Where the Iron Crosses Grow: K62 (Axis) vs Veterin (Soviet) GC41

[K62_]

I run recon on T1, AMA:

T1 recon.png

More than interesting. Am I correct in assuming you run recon so as to better detect/ID those units and increase your chances of more easily moving them without combat delay? That's all I could come up with.

You are substantially correct, sir! Under certain circumstances air recon will increase the detection level of enemy units, and higher detection levels will make them easier to hit in combat.

[K62_]

All pockets held, but the Soviets were pretty busy:

battles soviet action phase.png (1.12 MiB) Viewed 2890 times

I assume a lot of the attacks were aimed at causing Axis air losses, as I had left GS on:

loss air during soviet action.png (678.08 KiB) Viewed 2890 times

The air losses are not great. But I'm happy that the pockets held. And they should be easier to reduce now.

[K62_]

Soviets bomb Riga. Pretty smart play, as the Germans can't have a lot of air defense at Riga on T1, and the port damage will cause receiving less seaborne freight:

battle Soviets bomb Riga.png (1.2 MiB) Viewed 2889 times

AGN now needs to secure a less damaged Baltic port. Parnu is found lightly defended:

PG4 takes Parnu.png (2.06 MiB) Viewed 2889 times

Otherwise PG4 only encounters a couple of NKVD regiments and advances closer to Pskov almost unopposed:

AGN final.png (2.26 MiB) Viewed 2889 times

[K62_]

I'm committing pretty much all long-range recon to AGC as I'd like to get a good idea of the Soviet defense in this area before deciding how to advance:

ADs recon AGC.png (1.34 MiB) Viewed 2883 times

Recon result; it looks like the Soviets are heavily reinforcing Smolensk and holding the Dnepr with a thin screen:

AGC post recon.png (1023.42 KiB) Viewed 2883 times

I would like to avoid, as much as possible, the penalties for moving across a major river into EZOC. We start with Hoth's PG3 clearing the Land Bridge:

PG3 clears land bridge.png (2.14 MiB) Viewed 2883 times

After securing an unopposed Dnepr crossing in this area we use it to gain further crossings downstream:

PG3 crosses Dnepr.png (1.52 MiB) Viewed 2883 times

[K62_]

The secured crossings allow PG3 to make significant progress beyond the Dnepr, avoiding any major delay because of the Soviet screen. The area close to Smolensk is prepared for counter-attacks, as a lot of strong Soviet units are readily available here in the early game:

PG3 final.png (1.27 MiB) Viewed 2880 times

Further south, PG2 is made whole again by being transferred most of this turn's AGS reinforcements. Guderian lost 3 divisions and a corps HQ on T1 and gains the exact same amount back on T2, so his operational capability should be undiminished in the future. The transferred corps will be commanded by Hube:

PG2 reinforcements.png (441.55 KiB) Viewed 2880 times

PG2 then clears some light opposition in the Rogachev area (the river bends here make it very hard for the Soviets to defend) and advances all the way to Gomel, which is found well garrisoned:

PG2 reaches Gomel.png (1.46 MiB) Viewed 2880 times

Final dispositions for AGC. Note the cleared pockets in the rear:

AGC final.png (1.83 MiB) Viewed 2880 times

[K62_]

The Soviets have given up on trying to save the mountain divisions and are starting an invasion of Hungary instead . I'll have to commit a German division to help contain them, as the Hungarians won't unfreeze any units to deal with it:

hungary Soviet invasion.png (1.77 MiB) Viewed 2876 times

Further ahead it's a good area to recon extensively as short-range aircraft can reach it from the Romanian airfields:

ADs recon AGS.png (983.84 KiB) Viewed 2876 times

Post-recon, it looks like a number of units are trying to escape from the "delayed Greater Lvov pocket", but they haven't made it very far yet:

AGS post recon.png (629.22 KiB) Viewed 2876 times

[K62_]

PG1 finds a gap between the fleeing Soviet divisions and begins exploiting it in conjunction with 11th Army units advancing from further south:

