2x3+ Team Side Game - BOTH SIDES

[Crackaces]

Telemecus introduces me to femtomangment .. This implies much greater detail than say "micromanagement" ... The size of a gold atom's nucleus is about 9 femtometers .. [:D]
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T017 Axis Air End Checklist

Also at the request of the new air commander I made notes on what could be done by an air commander for their go at the end of a turn. Below is the result:-

Air Go Checklist

END
i) Final air recon: Raise detection levels for multi turn tracking or to increase interdiction
-airbases can be raised to detection level 2
-units in clear terrain to 4 which means a two-thirds probability they will at least be seen in out line next turn and more interdiction
-units in other terrain close to ours to 2 (half as good as the ones in clear - debatable if this is useful)
ii) Industry bombing: heavy industry or other targets left for end
iii) Sending airgroups to reserve (where airgroups are still unused recycle them through reserve is a good idea)
iv) Final airbase moves (e.g. to safety in enemy turn, to where needed for air defence, interdiction, ground support in enemy turn)
v) General call up of aircraft from national reserve (to where needed in enemy turn and to airbases where you want fuel/ammo/supply/support in your next turn)
vi) Air Doctrine for Soviet phase (where this can be changed)
vii) Switch all airgroups to both day and night missions
-but PZL bombers to nights (they are too precious to waste on interdiction)
-Brewsters to nights (same reason)

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Air

The Soviet Team has a new air commander this turn who makes a "team protocol" for us too!

Each Ground Commander is responsible for their own Tactical Air Operations and moving the Air Bases that belong to each Front. However, do not move Long Range Air Command bases, these are directly under the Air Marshal. Here are some pointers from one of our previous Air Marshals:

* If you ever attack anything, bomb the hex twice beforehand.

* Keep airbases around 5 hexes behind your front line, unless it is clear that that area will be overrun.

* Bunch your airbases up as close to each other as possible; mutual fighter protection.

* At the end of your turn, bomb all tank/mech units twice, and any threatening infantry units twice as much as possible.

* For bombing missions, don't do the auto mode: Hold shift, then right click the hex you want to bomb. That way you can choose which air units will take part. More than 200 bombers per attack is not that efficient. Il-2 are better against mech/tank units. Level bombers better against infantry.

* If it is likely that the Germans will use air supply in an area, make sure that bases with fighters with miles left in them are close by as much as possible.

* Only aircraft attached to a front can fly ground support for that front. So, within your command, make sure that each front has some air units, and that they are within range.

* You are free to transfer air regiments within and between the Bases and Fronts under your command to your liking. Try to maintain the following Air Base organization when possible:

IAD - Fighters AB
BAD - Bombers AB
DBAD - Long Range Bombers AB
TBAB - Heavy Bombers AB
SAD/VVS/PVO - Mixed (All types of AC) AB
VVS-ChF - Mixed Black Sea AB
VVS-KBF - Mixed Baltic AB

At the time of writing this report we have 2541 Fighters, 721 Tactical Bombers, 1955 Level Bombers, 166 Recon and 95 Transport aircraft, 5478 in total.

Current distribution of SAF Regiments is listed below.

[Beria]

T017 Soviet

Soviet Supreme Commander
files will be with us by tomorrow, the axis team said....They ended their message with "Good Luck" .....
that is quite troublesome.

Soviet Centre Commander
No German has yet crossed the Volga.
The Germans are massing on the other side in the Yaroslavl sector.
Mud is forecasted for next week, if that happens
we should be able to hold them back.

Soviet South Commander
They have so much territory, I fear an attack on Gorky could be a very real possibility!
An attack at Rostov to the Don river would be easier for then and make it easier to contain the Southern front.

Axis Supreme Commander
not one ground attack in their whole turn
37 ground bombings and 75 observations

Soviet Supreme Commander
USSR will transform into a triumvirate. All three Marshals will discusss between themselves on what move to do is best.
But here are my orders ...

