A Clash of Titans, Xhoel (Axis) vs Bitburger (Soviet)

[xhoel]

ORIGINAL: John B.

Very glad that this AAR is back!

Thanks John, always nice to see the people are liking the AAR!

[king171717]

Happy to see the AAR is back in action!

[xhoel]

ORIGINAL: king171717

Happy to see the AAR is back in action!

Glad to see all the support!

[xhoel]

T65, 10th of September-17th of September 1942.

Game info:

This is the last turn that was run on 1.11.03 as we updated to the newest patch (1.12.03) which fixes a lot of problems that were present. I know that the AAR is mostly written to read as a historical record of what is happening and that I rarely explain how or why I do some things. So I wanted to add some little tips to various parts of the AAR that would give new players, or just readers in general a better idea of what to do in certain situations and why. I'd be happy to read your feedback on this new feature!

Finnish AG

The Soviet forces in the north have stopped pulling back and are holding the river lines as well as the heavy wooded terrain. Finish forces as well as some German units have made contact with them but no attacks were launched this week and no proper offensive has been planned for this sector. We expect it to remain static until the end of the summer.

The 18th and 2nd Finnish Infantry Divisions have been pulled back to the north and have started R&R. Once they are back in shape, they will rotate with other units on the front.

Start of the turn:



After Axis moves:



AGN

Soviet forces north of the Volga launched 2 counterattacks and pushed back our regiments. In both battles air support from the LW played a vital role (500+ casualties caused in each battle by German bombers) adding to the heavy losses suffered by the enemy. The Soviets have redeployed their mobile reserve south-west of Yaroslavl and are holding a strong defensive line, but have not launched any attacks yet. The 8th Guard Rifle Corps has pulled back from their fortified forward position leaving only 1 Rifle Division holding the position (7=22 CV unit).

The 9th Army as well as the 3rd Panzer Army have been ordered to attack the Soviet lines to the south and after heavy fighting have made good progress, advancing 40 miles, trapping 2 strong Soviet Rifle Divisions on the Volga, routed 3 units and reached the Nerl river. The Soviets put up stiff resistance, launching local counterattacks (reserve activations in 4 battles) but they were eventually defeated at a high cost for our formations.

Tip: I tend to go for a ratio of 3:1 when considering how much attacking CV is needed to take a hex. This is because of the various rolls that units and leaders go through as well as because of unforeseen situations such as reserve activation or heavy enemy air support. You will sometimes get a bit of an overkill, but if you get a bad roll or something doesn't go as planned, you will be more than happy that you had an extra unit in the fold. Like the saying goes: better safe than sorry.

The breach means that the Soviets are left without fortifications in this sector and we expect their mobile reserve to redeploy here to counter or advance. Given the strength of the enemy reserves in the sector, we expect heavy fighting.

North of the Volga we have made good advances too. Using the 2nd and 20th Panzer Divisions deployed there as well as infantry divisions from the 16th Army we have pushed back Soviet forces and deployed in a more secure defensive perimeter which should stabilize the sector.

AGN start of the turn:



AGN after German moves:



Hold marked in red in the map above:



Heavy fighting in the northern sector:



Soviet forces deployed on the northern flank of Moscow (10=33) were pushed back by a concentrated attack of the XX Corps. Due to miscommunication and poor intelligence the LW deployed 2 bomber groups without fighter support which were torn apart by Soviet fighters. We lost 54 bombers in one raid!

Group II. of Kampfgeschwaeder 3 and Group III. of Kampfgeschwaeder 27 are out of action and will need to be pulled back to Germany for R&R.

Moscow start of turn:



Moscow after German moves:



Decimated German bomber groups:

[xhoel]

AGC

The pocket in the Center held and the enemy chose to not launch any counterattacks, but they have deployed strong forces in the defense. Intelligence reports that the Soviets have hastily raised 2 more Rifle Corps (3rd and 2nd) and deployed them together with their Tank Corps and their Guard Rifle Divisions in order to stem our advance.

