There have been three distinct back-and-forth swings, but thus far, I think I’ve got the upper hand again in S18. Ender has one last chance to take the building, but I don’t think he has enough good order troops or supporting firepower to crack it and still move troops in to take control.
So far the heroes have been DER KOMMISSAR in R2, the conscripts in O5, and the MMG squad in P2. DER KOMMISSAR is definitely receiving the Hero of the Soviet Union for his efforts in turning back not one, but two fierce attacks before being forced to retreat to the building being utilized for rallying the troops. I’ve been annoying Ender by quoting Falco and sending YouTube video links to Falco songs every time DER KOMMISSAR throws back another desperate German attack or shakes off a 2MC.
And yes, that should be an Area Acquisition counter in P3. Fortunately, the AT gun may not be necessary, as the two unbroken squads in O5 are facing a 1MC and the Prep Firing MMG maintained rate. Ender isn’t out of it
UPDATE: It’s over. One German squad in O4 survived the MMG, which overheated and broke after maintaining rate three straight attacks, but heroic conscripts killed the leader to break it with an LLMC, and the squad in O6 broke the LMG-equipped squad, both with 4-evens leading to 1MCs. I was able to advance three squads plus the 8-0 into P3, so after Ender’s other leader failed to rally, he conceded, as there was no way a 7-0 and a single squad with an LMG was going to be able to dislodge me from both building hexes and control them.
For being only six turns, it was a good back-and-forth scenario. Other than failing to deploy his demolition charge, Ender played pretty well, and had DER KOMISSAR broken instead of his two leaders, he might well have won. On the other hand, if one squad hadn’t self-rallied, I might have been able to push forward far enough in the south to have eliminated, rather than merely broken, two entire platoons of first-rate German troops for failure to rout.
As others have learned in non-ASL contexts, I tend to favor an aggressively reactive defense. Those with the eyes to see can probably observe the double envelopment taking shape, albeit with a hard center rather than a soft one.