abukede

Very little action to report. Poor weather across much of the map. The Russians did mount a limited offensive with arty against Turkish forces with ok results. In the Middle East UK forces repositioned. On the Western Front some repositioning of forces with the British assuming responsibility for some of the Western Front. Beyond that not a whole lot.

Hello all, We are now deep into November and mud is upon us. On the Western Front the French made several attacks and destroyed the German Corps in Verdun. Many players expend all of their arty shells in an attack on entrenched units hoping to do as much damage as possible. The truth is you dont need to waste all of your shells but simply de-entrench the unit. The Bristish and French took turns pounding the fortress. By doing it this way you save shells and can hammer away the next turn if required. There was another German unit that had also pushed forward. I hammered him from 11 to 4 with a ground attack. I could have destroyed him but that would have meant leaving entrenchments. Should Al rebuild him this turn and leave him in place he will be destroyed. In the East... the Russians redressed much of their lines and entrenched where they could. Mud so... no fighting on almost the entire front. The Russians did launch a limited attack on the Turkish front that caused some minor casualties. We have some naval activity in the Black Sea... so things might get interesting. In the Middle East I took a strategic pause to upgrade units and reposition my arty. The British and French also deployed additional units this turn. The Arabs under Lawrence rose up capturing a Saudi town and the resulting revolt caused another major drop in Turkish morale. Overall... a fair turn.

Good turn from my perspective. Al lost 2 corps this turn with a number of units mauled as the Entente continued to strike back. First picture… highlights the slow erosion of German Morale. The convoy route to England became established this turn. I need to swing Holland further in my favor. I don’t think Al will allow it to come to that though. I would expect a winter offensive from him… or early spring attack on Holland. Russian forces struck an A-H corps in poor supply facing Kiev and destroyed it. Russian forces have been slowly building up for several turns in Southern Russia. I think that by Spring I will be able to defend against an A-H driven offensive. I may even be able to launch a good offensive against Al’s forces. His time of easy city and town pickings in the South is starting to come to a close. His losses are beginning to mount. In the North, Russian forces pulled back toward Riga and reorganized my line a bit as I fell back away from Vilna a bit. Remember Al took Vilna last turn and his supply improved and is catching up. Time to fall back a bit and invite him forward. In the North we had mud this turn. Since it’s now November, 1915 I can only assume the weather will only deteriorate. Not sure how much longer offensive action can be conducted effectively this year in Russia. In the Middle East my French marines moved into a position to block rail reinforcements (see picture below… the arrow is where he moved) while further south my offensive continued with the destruction of another Turkish corps and the mauling of a Bulgarian corps that Al had operated in. I expect that I should be able to remove another Turkish unit or 2 this next turn and if I am lucky the Bulgarian corps too… On the Italian front the Italians showed some life for a change and struck the A-H lines severely mauling an experienced A-H unit… that Al had not upgraded. I don’t mind not destroying him as it forces Al to rebuild it and cancels out experience. It’s also almost as much as buying a new unit. On the new Greek front… A Greek corps struck and damaged a Bulgarian Cav unit removing 2 steps. Overall I got off relatively easy this turn while inflicting good damage on Al’s forces where I attacked. In the West my buildup is proceeding as expected. I am pleased and looking forward to Al's Spring and Summer offensive. Russian morale has fallen to 63 but killing enemy units help. So the destruction of enemy units keep Russia in the game longer. Russia has a number of units in build and by Spring Al should be facing a larger Russian army. German morale has dipped to 97% and I fully expect it to be at 96% or below next turn. A-H morale has dipped to 101% but interestingly Turkish morale is seriously suffering… they just entered the war a few months ago and already it is down to 70%. That slide should continue. Overall I am pretty pleased however things could rapidly change and Al still has the initiative.