[Telemecus]

ORIGINAL: Beria

Soviet Supreme Commander
USSR will transform into a triumvirate. All three Marshals will discusss between themselves on what move to do is best.
But here are my orders ...

This democracy is approved by Stalin [:D]

[Beria]

T017 Soviet North Ground Bombing

Axis Supreme Commander
They have gone mad bombing the Finns - their air commander certainly has it in for them!
We can now use all those very short range Finnish fighters that would not get used otherwise

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Moscow Bombing

Soviet Air Commander
Make sure when you do air attacks that they have fighter escort. This turn I made one false move with an unescorted bombing mission, result = disaster.

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Moscow

Soviet Centre Commander
Looks like the Germans are digging in across the entire front. 40 miles east of Moscow they are building a proper fortified defensive line.

Soviet South Commander
Recommend city of Murom be fortified, it will be hard to build a fort with mud but at least over a level 1 fort...

[Zorch]

ORIGINAL: Telemecus

ORIGINAL: Beria

Soviet Supreme Commander
USSR will transform into a triumvirate. All three Marshals will discusss between themselves on what move to do is best.
But here are my orders ...

This democracy is approved by Stalin [:D]

Stalin approved this, too.

[Telemecus]

Sleeping on the floor is the new in thing! Everyone in the Soviet Union does it and likes it too by order of Comrade Stalin.

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Voronezh Pocket Air Supply

Axis Supreme Commander
We can predict where they will fly now and try to build up heavy air losses for them there.
A lot of supply planes flown in though, we still have too little forward fighter cover.

Axis Air Commander
Did our fighters intercept ?

Axis Air Commander
Yes. Hungarians did a good job too

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Ground Bombing Airbases

Bombing of an airbase - but one without aircraft

Axis Supreme Commander
they are now attacking our airbases - but with ground bombing not airbase bombing
are they aware - we will let them know

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Recon

Axis Supreme Commander
they even reconned as far as Kiev

[Telemecus]

ORIGINAL: Beria
T017 Soviet Recon

Axis Supreme Commander
they even reconned as far as Kiev

And I am still asking why!?

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Stalingrad Rail Pinch

Soviet South Commander
with out a functioning rail east of the Volga.

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Cavalry Corps Training Programme And Skis

Soviet South Commander
Supreme commander, Comrades, we need to start preparing the Cavalry for the winter offensive, the Cavalry corps will be our most reliable mobile unit for this winter offensive and for all of 1942. As the regular tank corps that will be available in April 1942 will be kind of crap for a tank division standard, and pathetic if compared to a German panzer division.

What I recommend, is effective immediately during the mud, we must place all Cavalry formations far away from the front line, replaced by rifle brigades if possible,
and set in refit until they can form in to Cavalry corps in December, preferably, we should place the divisions in the Center Area, south of the Oka river so they can be distributed easily to any front. It's imperative that we do this as soon as possible, there seams to be a hard coded rule in the production system: only 200 cavalry squads can be created per logistic phase, for exe: During the refit phase, even if all the cavalry divisions are on refit and they all demand cavalry squads, exactly 200 cavalry squads will be created, and then during the regular replacement phase, again only 200 cavalry squads can be created.

In other words, failure to prepare our cav formations could mean we won't have enough Cav Corps to spreed out in vital sectors during the important December month, thus our offensive will lack the needed punch. With these good formations we can even perform successful hasty attacks on German infantry regiments!

Paired with this, we can count on a special Support Unit for this winter occasion, the sky battalion, if you check the manual, it states that this small SU can gain up to 3 times its original CV in battle during blizzard! Excellent to attach to the cav corps, what makes it a great efficient SU is also the fact is light on manpower and armaments, just less then 700 men total with few mortars. The only downside is that it's only possible to recruit it in November, thus only 3 effective turns of training. Even a quite depleted with relatively few Cavalry squads yet it still has 10 CV!

