Russkies in Oklahoma!

[seabolt]

TURN 16

I wouldn't want to be a Russian trying to do business on the Internet. Once again, Epoletov struggled to get his turn back to me. It got to the point that I tried to set up an FTP site. (Bottom line: Through a Linksys router? It is to laugh!) We finally fell back on our most reliable option, shuttling the e-mail through a non-U.S. third party. The Cold War lingers on in the electron streams ...

Not that I missed much action in the long interim. Epoletov took a couple more potshots with that hidden ATGM in my rear, killing a disabled Fox, but that was kind of a costly kill. It emptied his loadout and allowed a nearby Apache to spot his 171-pt para AT unit (which must have sprinted over from Mt Acme several turns ago) at hex 50,135. Empty or not, points is points! Scratch one AT section.

He then mounted a little push toward VH 51,184 with the size 0 remnants of his southern para force: a cheap marksman and a high grade scout unit. My units killed the marksman on my turn, and the scout's days are numbered unless there's a lot more 0s lurking in those woods.

In the urban fight to the north, he did finish off a badly wounded Ranger squad, but also poked some units forward for a quick, ignoble beatdown. A few turns ago, once I realized that the northern paradrop was fairly well contained, I turned around some of my armor to rejoin my line of advance. The Abramses were in position this turn to pound on his leading elements, after the Russians ate a CM salvo on my last artillery phase. I sent in the SAM-proof Apache to sniff around, and I've got to give Epoletov credit: He's got a nose for danger like Spider-Man. He's pulled back his line infantry companies to avoid the brunt of my counterattack. I'm not sure where the bulk of them are, but I know they're moving backward at this point.

In the meantime, that SAM unit took another potshot at his nemesis, and got himself killed for his troubles. That's one mean bird.

In the northern para LZ, Epoletov's routed Spetsnaz unit fled right into the muzzle of an Abrams that I didn't turn around. Hasta la vista, pinkie. That might really have been the last unit up there; I trolled some panel trucks through the area and no one so much as threw a nasty glare at those deliciously soft targets ...

Finally, just to ensure that I can't claim a foolproof turn, I moved a cheap sniper unit out of the nearby burning VH to 104,177. Only, Epoletov had his own budget marksman sitting in that hex, which led to an odd little point-blank sniper's duel. I'm afraid that the forces of darkness won that one ...

My one last positive note was during the artillery phase, when two of Epoletov's Nonas dropped conventional rounds on me. I guess that all of the ammo carriers killed in my CB fire are starting to be missed. Of course, my 60mm volume has shriveled by this point, so it's not like ammo shortages aren't cutting both ways ...

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