T00 Events

[popejohnpaul]

It's not actually mandatory to advance in all directions. You could hold the Soviets on the line of the Don or the Kuban with a minimal force and use the remainder to reinforce your push further north

That's actually not a bad idea. That sounds like the best thing for me to do right now, so I'll put it in motion soonest. Thanks a heap for the idea. That'll give me time to repair some of the rails in my backfield, too. Additionally, I'm not in a really big hurry come to think of it. And my units COULD use some rest and refit. A LOT of them are at a half-strength condition. The more I think about your idea the more I like it.

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[popejohnpaul]

It's now T93 round 5 and this is what it looks like NE of Moscow. I'm fighting over the city of Kalinin right at the moment and I expect to own it late this turn or early in the next. I've been able to repair the rails really close to the front lines which has enabled supply to flow freely for the most part. There are rivers and crossings between me and the city and I'm wondering how hard it would be to drop the bridges east of Moscow to start the takedown seriously this time. If I suspend operations everywhere else and just concentrate the action to this AO by flying all my aircraft to within range of these targets and dedicating their missions to just here, and drop enough bridges to this battlefield I might make a little progress.

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[golden delicious]

It's now T93 round 5 and this is what it looks like NE of Moscow. I'm fighting over the city of Kalinin right at the moment and I expect to own it late this turn or early in the next. I've been able to repair the rails really close to the front lines which has enabled supply to flow freely for the most part. There are rivers and crossings between me and the city and I'm wondering how hard it would be to drop the bridges east of Moscow to start the takedown seriously this time. If I suspend operations everywhere else and just concentrate the action to this AO by flying all my aircraft to within range of these targets and dedicating their missions to just here, and drop enough bridges to this battlefield I might make a little progress.

From memory the Soviets have at least one supply point in Moscow itself. Worth checking to see how effective cutting the bridges will be

[popejohnpaul]

From memory the Soviets have at least one supply point in Moscow itself. Worth checking to see how effective cutting the bridges will be

I was aware of the supply point at Moscow and I too am curious to see how dropping the bridges changes anything. Probably not much change can be expected but I have my fingers crossed that the supply levels will drop somewhat anyway. It will at least partially isolate the battlefield somewhat. For whatever good that may do. Rest assured that I will keep you guys in on the loop.

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[popejohnpaul]

It's now T95 round 2 and this is what it looks like SE of Tula right now. I've advanced the 507th Pionier unit into the city of Ryazhsk and I'm wondering if I should have. It's out there by itself and it would take a turn or two to support it if need be. I'm on the verge of having repaired the rails all the way to the front line(s) in this area. Lately I had been leaving the aircraft where they were but the front lines have moved eastward and I needed to move the aircraft to better positions so as to properly cover the units. All my bombers that are dark green get assigned to INT missions and the rest of them are CS and of course all the fighters are given AS missions. About 1/2 of the aircraft are yellow and resting. I have 21.4K HRS's assigned and 343 HRS's on hand.

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[popejohnpaul]

It's now T95 round 4 and this is what it looks like south of Rostov right now. I'm approaching the Kuban River and there's been some fighting over the river crossings to get into the foothills of the mountains down south.

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[popejohnpaul]

This is what it looks like SW of Moscow right now. I've pushed a little bit closer to the city but there's still quite a ways to go yet. I just now captured the bridge at Serpukhov cutting off the escape route for a couple of small Soviet units. They will be gone this turn or early in the next. Now I need to capture the bridge just south of Stupino to trap a couple more Soviet units rinse and repeat. My next immediate goal is the crossing at Podolsk so I can get into the surburbs of Moscow itself.

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[golden delicious]

It's now T95 round 4 and this is what it looks like south of Rostov right now. I'm approaching the Kuban River and there's been some fighting over the river crossings to get into the foothills of the mountains down south.
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Looking at the map, a good stopline would be from the Black Sea along the Caucasus mountains, then north on the upper Kuban, north to Proletarsk, then finally along the Manych River to the Don. This gives you Maykop but doesn't leave too much open frontage. The next meaningful objective east of here is Grozny which is much harder to approach than Maykop- but maybe you don't intend to stop.

