | Troops | Go Again | Maneuver |
| 540th Engineer Battalion | Troops | Battlefield | |
| 16th Engineer Battalion | Troops | Piles of Rubble | Fieldworks |
| 221st Engineer Battalion | Troops | Debris in the Road | Obstacles |
| 800th Heavy Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Fortune | |
| 419th Engineer Battalion | Troops | Sweep and Patrol | Fog of War |
| 670th Anti-Tank Battalion | Troops | Recovered Supplies | Fog of War |
| Attachments | Supply Cache | Fog of War | |
| General Paulus | Leader | We Saw Them Coming | Intelligence |
| Commandos | Company | Strangle Their Supplies | Intelligence |
| PzKw IVf2 Company | Company | Bad Luck | Confusion |
| Card Name | Card Type | Card Name | Card Type |
| 4th Panzer Army | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation Cards | Actions | ||
| 51st Rocket Regiment | Artillery | Storming the Line | Tactics |
| 52nd Rocket Regiment | Artillery | Breaching the Line | Tactics |
| 1st Heavy Rocket Regiment | Artillery | Close the Approaches | Tactics |
| 2nd Heavy Rocket Regiment | Artillery | Exploitation | Maneuver |
| 46th Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft | Troops | Ju-88 Raiders | Aircraft |
| 191st Assault Gun Battalion | Troops | Stukas | Aircraft |
| II/71st Self-Propelled Battalion | Artillery | Battlefield | |
| II/72nd Self-Propelled Battalion | Artillery | Hedgehog | Fieldworks |
| 711th Self-Propelled Battalion | Artillery | Mine Belt | Obstacles |
| 215th Engineer Battalion | Troops | Fortune | |
| 742nd Engineer Battalion | Troops | Combat Air Patrol | Fog of War |
| 1st Commando Battalion | Troops | Scouting Report | Fog of War |
| Attachments | Reconnaissance Reports | Intelligence | |
| GeneralFeldmarschall Erich von Manstein | Leader | Waiting for the Column | Intelligence |
| Major Lutz | Leader | Spoil Their Plans | Confusion |
| PzKw IVf2 | Company | Out of Time | Confusion |
384th Infantry Division Unit Deck
The 384th Infantry Division deck is a line German infantry division that saw action during "Case Blue." The 384th is capable of solid defense and aggressive offense if it is augmented by corps or army assets. The division leadership and organic attachements are well balanced. The 384th is best played in operational offense and tactical defense, using the artillery to open opportunities to exploit.
| Card Name | Card Type | Card Name | Card Type |
| 384th Infantry Division | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation Cards | Actions | ||
| 384th Infantry Division | Headquarters | Probe | Maneuver |
| 534th Infantry Regiment | Headquarters | Push the Attack | Maneuver |
| I/534th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Deliberate Assualt | Maneuver |
| II/534th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Covered Approach | Tactics |
| III/534th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Fire Support | Tactics |
| 535th Infantry Regiment | Headquarters | Fire Mission | Tactics |
| I/535th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Tactical Smoke | Tactics |
| II/535th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Covering Fire | Tactics |
| III/535th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Artillery Support | Tactics |
| 536th Infantry Regiment | Headquarters | Bypass | Tactics |
| I/536th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Infiltration | Tactics |
| II/536th Infantry Battalion | Troops | Planned Barrage | Tactics |
| III/536th Infantry Battalion | Troops | He-111 Medium Bombers | Aircraft |
| I/384th Battalion | Artillery | ||
| II/384th Battalion | Artillery | ||
| III/384th Battalion | Artillery | Battlefield | |
| IV/384th Battalion | Artillery | Fire Plan | Fieldworks |
| 384th Reconnaisance Battalion | Troops | Killing Fields | Fieldworks |
| 384th Schnell Battalion | Troops | Entrenchments | Fieldworks |
| 384th Pioneer Battalion | Troops | ||
| 384th Supply Column | Troops | ||
| Attachments | Fortune | ||
| C.O. - 384th Infantry Division | Leader | Friendly Fire | Confusion |
| Colonel Hertz | Leader | Decieved | Confusion |
| Seargeant Seigel | Leader | Lost Orders | Confusion |
