Strategiclayabout

CH8: Falcons Down (1-6 August 1944) Generaloberst Georg-Hans Reinhardt commander of 3rd Panzer Army (left). General der Infanterie Otto Wöhler. * * - As expected Stalin was infuriated by the lack of progress at the end of July and asked for immediate results. Any complaint or failure to comply by concerned officers would mean a fair but of course expeditive trial leading to death. Thus OKH faced a string of determined offensives all along the front that nearly broke the back of AGN. - For the first time since the end of the Kessel battle we suffered more MPPs losses than USSR with 1,513 to 1,315 (15,749 to 17,897 overall). Three units were destroyed (93 to 124 land & 12 to 20 air) but they were all support ones allowing us to focus on rebuilding our combat power. - At that point we've lost around 25% of our forces in the East and Soviets are gaining ground each turn. The planned transfer of units from Bielorussia and Baltic States to Poland will also have a cost. So it was decided to cancel all secret weapons programs and increase unit production instead to gather reserves for our future offensive. - Furthermore and according to Speer the remaining research chits (infantry, heavy tanks, aerial & anti-tank) were still far from any significant breakthrough (at 12, 17, 14 & 16%). Having 275 extra MPPs at hand to begin the organization of 8 divisions and 7 garrisons left in the pool looked like a far better use of our ressources. - The 7 GAR will arrive in a month and will be used as cheap roadblocks while we retreat to the Reich. They will help to buy time until early october when the 8 divisions will be ready to receive modern equipment. Meanwhile we'll try our best to lower casualties and buy back the 12 infantry corps available at half price so they can deploy in October as well. *

COMMENTS 503rd heavy panzer batallion's ace Kurt Knispel. * * General der Panzertruppe Hermann Balck commander of 48 panzer korps. * * - Great turn for OKH seeing 4 elite enemy units destroyed (total 95 to 122) including 2 tank groups and 2 guards infantry armies out of supply. The kill ratio is also very good being close to 3:1 in our favor at 370 MPPs lost to 1,044 (14,236 vs 16,582 overall). Actually it's the best turn result since the campaign started as the 674 MPPs difference even tops the heigths of Manstein's Kessel Battle (651 MPPs) with far less casualties. It's also the fourth turn in a row where Red Army suffers more than Wehrmacht. - All of that explain the confident atmosphere reigning at Berlin and beyond despite bad news from France. As Allies' Operation Cobra captured Avranches on July 30 it effectively threatens to collapse the entire Normandy front. Not that it matters much to an enthusiastic Hitler already envisioning victorious counterattacks everywhere to turn the tide of war. Overjoyed by Guderian's reports he remains blind to the actual force balance especially in the East. - The truth is Speedy Heinz' victory at Lublin has no strategic value though the tactical gains were tremendeous. It gave AGNU what it needed the most: Time (yeah yeah I know easy one ) to reinforce and fall back orderly. Armor ratio was also cut to 2:3 from 3:5 and would have been equal without the loss of 3Pz lent to Manstein. Still it's the tree hiding the forest with Stavka securing key advantages everywhere else to resume offensive. - Finns are slowly crumbling under soviet pressure and Narva probably won't last long in the other side of the Baltic Sea. After the fall of Opochka AGN was forced to evacuate Ludza and couldn't reduce the Velikaya bridgehead. AGC has the same issues losing Mogilev and leaving Vitebsk while having enemy troops across the Beresine just in front of Minsk. Even Romania is in trouble with Ivans inching closer to Bucharest though at a snail's pace. - The strategy to leave holes in the lines worked well so far allowing to trap or contain red spearheads. That said at some point there are too many holes to keep playing this game. So everything is screaming "shorten the front" at Model right now but he knows it's easier said than done. The whole retreat timetable will depend on what Stalin does next and OKH we only pray to avoid nasty surprises... * ...in CH8: Falcons Down (1-6 August 1944) * What remains of 2 & 6 tank armies after "Das Schlag". *

CARPATHIA & ROMANIA * - All the action happened north of Bucharest this turn with a massive soviet assault (7G, 27, 37 & 52 armies). Constantly under heavy rocket fire 4 romanian corps was halved once again and finally forced to retreat. However when elite 62G div came down the mountain road to finish the job it faced entrenched german engineers already using several finished bunkers. - As Russians couldn't get past that defensive line 85div was sent westwards to flank it and nearly got out of the mountains. Fortunately regiments from 5 romanian & 29 corps were already dug in the hills to block any advance on the oil wells. Pushing further would mean no supply so it will be impossible as long as Axis can man the Ploesti line. - With the fortifications protecting the capital completed shortly after Dumitrescu was able to rest his men at last. To replace them 26 corps was railroaded all the way from Narva and relieved our brave 123rd engineer in the trenches. There was still work to do though and they began to build a second fortified area just behind the first one. - Given increasing enemy pressure Allmendinger managed to obtain long desired reinforcements. 29 & 52 corps left in the rear at 20% strength for a while got back to full combat capacity. Exhausted 4 romanian corps moved west to help extend the line and prevent sneaking maneuvers through the mountains by 85div. *