[popejohnpaul]

It's now T95 round 8 and this is what it looks like west of Leningrad right now. I need to finish mopping up to have enough troops to form a front line without gaps in it. Unfortunately, it's up to the Axis Minor Allies to capture Stalingrad. They are having a really hard time trying to push the Soviets eastward. Several of my units have evaporated already. I've captured a couple of river crossings on the Don River ( northwest corner of this image ) and I'm fighting over the rest of them as the river takes a turn for the south near Sirotinskaya and flows south just west of Stalingrad. After I have all the crossings over the Don River I think I'll give my boys a day off. Let them rest and refit for a couple of turns to gain back their moxie.

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[popejohnpaul]

It's now T95 round 4 and this is what it looks like south of Rostov right now. I'm approaching the Kuban River and there's been some fighting over the river crossings to get into the foothills of the mountains down south.
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Looking at the map, a good stopline would be from the Black Sea along the Caucasus mountains, then north on the upper Kuban, north to Proletarsk, then finally along the Manych River to the Don. This gives you Maykop but doesn't leave too much open frontage. The next meaningful objective east of here is Grozny which is much harder to approach than Maykop- but maybe you don't intend to stop.

Give me a few minutes to trace out the line you've described and I'll make it so. Thanks for your input(s).

I find your ideas and suggestions superior to the "usual" advice I sometimes receive, especially a year and a half ago when we were anticipating the new release. I was on the beta team as a tester and knew, probably, a thing or two that wasn't "public knowledge" yet and sometimes the advice I was getting in my AAR(s) wasn't all that helpful given the occult knowledge I had picked up from Bob ( Gen. Lemay ) or Ralph ( back when he was still here ) and / or one of the other testers....Steve Still comes to mind here ( he was on the team that wrote D21 ). I usually try to inform/correct/reveal information that would make said advice countraindicated. Educate as it were. I hope I was helpful. *I* need help from time to time. <wry grin> </wry grin>

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[popejohnpaul]

It's now T96 round 1 and this is what I have discerned from your cryptic directions ( the green line ). And that seems like a good stop line for now. I've made some ( yellow line ) alternatives to be considered.

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[golden delicious]

OK I'll try to make my thinking a little clearer. On the attached map I've picked out in yellow the major natural obstacles in the western Caucasus: the mountains themselves, plus the Kuban, Manych and Don rivers.

Broadly speaking these lines all run east-west which makes them not super useful for drawing a line running north-south, but I've picked out in red a possible defensive line which uses some of these lines whilst also giving a bit of strategic depth for the choke point at Rostov (ideally you don't want to be cut off here since the supply point at Kerch is very limited). Of course super river lines aren't any good in the deep winter but I'm not sure if they freeze fully this far south.

Of course simply holding on the Don would be easier still but you're already well past this line and the below would give you the supply boost from Maykop.

Note this is a very rough sketch and shouldn't be taken as having any considerations on a hex by hex basis

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[popejohnpaul]

OK I'll try to make my thinking a little clearer. On the attached map I've picked out in yellow the major natural obstacles in the western Caucasus: the mountains themselves, plus the Kuban, Manych and Don rivers.

Broadly speaking these lines all run east-west which makes them not super useful for drawing a line running north-south, but I've picked out in red a possible defensive line which uses some of these lines whilst also giving a bit of strategic depth for the choke point at Rostov (ideally you don't want to be cut off here since the supply point at Kerch is very limited). Of course super river lines aren't any good in the deep winter but I'm not sure if they freeze fully this far south.

Of course simply holding on the Don would be easier still but you're already well past this line and the below would give you the supply boost from Maykop.

