Matrix Games Forums

Sept / Oct 1943.

The Atlantic:

Hitler's fed up with the ongoing bombing, and meanwhile lacking any form of Wunderwaffe to retaliate, commands the Kriegsmarine whole to get into action.

From Kiel a task force of 5 cruisers sails, to meet the fast moving ships from Lisbon, daringly going in the maw of the British islands in Faroes gap. The Gneisenau and Scharnorst lead the incursion.

Bismark, Tirpitz and two more pocket battleships, along with an amount of submarines reach for the North Atlantic, and two modern and swift submarines go into the East Coast where with very low escort the W.Allied shipping has lots of transports in wait, all loaded.

The East Coast raid seems to not reap any fruit.

The Faroes gap on the other hand start to turn interesting, where the Germans find the Brits convoys and fight through the veil of escorts (Having barely enough surprise - respective 4 and 6 points over two findings) maneuvering in the night to avoid the carrier and land based planes beeing in the sea zone.
6 CPs are sunk at the cost 1 Light Cruiser sank.

The North Atlantic goes even better! The German combined navy, surface and submarines, repeatedly finds the UK shipping. The UK escorts (In the 1 box) finds the Axis once too, but as both sides found each other, the airplanes of the CVL escorting are repelled by heavy anti air fire, without achieving a single hit.
13 CPs are sunk, and the rest aborted, leaving the sea zone vacant of any shipping!

Along that the UK lost an amount of cruisers escorting the CPs!

To add to the success, both German fleets achieved their successes manage to return to Lisbon with only two Wolfpacks damaged and in need of repairs.

On the other hand, Doenitz and Raeder can imagine Churchill's face once he'll realize the reserve shipping he has is either misplaced (~8 CPs in South Afrika) or insufficient to cover the whole of the UK production (~8 CPs in the Atlantic).

Sepct / Oct 1943 - Updated Destroyed Pool:

The total of the losses is skyrocketing up.

Ontop top of that there are some damaged assets in terms of ships;
US and GERM both used an O-Chit.

Due to a bug Japan has lost also 1 GARR and 1 MIL (They'll subtract 4 BPs from their production tally).

Italy lost 1 CP.
US lost 1 CP.
UK lost 21 CPs.

Alas I vaguely remember how many pilots survived and how many got killed. So there could be a 2-4 BPs swing in the math below due to pilots!

Allied losses below: 80 + 22 CPs + Ochit (Without repairs): 117 BPs!
Axis losses below: 55 + 1 CP + Ochit (Without repairs) + 4* Japana: 75 BPs!

The Allies consumed pratically their production of 1 turn already - and the Axis 2/3 of their production of one turn!

The end of Sept / Oct 1943

Soviet Front:
The Soviets retreat some more toward the Urals, Germans pursue and launch bombing missions on their troops.
A soviet fighter is shot down, but the pilot survives.
German land assault follows, Rundstedt leads the attack and Vatutin from the rearlines command the defence. Grand victory for the Germans, annihilating a mechanized army and engineer support assets (And shatter another mech) for no losses.
The rains hindered mobility, and the front is slowly stabilizing.

In the coming season the Soviets reinforce with troops Magnitorsk; and two new air squadrons are churned out by the factories of the Caucasus, being deployed at the ready in Tblisi.

Pacific:
The Japanese opt to save their convoys supplying Eniwetok, at the cost of leaving their subs out of fuel (A mistake I realized after, as the subs are pinned in a minor port in easy reach for the US Carriers).

Also finally the Japanese carrier task force finds the US old Battleships!
That is where a force composed of 3 vintage BBs, and a Thunderbolt fighter inflict more damage to a force of about 10 Carriers, and an amount of BBs and CAs of escort!
As it is tradition for this game, the Japanese air forces dedicated to the pacific seems to have the worst pilots ever. The Thunderbolt guns down a Japanese plane before to get aborted (It was +3 / -3!); then a helluva of naval bombers from carriers, and only 1 land based, dive on the three old battleships. Their AA roll is a 10 (The land based NAV3 goes kaboom).
Last, all the 3 battleships get damaged (Out of 2X 2D, they got the armour-save of 3 rolls!).

To recap, the US got "6 BPs" of damage - if they choose to repair these old BBs with 4 movement.
The Japs lost 5 (NAV3 + Pilot) and 1 Carrier plane (1 - Pilot was saved).

With the odds of the forces, the US can call that a victory for sure!


Morocco:
With the forces exhausted there, little action was seen in September / October 1943.

