Once more into the Breech with D21

[Kursk1943]

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson

A Soviet infantry unit was just about to capture D-town so I drove an LCU into the
hex to preserve it and the intelligence improved on the Soviet unit so I could tell
it's health and strength and so on. I don't think it's really a platoon, I think it's
a division and I'm thinking I can hold onto the hex for at least a turn. Maybe two.

Hi Larry, the intelligence info tells you "65th Army, 69th RD", meaning it's the 69th Rifle Division subordinated to the 65th Army.
Love your AAR, ckecking it daily!

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: Kursk1943

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson
A Soviet infantry unit was just about to capture D-town so I drove an LCU into the
hex to preserve it and the intelligence improved on the Soviet unit so I could tell
it's health and strength and so on. I don't think it's really a platoon, I think it's
a division and I'm thinking I can hold onto the hex for at least a turn. Maybe two.

Hi Larry, the intelligence info tells you "65th Army, 69th RD", meaning it's the 69th
Rifle Division subordinated to the 65th Army.
Love your AAR, ckecking it daily!

Hey there Kursk1943 dude. Thanks for the info. I should have figured that out. This
is why I don't win anymore, I miss the details. Glad you like the AAR. I try to work
on it daily so as to keep the flow going.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the T59 front lines before I have moved anybody.

EDIT: OH, and the Soviet Winter Offensive ended last turn so now the Soviets
have a shock of 98.

[Jukipo]

EDIT: OH, and the Soviet Winter Offensive ended last turn so now the Soviets
have a shock of 98.

Did you retreat too far too fast? I don't see any enemy units near your front lines. You would be awaiting cout martial for this scandal. [:-]

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: Jukipo

EDIT: OH, and the Soviet Winter Offensive ended last turn so now the Soviets
have a shock of 98.

Did you retreat too far too fast? I don't see any enemy units near your front lines.
You would be awaiting cout martial for this scandal. [:-]

I retreated back to the good supply areas so as to gain the supply advantage and refit
my units faster. It's working too. Lots of my units are now in the green and ready
to go. Others are only just now reaching safety and need some remedial rest before
hitting it again. Overall I think we're ready for combat again. Maybe I should
start the advance again.

[larryfulkerson]

Since the land combat shock difference isn't so terrible the Rumanians thought they
might ought to start the counterattacks. This might be the start of the push to
Stalingrad. Right now Rostov but eventually Stalingrad.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the T60 front lines, the front lines as they are right now. I'm wondering where the RR engrs are right now.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's some of the losses so far. I figure I lost about 8,000 HRS's in the pull back.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the front lines in T61 before I have moved anybody. Nothing happened in T60
besides me moving units further to safety and beefing up the front lines and
evacuating the Rumanians from the Crimea except for the rear guard left behind for
the duration.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's me switching to an offensive posture for a while with the exception that I'm
staying in the good supply areas instead of dashing off into the hinterland. I've
had enough time for the planes to rest up and even though the winter weather is horrid
there still might be some benefit to having the airplanes assigned to missions.
Especially the fighters.

I was just marveling at the territory that the range of this unit gives for coverage.
Almost everywhere important. This might work out after all if the Soviets would show
a little more alacrity with their movement. I explected them to be on my tails for
the entire trip and now it appears that they have supply woes too. Can if be that
Elmer has put the war on hold in certain spots? I'm going to have to review the RR
engineer priorities to see if an advance is possible from somewhere headed toward
Moscow.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the T62 front lines before I have moved anybody.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the 206th Infantry division that's just now reaching friendly lines from the
Leningrad area. It's out of supply and 1/3 ready but it's still 87% proficient.
A little rest and some training for the new guys and it'll be as good as new. On
the other hand the influx of new guys might dilute the proficiency value a bit, that
would be interesting to see the change. Only about 1 out of every 5 troopers made it
back.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the T63 front lines before I have moved anybody.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the situation near Smolensk right now. I've been hurting my brain
trying to analyse what the presence of these two enemy units might mean.
Is the main body close behind them or is this just another random recon.
An isolated unit or two, like these two, run themselves up to my lines and
then just sit there. They don't usually attack and aren't all that
threatening to the Axis but it leaves me wondering where all the Soviet units
are. I'm wondering if I should post some long range recon missions way out
front to give me advance warning. I'll try that.

[larryfulkerson]

The formation I'm moving right now is a bunch of AT guns and I'm using them for
recon by parking them in the path of likely Soviet units and I found one just
north of Slavgorod and it's a division this time which might mean that the Soviet
main body might be close. I'll need more recon to confirm.

[larryfulkerson]

There's some Soviet units approaching my lines in the Polotsk area up toward the
north of the lines. They are still well within their borders however and are't
yet a threat. I've got the troops lined up and ready but I think my units sitting
"on" the river hex isn't the best deployment and I'm going to move everybody one hex
south to get "behind" the river, use the river as a defense.

[TPOO]

Hey Larry. Realize that the Axis suffer a Pestilence Event from November 30 1941 to March 25 1942. That is one reason for a significant loss of units retreating in this weather as far as you did. If you move forward again the pestilence event is still in effect and could be worse than staying put until the event ends unless you can go forward by rail. The Pestilence Event is only for Winter 41 and is to simulate 1 that the Germans were not prepared for Winter Warfare and to make it so the German player should obey the Fuherer Directive and hold ground. You should also watch you back incase any Gestapo officers are coming for you for an interrogation. [:D]

[larryfulkerson]

...so the German player should obey the Fuherer Directive and hold ground.

Sounds good to me. Thanks for the heads up because I missed that part in the scenario briefing.

You should also watch you back in case any Gestapo officers are coming for you for an interrogation.

I got an answering machine for my phone and I've put it on vacation mode.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the front lines in T69 before I have moved anybody. Not much has changed lately
and the Soviets seem to be taking their sweet time moving down to my lines. I'm beginning
to wonder if they are still in "defend" mode. It's the middle of February and we're almost
into the spring-time mud in about T80 or so. And my boys are not moving much, digging in,
waiting for the Soviets.

There's just about the right number of units in the Bulgarian contingent to use them to
block the isthmus instead of some of the Rumanaians so I'll swap them out and extend the
Rumanian front lines all the way to the water.

Most of the planes are on INT missions and they are tearing up the Soviet units whenever
they try to move. I keep having to rotate the units to rest and back to keep everybody
in the green. About a dozen squadrons are yellow for lack of planes. They are down to
their last 10 aircraft or so out of a squadron of 42 originally. I'm going to have to
save those for the final defense. So I'll fly them to Berlin to start a museum.

[cpt flam]

Larry, does units with Do 17 have been removed?
I would think so, but prefer to know. They could go away turn 37.