Kick off...

.... Lyall rules, no air attacks (low cloud), no Lyall comms (too much for my enfeebled brain). A good side effect of leaving the game in situ for more than a week was that I had forgotten where I had put the Germans who were under cover...

The Reds opened the action with five rounds of katushkia bombardment, 'aimed' at the buildings on either side of the road into the town:

Using the patented Lyall artillery grids, there was a wide range of shot fall, but both buildings were hit and set on fire. However, as it turned out, neither was occupied.

General assault, with the main thrust (3 x T34s) straight down the road, an infantry assault (backed by heavy mortars) on the right, and a tank (1 x T34) and infantry assault on the left flank.

The defenders put down mortar and infantry gun fire to little effect, but the captured T34 (above) destroyed the sole right flank T34, while the lead T34 on the road was hit and destroyed by the Pak 42 concealed back in the woods. Both hits were close run things, succeeding by only one pip of the dice - but that matters not, and in one turn, half the Bolsheviks' armour was gone:

Inside the town, Eastern infantry take up new positions, under continuous, but largely ineffective mortar fire:

End of move 8, and all to play for...