Happycat

May 24, 1916 CLOSING REPORT General Smuts adjutant, Colonel J. Potts, has advised the various news organization representatives, to be prepared for some big news very soon. While he was not specific, he did say to look to Lake Tanganyika or Lake Victoria as being the scene for some action of a "most interesting nature" and utilizing methods of warfare "that are very new and innovative". Perhaps the recent lull in activity at Bukoba or Usumbara is the calm before the storm!

May 24, 1916 ACTION REPORTS

May 24, 1916 NEWS FROM EAST AFRICA.

ACTION REPORT FROM THE ENTENTE FORCES IN EAST AFRICA FOR MAY 4, 1916

MAY 4, 1916 NEWS FROM THE BRITISH HQ IN NAIROBI:

MAY 4, 1916 NEWS FROM BELGIAN HQ IN EAST AFRICA: C. TOMBEUR APPROVES BARON DHANIS !

APRIL 14, 1916 --- SUMMARY OF ACTION AND MOVEMENT

APRIL 14, 1916 --- NEWS FROM THE EAST AFRICAN FRONT

March 25 1916 COMMUNIQUE FROM COL. J. POTTS, ADJUTANT TO GENERAL SMUTS: While it seems we are only facing the Schultz Detachment now at Moshi, it was an unpleasant surprise for the South African Brigade which had advanced from Arusha to find German opposition much stronger than anticipated. Casualties were approximately 60% and it will be some time before that formation is ready for further action. It appears that we may be facing the Fischer Cavalry detachment, as well as the Demuth Askari, and so we will now wait until supply lines on this front are improved, and bring up fresh units to resume the offensive. Things have gone somewhat better for the Belgians, with the capture of Kigali. The Belgian Sud (South) Brigade hit the Ruanda Command defending Nyanza, inflicting heavy casualties. At Neu Langenburg, there was a little bit of pushback from the German defense, but our units are digging in, and should be able to hold their positions quite handily, until the artillery is ready to support an attack on Neu Langenburg.o Thus far, the Portuguese have done little except move their cavalry around in grand fashion, but on the other hand, at least they haven't been a liability. Naval HQ reports no action at sea or on either of the great African lakes, Tanganyika and Victoria.

HQ COMMUNIQUES:

MARCH 5, 1916 Report from Taita: The British force driving on the German colonial town of Taveta has enjoyed great success in the early going, destroying the Kraut detachment in the hills east of the town. British losses were moderate. At the same time, reconnaissance shows that the British force approaching from the north towards Arusha has little to worry about, beyond a Germany cavalry unit in the town. Report on the fighting near Kigale: A Belgian force probed the defenses of Kigale, finding determined resistance. Both sides suffered approximately 20% casualties before the Belgians withdrew to await reinforcements. A Belgian unit approaching eastward from Costermansville encountered no resistance in the mountains north of Usumbara, but scouts reported back that the town appears to be well defended by the Germans. British troops approach Neu Langenburg: A large force of British and colonial troops, with artillery trailing behind them, are at the perimeter of Neu Langenburg, digging in and preparing emplacements for the big guns. There have been no reports of any fighting as yet. Portuguese troops move north: As Portuguese troops were reportedly moving north towards the border with German East Africa, a report was received from Lisbon that Germany has declared war on Portugal. It is apparent that the scenario that General Smuts and other Entente leaders had been concerned about is now a reality. Will Portugal be a help, or a hindrance in the weeks to come?

