Bolt Action: Campaign: Market Garden

GERMANY

HAUPTSTÜRMFUHRER GRÄBNER

Originally a Heer (‘Army’) officer, Hauptstürmfuhrer Viktor Gräbner had made quite a reputation for himself before Market Garden; he had been awarded the German Cross in Gold for gallantry whilst serving as a company commander in the Reconnaissance Battalion of 256th Division. He transferred to the SS at the beginning of August 1944 and took command of the Reconnaissance Battalion of 9th SS Division. He was an exceptionally courageous and daring officer – he was awarded the Knight’s Cross on 23 August – though some of his colleagues regarded him as being somewhat rash. He is most famous for his attempt to lead elements of his battalion through the British defenders at the north end of Arnhem Bridge. The intention was to prevent any reinforcements reaching the bridge. The platoon of armoured cars leading the advance took the British by surprise, managed to avoid mines that had been laid across the road and passed through to Arnhem, but the rest of the unit was badly beaten in a prolonged battle. Gräbner himself, commanding the attack from a captured British Humber armoured car, was killed in the action.

GRÄBNER’S CAPTURED HUMBER IV ARMOURED CAR

Cost	200pts (Veteran)
Weapons	1 turret-mounted 37mm light anti-tank gun with co-axial MMG
Damage Value	7+ (Armoured car)
Special Rules	- Command Vehicle - ‘With me, boys!: Any vehicle in Gräbner’s command range can re-roll any order or activation test except a FUBAR.
Skills	- Strict discipline - Follow me! - Lead foot - Push through

MAJOR SEPP KRAFFT

Major Joseph Krafft was the commander of an SS infantry training school based at the Bilderberg Hotel in the woods to the east of the main DZ and LZ area between Wolfheze and Oosterbeek. As soon as he saw the scale of the airborne armada he correctly deduced the objective of the operation and immediately sent out messengers to recall his students who, having spent the morning training in Bilderberg Woods, had been given the afternoon off.

Aware that the best way to deal with an airborne force was – to use his own words – ‘to drive straight into them’ in order to disrupt their deployment, force them to expend ammunition and slow down their advance toward their objectives he quickly organised his men for battle and got them straight into action. He set up a defensive line, which covered most of the main routes toward Arnhem from a point just north of the Wolfheze–Arnhem railway line. Rather than attempt to stretch his force as far as the Rhine, he mounted a series of attacks in the general direction of the Landing and Drop Zone areas and thereby imposed a major delay on the British 1st Airborne Division. None of this would have been possible if he had not inspired an exceptional degree of confidence among his men.

Shortly after the Arnhem battle, Krafft was asked to submit a report directly to Himmler, in which he put a very shiny gloss on his own conduct. Nonetheless, his actions in the first hours of the operation constituted a genuinely outstanding piece of soldiering, which had an enormous effect on the battle.

Cost	200pts (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, rifle or submachine gun as depicted on the model.
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men at a cost of +13pts per man
Special Rules	- Infantry units within command of Krafft shrug off a single pin marker at the end of each turn.

SS HAUPTSTÜRMFUHRER KARL HEINZ EULING

Euling spent virtually the entirety of his military career in the SS. He fought in Poland in 1939 and spent two years on the Eastern Front. In November 1943, he joined the staff of II SS Panzer Korps in France and by June had been posted to the command of 1st Battalion, 22nd Panzergrenadier Regiment in 10th SS Panzer Division; a serious promotion for a man who was still only 24 years old. His unit was in action against Frost’s command at Arnhem Bridge and then faced the Americans and British in Nijmegen. Euling was a popular officer who inspired confidence in his troops. He was not given to risky behaviour, but would be seen in the fighting line whenever his presence was called for.

Cost	190pts (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, submachine gun or rifle as depicted on the figure
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men for +13pts each.
Special Rules	- Euling was a very reassuring character; his men could be confident that their lives were not being risked unnecessarily. Any unit within command range of Euling can re-roll for all order and morale tests.

THE UNITED STATES

MAJOR JULIAN COOK

A career soldier, Julian Cook graduated from West Point in 1940. He had already served in the battles for Sicily, Anzio, and Salerno, but his unit did not take part in the Normandy invasion as it was still absorbing replacements for the very heavy casualties it had suffered in Italy. Cook’s battalion was assigned to mount the famous daylight river crossing operation at Nijmegen.

