MWiF Global War Hot-Seat (AAR)

[Red Prince]

Figuring I'm getting a 3 for 1 deal here, I decided that HQ-I von Leeb could reorganize 2 units to keep up the campaign on the southern front. The rest of the units that were disorganized in this area are going to need an HQ around next turn anyway in order to keep moving, so why not do it now? Probably some very good reasons, but I did it anyway.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: composer99

Looking at the USSR, they need to bring the Leningrad MIL back to Leningrad; next Axis impulse the Germans will be able to screen the city straightaway (unless the weather turns rainy).

Really don't think that's needed yet. I'm tired and may not be thinking straight, so I won't post images right now to confuse things, but I think I might have a way to prevent Mannerheim from connecting up with the rail lines he needs for supply. Rommel isn't heading to Leningrad. That would be a waste of his abilities in clear terrain, so until Mannerheim can hook up with the rail lines, only the hex in the Finnish Borderlands will be able to attack it. The other hexes are out of supply range -- unless Germany does rail Antonescu up this way, but I doubt that will happen . . . might, though. I'll post full images in the morning, when my mind is clearer.

[Red Prince]

Been doing a little factor-counting, and I think I may just have to abandon Kiev in order to be sure the river can't be crossed. These are just random thoughts here. We'll see how it looks tomorrow.

[Red Prince]

The weather man is stuck in a groove here. Same roll as last time around. So, what say we try a DOW on Japan by the good old US of A, shall we?

[composer99]

The 7-4 INF near the northern coast of Estonia can cut Leningrad off during the next Axis impulse. It looks like it's in supply.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: composer99

The 7-4 INF near the northern coast of Estonia can cut Leningrad off during the next Axis impulse. It looks like it's in supply.

Yes, it can cut it off, but it can't attack it. With the weather staying clear, I probably won't act on the plan I was thinking of, but there is a possibility . . .

Anyway, I made the DOW, and here are the results:

USA attempts to DOW Japan at 90% odds, Roll = 1 = Success; USE-8 (2 chits moved, 2 of 18 [1], 11 of 17 [3])
USA aligns Brazil
USA sets up 2 CP, 2 BB, CA in Recife, 2 CL in Rio de Janeiro, CAV and INF in Recife

And the Action choices for this impulse:

China: Land
CW: Land
France: Combined
USA: Naval
USSR: Land

I don't usually show these, but since I'm done for the night, I thought you might want to know.

Welcome to Global War, ladies and gentlemen! The only nations left not at war are China and Italy, and China ain't a'gonna be around for very long, so what we now have as of Impulse #3, M/J 1941 is:

A World in Flames!
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Good night, Gracie. [:D]

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: composer99

The 7-4 INF near the northern coast of Estonia can cut Leningrad off during the next Axis impulse. It looks like it's in supply.

I agree that the 6-3 in Novgorod has to return to Leningrad immediately. I also think the 5-3 up on the Finnish front should start retreating towards Moscow.

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Evacuating Kiev is a bad idea. It's either a hero city or not. But which units are in the hex can be swapped around (e.g., get the Motorized unit out).

If you push all available units into the front line, possibly including the HQ, you should be able to hold for 1 impulse. By all available units, I'm talking to you 2-2 wimp down next to Sevastopol! No secondary line. Try not to put 2 good units in a hex since that makes a tempting ground strike target. By good units I mean anything with 6+ factors.

If you can get 10 factors in each hex that can be attacked from 2 hexes across the river, that's going to give the Germans probably a 3:1 blitz attack (at best).

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If you really want to punish the Germans for using their HQ to reorganize, you can just retreat everyone from the Dnieper (except one unit in Kiev). I would be tempted to do that.[8D] Then the Germans will only have Rundstedt for supply and won't be able to advance on Crimea, Rostov, Kharkov, and Moscow simultaneously. The German frontline will be 9 hexes wide. I estimate it would run from the Sea of Azov to south of Bryansk. The Don river line + Rostov is about as wide as the Dnieper and you only need 2 units in Crimea to hold that section of the line. This 'plan' gives up a lot of factories that otherwise the USSR might be able to rail out. But wouldn't it be sweet to be holding the Don with all the forces you have now? I guess that decision could be delayed for a turn. By the way, a successful ground strike on Rundstedt means the Germans will not move any farther than 4 hexes from their fearless leader this turn.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

ORIGINAL: composer99

The 7-4 INF near the northern coast of Estonia can cut Leningrad off during the next Axis impulse. It looks like it's in supply.

I agree that the 6-3 in Novgorod has to return to Leningrad immediately. I also think the 5-3 up on the Finnish front should start retreating towards Moscow.

