Life is a Beach

[LiquidSky]

OOoooo...you have to move flak around. There are a lot of regiments floating about in less then ideal places, such as ports...or in western cities like Amsterdam. As well..I like to move all dozen or so RR Flak as traps. I put them all in a city that may seem defenceless to shoot the flak values up really high. And they are free to move. (as long as you have at least 1 AP left, otherwise you can't move them at all)

I am not a big fan of building forts. I tend to only build them to 'wall off' peninsulas such as britanny, or Normandy. So I don't spend a lot of AP's that way. Almost all my ap's go into priority repairs and Flak movement.

My interception range from the Ruhr is just shy of actually reaching England itself...so fighting over the channel would only be possible if he flies naval interdiction. I am not sure if my planes would intercept that or not, I suspect I may have to have an AS mission to mess with his naval interdiction.

[Seminole]

OOoooo...you have to move flak around. There are a lot of regiments floating about in less then ideal places, such as ports...or in western cities like Amsterdam. As well..I like to move all dozen or so RR Flak as traps. I put them all in a city that may seem defenceless to shoot the flak values up really high. And they are free to move. (as long as you have at least 1 AP left, otherwise you can't move them at all)

Game is just so big I hadn't even gotten into that aspect of it yet, but with this latest one I'm going to try some things. I wanted to master the Axis side to know what I'm up against from the Allied side.

I am not a big fan of building forts. I tend to only build them to 'wall off' peninsulas such as britanny, or Normandy. So I don't spend a lot of AP's that way. Almost all my ap's go into priority repairs and Flak movement.

I hadn't put much in priority repairs, but the new mechanic to assign engineers I will be using as that just makes more sense.
I don't spam them to create a wall of gamey, artificial delay, but I do like to use them in all my Atlantic Wall ports, many of the Med ports, and at strategic choke points, or to 'create a hedgehog' with a depot.
I've recreated some of the historical German defensive lines, but haven't seen them tested.

My interception range from the Ruhr is just shy of actually reaching England itself...so fighting over the channel would only be possible if he flies naval interdiction. I am not sure if my planes would intercept that or not, I suspect I may have to have an AS mission to mess with his naval interdiction.

I meant drawn into enemy AS directives positioned over the continental Channel coast:




They don't all go this well, so I plan to draw back a bit so I don't get ground down by numbers this early.

[LiquidSky]

To be honest..since you got me thinking on this...

I am not sure why I am fighting in all those places around the Ruhr. I mean the bomber streams seem fairly easy to spot, but it could be he is throwing AS up around the Ruhr and drawing me out.

In any case, I am using all this combat to gain experience with the Luftwaffe. And I have a couple of months left of fight left in my fighters, I think.

Its funny that you say you are playing the axis to be a better allied...that is essentially the same reason I do. I think the allied side is harder to play, (no margin for error) and want to know all the 'tricks' available to the Germans so I can figure out strategies to defeat it.

[LiquidSky]

May 6, 1944. Heavy Rain so not much air combat. Pilot pool creeping up to -377 from max. I notice I have 142 wounded, so I guess some of them come back as well. Bombing VP's up to 5. V-Wpns at -2.

Yet again, Hitler dismisses another Luftwaffe commander.

Luftflotte 3 commander Josef Kammhuber is dismissed
Richard Heidrich takes command of Luftflotte 3

And here is a list of all my fighters in Luftwaffe Reich...in order of experience.

[LiquidSky]

May 13th, 1944: Rain.

Lots of air combat now. Pilot pool drops to -533 pilots to max. Ratio of dead only 3-1 in my favour.

Here is the map: The air war was so extensive, I had to decrease the zoom two levels to see it all.

Berlin was bombed, with moderate damage to manpower. Bombing VPS 4, V-Wpn -1.

[DTomato]

Folks, I have the pleasure of being Liquid Sky's opponent. I haven't looked at his posts above because I don't want to know his strategy (more interesting to be surprised, especially from a creative player like Liquid Sky). Therefore I can't comment on his tactics.

But now that a million Anglo-American-Canadian tourists are sunbathing on French beaches this turn, I just wanted to point out that it's mid-May '44, and the VP count is about -2. Not -500 or -900 like I've seen in other games. The Allies haven't lost 200 troop transport and 2,000 cargo ships, so they have enough shipping left to do a real invasion.

