VELIKIYE LUKI 1942-43

◗ Robert Forczyk

◗ Osprey (2020)

◗ £15.99

◗ 96 pages (softback)

◗ ISBN:9781472830692

◗ ospreypublishing.com

Another excellent production from this highly capable author – and with strong wargaming potential.

The city became a ‘mini-Stalingrad’ in winter 1942, as the Soviets sought to stretch Axis resources and prevent reinforcements going to the relief of Stalingrad. The scale was much smaller (the German garrison numbered around 7,500 and Soviet forces were not massive), but it has all the hallmarks of a desperate siege – the initial Soviet breakthrough against thin German forces including security battalions, the encircling of the city, the ad hoc relief efforts including re-supply by air, the Soviet juggling of resources to erode the besieged and ward off the relieving forces, and the final assaults. Detail is good, including levels of manpower, heavy weapons, and even ammunition at key stages. The final dramatic relieving dash took place just 3-4 miles from the garrison, using a jager company plus eleven tanks and nine APCs: surely a recipe for a wargame...

There are multiple wargames here, from the operational to the tactical, and without needing a super-large wargames table or masses of troops. Very highly recommended.