The bulk of the 2nd Army as well as elements of the 4th Army were ordered to clear the pockets and did so after heavy fighting. 2 Guard Rifle Corps, 2 Rifle Divisions and 5 Guard Cavalry Corps (as well as 15 attached tank battalions) were destroyed. Their deployment to this task however meant that very few units were available for offensive operations further to the north.

Adding to that problem is the fact that most armored/motorized divisions that were guarding the pocket are very low on fuel and cannot mount any offensive, nor can they advance forward, without being refueled and resupplied. Only 4 armored/motorized divisions were available for offensive operations and orders were to push as quickly as possible towards Kovrov and exploit the "weakness" in the Soviet defense. We managed to advance a mere 10 miles before having to stop and await for resupply. Kovrov is now 20 miles away.

Meanwhile 2 Panzer Corps have been ordered to move south for refuel and resupply. They have been earmarked for a new offensive, codename Operation Tigerbiss (Operation Tiger Bite), which aims at securing the rail line for the southern push and to link up Army Group Center with Army Group North. 3 infantry divisions have also been pulled back from other quiet sectors and are assembling/preparing for the said operation. More units are expected soon, as the timetable sees the operation start no later than the 24th of September (turn 67).

The operation has been planned in absolute secrecy and all attempts are being made to prevent information leaks. Expect new updates as the operation date comes closer.

Due to no major combat in the other AGC sectors, we are sparing the readers a report.

AGC start of the turn:



AGC after German moves:



Detailed losses of the battle shown above:



Notice the heavy losses before the Soviets surrendered, 700 KIAs.

Close call in one of the pocket clearing operations:

[xhoel]

AGS

The pocket south of Stalingrad held and the isolated units were destroyed swiftly. The Soviets launched 2 counterattacks last week, one of them pushed back the Slovakian Mobile Division while the other one aimed at the 13th Panzer division, failed.

Our troops launched a well coordinated attack against the Guards Rifle Division holding a strongpoint south of the Volga and managed to push them off. Also other attacks were conducted south and west of Stalingrad and were successful as the Soviet defenders proved to be too weak to resist concentrated attacks. After opening this gap, 2 Panzer Corps of the 1st Panzer Army were unleashed on the weak Soviet forces holding the defensive ring around the city and managed to push them back, destroying fortifications and advancing north-west of Stalingrad. A small forward force has reached the Volga bank, north of the city. We expect our pincer to link up here.

The Panzer Corps are in a precarious situation however, since the enemy has a lot of strong forces in the area, can launch counterattacks and threaten to cut off our forward divisions.

Tip: When on the attack, always pay attention to enemy offensive CV as it will tell you a lot about the quality of the units you are facing (most of the time, offensive CV will tell you more than defensive CV will). Look at the screenshot below at the 3 Rifle Division stack south of the city (8=22). They are sitting on a level 3 hex and have a decent defensive CV of 22. However their attacking CV is way too low (only 8 for 3 Divisions, when 1 standard Soviet Rifle Division has a CV ranging from 8-10). That should tell you that the only reason why the defensive CV is high, is because of the fortifications. Rifle Divisions that are so weak are usually low morale, low experienced, freshly raised units who also barely have the proper TOE strength. A successful attack on them, will most likely force them to rout as it did in this case.

German forces have crossed the Volga near Baskunchak after pushing back the weak Soviet forces defending the line. A 20 mile wide crossing was secured which was used by the III Panzer Corps. All 4 divisions are across the Volga and have been refueled by air but their supply situation is precarious. The XXIX Corps (6th Army) and the LIV Corps (11th Army) are preparing to cross the river too next week.

There is a 60 mile gap between the 1st Panzer Army forces north of Stalingrad and those north of the Volga. Once this gap is closed, the pocket of Stalingrad will be sealed and the elimination of Soviet formations inside it can begin.
In total, we managed to rout 15 Soviet formations in the Stalingrad sector this week.

Tip: Always try to protect river lines with proper forces. If the crossing points had been secured by strong Rifle Divisions, it would have taken me at least two weeks to secure a bridgehead north of the Volga, like it happened in the AGN sector at the start of the summer.