PG1 finds gap.png (1.45 MiB) Viewed 2874 times

In a narrowly won battle (wouldn't have made it without air support!) a well-supported Romanian armored regiment closes the pocket:

battle Rom armored closes pocket.png (1.65 MiB) Viewed 2874 times

Final situation in the 11th Army area:

AGA final.png (1.42 MiB) Viewed 2874 times

Further north, von Kleist's PG1 pockets a few more fleeing Divisions on the go, but it's otherwise full speed ahead on a broad front:

AGS final.png (1.58 MiB) Viewed 2874 times

[K62_]

And finally (for the professionals!) a few updates on logistics. All looks good in this area, with all armies taking on excess supply and replacements. It is important to take advantage of the close range to supply depots on T2 and get well stocked for continuing the advance:

logistics army freight data.png (395.38 KiB) Viewed 2871 times

The RADs did pretty well with 5 out of 7 deploying, 4 of them on the main line. This is not bad for the first turn of RAD repair:

rail repair RAD.png (1.26 MiB) Viewed 2871 times

FBD 2 and FBD 4 take advantage of this to make a good advance, connecting all depots built last turn:

FBD rail repair center.png (2.46 MiB) Viewed 2871 times

Last but not least, Mogilev is turned into a logistical center by building a depot to take advantage of the existing railyard, and 1,200 tons of freight are air lifted into it. This will provide a welcome boost for PG3, which is getting pretty far from rail currently:

air drop mogilev.png (888.07 KiB) Viewed 2871 times

[jasonbroomer]

Last but not least, Mogilev is turned into a logistical center by building a depot to take advantage of the existing railyard, and 1,200 tons of freight are air lifted into it. This will provide a welcome boost for PG3, which is getting pretty far from rail currently:

air drop mogilev.png

interesting approach to do a mega drop. I prefer to target individual panzer divisions with supplies (obviously when they are adjacent to an airport). This ensures a spread of high MP divisions in the following turn. Or are you just primarily concentrating your advance from Mogilev?

[jasonbroomer]

This is a pretty brutal opening - awesome!

I'll throw in a few things:

I like your southern opener but I dislike committing Das Reich (or any SS division) to the south as they just end up being hex flippers.

Is it really necessary expending 1 AP to assign a construction unit to a depot? This seems to happen anyway (I think the AI prioritises them). I tried it in one of my first games and worked out that I wasted a lot of APs.

[K62_]

I prefer to target individual panzer divisions with supplies (obviously when they are adjacent to an airport). This ensures a spread of high MP divisions in the following turn. Or are you just primarily concentrating your advance from Mogilev?

Yup, I'm usually doing both! It's just hard to route most divisions by airports when their fuel runs low. And I would hate for my air transport capacity to go unused. So whatever I can't lift to individual divisions goes into a temporary depot that is much closer to the front than connected rail (such as Mogilev).

I like your southern opener but I dislike committing Das Reich (or any SS division) to the south as they just end up being hex flippers.

I don't disagree, and DR does end up flipping hexes shortly. It's more of a short term optimization because DR taking Tarnopol fits really neatly with the rest of my AGS deployment on T1.

Is it really necessary expending 1 AP to assign a construction unit to a depot? This seems to happen anyway (I think the AI prioritises them). I tried it in one of my first games and worked out that I wasted a lot of APs.

It does happen automatically, but it's not reliable. I would rather spend 1 AP and make sure my advanced depot gets a few thousand extra tons of freight.

