Russian Steel pbem hellcat vs Squirmer
Moderator: MOD_SPWaW
Russian Steel pbem hellcat vs Squirmer
here it comes... I've picked my puny force and as has become customary immediately broken down my first tank (can you guess what it is?) no sign of fritz yet... perhaps they have changed their minds about invading the motherland?
-
Supervisor
- Posts: 5160
- Joined: Tue Mar 02, 2004 12:00 am
-
Supervisor
- Posts: 5160
- Joined: Tue Mar 02, 2004 12:00 am
I'm on my way!
Just picked up the file, was checking the wrong email oops.
We intend to play the whole campaign here BTW. Must be mad ...
We intend to play the whole campaign here BTW. Must be mad ...
A small problem
Well I played my turn (via Play by Email then Load Save) but afterwards the AI had a quick go as the Soviets. Didn't seem to be a full turn though. If you go to load the save file now it is on the Soviet Union turn.
Any clues anyone? The file is in slot 11 if that's relevant.
This is a whopper of a battle but if I have to play my turn again then so be it ...
Any clues anyone? The file is in slot 11 if that's relevant.
This is a whopper of a battle but if I have to play my turn again then so be it ...
-
Supervisor
- Posts: 5160
- Joined: Tue Mar 02, 2004 12:00 am
It's OK
I've worked out what's going on. All the German units are toggled to "Computer Control" in the HQ screen. One of the pitfalls of playing a scenario designed for AI play I suppose. There are others which I will go into later ...
Anyway off to replay the turn under human control and we can get going properly.
Anyway off to replay the turn under human control and we can get going properly.
Dubno
It's July 1941 and the Germans are assaulting the strategic rail town of Dubno. I think it's an advance/delay type of battle though.
I'm playing this completely blind but I do know this map from playing the WBW Disaster at Dubno scenario. Basically you have two Soviet lines of defence. Behind the first are low value 50 point end of battle VHs. Behind the second are high value 30 point per turn VHs - these are what this battle is all about.
---
In the South and centre the infantry advance cautiously. In the South the town of Lvov seems to be well defended however Dubno itself seems barely populated. We have found only a few conscripts who have mostly been sent packing.
In the North our armoured Schwerpunkt has just arrived. Leading motorcycle squads have put paid to more of the useless conscripts.
However! It seems the Russian has just received reinforcements and is not going to be content to sit on his secondary defence line. There is a vast disorganised rabble of horses, men and tanks advancing towards us! Unfortunately there are T-34s amongst them. We know these to be a formidable adversary, the only way to deal with them is to make them run away. Thankfully none of the even more indestructible KV tanks have been spotted. This doesn't mean they aren't out there though, Ivan is known for his tricksy behaviour ...
---
Notes:
C&C is On. I am glad but must thank hellcat for this since it is gives his 1941 "what's a radio?" Soviets a large disadvantage.
The Luftwaffe is present - 16 planes! We have agreed that I will only use at most half of them.
I have several AT Rifle teams who cannot move since they have a speed of 0, another quirk of a designed for the AI scenario.
I'm playing this completely blind but I do know this map from playing the WBW Disaster at Dubno scenario. Basically you have two Soviet lines of defence. Behind the first are low value 50 point end of battle VHs. Behind the second are high value 30 point per turn VHs - these are what this battle is all about.
---
In the South and centre the infantry advance cautiously. In the South the town of Lvov seems to be well defended however Dubno itself seems barely populated. We have found only a few conscripts who have mostly been sent packing.
In the North our armoured Schwerpunkt has just arrived. Leading motorcycle squads have put paid to more of the useless conscripts.
However! It seems the Russian has just received reinforcements and is not going to be content to sit on his secondary defence line. There is a vast disorganised rabble of horses, men and tanks advancing towards us! Unfortunately there are T-34s amongst them. We know these to be a formidable adversary, the only way to deal with them is to make them run away. Thankfully none of the even more indestructible KV tanks have been spotted. This doesn't mean they aren't out there though, Ivan is known for his tricksy behaviour ...