I am playing the morale game. At least trying to. I think that Al has a choice especially with the loss of Holland. Oh and he's not getting it back either unless he invades for the cash... which is what I would do. Diplomatically I have too much diplo invested in it. In the West he either strikes with his Navy or his army. If he attempts both the resulting morale hits will cost him the game as from this point forward German morale will begin to fall each turn. I think I am well positioned to defend the West and when he attacks it will be bloody for both sides... the trick is costing him more casualties than he can afford 2 to 1 ratio or not. He has to deploy some forces to garrison his frontier... so on the Western Front it will not be 2:1. It will more likely be parity with a slight advantage in his favor. I hope he is serious about a major offensive in the West in 1916... I personally would not try it till 1917. And if he does he will be outnumbered Arty wise. Also the Russian's are not out of it... in fact they are far from out. Each German or A-H unit I kill helps me stay in the game that much longer and ties up key forces. I think you can detect a bit of frustriation from him in relation to the UK. He does not know where the bulk of the UK army is... which is intentional on my part. It could be in France waiting out of sight and prepared to move forward... Italy... Middle East or preparing to land in Greece. Or it could be waiting to land somewhere dare I say... unexpected. Of course I could be completely wrong with my assessment of the situation and it would not be the first time. At the moment though I am pleased with my position especially with Russia at 64-65% going into 1916.

One more pic...

A nice turn for me and I think you will all find it very interesting as some of my strategy and approach to this game starts to come to light. Simply put the German army is a bit smaller. We had the second battle of Verdun. British heavy artillery pounded Al’s upgraded, experienced and over-strength corps holding the fortress. Turns out I did not even need to bring in my French arty. Gas is your friend! French infantry forces mopped up occupied the Verdun. I expect us to continue to fight over Verdun. Al lost a unit that had 2 bars of experience. He had also taken casualties the previous turn assaulting an adjacent corps. On a disappointing note I also brought in my air force to airstrike Al’s arty in the rear… I damaged it but one fighter took catastrophic damage first from a fighter and then from ground defense and destroyed itself. I sat there shaking my head. Good thing air units are inexpensive. On the Eastern Front things got very interesting. Remember it was only 2 turns ago that Al declared victory against Russia! Part of my strategy was to draw him in to lower supply and readiness. In the north Russia went over to the offensive and attacked destroying 2 experienced German corps that had over extended themselves. I also mauled another that was in very low supply and had poor readiness. The Russians are enjoying high supply levels and winter is coming. I was very tempted to launch an all-out offensive against him as I think I could have caused him significant casualties… but again I have to be very careful of morale. I need Russia to remain in the fight as long as possible while doing him serious damage. I also threw away a Cav unit to finish off one of the German corps that had retreated with a strength of 1. In Southern Russia the Russians also went on the offensive and struck the A-H line destroying a Cav unit that was in poor supply. I could have destroyed a corps but decided against it as Al’s CAV are his mobile units that can move fast and far quickly with little effort. I don’t mind him having 1 less CAV. I am very pleased with Russia so far. She has taken a beating and is still fighting. German morale dipped to 98% this turn. Russian morale is at 66%. In the Middle East the UK offensive finally swung into high gear this turn unloading a punishing barrage on Al’s Turkish line… I destroyed the Turkish corps defending Jerusalem, took the city, liberated Palestine while also mauling a second Turkish corps. Jerusalem is a National Morale Center and the Turks took a massive hit with its loss. French Marines landed behind his lines and found an empty city that is National Morale center by the name of Damascus... I am confident he can get troops into it next turn but my French marines will be a serious irritant… They were specifically landed to act as a road block to keep some of his units from escaping the British drive. It will be interesting to see how things turn out. Now for the very interesting part. For the last 5 turns I have been investing in diplomacy against Holland with each Entente country. I first invested in the USA to get readiness up and convoy income improved and then switched to Holland. The USA is a long-term project. Diplomacy has been maxed out on Holland for the last 4 turns. Each turn I have gotten a hit with diplomacy and steadily lowered Holland’s morale. Even though there is a popup… I said nothing in the hopes that Al missed it, which I think he did till last turn when he invested 250 into diplomacy. See chart below. The beginning of this turn saw Holland at 8% for the Germans. I just got a 9% hit which swings her to the Entente. Why is this important? Germany starves without Holland and takes not only an economic hit (65 cash a turn) but also a massive morale hit each turn. Perhaps no one ever tried this strategy against him… but it works and is a critical tool for the Entente and part of my strategy going into 1916. He has been taking a massive morale hit each turn from my blockade and now he has to contend with the loss of Holland’s income and the accompanying morale hit which I think is the equivalent to the blockade… now add unit losses to that combined double hit and Al suddenly has to play a very careful game or his morale losses could cost him everything. Should he sortie his fleet and engage the combined Entente fleet off England… the morale hit with lost ships will be catastrophic… trust me… I’ve done it and been shocked at how quickly morale can fall due to Naval battles. So now he is taking hits on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. He now knows Russia and the French have teeth. The communists will eventually bring Russia down but if he continues to push against Russia this year his morale could be in trouble and he puts in possible late game jeopardy. Another problem he will face is when Russia pulls out of the war he loses the morale boost from the Russian cities and towns he has captured. So if Russia goes quicker... at this point it will hurt him more in the long run. Greece also joined the war effort… One more thing for Al to focus on and another minor for him to beat up on. Of course the UK could land troops in Greece and make things interesting. In summary... Al lost 5 units this turn and his income from Holland, plus a regular massive morale hit. The war is far from over. This has been a very interesting game so far and yes we Beta Testers play hard and rough.