POLAND & PRIPYAT MARSHES * - The previous fall of Baranavichy yielded immediate results with Soviets retreating in the Pripyat Marshes (Reserve tank & 2G cav armies). In the south 18 & 40 armies resumed their advance south of Jaroslaw but couldn't get past well entrenched 82 corps. - There were also excellent news from Hungary with significant enemy forces being diverted against 7 hungarian mobile corps. 38 army & 72div with an HQ were quite expected but seeing an artillery unit away from more critical areas is great ! - Actually it seems Stavka got tired of the poor gains made on the wings and revised its plans. Ukrainian fronts massed their power in the center to storm Lublin probably aiming to split in half our lines. - A preparatory move involving 8G army targeted 2 artillery with an attack along the Bug to flank the german line but it couldn't destroy our guns. As a result 2 & 6 tank groups pushing on the town faced a rain of shells by two batteries concentrations when they had only one to support them. - If that wasn't enough to stall the offensive there was nearly no accompanying infantry. 336div was supposed to follow closely but was mostly blocked in 340div defense zone leaving T-34s alone while they forged ahead. - And to make things worse Guderian had established a fortified HQ in the town at the best possible place to answer the threat. Consequently 8 corps inflicted disproportionate casualties to russian armor before falling back to rescue 2 artillery with 20% of its men left. * - That costly but heroic stand was the opening act of what would quickly become "Das Schlag" (the strike). Using his blitzkrieg knowledge to the fullest in less than perfect conditions Speedy Heinz was about to stun his foes big Time (pun intended hoho ^^). - He noticed enemy guns in the area had spent most of their devastating fire against 8 corps and should be running low on ammunition. On the other hand his own had been in good supply for a while and still had a sizeable amount of it to spare. - Furthermore two strong units from 1st panzer army are immediately available to strike back. 48Pz had time to rest and is led by Hermann Balck one of the best officer of the Reich. 9AT has already made itself known to Ivans thanks to Kurt Knispel's 503rd heavy panzer batallion. - It's a deadly combination with the second covering the first while 1 artillery pounds mercilessly any organized resistance. After two hours of combat 2 & 6 tank groups are gone without a single panzer lost on german side ! - The scale of destruction is astounding with clusters of burning carcasses and wrecked vehicles over miles. Sadly due to the lack of specialized infantry most enemy personel couldn't be captured but the victory is clearly indisputable. - Guderian seized the chance to inflict further damage by sending nearby 52 corps towards the Bug to support the counterattack against 8G army. It was another success with 52, 214 & 340div completely destroying the enemy forces in low supply. - However that move leaves our armored troops vulnerable and the russian answer will surely come at a high price for AGNU. Thus diminished 8 corps is pulled back to reorganize in the rear while 2 artillery remaining guns join 1 artillery ones. - South of Jaroslaw 1 & 367div are fully reinforced while 82 corps pushed back 18 army to prevent any surprise there. Same thing for Harpe's 131div in the northern forests though 4th panzer army main reserve unit (56Pz at Brest-Litovsk) still has half of its theoretical strength missing. *

FINLAND Men of 10th division resting near Lappeenranta. * * - Nothing much to say here as with their artillery trailing behind Soviets wern't able to attack efficiently. That said even reduced 7 & 23 armies alone were enough to push back exhausted 7 corps. The retreat didn't go well and most regiments scattered in the woods northwards instead of withdrawing orderly along the railroad. - Mannerheim understood too late what was happening but still ordered a despearte counterattack by 4 & 5 corps against 7 army in the center. It actually broke enemy lines but despite that temporary success 7 corps can't be saved anymore. Surrounded by impassable terrain it is now isolated at the end of the Viipuri line with nearly no supply reaching it... - The previous decision to speed up Karelian Isthmus evacuation was clearly a mistake. Units left behind were already weakened and couldn't withstand any serious assault without decent entrenchments as we'll see again very soon. Also to be noted was that Friessner's last valuable unit (26 corps) evacuated Narva and its ersatz army was dissolved. * You can see below that Finns' situation is quite worse than historically though they retained Viipuri. *

BIELORUSSIA & BALTIC STATES - Seems Reinhardt's eye poking game was enough to infuriate Stalin as no less than 5 armies moved on Vitebsk. 258div had no chance to survive an assault from a whole front (Mobile & Moscow mech, 11G, 43 & 65 armies, 93 & 220div, 16AT). Still it fought well and delayed Russians so much it allowed 371div to keep the Festung in german hands. - Unfortunately 39 corps couldn't hold Mogilev any longer and was wiped out by determined enemy attacks. However combined with forces spent northwards it weakened significantly the offensive on Minsk. 23 corps & 1rgt/45div held fim on the wings while 20 corps & 134div easily stopped T-34s in the center with minimal casualties. - Despite overwhelming numerical superiority (Kharkov tank, 28, 31, 50, 51 & 61 armies, 33 & 44G, 25div, 4AT) Stavka wasn't able to deploy its troops properly. As a result masses of men were packed tight along the Beresine and in 29 nebelwerfer fire zones. Only 51 army managed to cross the river but it was halted by 267div from Minsk and quickly surrounded. - In AGN's area Soviets disrupted Hansen's evacuation plans by cutting railroads to Ludza. 93div was forced to retreat north of the town (1 & 2S, 8 armies) while 50 corps was submerged in the south (62 & 72 armies, 43G, 193 & 391 div). Luckily 1 corps & 81div were already preparing a new defensive line behind the Festung and prevented any exploitation. * * - With its flanks secure for a bit longer 3rd panzer army was free to withdraw units from the front without many risks. 1 hungarian & 10 corps finished to clean the rear as battered remnants of 6G army surrendered. That allowed most of the forces still north of the Dvina to cross the river and join the new defensive line. - In the front veteran 371div (1,5 stars at 8 steps) launched a ferocious night raid against Mobile mech to distract Russians before evacuating Vitebsk. Then shielded by 43 corps it retreated south of the river where it joined Reinhardt's HQ. 6 hungarian corps fell back to Polotsk railroad where it lined up with 4LW AT to screen Luftwaffe airfields under Wohler. * - On his side Manstein's priority was to hold the Beresine line and reduce 51 army bridgehead. 3 & 41Pz were called back from Baranavichy to back up 267div assault but failed to completely eliminate the soviet spearhead. Further south 1rgt/45div kept the flank sealed by attacking along the railroad where 50 army lost 25% of its men. - It was better in the center where the Kharkov tank group was forced to flee (2 hungarian & 20 corps, 134div, 29 nebelwerfer) leaving dozens of burning tanks behind. However despite that small success situation remained precarious with Minsk under direct threat. Thus 23 corps isolated in the swamps at the end of the Smolensk railroad was pulled back towards the city. - AGC's commander hopes this move will incite the enemy to avoid a frontal shock and flow in the open ground northwards. Why ? Because he spotted an interesting opportunity to strike red airfields that were carelessly advanced forward. The thin line of armies covering them is already in bad shape so if it can be stretched just a bit more... * - Given 16th army's situation with barely any unit left Hansen has no choice but to retreat on new positions. His HQ joins 40Pz which is fully reinforced to cover the growing gap between Ludza and Polotsk. With 18th army's help (72 corps) 1 corps & 81div also tried to force back 2S army across the Velikaya but fell short of the goal. - Consequently Loch had man the trenches himself as he weakened his lines to anchor AGN's right flank. 4 corps at half-strength was shifted southwards to support 93div just back to 100% combat power. Now the road to Dvina river is wide open our reserve panzers should be able to contain any deep advance in that area. *

