How the Axis could have won. Allied AAR RTW

[warspite1]

15th October 1941

Soviet Union
The cruisers of the Black Sea Fleet continue to pound away at the Germans investing Sevastopol, while the newly positioned 3rd Army seeks to keep the Germans out of the Caucasus. I reinforce the defenders of the port back up to 10.


Crimea River (see what I did there? [8|])

[warspite1]

15th October 1941

Soviet Union
In the north the seriously damaged Soviet battleships make for Kronstadt, but the Soviet submarines fall upon the German battleship Tirpitz. Two torpedoes strike the leviathan, but she remains afloat...

[warspite1]

15th October 1941

Soviet Union
In the centre (and north Ukraine) the Soviets at last are starting to get some reinforcement build up (rather than them being immediately destroyed). A shock army, an army and a corps are built this turn.

[warspite1]

15th October 1941

High level discussions are being held in Washington...the wonderfully titled Konstantin Umansky (Plenipotentiary Representative Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary) visits Cordell Hull, rather more simply the US Secretary of State, with a proposition. The negotiations are expected to be long, tortuous and drawn out as each side bargains for the best position:

Umansky: Can the US spare the peoples of the Soviet Union say 40 MPP per turn? This would be worth 80 MPP to us and give us an increase of 200 National Morale points per turn.

Hull: Yes, yes we can

Umansky: Thank-you. Fancy a pint?

[warspite1]

6th November 1941

United Kingdom

I've just had a message suggesting I should invest in spying and intelligence..... yeah right. Which MPP that I haven't got, shall I spend? and which desperately required military spending shall I cut back on if I did have any MPP available?

Rant Over [:D]

[warspite1]

6th November 1941

AI Turn
That went as expected. The Mechanised unit I placed in Taganrog got creamed. Bloody stupid mistake [:@]

Speaking of bloody stupid - despite being fully aware that the Finns had come in on the side of the Germans, I neglected to take any precautions about Leningrad.

More of a surprise was Sevastopol - you know that fortress that held about for about 15 years against Manstein's 11th Army? Well it took three German units minus any air power about two turns to take the port.....

[warspite1]

6th November 1941

Reinforcements

Soviet Union
3rd Shock Army is placed east of Leningrad, with 26th Army to the south.
2nd Shock Army is placed in front of Moscow
18th Army is placed in the forest north of Kaluga
16th Army is placed south of Voronezh
6th Corps is placed in the Don Bend east of Rostov

[Hartmann]

ORIGINAL: warspite1



I think my problem stems from not digging in in the Nile Delta from the word go. Although having my bottom handed to me does not feel great, its good in a way because if I was beating the AI (having never played one of these games before) then the AI would be pretty rubbish.

Yeah, I feel the same way. Actually, this makes the AAR even more tense and interesting too.

As I never lost Egypt, I never saw how this is going to affect the rest of the war, but one thing should be a given: The Middle East must hold! For lack of better ideas, I guess I'd try to hold the Germans at the Suez (or rather the next city behind it) too, reinforcing via the Persian Gulf etc.

Leningrad has to be held too. It should be easy enough to keep the Fins from taking the fortified positions North of it. Also Narva should be held as long as possible. The German AI tries to take Moscow before the winter, so the fortified positions have to be manned. In the South you can give some more ground. Next year it will become clear if the Germans go for a Stalingrad-Caucasus offensive or rather keep trying in the North.

At least the bleakest times for the Allies (1941) should be over soon.

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Hartmann

ORIGINAL: warspite1



I think my problem stems from not digging in in the Nile Delta from the word go. Although having my bottom handed to me does not feel great, its good in a way because if I was beating the AI (having never played one of these games before) then the AI would be pretty rubbish.

As I never lost Egypt, I never saw how this is going to affect the rest of the war, but one thing should be a given: The Middle East must hold! For lack of better ideas, I guess I'd try to hold the Germans at the Suez too, reinforcing via the Persian Gulf etc.

warspite1

Thanks. I already feel like my buttocks have been flailed with a cato-o-nine tails - that rubs vinegar in quite nicely [;)] [:D]

[warspite1]

6th November 1941

Right. I'm in the mood to kick bottom.

