The Red Menace (Topeverest vs Admiral Kamikaze)

[topeverest]

My big concern is that I have lost track of a number of panzer divisions.

[topeverest]

The German armor showed up and made a two pronged blitz, pinching a soviet army of 12 divisions. Could have been much worse. As I expected, he pooled all AGN and ACG armor and attacked at points in the south. He is good at scouting the weaknesses in the line. It could have been a bigger breakthrough, but perhaps luck was on my side. I counterattacked one encirclement attempt and got all the divisions out, and the 12 division pocket still fights on two turns later. The new lines include slow German progress crossing the Volkov and freebie ground in the south. Stopped 5 hexes west of Tula. Kursk still in soviet hands, but unless the mud comes, I will need to withdrawal, because it is a salient. Heavy soviet counterattacking there to save the army. germans took Kharkov in the initial blitz breakout. Concentrated panzer and motorized infantry pushing west to Stalino was stopped well short.

The big question is when the mud will come.

I am experimenting with Partisans. Is the rule one air unit supplies one partisan through night missions? What is a good use for them? I presume that I concentrate on key east west lines.

[topeverest]

I must say I am struggling with the whole IGOUGO thought process that freezes time for an entire movement and combat phase in a continental land war. It is way too simple to exploit blitz / combat success. This game's mechanics as a whole - despite several insightful elements - seem somewhat from a different age, using concepts that have long since had their day. Still fun to play, but I am struggling to suspend some measure of disbelief. In any event, onward we play.

[topeverest]

The last three turns have been quick, as the weather closed in, the German offensive ground to a halt. I held Stalino in the south and part of the VOlkov river in the north. I am guessing, I have lost the last of the factories I will lose, as I am fastidiously moving all factories that could be in play in 42. I have completed air upgrades, and I am working on getting rid of all 3 and 4 rating commanders. Still 5 to go. I have forces in place to attack at Moscow once the winter takes full hold. Overall, the burden of attack is about to shift to the ruskies.

[topeverest]

Here is the map

[topeverest]

I assume I have lost the last of what I will lose that I can move except for resources rail, etc. Here is a picture of what I have. please advise how I did?

[topeverest]

Not sure how I fared here, but here are ground and air losses. Note the I series are all retired. Still fumbling through how many squadrons to use to supply the partisans.

How are my air losses? Do I need to change my air doctrine?

[topeverest]

Note the difference not sure how to interpret

[topeverest]

Actually I still have six '4' commanders to replace. Is Zukov the only 7 armor commander?

[topeverest]

Comments please?

[loki100]

claim no expertise in the air war but I am going off using a low % to fly, I think you run the risk of burning through morale and experience.

For the others, its a case of seeing 100% as the balance point (ie you've handed decision making to the AI). If you go under 100% then you are going to get more attacks but perhaps understrength, if you go over 100% it may well see less attacks but en-masse.

My feeling is the balance varies by game. In my current game my German opponent is re-enacting the Battle of Britain over Moscow, using lots of fighter sweeps to drive the VVS from the skies. I've responded by increasing my commitment levels so he won't be catching small air units but facing a lot (even if less often). Its not so much absorbing the losses, its more that he is stopping me gaining morale or experience as I am winning very few air battles

[Tom Hunter]

I'm still working on understanding the air war in depth, but I think that airbase and regiment placement is more important than the doctrine settings. Shifting them seems to make some difference in a turn with lots of missions, but still leaves either side open to terrible losses when things go wrong. I frequently see the Red Airforce fly what are pretty much suicide missions when the Germans have many more planes in the area. Conversely I managed to burn up my opponents fighter resources for a couple of turns and then launched attacks that drew unescorted bombers which my fighters murdered.

You do want to figure this out, your airforce can take tremendous losses but not ten to one. I'm finding that if the losses stay between two and four to one and under 200 planes a turn the Red Airforce gets bigger and better. As quality improves you will get more turns of two to one losses, but its still a hard and bloody fight. Remember the end goal is not sweeping the Luftwaffe from the skies, its having an airforce that pounds the crap out of the axis on the ground.

[Gabriel B.]

ORIGINAL: topeverest

Note the difference not sure how to interpret

Those are the losses that matter most : killed and captured .

167,334 for axis I would say historical but

only 2 milion soviet casulties means you are in the driving seat.

[M60A3TTS]

Fighter intercept to 300% Ground support and ground attack 250% escort 300%, Can you post from the command screen the aircraft deployed filtered by air command?

[topeverest]

M60A3TTS,
Here is a 35% alphabetical sample of the aircraft deployed by air command. What are you looking for?

I am inclined to increase the 10% required to fly because it probably burn my pilot experience.

[topeverest]

Tom,

I obviously am testing your theory. I want to test getting the fighters patrolling within half their radius.

Place airbases on rails within 3 hexes of line if fighters and 6 hexes if bombers.

Then match bombers to fighter ranges, and giving away longer penetration behind lines. Anyway that is the thought.

[topeverest]

Loki,

I am beginning to think this is good advice. taking required to fly up to about 70% and test. Though I am not sure how I will know if it works.

ORIGINAL: loki100

claim no expertise in the air war but I am going off using a low % to fly, I think you run the risk of burning through morale and experience.

For the others, its a case of seeing 100% as the balance point (ie you've handed decision making to the AI). If you go under 100% then you are going to get more attacks but perhaps understrength, if you go over 100% it may well see less attacks but en-masse.

My feeling is the balance varies by game. In my current game my German opponent is re-enacting the Battle of Britain over Moscow, using lots of fighter sweeps to drive the VVS from the skies. I've responded by increasing my commitment levels so he won't be catching small air units but facing a lot (even if less often). Its not so much absorbing the losses, its more that he is stopping me gaining morale or experience as I am winning very few air battles

[topeverest]

From the time the weather turned mud and light snow, the Germans conducted very limited offensives and ultimately ceased offensive operations by mid November, preferring to dig in and prepare for the Red Menace (ha ha). The line runs with Stalino in Ruskie hands. Kharkov and Belgorod are in German hands barely. I have Kursk and Germans have Ordi. I am in possession of Kaluga, Moscow, and Kalinin. Germans have Leningrad.

Last turn, the first in December, I threw everything I had at him and pushed forward in linear steamroller tactics. I am not trying to outmaneuver. I am trying to destroy units and deliver casualties. Strategically, my goal is to push the Germans and take Rzhev and Vyazma. If possible, I want to take the rough area east of Velikie Luki and Novgorod. I also will play for Kharkov, since it is so close, but I have no real need to take the city.

Note I am not trying to get Leningrad back this winter, because I think it is too far away and will be too easy to cut off again. I will plan to take it back in late 42, after the unpredictable summer of 42 plays out.

Strategically, I have more units than I can handle. I have assembly areas in the rear around Vologda, Vladimir (10 hexes east of Moscow), Lipetsk (north of Voronezh), Saratov, Stalingrad, Rostov, Krasnodar (Crimea). note there are 73 combat units in the Urals waiting to be transported to an assembly area.

Lastly, the factory relocation program has closed this turn. I moved every factory from Krasnodar to Rostov due north to Tambov then neorthwest to Ryazan (SE of Moscow)

[topeverest]

All quiet in Leningrad, though I plane to attack en-echelon at very bottom of the picture as the front approaches (off map)

[topeverest]

This is the main attack... Note at bottom, second shock army with one shock division. Not sure if I am doing something
wrong, but I don't have enough shock divisions to make a shock army. Am I missing something?