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ORIGINAL: smokindave34

I'd try and protect your cavalry divisions as best you can. The cavalry corps will be your best offensive and most mobile units for a long time. You obviously can't pull them off the front lines yet but try and keep them in reserve and used as defense in depth. This will minimize the chances of them ending up in a pocket and being lost for good.

Good advice which I try to follow when I can. Unfortunately, I can't just yet.

ORIGINAL: Flaviusx

Did you get the tank factory out?

There's no breathers in 1941. The magic HQ buildup button ensures that the Axis need never take an operational pause. You can only be sure that things will slow down once you hit his logistical dead zone or mud. Basically, you have to expect that any mobile divisions within 25 mps of a railhead or so is eligible for buildup.

Yup, T34's are safe. So far I've been reasonably successful in evacuating ahead of the curve. Although there's still 17 ARM and the HI left in Kharkov. The vehicles are gon. I basically have prioritized the vehicles over ARM.
I also was able to completely evacuate Leningrad minus the HI.

According to Sebastian, he has only done 3 HQ buildups, at least last time I asked. 2 in the Center and 1 somewhere else.
I think his "secret" is dropping air supply directly on the HQ, and not on the units. Personally, I think they tuned down dropping on units directly over the patches. But dropping on the HQ seems very effective as long as the units are within reach of the HQ's vehicles.

But generally speaking I fully agree mobility, with the above "loophole", is way too high.

You probably should have left the vehicles and gotten the armaments out. Vehicle factories are prohibitively expensive to rail (I never evacuate them -- ultimately, the real Soviet vehicle factory is in Detroit. Domestic production of vehicles is very low.) But you got the t-34 factory out, and that's the main thing.

OK, I'll keep that in mind for next time. Appreciate the tip.

TURN 11
Overview North & Center before Soviet moves:

Close up North

Close up center.
Once again he blasts away my screen and the line at the river Urga. Another 5 divisions are pocketed with no hope of rescue. Bringing the total lost divisions over the last 3 turns in the Center alone to 21.
6 more turns till mud is all I can think of now.

South, Overview.
The Poltava pocket is quickly dispatched while he pushes forward and Zocs Kharkov.
Further South, his SS Wiking Division, having been in constant action, far ahead of his RR, usually above 40SP, cut off for one turn, has at least 29MP to spend. Together with the LAH and another Mot Division, it pushes back my cav screen but does not risk exploiting into the rear and flank of 38th Army.
Still, he is now very close to Stalino which still has all its industry in place.

Close up South

And close up Kharkov area

In the North for the first time in many weeks, I do not have to retreat! [;)]
Just one week of rest and refit undisturbed has immediate effect on the strneght of the line.
Hopefully I can hang on to the Volkhow line and stage a counter offensive during blizzard.

I do have to pillage some divisions from the Volkhov line to reinforce the sector South of lake Ilmen where pressure is mounting.

Oh, and Leningrad is about to fall.

In the Center I patch up the line, stretching out Bryansk front to the North which allows in turn to extend 10th Army. 4th Army moves in and links up.
The question is now, will he move further East ( or NE) or will he move North and try to clear the flak first?

Moscow's defenses are still too weak to fall back to them so I'm trying to gain another turn by staying as close to his Panzer blob as I dare.

Center overview.
Against my better judgement I'm forced to give up more space SW of Rhzev by lack of units.
By moving back, I can at least establish a line and move behind a river. Nonetheless, the high losses on the left flank have forced me to thin out the other parts of the Center Front to a frightening degree.

In the South I abbandon Kharkov and retreat further East.
I'm going to try and make a stand at Stalino and the river lines to the North and South, but the front is long and undermanned by tired and in many cases deleted divisions. High losses have also forced the commitment of new divisions with relatively low morale and only half filled TOE's.

I doubt I can hold for long.

I try to shield Stalino as I have still 20 ARM to evac. and deploy the strongest stacks still left to me, figuring, these must be hasty attack proof.
However, just after Sebastian gets his turn back, he takes pride in informing me both his SS divs, have 44MP to spend...
Any illusions that I may have harbored evaporate at that time. Stalino's remaining industry is lost.

Only this turn are the last 3 divisions of 9th Army destroyed. A truely heroic resistance!

OOB

Ground losses

Air losses

Unit losses

Production