On 20th June 1942 Italian and German forces attacked the British fortifications around Tobruk, key city that sat astride the supply lines for both sides. Two Italian infantry divisions launched deversionary attacks from the west, while armoured units massed in the east with more Italian infantry ready to follow up the breakthrough. The fight for Tobruk was one of the many critical battles that determined the fate of North Africa |
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Tobruk includes: • Six plastic Crusader tanks |
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The light squadrons of the armoured regiments embody the dash and daring of the British cavalry. Fast and manoeuvrable but not as heavily armoured as the enemy panzers, they use speed and cover to protect themselves. They are often relegated to scouting or protecting the flanks of the regiment while their heavy cousins, the Grants, take the fight to the enemy. |
British armoured regiments were delighted to receive the new American-made M3 Grant tank, which gave them a tank with a gun as good as those on the German panzers, with armour to match. Rushed into service to meet the urgent need for a heavy 75mm-armed tank it took the Germans by surprise. Its thick armour and powerful 75mm gun are superior to most of the German panzers. Its only real downside is its height, which makes it a conspicuous target in the desert. The placement of the 75mm gun makes it difficult to conceal the tank in a hull-down position behind terrain. At Alam el Halfa, with time to prepare a static defence, the British were able to partly overcome these difficulties by carefully choosing the placement of each Grant. |
The new Sherman tank was the next evolutionary step from the powerful Grant tank. Its large turret allowed it to mount an even more powerful 75mm gun in the turret rather than the hull front, and with thicker armour. |
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The 14-tonne M14/41 tank of 1941 was an upgrade of the older M13/40, featuring a more powerful engine fitted with sand filters. Despite its armour and armament remaining somewhat inadequate, the carristi manning these tanks did their duty and fought bravely against any odds. While the M14/41 is outclassed in tank-versus tank fighting, it is an excellent weapon against enemy infantry. It has plenty of machine-gun firepower to keep the enemy pinned down while it moves into position, and an effective highexplosive round for engaging anti-tank guns. |
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Italy was quick to follow Germany’s lead in creating assault guns mounting large guns in turretless self-propelled mountings. The first of these, the Semovente (semovente meaning selfpropelled), mounted the 75/18 short (L/18) 75mm howitzer on the chassis of the M14/41 tank. Not only did the Semovente mount a bigger gun, it was also more heavily armoured, thanks to no longer needing a turret. Although initially intended as a close-support artillery piece, the fact that the Semovente carried a bigger gun than the tanks it supported quickly led to its use as a tank-destroyer, and then as a tank in its own right. By the time of the Tunisian fighting, the Semovente made up approximately half of the Italian armoured force in theatre, giving them significantly greater punch than in earlier battles in the desert.. |
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When production of their own 90m heavy anti-aircraft gun failed to keep pace with demand, the Italians purchased German 88mm anti-aircraft guns to make up the numbers. Like the Germans, the Italians used the deadly '88' as a heavy anti-tank gun, giving them the range and punch to knock out any Allied tank, even the Sherman, at ranges where the tanks could not strike back. The 88mm anti-aircraft gun is accurate out to a range of several kilometeres, giving it the ablitiy to knock out tanks beyond the range at which they can reply. |
Contact the customer service team at customerservice@battlefront.co.nz if you have issues with any components. |
Flames Of War 4th Edition Mini Rulebook (x1) |
Quick Start Guide (x1) |
Plastic M3 Lee Sprue (x3) |
Plastic M4 Sherman Sprue (x3) |
Plastic Crusader Sprue (x6) |
Plastic M14/41 Semovente Sprue (x9) |
Plastic 8.8cm Heavy AA Gun Sprue (x4) |
Plastic Bases |
Unit Cards | ||
Avanti Force Card (x1) | Avanti Force Card (x1) | Armoured Fist Force Card (x1) |
M4 Sherman Tank Platoon HQ (x1) | M4 Sherman Tank Platoon (x1) |
M4 Sherman (76mm) (x1) | M4 Sherman Veteran Tank Company HQ (x1) |
M4 Sherman Veteran Tank Platoon (x1) | M4 Sherman (76mm) Veteran Tank Platoon (x1) |
Parachute Rifle Platoon (x1) | Panzer IV Tank Company HQ (x1) |
Panzer IV Tank Platoon (x1) |