Nov / Dec 1943

Morocco situation after 1st Allied Impulse.

The Italian despair is grand, meanwhile both W.Allied power prepared their ships to support with proper bombardment, their aerial assets brought forth heavy bombing missions all over the place, disrupting the two flanks of the Italian defense.

On top of that, the air fights saw the Allied winning by a wide range; where two Macchi 205 got shot down (pilots included in the loss for both) against a single LND3 shot down with pilot (So for now, Axis lost 8 BPs and Allied 5).
But the perspective of ulterior and intense Italian losses is a concern. (All of Casablanca and the Macchi200 stacks are disrupted; in Casablanca Balbo-HQ, 5-3 INF and 1-3 INF-Div. // Under the Macchi200 an Algeria territorial and a 7-4 MECH).

Main problem is that Italy struggles the most to replace the losses.

Plans for a smaller redoubt are already in the works, but there will be units to replace the losses?
The US has an amount of fresh units loaded and ready to arrive; meanwhile Italy has only two new units to be shipped.
That ontop of an invasion force at the ready!

Nov / Dec 1943:

As for now we played only 1 Allied impulse, in the rest of the world not much happened.

The Soviets got their new defence line, but weather is really bad so the Axis cannot endanger them anymore at the present.

The USA and the CW performed convoy protection in the seas.

The are partisans in Hungary and Poland. Germany dedicated massive forces to deal with them. (3 freshly produced units appeared in Vienna, and airplanes too).

So I'll just post the screenshot of the production coming Jan / Feb 1944.

Jan / Feb 1944

Through Nov / Dec 1943 the Western Allies managed to seize Casablanca (Making Balbo retreat and inflicting a GAR and INF-Div loss to Italy) without sensible losses by their side (My way to say that they lost no units, probably some soldiers perished in the effort!)

Meanwhile the Italian Comando Supremo was crying bitter tears, with their positions compromised, and other forces bombed, the Allied were feasting and celebrating their new port seized.

Biting the bullet of reality, the partly pinned Italian troops started to dig in new positions in the small woodlands in the otherwise rather desertic and plain area.

The bad weather came to the help of the Axis, stalling potential landings behind their lines or in Spain, and giving a moment of respite to the staggering Italian lines and the Axis forces recovered (The turn ended after 2 impulses per side!).

In the while the Berlin Militia returned in the sector, rearmed and reformed with grand haste; and the Italian transports brought in new troops.

The Allies remain in the sea (Joy, in the 2 Box now, their shore bombing crippled!) and as soon as the new year opens, with good weather kissing Marocco again, they launch a new offensive. The W.Allies now have a neat air superiority, and can perform bombing almost undisturbed as the Italian fighters (After the loss of 2 6 air to air factor the turn before) kept away except to protect their quality mechanized unit.
Despite being outgunned and outclassed the Italian fighters shot down the enemy bomber, laughed in face to their escorting Spitfires, and fled to safer bases! (The UK had a Spitfire 7 Air factor, vs two Italian fighters with 5 and 4 Air factor.).

The USA, clearly drunk from the victory in Casablanca, strike hard through the woods where Balbo established the new headquarter (Curiously, out of 4 units, Balbo, AT, GARR, and the Rudel Stuka, only Balbo emerged untouched by the preliminary Allied bombardment, performed with 2 bombers and 1 artillery). On the other hand the USA were able to attack only from Casablanca (with an ARM and a MECH!), and the shore bombing already reduced by the low sea box, was halved due to the woods.

[My gaming buddy realized the mistake only after the fight.]

With only a +5, the attack from Casablanca resulted in a suicidal attack for the US forces (Who lost 11 BPs there!), the Italians lost their GARR; and held the line.

Now, suddenly, in Casablanca there was just an artillery unit, a TP that was disrupted, and 3 planes which got quickly evacuated with rebasing orders (Using HQs as extra bases).

The Italian counterstrike came immediately. Balbo mobilized Italian reserves (landed in Tangier with ships at the end of Nov / Dec) to replace the Garr (That was anyhow disrupted), and with the still operational corp from the other woods Casablanca was assaulted.

Seeing a vague opportunity to possibly disrupt all the Italians, attacking with 14 combat factors total vs 1; the US sent in a Brazilian fighter-bomber to ground support, and sent in abundant escorts (A 7 Air factor Thunderbolt, and two 6 factor Lightinings); facing them 2*7 Air Factor fighters and 2 Axis bombers trying to provide aid.
The air battle resulted bloodless, with one bomber per side being cleared to the target; even if the Axis fighters aborted almost all the escorts and were starting to rule the skies, at last they failed to stop the Brazilian pilots.

