Europe 44 v6.0 - Mark Stevens (Allies) vs sealclubber (Axis)

[governato]

Curious to see the rematch and good job at stalling the Allies all along Western front! First time I saw that happen. Did you try a Winter offensive or you (wisely) used it to regroup and build reserves? Also, did your opponent try a serious breakout from Normandy with the Bombers TO option? Btw I recommend using OpartX3b and the new turn and supply rules this time! And thanks for the great AAR, it is a perfect test for the scenario.

[sealclubber]

I used the winter offensive for the replacements... by that point in the game most of my units were at 1/3rd infantry squads at best (and tank strength varied but was quite low in a number of panzer units) so it was a welcome boost.

My opponent didn't really push hard in Normandy early on... I actually asked him about that on turn 4-5ish I think and he promptly started launching more than one attack per turn there... I think his focus was purely on the East. IMO if you don't break out of Normandy by historical at the _latest_ you end up facing reinforcements that, historically, replaced the armies that were totally lost by the Axis in France. Facing both the original armies and the replacement armies around a constricted beachhead is not going to be a good time.

Round 2 is coming soon!

[sealclubber]

A few notes I wrote while doing the AAR (and just remembered I had) for Axis players, based on my play-through:

- Allied firepower is crippling early game and still very strong mid-game. Resting units is critical. Some areas of the map have brutally bad supply but are great defensively (Transylvanian Alps) - you might need to rotate units across entire fronts continuously to keep fresh units in the line - make it work - it's worth it.

- Obvious: for the Axis, panzer divisions are everything. Their proficiency levels are the single advantage you have in this scenario. I also think they are wasted being put into the frontlines (in most cases). One turn in the front and the Allies will grind it into mulch. They are much more effective in the counter-attack. At one point I didn't bother defending certain frontline hexes.. because any Allied units that entered the hex would be at immediate risk of counter-attack by 3 or more totally fresh panzer divisions.

- In the early turns in the East I felt I usually didn't have a choice but to throw the panzer divisions into the line, but I think they are much better behind the lines for quick counter-attacks and (if possible) withdrawn so they can't get pounded by the Allies.

- I can't count the number of times a hex of defending infantry was retreated, but that one fortified, 33/1 panzer battalion held on. By the end of game I had at least two or three of these units at 100% proficiency. I actually almost never rested these units... their impact comes from the TO&E, not their overall combat strength (given their small size) and they were in too high of a demand.

The one comment I'll make for Allied players - aside from having to break out of Normandy, there's nothing else that I think you absolutely must do on a timeline. It's beneficial in the early turns to exploit the bad Axis position, but once you start hitting a solid line that you can't immediately break through, it's probably a good time to consider stopping to rest. They'll be fortified in 3-5 turns and you'll bleed yourself dry. This is not v3.3, where you can grind away slowly and make small (but continuous) territorial gains...

In the east, Deep Battle, not Attrition Warfare, comrade.