The constant combat is taking a heavy toll on the 1st Panzer Army formations however. Many of the Panzer Divisions have lost a lot of their CVs because of the low number of operational tanks. Below are 3 such formations. Notice their tank numbers and their CV, which even with very high morale is on par with a good German Infantry division and far away from what it can be at full TOE.

Stalingrad sector start of the week:



Stalingrad sector after Axis moves:





Panzer divisions of the 1st Panzer Army:







The span from the Volga to Voroshilovgrad is being held by Rumanian forces, and the Soviets seem to be screening the area thinly, indicating that they are not planning to mount an offensive here.

The pocket of Voroshilovgrad also held, as the Soviet forces pulled back and are holding the Kuma river line. Fighting to eliminate the pocket was harder than expected as Soviet forces kept retreating to the center of it, refusing to surrender. It was finally destroyed but this meant that no German forces in the area were able to advance east as they had to regroup and wait for resupply. The task fell to the Rumanians who made some advances but have not managed to exploit the breakthrough.

Next week our forces will reorganize and push further east towards Grozny. Rumanian Mountain divisions are arriving in the area too and will be deployed to the Caucasus.

Volga to Voroshilovgrad span start of the week:



Voroshilovgrad sector start of the week:



Voroshilovgrad sector after Axis moves:

[xhoel]

Casualties

The losses of this week were very heavy for the Soviets. The enemy lost 246k men as irrecoverable casualties, of which 201k were POWs. Adding to that was the loss of 700 AFVs, resulting from the destruction of the 5 Guards Cavalry Corps and their attached tank battalions.

Around 18.500 men and 300 guns escaped from the pockets this week and have returned to Soviet lines.
In total 2 Guard Rifle Corps, 5 Guard Cavalry Corps, 2 Guard Rifle Divisions, 9 Rifle Divisions, 3 Rifle brigades, 2 Fortified Regions, 1 Sapper Battalion and 15 Tank Battalions were destroyed this turn.

Total ground losses:



Losses from pocket clearing:



Escaped men from pockets:



In the air the losses have been heavy on both sides. Axis forces lost 254 aircraft (highest losses since the start of the summer offensive), at least 80 of those were lost in 2 unfortunate raids without fighter cover. The Soviets lost 601 aircraft.

Air Losses:



Soviet OOB has fallen to 4.1 ready million men, but the enemy still has a strong grip on Moscow and still has some room to manouver around Stalingrad. Both armies have concentrated most of their strength in these two key sectors, with long stretches of the front remaining on static.

OOB:

[EwaldvonKleist]

I am delighted to see game&AAR to continue.
The Soviets delay you more around Moscow than I would have thought a few turns ago, and you will probably not close the encirclement before the mud. But still I don't see them stopping you during the winter, as they also lose the defensive advantage of rivers. You did a good job reducing their forces to the point where you are almost even in manpower. With Moscow and Stalingrad+some of the Caucasus taken, I am sure you can eventually pacman them to submission.

How is your truck situation? Why do you keep your infantry fallback line East of Moscow? The threat of a Soviet attack in the near future seems minimal. Could you post an overview map?
Regards
EvK

[xhoel]

Always nice to see the support and to get questions!

Honestly when the Moscow operation began in the Summer I was really optimistic about it and many of the commentators thought it was a done deal. The Soviets have done a fantastic job on the defense and progress was nowhere near to what I planned. However, turn 66, which I have just sent to my opponent changed that. I won't go into much detail, as the AAR update will be posted soon, but I can tell you that we made an unexpected breakthrough in the 3rd Panzer Army sector and I am now more optimistic about closing the pocket before the mud hits.

We will see how things go. They will recover from the manpower hit a bit during the mud and snow. Also, the static sector between Moscow and Stalingrad is heavily fortified, so if the Soviets transfer their reserves here after Moscow falls, it will be hard to achieve a breakthrough. Other offensives in the Moscow area as planned in the summer will probably be put on pause, since I now know firsthand how difficult it is to fight in the terrain here. I will also be very reluctant to attempt broad offensives during the blizzard. My AFV pools are empty and as you can see from the screenshots of the Panzer divisions, these units only have a handful of their tank strength and will need to rest and recover.