Well… overall I am fairly pleased. Al has had a great run so far but unlike him I would not count the war in Russia as over yet. The Russian army still has teeth 46 units deployed with more in build. Russia is making in excess of 300 per turn. Morale is only at 70%. Much of Al’s army is a bit over extended supply wise due to his advance and the games of maneuver I played with him this summer. His supply has not caught up yet. It will in a few turns… but then we will be into deep winter. Much of the Russian army is at supply 9 while the Germans are at 4,5,6… with the A-H in the South at 3 and I would hazard advance units are at 1 supply. Ripe for ambush. I was sorely tempted to smack Al very hard in the north this turn. Sometimes my offensive nature gets the better of me but I have to play Russia smart. Almost the entire Russian army is now upgraded to level 2… and I have units stacked 3 and 4 deep in some places. In the end I made the decision to take a safe bite where I could. I destroyed 1 highly experienced German corps using upgraded arty and infantry and taking advantage of my prepared attack bonus, I also took advantage of my prepared attack bonus in the south and smacked an A-H corps that was in low supply and then pulled back a bit inviting him further into Southern Russia. Further south… the Russians went on the offensive against the Turks destroying a Turkish detachment using arty support with Infantry. I was able to retake Erivan. Strategy wise… Why did I play it safe? I think I could have done him a lot of damage this turn had I wished. Simply… If I engage him too soon the back and forth fighting could easily drop my morale to 50 more rapidly than I would wish. Remember Russian morale is currently at 70%. Not bad for going into winter in 1915 and having given up Warsaw and much of the Frontier. A good deal of my army is now entrenched with excellent supply. On the other side of the fence… with poor supply and weather Al’s casualties will mount rapidly if he presses forward too early. It may also allow me to more easily destroy damaged units should I wish causing him more in losses than he wants to take. On the other hand… should he press… instead of attacking I can just as easily continue to pull back making his supply woes much more of a problem and again making it easier to smack him hard or take a corps out here or there at will. German morale keeps hovering between 99 and 100%. Should he start taking regular casualties each turn I will begin to eat into that… and should things heat up on the Western Front without Russia out of the war his morale will fall fast… so he needs to play it careful and knock Russia out of the war by 1917 so he can focus on the West. The same applies should he sortie his navy… both sides will take losses but his morale would take a major hit with fighting on the West and Eastern Front. Really interesting situation if you think about it. He is performing a balancing act right now. In the West I brought in more reinforcements... and decided to sit tight. The French army is entirely upgraded and I feel the Western Allies are now ready to go on the offensive. The question is when? Tech is now paying off in a big way… Should I try for a winter offensive? Or wait till spring? I think I may decide next turn. Italy is also getting tech finally… and I am slowly building up her forces. In the Middle East I sat tight again... upgrades. Al should knock out my marines sitting on his rail this turn but I planned for that. I also have some initiatives going on that I am not ready to talk about.