[K62_]

Competing naval interdiction in the Gulf of Riga ends up with keeping the shipping lanes open. The Soviets lose some 60 long range bombers in the attempt:

AGN riga naval interdiction.png (1.02 MiB) Viewed 2654 times

However Riga only receives some 2,000 tons due to port damage. Kuressaare is bombed in return to reduce the Soviet interdiction emanating from it:

AGN Kuressaare bombed.png (1.33 MiB) Viewed 2654 times

A single motorized division conquers most of Estonia. Tallinn appears weakly held and 18th Army troops are positioned for a hasty assault next turn:

AGN Tallinn.png (1.93 MiB) Viewed 2654 times

Medium range recon (Bf110 and Do17 types) is assigned to support AGN and does a thorough job on the lines of defense at Pskov, which seem strong. I decide to rest two Panzer divisions and wait for the infantry. One Panzer and one motorized division capture terrain on the flanks:

AGN Pskov v2.png (2.95 MiB) Viewed 2654 times

[K62_]

In the AGC sector the Soviets seem set to defend Gomel. The troops in the city are likely to be part of a larger defensive line, which could be at either of the locations marked on the map. The orange line would be easier to deal with, so recon is assigned to the more challenging red line:

AGC ADs.png (1.89 MiB) Viewed 2646 times

Air reconnaissance does spot a Soviet line of defense in this location. It is very good defensive terrain due to the swamps and the multiple rivers. The only disadvantage of this position is that there are two Panzer Groups very close to it.

The initial problem is how to deal with the Soviet bridgehead at Gomel. Attacking these units directly risks a retreat behind the rivers, which would complicate a follow-up advance. So I'm starting the attack a bit further north, at Krasnaya Gora, instead. A bridgehead is successfully gained by a DA with a motorized regiment. This allows me to peel off a few more units from the Soviet line while avoiding river crossing penalties. The Soviet units in this area prove rather weak and rout easily. Consequently, a motorized regiment makes it behind Gomel (blue arrow).

At this point, I attack the two units in the Soviet bridgehead, and retreating ZOC-ZOC across a river causes both of them to rout. Finally, Hube proves his worth by conducting a hasty attack across major river (with good air support) and forcing open a gap in the Soviet line when the last Soviet rifle division retreats south (red arrow):

AGC Gomel breach.png (2.21 MiB) Viewed 2646 times

PG2 units flood through the gap and make it all the way to the Unecha area, where they are met by PG3 regiments that have infiltrated from the north while pinning down a few Soviet divisions. Note Wiking resting near Gomel and Totenkopf under the HQ at top center:

AGC final.png (2.22 MiB) Viewed 2646 times

After an intense march, 9th Army troops arrive to replace PG3 on the Smolensk front line:

AGC Smolensk.png (2.01 MiB) Viewed 2646 times

[K62_]

The Soviet invasion of Hungary is contained with some help from the Germans and Romanians. This smart play by the Soviets has, however, resulted in quite a bit of delay for the Hungarian mobile corps:

AGS Hungary invasion.png (1.9 MiB) Viewed 2642 times

11th Army catches a couple more fleeing Soviet divisions and makes contact at Odessa, which seems lightly held. German infantry prepares for a hasty attack next turn:

AGS Nikolaev.png (1.43 MiB) Viewed 2642 times

AGS infantry reduces the Delayed Greater Lvov Pocket with some help from the Romanians. This leaves PG1 free to advance full speed against what proves to be minimal opposition. Suddenly, it becomes apparent that we could cross the Middle Dnepr this turn:

AGS Dnepr crossing.png (1.17 MiB) Viewed 2642 times

Several regiments seize the opportunity and manage to pin down a Soviet division in the process. A strong SEC (probably a motorized NKVD division) is also pinned down in Kiev. Of course, this all could be a trap and I would hate it to open next turn and see my regiments thrown back, across the major river, with heavy losses.