The truck situation is good. I had an 8k surplus on turn 65 but unfortunately under the new patch, in turn 66 I now have 73k surplus! Not a big fan of this change, but morvael has promised that it will be changed in the data changes soon and I don't aim at abusing it.

I am guessing you are referring to the units west of Moscow? They are simply there to hold the level 3 forts (will build forts to uphold the level 3 soon) and just keep the Soviets in check. Some of those regiments, will be taking part in the planned offensive operation soon.

Will post an overview map of the whole front in the next update!

[EwaldvonKleist]

but I can tell you that we made an unexpected breakthrough in the 3rd Panzer Army sector and I am now more optimistic about closing the pocket before the mud hits.

It is difficult to predict, especially about the future!

Thanks for the other explanations and can't wait to see the next instalments of the Moscow operation.

My AFV pools are empty and as you can see from the screenshots of the Panzer divisions, these units only have a handful of their tank strength and will need to rest and recover.

True, yet the Soviets have the same problem with manpower and maybe other categories, yet the regenerate quicker. I wouldn't wait until spring/summer with a continued offensive except if you are at risk of running the truck fleet to the ground. The Volga salient between Moscow and Stalingrad is clear terrain, has a few manpower centres and a good rail network plus you seperate the Northern and Southern Soviet front.
You can't make Omelette without breaking a few eggs!

[xhoel]

ORIGINAL: EwaldvonKleist

It is difficult to predict, especially about the future!

Thanks for the other explanations and can't wait to see the next instalments of the Moscow operation.

True and it may very well be that Moscow doesn't fall before the mud hits. The update should be up in the next couple of days so stay tuned!

ORIGINAL: EwaldvonKleist

True, yet the Soviets have the same problem with manpower and maybe other categories, yet the regenerate quicker. I wouldn't wait until spring/summer with a continued offensive except if you are at risk of running the truck fleet to the ground.

The Volga salient between Moscow and Stalingrad is clear terrain, has a few manpower centres and a good rail network plus you seperate the Northern and Southern Soviet front.
You can't make Omelette without breaking a few eggs!

True, but the Soviets are currently only constrained by the manpower of which they recover around 110.000 men a turn so they should be fine as the time goes by. Trucks no longer being a major factor will help the Soviets too since it means they can mechanize their army a lot more and not care about truck losses.

I don't have any plans for switching on the defensive entirely, just saying that there won't be any major offensive operations like the Moscow one. I know that until mid 1943 the Germans can still go on the offensive and I plan to make good use of that. On 1944 that would be more or less unimaginable and 1945 will be a nightmare.

Yes, that seems like the main place to strike to me. There are urban centers close to the front and they can be grabbed without too much of a fight hopefully and the terrain will help. We still have some time till the winter comes. Most of the planning will be done during the mud turns, so I don't wanna plan ahead. Changes to the situation may change the goals.

[xhoel]

T66, 17th of September-24th of September 1942.

Finnish AG.

The Finish sector remains calm. The Soviets have abandoned their positions on the Mologa river and the 122nd division has crossed it and positioned itself on the defense here. 1 infantry division has been pulled from the sector and sent east to support the push of AGN.

Positions at the start of the turn:



Positions after Axis moves:



AGN

The pocket in the north held and the enemy has abandoned 2 strongly held positions near the Volga but has not shifted their reserves south. The bulk of their guard units and of their Cavalry remain on the front, presumably because the enemy fears an advance at this point towards Ivanovo.

The Soviets have reinforced the Nerl river banks and have prepared defenses in depth to prevent a crossing. With the southern and eastern sectors heavily defended the enemy has left the sector between them lightly defended. Here is exactly where we aim to push.

