Schneller, schneller!

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
24 May 1940

We continue to move forward in Yugoslavia, where we can actually fight. Near Malta, all is preparations, although we have attacked the Malta garrison a good bit. Our assault there will come as soon as we have an excellent chance.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
1 June 1940

Success on two fronts. We move on to a bigger challenge.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
9 June 1940

The Italians have holed up in Tobruk, with one weaker unit adjacent to the port to prevent investiture. We want to send help there but the British will make it very difficult to get in at Tobruk, and Tripoli is so far away.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Appendix
9 June 1940

Finland and the Soviets : The Finns have carried the "Winter War" into the Spring. They have stood up to the Soviets, and despite losses are strongr now than when the Red Army invaded. They are pressing on Leningrad, not expecting to succeed, but wanting the Soviets to feel the pain of war on their doorstep. The Soviets are slippery, and sneaky strong, but the Finns continue to resist.

[cpdeyoung]

WAR WARNING - WAR WARNING - WAR WARNING - WAR WARNING - WAR WARNING - WAR WARNING - WAR WARNING - WAR WARNING

14 June 1940 : 03:30 Hours

Panzer Brigade 101 reports being pushed back, wiith losses by strong Red Army forces including major armored units. Soviets incursions into the Generalgouvernement were confirmed by other units. There are reports of Soviet incursions into Romania also.

All forces of the Reich are immediately to consider themselves at war with the Red Army.

Units are to concentrate on probing and recon. High command wants information about the quantity and quality of Red Army troops as soon as possible. Luftwaffe assets will be in short supply, but will concentrate on recon.

ALL WEHRMACHT TROOPS ARE IN A STATE OF WAR WITH THE SOVIET UNION.

OKH - ArmeeGruppe Ost

[gwgardner]

To what do you attribute this Soviet aggressiveness. Were you resisting their efforts to coerce Romania or elsewhere? Or was it your support of Finland?

[cpdeyoung]

I was not helping Finland in any way, other than playing them as human controlled. There is no event in the reports that indicates a Romanian connection, but the fact that they are at war with the Soviets makes me think it is an AI response to the Bessarabia issue. The Romanians were under AI control, as was the USSR of course.

I see there is a patch to avoid this happening too often, but I am not sure it is not already incorporated in version 1.1.

It wiggles a bit, but I would not call it a bug unless it happens all the time. I think it is cool that it might happen as it encourages a garrison force in the East. I had just enough there to cause the Soviets some problems. They do not seem to have prepared this attack for a long time, probably a hasty attack.

Chuck

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
16 June 1940

Many plans are being put aside. The campaign against the Soviet Union is worisome. This is a powerful enemy, and an immense country. We were caught by surprise, but it seems the Red Army was too. We are beginning to get an idea of the enemy's capabilities, and they do not indicate a carefully planned attack. We need to deal with Great Britain, and with this new enemy.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report : Appendix
North Africa

The British have arrived at Tobruk with too much, too soon. We are going to have to move along the coast, an immensly slow process. German help is going to be in short supply with war in Russia on the front burner.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
24 June 1940

Soviet losses exceed our own, and we are making some advances, but we have much on our plate.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
1 July 1940

We are pleased with the flow of battle in the East. We did not want this war, at this time. However it may have come at a worse time, and we must fight the battles we have.

[battlevonwar]

It also has been mentioned to me by one player and has happened to me. It is in the scripts, the AI would choose War over giving over a The Romanian territory. That or PBEM, you don't decide period?

ORIGINAL: gwgardner

To what do you attribute this Soviet aggressiveness. Were you resisting their efforts to coerce Romania or elsewhere? Or was it your support of Finland?

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
9 July 1940

The Command Authority (Political) has decided to create a new nation : Croatia. This was against OKH advice. We do not need the complexities of managing minor powers in the East. We welcome them as allies, but wish another decision had been made.

Our desire to invade Great Britain has really interferred with the campaign in Russia. Our current strategy is to deal with both enemies as needed, realizing that this means simply grinding away in the USSR. We will not be on the defensive, but we have no particular strategic goals there. We expect superior operational excellence will result in higher casualities for the Red Army. When we have the right force mix, and sufficient strength then we will drive in the center and south, with the Baltic countries and northern Russia being avoided.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
16 July 1940

We continue to train the airborne unit for a drop on Great Britain. We have absolute air superiority, and are comfortable with the Luftwaffe's ability to keep sea lanes open once we have a port.

In the East the Red Army seems to have attacked with no plans for taking any ground, and we are not able to take much either so it is low intensity warfare just now.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
24 July 1940

The situation in North Africa is unfortunate. We are much too cramped to manuver, and the British are swarming our position.

We make progress in the East, and are planning the assault on Great Britain. These are very busy times.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Appendix
24 July 1940

North Africa : Why are we here?

Great Britain presents a multi headed threat to the Axis. In a certain sense the English speaking peoples present this threat, as we expect the United States will enter the war against us unless we can end it before that occurs. If we are at war with the great land power, the uSSR, and the great sea power, Great Britain and the United States, then we must address them both. The southern flank can be defended in Italy, and the Balkans, or it can be defended across the whole Mediterranean. If we can get a strong position in North Africa then we would prefer to meet GB/USA there.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
1 August 1940

In North Africa we cannot unload reinforcements at Tobruk and are about to choose Tripoli instead. This involves a major test of patience as the marching across the unimproved coast "road" is a miserable logistic nightmare.

Our airborne division is less than a month away from being in drop ready condition on the French coast. We see no signs of the British being worried about a strike, but we are serious. The success at Malta convinces us that we can take a port this way. Holding it against a determined enemy is another matter, but the British will miss the powerful forces in the Middle East, and those lost in the Battle for France.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
9 August 1940

We are still hemmed in in North Afrika, but have decent strength inside the pocket. We are concerned about losses to the Italian Navy from Royal Navy air craft. The British now hold Bengazi, and fighting our way out of such cramped quarters is daunting.

In the East we are doing waht we must. It is apparent that, despite their declaration of war, the Soviets are not going to be going on the offensive any time soon. We do not have the mass to consider strategic decisions as to points of attack. We attack everywhere, and defend everywhere. We can not build a reserve, so we are trying to keep the Soviets off balance. As they become stronger, and we slow, perhaps we will be able to make the southern bias we now show into an actual strategic decision.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
16 August 1940

We want to look at our other major focus now, the Sea Lion invasion of Great Britain. We intend a coup de main, a single Fallschirmjäger division will attempt a landing, and capture of a port. Once the port is taken, the transports and barges we have assembled will be convoyed across by the navy and Luftwaffe. We are confident in our troops once they get ashore, but the airborne operation is a huge gamble.

[cpdeyoung]

OKH Situation Report
16 August 1940 - continued

In the East as the fast forces push on ahead there is much fighting in the pockets.