---
Notes:
C&C is On. I am glad but must thank hellcat for this since it is gives his 1941 "what's a radio?" Soviets a large disadvantage.
The Luftwaffe is present - 16 planes! We have agreed that I will only use at most half of them.
I have several AT Rifle teams who cannot move since they have a speed of 0, another quirk of a designed for the AI scenario.
Germans are everywhere! Attacking all across our line!
Here's a few corrections on herr squirmers situation report...
Dubno has been repopulated. The only thing my conscripts are packing are their weapons and they have been turned around and sent back to their positions. My 'useless' (the cheek of it!) conscripts will buy time with their lives while I vector my 'disorganised rabble' of men, tanks and horses.
The speed of Squimer's attack is rather surprising compared to how this battle plays against the AI and the tactics I used there won't help me much this time around.
German motorcycle units in the northern sector have been shot up and will be finished off soon. My T-34s (apart from the broken down one
) are moving into attack position.
Arty is raining down on Lvov.
no sign of the luftwaffe yet, but everyone expects them any moment.
For the proud fighters of the motherland this time has mainly been a scramble to get into position although we have traded a few shots here and there and even seen some Germans taking a step or two back towards the border.
the fight begins
Here's a few corrections on herr squirmers situation report...
Dubno has been repopulated. The only thing my conscripts are packing are their weapons and they have been turned around and sent back to their positions. My 'useless' (the cheek of it!) conscripts will buy time with their lives while I vector my 'disorganised rabble' of men, tanks and horses.
The speed of Squimer's attack is rather surprising compared to how this battle plays against the AI and the tactics I used there won't help me much this time around.
German motorcycle units in the northern sector have been shot up and will be finished off soon. My T-34s (apart from the broken down one
) are moving into attack position.Arty is raining down on Lvov.
no sign of the luftwaffe yet, but everyone expects them any moment.
For the proud fighters of the motherland this time has mainly been a scramble to get into position although we have traded a few shots here and there and even seen some Germans taking a step or two back towards the border.
the fight begins
ROFL
I do apologise for calling the brave press-ganged peasants of the Motherland "useless". It's just that they don't like getting shot at much ...
hellcat is right this scenario is very quick to develop. Action right across the board, too much to describe in detail. Salient points:
The Ruskies have some evil quad Maxim flak trucks. These have caused most German casualties so far. Luckily they can be destroyed by small arms fire so they are priority targets for the infantry. There is a similar situation with the horse-drawn Tachankas. Both these types of unit seem to be part of the Russian core force, I was expecting to see 26 KV-1s ...
T-34s - well one has several 50mm dents in it but of course it survives. They don't opfire much though and the targeting seems to be vodka-influenced which is nice
German armour remains intact apart from one StuG. I thought I would do a test to see if the 45mm ATG would penetrate it, oops.
The infantry are slowly working their way through Dubno but there are substantial Soviet forces coming in to the south of the town. Arty from both sides is mainly falling in this area.
Progress towards Lvov is slow. Once the boys get out of the swamp things should speed up a bit.
Odd things:
The AT Rifle teams don't only not move they can't rotate either!
The entire Luftwaffe is not answering the phone. Given that this is 16 planes I don't think this is simply down to chance.
hellcat is right this scenario is very quick to develop. Action right across the board, too much to describe in detail. Salient points:
The Ruskies have some evil quad Maxim flak trucks. These have caused most German casualties so far. Luckily they can be destroyed by small arms fire so they are priority targets for the infantry. There is a similar situation with the horse-drawn Tachankas. Both these types of unit seem to be part of the Russian core force, I was expecting to see 26 KV-1s ...
T-34s - well one has several 50mm dents in it but of course it survives. They don't opfire much though and the targeting seems to be vodka-influenced which is nice
German armour remains intact apart from one StuG. I thought I would do a test to see if the 45mm ATG would penetrate it, oops.
The infantry are slowly working their way through Dubno but there are substantial Soviet forces coming in to the south of the town. Arty from both sides is mainly falling in this area.
