After 16 months of training and garrison duty in France, Pionier-Bataillon 305 was sent to the Eastern Front. This would lead to their destruction at Stalingrad barely nine months later. Commanded by apolitical officers, reservists mainly, its ranks were filled with older-than-normal recruits. When they arrived on the Eastern Front in May 1942 they sensed what awaited them. Weeks of monotonous, endless marching were interspersed with terrifying encounters and set-piece attacks. How would this fresh battalion compare with experienced units? Was the arrival of a tough, battle-hardened commander enough to compensate for the unit’s lack of combat experience?