I've been watching my VP and shipping losses quite carefully. Don't know if my strategy will work, but I can that I think my Allies are doing much better than in previous games I've played.

DT

[Seminole]

Definitely need to play more with flak - they're the ones downing the Allied bombers for me:
Berlin's 3 hexes accounted for over 200 aircraft alone last week!




The losses from interception for me don't compare:

[Seminole]

But now that a million Anglo-American-Canadian tourists are sunbathing on French beaches this turn, I just wanted to point out that it's mid-May '44, and the VP count is about -2. Not -500 or -900 like I've seen in other games. The Allies haven't lost 200 troop transport and 2,000 cargo ships, so they have enough shipping left to do a real invasion.

I've been watching my VP and shipping losses quite carefully. Don't know if my strategy will work, but I can that I think my Allies are doing much better than in previous games I've played.

DT

Did you again eschew a mainland Italy landing (aside from grabbing the toe to avoid the beachhead penalty)?

[LiquidSky]

He came up the toe when Italy collapsed (early, as I put all the mech units in the black hole garrison area of south eastern france and northern Italy for vps)

The collapse was on the second to last or last week of August. Caught me by surprise with no unit in Taranto, so that area flipped. He landed some brigades in the city, but my paratroopers kicked him out.

The Italian front has been sitting still the whole war since then.

Judging from the line drawn by air combat, Corsica is Bomber Island, and he has bombed all kinds of cities from there in southern Germany..even a few runs at Ploesti.

But enough ancient history...here is the invasion.



This game I spread the armour/mech out a bit more along the coasts. Last game I had it concentrated in the middle since it can react 25-50 hexes away in movement. I have the Paratroopers sitting in/around Paris as a reserve.
I also have a smattering of infantry in the area.

[LiquidSky]

The air war was intensified greatly. He once again bombed some airfields...this time my bomber squadrons around Berlin. Again, at high cost for little gain. It is hard to bomb a well protected target.

I had some crappy fighters in the pas-de-Calais area, but I withdrew them last turn. Pity. They would have gotten shot up badly, but would have interdicted the interdictors.

Here is the interdiction in the invasion area....it will cause a lot of casualties if I move in.

[LiquidSky]

And for now.....the air war casualties. By the way, I don't mind if you read this DicedT. I am try not to post anything critical..and the casualty stuff is in your screens as well as mine.

As you can see...I lost 16 bombers on the ground. Not sure how many pilots died to make that happen. Oh...pilots to Max is (-520) now.

In the casualty race between Dortmund, Essen, and Duisburg AirBases....its Dortmund in the lead with 794 kills, Essen close behind with 786 followed by Duisburg with 691. These stats are kind of fun to keep track of.






I notice that my rail yards are a mess too. I will have to be careful of supply as I don't think I will have to rail a lot of units in this turn.

[Seminole]

No units on the beaches to meet the invader?

[LiquidSky]

No....I follow the Pelton school of defence on that. Every port gets a full division. Some special ports (like Brest) get two (to die). The rest are scattered behind the coast.

The invasion cant be stopped on the beaches. But it can be pushed around and routed back to England. But on this first crucial turn, I cant afford to send the armour in, so I have to contain the beach with infantry...and if they were on the coast, they would have been routed back (with no movement)

I'm just doing the turn now...so I have lots to think about yet. Not sure if I should bring up my fully intact bomber force to the Paris area....the airfields are mostly reconned, so he will see them and they wont be protected.

EDIT: I should add that DicedT is following a strategy similar to what I have in the past and would probably in the future use. Limit combat in the Italian theatre. Bomb heavily for VP's...massive invasion in one area for DDay.

[Seminole]

ORIGINAL: LiquidSky
No....I follow the Pelton school of defence on that. Every port gets a full division. Some special ports (like Brest) get two (to die). The rest are scattered behind the coast.

The invasion cant be stopped on the beaches. But it can be pushed around and routed back to England. But on this first crucial turn, I cant afford to send the armour in, so I have to contain the beach with infantry...and if they were on the coast, they would have been routed back (with no movement)

I don't doubt it can't be stopped, but I do wonder if the casualties that can be generated (in addition to preventing the 'free landing' of commandos) by having a string of regiments on the coast, as well as hampering airborne wih a second line of regiments in reserve.
I'm waiting to receive the invasion of Northern Europe from DicedT right now in our game, only fighting now is in Sardinia (we're in April of '44 now).