Cost	205pts (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, rifle or submachine gun as depicted on the model
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men at a cost of +13pts per man.
Special Rules	- Stubborn - Charismatic leader. Any infantry units within command range of Major Cook also enjoy the benefit of the ‘stubborn’ rule and ignore pin markers when carrying out an Advance’ or Run order!

CAPTAIN RICHARD ‘DICK’ WINTERS

Winters is one of the iconic figures of World War II airborne warfare and appears as one of the ‘Legends of the Western Front’ characters in Battleground Europe. He is also, of course, the central figure in the book and TV series ‘Band of Brothers’. Winters and his men made a good landing on 17 September and arrived at their primary objective – the Son Bridge – just in time to see it blown up.

Cost	150pts (Veteran Captain)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, rifle or submachine gun as depicted on the model
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men at a cost of +13pts per man
Special Rules	- Any infantry unit within his command range benefit from the Stubborn rule.

LIEUTENANT JAMES MEGELLAS

Known to his friends as ‘Maggie’, James Megellas was a platoon commander in the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, and had already served with distinction in Italy. He took part in the Waal river crossing and was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross for his bravery in making a single-handed – and successful – attack on a German observation post and a machine gun position.

Cost	105pts (Veteran First Lieutenant)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, rifle or submachine gun as depicted on the model.
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men at a cost of +13pts per man
Special Rules	- There’s nothing like a courageous leader when it comes to encouraging troops in battle, so any infantry unit in Lieutenant Megellas’ command range ignores pin markers when instructed to fire or to make a close assault.

POLAND

MAJOR-GENERAL SOSABOWSKI

Stanislaw Sosabowski was the commander of 1st Independent Polish Parachute Brigade. Sosabowski was one of the few senior officers who really understood the flaws in the Market Garden plan and tried, unsuccessfully, to have it amended or even abandoned. A strict but effective and popular leader, he and part of his brigade were dropped at Driel on the opposite side of the river to the British 1st Airborne Division on 19 September. He made strenuous efforts to move his troops across the river to aid the British, but was seriously hampered by a lack of boats and only managed to transfer about 200 infantrymen, though much of the glider-borne part of the brigade had already been flown in to a LZ to the north of Oosterbeek. He was certainly close to the ‘sharp end’ of the battle and he was not the sort of man to be argued with – if he said ‘jump’, you jumped!

Cost	190pts (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, submachine gun or rifle as depicted on the figure
Options	- The officer can accompanied by up to 2 men at +13pts each.
Special Rules	- Inspirational and fearsome. Units within command range of Sosabowski can ignore all pins if ordered to make a close assault – measure the range first, and if the unit is in range, it automatically passes the order to assault, regardless of the number of pins.

Polish paratroopers advance cautiously

GREAT BRITAIN

MAJOR ROBERT CAIN

Major Cain served with the 2nd battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment at Arnhem. His repeated acts of heroism and ability to inspire his men makes him one of the legendary figures of the battle. At one point he was badly shocked and briefly blinded by an explosion, but was shortly back in action. Major Cain was the only survivor of five 1st Airborne Division men to be awarded the Victoria Cross after the battle. He was one of the officers responsible for reorganising troops that had withdrawn in poor order from Arnhem, and very quickly turned them into an effective force.

Cost	215pts (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, rifle or submachine gun as depicted on the model. PIAT (special)
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men at a cost of +13pts per man
Special Rules	- Major Cain was an outstanding leader who inspired confidence and any infantry unit within his command range can re-roll any activation or morale test except a FUBAR. Cain was also a remarkable shot with the PIAT – he is assumed to have a PIAT to hand at all times and always hits with a score of 3 or more regardless of modifiers.

COLONEL JOHN FROST

Colonel Frost commanded 2nd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment, and was the senior officer at Arnhem Bridge. He carried his hunting horn into battle and used it to rally his battalion at the rendezvous point on the Drop Zone.