Okay... back in the saddle. Not much to report. I really debated hammering the Germans in Verdun but decided against it. In Russia I also debated hammering advanced German forces but in the end I also decided not to. Odd I know... but with Russia I am playing for time. Dragging things out... also sucking Al further in. It's my best way to begin bleeding Germans. I also dug in and brought two large forces together in the north. In the South I dug in as well. We moved into September this turn and across Europe I saw rain. I hope it's poor weather in the East as well. In the Middle East... I held off my attack to upgrade... and also for another reason. I am up to somthing and not telling what.

I've been traveling... back Tuesday... so expect a turn tuesday night.

Fairly quiet turn. Al will be assaulting Verdun in the next turn or two. I dare not move the unit that's there out. It is only upgraded to 1 but entrenchment is 7. He will likely tae it but I have brought in a number of reinforcments behind my lines so if he does attack it will likely be costly. The Uk severed the rail line to the Middle East this turn by landing Marines in mainland Turkey. It will only delay German reinforcments a few turns... but it may be enough to get some momentum going against the Turks. In Russia there was some fighting... not much but some. I abandoned a city in the North and consolidated my forces. I also upgraded a large number of units. In the South I pulled back further into Southern Russia. Some minor fighting in Italy. I've been lucky with Tech but Al I think hold a serious advantage on me.

Fairly quiet turn. A Russian unit smacked a German Cav doing some damage but beyond that a whole lot of nothing. Behind the scenes a lot going on. I pushed up to the Turkish lines in the Middle East with the UK and expect to begin assaulting it this coming turn. The Russians upgraded much of their army this turn. British units entered Italy this turn as well. Oh and my blockade is beginning to affect Al's morale... the Germans were at 99% this turn. Once he rolls his fleet out and engages the allied navies it should drop even faster.

So... excellent turn for the Entente... but little action to speak of. The Russian armies pulled back slightly as Al pressed forward. Russia is huge. Warsaw is isolated and almost surrounded. She should fall soon. In the Middle East I destroyed a second Turkish detachment. I expect push forward next turn to his main line. Italy destroyed an A-H detachment and took a town in the Italian Alps. I also worked over a German detachment. Al tested the French line this turn... she held. I brought in significant reinforcments to the spot he tested. Overall there is a lot I wish to talk about but right now I am going to say little... and no screen shots yet.

I think you should buy the game... it is terrible fun and the strategic choices make the game very entertaining. Game wise: I made a difficult decision this turn and it was to fall back with Russia. I was very tempted to hammer German forces moving into East Prussia, however my scouts showed me that Al has a very powerful force and if I am not careful the Russian army could disintegrate. I fell back away in the North, Center and in the South. I left the Warsaw corps in place and an upgraded detachment to act as a speed bump. There was no way I could defend Warsaw… if I had tried I would have lost more corps than I could afford. It will hurt morale wise… but it needed to be done. I did take advantage of my Prepared Attack Bonus… Al had moved a corps adjacent last turn to 3 Russian corps and attacked a Cav unit north of Warsaw. I hit him with all 3 corps… dropping him to 1 where he retreated. The Cav pursued attacked and he retreated again. I wish I had got him but now Al has to restrength that unit and it’s experience level will drop to near 0. I take my pleasure where I can find it. Now falling back has advantages for Russia… it gives me the ability to fight at the time and on ground of my choosing. It also will help give Russian forces a slight advantage as I pull back further into Russia. The deeper Al moves into Russia the worse his supply will become which in turn will drop readiness making it easier to attack/ambush him and do more damage. Remember in this game Russia is huge. It is easy to hide and build up forces for a surprise offensive. To date Russia has lost only 7 corps even though it shows 14 corps lost. The other 7 were Serbian. So I still have a lot of strength to play with and Russia got another industrial tech this turn… added income. Oh and I managed to help Al waste away half the summer… through a game of maneuver and feint. I really thought he would have taken Warsaw in June began. After his turn it should be the end of July… or beginning of August. The question is… how far will Al pursue the Russian army and will it open him up to serious losses. In the fighting of the last 2 turns though I lost a few of units Al’s losses are mounting across many units. I think I’ve managed to kill 2 corps 1 German and 1 A-H… so a ratio of 2-7 for Russia… not bad for getting ganged up on at least for the first year of the war. Also the UK and France continue to build up while the war in Russia drags on. In the West I have already deployed the entire French army... though free units continue to arrive each turn. The UK has now deployed significant units… and I am considering doing something seriously foolish to annoy Al. I have to think on it further before I committ myself to such insanity. Tech has also arrived in a big way which is nice. In the Middle East there was a little action. I expect it to heat up significantly in the coming turns. Good game so far.

