Soviet Union Decisive Victory!

[emcgman]

The Motherland has been saved! We have achieved a decisive victory against the German aggressors and have retaken Kharkov.

I played the Soviet Union against normal AI.

Here's a few screenshots from the final turn 16.

[emcgman]

Here's Belgorod. This city is worth big VP's both capture and per turn. It was not hard to take once I had the Germans tied up around Kharkov.

[emcgman]

Here's Lannaya and Krasnograd. I never was able to actually capture Krasnograd. My HQ lost it's supply connection, and my units ran out of attack supply. I did take Lannaya, though for the extra reinforcements.

[emcgman]

Here's Izyum. I don't know of any way to save this city, unless you would divert all spare SW army forces, but I used those to help take Kharkov.

[emcgman]

Here's the Victory Screen

[sabre1]

The Fatherland is not amused....
 
Congratulations Emcgman.

[SS Hauptsturmfuhrer]

The Germans sure gave you a beating on the field with you losing 130 to their 48.  You must have a lot more units than they did which is historical.   You made up for the losses well with secured objectives.  I looks like a MMA fight where a striker beats up a jujitsu guy most of the fight but then loses out of the blue to a rear naked choke.

[RAL]

Awesome Emcgman. I'm playing my first game and have made to turn 8 without losing everything... yet.  lol

I was proud of taking Krasnograd, then pulled all my forces out of the area except a garrison after a big internal debate.  The very next turn the information pops up and says "defend Krasno for all you're worth" so I figure I'm a goner for sure. 

My biggest strategic concerns, other than all the newbie tactical errors I'm making are:
1)  I'm hanging on for dear life in Barmenkovo, but that is cramping my forces into a narrow band to the east of the town and I think I'm about to lose a couple HQ.  The german advance has me trapped within 2 spaces of the operational area limits.  Maybe I should have just given them Barmenko so I could pull back??
2)  Every time I stick my nose out toward Kharkov, I just get plastered. Lose a bunch of units and gain little ground, even when I'm being very cautious and tenative in moving forward.

Any advice you or anyone else can give me on this would be appreciated.  I'm not too worried about getting waxed on my first game but I'd like to get better...

And if I'm posting this in the wrong place or something, just point me in the right direction.

Your AAR has given me hope and inspiration... for the next game!

[Gregor_SSG]

ORIGINAL: RAL

Awesome Emcgman. I'm playing my first game and have made to turn 8 without losing everything... yet.  lol

I was proud of taking Krasnograd, then pulled all my forces out of the area except a garrison after a big internal debate.  The very next turn the information pops up and says "defend Krasno for all you're worth" so I figure I'm a goner for sure. 

My biggest strategic concerns, other than all the newbie tactical errors I'm making are:
1)  I'm hanging on for dear life in Barmenkovo, but that is cramping my forces into a narrow band to the east of the town and I think I'm about to lose a couple HQ.  The german advance has me trapped within 2 spaces of the operational area limits.  Maybe I should have just given them Barmenko so I could pull back??
2)  Every time I stick my nose out toward Kharkov, I just get plastered. Lose a bunch of units and gain little ground, even when I'm being very cautious and tenative in moving forward.

Any advice you or anyone else can give me on this would be appreciated.  I'm not too worried about getting waxed on my first game but I'd like to get better...

And if I'm posting this in the wrong place or something, just point me in the right direction.

Your AAR has given me hope and inspiration... for the next game!

The AI has some pretty nifty moves in defending Kharkov, so the Soviet player has to be careful. Your biggest weapon in the first turns is your artillery, so make sure you use Attack and Supply bonuses that you get wisely, especially your heavy artillery.

Try to advance on a broad front, so no attacking stacks are left in vulnerable salients. If at all possible, don't advance into contested ground, but onto ground in which you can entrench. Obviously this isn't always possible, so make sure that any stacks that do advance onto contested ground have lots of steps to absorb the inevitable German artillery attacks. Avoid the temptation to send your armour into exposed positions (around the back of the defenders) just to get more tactical factors and better attack odds, they are almost certain to be counter-attacked and wiped out.

Always, always entrench if possible, and if attacking from your territory, make sure that a unit that hasn't attacked is reserved or on hand to entrench for each stack that attacked. Don't worry about attacking at less than max odds, or less than the Combat Advisor says you can get, that's what Russian infantry is for. With two Panzer divisions in Kharkov, you just have to be careful!

Gregor

[RAL]

Thank you Gregor for the advice. I think I made every mistake in the book in my first play through and managed to get cut in half by turn 14. I can't wait to finish this one and retry. I had to lol at using my artillery during the first couple turns since I think I had put off learning how to use it until about turn four.

Thank you again.