Ultimately the artillery in Casablanca, despite the air support and the leadership of Bradley provided was destroyed at no cost for the Italians. But Balbo favored to keep in the woods, more than advance and seize the TP in the port (Because Casablanca is attackable by 3 hexes and is on the coast! Pratically a death sentence for any advancing Italian.)

For now the balance of Morocco in the new year neatly favors the Axis; 1 GARR lost against 1 LND3 + Pilot, 1 Mot-ART, 1 ARM, 1 MECH of USA!

Germany started the year with an Air Action, as the Allies have the dominion of the air it was mandatory to send reinforcements, more Naval planes, and 2*8 Air Factor FW190A were railed in the zone.
Badoglio in Spain reorganizes too the 7 Air Factor Italian fighter based in Cadiz.

And the bad weather hits again (For the Impulse #5, 2nd Allied Impulse of the turn).

Marocco - The Allied mass:

Jan / Feb 1944:

England is an aircraft carrier pratically!
In London there are 3 fighters, in Portsmouth there is a LND4 under the Tempest; Dover has another FTR2 below the Spitfire, and Harwich has a LND3 (with 4 Strategic bombing value though) under the four engine bomber.

Hodges and Gort are the local HQs tasked to reorganize upon need.

The Germans have another FTR2 in Essen (7 Air Factor), and in the woodlands of Normandy there is Antonescu, with a FTR2 as well there.

Also there is an AA in Essen, and an AA in Liegi, in the stacks.

The rest are ground forces. (Except Kiel)

Jan / Feb 1944:

The Caucasus Front:

The Germans focused on Astrakhan, seizing it. But you know of that already.
With the snows hopefully also that Garrison can be cleared; the Italians produced already a CP in Persia, so that they can bring the supply to Iraq and Iran via Astrakhan!

The pesky bomber of the Soviets you see disrupted just arrived from a mission with the goal to destroy said CP in Persia, but it failed the designated task.

Otherwise, the front is static and the troops look at each other through the mountain passes!

Jan / Feb 1944:

The Urals:

The Germans advanced, attacked, nailed a few Soviets here and there; and then Nov / Dec finished.

There was an amazing window of opportunity, as the turn ended and the Soviets had two holes in their defence line, but the Initiative rolls ... Axis had +1, failed the first roll, elected a reroll, and failed again.

The Soviets corked their holes, and wait behind their river and solid positions for more production to come.

The Germans, acknowledging the far too bad weather - took the aforementioned Air action to bring planes here and there from their pulsing industrial heart - that by now is so far and distant to this front!

Maybe in Summer '44, with the ENG units fielded there a new offensive can begin but for now ... the situation looks like a firm stall.

What you see below is the northmost to the southmost unit in Urals; nor Germans nor Soviets have other units in the zone.

Jan / Feb 1944:

Kungming is still besieged; slowly the Japanese approach with reinforcements and have shifted aerial assets in the zone, for how their fighter squadron is not on part with the Chinese airforce, suffices to escort the bombers upon need. (6 AFactor vs 5 AFactor, the Japan needs the good fighters elsewhere!).

After the liberation of Burma from the British oppressor, the Japanese forces slowly move in toward India to expand the reaches of their Sphere of Asian Prosperity.

Japan has based naval bombers in Ceylon, which is manned by a marine division; anyhow the Brits lack amphibious capabity in the zone and their fleet operating from South Afrika is slowly being whittled away in the attempt to keep the sealanes with India protected.
Without oil reserves the forces in India risk anytime to remain without oil to refuel their planes and their HQ.

Slowly - as it seems all go that way for Japan - the troops that conquered Lanchow are making their way back to China proper and the seaside to be embarked and used elsewhere.

The Siberian front is static, only a motorized division is challenging the extension of the desert to reach the unguarded Ulan Bator; so to force the surrender of the communist puppet, Mongolia, and have their cavalrymen defect the troops of Zhukov deployed to defend Chita. (I am not sure why my buddy has not replaced Zhukov yet - now Chita is a supply source and if he operates in defence he does not need his best HQ there).

The Pacific Front is quiet! The USA are waiting for their marines, meanwhile both carrier fleet seem to have returned home to upgrade their embarked squadrons.

