One Helluva Fight: The Battle of Medjez-el-Bab, December 6-10, 1942

One Helluva Fight: The Battle of Medjez-el-Bab, December 6-10, 1942. One Helluva Fight is a low to moderate complexity wargame on the Battle of Medjez-el-Bab, fought in northern Tunisia. The Allied landings in Morocco and Algeria ushered in the collapse of the Vichy government in France, and a dramatic strategic shift in the war in Northern Africa. With Rommel’s Army in full retreat following battles around El Alamein, the Allies had the opportunity to completely cut-off all Axis forces in North Africa, provided the vital port of Tunis could be taken quickly.

The first major engagement fought by the Anglo-American forces of the war occurred near the crucial crossroads town of Medjez-el-Bab. A British and American battle group, named Blade Force and composed of units from the US 1st Armored and British 78th Infantry divisions as well as some former Vichy French units, initially took the town and then drove on to Tebourba to come within striking distance of Tunis (forward observers could actually see the minarets of the distant port). The Germans, however, cobbled together a battle group of their own, centered on the newly arrived 5th Fallschirmjager Regiment (a unit initially detailed to attack Malta) and 10th Panzer Division. Supported by Luftwaffe and Italian Bersaglieri units, a no-holds-barred tank and infantry fight was fought in which the Allies were thrown back. Can you do as well or better?

Each copy of One Helluva Fight is composed of the following:

• Two 11 by 17 inch hex map sheets that include the game charts and tables
• 264 single-sided, un-mounted counters
• 8 pages of rules

Units are mostly companies, each turn represents 8 hours of time and a hex is approximately a half mile across. The game is designed by Paul Rohrbaugh with graphics by Ilya Kudriashov. The game uses a chit-pull activation design by which the sequence of play is determined and which units and/or formations can activate. The game is very interactive, easy to learn and fun to play.