Soviet Union
The game makers obviously have a sense of humour....(see the name of the Finnish corps). In memory of the brave men of the 44th and 163rd Divisions the Red Army will take revenge for this outrage. In a stupidly emotional move, the Soviets repair their two ageing battleships to the max. Next turn the Finnish II Corps is going to eat Soviet lead...

Meanwhile in the Baltic the Soviet sub was found by a German destroyer. An attack is too risky so, unable to reach port, the sub heads north to attack the convoy lines.


General Ostermann (Commander of the Karelian Army): My Marat, what big guns you have
Admiral Tributs: All the better for bombarding you with my dear general

[Hartmann]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: Hartmann

ORIGINAL: warspite1



I think my problem stems from not digging in in the Nile Delta from the word go. Although having my bottom handed to me does not feel great, its good in a way because if I was beating the AI (having never played one of these games before) then the AI would be pretty rubbish.

As I never lost Egypt, I never saw how this is going to affect the rest of the war, but one thing should be a given: The Middle East must hold! For lack of better ideas, I guess I'd try to hold the Germans at the Suez too, reinforcing via the Persian Gulf etc.

warspite1

Thanks. I already feel like my buttocks have been flailed with a cato-o-nine tails - that rubs vinegar in quite nicely [;)] [:D]

[:D]

But seriously: As you told us you didn't play this particular kind of game before, it's part of the normal learning curve. I've been playing those since the venerable "Storm across Europe" came out in the 1980ies and still SC WW2 managed to surprise me in some aspects.

[warspite1]

6th November 1941

United States
The US upgrade their infantry and begin the process of doing the same to their fighters before running out of MPP.

United Kingdom
The Royal Navy send a newly repaired destroyer out to hunt for U-boats - with predictable results.... The British spend what they can on repairing naval units and begin the process of getting the Canadian tanks to this side of the Atlantic.

[warspite1]

6th November 1941

Who is your money on here?

[warspite1]

28th November 1941

Soviet Union
Will Stalin stay in Moscow to lead the defence of the capital against the Nazis? Damn right he will! That answer is worth 5,000 National Morale points and a temporary 25% increase in the forces morale.


United States
Meanwhile, back at the ranch.......

I am being advised to get some relations going with Franco as the Clauillo is impressed with German performance in Egypt. President Roosevelt is a little non-plussed by this.

FDR: Relations with Franco? Sounds a bit saucy. But he's not really my type. Perhaps I should just offer some money instead?

[warspite1]

28th November 1941

AI Turn
The RN and the desert force continue to take it from all sides - the German artillery in Egypt was able to smack my units to hell from a distance of about 100 miles. Harumph. However, the good news was that the Soviets only lost one garrison. Moreover, what does one do to get honours round here? Last turn 7th Corps, the defenders of Rzhev put in a fantastic defensive performance....

Less friendly was the damage to the Black Sea Fleet at the hands of the Axis air forces. Still, at least that left the ground troops alone...

[warspite1]

28th November 1941

Reinforcements

Soviet Union
11th Corps is placed north of Rzhev in an attempt to hold the river line there.
10th Corps is placed in the forest between Kaluga and Tula
1st Guards Army are placed south of Rostov
8th Corps are placed in Kalinn
4th Shock Army are placed south of Leningrad
1st Shock Tank Army are placed south of Rostov
22nd Army is placed in front of Moscow

MPP
UK - 236
USA - 310
USSR - 687

The British break 200 MPP for the first time in ages!

[warspite1]

28th November 1941

To the Game Designers: Love the little national symbols on the counters. Nice touch [:)]


[Adopts best Tommy Cooper voice]: A German, a Romanian and an Italian walk into a bar in Taganrog.....

[Orm]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

[Adopts best Tommy Cooper voice]: A German, a Romanian and an Italian walk into a bar in Taganrog.....

And there they encounter a Russian sailor?

[warspite1]

28th November 1941

Soviet Union
Boy, do I suck at this game or what? I use the Baltic Fleet's 12-inch guns to hammer away at the Finnish positions. I then launch three attacks - by the 26th and 2nd Shock armies and the Leningrad Militia..... the Finns are untouched while the Soviets are all depleted....

Elsewhere on the front I bring units back up to strength.

[warspite1]

28th November 1941

Soviet Union
Given the lesson in the north, I do nothing risky in the centre and just sit there and wait for Army Group Centre to attack. Again I reinforce what I can.