Colin I

Furious air battles over France between British and German fighters as the Axis bomb US troop positions. Russia quiet.

I think its hard to build forts that stop the Allies in this game - I have naval supremacy so if he built them the other way round I would have just amphibed round or struck elsewhere. Germans have now operated a serious force into Paris region to face the Americans building up on the Iberian-French border. Amercans are cautious for a couple of reasons I'd rather not mention at this point - but one is they have succeeded in indirectly slowing the assault on the Soviets which was their main mission statement. British are a bit quieter, but continue to pick on the Italians in North Africa. Their carriers are going to have to be more cautious now Axis air power is heading West.

Russians continue to hunker down and pray for the W. Allies to bite. Punishing air assaults by Axis continue - Axis air force not only numerous but high tech. Americans attack into France from Spain supported by rather splendid new tanks, some US air and UK long range carrier. Lose an army but make progress and start to clear Axis fortifications (facing the wrong way!) and detroy a few entrenched corps. British continue to destroy Italian position, more landings in North Africa plus air assaults on stranded Italian army. Its going to be an interesting end to the year (we are mid '43).

German air is truly dangerous in Russia - Russians retreat. But in West Americans attack into France and British harry Italians - several North African cities fall to Amphib corps. Its a race against time for both sides.

Hmmm, its far from decided between me and Arado - we are mid '43.

Policy of attacking Italy continues. British do a well executed Torch with lots of air support and take Sicily. American armour attacks Italian engineers fortifying on the French-Spanish border. russians continue to prepare for the battle of Stalingrad.

Rostov indeed rolled over easily. Can certainly believe Germans will win without W. Allies intervention but UK is effective and you've yet to see the US in action. And Stalingrad is well fortified. This turn is admittedly quiet. UK continues with Med. Ops. and general policy of harassing Italy.

Weather clears, Russians brace for the usual slaughter in the East. In the West the Allies continue with their Med. operation, taking Tunis. Slowly ratching up the pressure...... So far the British paras have not been silly enough to drop in front of a German Tiger unit. Long range paras are too useful to waste!

British paras sieze Sardinian port and Western Allies extend further into Med. bombarding Sicily and sinking the final Italian ship. Russian partisans prove harder to wipe out in the Snow.

Allies invade Vichy North Africa and start to project force across the Med. by bombarding and bombing ports. Sadly, a German HQ made it back to mainland leaving Italians to deal with the deteriorating situation. Its a bit embarassing, but this is the first country Allies have liberated (Eire, Norway, Sweden, Portugal, Spain were all DoWed by Allies!). It makes you wonder who the good guys are There is a Naval battle with the last two Italian cruisers off Tunis - losses on both sides. And finally, battered Malta welcomes its first Allied ship - a British carrier with those fancy new long range fighters. It must be admitted, docks might not be the right term for it reaching Malta, as there isn't a lot left of the harbour. In Russia Snow - thank God, but Germans show L4 armour - Tigers in the Snow. Its mercifully quiet there.

Allies are fairly quiet but bomb to death a German tank in North Africa.

Spain indeed surrenders. Allies assault and sink last Italian battleship in harbour. Malta has held - I think this is important in the context of dominating the Med (there is a LR4 UK bomber there that just bombred a German transport near Tobruk - its reach is frightening). Russians getting slaughtered by Axis air and armour combination. Its another year they pray for mud and snow. But in the West the Allies gather strength. The game is very much a product of Arado's strategy - his focus is very strongly Russia with the obvious outcome - Russians are reeling but Western Allies have been allowed to get away with a lot (never had such good tech as UK - they didn't have to spend much replacing losses). Broadly, North Africa and a lot of russia is Axis but Iberia and Sweden/Norway are Allied. Axis have very numerous airforce. Allies have superb long range air.

Russians counterattack with heavy armour - we will lose over the next few turns but take a lot of German tanks down. He invades Vichy north Africa as expected - and will take it next turn. Allied fleet assaults Italian Navy - several enemy battleships sunk or hurt. This one we will come out on top and combined with survival of the Malta bomber expect to dominate the Med. Spain assaulted by Allies, American ground troops supported by RAF and USAF take Madrid. British amphib. corpos and paras seal off the country to prevent German assistance - just as well as the Spanish didn't surrender.

Malta continues to get pounded. Americans test their shiny new naval guns on Italians in North Africa with some success. A lot less happens elsewhere than you might expect (North Africa, Iberia, Russia all docile). Have a suspician Germans are up to something.......

Maybe not in the future, but it CAN see Axis forces massing on Vichy Algerian border right now. Probably Vichy North Africa has as little to worry about as Spain Just as well the Americans are coming - Russians are taking losses and Egypt is now in German hands.

Love the Finish attack. I'd have thought against anyone other than Terif that LR air would trump Rockets.

That Franco is really cranky Allied Diplomats calm him down after Eire, but then he gets upset about something trivial like American troops storming ashore in Portugal. More mood swings than the Fuhrer, the guy is a Yo-Yo!!! Meanwhile Axis have almost taken Egypt (the Colonial HQ baled out just in time, the writing was on the wall) and both sides are squaring up for the big fight in Russia. And the British bomber tries to hit the Italian sub but its in a sub pen in North Africa now so I doubt I hurt it much. Italian Navy sensibly dispersed when it realized a bomber with LR at Malta is essentially an AWACS and can see EVERYTHING around there.

By mid 1942 the game has broken down into a series of isolated skimishes across the board but Russia is now quiet. Axis are clearly going to take Egypt in a couple of turns. Italian fleet redeploys but suffers harrasment from long range bombers based on Malta. The British and Americans have a free hand and significant resources and its an open question where they will strike next. Apparently as a practice run the British invade Eire though this irritates Franco.

Axis overrun El Alemain and bombard Alexandria and Malta. Russians launch winter offensive - now at least trading armour units with the Germans. US panics at Axis advance and finally wakes up.

Axis are going into North Africa in a serious way with Sicily a major staging point.. Colonial troops brace and UK long range bombers interdict Tobruk harbour. Italians start to engage with Free French at El Alemain. Russian antitank weaponry tests look good - next year the Panzers won't have it so easy. Pathetic bombardment by RN of German coastline - German shore batteries exert a price.

Final German battleship indeed sunk but it took a big effort. Harrassment of German paratrooper spotted on Baltic coast. Weather getting worse, less action apart from this as we head towards end of 1941. US still a way from commiting.

Think taking Sweden has to be worth it - the gain in MPP, position over Germany and loss of convoy to Axis are all good. What happens next will be decisive. Russians continue to pray for Winter......

Its true, the German land army is formidable and undefeated and luftwaffe untested against serious opposition. The Russians continue to reel under German tanks. But the Germans have lost control of their home waters and the British air can choose where to strike. Sunk his last cruiser this turn and started to harass the Finns from the air. US still far from committed to entry.

Germans hammer theoretically superior Russian armour near Moscow. Russians retreat covered by Siberians. But the British high fleet has broken into the Baltic in force.

British troops take Sweden and give shelter to harassed Russian cruiser in the Baltic. Partisans slow an otherwise ferocious assault by Germans in Russia. Who needs to invade European mainland when you have this much long range air