Well real interesting turn. I put a stupid amount of effort into killing one of Al's most experienced units... a Corps with 2 experience bars and took the town... I also took Memel. Al operated in a lot of units south of Konigsberg. So I may have to limit my offensive somewhat to just killing German units in the field. Here is the offensive in mid stride. My drive this turn ended with the two corps completely surrounded. The Russian army is still in pretty good shape. Down south... I smacked a German corps that sidled up to an experienced Russian Guards Corps... costing Al 4 steps to 1. Al has positioned himself to begin the offensive on Warsaw. I have no doubt he will be successful but the question really is... how costly will the offensive be to him? At this point... really it's only Russia fighting Germany and A-H. There is not much action eslewhere. I probed the Adriatic and bumped into a sub. Will Al come out and play? In the Middle East I brought in another corps, consolidated my hold on the first city and began to assault another city. Many of my units were packed off and shipped without upgrade or understrength... so when they finally arrive they need a turn or two to get into action. Serbia is about done and Bulgaria joined this turn which means Al now has a rail route right to the Middle East. This is unfortunate as I had hoped Serbia could have held on longer.

It was time. Al has committed himself to the Warsaw offensive completely. He is poised to begin his main attacks this turn so Russia opened her own offensive with 20 ground units including 3 arty into East Prussia. 3 Germand Corps and 1 Detachment were isolated this turn. If they remain in place I will begin reducing them next turn. This is how it looked after I moved. I made sure I cut the rail lines so that their supply and readiness would drop accordingly making them much easier to destroy. Al also left a sub in port which I hammered. Al will be able to operate in troops around Konigsburg but their readiness will suffer significantly and it will be a costly operation. Notice how almost everyone of the Russian units are upgraded. Also notice how I used cavalry to cut the rail lines. Many people consider cavalry a waste and useless. They are very valuable for speed of advance and eyes. I used them around Warsaw to carefully observe Al's buildup. Once I was sure he was committed I began my own buildup just out of his view... facing East Prussia.... always careful to keep Cav out in front so I could see what he brought forward and my ground pounders out of view. My goal for this offensive drive is Konigsburg. If it goes well and rapidly I may even loop around south and attack the Warsaw front. If it goes poorly I will fall back and work to come up with something else. Al has a choice... continue with his offensive on Warsaw or move to counter my offensive drive. If he continues his attack on Warsaw... Konigsburg will likely fall and in taking Warsaw he should sustain casualties that will make it a more even fight for me. If he breaks north things will get ugly fast for both sides. I actually expect him to continue his drive on Warsaw and take his chances with my offensive... betting that he can cobble somthing together to slow and stop me... which is fine from my perspective as it means more dead Germans in the long run. In the Middle East my offensive drive picked up steam. The first Turkish city (Gaza) fell this turn. You can see my attack as it kicked off. My Egyptian arty is just out of view. I brought in a lot of early UK units which should help out tremendously in the coming turns. Kirch's army has begun to arrive as well... so shortly I will have an abundance of UK troops. UK arty has already made it to the continent. In the Middle East I expect to build up sufficient momentum that Al will be forced to send German and A-H units to defend Turkey. The Italian navy deployed last turn and they now give me a critical edge in the Med. I am considering just blocking off the A-H and Turkish Navies as a battle with either could quickly drop morale as those units are expensive. Blocking them in essentially makes the Med an allied lake. I landed marines in lemos a couple turns back so that I have a forward supply base for amphibious and naval operations. In the West Al got in a good smack with that British unit. I had hoped he would survive. I also began strategic and recon bombing in Belgium. It showed me that Al has no defense in depth... essentially no reserves... which really opens up some strategic options for Kirch's army. If things really heat up in Russia and Turkey Al could quickly find himself spread thin. He has invested very heavily in research but with such a large theater of operations he will get spread thin fast. Serbia still holds... barely. Al launched a major offensive with arty on Montenegro. He threw everything he had in the attack and Montenegro barely held. I hope she hold out 1 more turn. Every turn she holds out gives the UK more time in the Middle East. Overall a very interesting turn.