| Captain Wessel | Leader | Sniper | Fog of War |
| Captain von Eugen | Leader | Supply Drop | Fog of War |
| PAK 38 | Company | Fighter Sweep | Fog of War |
| Engineer Company | Company | Interceptors | Fog of War |
| Sapper Company | Company | Medic | Fog of War |
| StuG III Company | Company | ||
| Sewer Rats | Company | ||
| Statistics | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hand Maximum | Hand Minimum | Troop Quality | Service | Victory Points | Damage | Hits |
| 7 | 4 | Line | 1941–1944 | 367 | 50 | 55 |
Soviet Upper Echelons Expansion Deck
The Southwest Front was ordered to halt the Axis forces as they advanced on the Volga city of Stalingrad. Depleted by fighting earlier in a hopeless attempt to recapture Kharkov the battle weary formations did their best to obey their orders. But where were the reinforcements, the vast armies of men and equipment that was being fielded to drive the Axis invaders out of Mother Russia. They did not come and so the Southwest Front was annihilated on the steppes outside of Stalingrad. Their stubborn defense bought the time required to prepare another sacrificial offering, the Stalingrad Front.
| Card Name | Card Type | Card Name | Card Type |
| Southwest Front | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation Cards | Actions | ||
| 58th Tank Brigade | Troops | Overrun and Bypass | Tactics |
| 64th Tank Brigade | Headquarters | Fire and Move | Tactics |
| 1st Guards Tank Battalion | Troops | Under the Wire | Tactics |
| 2nd Guards Tank Battalion | Troops | Phase Line | Maneuver |
| 64th Motorized Rifle Battalion | Troops | Medium Bombers | Aircraft |
| 380th Guards Mortar Regiment | Artillery | Sturmoviks | Aircraft |
| 382nd Guards Mortar Regiment | Artillery | Battlefield | |
| 712th Chemical Tank Battalion | Troops | Hedgehog | Fieldworks |
| 665th Anti-Tank Regiment | Troops | Demolition | Obstacles |
| 871st Engineer Battalion | Troops | Fortune | |
| 1342nd Engineer Battalion | Troops | Combat Air Patrol | Fog of War |
| 444th Cannon Regiment | Artillery | Security Sweep | Fog of War |
| Attachments | Lookout | Intelligence | |
| Leiutenant General Zhadov | Leader | A Chance Encounter | Intelligence |
| Mortars | Company | Bad Intelligence | Confusion |
| 7.6cm Anti-Tank Battery | Company | Lucky Hit | Confusion |
| Card Name | Card Type | Card Name | Card Type |
| Stalingrad Front | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation Cards | Actions | ||
| 154th Naval Infantry Brigade | Headquarters | Spotter | Tactics |
| I/154th Naval Infantry Battalion | Troops | Ground We Know | Tactics |
| II/154th Naval Infantry Battalion | Troops | Rush Them | Tactics |
| III/154th Naval Infantry Battalion | Troops | Continuous Barrage | Tactics |
| IV/154th Naval Infantry Battalion | Troops | Phase Line | Maneuver |
| 20th Motorized Brigade | Headquarters | Dive Bombers | Aircraft |
| I/20th Motorized Battalion | Troops | Battlefield | |
| II/20th Motorized Battalion | Troops | Trenchline | Fieldworks |
| III/20th Motorized Battalion | Troops | Roadblock | Obstacles |
| IV/20th Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Fortune | |
| 207th Artillery Regiment | Artillery | Yaks | Fog of War |
| 1186th Anti-Tank Regiment | Troops | Sniper Section | Fog of War |
| Attachments | Supply Cache | Fog of War | |
| General Chuikov | Leader | Delayed | Intelligence |
| T34 Tank Company | Company | Lost Again | Intelligence |
| Golokov’s Sappers | Company | Bad Luck | Confusion |
192nd Mountain Rifle Division Unit Deck
The 192nd Mountain Rifle Division saw heavy fighting throughout the course of the war. Organized to fight in mountainous terrain it lacked the heavier fire power of a contemporary rifle division. To offset the short fall in combat power various independent formations were assigned by higher echelon to work with the 192nd Mountain Rifle Division. When the supporting attachments are added into this division it becomes amazingly resilient. This deck is for players that love attachments. It has everything from KV1a Tank Company attachment to a Bicycles Company attachment.