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Evacuating Kiev is a bad idea. It's either a hero city or not. But which units are in the hex can be swapped around (e.g., get the Motorized unit out).

If you push all available units into the front line, possibly including the HQ, you should be able to hold for 1 impulse. By all available units, I'm talking to you 2-2 wimp down next to Sevastopol! No secondary line. Try not to put 2 good units in a hex since that makes a tempting ground strike target. By good units I mean anything with 6+ factors.

If you can get 10 factors in each hex that can be attacked from 2 hexes across the river, that's going to give the Germans probably a 3:1 blitz attack (at best).

--

If you really want to punish the Germans for using their HQ to reorganize, you can just retreat everyone from the Dnieper (except one unit in Kiev). I would be tempted to do that.[8D] Then the Germans will only have Rundstedt for supply and won't be able to advance on Crimea, Rostov, Kharkov, and Moscow simultaneously. The German frontline will be 9 hexes wide. I estimate it would run from the Sea of Azov to south of Bryansk. The Don river line + Rostov is about as wide as the Dnieper and you only need 2 units in Crimea to hold that section of the line. This 'plan' gives up a lot of factories that otherwise the USSR might be able to rail out. But wouldn't it be sweet to be holding the Don with all the forces you have now? I guess that decision could be delayed for a turn. By the way, a successful ground strike on Rundstedt means the Germans will not move any farther than 4 hexes from their fearless leader this turn.

Taking the 2-2 MIL out of that hex leaves a potential opening for a paradrop into that port. It would be a low odds attack, but might succeed. I'll have to calculate the odds before moving the MIL.

I never would have used von Leeb to reorganize if I only had one ohter HQ on this front. 2 hexes away from Kiev, to the west, sits von Bock, so the Germans can have a line that is contiguous for the whole stretch you are talking about. It would take 2 successful Ground Strikes to stop the Germans dead in their tracks, and both HQs are double-covered by FTRs with 6 factors after the rebasing last impulse, plus Rundstedt has a Heavy AA unit to his west.
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Edit: I'll explore the possibility of getting 5-6 factors per attackabe hexside. If it can't be done, I'll look at the possibility of risking the Ground Strikes and retreating to the Don.

[Red Prince]

Okay, here is definitely something that troubles me about the unified scale map: Japan

On the paper maps, it takes only 5-6 units (depending on how they are placed) to get every coastal hex in Japan within the ZOC of a unit. On the unified scale map, you need 20-23 to get that job done. It takes 12 units just to get every city, port, and resoruce in Japan into the ZOC of a unit.
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I'm obviously looking at this now because the USA is in the war now. It troubles me that Japan is going to have a hard time defending its own Homeland. Forget about what it means for expanding the Empire or advancing on new fronts. It seems to me that as soon as the USA enters the war, Japan would have no choice but to bring all of the troops home just to keep Japan safe from invasion.

[Red Prince]

I tried to get the entire Nazi-Soviet front into one image, but I couldn't do it without degrading the quality beyond reason. So, I've split it into 2 screenshots. If you wanted to, you could past them together, since they overlap slightly.
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The North Front:

[Red Prince]

The South Front:

[lomyrin]

In quite a few CWiF games on this same map scale I never encountered the Japan safety problem you discuss above. USA has to get a number of bases close by in order to invade successfully.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: lomyrin

In quite a few CWiF games on this same map scale I never encountered the Japan safety problem you discuss above. USA has to get a number of bases close by in order to invade successfully.

Fair enough. I've never played the USA at war, even in a test game, so I don't have a frame of reference.

Out of curiosity, did you ever have the USA enter the war this early? The USA made the DOW, still holds Midway, Honolulu, Guam, Pago Pago, and there are a number of not-yet-secured ports in the Bismark and S. China Seas . . . not that the USA would want to send a lone TRS fleet into these areas right now, but they could land 2 Corps and a Division from Midway and easily find a spot in Japan that is undefended . . . assuming the Japanese let them get through.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: Red Prince

Okay, here is definitely something that troubles me about the unified scale map: Japan

On the paper maps, it takes only 5-6 units (depending on how they are placed) to get every coastal hex in Japan within the ZOC of a unit. On the unified scale map, you need 20-23 to get that job done. It takes 12 units just to get every city, port, and resoruce in Japan into the ZOC of a unit.
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I'm obviously looking at this now because the USA is in the war now. It troubles me that Japan is going to have a hard time defending its own Homeland. Forget about what it means for expanding the Empire or advancing on new fronts. It seems to me that as soon as the USA enters the war, Japan would have no choice but to bring all of the troops home just to keep Japan safe from invasion.