Cost	195pts (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 other men
Weapons	Submachine gun, pistol or rifle/carbine as depicted on the model
Options	- Frost may be accompanied by up to 2 men at a cost of +13pts per man
Special Rules	- Leader of men: Frost’s Morale bonus is +4 and the range of his ability is 12”. Hold until relieved: all British Veteran infantry and artillery units within range of Frost’s Morale bonus also gain the Stubborn rule – if forced to check their morale when reduced to half strength, then they always test on their full morale value, ignoring any pin markers. If a unit already has this rule, it can re-roll failed Morale tests.

SERGEANT BASKEYFIELD’S 6-PDR

Sergeant Baskeyfield was the commander of a section of two 6-pdr guns in the anti-tank platoon of 2nd battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment. The anti-tank platoon was deployed on the lower road from Oosterbeek to Arnhem where Sergeant Baskeyfield’s section put at least three German armoured vehicles out of action. His courage and the inspiring example he set to his comrades led to the posthumous award of a Victoria Cross.

Cost	140pts (Veteran)
Team	Sergeant Baskeyfield and 2 crew
Weapons	Medium anti-tank gun
Special Rules	- As an unusually skilled gunner, Sergeant Baskeyfield’s gun team ignores modifiers when firing on vehicles just as a sniper ignores modifiers when firing on infantry. Additionally, he can give a free Rally order to his gun before issuing it with any order, except for Down. - Team weapon - Gun shield - Fixed

MAJOR ALLISON ‘DIGBY’ TATHAM-WARTER

An exceptionally capable and courageous leader in battle, Tatham-Warter was the prototype for the British officer ‘Harry’ in ‘A Bridge Too Far’ who is seen brandishing an umbrella. This was partly a humorous affectation, but it was also a tool to avoid having to remember passwords. He was confident that no German soldier would be seen dead carrying a ‘brolly’ and could assume that any sentry would recognise him on the assumption that – as he put it himself – ‘only a bloody fool of an Englishman’ would do such a thing. At one point he extricated a padre – Captain Egan – who had become pinned down by enemy fire, telling him that he need not worry about bullets since they could shelter under the umbrella. He also led a bayonet charge whilst wearing a bowler hat and allegedly disabled a German armoured car by thrusting his trusty umbrella through the driver’s visor.

In ‘A Bridge Too Far’, the Bridge defenders are approached by a German emissary offering surrender terms. Tatham-Warter responded that the British did not have the ‘proper facilities’ to accept the surrender of the Germans. Delightful as the tale is – and it is really very much in keeping with Tatham-Warter’s reputation – it seems that this is an apocryphal account.

As the commander of A Company of 2nd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment, he had been disappointed by the performance of wireless communications within his company so he arranged to have two buglers with every platoon and trained his men to react to the calls. He found that this had an excellent effect on his ability to control his units in battle.

Cost	190pts (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, rifle or submachine gun as depicted on the model.
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men at a cost of +13pts per man
Special Rules	- In a force that includes Major Allison, any infantry squad with a bugler figure (the Warlord Plastic Paratroop set has an ample supply of bugles; this is a free upgrade for a single man in each squad) can ignore pin markers when assigning a Run or Advance order. The bugler is, of course, a potential target for an ‘exceptional damage’ result.

GENERAL ROBERT ‘ROY’ URQUHART

General Urquhart was a career officer, commissioned into the Highland Light Infantry in 1920. After serving as the senior staff officer of 51st Highland Division and leading an independent brigade in North Africa, he was appointed to command 1st Airborne Division in early 1944. Frustrated by ineffective radio equipment, he left his headquarters on the second day of Market Garden to try to hasten the advance into Arnhem. Stranded by a German counterattack and out of touch with his division for 36 hours, by the time he returned to his headquarters the battle was lost. Urquhart defended the Oosterbeek perimeter with skill and vigour and was an inspiration to his hard-pressed troops.

Cost	195 points (Veteran Major)
Team	1 officer and up to 2 men
Weapons	Pistol, submachine gun or rifle as depicted on the model
Options	- The officer can be accompanied by up to 2 men for +13pts each.
Special Rules	- Leader of men: Urquhart’s morale bonus is +4 and the range of his ability is 12 inches. - Hold until relieved: All airborne troops within range of Urquhart’s morale bonus gain the ‘stubborn’ rule; if forced to check their morale through being reduced to half numbers they test from their initial morale rating ignoring all pins. If the unit already has the stubborn characteristic they can re-roll a failed morale test.