Eastern Front 1941-1945 v8.1 Soviets vs AXIS PO

[gwgardner]

I abandoned my rev 6 AAR of this scenario against the AXIS PO, after learning that I had to manage the PO rail repair, and give the PO an 'intelligence' boost. Now starting anew with rev 8.1. Note that I have turned off command and control, active disengagement, and fog of war.

[gwgardner]

It is now turn 7, early August, and it's clear that the PO is doing much better at maintaining a coherent front. I believe the supply units and management of rail repair are helping with this, although there are still some gaps in the PO lines that I could exploit, but perhaps not to the Soviet advantage, due to mobilization just now gather steam. Lots of Soviet units are still understrength.

The available rifle squads has risen in the last week from about 1000 to the more substantial number shown this week.

[gwgardner]

north
The Germans and Finns have pushed hard to advance on Murmansk. The Leningrad front is still weak, with three armies still mobilizing to the east, but only at 50-60% so far.

[gwgardner]

center
The Moscow defense is still forward; the Soviets desperately need the reinforcements that are just now mobilizing in the East and near Bryansk.

[gwgardner]

south
The Germans are near Sevastepol. The Soviets are still dismantling and transporting out industries and equipment there, with completion scheduled in one more week. It's going to go down to the wire there.

Kiev still holds, but the movement of industrial assets has completed there, as well as in Bryansk.

[gwgardner]

Turn 25 , Dec 7 1941
On the eve of the Soviet winter offensive, the situation is quite different in version 8.1 compared to rev 6. I have manually repaired the AXIS rail lines and have on occasion adjusted some of their positions.

[gwgardner]

In the North, the Leningrad Front settled into static positions in October, with few attempts by the PO to encircle the city. The PO still tends to forget the region south of Leningrad towards Moscow, so this is where I manually adjusted its position abit.

[gwgardner]

Center
Again, the PO pretty much discontinued offensive operations around Moscow, upon reaching the immediate vicinity. Since then the Soviets have brought up six newly mobilized armies with the intent to launch a winter offensive. The PO has a thin line to the southwest of Moscow, so that is where the initial thrust of the Soviet attack will take place.

[gwgardner]

South
Sevastopol is under siege, and the AXIS early on lost the initiatiave for crossing the Kerch Strait, The Soviet 51st Army was brought up to deny a crossing, and is poised to counterattack and relieve Sevastopol. The Soviets will also test the Romanian sector of the German 11th Army positions north of the Crimea.

[gwgardner]

Feb 1, 1942

The Soviet winter offensive has succeeded in pushing back the German forces from both Leningrad and Moscow, Eastern Ukraine, and the Crimea.

While the AXIS PO has reestablished a very tenuous line (albeit with a fairly huge gap in the Ukraine), after a pell-mell retreat, the Soviets have been stopped primarily due to logistics.

The weaknesses of the TOAW PO system are apparently going to lead to an ahistorical Soviet advance, and an early end to the scenario.

I may next try the scenario in hot-seat mode. Or continue this instance playing both sides. It may be too late for that, as far as the German situation is concerned.

[gwgardner]

north

[gwgardner]

center

[gwgardner]

south

[governato]

I have made a version 8.2 of Eastern Front that has some useful Theater Options to help the PO.
If anybody wants a not yet for public release copy of v8.2 please send me a PM.


For example in v8.2 the Red Army human player as a TO to increase the Axis automatic rail repair and another TO to improve the Axis logistics.
The Axis player has similar options at their disposal. They are useful to make the PO stronger but also to help an inexperienced human player and/or if you strongly think
the designer has been unfair to one side or the other (he wasn't )

The official release of 8.2 will be in June 2024, as I am testing HvH over a full campaign so there will be further if likely minor changes.


Also, when playing vs the PO I strongly recommend turning fog of war ON otherwise it's too easy to exploit gaps in the line.

This is also true vs a human player. In RL both sides had large (4-5 hexes wide) sections of the front hanging during the most dynamical offensives...

[rhinobones]

Also, when playing vs the PO I strongly recommend turning fog of war ON otherwise it's too easy to exploit gaps in the line.

In addition to Fog of War, recommend turning "No Borders" ON.

Regards