Is Serbia too strong?

[Furchtlosundtrew]

Hi,

The last days i was thinking over serbia. In my opinion, it is shaped a little bit too strong. In every game i play as the central powers, i have enormous problems, to defeat them in an acceptable time.

In my actual game I choosed (like mostly) the unhistoric deployment of the Austrian second Army against Serbia so I have two HQs, eight or nine Corpses, a Cavallery Unit, that I forcedmarched from the russian Front and after the third Turn the German artillery Unit for breaking trenches. Despite of this massive Army, a fast victory is immposible. With the cavallery unit i'm able to occupy the mines near Nish very early (about 4th turn) and i can occupy Belgrad and the next City in the west of Belgrad. After these initial successes further steps are very slow and it will become a nearby historic end for serbia not much earlier than autumn 1915. The problems are not so much bad supply (because of my two HQs) but the great number of the serbian forces and their ability to replace their losses and the missing ability of austrian corpses to cause heavy casualities to the enemy in attack (so i often need six or seven attacks of my corpses [and they are all in good supply, have an HQ, have enough readiness and are at strength nine or ten when i attack] to destroy a serbian Corps).

When i was playing with the historic deployment of austrian forces of the second army in Galicia, it lasts normaly at least until end of 1915 or Spring of 1916 until they are defeatet. In the best case (and when i avoid the mistakes of Potiorek) i could only just reach the historic outcome.

So I think, Serbia is - compared with history - overpowered.

In reality, the serbs had an armee of 400.000 until 500.000 men. Because of the Balkan wars in 1913 they where well experienced and well leaded. So they could defeat the approximately equipollent austrian forces in three battles in 1914 and keep them out of their territory. I think the most importent reasons for this victory was the fact, that the austrian troops where meanly in very bad supply and had a bad leader with Potiorek, who underestimated the serbian army each time he attacked.

But these victories where expensive because the Serbs had a great number of losses too and they could not replace their losses. They where additionally weakend in Winter 1914/1915 by a heavy typhus epidemic [i saw these modelled as an event but i could not see any effect of these events like losses of units...?]. Serbia had even great supply problems especially regarding artillery shells because they where not able to produce them by themselves and imports where difficult in this time...So in 1915 they suffered a lot of problems and where defeated relative easily.

So back to the game. I think when i deploy the second army against serbia I sould clearly outnumber them. So Serbia has too many units in the beginning or they are able to build some more units short after. I think they especially have a bit too many corpses instead of detachements. Above all they should not be able to replace their losses in that speed, like they do. A slightly reduction of their troops should make it possible to achive an unhistoric early victory in Spring 1915 or [when you are very lucky withe your casualities] even January 1915. I would even reduce their force-pool so that in in the beginning of the war they have a greater number of Troops in the field as their force pool is. So they wouldn't be able to rebuild troops after losses because oft the build limit.

Another Idea would be, to modell Serbia not as a minor but as a major. This would habe the great advantage, that they had to use their own income to refresh crippled units and had not the full income of their major (what they could use in an extreme case at the moment). This income would be only from the mine, from Belgrad as an producing city and from an newly created event what gives them for example 50 or 60 Mpp/Turn. I Think this would modell the declining strength of serbia during the war.

What do you think about Serbia?

[VonLourens]

I agree that they are a lil too strong, i have real problems wit Serbia in my current MP game, I think they destroyd 2 Austrian corpses on attack.

But this could be my skills:o .

IRL they did offcource were also a though job to finish.