CH7: Cemetery of Steel (26-31 July 1944) "GUDERIAN, NEW NAZI CHIEF OF STAFF The rust is spreading through his war machine." TIME (7 August 1944) * * - Our clever spies managed to steal the above strategically critical Time's mock up edition for next week. Though blatantly making fun of one of our most capable generals it also shows how ignorant they are of his true value. - Those arrogant Yanks clearly think our glorious Reich is finished because of some minor victory in the West. However the concerned party will prove them wrong even before they can slander its reputation further ! - That said we suffered high losses this turn again with 3 units destroyed (95 to 126). MPPs count was slightly in our favor though with 730 to 778 (at 13866 vs 15538 overall). - Good news are our lines wern't broken anywhere and Ivans were actually nice enough to play along with most of our plans. The Vitebsk gamble worked well and limited soviet push on Minsk to a small but still dangerous bridgehead over the Beresine... *

COMMENTS KG 1 stukas over Baranavichy. * - So we're even for units lost this time at 3 to 3 (98 to 126 land 13 to 20 air) with a sweet vengeance for our eliminated fighter ! However for the first time MPPs kill ratio spiked above 1 to 4 (150 to 655 total 13,136 to 14,760) and Stavka suffered more losses than OKH on two consecutive turns. It was only a tiny -20 at the end of USSR moves against -505 after Axis played but it's exactly what we need to stop the bleeding (and it's very good for my battered morale hehe ^^ ). - Overall things are going "as planned" with Guderian keeping situation under control in Poland while retreating. Soviets also diverted some forces on the flanks towards Hungary and more unexpectedly the Pripyat Marshes. Luckily the quick fall of Baranavichy spared us a lot of trouble in that area. Now the main threat appears to be in Baltic States where the loss of Opochka puts AGN in a difficult situation. - Deciding the best time to withdraw from northern Russia will be quite a headache. I suppose it will greatly depend on the results of my little Vitebsk gamble: will Stalin push on Minsk or Polotsk maybe both ? I'll have to factor in the new way VVS uses its planes making Festungen harder to hold. If Romania was to face that kind of concentrated assault it probably wouldn't last long even with the fortified line to help... * Get ready for CH7: Cemetery of Steel (26-31 July 1944) * Men of 2 corps waiting for soviet assault in the ruins of Opochka.

CARPATHIA & ROMANIA * - With Red Army reaching the border of Hungary south of Poland the previous "Hungary" map area around Targu Orcna will be renamed "Carpathia" from now on. The last reserve unit (17 mountain corps) in the area was sent northwards to defend a more critical spot. - Otherwise nothing much happened there this turn except for another russian push on Bucharest through the mountains (53 army & 85div). 4 romanian corps lost nearly half of his men but held again despite massive rocket fire. At Constanta 11 corps inflicted a clear defeat to 46 & 57 armies trying to attack across very difficult terrain. Those 2 corps as well as all german frontline units were reinforced and ordered to assume strictly defensive positions. *