The Gods of war are indeed being kind to Al... but I dont think unkind to me either. Things have started to heat up in the East. Al has put tremendous pressure on Serbia and Warsaw. The main main attack is heating up. I was very tempted to smack him back but decided against it as attacking would weaken my defending forces. Sometimes it is best to sit tight. Where is the Russian army? I reformed my line in Serbia... he will probably press against it again this turn... it is only a matter of time for Serbia. In the West we saw the first fighting in many months. The UK ventured from fortifactions and attacked a Cav. There was also a shore bombardment. French Arty also spoke for the first time this game. In the Middel East I conducted my first coordinated attack. As you can see UK forces are begining to build up. In the coming turns I expect to begin to drive in Turkish territory in a big way. You can see the beggining of my offensive below. Good news is Italy joined the war this turn.

No pictures this turn... probably next turn. There was very little action. I hit an HQ Al opened up to attack and dropped it 4 steps in the East. This should cause him some complications. Al has sidled up to my lines near Warsaw and as soon as the weather turns fair I expect him to attack in stength. In truth there is probably nothing I can do to keep Warsaw from falling even if I met him head on with the Russian army. I have other plans for the Russian army. In the Middle East the UK mounted a strong attack on Al's forward detachment damaging it. In the West French and UK forces continue to grow in strength. I deployed my first artillery units this turn. The UK and France are still heavily investing in research as well. Italy stands ready to enter the war. The Italian navy will be a big boost to the Allied Navy in the Med.

Al, January 30th... the deep freeze of winter. Not much action to report. Allies continue to build up. I launched another attack on Al's outer line as UK forces continue to move up in strength. In the East Al has unzipped his fly... and exposed much or his army near Warsaw. I have to play cautiously... as I can not afford to have Russia damaged too early. He still does not know where the bulk of my army is and I intend to keep it that way at least till spring.

Great turn for the Allies. I got a lot of really good hits on Tech. The Weather was very poor so little Action in the East. No action in the West. The UK advanced to the border of the middle east in the Sanai and conducted a limited attack. I Iraq the UK began her push out from Basra. Since it is virtual sitskrieg in the West I expect much of the action early on to be in the East and Middle East. Al is putting a lot of pressure on Serbia. The longer she holds the more difficult it will become for the Turks. I think that Al has to be very careful because the UK and French have a huge army... if he spreads himself too thin and the Western allies begin killing a lot of Germans he can get into trouble fast. Sorry no pictures this turn around... just went through Sinus surgery and am barely functional.

Excellent turn for me. No pictures... sorry. I am very pleased with the Serbian defense. Al has put a lot of pressure on little old Serbia and he has even brought in arty and upgraded German units. Eventually he should begin making progress… maybe next turn… maybe in the coming turns when the weather turns fair. His offensive drive has forced him to take heavy casualties and sending a significant German presence makes me smile. The fight in Serbia has become expensive. Why is he focusing on Serbia? Al seems to be rushing against time. The Ottomans could quickly find themselves in trouble and the only way to relieve them is to take Serbia, bring in Bulgaria and create a rail link directly to Turkey. He needs to get German units into the Middle East as quickly as possible. Right now the Serbians are holding out like champs… and even better the Russians got entrenchment tech this turn. It’s about to get exciting. My French and English forces are building up nicely in the West. What is a bit frustrating is the poor state of the French Navy. I’ve been slowly chipping away at that each turn… building select units up to full strength. With the Ottomans joining… I expect a full blown naval battle in the Med soon. Al has to try to break out… at least I expect that he will to support operations in the Med. I think if he tries to link up with the Ottoman navy he will lose. The Allied navy in the Med is very strong and upgraded. So in the Med I am feeling very confident. We will have to see how things turn out. In the East the Russians are growing in strength and power. In the last few turns a lot has been going on behind the scenes. Al has pressed in toward Warsaw and I have refrained from any offensive action. He currently does not know where the bulk of the Russian army is and I know it’s driving him nuts. I intend to keep it that way until he jumps or I feel the time is right. Will I meet his main attack head on? Will I hit elsewhere? Turkey perhaps? We will have to wait and see. This turn I had a large number of decision events. I love them… everything from sending forces either to Europe or Egypt? Great stuff. I will let Al wonder what I am up to.