| Card Name | Card Type | Card Name | Card Type |
| 192nd Mountain Rifle Division | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation Cards | Attachments | ||
| 192nd Rifle Division | Headquarters | Major General 192nd Mountain | Leader |
| 427th Rifle Regiment | Headquarters | Colonel - 427th Mountain Regiment | Leader |
| I/427th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Colonel - 618th Mountain Regiment | Leader |
| II/427th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Colonel - 676th Mountain Regiment | Leader |
| III/427th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Commissar | Leader |
| 618th Rifle Regiment | Headquarters | Bicycle Company | Company |
| I/618th Rifle Battalion | Troops | MMG Company | Company |
| II/618th Rifle Battalion | Troops | 7.6cm Antitank | Company |
| III/618th Rifle Battalion | Troops | 7.6cm Crash Boom | Company |
| 676th Rifle Regiment | Headquarters | KV1a Company | Company |
| I/676th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Sapper Company | Company |
| II/676th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Light Mortars | Company |
| III/676th Rifle Battalion | Troops | AA Machinguns | Company |
| I/283rd Artillery Battalion | Artillery | T-26 Company | Company |
| II/283rd Artillery Battalion | Artillery | 4.5cm ATG | Company |
| III/283rd Artillery Battalion | Artillery | T-34 | Company |
| 192nd Reconnaissance Battalion | Troops | Reinforcements | Company |
| 192nd Sappers Battalion | Troops | ||
| 192nd Antitank Battalion | Troops | ||
| 192nd Machinegun Battalion | Troops | Battlefield | |
| 192nd Training Battalion | Troops | Bunkers | Fieldworks |
| 192nd Supply Column | Troops | Trenches | Fieldworks |
| 192nd Rifle Division | Headquarters | ||
| 427th Rifle Regiment | Headquarters | ||
| I/427th Rifle Battalion | Troops | ||
| II/427th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Fortune | |
| III/427th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Lost! | Confusion |
| 618th Rifle Regiment | Headquarters | Supplies | Fog of War |
| I/618th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Interceptors | Fog of War |
| II/618th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Sniper | Fog of War |
| III/618th Rifle Battalion | Troops | Captured Supplies | Fog of War |
| 676th Rifle Regiment | Headquarters | Medic | Fog of War |
| I/676th Rifle Battalion | Troops | ||
| II/676th Rifle Battalion | Troops | ||
| III/676th Rifle Battalion | Troops | ||
| I/283rd Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Action | |
| II/283rd Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Scouts! | Tactics |
| III/283rd Artillery Battalion | Artillery | Close Combat | Tactics |
| 192nd Reconnaissance Battalion | Troops | Smoke | Tactics |
| 192nd Sappers Battalion | Troops | In the Rubble | Tactics |
| 192nd Antitank Battalion | Troops | Around the Flank! | Tactics |
| 192nd Machinegun Battalion | Troops | Preparation Barrage | Tactics |
| 192nd Training Battalion | Troops | Into the Trees | Tactics |
| 192nd Supply Column | Troops | Forward! | Maneuver |
| Statistics | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hand Maximum | Hand Minimum | Troop Quality | Service | Victory Points | Damage | Hits |
| 6 | 4 | Reserve | 1940–1945 | 350 | 55 | 59 |
