Adventures in Russia

[700851McCall]

I used mostly German divisions to do the heavy clearance work and all available artillery assets. I accompanied the bombardments with limited attacks on minimise losses. It was not too bad and I was able to get the troops involved rested and into the Crimea by October.

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: 700851McCall
I used mostly German divisions to do the heavy clearance work and all available artillery assets. I accompanied the bombardments with limited attacks on minimise losses. It was not too bad and I was able to get the troops involved rested and into the Crimea by October.

Really? That sounds good. I was thinking of using the 11th Army formations for Sevastopol
and the Rumanians for Z-town and east of there. Kharkov maybe. I don't like the Rumanians as they
have funny stacking rules and they almost can't defend themselves in a toe-to-toe with the Soviets
so I have to back up their frontage with some German units for insurance. I can use 'em for recon,
to convert hexes, for garrison duties in important cities, maybe park them at the airfields for the
AA services they might be able to provide. Something like that.

The Slovaks and Hungarians and Italians may as well be disbanded for all the good they do. I'll keep
'em around just for their recon value.

EDIT: Also, I thought there was a house rule that the Odessa project had to be a pure Rumanian operation.
I could be wrong.

[larryfulkerson]

This is the northern front lines right now. I'm getting closer to isolating the
city from Russia. I'm wondering if it's possible with so many Soviet units standing
around. They can plug any hole I make and yet they don't. Their objective must be
to defend the city itself....and it's working. I'm making progress near the bottleneck
and I'm optimistic that soon I'll be fighting closer to the city.

[larryfulkerson]

I seem to be making a bulge in the Soviet lines to the NE of Kiev on the east side
of the river. The Soviets are sparse and the terrain is good and progress is being
made. If the supply levels were better it would go faster and further.

[larryfulkerson]

This is the Bryansk area right now. I've found a couple of hard places, huge Soviet
units to defeat, and the hail mary right hook is proceeding whereby the defenders of
the city itself will soon be employed because I'm pushing with a small group to get
in on the right flank. I need the city with it's supply point to continue the
advance this winter season, especially during the Soviet Winter Offensive.

[TPOO]

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson

ORIGINAL: 700851McCall
I used mostly German divisions to do the heavy clearance work and all available artillery assets. I accompanied the bombardments with limited attacks on minimise losses. It was not too bad and I was able to get the troops involved rested and into the Crimea by October.

Really? That sounds good. I was thinking of using the 11th Army formations for Sevastopol
and the Rumanians for Z-town and east of there. Kharkov maybe. I don't like the Rumanians as they
have funny stacking rules and they almost can't defend themselves in a toe-to-toe with the Soviets
so I have to back up their frontage with some German units for insurance. I can use 'em for recon,
to convert hexes, for garrison duties in important cities, maybe park them at the airfields for the
AA services they might be able to provide. Something like that.

The Slovaks and Hungarians and Italians may as well be disbanded for all the good they do. I'll keep
'em around just for their recon value.

EDIT: Also, I thought there was a house rule that the Odessa project had to be a pure Rumanian operation.
I could be wrong.

There is no house rule to only use the Rumanians to attack Odessa, just that was what happened historically if one wanted to follow the historical reenactment. It is also a good way to increase the Rumanian proficiency and save some valuable German heavy rifle squads. It is not as easy to take The Crimea as in the earlier versions so not sending the 11th Army there as soon as possible might make it very hard to capture it before the end of 1941.
Use the Hungarians, Italians and Slovaks on a lot of mop up duties to increase their proficiency as well. They will have to hold some part of the line somewhere sometime.

[larryfulkerson]

It is also a good way to increase the Rumanian proficiency and save some valuable German heavy rifle squads. It is not as easy to take The Crimea as in the earlier versions so not sending the 11th Army there as soon as possible might make it very hard to capture it before the end of 1941.
Use the Hungarians, Italians and Slovaks on a lot of mop up duties to increase their proficiency as well. They will have to hold some part of the line somewhere sometime.

I hadn't thought of that. That's a good idea. Thanks Rick. Cooler heads than mine can come up
with all kinds of good ideas. This will be a better game for it.

[cpt flam]

yes, you can make it.I used 4th Army, II corp and V corp
this will give you 4 Art to support
RR Art with 7 hexes range was there too, one last hex to take will be bloody as they are cherry red stacking and only 3 hexes to attack

[larryfulkerson]

Through about 15 turns or so the Finns were fighting to get to the stop line and now
they are there. Now they just hold what they got and hold back the hordes. It usually
dissolves into an arty duel at this stage. I shell his units he shells mine. If only
I had some longer range arty that I could pound his with out of his range. I'd try to
bring in the ships but they would support only that unit on the western end. I need
them where they are right now. I lost a lot of Stuka's to kill the Soviet BB's but it
is paying off when I get to use the ships to support the land battle.