POLAND & PRIPYAT MARSHES - In Poland enemy numerical superiority is becoming a huge concern as most axis units are depleted (4 tank groups, 6 armies, 8 divisions, 2 AT & 2 artillery vs 3 panzer, 4 corps, 5 divisions, 1 AT & 2 artillery). However for the time being Guderian's timely fallback left Soviets unable to catch up and only delaying forces saw action. - The forces staying behind were supposed to hold for one or two days before escaping but Gods of War decided otherwise. Instead they stunned an overconfident Stavka by halting the main red push during a week of vicious fighting. As staff officers stared at maps and incoming reports in utter disbelief they were left wondering what the hell happened... - Actually considering the three units involved it isn't that surprising though it was still an unexpected outcome. 1 & 367div are seasoned units commanded by highly decorated veterans back from the Great War (General der Infanterie Ernst-Anton von Krosigk & Generalmajor Adolf Fischer) while 9AT includes famed 503rd heavy panzer batallion of ace Kurt Knispel. * - Furthermore they benefited from excellent defensive terrain and had some time to prepare. The tank hunters were deployed in front of Lublin across a gap between two wooden areas and were supported by 1st artillery guns. The two divisions entrenched themselves in the forests north of Svalyava where their leaders experience would be use to the fullest. - First 38 army advanced unopposed through the town and towards Hungary's border but couldn't overcome 7 hungarian mobile corps positions deep in the mountains. Further north 367div was encircled and lost 80% of its men but held back 1 ukrainian tank & 18 armies for four days of bitter combat tree by tree before slipping through the russian net at night. - Fischer surviving regiment kept fighting while retreating westwards blocking 11G AT moves while 1div repelled all assaults by 2 tank & 40 armies. 9AT also did well against 6 tank & 1G armies interdicting any advance or flanking move for a week. Then orders were finally received to evacuate and regroup behind the main line between Lublin and the Bug river. * - With most forces stranded on the polish border in the south the offensive towards Brest-Litovsk was greatly weakened. 3Pz easily stopped 322div spearheads on the railroad bridge leading to the fortress. Following units (8G army, 107 & 151div, 10G AT) were too far to provide support but Soviets had one last card to play... - Red Army's reserve tank group sneaked past Pripyat Marshes western edge and advanced on the nearby railroad. In the process it fell upon the concealed 56Pz in a confused forest encounter that quickly became a complete mess. With limited visibility on difficult ground and both sides equally surprised it could only end in a bloody draw. - It isn't clear what was the objective of that maneuver but it wreaked havoc in german plans to deal with Baranavichy. After discussing the situation with Guderian Harpe concluded it was a major operation to relieve the town. Linking with paratroopers inside and cavalrymen around would dangerously increase the threat on AGC thin lifeline between Vilna and Minsk... * * - Back in Hungary 7 mobile hungarian corps receives more men to defend the border. Its mission will be to hold while freshly arrived 17 mountain corps entrenches just behind. Exhausted 1 & 367div are pulled back to cover the northern reaches of the only other path through the mountains towards Nyiregyhaza. - On the Jaroslaw-Lublin line the flow of men and equipment begins to grow significantly due to the change in strategic priorities. 82 corps is fully upgraded while 8 corps, 240div & 9AT come back to full strength. 48Pz & 52 corps shield 1st artillery retreat by hammering 1 ukrainian tank with no losses before occupying the woods between the two towns. * - Soviet unexpected thrust in the marshes left 4th panzer army unable to attack Baranavichy as planned. 3 & 56Pz are below 50% strength with enemy tanks still lurking in the woods though in terrible supply. 4th army low quality security and garrison infantry can't be expected to do the job alone despite heavy aerial support (KG 1 & 5 bombers with KG 1 stukas). - Fortunately Manstein just released 100% combat ready 41Pz from frontline duty. The reserve unit is immediately dispatched from Minsk to launch a surprise strike from the east. 2G paratroopers were completely fooled by diminished 3Pz fake attack from the west and left their back wide open leading to a quick and almost bloodless victory. - Harpe didn't waste any time to exploit it with 52, 131 & 214div counterattacking all along the railroad. 5LW & 22div secured the town while 56Pz was taken back to Brest-Litovsk to rest and reinforce when possible. That seemingly modest success was a critical step in the organization of AGNU future offensive in Poland as later events will show. *

Thanks for the updates MonsterClaude and Amadeus . Nice to see how things are going in your games !

FINLAND Men of 3 corps retreating through the woods. Evacuation from the Karelian Isthmus begins. * - In Finland continuous shelling from red artillery managed to force 3 corps out of its trenches in front of Viipuri. 6 & 97div wern't able to cross the river but a following attack by 23 army cleared the railroad to the town. Thus our wounded unit had to fall back again with only 40% of its strength left. - Further east increasing supply allowed exhausted 7 corps to hold back pursuing forces (127 mountain, 119 & 272div) on a narrow defensive line though it costed some more lives. - Mannerheim's remaining frontline units (8, 5 & 4 corps from left) are well dug along the railroad but no room to maneuver. With their back against impassable terrain any soviet breakthrough could put the whole front in jeopardy. - Then decision was made to evacuate the isthmus and it was probably the good one however it was poorly executed. Furthermore previous losses wern't replaced greatly affecting morale and readiness of the whole army at the worst possible time. - At the same time a fresh russian army was spotted behind enemy lines and rumours of offensive spred like wildfire. When retreat orders arrived fortifications were all abandoned in a frantic rush westwards that nearly degenerated in a rout without combat. - 7 corps wasn't ready for another forced march at all and unwillingly acted as a dangerously exposed rearguard. 4 & 5 corps (80 & 100% strength) were supposed strong enough to secure the new line but that proved to be a terrible mistake... *