Progress towards Lvov is slow. Once the boys get out of the swamp things should speed up a bit.
Odd things:
The AT Rifle teams don't only not move they can't rotate either!
The entire Luftwaffe is not answering the phone. Given that this is 16 planes I don't think this is simply down to chance.
battle is joined!
someone should tell that Stug crew that they will operate their machine far better by being 'inside' the tank... :p
scratch two enemy panzers in the North thanx to 1 T-34 with guts and a clear shot...
fighting in Dubno continuing to intensify, a Russian flame tank burned up 3 (count em) fascist pig dog squads in the North of the city and they went running...
arty is continuing to rain down upon us yet the skies remain clear thankfully... we can see enemy armour also moving through Rovno in the centre...
the rabble fights on...
someone should tell that Stug crew that they will operate their machine far better by being 'inside' the tank... :p
scratch two enemy panzers in the North thanx to 1 T-34 with guts and a clear shot...
fighting in Dubno continuing to intensify, a Russian flame tank burned up 3 (count em) fascist pig dog squads in the North of the city and they went running...
arty is continuing to rain down upon us yet the skies remain clear thankfully... we can see enemy armour also moving through Rovno in the centre...
the rabble fights on...
An accurate report from Commisar Hellcat. The rabble may be disorganised but some of them can be deadly.
Fascist pigs continue to make slow and steady progress in the urban areas. Loony German motorbike squads are attempting to cause mayhem on the right flank. Very nice of the Soviets not to opfire, I can only presume this is due to their low experience.
There are several Commie AT guns on the central hill. This is a bit of a problem ...
Meanwhile the Luftwaffe continue to be all on tea break. Possibly this is something to do with reaction turns.
Anyway great fun so far
Fascist pigs continue to make slow and steady progress in the urban areas. Loony German motorbike squads are attempting to cause mayhem on the right flank. Very nice of the Soviets not to opfire, I can only presume this is due to their low experience.
There are several Commie AT guns on the central hill. This is a bit of a problem ...
Meanwhile the Luftwaffe continue to be all on tea break. Possibly this is something to do with reaction turns.
Anyway great fun so far
where are the reinforcements???
I'm losing tanks... including a T-34 and a flame tank
we have effectively stopped one group of tanks in the northern sector (as well as the motorcycle rally which was attempting to outflank us)... This still leaves another tank group and plenty more units to deal with...
Dubno is starting to look like hell... conscripts are still fighting as well as the regular units (conscripts in all but name) but here I immobilised another T-34
we seem to be inching back a little but the fighting remains hard just about everywhere and he notched up a couple or 3 more fascist tanks including a flammpanzer...
plenty more work to do... :rolleyes:
I'm losing tanks... including a T-34
and a flame tank we have effectively stopped one group of tanks in the northern sector (as well as the motorcycle rally which was attempting to outflank us)... This still leaves another tank group and plenty more units to deal with...
Dubno is starting to look like hell... conscripts are still fighting as well as the regular units (conscripts in all but name) but here I immobilised another T-34
we seem to be inching back a little but the fighting remains hard just about everywhere and he notched up a couple or 3 more fascist tanks including a flammpanzer...
plenty more work to do... :rolleyes:
Messy
Well this getting really messy now and it's only turn 4.
Germans are still making a nuisance of themselves on the Ruskie right flank. Can't go too far though since there seem to be hidden AT positions near the Area HQ.
We have nearly taken the whole of the town that used to be Dubno. It is uncertain whether we can hold it though. Some of the Soviet conscripts fight much better than others. We have also encountered regular troops equipped with the nasty Tokarev rifle and SMGs.
Two more T-34s died. It seems the 50mm gun is OK at point blank range when directed at the flank.
Total shock at the end of the turn though. A Russian plane!
Scratch one StuG ...
Luftwaffe and majority of off-board arty remain unavailable. I'm also a bit peed off to have two 88s which are in useless positions and have no transport.
Germans are still making a nuisance of themselves on the Ruskie right flank. Can't go too far though since there seem to be hidden AT positions near the Area HQ.
