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Here's Rostov. Axis are about 20-25 hexes from the railhead. No way they can do a build up right? Defenses aren't great but there's thing happenig in Moscow right now, or so I hear.

Heh, he's going to have to decide between trapping Bryansk Front or pushing past the Oka, I don't believe he can do both at once now.

You keep springing Bryansk Front out of his traps, and with mud thrown in, that's like 3 wasted turns for him, which has kind of neutered his southern pincer. (The cavalry raid also helped.) I'm liking your chances by Moscow more now.

In my experience, when you have Guards divisions before mud, that is a pretty good indicator you are winning!

It's o.k. to use a few APs before the period of building cav/tank corps, as long as you are near 500 in the pool; each turn adds 50 to the pool but you max out at 500 filled up. There is no overflow that builds up.

Moscow held, Rostov too. Picture of the entire front coming. It was a tense weekend waiting for 821's turn.

Turn 17th.

We survived. Moscow and Rostov held and now (hopefully) a much needed spell of mud will cover the front. I don't plan on sending reinforcements to the Moscow area for the first time in... ever? We need to start patching up the lines and resolving the small scale crisis in Voronezh, where a panzer division has lodged up besides the city, making evacuation impossible. Good news is I can isolate the panzers, and hopefully break the Bryansk pocket. Again.

We've reached two casualty milestones: 3 million soviet casualties (boo) and less than 1000 operational Axis tanks (yay). I had predicted 3.5 million Soviet casualties by mud, so I guess that's good. Sort of.

EDIT: The brave defenders of Sevastopol also held against strong Axis attacks. I think I can hold that city. Or at least I hope so.

From Russia with love, the Bryansk pocket is cracked open. 7 air bombardments and 3 preliminary assaults before the main attack. Downsize is I wrecked one of my few remaining tank divisions. With mud incoming, I have no clue what's going to be the fate of these troops.

Any suggestions on what my priorities should be for the Moscow evac? I evacuated the Li-2 transports last turn, wondering what I should evac this turn.

Plane factories first, then armaments. Don't be afraid to lowball the aircraft evacuations if your railcap is stretched, as long as a single factory gets out, that's good enough. Ignore the Mig factories, those cease to operate at the end of the year. Get the bombers out (and you got the Li2 out already.) Something like half your bomber production is tied up in Moscow.

I would consider in this case also getting some HI out of there, but that's a last priority item.

You did a great job with Bryansk Front. That should have been locked down several turns ago, and you somehow made him waste an entire month (granted one of those turns was mud) and he still hasn't gotten it under control. With mud arriving and it sitting astride his supply lines, he's got serious problems. His southern pincer will not be fully operational going into snow. I doubt that his single pincer in the north can finish the job by itself. You may well have saved Moscow in these last few turns. I think the Axis got greedy here and tried to do too much at once with inadequate forces. That panzer corps by Voronezh would have been better used in pocketing Bryansk Front proper.

From your mouth to God, err.. I mean Lenin's ears comrade Flaviusx. Here's an assortment of big picture screens all glued into one.

End of turn screenshots. This turn was a land grab, with mud incoming a pushed units forward to force the Axis to either attack in mud or attack or sit by and wait as I build forts for 4 turns.

Moscow Front

In order

All AC fact, exc Mig & U-2VS but including those not yet producing, e.g Li-2VP in Khimki
T-40 fact (at least 1 point if short on rail - this is also valid for the AC fact that will not be producing until much later)
ARM
HI
vehicles

The Tula-Orel pocket. A lot of reinforcements are being fed into the area. I'm determined to make a fight out of this, and with mud coming, hopefully some axis divisions will become isolated. That's the plan, keep the pocket open, protect Voronezh long enough to evacuate the factories.

The South, Rostov held out against Axis attacks last turn. To the east we cross the river and hug the panzers, not giving terrain for free during the mud.

ORIGINAL: gingerbread

In order

All AC fact, exc Mig & U-2VS but including those not yet producing, e.g Li-2VP in Khimki
T-40 fact (at least 1 point if short on rail - this is also valid for the AC fact that will not be producing until much later)
ARM
HI
vehicles

I would put veichles before HI. Vechles are important for the counteroffensive in 42-43.

I would say Moscow is not entirely safe. If the Axis really puts all he has into it, he could take it during snow. I would certainly try if I was playing Axis here. But then I am an inveterate offensive player...[:D] 

I also consider vehicles important - that's why I like to see that notenome is placing most of his airbases on rail hexes as this saves on damaged.

But the 20 (10+5+5) vehicle factories in Moscow will produce around 5000 vehicles in total during '42, roughly one '43 turn's worth of Lend Lease (4500), so I don't think it's cost effective to evacuate vehicle factories - I'd even leave the Kharkov one in favour of moving small ARM.

ORIGINAL: gingerbread
But the 20 (10+5+5) vehicle factories in Moscow will produce around 5000 vehicles in total during '42, roughly one '43 turn's worth of Lend Lease (4500), so I don't think it's cost effective to evacuate vehicle factories - I'd even leave the Kharkov one in favour of moving small ARM.

That is a very good point!

Just got a pm from 821, and in his words apparently all Axis units between Voroshlograd and Tula woke up isolated on Turn 18. Understandably 821 is quite frustrated and may resign. I have encouraged him to keep playing (I really want to get a game into 42...) but I'll respect his decision if he so chooses. I have invited him to post here, hopefully he will.

But that is probably just the mud effects, that is nothing to worry about. In my experience, you can retreat a mud-isolated unit and it will not surrender.