Using the same logic, doesn't the US have to keep all their units at home to defend the West Coast?

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Along the southern Dnieper, the forces are almost equal now that 25 strength points of Germans are disorganized. I count ~92 in Germans that can reach the front line and ~96 in Russians. The German units are better quality so they can concentrate for an attack more easily. But it also means that they do not have very many "hit takers".

In the north, the Russians got a break when so many German corps decided to take the time to bathe in the Baltic for 3-4 weeks. On the main front line the Germans have 61 strength factors versus 53 for the Russians. But the Germans can afford losses here, since there are another 50 factors available to move east. Even after discounting those that will move towards Leningrad, there is plenty of extra beef available for attacks on the Smolensk front.

If you retreat the 5-3 one hex behind the Svir, the Finns will not be able to attack it. The HQ is at the end of its tether so they will only have a 5.5:5. It looks as if the Germans do not have an air force here. The 6-3 Mil can actually move 3 hexes west and hold the Lake Peipus river line for an impulse - [but that is dangerous since the Germans can get a 16:6 on him]. Then you can form up an every other hex defense in front of the Dnieper anchored by 2 swamp hexes on the ends. It means holding a Clear hex with 13 points + the Artillery behind/adjacent.

It's really late here so I will let you figure out the details. I envision a 6-3 Mil in the north, a 6-1 in Pskov, a 5-3 (disorganized) in a swamp, 13 in a clear hex, 10 or so behind the Dnieper and 10 in a swamp. The line is perfect in that the Germans can only get 2 hexes on any stack.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

ORIGINAL: Red Prince

Okay, here is definitely something that troubles me about the unified scale map: Japan

On the paper maps, it takes only 5-6 units (depending on how they are placed) to get every coastal hex in Japan within the ZOC of a unit. On the unified scale map, you need 20-23 to get that job done. It takes 12 units just to get every city, port, and resoruce in Japan into the ZOC of a unit.
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I'm obviously looking at this now because the USA is in the war now. It troubles me that Japan is going to have a hard time defending its own Homeland. Forget about what it means for expanding the Empire or advancing on new fronts. It seems to me that as soon as the USA enters the war, Japan would have no choice but to bring all of the troops home just to keep Japan safe from invasion.

Using the same logic, doesn't the US have to keep all their units at home to defend the West Coast?

No. Because the USA has a 2:1 Production advantage on Japan that will grow from here on, and they are also not attempting to take over the world (or half of it, anyway). They don't need to leave units around for Partisan duty and can focus their attacks. There are also only 2-3 ports frowm which the West Coast can be attacked at solid odds. Japan can be attacked at reasonable odds from a much greater number of ports. At least a dozen or more, if you include minor ports.

Even when China is finished off, if I end my attacks in Siberia after collecting anything valuable between Chita and Vladivostok and abandon hope of a real campagin in India, I don't think I'll have enough units to defend Japan with ZOCs and have a unit in each Victory City I've gained, as well as keeping Partisans under control. Maybe that's the whole point of the game when it comes to Japanese expansion, but it makes it much more difficult if I need 2-3 times the units the paper map requires just to ZOC the coastal hexes in Japan -- using the same force pool.

I guess we'll see if my worries are valid or not. Lars says he hasn't run into the problem with CWiF, so maybe they aren't valid.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

Along the southern Dnieper, the forces are almost equal now that 25 strength points of Germans are disorganized. I count ~92 in Germans that can reach the front line and ~96 in Russians. The German units are better quality so they can concentrate for an attack more easily. But it also means that they do not have very many "hit takers".

In the north, the Russians got a break when so many German corps decided to take the time to bathe in the Baltic for 3-4 weeks. On the main front line the Germans have 61 strength factors versus 53 for the Russians. But the Germans can afford losses here, since there are another 50 factors available to move east. Even after discounting those that will move towards Leningrad, there is plenty of extra beef available for attacks on the Smolensk front.

If you retreat the 5-3 one hex behind the Svir, the Finns will not be able to attack it. The HQ is at the end of its tether so they will only have a 5.5:5. It looks as if the Germans do not have an air force here. The 6-3 Mil can actually move 3 hexes west and hold the Lake Peipus river line for an impulse - [but that is dangerous since the Germans can get a 16:6 on him]. Then you can form up an every other hex defense in front of the Dnieper anchored by 2 swamp hexes on the ends. It means holding a Clear hex with 13 points + the Artillery behind/adjacent.