The British, supported by Belgian forces operating from the Belgian Congo, have the following war aims with regard to German East Africa. Before outlining those, an examination of the map is in order. As can be seen, there are four key objectives on the map: Dar Es Salaam, Morogoro, Tabora, and Ujiji. In addition, a British force operating west of Neu Langenburg will move quickly to secure that town, before the Germans have a chance to reinforce it. While Neu Langenburg is not a key objective, its capture certainly anchors the Entente position in that region. The ultimate goal is the complete eradication of any semblance of a German military presence in East Africa. Their commander is a wily fox, and blessed with a great fighting spirit. It is not expected that the German forces will lose heart, nor will they surrender easily. There are two initial major routes of advance: 1. Van Deventer's force comprised of 1st South African Cavalry, 3rd South African Brigade, 2nd East African Brigade, 1st East African Brigade, 130th Regiment, 63rd Regiment and supported by the East African Heavy Artillery will engage German forces at Taveta, either defeating them in place or forcing them southward. The advance will then proceed south to Morogoro as quickly as possible, with the aim of capturing that town. In conjuction with this movement, the Mombasa Defense Regiment is tasked with the capture of Jasin. This will force the Aksari detachment at Tanga to remain in place, denying its use for any operations which the fertile imagination of von Lettow-Vorbeck might concoct. A further operation in support of Van Deventer's force will be conducted by Tighe's group advancing south from Longido to Arusha. The capture of Arusha, done quickly enough, will ensure that German forces retreating away from Van Deventer's force will be unable to move west and will be compelled to move towards Busiko. Tighe's 2nd South African Brigade will be reinforced by the addition of 1st Cape Corps Regiment, 17th Indian Regiment and if the situation permits, and once local defensive levies have been raised, also the Nairobi Defense Regiment. No decision has yet been made as to whether Tighe's force will support Van Deventer's drive on Morogoro, or proceed independently westward through the mountains towards Kondoa Arangi. The cutting of the Central Railway at Dodoma could be a very worth objective for Tighe and his men. 2. The Belgians, operating from Ruchuru, under command of Tombeur, will advance south as quickly as they can, with the goal of capturing Ulithi. With a force of two brigades, supported by a regiment from Ruchuru, this will be no easy task, as German opposition is expected to be fierce. A key to this operation will be achieving naval dominance of Lake Tanganyika, which will permit the easy reinforcement of Tombeur's force by ferrying troops from Albertville to the German port of Usumbara, once it is in Belgian hands. Additionally, it may be feasible to launch an amphibious assault acrros the lake, so as to surprise the Germans with a landing to the south of Ulithi at the same time as Tombeur is closing in from the north. There is also a British force at Bukoba, commanded by Crewe and comprising 4th Kings African Rifles and two supporting regiments. While this is not a formidable force, it is sufficient to keep German forces interested in what might be going on along the shores of Lake Victoria. Mwanza is a worthy objective for this force, and again, finances and circumstances permitting, an amphibious assault might be more efficient than an overland march. Naval supremacy on Lake Tanganyika is by no means assured, but it is achievable with a bit of imaginative planning coupled with some luck. Portugal's position deserves some examination. It is expected that the Poruguese government will shortly join the Entente. Portugal views the capture of Kionga as an important objective, and they will likely launch an attack in that direction at the earliest opportunity. However, there is some doubt in London, and this doubt is shared by Generral Smuts, that the Portuguese forces are capable of achieving this goal, and certainly they can achieve little more without significant help. Indeed, General Smuts has commented that the Portuguese may be hard pressed to hold onto their colony in Africa, should the Germans make any serious attempts in that direction. In short, we must keep a careful and watchful eye on the situation in Portuguese territory.

Two guys who were generals in 1914 are Sajurjo and Mola. Mola is probably your best choice, because he was definitely a general by the time of WW1, and had been decorated for distinctive service during the Rif war in Morocco in 1910. You might recognize those names, as they were the leaders of the Spanish Army revolt (Spanish Civil War) in 1936 along with Franco. In fact, if they both hadn't died in plane crashes during the war, one of them (probably Sajurjo) would have been dictator rather than Franco. Army size would be about three corps and three detachments, no air to speak of but I'm sure they would have developed something during the war if they had been involved. Spain also used French armoured cars in that era, so the ability to build one tank unit would be realistic. In 1898 they had a good sized navy, until the US Navy finished with them in the Philippines. But the advantage, I suppose, of losing most of your navy is that you get to build new ships and modernize almost overnight. Here is a link to a list of ships: http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-fornv/spain/sp-name.htm It seems accurate enough, as far as it goes, but they are missing a couple of newer ones, the battleships Alfonso XIII (launched in 1913 and which replaced the Alfonso XII they show) and the Espana. Anyway, there should be enough there for you to work with