BIELORUSSIA & BALTIC STATES - AGC had a quiet day with no activity at Vitebsk or Mogilev and only a weak attack in the center. 23 corps entrenched in marshes easily repelled understrength 1 belorussian tank & 31 army with minimal losses. It seems the Kessel battle have exhausted enemy forces in the Mogilev-Smolensk area and they need a breather. - However to keep Manstein under some kind of pressure Stavka activated the Gomel front (28, 50, 51 & 61 armies) facing 2nd army. The assault was brutal and 55 corps vanished quickly despite good entrenchment. Fortunately russian morale was quite low and 1rgt/45 plus 267div were enough to hold the line though Partisans managed to crawl around towards Minsk. * - It was more nerve-racking in the north were Soviets decided to revise their tactics after so many failures. Opochka was reduced to dust by massive air attacks before launching the usual infantry waves. 2 corps & 218div were wiped out but no less than six armies (1 & 2S, 8, 62, 67 & 72) were needed to break their formidable defense and capture the Festung. - Thus when exhausted men of 8 army emerged from the ruined town they believed it was over. However german second line (50 corps & 81div) was waiting for them and enemy will to forge ahead faltered. Some say red infantrymen were still afraid deep inside of 29 nebelwerfer rockets mowing them down once again as they did earlier. - They couldn't receive help from both wings either as units there were already spent and could barely advance. The northern flank only managed to send 54 army over the Velikaya leaving the 42 behind. On the left only four divisions remained with two (43G & 391div) stranded near Ludza and the other ones (16 & 193div) struggling just to march forward. * * - In the center Manstein's first concern was to keep Soviets distracted to conceal his moves while organizing the retreat. 23 & 35 corps launched a limited counterattack and 31 army held but 1 bielorussian tank fled ignominously. That was enough to take back units (41Pz, 35 corps & 267div) from the frontline and deal with more pressing matters. - Hoepner's 2nd army began to concentrate around Minsk and gather heavy equipment near the railroads. A screen of weak units was established to contain Partisans moves south of the city (4LW & 2 hungarian corps). In the meantime 1rgt/45 div pushed back 61 army to keep pressure on main enemy forces in the area. - Further north 3rd panzer army task was to eliminate the surviving pocket (3G cav & 6G armies) from the Kessel battle. The german hammer (1 hungarian, 1, 10 & 43 corps, 4LW AT) supported by Rudel's stukas easily cracked the red nut and only scattered infantry regiments were left wandering in the swamps after it was unleashed. - The success of "Operation Nussknacker" (Nutcracker) was such that it allowed to create unexpected reserves. 10 corps was redirected to AGN almost immediately to great effect as it plugged a critical gap in the line. 6 hungarian corps was also freed from its garrison duty at Vitebsk and moved north leaving only skeleton crews behind. - At this point Reinhardt's was fully aware of the tragic fate awaiting both of AGC Festungen. 39 corps defending Mogilev can probably hold a bit more but the moment it breaks three soviet fronts will be able to push together towards Minsk. However he foresaw an audacious plan to make the most out of the inevitable. - He will leave an opening in his lines to bait russian mobile forces near Smolensk. An offensive northwest of the city would encounter difficult terrain and won't be able to pressure Mantein's 2nd panzer army. Furthermore there are already troops well positioned around Polotsk and along the Dvina to build a secondary defense line. - That said poking the Red Bear in the eye would be a good idea to increase our chances where it counts. Thus 258div shifted to "cover" Vitebsk while 371div launched a suicide raid against XI fighter corps airfield just north of the city. Wiping out an entire nest of red hawks should be enough to anger our short tempered comrade Stalin... * * - It was another rollercoaster day for Hansen as his beloved 16th army took the heaviest losses to date. Everything seemed lost after the fall of Opochka having only one corps and one division left. Then unexpected reinforcements (6 hungarian & 10 corps, 93div) popped out of nowhere and he managed to somehow stabilize the lines again. - By pulling back his surviving men (50 corps & 81div) on the Ludza railroad he made them ready for evacuation. But he also kept the threatening 43G & 391div isolated and unable to roam free in his back. 10 corps blocked any advance there with 93 div while 6 hungarian secured the southern flank towards Vitebsk. - On 18th army side Loch was free from any major pressure and able to reduce 54 army bridgehead on the Velikaya (4 & 72 corps). 40Pz was moved back as a reserve to rest and protect III fliegerkorp while waiting for reinforcements. The combined threat from AT guns and heavy airstrikes made that decision unavoidable given that unit's sorry state. *

Hello sokulsky , - I can assure you of two things: 1) Germans have a clear chance. 2) Other campaigns than Barbarossa are absolutely worth a try. - Given what you say for 1941-42 I think the main problem is you didn't destroy enough soviet forces in low supply. It's easy to roll over red units early but if you don't encircle them properly first they will come back quickly enough to bury your panzers under their mass. - Stalin gets enough MPPs to buy back nearly everything you destroy in the first few turns thanks to the Great patriotic War effort. So playing the MPPs game isn't an advantage for Axis. That leaves two other options: 1) production delay Regular tank units need 4 monthes to be produced or to come back if destroyed in low supply, only two if destroyed with good supply. Same goes for armies and divisions (with lower delay of course: 3/1,5 and 2/1). 2) force pool limit Take light tanks: each unit you destroy is lost for Russians so you don't have to worry about encircling them an killing them on low supply (though they're easier to destroy like that). - So if you just destroy starting soviet masses with frontal assaults you'll see them back at the end of summer. You NEED to delay them to create a temporary troops shortage for Stavka. With a widening front your panzers will still be able to find gaps to maneuver late in Summer/Autumn instead of running in enemy concentrations everywhere. - Each unit you keep encircled in your back can't be bought back so you can delay their destruction a bit to weaken future Red Army offensives. Even more true for those pesky divisions as they don't look like much but when Stalin pops those cheap roadblocks non stop in front of you they can be very irritating. - Think about late german encirlements at Kiev/Bryansk/Vyazma costing Stalin around 1,000,000 men. If you can replicate that you'll have another chance in 1942. Otherwise you'll face the dreaded "red unit triple line" before 43-44 and that view is quite demoralizing indeed . - One last thing I want to say is to think a lot about how Axis allies units are used. They cost more to maintain and it's easy to be reckless with them despite their poor HQs. They can eat up a lot of MPPs before you even know it and decrease significantly your overall combat power if exposed too much. I hope that will help .

I want to second that and add my own congratulations as Japan isn't rolling over China anymore. First year of the game is still hard for KMT but there is hope to hold in the south while before it was nearly impossible .

