Nebelwerfer

Nebelwerfer literality means smoke launcher, an apt if somewhat misleading name for the German rocket launcher.When firing the Nebelwerfer leaves an impressive trail of smoke behind the trajectory of the rockets, often making the battery vulnerable to counter-battery fire. It could however fires smoke as well as high-explosive rounds. The Nebelwerfer was developed in the early 1930s. The 15cm Nebelwerfer 41 was the most common German rocket-launching artillery piece.

It had six barrels; each barrel fired a 34-kilogram 15cm rocket (Wurfgranate 41) out to a range of about 6800 metres. The bundle of launch tubes was mounted on the modified carriage of a light 3.7cm PaK 36 anti-tank gun.Rocket launchers can be dangerous to the crew if they loiter too close to the weapon when it is fired, to overcome this the crew would retreat a safe distance during firing to avoid the back blast of the rockets.

To aid the crew the Nebelwerfers are fired electronically, a wire runs from the launcher to the crew’s safety position. The six tubes are never fired simultaneously, since the blast from six rockets at once would capsize the weapon. The order of fire is fixed at 1–4–6–2–3–5. When fired the rockets of a Nebelwerfer emit a loud
screeching noise, which led to allied soldiers in the Sicily campaign to nickname the gun the “Screaming Mimi”
or “Moaning Minnie”.

Operation

The Nebelwerfer 41 is unlimbered and placed in position by its crew. As soon as the protective coverings have been removed, the launcher is ready to be aimed and loaded. The ammunition is placed to the right and to the left of the launcher, within easy reach. The shells are introduced two at a time, beginning with the lower tubes and continuing upward. Meanwhile, foxholes deep enough to conceal a man in standing position are dug about 10 to 15 meters to the side and rear of the launcher. The crew remain in these foxholes while the weapon is being fired by electrical ignition. Within 10 seconds a battery can fire 36 projectiles. After a salvo has been fired, the crew quickly returns to its launchers and reloads them.

A Rocket Launcher Battery can be brought as a Divisional Support choice for German troops in both the mid and late war.The 15cm NW41 rocket launchers are Light Mobility making them easy for the crew to move, ideal for relocating before counter-battery fire can home in on their rocket smoke trail. They can only fire bombardments, however this can be very devastating. A full strength battery of six launchers get to use a double width template (rather than the normal re-roll misses of guns) and rockets always count as ranging in on the first attempt despite the number of attempts it actually takes (up to three attempts as usual).

They have Range 64”/160cm, AT 3, FP 3+ and can fire Smoke bombardments.

Pack contains 3 large bases, 3 Nebelwerfers and 15 crew figures and command figures.