I know the Soviet side of the 2x3+ team game I am in have been showing their thinking on evacuation lately - and I sort of came to ask the question what does "too" many arms mean?
Does it mean
i) Too many as you could have used the rail capacity to move troops in 1941 instead?
ii) Too many in that supplies are going to it and not to supply the army. Although I have seen you have used points to reduce arms production and you can use rail capacity to re-evacuate for similar results.
If not for these two reasons then I would think it is still good to evacuate as many arms as possible. You do not need them in 1944/45 - but how many arms factories you do evacuate does say how quickly the Red Army can rebound in 1941-2. Too few and it will take a long time.
I know the Soviet side of the 2x3+ team game I am in have been showing their thinking on evacuation lately - and I sort of came to ask the question what does "too" many arms mean?
Does it mean
i) Too many as you could have used the rail capacity to move troops in 1941 instead?
ii) Too many in that supplies are going to it and not to supply the army. Although I have seen you have used points to reduce arms production and you can use rail capacity to re-evacuate for similar results.
If not for these two reasons then I would think it is still good to evacuate as many arms as possible. You do not need them in 1944/45 - but how many arms factories you do evacuate does say how quickly the Red Army can rebound in 1941-2. Too few and it will take a long time.
VP - 117 Lublin falls
Trucks - 126 / 200 - still limping along
AP usage - Disbanded about 70 support units, mostly AA and AT. Moved one army to North Caucuses Front
Units Destroyed - none (12.3 enemy divisions surrounded near Koeinsburg)
AFV losses - 145G / 493S enemy armor mostly off the MLR
Air Losses - 108G / 344S
Germany pulled back along the main MLR north of the Carpathian mountains and developed defenses in depth with almost no armor engaged. Where possible in the advance range of Red units, minor engagements occurred with Germany avoiding major AFV and attritional losses
1. The main armored thrust to Koeinsburg reaches the outskirts of the city but does not take the city. The 12.3 enemy divisions that could not escape past Koeinsburg have been surrounded and will be disposed of soon
2. Russian armor in the center opposite Warsaw brushes aside infantry and reaches the main defensive perimeter of the sector and city by the remaining mobile forces of the Wehrmacht
3. In eastern Hungary between the Bihor and Carathian mountains, the Reds reach the Hungarian plains but cannot advance onto them. The stage is set for the summer seasons advance
VP - 114 Koeinsburg falls without a fight
Trucks - 110K / 136K (doing better)
AP usage - disbanded about 20 more units this turn mostly divisions and brigades
Units destroyed - none, but 14 more German divisions surrounded and captured in Memel Pocket during mud season
AFV losses - 288G / 587S Air Losses - 510G / 1182R]
During mud season Russians focus on reorganization and rail builds while placing armor / mech in three locations. A pincer north and south of Warsaw and eastern Hungary. Germans build defense in depth and deploy two armored shields, at the Baltic and around Warsaw. First turn in May 1945 was clear, and the Reds unleashed a full fury attack
1. At the southernmost, Reds test the mountain passed nearest Yugoslavia and make little or no progress.
2. In the plains of eastern Hungary, where hard fighting all winter pushed through the Carpathian and Transylvanian Alps, Russians committed 2 guard armies and 2 armor armies in a push NW to capture Nyiregyhasa but are stopped about half way there by expertly placed armor that slowed the Reds down enough to prevent breakout
3. North of the Carpathians and south of Warsaw, Russian infantry armies engaged in linear fighting against a less-strong enemy pushing 2-3 hexes towards Krakow
4. A Pincer battle was attempted around Warsaw and failed. Enemy deployed an armored shield around the city. Remaining Russian armor was split into two bundles and attacked about 30-40 miles north and south of the city. The southern Pincer ran straight into the SS armor divisions and fought desperately to drive the enemy back to the Vistula, only 2-3 hexes. 2 SS armor divisions have been surrounded, but the pincer failed. With the mud coming back next turn, the enemy will be able to extricate itself without undue losses. A note on the northern pincer, which attacked between the armor shields guarding the Baltic and Warsaw. Since I did the southern attack first, I was already aware that the attack would not work, so I merely drove due east as far as possible before pulling back a bit for defensive operations in the event that the weather in clear.