Carrier Count:
USA counts 9 Essex class carriers (The 5 capacity ones), and 7 other carriers (with 4 capacity)
Japan counts in Japan Shinano (6 Capacity), 5 * 4 Capacity Carriers, and 5 * 3 Capacity Carriers; 1 * 2 and 2 * 1 Capacity.

Also Japan has in Singapore a group of small and slow carriers, 2 * 2 and 1 * 1 Capacity (The carriers moving of 4 only!), to keep the Brits honest.

The Brits have 1 * 3 Capacity and 1 * 2 Capacity carriers in South Afrika.

Until now there has been no grand naval clash of yet; but of aerial combat that took place, the Japanese resulted badly outgunned (due to rolls usually) by USA pilots!

On the other hand, USA production this turn skyrocketed up to 82 BPs if they can produce with all factories!

Coming production in MAR / APR 1944:

The Germans bit the bullet and produced the bad Yugo fighters, as they wanted the extra Mech that is also white print.
Better to get them out of the way now, than to soak up new fighters of 1944!

The Italians are getting their carriers!!! Mussolini shall rejoice.

Tojo will call scam instead once he gets the newly produced fighters, and shall start a hunt to who has bribed the commissions to elect new projects of fighters to go into production. In 1944 a 4 Air Factor fighter is pretty insignificant (Even in 1942!) and meanwhile the range is decent for the 5 Air Factor fighter, by now the USA field much thougher and better planes! (And now Japan just got some terribad NAV with like all 1 as values! In 1944! In the force pool.)

By the looks the Allied player surrendered and want for a restart.

We'll add the Khaki in Flames units (someone kindly coded them!), remove the HQ Movement optional and play with the same optionals otherwise, with our small bits of House Rules.

I've uploaded the save if anyone wants to take a peek at it.

Time will tell how many mistakes each of us (me and my pal) corrects through this game, but I believe his margin of improvement is much wider than mine!

Thanks for the AAR Cohen.

Look forward to seeing the next game.

Excellent AAR

End of 1942 - Fatherland and Occupied France

We reached the end of the 1942.

This is the pretty calm and quiet situation in Germany and Occupied France.

The W.Allies are simply applying pressure via strategic bombing, exploiting their aerial superiority.

A very short Nov / Dec prevented the W.Allies to do any damage thanksfully!

End of 1942 - Spain

Axis forces deployed to protect Spain.

Defined insufficient, but this is what the Axis factories can currently produce and spare.

Due to bombing raids on Madrid and Barcellona performed by long range W.Allied bombers, the Axis was forced to setup there fighter squadrons (of obsolete nature, but better than nothing. Barcellona has a 4 Air Factor Italian FTR).

End of 1942 - Marocco

The W.Allies started to mount pressure against the Italian front in Marocco.

They started with aereonaval operaions in Cape St. Vincent, achieving localized victories against the European Axis airforces combined; gradually whittling them down to force them in a non operational status in the seas. (After they W.Allies show down 2-3 NAVs; losing 1 NAV and 1 FTRs of their own).

Ensured naval control of the zone the W.Allies, enjoying their total aerial superiority launched an assault against the Italian lines in the south. But the Italians defiantly held the brunt of elite US Corps (A total of 14 was rolled, with much joy of the Italians which at the cost of an INF-Div, erased from the map 2 US white print INF and 1 US MOT-Div)!

That temporarily stalled the W.Allies advance via land, and both sides are pouring reinforcements, but it seems Germany is reluctant to send in the sector their OKW Panzer Reserve (in France!) even if currently the Allies pose no threat there (Invasion wise).

(Next reply is a screenshot of other W.Allies force just south!)

End of 1942 - Marocco Part 2

The W.Allies are determined to gain Air Superiority (See the FTRs in Cisneceros), and the US forces are swarming in the desert (Also 3 of the 6 units in St. Louis are land units.).


The Italian factories are struggling to provide enough troops, Germany is giving a very generous help though which ramped up through the year (reaching a 10 BP lend lease in this last turn of 1942).

End of 1942 - Colombia, Enhanced Monroe Doctrine!

The USA never finalized the conquest of Colombia, they sated themselves with the taking control of the local oil rigs.

The Colombian Army finally took courage and moved out from the Capital, marching to interdict the railroad giving access to the Oil Rigs (and mostly the only USA hex they have to access the oil.)

The Colombians are confident the US are somehow busy elsewhere to truly send forces to vanquish their attempt of resistance, which is more a "large scale" partisan act than anything else!

To the west the W.Allies use small islands as escort base against surface raiders and submarines.