- Russian crowding: DeNatt use red divs to fill the gaps, move in my back/empty space, screen offensive units or finish weak units so it works as intended - Finland: I just remembered you worked on an option/event for Finland to surrender in other AoC campaign (with other changes like Karelia/Viipuri being finnish territory instead of soviet ones) ? Would be nice for Soviets in this campaign to have the choice of going for Helsinki or lose that victory location (Finland becoming neutral) for immediate benefits (free up units and some war reparations MPPs). - Research: I launched a hotseat game to survey research and the only hit Germans had was production lvl4... I'll launch another one to see if it was just very bad luck. - 52/42 corps: Thanks ^^ ! I forgot to tell about the soviet army without number just named "army" in southern Ukraine (pic 1 below). - Cheap AA: I didn't express myself well, sorry for that. I agree about AA guns being AA guns wherever they are. That's why I find strange to have AA upgrade costs for fortresses (Brest-Litovsk, Sevatopol...) being 1 MPP per AA level while it's 10 MPPs for everything else (cities, towns, ports, ressources...). (pic 2 below) - VS units: Thanks for the explanation. Makes sense a bunch of men unfit for duty would require more investment to be combat ready than regular corps though they are cheaper to assemble as units. - Screens: Great ! Another thanks then hehe. - Typoes: Those are rare and elusive mythical beasts arn't they : D ? For the VS unit screen see pics 3 & 4 below. Unless you included that in the solved screenshots issues. In that case my bad !

Hi Big Al , - I think overall balance is very good. So far turn 31 (23 September) and I'm still in the game. Soviets are very strong but attacking everywhere weakens their superiority. German tech advantage allows some interesting counterattacks. The 2 panzer units in the PQ are well-timed to help. Force pools looks good though I'm a bit afraid of russian infantry crowding the map later when front shortens. - Actually DeNatt (playing USSR) only has two problems with the campaign: not enough MPPs and fortifications in Romania . He says he has a very hard time killing my panzers lvl 4 but half of them are already gone so well ^^ ... - On my side I'd say maybe Finland needs some help. They only have infantry, units on the Svir have a terrible starting position (very hard to escape), there is no fortification (Salpa & VKT lines), step costs are high and Soviets have better supply (Leningrad 10 vs Viipuri 5). - Research is also a bit frustrating since Germans have nearly no chance to get a hit unless they're very lucky. Not sure if it's the 3 vs 1 intel level favoring Stalin or too low base per turn %. It seems more efficient to kill all Axis chits and get an early MPP boost. - Other than that only minor things like OoB details (two 52 corps and such) or small bugs (but once again we play without hotfixes as my opponent wanted): * very cheap (?) AA upgrade costs for Brest fortress compared to cities * volksturm corps upgrade costs are the same as axis allied ones (maybe it's normal ?) * some event screens appearing two times (Warsaw uprising & Paris liberated) * typo for events (2 volksturm corps announced when 4 arrive)

CH6: Lost Victories (20-25 July 1944) Hitler planning the next offensive on Smolensk then it's Nach Moscow : p ! * * - Welcome back for the second phase of Operation Bagration. This turn saw a significant drop in casualties for both sides with even numbers (951 to 971 for 12986 to 14105 overall). - Nontheless three german units were lost leaving us with the greatest forces gap so far (30 at 98 to 128). Still it's the first time soviet losses are higher than ours when they have the initiative so we can open that schnaps bottle and celebrate ! - After the previous bloodshed main combat areas in Poland and Bielorussia were eerily quiet. Most of the action took place around strategic towns on secondary fronts with Stavka and OKH jockeying for better positions before the next big moves. - So Russians concentrated their efforts on Opochka while Baranavichy was our target. Stalin had some surprises in store for us on those two fronts but evacuation of Svalyava and Galati from last turn worked well. * Soviet paratroopers defending Baranavichy. *