It's really late here so I will let you figure out the details. I envision a 6-3 Mil in the north, a 6-1 in Pskov, a 5-3 (disorganized) in a swamp, 13 in a clear hex, 10 or so behind the Dnieper and 10 in a swamp. The line is perfect in that the Germans can only get 2 hexes on any stack.

That's what I was thinking for the Leningrad MIL, as well as the 5-3 in Novgorod. There is a whole east of Pskov the Germans could slip through, though, as you say.

As for the "break" that the Russians got, I believe this is a direct result of the 2 sacrifices they made: the GARR in the river bend, and the CAV to the south of that. While I could have had Rommel sitting in Vitebsk if I'd played it right, that's as far as anyone could have gone. Most of the units involved in the attack on Riga couldn't move any closer to the Soviet lines. That includes the 2 x 8-4 INF from Konigsberg and a handful of slow units. Using the 2 x 7-4 INF to secure supply through Estonia was a decision made based on the fact that I had no intention of attacking Pskov that impulse. I could only get the river hexsides as attacking hexsides. Now I can come around behind him.

As the Germans, it really isn't my goal to take Leningrad this turn. If I can secure the rail link through Novgorod, I can start encircling the Northern defensive lines. Right now I only need 2 white-print units to keep Leningrad from breaking out and hurting me. If I add a unit or two per turn over the next three turns, when I have a spare HQ available, I can send him up there and start working on Leningrad.

I can't quite picture what you are describing east of Vitebsk, but I'll play around with it and see if I can figure out what it is you are describing. (I never was one who cuold hold a full chess board in my mind).

In the south, I still think the 4-3 INF sacrifice was a good move. That kept the river line out of ZOC, which means I can now try to get those 5-6 factors per hexside much more easily. The early start to the war in the USSR, and the anticipated need for a large number of Garrison duty units in France and Spain has left Germany spread fairly thin.

I expect that the length of this turn might make or break the German campaign in Russia. If it goes on as long as last year (14 impulses), then the Germans can probably win this war by the end of 1941. If it lasts only 8 or 9 impulses, it will be much more difficult. The Germans really needed 1 more impulse in M/A '41 to set up for the Persian front and to continue the advance into Russia. If you think the Soviets are fairly hard up right now, imagine what would have happened if they had to suffer another impulse of attacks last turn -- even in Rain. [:(]

[Red Prince]

For the USA Naval Action, I sailed about 80% of the fleet and decided to keep all 6 CVs in the Pacific. Last impulse, Japan sailed the vast majority of its fleet because it needed to position a defense and also place units for further invasions to include Shore Bombardment and potentially Ground Support, so the USA knew where it would be safe to take some minor risks and where it would not.

The Pacific fleet includes the 6 CVs and about 25 SCS, and the Atlantic fleet is made up mostly of CA and CL units, with 5 or 6 BBs, for a total of about 35 ships. About 1/4 of the Atlantic fleet is still docked at Norfolk, waiting to determine where it is needed. The rest of the units are in positions to relieve the CW of convoy escort duties. This should allow the CW to send more of its fleet elements toward the Indian Ocean, and also to build a more concentrated force out of Liverpool and Plymouth. As for the Pacific fleet, mostly the Naval Moves there were used to begin rebasing ships to a more forward position while staying mostly out of the way of the Japanese Air forces. Most of the Japanese NAVs are still in China for the final strike on Kunming, anyway, so the Pacific is fairly safe for the USA at this moment in time.

In both Oceans, I also began moving troops with the sealift available and sending out convoys to replace some of those the CW has been using. I sent a small handful of convoys to Ponta Delgada, for MacArthur to reorganize, so that they can move on to help create a pipeline to the Soviets.

HQ-A Eisenhower is now in Plymouth, and the 2 ART Divisions from Norfolk are in Bristol. He'll be reorganizing the 2 TRS used to get these units across the Atlantic so that they can go back for a few LND that are currently stationed in New York. (He'll also be reorganizing the SCS used in the Denmark invasion).
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The overall effect of the naval moves is not ideal for a surprise impulse on Japan, but it's quite early for that war to begin, so fewer units were within striking distance of the Japanese. In fact, only one Naval Combat was attempted, and both sides failed their search rolls. Surprise!

[Orm]

I think US should send around 4 CV to India.

[Red Prince]

ORIGINAL: Orm

I think US should send around 4 CV to India.

Not without backup and going the long way around! Bay of Bengal is pretty much owned by the Japanese right now.

However, since the moves had to start from San Diego and Honolulu, they could only get so far anyway. The moves I made can be used to direct the fleet to Australia and then on to India, probably with the spare SCS from Norfolk heading the other way to meet up with them.