Sixth Army Campaign AAR

[springer]

Barbarossa Turn 5: Bridging the Styr

The Germans have gotten too confident too soon.

The German forces have taken both Lutsk and Lokachi. They've also thrown a bridge across the Styr north of Lutsk. This allowed the forces to keep moving east rather than spend a turn heading south toward Lutsk.
The momentum continues.

However, the Soviets have not given up. They were clearly deploying for a defense of the Styr line. More disconcerting for the Germans is that they've hit their first tank corps and they are powerful. The Russians are deploying armored brigades with heavy tank II and light tank II. Fortunately, some brigades of the corps are only at half readiness. However, one of them blocking on the west side of the Styr is at full strength.

[Josh]

Medium Tank I against Heavy TankII... have fun!
This is more or less correct, the Germans had PzKpfw I-II and PzKpfw 35-38(t) whereas the Russians already had some huge heavy tanks (KV-I) and more obscure huge monsters. 88 Flak and direct fire from howitsers could destroy them for sure, a PzKpfw-IVE with a short barreled gun maybe at point blank range. Hope you have some divebombers ready...

[springer]

I totally agree, Josh, this part of the game feels historical and makes for a different set of strategy than typical AT where tank smashes against tank in mini-Kursks. All of a sudden, the Germans have to begin tip-toeing carefully. The whole Army has only 6 Medium I tanks and 14 Light I tanks. The Russians start with Heavy Tank IIs and Light Tank IIs and things only get worse. In addition, each Russian tank brigade comes equipped with flak and an AT gun.

My strategy is the one you suggested. To surround and destroy the Soviet tank brigades with Level III infantry supplemented by 88s and concentric attacks. I actually have the armor avoid armor to armor battles unless the armor doubles the bonus of a concentric attack.

Aircraft is very nice for handling armor threats, of course. I'm going to get more aggressive in using it. On turn 5, my lucky streak ended and I lost my first dive bomber (to flak of all things). This is a blessing in disguise. I was getting obsessive about trying to keep my air force at 100% operatives, which makes my air force less valuable. For example, one of the HQs found that there were planes (and lots of troops in Lokachi, so I sent all 5 squadrons to bomb it just to wipe out the air power without risk. I think those squadrons may have done better work if they hit more targets. But I was avoiding the risk to see how long I could nurse the lucky streak. Now I can get on with using the planes more fully.

[springer]

Barbarossa Turn 6: Three Broken KV-I's on Fire through the Night

As mentioned to Josh, the KV-1 and BT-7 can crush any German armor, so they were left to infantry to isolate them. Fortunately, the Soviets have not yet perfected their armor doctrine and sent these units without infantry support. The 88 flak guns did their job. The German armored forces have been ordered to avoid tank vs. tank and focus on maintaining the momentum of the forward moment. The tanks will often play a critical role in disrupting the Soviet armor's supply lines.

[springer]

Barbarossa Turn 7: The [Burning] KV-I's are Lighting the Way to Kiev

The end is in sight. It is notable that there is still Soviet resistance on the flanks. Though the Soviets are not fighting an overly tough battle, it's because they have been surprised. However, there is a certain tenaciousness which the Soviet forces have that seemed lacking with the Western Allies.

[springer]

Barbarossa Turn 8: Soviet Last-Ditch Defense

The Soviets manage to pull together another tank brigade along with sufficient infantry support.
The Germans will be using air power to soften the target for the final assault to begin.

[springer]

Barbarossa Turn 9: The Finale

IV Corps takes Rivne.
IX Corps takes Dubno with the help of elements of the IV Corps
Both XI and XXVII Corps mop up the southern flank of the advance.

The combination of air power, artillery and concentric attacks of broken the Soviet Resistance.

On to Kiev!

[springer]

Barbarossa: Post-mortem analysis

This campaign has a bit of the feeling of Belgium in it. It sort of reminds me of the instructions that used to be on American Shampoo bottles: Wash, Rinse, Repeat except in this case, the instructions on the "Blitzkrieg bottle" would be Breakthrough, Pursuit, Repeat.

But again , that's part of the fun of the game. It feels "right". As the Germans destroyed Summer '41 German Army, they probably felt they were repeating the triumph of France. However, there are some differences. First, the going is initially easy because the Soviets are at low readiness due to the surprise. Also, though resistance in this scenario is disorganized, there are hints of defense in depth and a constant pressure on the flanks. This feels different than the Western Allies who seemed to let the flanks disintegrate once the line was broken.