5. nearest the Baltic, the Reds through the victorious Leningrad guard armies and artillery against very strongly held armored shield, pushing it back 10 miles
I always like to see your updates, even if they are a couple months apart.
The issue you face is your eastern drive to the Vistula with the forces north of Warsaw are facing the prospect of a dead end. Your opponent can simply fall back to the western bank of the Vistula and then it's good luck trying to get across.
That is why any successful push into Germany depends on you flanking Warsaw from the south. Once that is done, it gives you both banks of the Vistula and you can transfer forces down from the north. Then it is a matter pushing towards Bromberg and clearing more of the Vistula and making that river much less relevant. It is not so much an issue if you arrive near here towards the Fall of 44 if by chance the river freezes enough for you force your way through. That is not an option here. Now the key to taking Warsaw is getting to Lodz. That essentially makes any defense of Warsaw untenable. Re-assess where you can force the issue in an attack somewhere from the south of Warsaw to Krakow, bringing down mobile troops from the north if you have to.
For Hungary, I'm not sure if you found the non-mountain hexes near Ungvar which represents the Dukla Pass by which you can get armor storming through, not that you have any in the area. If you had some it might have helped tip the balance at Nyiregyhasa. That is essentially what the Soviets historically did.
VP = 113 -1 (Nowy Sach falls to combat)
Trucks = 122 / 163 better than I hoped.
AP usage = disbanded another 5 corps/divisions this turn. minimal reorganization
Units destroyed = none but 18 more German divisions pocketed
AFV Losses = 287G / 560S - keeping about average, Will update pools / show they are low
AIR Losses = 562G / 1217 ME 262's SHRED Russian air formations - new tactics tried
German tactics evolve. Axis deploys the Warsaw Armor Shield defense using the Windy Vistula river to great advantage. Germany also unleashes ME262 in mass air combat, wreaking havoc in Red air formations and sending the Red air force reeling looking for new tactics. Necessarily, the German tactical decisions left opportunities to exploit weaker zones through the broad front doctrine, which was used to satisfactory effect.
1. In the southernmost theater, Axis begin to abandon westernmost Romania and the Transylvania & Bishop mountains in order to consolidate their MLR and offer the longest life to Hungary troops.
2. On the eastern plains of Hungary, 2 Russian armor and 2 Russian guard infantry armies fight several pitched battles and cross the Berettyo river driving NW before turning due W and beginning the long drive to Budapest. Red troops elect to bypass Nyireghasa 30 miles to the north. German armor presence is token here; so progress should be good in knocking out Hungary
3. North of the North Carpathian mountains in the vicinity of Krakow and the west bend of the Vistula, Russian massed infantry formations with artillery but no armor and attacked due west to steady effect. German infantry unsupported by armor could not sustain the repeated attacks and gave way under that pressure. Nowwy Sach fell and Krakow is in sights
4. For about 200 miles north-south of Warsaw, the Germans deployed a strongly held and well positioned armor shield with infantry support. red forces in strength tried to pry open the southern reaches of this defense and were unsuccessful except at heavy and slow cost. After a period of study, it became clear that there was no easy way through this well setup defense. A few other test attacks were made all with the same bloody and unsuccessful results; as a result, Stalin decided to park the large southern armored force that was intended to get around the Warsaw armor shield to the south, placing it on rails for short refit during next turn's mud. No further attempts were made to attack the shield, but artillery was brought up should a siege be needed.