COMMENTS (part 2/2) Detailed unit statistics. * A: Allied units * - Another way to look at it is the unit count and we're down from 127 to 101 and Stalin from 147 to 126. Germans lost 30 of them while destroying 24 enemy ones both sides receiving 3 extra units to fill the ranks. However if we take out unavoidable first turn losses (8) it's actually 22 to 24 showing Ostheer resilience after initial surprise. - Furthermore many of those casualties were recoverable at half price and the difference (6) with Russians is mostly made of small units (2div & 2AT). The lost HQ stands out a bit but would have no troops to command even if it survived. So our main wound comes from the mech unit since tank groups & corps/armies numbers are balanced. - As for air units russian 3:2 (21/14) starting advantage remains though Luftwaffe is already worn out. With the early loss of Fliegerkorps II nazi wings were down to 8 fighters with 3 being underequiped allied ones (finnish, hungarian & romanian air forces). Adding low replacement rate/priority we barely have 60% of planes still flying. * - Panzerwaffe was also bled dry with only 50% of its forces remaining (3 PzKorps in Poland, 2 as reserves for AGN & AGC). On the other hand Stavka's armored forces were underestimated with at least 11 tank and 3 mech groups available. The 1:1 initial ratio (11/10) was actually 3:2 and increased to 2:1 (10/5) after the Kessel battle. - That said we have a more pressing problem with the lack of infantry to hold the front and it's getting worse by the turn. Starting figures at 9:8 (91 to 79) favored USSR and didn't change much reaching 5:4 (75 to 60). We lost around 25% of our corps and divisions while it was only 15% for Stalin's armies and divisions. - Since we concentrated our offensive efforts on enemy armies we managed to maintain some kind of superiority there (37 to 40 corps from 48 to 52). However the price of leaving red divisions more or less alone is a growing gap in that area from a 3:2 to 2:1 ratio (38 to 20 from 43 to 27) leaving our lines thinner than before. * - You can also see numbers above show clearly the priority given by Model to each army group (unit total %): 5) FINLAND 9% (Finnish army) Mannerheim* (7) & Talvela (6) 4) AGN 14% (16th, 18th & [Narva] armies) Hansen* (7), Loch (6) & Friessner (7) 1) AGC 30% (2nd & 3rd panzer, 2nd, [4th] & 9th armies) Manstein* (9), Reinhardt (7), Hoepner (7), Neday (4) & Wohler (6) 2) AGNU 25% (1st & 4th panzer, [17th] & 1st hungarian armies) Guderian* (8), Harpe (6), Roman (6) & Angelis (6) 3) AGSU 22% (6th army, 3rd & [4th] romanian, bulgarian armies) Allmendinger* (6), Dumitrescu (5), Niculescu (4) & Marinov (4) * assumed actual command of the whole army group at some point [] disbanded/reformed or ersatz armies without significant forces * Victory conditions & strategic plans. * * - All of that leads to new priorities in MPPs allocation as german infantry will come first then artillery and AT units. Panzers will be reinforced if there is something left and lost units won't be rebuilt. Luftwaffe fighters will be maintained at 6 steps to provide enough aerial cover. Allied forces won't be reinforced unless they're in critical spot/state. - Speaking of critical spot let's take a look at victory conditions above. We need to keep Warsaw for a german minor victory and Berlin to deny Stalin a minor or decisive one. Retaining any of Budapest/Helsinki/Bucharest/Sofia with Berlin would kill a major victory for USSR and allow for a draw. - Saving Warsaw seems unlikely so our main strategy will be to aim for a draw. Helsinki is isolated and has bad supply, Bucharest and Sofia are close to the front and far from Germany. Then our best choice is Budapest as it's near AGC troop concentrations with strong defensive terrain on three sides. So our defensive priorities will be: 1) Berlin 2) Budapest 3) Warsaw 4) Sofia 5) Bucharest 6) Helsinki * - What we need is time & MPPs and we can get both by avoiding combat on our turn. Offensive moves will only be allowed to kill advanced enemy units or protect retreating pathes. That said remaining panzers will be kept ready to distract Russians if pressure increases too much and threatens our orderly withdrawal. - Thus our plan will be to fall back slowly on railroads in the north while avoiding encirclements. When we have enough forces ready for transfer without endangering the front we will operate them all at once to the Reich. To help achieve local superiority we will also try to time unit production to feed the offensive when we strike back. - We'll also retreat a bit in Poland to obtain the best maneuvering field possible with clear terrain and better supply. Our hopes are to appear weak enough for Russians to divide their forces in separate offensives as the front extends. With many enemy units tied in pursuit of AGN & AGC we should have chances to crush red spearheads. - At the same time we'll begin to fortify the area around Berlin with both engineers once their current work is finished. GAR units and unupgraded units will be deployed in towns and cities behind the frontline to have time to entrench properly. We'll also deploy some GAR in Carpathian Mountains to back up AGS lines. * - The overall map below shows our retreat plans with expected counterattack areas (green arrows) depending on Stavka moves: 1: first defensive line (protects AGN & AGC evacuation lanes along Kaunas-Utena-Ovinsk & Kaunas-Vilna-Minsk railroads) a: alternate defensive line (if the first is broken too quickly in the north) Kaunas-Vilna 2: second defensive line (where most of forces will be concentrated) Tilsit-Heilsburg & Siedlce-Radom-Tarnow m: main defensive line (will be held as long as possible) Elblag-Warsaw-Krakow & Carpathian Mountains - As the whole front will be quite shortened AGC will absorb AGNU and AGSU will be renamed AGS to keep things simple: AGN will cover Prussia AGC will cover Poland & Hungary AGS will cover Carapathian Mountains & Romania - One last word about timetable as we still have at least two monthes of good weather to survive (August-September). If things go well in the north we should be able to delay Soviets for a month while evacuating Belarus & Baltic States. A victorious strike in Poland can do the same and allow bad weather to help us starting October while giving us more time to buy back units and dig. * Stay tuned for CH6: Lost Victories *

COMMENTS (part 1/2) - That was as close to an ideal turn as it can be for Germans with 1 to 2,5 loss ratio in their favor (369 to 889) though we'll reach an astonishing 1 to 3,5 on a later turn. 7 enemy units were destroyed including two tank groups to avenge my two fallen panzers (but I'm still one mechanized unit short). Since Soviets gained little to no ground I suppose the Führer can allow himself to call it a victory with a big smile on his face : D . * Hitler flying all the way to Minsk to congratulate Manstein for his "victory" in Bielorussia. * * Detailed MPPs statistics. * [400] starting MPPs [175] research chits MPPs * - Now that the main battle for Bielorussia is over it's time for some analysis of our situation. As you can see with MPPs reports for both sides my intended plan worked quite well (before my final blunder that is). The two first spikes on Axis' one show Bagration initial push while the two following cover Manstein's counterattack. The steady and satisfying decline in casualties met an untimely end with the fifth spike and the loss of all those mobile units. - You can also see that I controlled my losses very well on german turns keeping them just a bit above what I produce. Granted the actual green line should be lower since western front consumes 25% of it and it counts for TWO turns (Axis + USSR) of losses but it's a nice reference point. It explains clearly why AGC offensive was unsustainable whatever the results as at its peak MPPs burning rate was insane. - The sharp fall of losses on axis turn after I cancelled the kessel battle confirms that it was "for the better". Furthermore though high the fifth spike is below the first ones and with what I saved by switching to defense it mitigates the disaster quite a bit. Bagration two starting turns costed Hitler 5,828 MPPs against 5,782 for Stalin while the 3 turns of Axis counterattack ended at 6,207 to 7,352. - It's worth noting that most of the 1,145 MPPs difference was actually made in a very short span of time (2 Axis + 1 USSR turn). One week (5-13 July) of glory where Ostheer ruled the battlefield (2,690 MPPS lost to 3,908) like in the good old Blitzkrieg times. However that's not enough to balance the Reds 1,865 MPPs income advantage (2,620 to 4,485) as we're still 720 MPPs short making recovery harder for us. - On USSR side the first thing to notice is that losses never go under the production line meaning Soviets wern't able to replace all their losses. With casualties over 1,000 MPPs each turn (2,300 for combined turns) except the last Red Army overall strength declined continuously allowing Germans to more or less maintain starting unit ratio. - Of course Stalin got some freebies from the production queue and perhaps events but Hitler got some too so it remains of little importance given the numbers we face. Russians also went in "overburn" mode during Manstein's offensive spending more MPPs than they earned thus showing how close they were to "break" (yeah yeah I know never gonna happen in this campaign ^^ ). * * P.S.: second part of comments will focus more on strategic plans and options.