The other hint is that Soviet units aren't wimps. Their armor comes equipped with AT guns and Flak. The AT guns alone are enough to scare away the wafer-thin Panzers in the Sixth army. Then, of course, there are those Soviet tanks which outclass anything the Germans have. Properly supported and coordinate, the Soviet tank brigades could break the nose of Schwerpunkt. Fortunately, the Soviet command is currently disorganized and still suffering from the officer purge.

I would not consider this scenario a good test of the upgrade option I adopted from the simulations in the Sixth Army Training Center. The Soviets were too disorganized to put the German level III infantry (my only upgrade was from level I to level III Infantry) to the test. However, there are many more scenarios ahead to test the doctrine.

[springer]

Barbarossa: Analysis of Casualties

The Soviet to German infantry loss ratio in this scenario surpasses France which was about 10.5 to 1 .
In this scenario, the loss ratio is 20 to 1. This somewhat validates my effectiveness measure,
(Infantry level x Avg Infantry/Regiment x Average Inf XP/Regiment)

In Belgium, the loss ratio was 6 to 1 and the average effectiveness of the Germans around a 6
In France, as mentioned the loss ratio was 10.5 to 1 and the average effectiveness of the Germans was a 12.
In Barbarossa, the loss ratio is 20 to 1 and the average effectiveness is 22.
Though other factors influence these results, it's interesting that the line up so nicely.

Below are the average infantry strengths of the Corps: the percentage is percentage of infantry using the '41 refit as the baseline, the percentage in parenthesis is the size of the unit relative to the beginning of the campaign

IV Corps (12 infantry regiments): 342 INF at 95% (71%) strength; 43 XP
IX Corps (9 infantry regiments): 261 INF at 93% (72%) strength; 55 XP
XXVII Corps (8 infantry regiments): 265 INF at 89% (73%) strength; 53 XP
XI Corps (10 infantry regiments): 318 INF at 94% (86%) strength; 50 XP
Total: (39 infantry regiments) 1306 INF at 93% (75%) strength; 50 XP

It is interesting that casualty rates are at about 7% instead of the 25% in Belgium.
Yet, it's hard to draw conclusions why because it could either be the experience x level effect (as suggested by the Sixth Army Training Center simulations) or it could be the overall low level of readiness by the Soviet forces, who were caught off balance.

The next scenario should be a better test.

[springer]

Barbarossa: Summary of Campaign

[Jeffrey H.]

ORIGINAL: springer

Incredible photo. Must have been taken from a motion picture, single frame or something.

[springer]

Kiev Strategic Overview:

The strategic situation is similar to the Barbarossa scenario. There is one major road leading to Kiev, so that will be the focus of the advance. As always, there are more rewards for a fast victory. One of the rewards is hidden: The longer the Germans take to win a scenario, the more reinforcements the Russians get and the higher the long-term cost to the Germans. On the defense, the Soviet forces seem to do best in attrition situations.

The strategic situation of this scenario is different than Barbarossa in that the Soviets are no longer surprised. Germans had destroyed the Soviet armies on the frontier, but somehow the Soviets have managed to bring up fresh forces that, according to German intelligence, are more organized.

The Germans also have to be careful in their assault on Kiev. The last thing the Sixth Army needs to do is lose 1/3 of its forces in house to house combat. As always, maneuver needs to trump attrition.

The dispositions and roles of the four corps fits with what has become standard Sixth Army practice:
IV Corps will form the main force and drive down the road to Stavyshche and then to Kiev.
IX Corps will work with IV Corps provided additional strength and protecting the flanks as needed.
XI Corps will cover the southern flank, skirting the Zdvyzh and sweep into Hleyavkna and Bolarka before swinging into the southern suburbs of Kiev.
XXVII Corps will cover the northern flank, encircling Borodanka, then driving toward Vyshorad then swing into the northern suburbs of Kiev.

[springer]

Jeffrey H.

Thanks for the compliment.

One of the positive side-benefits of doing this AAR is that my Photoshop skills are getting better (I'm using an ancient version that I've had for years).

I created the image from a number of public domain photos, I'm glad it looks dynamic enough to create a sense of motion.
(BTW: the landscape is indeed Ukrainian Steppe)

[springer]

Kiev Turn 0: The Second Wave of Soviet Defense Begins

Below are the initial unit dispositions and the initial situation confronting the Germans.
The main objective is to grab a quickly gain a crossing across the Teteriv River.

[springer]

Kiev Turn 1: Lessons in why the Teteriv is not the Meuse

The first turn has made it clear that the German upgrade doctrine is going to be put to the test!