5. After a period of several hours of intense study to include waves of air recon, I decided that there was a window of opportunity to crack the enemy MLR north of the Warsaw armor shield and south of the Bay of Danzig, perhaps 50 miles from the coast. The opportunity as I saw it was to use guard infantry armies to attack strong infantry positions north and slightly NW of the northern end of the Warsaw armor shield to get to lighter held areas. From there the northern armor force with drive NW to Danzig and pocket some divisions (not west to Berlin). This was successful, but I overextended my supply line in the process. I decided it was worth the gain. Probably the most sophisticated attack I have made in the game. The owner of many stupid mistakes this game, Id like to believe that this indicates that I can begin to think more broadly about how to use troops. Certainly a journey, but good to start it.
6. A note on the emergence of mass ME262s. I will post separately on this element. Suffice to say that airframe can be unbeatable in certain types of combats, and the mere presence of a 262 squadron in a large air battle will spell doom, or has over the last several turns.
Regarding using 262 to maximum effect, below is a picture of 5 ground support air losses in otherwise successful ground combats. I want to highlight how the Axis concentrated airpower to defend key airspace I was likely to attack and did. His tactics include organizational as well as deploying at least one squadron of ME262 into airbases with this defense.
In watching the replays I believe what is going on here is worthy of discussion. First - excellent tactics by my esteemed Axis friend. Note he as been concentrating airpower on defense for some time, so massing fighters on select combats isn't new. What IS new is the loss ratios he is achieving by deploying 262s into these combats. It virtually eliminates his losses and multiplies Russian. 5 examples are provided. Not a single 262 was lost in any of these combats! Important to note, so this result is repeatable infinitum if I don't change tactics.
So - what to do about this...
I studied the historical tactics and determined that I need to engage 262 at the airfields and in air superiority combats. I therefore changed tactics and sent superiority missions including over the airbases. 262's took 26 losses during the half turn doing this.
Minor nitpick. Pshennikov shouldn't command a squad, much less an army.
Keep the hammer going north of Krakow. His fort line can't be infinite. Break him there and the whole line may go. If you can, as things progress you want to get over the river east of the Warthe. That should doom Lodz, then Warsaw, etc. An alternative route may be northwest, bypassing Krakow and Katowice. Naturally much depends on what you can bring to the party.
As far as the Me-262s go, the VVS commmander should take it as a Soviet victory. Your bombers are what count, they decide the ground game. He can't get to them because of your inventory of fighter escorts, so in that respect the Me-262s are no more successful than their predecessors.
VP = 105 (-8) Szeged, Arad, Karcag, Kassa*, Krakow* (* fell to assault)
Trucks = 122 / 143 still OK
AP Usage - disbanded 4 army HQ and 5 other units, reorg
Destroyed Units - 17 axis divisions including 1 para, 1 mech, and 2 armor divs
AFV Losses - 677G / 271R
AIR Losses - 61G / 194R
Germans fully implement Vistula armor defense shield, leaving area around Krakow without armor support. Enemy withdraws towards Danube in Hungary. Limited combat
1. German pocket between Danzig and Koeinsburg destroyed
2. Reds move to occupy vacated areas east of Vistula near Danzig and east of Danube in Hungary
3. Linear infantry attacks continue south of the armor shield area around Krakow. They still show promise and will continue.
VP = 100
Trucks 124 / 144
AP Usages cleaned up poor commanders that seeped into leadership roles
Destroyed Units none
AFV & AIRFRAME LOSSES = negligible this last mud turn
Mud season ends with 50% clear turns.
1. Heavy fighting on Vistula just south of Danzig punches a small 5 hex foothold over the river. Enemy decides they are not strong enough to counterattack
2. Katowics and Gleiwitz fall to infantry assuault is SE Poland and Russian forces push to the Odor. Infantry attacks continue in NW direction in waves and continue to make good progress
3. Warsaw salient is primed for a pincer attack, if the enemy doesn't withdrawal this turn
4. Enemy withdrawing across Slovakia
5. Red forces are well out past their supply line in Huungary and may be several turns before they can resume, as supply is not good at the front