The 9th Army was immediately ordered to clean up the pocket and push south east, to open an avenue for the Panzers to break through to the open ground. After a powerful attack, the 2 Soviet Rifle Divisions surrendered, netting around 17k POWs. The attack against the strongest held enemy position (22=56) was successful even though it came at a great cost and required the commitment of 7 infantry divisions.

The 3rd Panzer Army which has been involved in constant heavy fighting during all this time and has rarely had the chance to create the same successful pockets as the 2nd and 1st Panzer Armies is finally given a chance to shine.
With the road open, these units moved south clearing the weak Soviet forces in their path. The armored spearheads managed to penetrate 40 miles and are now 50 miles away from the city of Vladimir.
This advance presents the biggest risk so far to Moscow as the 3rd Panzer Army could outflank the Soviet defenses on the Nerl and link up with the spearheads of Army Group Center trapping the whole Kalinin Front defending Moscow and the surrounding areas.

Heavy counterattacks are expected next week, as the enemy will undoubtedly react to this development. To help with the situation, both Panzer Divisions from the northern sector have been ordered south and have been refueled by air and both have received around 65% of the fuel they need.

Fliegerkorps VIII has been ordered to fly interdiction to hinder any massive Soviet movement and to also fly ground support sorties.

AGN start of the week:



AGN during the fighting:



AGN after German moves:

[xhoel]

AGC

The enemy has reinforced their positions near Kovrov and Vladimir. Rifle divisions have been stripped by the Ryazan sector to help the defenses further north. Due to developments from AGN, AGC is ordered to push north west, and reach Vladimir while at the same time taking Kovrov and denying the enemy the rail connection for an evacuation and in order to cut off their last supply line.

2nd Army engaged in heavy fighting this week but they managed to push back the Soviets in multiple places, the most important one being the (31=80) hex. We overdid most of the attacks because of incorrect intelligence which predicted stronger Soviet forces than were actually encountered.

With the assistance of elements from the 2nd Panzer Army, we have finally managed to take Kovrov and the 18th Mot Division and the 4th Panzer Division have secured the strategic town. This means that the Soviets cannot evacuate their forces by rail and that their supply situation will worsen in the next days and weeks.
We have also reached the outskirts of Vladimir and the banks of the Klyazma. Our troops have even managed to get a platoon across the river, directly north of Vladimir.

Meanwhile, troops in the Ryazan sector are gathering for operation Tiger Biss. 3 Infantry Corps and 2 Panzer Corps are assembling in the forested and swampy area and should begin their offensive next week.

The enemy has not done any recon whatsoever of the area, and if the trend continues in the coming days the Soviets will be up for a bad surprise. A success of Operation Tiger Biss would mean an encirclement of Moscow and the destruction of the whole Soviet forces which are defending the capital.

This is a major gamble, as enemy recon flown this week may collapse the whole plan and may mean that Moscow remains in enemy hands until November.
Further to the south, the front remains static. Soviet forces facing the 2nd Hungarian Army look very strong. The enemy may be planning a distracting push here to force us to divert forces but recon and intelligence have cum up empty so far.

AGC start of the week:





AGC after German moves:





Tambov sector after:



2nd Hungarian Army sector after:



Moscow front overview after Axis moves:

[xhoel]

AGS

The Soviets have carpeted the Stalingrad sector with whatever units they had available it seems. However both intelligence and recon report that most of these units are of low quality and won't be able to hinder a strong push. This is also assisted by interdiction from the IV and V Fliegerkorps which hindered the Soviets from reinforcing the sector strongly.
The week begins with enlarging the corridor on the Volga. The Soviets forces here are pushed back after a strong attack by 3 divisions. We lose 26 bombers to enemy air interceptors even though they were well escorted. With this task completed, our armored units push back Soviet forces closest to the bridgehead to allow safe crossings for the infantry divisions. Attacks continue in the north as Soviet formations keep faltering to attacks from the III Panzer Corps.

At the same time, the 6th Army launches heavy attacks west of Stalingrad to clear the positions and allow the rest of the 1st Panzer Army to move. After heavy attacks, supported by heavy bombing from the IV and V Fliegerkorps, the armored units have secured Dubovka and reached the Volga meeting up with the 3rd Panzer Division and sealing the Stalingrad pocket.

