GC Republican AAR

[Rysyonok]

This is exactly what I was hoping for when I left that hex next to Bilbao and retreated

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[Rysyonok]

Most of the activity is REPs chasing NATs around Zaragoza. In the Med, 7 REP DDs encounter CL Trento, but choose to run away.
35 miles from REPs in Zaragoza and San Sebastian as I launch a semi-suicidal raid North between Pamplona and Vitoria.
REPs from Zaragoza and Madrid meet, although there are still partisans all along the route.

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[Rysyonok]

NATs are winning the air war, with REPs losing 69 and NATs 8 so far. It's been getting better lately, though.
REPs are definitely winning the sea war. Most of my patrols come back empty-handed these days.

Here are the latest losses:

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Here are the costliest losses during this campaign - I'm still bitter about that tanker, it was literally one shell:

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[Rysyonok]

A couple of REP regiments with a move-and-shock-attack orders come across an unprotected retreating or unattached NAT column... Ouch.

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[Rysyonok]

Things remain tough, but it starts to feel like the tide has been turned. Yes, NATs are pressing on Oviedo, Bilbao, but at the same time Madrid is free, Zaragoza is starting to clear up, Cordoba NATs haven't been able to advance, and west of Granada we're on a roll. Let's see.

I'm enacting an early House Rule. No more Soviet help. I was going to make it realistic, tying it up to the Spanish Gold affair, but that's in mid-January at best for discovery and October 20th for the actual move offshore. We're going to bite the bullet now, starting the next turn. Therefore, no using off-map Soviet ports, no using Soviet ships, no using Soviet units.

It's not about winning overwhelmingly for me. It's about winning at the eleventh hour with the last standing soldier. Let's do it.

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[Rysyonok]

We're going to try holding the lines here. The "lines" being the one missing piece before NATs can sent rail units from the South to the North. The one missing lynchpin so to speak. Madrid is sending a few regiments this way, we just need to hold out until they arrive. But where did the Italian ARM go? It's MIA again, which is no good, no good at all!

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[Rysyonok]

The tide is definitely turning. At first, I was terrified of my own decision to cut off the Soviets, but then I remembered that this is a game and it's okay to make mistakes. Well, the last turn was quite triumphant for REPs - not a single major NAT attack or offensive took place. Sure, they are still on the roll, there are REP cities under siege, there are REP forces being beaten down and encircled, but the overall feel in the air is - we got this.

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[Rysyonok]

NATs manage to clip a parked REP Sub at Cartagena, giving it 80 flotation damage. Ouch.
More cleanup around Zaragoza, and we're closing in on Pamplona as well.
NATs keep sortieing around San Sebastian, Bilbao, and they are definitely advancing by Oviedo.
There's a TON of NAT units spawning west of Cordoba and promptly heading east.

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[Rysyonok]

We're in a stalemate: NATs took heavy losses trying to take Canaveral, but most of my units are still recovering as well. ITA armor went missing somewhere. I have reinforcements coming, but they are quite far away. I can't tell if NATs are reinforcing.

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[Rysyonok]

We chased NAT Granada garrison way out west, but we're becoming over-extended, so a couple of attack vectors are folding. We're going to try for one last attempt in the middle using both of my groups concentrating on only one NAT stack. There's a looming 5th NAT offensive towards Linares shaping up. And then there is the NAT Cordoba slug.

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[RangerJoe]

NATs manage to clip a parked REP Sub at Cartagena, giving it 80 flotation damage. Ouch.
More cleanup around Zaragoza, and we're closing in on Pamplona as well.
NATs keep sortieing around San Sebastian, Bilbao, and they are definitely advancing by Oviedo.
There's a TON of NAT units spawning west of Cordoba and promptly heading east.

SP371.png

I had a submarine get bombed at Cartagena, it went to 99 flooding. Okay, it was being repaired so I decided that the submarine would be repainted. But there was not enough red lead paint for the primer but they had some white lead paint. So the two were mixed together . . . .

The submarine was repaired but somehow there wasn't time to paint the submarine again. So there was a pink submarine . . .

[Rysyonok]

REP DDs catch a couple of NAT gunboats.
Predictably, NATs go on the offensive near Canaveral and Linares again. They are also starting to push back heavier from the North towards Zaragoza, so I may need my San Sebastian-Bilbao-Santander garrisons to step out and attack.
REP siege Pamplona (think, roughly midpoint on the San Sebastian - Zaragoza line), but it may have been premature.

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[Rysyonok]

REPs start with a lot of understrength air and naval bases - even though I've been careful not to lose those folks due to battle or encirclement, I'm still understrength despite the devices pumping out nonstop - I probably reinforced a 100 of each of these squads so far. Protect your base forces!

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[Rysyonok]

NATs are repulsed by Cordoba and Canaveral again. REPs are slowly retreating North of Zaragosa while solidifying gains South and East of it. Republica Norte garrisons sortie out of San Sebastian and Santander but don't achieve much.

I will max out of the use my start-of-turn screens to show secondary situations not worth of dedicated posts.

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[Rysyonok]

Mostly skirmishes. REPs capture a handful of remote bases they set out for a while back. Overall, the battle lines hold.

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[Rysyonok]

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[Rysyonok]

NATs are coming down in a heavy wave from Salamanca towards Canaveral. It's interesting, how I keep using the tactics from the 17th century (heavy columns) and NATs (AI) are using the line tactics from the 19th century (waves of smaller units). We have reinforcements coming from Madrid, but they are definitely taking their time. We're throwing both central armored trains this way as well. As a reminder, Canaveral is the only remaining cutoff on the rail link between the Southern and the Northern NAT forces.

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[Rysyonok]

A rather calm turn. REPs are capturing a few loose bases they ought to have picked up sooner.
A NAT artillery stack near Santander is chased away.

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[Rysyonok]

The Gijon-Oviedo sector: Things are stable, but REPs did toss an ART unit over just in case.

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Santander forces are being tossed over to Bilbao. The entire Northern defense is that of a paper tiger.

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San Sebastian forces are falling back. NATs brought 9K troops to our 2K, although very experienced defenders.

[Rysyonok]

Another rather quiet turn. REPs are expanding in the East. NATs in the West and the North.

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