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: cpt flam
yes, you can make it.I used 4th Army, II corp and V corp
this will give you 4 Art to support
RR Art with 7 hexes range was there too, one last hex to take will be bloody as they are cherry red stacking and only 3 hexes to attack

Thanks for your support Captain. You've twisted my arm and I'm
going to try it and see what happens. I need the troops for the
Crimea as of yesterday and the 11th Army group is closest and they
are already headed for Odessa's area intending to force the bottleneck
and see about Sevastopol for me. I think I really need the Bulgarians
for all the good they will do me.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's what Smolensk looks like right now. I've almost got the city surrounded and
cut off from the outside and it looks like it might fall any turn now. I need that
supply point for further adventures.

[700851McCall]

Looking good in AGN - if you can get a unit into Novaya Lagoda it is curtains for Leningrad

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: 700851McCall
Looking good in AGN - if you can get a unit into Novaya Lagoda it is curtains for Leningrad

Yeah, that's some kind of trigger for the supply of the city or something, I think. There
was some kind of special provision in the original FITE that had something to do
with the supply of Leningrad and it's been carried over ever since. I think it's realistic
and I'm in favor of it.

There's a change to my gameplay this time in that I'm using the red green yellow rule and I
think it's making a difference. Less reorgs for one thing. And I'm failing proficiency
checks less often. That's the way it feels to me. I'm having a blast by the way. Two
PBEM's going on and this D21 game all at the same time. I'm at the computer all day long
doing some kind of wargame or the other.

[TPOO]

ORIGINAL: larryfulkerson

ORIGINAL: 700851McCall
Looking good in AGN - if you can get a unit into Novaya Lagoda it is curtains for Leningrad

Yeah, that's some kind of trigger for the supply of the city or something, I think. There
was some kind of special provision in the original FITE that had something to do
with the supply of Leningrad and it's been carried over ever since. I think it's realistic
and I'm in favor of it.

There's a change to my gameplay this time in that I'm using the red green yellow rule and I
think it's making a difference. Less reorgs for one thing. And I'm failing proficiency
checks less often. That's the way it feels to me. I'm having a blast by the way. Two
PBEM's going on and this D21 game all at the same time. I'm at the computer all day long
doing some kind of wargame or the other.

You just have to occupy hex 146,115 to cut off Leningrad supply by blocking the Road of Life, no need to capture Novaya Lagoda although it would accomplish the same thing of cutting off supply to the Road of Life. If FITE you have to capture Novaya Lagoda as there is a circle supply event loop with respect to that hex. There is no event associated with Leningrad supply in D21. The Road of Life (I have to finagle the game engine to simulate it) is necessary because the PO is to stupid to ship units through the port hexes between Novaya Lagoda and Leningrad.

[larryfulkerson]

You just have to occupy hex 146,115 to cut off Leningrad supply by blocking the Road of Life, no need to capture Novaya Lagoda although it would accomplish the same thing of cutting off supply to the Road of Life. If FITE you have to capture Novaya Lagoda as there is a circle supply event loop with respect to that hex. There is no event associated with Leningrad supply in D21. The Road of Life (I have to finagle the game engine to simulate it) is necessary because the PO is to stupid to ship units through the port hexes between Novaya Lagoda and Leningrad.

Thanks for this info. I thought it might be something like that. You're a gold mine Rick dude.

[larryfulkerson]

Something has gone terribly wrong. The units I was going to isolate Leningrad with are
cut off from their supply by a rather large Soviet unit. I'm going to have to pull all
those units back to safety because I can't restore the LOC. I don't have enough units
up here to do what I need to do. I'll have to ship some divisions up here to help out.
There's a couple in the south that are free.

[larryfulkerson]

This is the Smolensk area right now and I'm storming the city this turn so as to
eliminate all the Soviets in the hex and I've got my fingers crossed that it works
because I need that supply point. Also, there's a fairly large group of Soviet units
that I'm trying to surround, isolate, and kill. I've been working on it for several
turns now and I'm getting close.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the Chernigov area right now. This is the east side of Kiev and my main targets
are the Soviets up against the river. They are protecting the river crossing and I
need those for my units to pass thro. I'm moving SE and surrounding Soviet units and
killing them. Progress is being made and the advance continues.

[larryfulkerson]

This is the Bryansk area right now. They aren't visible yet but there's probably a
large stack of Soviet units in Bryansk and they will be hard to push over I'm thinking.
I need the city and it's supply point but I'm deeply engaged with fighting elsewhere.
I wonder if it's possible to steer the fighting toward the city somehow so I can get
it too.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's looking at the area from Smolensk down to Bryansk and you can see the various
small groups fighting over the roads and rails. We're about to get a surround going
on a small group of Soviet units so they will take down easier. And the city of
Smolensk is about to fall. I'm not sure about Bryansk. I think it might need some
more work on it before it's weak.

I'm assigning direct attacks for the bombers so as to stear them to the places that
really need the CS and I think the losses will be lower for the planes overall doing
it that way. Instead of participating in ALL the nearby attacks the planes just
concentrate on one target. I'm not sure but I think it works out better.