We have nearly taken the whole of the town that used to be Dubno. It is uncertain whether we can hold it though. Some of the Soviet conscripts fight much better than others. We have also encountered regular troops equipped with the nasty Tokarev rifle and SMGs.
Two more T-34s died. It seems the 50mm gun is OK at point blank range when directed at the flank.
Total shock at the end of the turn though. A Russian plane!
Scratch one StuG ...Luftwaffe and majority of off-board arty remain unavailable. I'm also a bit peed off to have two 88s which are in useless positions and have no transport.
my T-34s are biting the dust as if they were BT-7s
The turn began with finding most of my peoples defence force of Dubno sheltering the Eastern end of town - some kind of town meeting
Once rallied they put the Germans to flight and the conscripts fight side by side with the regular army all knowing their fate should they fail...
one squad stumbled into a flammpanzer - toasty :rolleyes:
arty continues to rain down and my tanks continue to explode but we are still fighting and holding a perimiter of a sort...
what a fight!
The turn began with finding most of my peoples defence force of Dubno sheltering the Eastern end of town - some kind of town meeting
Once rallied they put the Germans to flight and the conscripts fight side by side with the regular army all knowing their fate should they fail...one squad stumbled into a flammpanzer - toasty :rolleyes:
arty continues to rain down and my tanks continue to explode but we are still fighting and holding a perimiter of a sort...
what a fight!
Turn 5
Bit of a quiet one relatively speaking.
We continue to harass the Soviet right flank. Motorcyclists are virtually on top of one 30 point per turn objective but I don't think they will survive long enough to take it.
The struggle for the south-eastern quadrant of Dubno continues. German infantry losses are heavy, we have ordered some of our glorious panzers into the town to help out.
On the armour front a Pz III is damaged by the massive blast from a KV-2 (AUX)'s monster cannon. Hopefully the crew will recover in time to re-man their vehicle.
No T-34s die this time but a T-35 dreadnought is destroyed by a puny German armoured car.
Oh and two stupid StuGs step on mines Why they let those arty gunners crew AFVs is beyond me ... :rolleyes:
We continue to harass the Soviet right flank. Motorcyclists are virtually on top of one 30 point per turn objective but I don't think they will survive long enough to take it.
The struggle for the south-eastern quadrant of Dubno continues. German infantry losses are heavy, we have ordered some of our glorious panzers into the town to help out.
On the armour front a Pz III is damaged by the massive blast from a KV-2 (AUX)'s monster cannon. Hopefully the crew will recover in time to re-man their vehicle.
No T-34s die this time but a T-35 dreadnought is destroyed by a puny German armoured car.
Oh and two stupid StuGs step on mines
Why they let those arty gunners crew AFVs is beyond me ... :rolleyes:Nice move! One T-28 has been despatched by a flak truck but the others remain to menace our rear.
Carnage in Dubno continues but little progress made.
Another T-34 died ... The rest seem to be hiding.
Seems like we have gone into a bit of a hold pattern now. Waiting for reinforcements? Or just plain knackered?
Carnage in Dubno continues but little progress made.
Another T-34 died ... The rest seem to be hiding.
Seems like we have gone into a bit of a hold pattern now. Waiting for reinforcements? Or just plain knackered?
T28s arriving in the North are helping to mop up our flank and take out more armored cars...
Despite taking a vh in Dubno many of our fighting men are fleeing the town
a panzer II gets destroyed in the south by a lone T-34...
most of our arty is out of contact The fighting remains to be desperate and yet still many VHs remain in our hands...
Despite everything said about whether this would work or not, the battle has turned out to be a real tense one. Very chaotic indeed!!
Despite taking a vh in Dubno many of our fighting men are fleeing the town
a panzer II gets destroyed in the south by a lone T-34...
most of our arty is out of contact
The fighting remains to be desperate and yet still many VHs remain in our hands... Despite everything said about whether this would work or not, the battle has turned out to be a real tense one. Very chaotic indeed!!