I'm just doing the turn now...so I have lots to think about yet. Not sure if I should bring up my fully intact bomber force to the Paris area....the airfields are mostly reconned, so he will see them and they wont be protected.

You might want to experiment with this idea I tried for a while. You can bring them in close, schedule your directive to run just 3 or 4 days a week, and you'll probably have miles left at the end of the week, so you can relocate to safer airbases at the end of the turn.
With the changes to naval patrol in recent beta patches I don't expect much value to the Axis with level bombers in the Channel. I try to get my money's worth in the Med where the fighter umbrella usually isn't as thick.

EDIT: I should add that DicedT is following a strategy similar to what I have in the past and would probably in the future use. Limit combat in the Italian theatre. Bomb heavily for VP's...massive invasion in one area for DDay.)

I've played a forward defense in each of my Axis grand campaigns. But the games between S2Tanker and DicedT have been very different. S2Tanker has been much more aggressive, recklessly so I light of how things have gone so far. DicedT on the other hand has been the opposite end of the spectrum, with the only fighting so far on Sicily and Sardinia and we're closing in on a years worth of war.
In both cases I've precluded to some degree city points that would otherwise been ceded. DicedT has saved on casualty VP, and in retrospect I could have probably more than made up for that by backing up and overloading garrisons in response. I've racked up lots of casualty points on S2Tanker, as I've more than once baited him into ill advised advances and made him pay by stocking my POW camps.
From a purely VP standpoint the forward defense probably isn't the best strategy, but I've focused on getting the Allies to respond to me, and thereby control the initiative in determining when and where to fight.

[LiquidSky]

Well..that went poorly.

I launched a 1000 plane bombing raid on a beach head I wanted to attack...but forgot to change the target from airfield to unit.

Then I attacked said beachhead with 9 mechanized units including 2 SS panzer divisions. And failed.

I did manage to push a british paratroop division back and I formed up a nice straight line stacked 3 divs high. We will be entering the attrition stage of the battle for the next few turns I think.

Pilots are down to -600 from max, although I am no longer restricting pilots to the bombers. There will be a new youth movement in the Luftwaffe..probably in a downwards spiral.

I am no longer getting garrison vps since he occupied two garrison zones, so I will have to find my vps from attacking his units.

[Seminole]

But enough ancient history...here is the invasion.

Interesting to see how striking the garrison requirements at this stage will help your ability to respond.
Those two extra landing spots are actually unleashing a lot of German CV.

Biggest advantage I see on this invasion spot is the clear terrain should be a TACB bonanza. Do you plan to bring your fighter force up to contest at this stage?

[LiquidSky]

I did move some Luftwaffe up, but I have to be careful as he will cream them on the ground if he finds them.

I am not touching my fighter force in the Ruhr...it will stay there until his ground forces make them retreat...or he shoots them all down.

It is not a bad idea to rip up the garrison requirements..it stops the vp bleed. And I am still forced to leave units in all the ports, and in Italy, so it doesn't really give me my full army anyways.

[Seminole]

It is not a bad idea to rip up the garrison requirements..it stops the vp bleed. And I am still forced to leave units in all the ports, and in Italy, so it doesn't really give me my full army anyways.

I like how the game lets you see how and where the VP are earned.
The garrison zones are part of how the WA player keeps from having to face the entire strength of OKW until he is ready. Letting all the panzer and other strong units you had out of their garrison duty is more he's going to have to wade through, and suffer casualties from.
Historically, you have mid-August as the point at which Dragoon was launched.
I think the Cobra-type break out has a better chance if Hitler has much of the Wehrmacht locked down elsewhere until then.

[LiquidSky]

Its a couple turns later: June 10th. I tried to fight my way to his beaches, but I couldn't get odds. It always seemed that I was halved and he was doubled. Oh well...I did cause some casualties.

I sprung my airforce on him and it didn't go very well. I am going to have to try something different.

Here is what the Beach head looks like now:

[LiquidSky]

Now this is an aircraft squadron [:D][:D] Half the squadron is at least 90 Experience.

I can't wait to give these guys Me-262's.

I'm still working on the air phase, and will have to do the ground phase tomorrow.