Note this is a very rough sketch and shouldn't be taken as having any considerations on a hex by hex basis

Thank you. That's very helpful. I'll adjust my dudes.

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[popejohnpaul]

It's now T96 round 2 and this is what it looks like NE of Voronezh right now. I'm attempting to drive a recon unit ( 43rd Aufklar of the 13th Panzer division) and an engineer unit ( 25th Pioneer from the 25th Motorized division ) in such a way to isolate some few Soviet units from their supply source. I intend to stop along the river that runs just west of Kirsanov.

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[popejohnpaul]

It's now T97 round 2 and this is what it looks like in the middle of the map right now. I seem to have started a finger probe in the center-north for whatever good I can manage to develop from here. For whatever it's worth I threaten to cut off all the Soviet units south of my probe and that might prompt Elmer to start a general pullback so that Moscow is defended by only a single thin line of Soviet stacks. I can dream can't I? More likely Elmer will rail in some troops from somewhere to bolster the anurysm developing in his lines. If I had any reserves at all I'd start moving them toward the probe to see how much further I can get it to go.

South of Moscow, in the more favorable terrain for my Panzers, I've been making remarkable progress and I've annotated the map to show the general flow path(s) for my units as they look around for the path of least resistance and flow like water over the terrain wipe-ing out Soviet units a few at a time. It must be harder for Elmer to form a proper front line down south for some reason. I've been moving along the roads and rails for the most part and I'm really encouraged by the progress those bad boys have been able to make. Needless to say, I've blown past the recent proposed stop line(s). I've been running into more and more Soviet units that are bare on equipment and red in health. I'll have to stop the Soviet side and get a screenshot of their Inventory to find out what's going on with Elmer.

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[popejohnpaul]

My Secretary has a report on the Soviet Inventory:

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It turns out that the Soviet side has 31.5K Rifle Squads and 13 on hand with a rate of production of them: 1475 per turn.

• _______________Assigned____On Hand_____Rate_______Lost
  Rifle Squads _______31.5K_______13_______1475______221.7K
  MMG Squads________24.4K_______8________1030_____120.3K
  50mm Mortar______13.3K______2388________579______67.1K
  82mm Mortar______12.7K______1654________533______59.3K
  Horse Team________12.2K_____1598________495______58.7K
  SMG Squad________11.1K_________5________499______55.1K
  etc.

[golden delicious]

It must be harder for Elmer to form a proper front line down south for some reason.

I'd suggest there are simply a lot fewer formations with objective tracks running in the space between Tula and Voronezh. In principle it makes sense for the PO to have a weak screen in this zone as although there objectives here the spaces between them are huge so unless the game is over already it's never going to be the main focus of the Axis offensive.

[popejohnpaul]

It's now T97 round 2 and this is what's going on around Moscow right now. I have succeeded in forcing my way across several river crossings NW of Moscow and I'm pushing toward the city. I have 20.7K HRS's assigned.

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[Cpl GAC]

Beyond Voronezh is bleakness, ...

I'd suggest there are simply a lot fewer formations with objective tracks running in the space between Tula and Voronezh. In principle it makes sense for the PO to have a weak screen in this zone as although there objectives here the spaces between them are huge so unless the game is over already it's never going to be the main focus of the Axis offensive.

All hope abandon ye who enter here.

You're probably better off Klotzen'ing north with the dudes coming south from behind Kalinin

[popejohnpaul]

It's now T98 round 1 and this is what's going on SW of Rostov right now. I have captured a couple of river crossings and now I'm moving troops to the intact crossings and I'm moving into the foothills of the mountains. I'm trying to cut the highway along the coast which will cut of the Soviets of their supply source and make it easier to take them down in the long run. Another thing I've heard about units being out of supply ( I'm not sure it's true but I feel that it is ) is that all their combat losses are destroyed and nothing goes back to the pools. I'll have to do some tests to validate that theory. I would also like to attempt to take control of the Kerch Straits.

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