MWiF Global War Hot-Seat (AAR)

[Red Prince]

Okay, first let's take up the issue of the Alps and the Italians. With a fine weather impulse, I have the choice of reinforcing Nice from Marseilles, or making a run for Toulouse. I chose the later, because if the Italians really want it, they can take Nice, even if reinforced, and then there's nothing left to retreat with. I will admit, though, that this may be premature.

I'm using the CAV to ZOC the mountain passes.

[Red Prince]

And now, for the restructured French defensive lines. The reason I like the MOT in Paris is because it has the most movement points, and a good combat factor. I'd rather use it to plug a hole after the coming attack than placing it on the front lines right now. Otherwise, I've tried to create an un-Blitzable shield, but I just don't really have anyone to plug that hole SW of Lille, unless I put the MOT there, which is a possibility.

The Reims hex bothers me. In my last game, this is roughly what I did with my defense, and the Germans used the O-chit to break the Maginot Line instead of using it elsewhere. That allowed them to completely outflank the French force. Last time, though, there was a German MTN that was causing trouble in the southern part of the country, and there isn't one now.
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Edit: I should add, that if I'm lucky, I might be able to use a combined impulse for the CW next time up, in order to get the BEF into France, but I'm not sure if it will be useful or successful. I may need to do some very creative thinking to get it done. I'll look into it while you are checking out the new defense.
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Anyway, here is my revision:

[Centuur]

You'll want another mistake you've made: here is one... The Netherlands got DOW'ed on last turn. Where to set up the Dutch TRS... answer: far, far away from the Netherlands in NEI. So no capture or destruction possible by the Germans... The more TRS you've got, the better it is for the CW. TRS are the most important units for the CW, since they have to move so many units over long distances at sea.

Now, prudent CW play regarding the use of land units in the first turn is:

At setup the spare INF goes into Malta and a gun goes into Gibraltar
In SO 1939: get the BEF (2 units) into France and an infantry unit to Gibraltar. You've now got 2 units in Gibraltar, so the Italians can't grab it. There's very much time left in the game to get a second infantry type unit into the place, before things are getting out of hand on the Iberian peninsula. Also, the BEF is in place and bolstering the French defense.
Next turn, add a unit to the BEF, so Gort can move out of the frontline.
In most games, the Germans wouldn't be able to attack Lille at all before 1940. You've got bad luck with the weather in the first turn, which is the reason the Germans have already conquered Belgium.

However, I don't want to blame you. WiF is a very, very difficult game. Personally, I've made a lot of the same mistakes in the past with the game. I probably will make some mistakes, whenever I'm going to play again (it's been a while, but I really am getting back in the spirit of things, I'm probably going to look for someone to play a Vassal game, if I'm getting to understand how some things work in that program...). Especially the naval system is probably going to be my setback, since I used to have problems making decisions on what ships to put into what force.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: Centuur

You'll want another mistake you've made: here is one... The Netherlands got DOW'ed on last turn. Where to set up the Dutch TRS... answer: far, far away from the Netherlands in NEI. So no capture or destruction possible by the Germans... The more TRS you've got, the better it is for the CW. TRS are the most important units for the CW, since they have to move so many units over long distances at sea.

Now, prudent CW play regarding the use of land units in the first turn is:

At setup the spare INF goes into Malta and a gun goes into Gibraltar
In SO 1939: get the BEF (2 units) into France and an infantry unit to Gibraltar. You've now got 2 units in Gibraltar, so the Italians can't grab it. There's very much time left in the game to get a second infantry type unit into the place, before things are getting out of hand on the Iberian peninsula. Also, the BEF is in place and bolstering the French defense.
Next turn, add a unit to the BEF, so Gort can move out of the frontline.
In most games, the Germans wouldn't be able to attack Lille at all before 1940. You've got bad luck with the weather in the first turn, which is the reason the Germans have already conquered Belgium.

However, I don't want to blame you. WiF is a very, very difficult game. Personally, I've made a lot of the same mistakes in the past with the game. I probably will make some mistakes, whenever I'm going to play again (it's been a while, but I really am getting back in the spirit of things, I'm probably going to look for someone to play a Vassal game, if I'm getting to understand how some things work in that program...). Especially the naval system is probably going to be my setback, since I used to have problems making decisions on what ships to put into what force.

The naval system is what gives me the most problems, too, which is why I am not particularly good playing the Allied side of things. I haven't got the hang of how long to leave units in a sea area (dropping down a box) based on likely weather and enemy forces (not to mention supply requirements), and I sometimes forget to move units when I should. My setup, as you've seen, was lacking for the CW (although I've never done it quite so badly -- I still do blame the pneumonia for that . . . I mean why else would I have 2 CA set up in Vancouver???)