[Beria]

T017 Soviet Arrivals

Soviet South Commander
special attention should be given to the fully man rifle divisions that will arrive during the mud and snow. these are high morale, experience units, their placement for an offensive will be crucial, those of note in the next 3-4 turns are:

65th rifle division.
413th rifle
415th rifle
239th rifle
372nd rifle
17th Mountain cavlary division.

for turn 22, 6 great rifle division will arrive! but this will be way up in snow.
366th rifle
382nd ridle
390th rifle
385th rifle
387th rifle
391st rifle

and of course all naval rifle brigades, with high exp and morale, a very efficient use of command points.

[Telemecus]

T001-017 Axis Review

I think it is fair to say we had a stonking summer 1941 campaign.

Inspite of having faced a near total disaster on turn 1, we never looked back afterwards. We ended up with Leningrad, Moscow and Voronezh - only Rostov escaped us from the main 1941 objectives. We got lots of industry including key factories from Moscow. A stream of big pockets were created between North Ukraine and Tambov, around the Landbridge and in Moscow - and all of the armies sent to Leningrad for its defence were cut off by bombing of its port of Osinovets. But we suspect the actual manpower and equipment captured was less than would be expected from other such unit hauls in other games.

The alternative southern opening did not work in the way we planned. But I think just by being different and shaking things up it had a dramatic effect. The Soviet side massively reinforced the sector and held up to the border only to see many of those units surrounded and destroyed.

No players actually had to be replaced, so we do have the same individuals who started turn 1 even if their positions had to change. And the other team members who rated themselves as inexperienced could now certainly be said to be very capable. The team started with a very structured approach of team allocations and a protocol. But once a working pattern got going we found we could start disorganising and got the game going with even faster turns, with team members being able to co-ordinate between themselves in for example making the Voronezh pocket, although worries over team work have appeared. Air power however for the most part was not well co-ordinated across the team, although having someone primarily responsible for it should change that.

We are now facing the mud period of Raspusitsa followed by a limited snow offensive arranged in the south. But after that the dreaded blizzard. However already we have arranged for many of our motorised units and highest morale infantry to be safely ensconced in winter garrisons and so preserved for the 1942 campaign. Our 1941 summer campaign has left us with a large buffer of territory of little value we can give up to let our opponents run out of steam on. And in front of Moscow we are already preparing a harder stop line to the rear of our frontlines. We are ready.

Axis Commander
For how many pockets we have made 3.5 mil seems low, I am guessing that is from them not fiddling with TOE's ?
So all hauls are averagely spread

or just we went so fast we were pocketing shells?

[Beria]

Ok so it did go so well for us - but 1941 never does! [:D] But reading back on the time I think the Soviet team ends the period streets ahead of where it started. it has started to ask the right questions, decide on the trade-offs that exist now even if they do not become apparent in many turns, and are starting to decide what to lose rather than having it decided for them. Choices are being made about industry, units and airgroups to be created and logistics and training behind. it is not just painting arrows in a map and praying they come true anymore.

Although I know @Telemecus you did not touch a unit or airgroup for any battle, nevertheless having an experienced player in team as teacher supremo made the difference. I am guessing why the noobs of turn 1 are now the pros of turn 17! What the Soviet side above all has needed was stability. but with 10 players in 17 turns that has been lacking. Until now perhaps?

Big decisions have been made to put more emphasis on evacuating heavy industry over arms. We will find out if that paid off later in the game, but only if we survive earlier in the game with the arms shortage. But at least with our new units and cavalry training programme we are starting to build Red Army 2.0. We have held on to Rostov and have the blizzard to look forward to.

[Der_Panzer]

Soviet TOE Turn 17

[corbon]

ORIGINAL: Beria

Ok so it did go so well for us - but 1941 never does! [:D] But reading back on the time I think the Soviet team ends the period streets ahead of where it started. it has started to ask the right questions, decide on the trade-offs that exist now even if they do not become apparent in many turns, and are starting to decide what to lose rather than having it decided for them. Choices are being made about industry, units and airgroups to be created and logistics and training behind. it is not just painting arrows in a map and praying they come true anymore.

Sounds like almost every High Command in history fighting every war! Trained for one thing, turns out that the real thing is something somewhat different, got to learn on the job.