Grand Campaign Haudrauf (Axis) vs. Miller41 (no Miller41 please)

[MrLongleg]

And here are the numbers in one image - obviously they are not pretty. My army lost one million men in the winter while the Russians added more than 1 million men to their forces.

[randallw]

You failed to mention the Soviets put a lot more artillery out there, too.  Mentioning this to brighten your day. [;)]

[CarnageINC]

Wow, all good info.  Thanks for posting these.  Also thanks for being the first new player to fo an AAR a lesson that should be learned by everyone [;)].

[MrLongleg]

ORIGINAL: randallw

You failed to mention the Soviets put a lot more artillery out there, too.  Mentioning this to brighten your day. [;)]

Thanks for pointing that out - happy times ahead for the Germans

[MrLongleg]

ORIGINAL: CarnageINC

Wow, all good info.  Thanks for posting these.  Also thanks for being the first new player to fo an AAR a lesson that should be learned by everyone [;)].

Enjoying your AAR - incredible job. One lesson is, that you cannot be aggressive enough as the German in 41 - you'll never get another another chance to kill so many enemy troops. But from your AAR I can see that you are doing better. Just don't forget to dig deep and early.

[Encircled]

Oh my God

Dig deep, dig early seems to be the only way to survive it

Did none of your counter attacks in the blizzard work at all?

Is it worth just not bothering to keep a mobile reserve, and just keep them out of the action all winter to give you a chance for swift counter attacks?

[Skacee]

Good, getting nicer after all. I like your AAR very much - good work! May be my previous comment misunderstood, but done by operation Phoenix anyway. The way you have done your lines seems stabilised for me. The worst is over, at least from the point of weather. The question to solve is where to make Russians to bleed the most. I like Leningrad gambit because it is still close. And you will get another ally. But - enemy is fortified and plenty. For the other side the defensive line is not deep.  Can you surprise there? I doubt. Success could be by multiple attacks in different directions around Olmen. One going for rails (against reinforcements) another to cut Leningrad sector. When you get it then you could start another encirclement battle around Velikie Luki, Vitebsk, Smolensk, going from north down, with small help in the south.

Numbers
So many soldiers are just disabled. How many will come back?
I wonder how many tanks will Russia have in 42. Now seems to me not a big deal. 

[MrLongleg]

ORIGINAL: Encircled

Oh my God

Dig deep, dig early seems to be the only way to survive it

Did none of your counter attacks in the blizzard work at all?

Is it worth just not bothering to keep a mobile reserve, and just keep them out of the action all winter to give you a chance for swift counter attacks?

Almost all of my counter attacks failed. Those impressive Panzer divs also ending up with a combat value of 1 ! Moreover if you have to attack you pay a high price in moral loss. But sometimes you do not have a choice. If you are not fortified there is no way to hold the Russians from advancing at will.

[MrLongleg]

ORIGINAL: Skacee

Good, getting nicer after all. I like your AAR very much - good work! May be my previous comment misunderstood, but done by operation Phoenix anyway. The way you have done your lines seems stabilised for me. The worst is over, at least from the point of weather. The question to solve is where to make Russians to bleed the most. I like Leningrad gambit because it is still close. And you will get another ally. But - enemy is fortified and plenty. For the other side the defensive line is not deep.  Can you surprise there? I doubt. Success could be by multiple attacks in different directions around Olmen. One going for rails (against reinforcements) another to cut Leningrad sector. When you get it then you could start another encirclement battle around Velikie Luki, Vitebsk, Smolensk, going from north down, with small help in the south.

Numbers
So many soldiers are just disabled. How many will come back?
I wonder how many tanks will Russia have in 42. Now seems to me not a big deal. 

The problem right ow is the low level of morale in my units. If I attack I have to make sure that I win, otherwise things will get even worse. The big problem with Leningrad is, that he can easily move another army or two there to stop me. He must have more than 600 divisions by now.

Btw, tanks for the nice words about my AAR - that is encouraging and makes it worth to put in the effort.

[Q-Ball]

I know the testers are monitoring losses, and yours are about 15% under the benchmark for Germans of about 3 mil at end of Blizzard. I think this number can be explained by the mess of St. Nicolas, otherwise you are about on target. Probably doesn't feel that way.

You are right about morale/experience, that is the bigger problem, not raw numbers.

One silver lining: His tank strength is VERY low for the Red Army. About half those are probably T-60s and BAs and DD Tanks and other light crap the Red Army seemed fond of. Coupled with poor employment in tank bdes, and you have armor superiority. For what that's worth.

The Red Army Manpower, though, is WAY over benchmark; I think Bob said 5 mil give or take.

[randallw]

Most of those thin Soviet DD tanks should be dead by now.  I'd guess half the tanks are lights ( the T-60s mentioned ), the others T-34s and KVs.  Just a guess! [:)]

[notenome]

Yeah but Russian tank strength doesn't really matter until much latter. He doesn't have divisions or corps, only brigades. Those can't fight for crap. For the first two years of the war its rifle divisions and rifle corps, and not much else. That and artillery.

[Encircled]

Cheers for the reply

Great AAR by the way, and full of things to do and things not to do

[MrLongleg]

ORIGINAL: Encircled

Cheers for the reply

Great AAR by the way, and full of things to do and things not to do

I am thinking about to rename the AAR to "Things you don't want to do as the German commander" [;)]

[Encircled]

I'm a few turns behind you, and have frantically modifying my strategy to attempt to survive my first winter.

Despite all this, I'm still going "oh go on then" and attacking, even though I know I'm going to regret it later!

[MrLongleg]

ORIGINAL: Encircled

I'm a few turns behind you, and have frantically modifying my strategy to attempt to survive my first winter.

Despite all this, I'm still going "oh go on then" and attacking, even though I know I'm going to regret it later!

The temptation is just too big sometimes, I know what you are talking about

[CarnageINC]

How is you reorganizational efforts coming along Haud?  I look forward to seeing how you bounce back.  It will be a morale booster for all of us I think. [;)]

[MrLongleg]

Turn 42 - 2/4/42 - Mud season again

No real fighting is going on along the front line. My divisions are still licking their wounds and machine guns, artillery pieces and mortars not to mention men are missing all over the place. Most infantry divisions have combat values between 2 and 4, not even close to the 10+ they started with. But I am having a front line again. I also decided to retreat along my southern bulge to shorten the line, get my Panzers and mobile divisions out of the line and even build some reserves. Of course I hope that Marshall M. will follow me so that he will run into supply problems. Another positive side effect is that the Russian divisions will have to leave their fortifications if they follow me. That gives me hopefully some new opportunities after the mud season.

In the next post I will show two of the re-constructed units refitting in Germany. As you can see machine guns, mortars and artillery are rare. Therefore those divisions are lacking a lot of firepower.

[MrLongleg]

Here are the equipment problems. I find those all over the frontline. Looks like my armament production sucks.

[MrLongleg]

ORIGINAL: CarnageINC

How is you reorganizational efforts coming along Haud?  I look forward to seeing how you bounce back.  It will be a morale booster for all of us I think. [;)]

I am rebuilding a line but still licking my wounds. Currently most of my infantry divisions have a combat value between 2 and 4. No way to start major offensives with those. They are not strong enough to breach a gap for my Panzers. So I will have to wait until late May or June before I can think of any offensive. But considering the strength of the red army I must be successful with everything I start.