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TURN 12

5 turns till mud.
South overview before Russian moves:

South, close up.
As expected he manages to deliberate attack one hex, and hasty attack another.
Interestingly, it's the SS DAS that is in the hex Zocing Stalino. This division started the turn zocing Kharkov in the SW hex. That's more than 30 SP's movement and combat to end the turn next to Stalino.

IT's clear he has no interest for the moment in going East, he's got Stalino in his sights now.

Center, Overveiw.

Center Close-up.
He pushes NE, pushing in my Northern flank and at the same time takes a few forts of the Moscow line. Most combats go his way with heavy Soviet losses to moderate German losses. The most importan thing is I've gained a turn, without any encirclements.
Reinforcements are starting to arrive in good number again.

North Overview,
Not much going on North of Lake Ilmen. South of lake Ilmen, more attacks forcing me back.

After Sov moves. Center.
I decide to abandon Kaluga and man the Moscow defences. At least its South flank and part of the center. After much thought I decide to leave the Northen flank where it is. Part of the reason for staying, I spot what seems to be a Panzer Corps from PzG4 out of position for a move North for a Rhzev pocket and more poised for a move East to continue the offensive currently ongoing.

If that's true, a retreat at this time would be giving up territory for nothing and throwing away a potentially very good position for a counter attack on the flank later on. Hmmm, difficult choice but in the end I decide to stay. As a saveguard I shore up the North flank and add some depth. Railing in divisions from the Northern Front.

Positive news is that the Moscow defenses are getting into shape and I have some descent definsive stacks for him to tackle.

Center Overview

South close up.
There's no hope of counter attacking that stack next to Stalino. So I take up defensive positions as best as I can. These last 2 turns have been relatively easy on most of the Southern Armies, and most units have had a chance to rest and receive replacements, so all-in-all, I'm feeling reasonably secure and hoping for the best

And overview:

TURN 13

Center Overview, before Sov moves:
Dissaster strikes once more. 25 divisions are cut off and I totally misread and underestimated his mobility after weeks and weeks of movement and heavy attacks.
4 more turns to mud!

He pushes my stacks away like they're not there, opens a hole in the most vulnerable spot between the center and the North (or right flank) and exploits up to Torzhok in the North putting up an unpenetrable line of hexes and units. The Pz Corps I spotted last turn is indeed from PzG4, but after 2 turns of marching from North to Center, and starting reasonably far from the place it attacks, it has movement to spare to link up with PzG2&3 to complete the encirclement. The pocket is doomed.
And that is a big problem...

I hate to say it, but this was classic error of a clump of units slightly too far forward with weak flanks and lacking depth. All in the face of massed armour units few of which were in a ZoC and hence likely to be mobile.

To his credit, SJ80 then made the most of it. The root cause was undoubtedly earlier high losses of units meaning you had the gap.

In the South he crosses the Torets river just North of Gorlovka but he gets bogged down before penetrating in the operational depths. Even so, he now has the option to move NE or SE and both are not a happy prospect. SE means I could be pinned against the Black Sea without a harbor. NE, I could be pinned in between infantry not on this screenshot. Both times I risk losing a lot of good troops. Time to go.

ORIGINAL: sillyflower

I hate to say it, but this was classic error of a clump of units slightly too far forward with weak flanks and lacking depth. All in the face of massed armour units few of which were in a ZoC and hence likely to be mobile.

To his credit, SJ80 then made the most of it. The root cause was undoubtedly earlier high losses of units meaning you had the gap.

No worries, you're quite right. I took a gamble and it didn't pay off. But, not all is lost [;)]
In the end, it's just inevitable that the Russian is going to lose units during the summer. Should that not be the case we would never hear the end of it! [:D]

South overview

3 panzer groups is just tough to stop, period. OTOH, I'd rather see them strike in the Rhzev-Kalinin area than east of Kaluga and cross the Oka.

ORIGINAL: Flaviusx

3 panzer groups is just tough to stop, period. OTOH, I'd rather see them strike in the Rhzev-Kalinin area than east of Kaluga and cross the Oka.

I wouldn't rule out that possibility just yet either. With the northern defenses gone, Moscow is likely lost. You may have more units but no fort line to hold.

They weren't quite in the right place for that I suspect, but clearly same potential problem of empty running room + same cause down there too.

After Soviet moves.
I fall back in the North to shorten the line and find troops to shift South to plug the gap.
NW front also falls back out of the Valdai and forms a new Northern flank together with remnants of whatever I can find.

There's one very important stroke of luck I have...a 22MP Cav division which can ZOC the weakest link he has in the line... a CV2 brackdown of a panzer division. [:'(]

Center, close up:
I can't believe my luck, the Cav division can get a zoc on that breakdown! 6 ground attack missions prepare the way for a desperate attack from inside the pocket. Success! The pocket has been re-openend!

Further East, I frantically try to buildup a new right flank and move in new riffiting units in the second line fully expecting I'll need that line very shortly. However, with the pocket openend, I might just have bought myself an extra turn. His Panzers MUST be low on fuel after such a sprint!