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Company of Heroes: After Action Report
- September 28, 2006 11:35 AM PST
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Onward we pressed towards Autry. Our first action was to capture a farmyard close to the town and set up a forward operating post; this, along with the farmyard's munitions point, would give us access to resources that would prove useful during our assault.
However, we're still undermanned and our assault on the farmyard was carried out a lone Sherman and several squads of riflemen. The Pershing was keeping watch over our forces on the other side of the map and we couldn't afford to wait any longer. Thankfully, Command had sent along some Rangers to aid our cause. Exceptionally trained and armed, we knew the Rangers would help even the odds, especially against the German armor that was undoubtedly waiting for us.
And as we expected, resistance to our final push was stiff. Almost immediately after moving towards the farm we were ambushed by a Panzer and a Tiger. Our Sherman was out gunned, but the infantry had it covered; the air grew thick with panzerschreck rounds and the German tanks didn't have a chance. Soon after, we took the farmyard and mowed down the scattered German infantry that were defending the munitions point.
Our Sherman stands toe to toe against German steel
We thought we had things under control but the German forces suddenly opened up with their mortars; we radioed in to command for some divisional artillery support and they proceeded to hit the town with everything they had. Unfortunately, the German mortar teams survived and the attacks continued unabated. Finding death from above to be an unappetizing end, we hastily pulled back out of their firing range.
With our first attempt to take Autry a failure, we shifted our offensive towards the right flank where a final fuel point was sitting unclaimed. This time, we pushed ahead with a much stronger force: the Pershing had finally joined us at the front and took the point with a Sherman escort at its side. We ran into some light opposition but they were quickly torn asunder. Sensing that the tide was turning, Schultz sent in his remaining tanks, including a Tiger. The German armor threw themselves at our units but thanks to our superior firepower and tactics, we rapidly overwhelmed the counterattack.
We had all but secured Autry. The only thing standing in our way was Schultz and his Tiger. Though we had him outmanned and outgunned, we were not about to take him lightly. Perhaps as a show of bravery, the Tiger Ace, backed by the remaining members of his Tigergroupen, roared out of Autry to make his last attempt against our lines. However, we were ready for him and the German tank commander walked right into our line of fire.
A smoldering ruin was all that remained of the legendary Captain Schultz
In addition to our tanks we managed to bring up several 57mm anti-tank guns to bolster our base of fire. The AT crews loaded up their armor piercing shells and let loose with a barrage that severely crippled the remaining German tanks; we also radioed in for another divisional artillery strike and that decimated any units that the AT guns had left behind. The legendary Tiger Ace and his feared Tigergroupen were no more.
With Schultz out of the way, we were able to move into Autry uncontested. The exit from the Falaise pocket was now collapsing and we were on our way to link up with the Canadian forces that were headed towards us from the north.
We took a moment to catch our breath but there was no time to rest. Though we had secured a major victory, there were many more conflicts awaiting the men of Able Company.
The battle is over but the war still rages on