The plan you laid out sounds right to me. I think I overreacted at the start of this game based on the mistakes I made in the last one. Compounds the error, really. So, maybe next time I'll be able to find a middle ground.

Of course, nobody expects Fine weather in N/D, so that was a bit of a surprise. Alas, noone excpects the Spanish Inquisition, either. [:D]

This setup isn't set in stone yet, either, but I'll probably finalize it in the next few hours. I'm having second thoughts about those units heading to Toulouse. I'm starting to think the MIL at least should go to Nice.

[composer99]

The set up in post #242 should suffice unless there is prolonged good weather.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: Red Prince

And now, for the restructured French defensive lines. The reason I like the MOT in Paris is because it has the most movement points, and a good combat factor. I'd rather use it to plug a hole after the coming attack than placing it on the front lines right now. Otherwise, I've tried to create an un-Blitzable shield, but I just don't really have anyone to plug that hole SW of Lille, unless I put the MOT there, which is a possibility.

The Reims hex bothers me. In my last game, this is roughly what I did with my defense, and the Germans used the O-chit to break the Maginot Line instead of using it elsewhere. That allowed them to completely outflank the French force. Last time, though, there was a German MTN that was causing trouble in the southern part of the country, and there isn't one now.
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Edit: I should add, that if I'm lucky, I might be able to use a combined impulse for the CW next time up, in order to get the BEF into France, but I'm not sure if it will be useful or successful. I may need to do some very creative thinking to get it done. I'll look into it while you are checking out the new defense.
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Anyway, here is my revision:

You are keeping the motorized in reserve in Paris, to plug a hole if one appears. But what if the Germans ground strike the hex and disorganize the Motorized? Then your reserve unit is stuck in Paris instead of holding one of the hexes in front of Paris. If you stack the Motorized with the fighter, that will also prevent the fighter from being overrun on a breakthrough.

One of things the French really have to worry about is not being able to move their units in the following impulse. The worst case is when the Germans end the turn and then start the next one. That is why having units prepositioned in the secondary line is so important. A general rule of thumb is to plan on only having half the French units that are currently organized available to move the next time you get to move. Besides becoming disorganized, the units can also be put out of supply or get stuck in enemy ZOCs and unable to maneuver.

And then there is the general rule for all wargames: hold the center. It is the primary rule in chess, for instance.

[Red Prince]

I was actually planning to rebase the FTR to Paris at the end of the impulse, to prevent it from being overrun, but I'll move the MOT there, too.

And that, my friends, is likely to be the final decision for the French redeployment for this impulse. It is dinner time here, and it seems that with what is available, this is as satisfactory a defense as I can create. I think I've also decided to move the Marseilles MIL to Nice instead of retreating to Toulouse. If the Italians want that hex, they are going to have to pay for it heavily. These units can always retreat later, if necessary.

[Red Prince]

Before eating, I finished the impulse, and now I'm looking at it from the German side of things, and I'm not sure the French lines are going to hold. As you may have figured out, I like to play a game with risky attacks, and I am very much thinking that I should use the weather advantage while I've got it. It could easily be 2-3 more turns before I see another Fine impulse. If I use the O-chit, I can see a way to make 2 attacks at either 3:1 or 4:1, depending on how I deploy my bombers, and that doesn't even include the sacrificial unit in the Ardennes, which is a'gonna die horribly anyway.

I know Germany usually wants to make its attacks at much higher odds, but I'm not likely to have a chance this good for a while, so I think I'm going to try it and see what happens. For both attacks, I'll probably lose a unit (about 50% chance), though successful Ground Strikes could improve the odds of survival. In all likelyhood, my units will become disorganized, but that's part of the fun of the O-chit. Magic brings them back into service at half price, while the reinforcements continue the trek through Germany and into the Low Countries.

Yup. I've played a bit of a risky game so far, and I am hoping the choice will pay off. It's time to use the O-chit!

[Red Prince]

Dinner is happily in my tummy. Or at least my tummy is happy with having eaten.

I'm sure many (if not most) of you were shaking your heads when I announced my intention to use the first O-chit now, but here are the attacks that were made by using it. The attack on Lille could have gone much better, particularly since 2 of the 3 units there were disorganized in a Ground Strike.



And the results:

Attack on Lille: Assault, Fractional Odds .865 (Yes), Roll = 3+1 = 4 = -/1 (disorganized, French ART destroyed)
Attack on France [54, 31]: Assault, Roll = 8+1 = 9 = */2S (French INF & AT destroyed, converted to Retreat; MIL retreated SE)
Attack on Belgium [54, 32]: Blitz, Roll = Automatic = */2B
Attack on Tunis, Blitz, Fractional Odds .885 (No), Roll = 8 = */1B
***Blitz table chosen because it gives a 40% chance of survival vs. a 10% chance, and retains a 30% chance of destroying an attacker vs. a 40% chance. (Of course, it didn't work).
Attack on China [86, 143]: Assault, Roll = 7 = */2S
***Blitz would give a 70% chance of 1 unit surviving, but Assault gives a 50% chance of disorganizing the attackers. (Of course, this didn't work either).
Attack on China [79, 138]: Assault, Fractional Odds .269 (No), Roll = 4 = -/1 (disorganized)

Most of the attacks worked out fairly well, and all were only made possible by the excellent weather roll at the start of the turn.