But they are well reinforced with SUs, and I take the chance that the Soviets don't have a lot of strong units left in the area:

AGS Kiev final.png (1.81 MiB) Viewed 2642 times

[K62_]

Ground losses, with a good haul from the Delayed Greater Lvov Pocket:

loss ground.png (362.57 KiB) Viewed 2640 times

loss destroyed.png (538.05 KiB) Viewed 2640 times

loss air.png (528.22 KiB) Viewed 2640 times

oob.png (449 KiB) Viewed 2640 times

[K62_]

Logistics continues to be excellent, with all armies receiving well above need. It will be a while before lowering any supply priorities below 3 (inf) and 4 (pz/moto):

logistics army freight data.png (458.85 KiB) Viewed 2636 times

RAD deployment works very well this turn with 7/7 deployed. They fix the double rail all the way to Daugavpils and are very close to completing a feeder line into Vilnius:

RAD rail repair.png (911.36 KiB) Viewed 2636 times

But the real stars this turn are the FBDs. Three FBDs working in concert fix no less than 15 hexes on a single line, bringing the AGC rail all the way to Bobruisk:

FBD rail repair center.png (2.75 MiB) Viewed 2636 times

And, in the south, Germans and Romanians working together complete 10 hexes, connecting the level 2 railyard at Proskurov:

FBD rail repair south.png (885.52 KiB) Viewed 2636 times

[Veterin]

Very impressive planning on your logistics!

[jasonbroomer]

Organised definitely, but potentially double edged

[K62_]

It's raining this turn in the AGN sector. Next turn it's predicted to continue and also to extend across most of the front:

AGN weather forecast.png (540.72 KiB) Viewed 2503 times

The Soviets have unexpectedly counter-attacked and booted a Panzer regiment out of VL with some loss. Not much to do here, except take a bit of comfort that several good Soviet divisions are kept busy in a less important area:

AGN VL Soviet counter.png (2.37 MiB) Viewed 2503 times

18th Army takes Tallinn and advances into Estonia, releasing the 36th MD to rejoin the rest of PG4. It looks like the STAVKA has some new leadership - will Voroshilov prove more effective than Zhukov?

AGN battle Tallinn.png (1.57 MiB) Viewed 2503 times

At Pskov the Soviets are fighting a skillful delaying action, taking a small step back while maintaining a deep defense line. Not much to do here except use freshly arrived 16th Army infantry to drive in the weak Soviet 1st line, while continuing to rest the heavy hitters. I should have two Panzer divisions with 100 CPP next turn and two motorized divisions with low fatigue. Also the best infantry commander in AGN, Lindemann (L Corps), has been assigned to PG4 as an assault element (with a few infantry divisions that are in pretty good shape). We'll see if we can pick a way through the light mud next turn, or whether it's better to wait for clear weather:

AGN Pskov driving in screen.png (2.18 MiB) Viewed 2503 times

[K62_]

In the AGC sector it looks like the Soviets have, as expected, fallen back on the good defensive terrain around Bryansk:

AGC post recon.png (1.57 MiB) Viewed 2499 times

The logistics are good enough that I can afford some high-quality air support here. The Bf 110 is arguably the best all-around German bomber in '41, hitting almost as hard as the Ju 87 with the range of a Ju 88. ZG 26 has 80 of them, and it transfers during the Axis logistics phase to the level 2 Bobruisk airbase, well within range of the new Soviet defenses:

AGC ZG 26 range.png (1.83 MiB) Viewed 2499 times

It is very important to penetrate this new Soviet line before it has a chance to consolidate. The city of Bryansk, with its level 2 railyard and central position on the Eastern Front, is a crucial objective for OKH in this game. Soviet command probably knows it, as they have defended it quite well.

But the Germans have also prepared a very strong attacking force over the past couple of turns. Wiking, Totenkopf and the 16th MD constitute an excellent strike package, even when attacking across a river into city terrain; and they are lavishly supported, not only with Bf 110s but also with the best SUs that the Wehrmacht can muster.

This allows Hube to get the better of Malinovsky, and to capture the city without breaking a huge sweat:

AGC battle bryansk.png (944.52 KiB) Viewed 2499 times

Wiking subsequently helps clear a small bridgehead south of Bryansk, despite determined Soviet opposition in excellent defensive terrain. Further south, the PG2 Panzer forces find a gap in the Soviet lines and advance unopposed towards Kursk and Orel:

AGC final.png (1.95 MiB) Viewed 2499 times