AAR - Infanteer on the Ost Front

[Infanteer]

In the Odessa region, the Soviets appear to have finally stopped to form a line of defence. 11 Army and the Romanians quickly make contact with these forces and begin to prepare efforts to throw it back.

[Infanteer]

As 21 August approaches and the second month of fighting comes to a close, Army Group North has achieved the decision at the tipping point. The Soviet forces covering Leningrad are unhinged and are being pushed back into the city by 18 Army approaching from the west and 2 Army approaching to Novgorod from the south. The assault by 4 Pzr Group and 16 Army blasts through the defences south of Lake Ilmen and begins its push north.

[Infanteer]

East of Smolensk, a thrust by 3 Pzr Group to the north completely unhinges the defence of the Veliki Luki salient, threatening a pocket. The Soviet forces, rather than fighting, abandon the entire area to fall back the Rhzev and the Volga River. Guderian pushes due east and takes Vyazma, running into the first serious Soviet opposition since he began his march 2 months ago. 9 Army pushes hard to keep up with the Panzers as Moscow beckons.

[Infanteer]

In the Gomel/Bryansk region, the 4 Army screen grinds forward slightly, keeping many units away from the defence of Moscow. The last Soviet units are in the process of being pushed over the Dnepr River while 75% of the Pripet Marshes have been cleared.

[Infanteer]

East of Kiev, 1 Pzr Group has made it half the distance to Kharkov. The Fuhrer has saw fit to promote Kempf to Colonel General due to his audacious command of his Pzr Corps! 6 Army crashes over the Dnepr in pursuit of Kleist's tanks, supporting the thrust to the north and south.

17 Army reaches an abandoned Cherkassy - it looks like the Army Group South has won the race to the Dnepr in style....

[Infanteer]

11 Army and the Romanians collapse the makeshift defensive line to the west of Odessa. 11 Army begins its rush to the lower Dnepr while the Romanians continue to invest Odessa.

[Infanteer]

After 2 months of fighting, the plan continues to move accordingly. It is amazing how many units and men the Soviets can continue to throw in our path - they must break soon! The casualty figures indicate there was less fighting this month - 600,000 casualties were inflicted on the Soviets; this represents the fact that after the destruction of the forward forces of the Red Army in June-July, much of August was spent catching up with the main line of Soviet resistance infront of Leningrad and Moscow.

September will be a crucial month indeed....

[Infanteer]

...and the units detroyed - the lack of pocketing due to a continuous Soviet withdrawl resulted in the lower numbers. Most of the casualties were inflicted by offensive action to penetrate any Soviet attempts to form lines of resistance.

[Infanteer]

<I've been unable to update this lately, so here goes>

As the third month of fighting kicks off, Army Group North achieves what may be a decisive breakthrough. 16th Army pounds the Soviet lines east of Lake Ilmen, making a large hole that Pzr Group 4 pours through, quickly outlflanking the ancient city of Novgorod and the Volkov River. All that remains is one more bound through some swamp to link up with the Finns and seal the fate of Leningrad. To the west and south of the city, 18 and 2 Armies continue to push onto the urban areas.

[Infanteer]

On the northern portion of Army Group Centers fight, Pzr Groups 2 and 3 make another thrust, creating a small salient around Ryzhev. It appears as if the Soviets are attempting to form a line here to stop our advance on Moscow. 9th Army continues to push hard to the east to keep up and support the armoured thrusts of Hoth and Guderian.

To the south, off the map, 4th Army continues to slowly screen the area southwest of Smolensk in the vicinity of Bryansk and Gomel.

[Infanteer]

The third month of fighting continues in Army Group South's AO with the continued advance of 1 Pzr Group on Kharkov. However, fuel becomes a concern as only 20 some miles is made, with the lead elements meeting Soviet defenders in Sumy. 6 Army to the northwest starts to run into Soviet concentrations around Chernigov; likely the forces displaced by the capture of Kiev. These forces may present a threat to the flank of 1 Pzr Group, which we will have to watch.

[Infanteer]

In the southern part of the front, 17 and 11 Armies, with narrower fronts, continue to act as wrecking balls to any Soviet attempt to form a cohesive line. 17 Army gets its first units over the Dnepr in anticipation of its movement around the north side of Dnepropetrovsk, outflanking the city. Kirovograd falls without a shot. To the far south, the Romanians begin with their final investiture of Odessa.