[Red Prince]

While I didn't manage to take Lille, which was the intent, the O-chit has its secondary value; the units attacking Lille and the units the CW managed to disorganize in its Ground Strike were all able to be reorganized by HQ-I von Bock. Granted, the vast majority of the German air power is used up, but I felt it was better to use it in good weather, when it could be used most effectively, than to safe it for later impulses.

Additionally, Germany was able to rebase another FTR and another LND into the area, so there's still something to fight with if needed.

[Red Prince]

Turns out using the good weather was probably a very good idea. The new roll was a 7 (don't know why the number wasn't included when I took the snapshot). And a 7 isn't good for attacks. It could be worse, I suppose, but the French will have to try to regroup once again.

Overall, I'm not certain if the O-chit was spent well or not. It was fun, and if you ask me, that's the point of any game.

[composer99]

IMO the French defence is broken, so the O-chit did its job.

Still, that means the French have absorbed an offensive chit for the Allies (talk about taking one for the team), so it's 15 bp the Germans need to scrape up somewhere if they want to replace it. I don't think they can afford it if they want to undertake a 1940 Barb.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: composer99

IMO the French defence is broken, so the O-chit did its job.

Still, that means the French have absorbed an offensive chit for the Allies (talk about taking one for the team), so it's 15 bp the Germans need to scrape up somewhere if they want to replace it. I don't think they can afford it if they want to undertake a 1940 Barb.

That's definitely the big question right now. I've got to decide soon which direction I'm going to go, Close the Med using conquest of France, or Vichy ASAP to get units back for a '40 Barbarossa.

I'd really like to give the Italians a chance to take over Algeria before Vichy is declared. That means I need at least 2 more impulses, probably 3 or 4 given the turn the weather has taken. Also, I have to decide if I'm going to risk some very low odds attacks in France in bad weather or not. It may be time to play more conservatively now as the Germans. For the O-chit attacks, I made sure that at least one unit in each of the 4:1 attacks was a relatively cheap unit. I may not have that luxury if I try to press in toward Paris in bad weather.

I also want to say that Steve was right about the MOT. With the unexpected use of the O-chit, that unit -- while it didn't protect against a B result (which didn't happen) -- was in position to maintain supply to the stack ahead of it in case Lille was taken (which also didn't happen).

My last thought is that I am now wondering if I should still attempt to get the BEF into France (probably Rouen), given that the French line now has a big hole in it.
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I know many of you (the Americans, at least) are going to be busy today, so I probably won't get a lot of suggestions on this. My family is actually in Maryland at the moment, and my car is half-buried by the first snowstorm of the year in my town (the earlier blizzard didn't reach us here). Since I'm still recovering from pneumonia, I'll probably not be digging my car out and going anywhere today, which means I'll have little to do. So, I am likely to be playing this game a good deal today. That means I'll probably have a bunch of mistakes for you to critique (are you ready Centuur? )
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Edit: If you couldn't guess, I hate winter, and I'm not talking about WiF, but the real thing. [:(]

[composer99]

The snow should slow down German attacks, but it doesn't slow down mobility.

Can you post a screenshot of the current situation in Northern France along with what you are thinking of doing with the French?

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: composer99

The snow should slow down German attacks, but it doesn't slow down mobility.

Can you post a screenshot of the current situation in Northern France along with what you are thinking of doing with the French?

Sure. I'll load it up and try to make sure you can see what's in most stacks. Honestly, I'm not yet thinking of anything for France. I haven't started playing or planning yet. I should have something put together in the next hour or so.

[Red Prince]

First, this is what things look like on the map in the actual game:

[Red Prince]

And, while I still haven't actually thought about what to do with the French, here is the cluttered version, showing you every unit in this particular region:

[Red Prince]

And, since I'm showing what's going on in France, here's the Italian border. As it turns out, my choice to move the Marseilles MIL into Nice was probably wrong. I should have gone with my first instinct, I guess, and sent it toward Toulouse. The Italian ART made a Ground Strike/Bombardment on it, and now I won't be able to pull it back when I want to.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

If nothing else, your screenshots sure make the Flyouts look good.[:)]

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

If nothing else, your screenshots sure make the Flyouts look good.[:)]

Quite a mess, isn't it? Trying to get all of those flyouts on there was a puzzle of its own. [:)]