Kuniworth, Epic post. Congrats on the decade thingy. Let me say that there are no 'official' updates on an SC3... but I can tell you that many of us Beta Bunnies have been hammering Hubert and Bill hard over the past 2 years with ideas, thoughts, imrpovments, suggestions... you name it for SC3. I personally have sent them both mountains of emails... I am confident SC3 is not far from their thoughts. Be patient my friend... and pray to the SC Gods for SC3. abu

Not much to report this turn. No pictures. I am playing it careful. The Western Front gets more powerful by the turn. Al has moved to the border of Poland in strength. He has put a tremendous amount of pressure on Serbia. Belgium is still holding out. Turkey has not joined yet... but I expect it to happen soon. I believe it is now November.

No pictures this turn. Al is building up against Russia. He came down to the border this turn and hit one of my scouts. He is not really pushing against the West so I have to play careful against him. Last turn I snuck in and whacked an A-H unit... lost a unit in reply... this turn I pulled back a bit. I want to see what Germany does. There is no rush... especially if he is concentrating against me like I believe he is. If I commit strong against A-H... Germany will come in the back door and hammer me hard. I would rather him come to me so that I can hammer him when his supply and readiness is low. At least that is my current thinking. I've only let him see part of my army. He has to wonder what the rest is up to? In the west... I am still amazed that the Belgians are still hanging in there at turn 8. I expect him to correct that this turn. I have a very powerful line facing Germany in the West. It is dug in and I have sufficient reserves. I am building up and conducting research. France also got tech this turn. I will continue to build up the next few turns and evaluate the situation in the West... perhaps I challenge him... perhaps I take the bulk of the UK army elsewhere. I dont know... we will have to see how he reacts. I also managed to antagonize the Norwegians this turn by raiding in their territorial waters. I am toying with the idea of sending UK troops to Albania... Somthing to annoy the A-H.

Don't get too excited xwormwood... it is the very beginning of the game and there has been very little fighting. Game wise... I probed the A-H line south of Warsaw... did some recon with Russian cav and am surprised at what I found... so I am playing it a bit cautious. Al has invest heavily in technology with both A-H and Germany. The allies are lagging a bit behind but combined the Allies have out-invested the Central Powers. I had a couple of decision events that involved additional UK units and where to deploy them. I will let Al puzzle that one out. Overall I am pleased with the Allied position and the good news is that poduction is ramping up.

I am very pleased with my new line forming in the West. It is strong and getting dug in. Al’s push through Belgium should wrap up this turn and he will probably test it either immediately or next turn. I left a Cav unit in place as a speed bump which will not be a great loss as the time for Cav in the West will shortly be over. French reinforcements are pouring into the area and the UK is gearing up nicely. Here is part of my line in the west. In Serbia Al has concentrated a great deal of A-H strength and I saw the first German artillery unit down there as well. Instead of moving I decided to hold my position… even if it means losing the mine. I also chose not to reinforce my forward units that were very beat up. Research was more important. Al’s strategy also opens up A-H to Russia. If I am careful I can do some significant damage to him early. I took the oil well with light casualties and managed to destroy 1 A-H army that had pulled back to the mountains. My scouts tell me that German units are massing in East Prussia. I am building up as well. The beauty of playing Russia is that it is large. I have a choice where I can offer battle and when needed where not to. Russia deploys a lot of units and Al has to be careful where he attacks and how he attacks. He can't afford to take too many casualties early or it will hurt him late game.