When Al sees this, he's going to want to go back on holiday again

We are now in early 1917, and I have one Arab unit that escaped from the Ottoman suppression in Palestine. It worked its way across the desert in Iraq, and is now in Basra. And as you will see when the AAR gets up to that point in time, this little unit will be helpful. The Ottomans are suffering from bad morale (at least the two units in Basra are) and I suspect that a band of boy scouts could take them now

As the Entente side of the AAR, let me assure you that I agree with Xwormwood in that there is nothing wrong with the force balance. I had lots of French units, but my opponent keeps killing them

Thank you, I hope that you enjoy our efforts. At this moment, we have finished our December 1915 turns, so there is lots of material for the moderator to post to the AAR.

Wow! Not only was Prokudin-Gorskii 's technical achievement breathtaking, but his photographic composition was equally so. A true artist. Thanks for posting this

One aspect is that naval warfare is even more interesting/entertaining now. WW1 was the era of the battleship being the trump card. In every game I have played, including some with Abukede, the navy has been an important part of the game. Abukede used the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian fleets very creatively in one game with me, wrestling control of the Mediterranean away from the Entente. I am 61 and have played war games since the 1970's. The first time I was this excited about a computer war game was around 1991, when I got my copy of SSI's (Grigsby) Pacific War. I gravitate towards games that allow pbem, and my friends and I enjoyed that game for quite a long time. But it lacked an interesting land component. Then a few years later, more excitement! Along came the Strategic Command series, and as great as those games have also been for enjoyment and replayability, I have to say that with World War 1: The Great War, Hubert and Bill have hit a home run. On land, sea, and air, this game is a different experience from its predecessors in the SC series, because of the scale, and the nuances that are in the game because of the era in which it is set. Being retired, I know as well as anyone that people do not have an infinite supply of money. But in all sincerity, Alastair, this is one you don't want to miss . Definitely not a mod of GC; far from it.

I might be wrong here lettowvorbeck, but I believe that the trench remains, but the unit that moves in will have to start its entrenchment from "zero". I'm not sure what you think about that, but my own opinion is that it would be nice if the unit moving in could automatically receive entrenchment level 1 where there is an existing trench. After all, the trench didn't move, the unit did---and the disruptive effects of moving into a previously prepared position do not merit such a harsh penalty. I presume that the movement of the unit lowers its effectiveness anyway, so that is enough imo.

I think stupidity knows no international boundaries Yesterday our (Canadian) Minister of National Defense was in California. During a conversation with ex-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, he commented on the "common border between California and British Columbia". I guess Washington and Oregon don't count any more

I have enjoyed all the SC games, but this one definitely takes it up another level for "fun factor". Hopefully there will be a new build soon, and then xwormwood and I will start posting an AAR.

Oh, it holds your interest alright It's a very compelling game, and does a great job of translating real world strategy and tactics into the world of war gaming. The battles of attrition in the west, and to a certain extent the east, are inevitable. But at the same time, your attention will also be occupied (as the Entente player) with hunting for subs and possibly surface raiders, if your opponent is so bold. You can't ignore them, because they hurt your morale and they hurt your treasury. As the Central Powers, you will be busy in the east trying to stave off Russian attacks, especially against Austria-Hungary. It's not that the Russians are so strong, but there are enough of them to be a big threat if your opponent focuses the bulk of the Russian army on one section of the front. (of course, in doing so, the Russian player then creates opportunities for the Central Powers elsewhere---the trick is to use your cavalry to proble for the Russian weakness). On every front, every turn, there is something to do and the game rewards sound tactics. Reconnaissance by air and cavalry, artillery prep, careful attention to optimizing placement of HQ's (for optimum supply)---all of these factors and more make the difference between victory and defeat. In short, there is a lot of ebb and flow to the game, a lot of planning ahead, and each theatre and each front is entertaining on its own. To use baseball parlance, Hubert and Bill have hit a home run with this one!