As mentioned in the refit, the only PP spent on upgrades was turning Infantry I into Infantry III.
This was assumed to be more effective than any other upgrade in terms of reducing German infantry losses and enhancing German destructive power. The Soviets have already decided to test this doctrine with an organized concentration of very strong armor right in the Achilles's heel of this offensive, the bridge across the Teteriv at Korostyshiv. Who needs Eben Emael when KV-Is are around to function as moving fortresses?

The Soviet position is strong and relatively coherent (though many units are still at less than full readiness). Breaking this position quickly without relying on attrition will require thoughtful use of combined force doctrine. The map denotes units that are being considered for aerial bombardment: Soviet Tanks and Artillery are ideal, of course. Units guarding bridges are ideal too. (It's best to avoid Artillery on the Bridges since they're far more likely to level them.)

Artillery is best for softening up targets of concentric attacks. (Avoid real Soviet artillery and hit Katyushas at two hex range only. Very early in my first run through the campaign, I learned that Soviet counterbattery fire can leave the German battery with their hard-earned XP in smolders.)

There may be an additional advantage of leaving the divebombers at Level I, which is the case
The divebombers are pretty devastating due to their high experience. I suspect if divebombers were upgraded they would run the risk of leveling more bridges, which is what the Germans want to avoid.

Though the German tanks are out in front, they will probably leave the tank to the infantry, as previously mentioned.

German casualties have been light so far (1 Infantry, 1 Scout). Soviet casualties have been a bit higher (88 Infantry and assorted support weapons lost, mainly through air assaults).
The next turn will test German doctrine to it's max!

[springer]

Kiev Turn 2 (preliminary air phase): Illustrating the Role of the German Air Squadrons

This screen illustrates the effects of aerial bombardment only. The ground units have not yet initiated action yet. As can be seen, three Soviet tank brigades and three artillery regiments have been reorganized as light infantry or light flak companies.

[springer]

Kiev Turn 2: The Slog to the Teteriv

The Germans had been worried about the slog at the gates of Kiev. Yet, the bad news is now: The slog begins before the campaign has really gotten started. There is no maneuver, no breakthroughs, no fast-speed pursuits. Instead, the Russians are making the German units pay for every hex which have to be taken in WWI style hex-by-hex infantry assaults supported by artillery.

The Germans talked about avoiding the use of artillery around bridges. But this doctrine has gone by the wayside: the Soviets on the west bank of the Teteriv could only be moved by artillery.

Though the Russians have paid heavily, the Germans can not afford to keep up the losses they have suffered (86 Inf and MG) and planes are being lost to the Soviet flak, which is currently more dangerous than the Soviet Air Force.

At this rate, there will be no Sixth Army to arrive in Kiev. After Barbarossa, the Soviets were supposed to be broken. This scenario should have been more like a Dunkirk or pursuit through France. And yet, here is a fresh wave of Soviets confronting the Germans as if Barbarossa had never happened. At this rate, the Sixth Army will not be able to take Kiev without the off board help of Army Group Center's 2nd Panzer Army.

[springer]

Turn 3: Korostyshiv Falls; Bridgehead formed

Perhaps the German's concerns were unwarranted. The fighting was again intensive (56 German Infantry and MG have become casualties in this turn). But, the Teteriv has been crossed, the engineers have rebuilt the bridge, and the first wave of Soviet reserves are cracking.

If the Soviets have a second Reserve Army around Stavyshche, things could continue to be difficult.

[Josh]

"The combination of air power, artillery and concentric attacks of broken the Soviet Resistance."

Yep, that's the way to go, but it does take time and time is not on your side. See how long that strategy will work under the pressure of the ever increasing Red Hordes.
That's a most impressive picture by the way (the Stuka I mean) Maybe it just bombed the other side of the river and got hit by Flak, maybe by shrapnell of their own bomb?

Aerial and ballistic "reorganization" [:)] Must remember that one.

[springer]

Josh,

You've hit the nail on the head. These games are about time. The longer the time, the lower the PP gained, the greater the casualty rate, the more Soviet reserves pile in. The Germans have to keep moving. It's hard as the Soviets seem to be developing (slowly) their doctrine of defense in depth.

I also agree that focusing in on unit destruction is just a mistake. The goal has to be forward momentum.

I think aerial reorganization is just a German attempt to help the Soviets streamline their forces. Through the innovative use of aerial reorganization, the Germans help the Soviets to modify their large, bulky command structure to make them more manageable for the junior officers who survived the purges. As the diagram below shows, the aerially modified Soviet tank corps only requires a company/battalion level of experience to command, which better matches the officer pool available to the '41 Soviet army. This reorganization not only has the advantage of increasing the managerial efficiency of a tank corp, it reduces the logistical tail of the unit as well.

(Yes, I know there were no tank corps in '41, the diagram is just a theoretical illustration [;)])