Ersatz Panther (GE069)

Ersatz Panther (GE069)
includes one Ersatz Panther Tank.

In preparation for the Ardennes offensive, Hitler had given Otto Skorzeny and his commandos the task of infiltrating American positions to create as much general havoc behind enemy lines as possible and capture key bridges. Skorzeny, who had shot to fame due the successful rescue of Benito Mussolini in September 1943, conceived a daring two-part plan.

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The first part required special English-speaking troops to infiltrate enemy lines and create chaos while the second required Panzer Brigade 150 to capture and hold the critical bridges that were so vital to the success of the offensive.

Devil's Charge
The Germans had been in retreat since the Allied breakout from Normandy, finally settling into defensive lines on their frontier as Autumn turned into Winter. In early December 1944 it seemed, to the Americans facing them in the Ardennes forests of Belgium and Luxembourg, unlikely that the Germans would attack.

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A vital part of any success Panzer Brigade 150 would enjoy would be its equipment, all American in origin. However, upon inspection, Skorzeny was less than impressed. In the collection sent to him, there were no operational armoured vehicles other than a few armoured cars and no tanks whatsoever. To beef up the numbers, Skorzeny was able to acquire five Panthers tanks and StuG III G assault guns.

Orders were given to disguise the Panthers to resemble the American M10 tank destroyer while the StuG III Gs were intended to look like the M7 Priest. All of the vehicles were painted green and given large white stars to complete the illusion. While the vehicles were far from convincing, at least Skorzeny now had the numbers he required to secure a route to the Meuse.

Designed by Evan Allen
Modified by James Brown
Painted by James Brown

The Ersatz Panther in Flames Of War

			Armour
Name	Mobility	Front	Side	Top	Equipment and Notes
Weapon	Range	ROF	Anti-tank	Firepower
Ersatz Panther	Standard Tank	10	5	1	Co-ax, Hull MG, Enemy disguises, Limited vision, Wide tracks.
7.5cm KwK42 gun	32"/80cm	2	14	3+

Enemy Disguises
Skorzeny’s troops used captured trucks and painted all of their vehicles green with white stars. The disguises weren’t perfect, but they took whatever advantage they could.

A platoon equipped with Enemy Disguises must be Identified before the enemy can shoot at it or assault it.
These units start the game unidentified.

If a platoon equipped with Enemy Disguises shoots, conducts anti-aircraft fire, or launches an assault, they are immediately identified by all enemy platoons.

In order to Identify a platoon equipped with Enemy Disguises, an enemy platoon must attempt to shoot at it or select it as the target for an Artillery Bombardment. Before rolling To Hit or Range In, the platoon rolls a Skill Test.

■ If they pass the Skill Test, they Identify the German platoon and shoot at or bombard it as normal. The German unit is now Identified to all enemy platoons.

■ If they fail, they do not Identify the unit, but may shoot at or bombard other German platoons instead.

Enemy Recce teams that attempt to shoot at or bombard a platoon equipped with Enemy Disguises automatically identify them if they are within 8”/20cm.

An AOP or Bunker cannot Identify a platoon equipped with Enemy Disguises. Aircraft cannot choose a team that has not been identified as the target of an air strike.

Wide Tracks
Some excellent tank designs have successfully utilised wider tracks, allowing them to cross almost any terrain.

If a vehicle with Wide Tracks becomes Bogged Down while attempting to cross Rough Terrain, roll again. On a roll of 4+ the vehicle immediately frees itself and continues moving.

Limited Vision
In order to pack more into small tanks, some tank designers reduced the crew to a minimum and severely
limited the number of vision devices. Thus, the tanks require the commander to operate as a somewhat vision-impaired gunner as well.

Tanks with Limited Vision add +1 to the score required to hit when shooting any weapon except an AA MG at
targets that are entirely behind a line drawn across the front of the tank’s turret before they rotate their turret to face the target.

Tanks with Limited Vision must rotate their turret to point straight ahead when they move.

Contents of the Ersatz Panther Blister Pack

Contact the customer service team at customerservice@battlefront.co.nz if you have any issues with any of the components.

Description of Components

a. 1x Right-hand side track.
b. 1x Left-and side track.
c. 1x Right-hand side front mudguard.
d. 1x Left-hand side front mudguard (with headlight).
e. 1x Tank commander sprue.
f. 1x Turret superstructure bracket.

g. 1x 7.5cm gun barrel without muzzle brake.
h. 1x Left-hand side mudguard.
i. 1x Right-hand side mudguard.
j. 1x Commander's hatch
k. 1x Resin Ersatz Panther turret and hull.

Assembling the Ersatz Panther

Below: The tracks are stamped with a L or R to indicate the correct orientation. There is also an arrow to show you which end points towards the front of the vehicle.	Step 1. Once the correct orientation for the tracks has been established, attach the tracks to the hull.

Step 2. Attach the front mudguards. Note: The left-hand side mudguard has a headlight.	Step 3. Next, attach the side mud guards. First the right-hand side...

Step 4. ...then, the left-hand side.	Step 5. Next, add the gun barrel.	Step 6. Next up is the commander's hatch.

Optional Step: To add a tank commander, use a hobby knife to cut the commander's hatch in half.	Below: Attach one half of the commander's hatch to each side of the turret recess as shown in the example below.	Below: Next, add a tank commander. Tip: Feel free to use a spare American tank commander to complete the look of your Ersatz Panther.

Step 7. Finally, attach the turret superstructure bracket to the rear of the turret.	Step 8. With the turret superstructure bracket in place, the Ersatz Panther is ready for painting. Painting Tip: It is not known if the Germans had any stocks of captured US Olive Drab paint or they used what they on hand. Use Brown Violet (887) for US Olive Drab or Reflective Green (890) for German Olivgrün (Olive Green).