HUNGARY & ROMANIA * - Soviets resumed their attacks north of Bucharest (4G, 27, 52 & 53 armies) with Stalin's organs roaring all over the place. However and contrary to German's fears 4 romanian corps having its capital behind didn't break despite losing 50% of its men. - The respite provided by that unexpected stand would prove invaluable for AGSU and the engineers working further back. Another piece of good news came from the south where 46 & 57 armies ignored 11 corps to score an easy kill against romanian Viscol DDs left unprotected in Constanta's port. * - Seeing enemy efforts concentrated on his wings Allmendinger decided to reinforce the northern flank by weakening his center and abandoned Galati. 4 mountain div shaked a bit 37 army to conceal the move and evacuated the town to man the fortifications. 4 romanian corps absorbed all reserves available while 6 corps sallied out of its trenches further east to distract 53 army. - That "minor" offensive had a surprisingly high cost with 30% casualties but it didn't matter since nearby 106 corps was ready to replace Romanians after 4 mountain div arrival. Every scrap of unit (5 romanian & 29 corps reduced to 20%, JGF fighters) remaining in the rear was transfered to the left and concentrated around Ploesti as a last line of defense covering the oilfields. *

POLAND & PRIPYAT MARSHES * Sorry for update delay but game's pace became quite hectic (now at turn 24/CH12). I can promise some stunning moves for next chapters . * - In Poland soviet units three ranks deep advanced all along the front but were blocked everywhere after initial gains. 13 corps heroic defense in Lviv ruins attracted the bulk of enemy armor (3G, 1 ukrainian & 2 tank, 8G, 13 & 18 armies, 77 & 107div) and pinned it in vicious street fight for three days. - When the town finally fell german 9AT was ready to prevent any exploitation forcing exhausted Russians to flow around the railroad right in the gaps where Guderian's staggered reserves were waiting for them. - Same story at Svalyava with 7 hungarian corps holding its ground while 82 corps stopped 11G AT recon unit in the woods further west. Following forces (6 tank, 1G & 38 armies) were unable to push through the narrow gap between the town and 367div without creating a giant traffic jam in the rear. - On the other flank (Reserve tank, 60 & 70 armies, 151, 322, 328 & 336div, 10G AT) wern't able to dent even slightly 4th panzer army trenches and just lined up themselves for slaughter. * * - After Soviets failed to advance significantly the conditions to execute Guderian's plan were perfect. He launched brutal counterattacks everywhere to cover AGNU fall back on the Jaroslaw-Lublin-Brest line. - In the center 367div & 9AT hunted down scattered 3G tank vehicles to the last in the woods west of Lviv. At Svalyava 1div bloodied the nose of 11G AT to cover 82 corps retreat while 7 hungarian corps evacuated the town for a stronger position further back in the mountains. - Harpe's 4th panzer army (56Pz, 8 corps & 214div) maneuvers on the left flank were also flawless with great results. All forward enemy units (60 & 70 armies, 77div) were violently pushed back with heavy losses safe for 10G AT thanks to forest cover. - That allowed Harpe to free his panzers (3 & 56Pz) and shift them northwards where they'll be able to strike Baranavichy and deal with russian 2G VDV paratroopers threatening AGC rear. *

Aaaand the triple line of red units is there again . To be honest I think Axis has already lost given overall situation. But we still have to know what kind of soviet victory it will be !

Mmmh ? Serbian Front ? Damn is Operation 25 still going on in Yugoslavia ? Go Siberians go ^^ !

Hi , - I agree with Ancient Demon and understand what Bill says about how it went that way. Can be tedious to deal with many unknown partisan tiles. * - I also think it more or less like neutral countries deployment. When you always had the same units in the same spot there was no suprise at all fir the invader ! - That said I suppose people can also refrain from using "P" key (gentlemen's agreement). Otherwise maybe put in the campaign option screen menu to disable "P" key. - If possible something like tick or untick a box with "showing partisans" (as there is for FOW or air ranges though you can reenable air ranges). * - For OE Ancient Demon is rigth about having 3 units covering the area, it's well worth it. But it also leaves Turks stretched a bit for coastal defense so I find it quite balanced. - It's a fact that UK can capture Aqaba early and unopposed just by keeping a detachment ready for amphibious move in the Red Sea.