A testament to the heavy fighting is the number of AFVs lost by the 1st Panzer Army: 51 tanks and 11 AC and SPs were destroyed while many more AFVs were damaged in the process.

Inside the pocket there are 3 Tank Brigades, 6 Rifle Divisions (low TOE and quality), 2 Guards Rifle divisions, 3 Rifle Brigades, 1 Motorized Brigade, 2 Rifle Corps (one of them is a Guard formation), 1 Fortified Region, 1 Light Gun Brigade as well as 3 Army Hqs: 38th Army (GP Konstantin Rokossovsky), 9th Army (GM Vasily Yushkevich) and the 52nd Army (GL Ivan Fedyuninsky).
This totals to around 150k men (average estimate) trapped in the pocket.

The enemy may breach the pocket as it is not air tight yet. The Soviets have plenty of reserves nearby and we have lost track of 4 Tank Corps which where in the sector a week ago. Hopefully the pocket will hold and the battle for taking Stalingrad proper can begin.

Stalingrad sector start of the week:



Stalingrad during fighting:



Stalingrad after Axis moves:



Battle on the Volga banks circled in black above. Notice the heavy air losses even though they were escorted:



Soviet commanders and their HQs trapped in the pocket:



Further to the south, the enemy has pulled back once more. The Soviets have even abandoned the port of Tuapse. The 17th Army is on their heels and 2 Corps have been positioned ready for attacks next week. The Rum. Cavalry Corps pushes a 30 miles gap in the Soviet defenses.

We are slowly making progress in the Caucasus mountain range as well, as the mountain divisions are marching towards Sukhumi.

Caucasus sector start of the week:





Caucasus sector after Axis moves:





AGS after Axis moves overview:

[xhoel]

Casualties and OOB

Casualties this week remained high for the enemy in terms of men lost. Around 78k were lost as irrecoverable casualties. AFV losses on our side were very heavy, a total of 228 from which 187 were tanks. The constant heavy losses in tanks and the failure of the industry to replenish these losses is leading to a lower combat capacity of the front line units. AFV pools for medium tanks are empty and many panzer divisions are fighting with 40% of their authorized tanks, of which only half is operational. The newly created 27th Panzer division arrived this week and has boarded trains bound for AGN, where they will join the 3rd Panzer Army. A look at their TOE also shows the lack of tanks in the pools. The division only has 30% of it's light and medium tanks available, making it a panzer division simply in name.

Ground Losses:



Soviet losses detail:





27th Panzer Division TOE:





TOEs of Panzer divisions deployed as part of the 1st Panzer Army:





AFV production pools:



Losses in the air were heavy as well, 155 aircraft lost on our side this week while the Soviet losses were relatively low, only 282 aircraft lost.



OOB at the end of the week:

[xhoel]

Panzer TOE changes.

Since the start of September 1942, Panzer Divisions have received new TOEs, respectively the 42b and 42d Panzer Division TOEs. Both TOEs increase the amount of organic artillery that the Panzer Divisions have at their disposal. In both TOEs the number of Panzer IVGs is increased to 20 while Panzer IIIn are lowered by 1. The 42b reduces the number of Panzer IIIm to 90 (-15). This reduction in numbers is aimed at creating some surplus which will then be used by the 42d TOE, which prescribes an increase in the numbers of Panzer IIIm to 45 (+15), while at the same time reducing the numbers of the no longer in production Panzer 38(t)E from 65 to 45 (-20).

[EwaldvonKleist]

Thanks for the overview screenshot. Strong operations at Moscow and Stalingrad, things go quicker than anticipated for a change.


Good news [:)]

[Telemecus]

ORIGINAL: EwaldvonKleist

Thanks for the overview screenshot.

Good news [:)]

Bad news - he can no longer be in the preferred command of a corps [:(]

[EwaldvonKleist]

But the pay is much better!

[Telemecus]

Is this also not the big boss' way of saying he expects you not to live?