The D21 Road Not Taken....

[sPzAbt653]

They are all over, and it's a huge map ... [>:]

[Hellen_slith]

ORIGINAL: sPzAbt653

They are all over, and it's a huge map ... [>:]

I'm ok w/ some of them, esp. lakeside or in the swamps ... I just chalk it up to Sovs hiding in the swamps until they decide to up there.

But Odessa: yeah, that one is weird.

[StuccoFresco]

Jesus Soviets.

[larryfulkerson]

It's T24 and this is what the Leningrad area looks like now. I've pushed the Soviets almost up to the city and the Soviet stacks are getting taller and the progress in this area has almost halted. There's lots of gaps in the lines in this area and I fear the Soviets will take advantage of that. I've run out of available troops to move around to the breakthroughs that the Soviets make. I can usually plug the hole in the lines as they form but it's getting harder all the time. The railhead has progressed to just east of Narva so the supply level is okie dokie.

[larryfulkerson]

It's T24 and this is what the Stalino area looks like now. The Soviets have gotten a lot of reinforcements and they are starting to show up at the front lines with a vengence. The Soviet units are more numerous and they are starting to counterattack all over the map. The character of the game is changing. It's no longer slash and dash, it's now toe-to-toe fighting over single hexes at a time. Yellow units are Italian and the blue ones are Rumanian.

[larryfulkerson]

In the Leningrad area I've gone almost as far north as I can go for now because of the size of the Soviet stacks so I've been driving east trying to get on the east side of the river. The Finns are at the stop line so they are no help at the city itself. I've got to sink the Soviet naval units because of the support they lend to the Soviet defense. I've tried some air attacks on the CD guns there and my losses were too high to continue doing that. I've been repairing the rail lines near Narva so I can use the RR arty units I have. Supply levels in this area are great. It's early September now so there's no real hurry to take down the city.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's the T25 view of the Rostov area right now. I'm making a lot of progress in the south and I'm on the verge of getting into the really low supply areas and will soon have to stop the advance and wait for better supply. The railhead is nowhere near being close enough to supply the troops. It's just past Kiev right now and that's helping nobody. I hate to call a halt when the progress is going so well but it's necessary.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's a T26 view of Leningrad right now. I've gotten up adjacent to the city but Elmer has stacked everything in that hex except the kitchen sink. He's probably got some tactical nukes too. I had planned on using the RR arty on the stack for a couple of turns to whittle down the defenders somewhat. The railhead is almost close enough for that to happen. I don't need fantastic losses taking down the city. I'd like to capture the city so that the Finns can contribute to the fight further south a bit. Right now the Finns and Soviets are having arty duels at the stop line.

[larryfulkerson]

It's T27 and I'm at the beginning of my turn and it appears that the Soviets have blasted a hole in my front lines and I don't have a reserve to fix it. I'm hoping I can scrape up enough units to block any further incursion. The Soviets have been counterattacking more and more lately. And they are so intent on winning these battles that I've seen Soviet units evaporate when attacking. The Axis units are badly outnumbered in terms of numbers of units but the Axis side still has a tiny shock advantage. The character of the game has changed again. We're getting closer to winter all the time. It's already mid-September.

[larryfulkerson]

comedy relief:

[larryfulkerson]

moment of zen:

[StuccoFresco]

Are the counterattacks only in the Moscow region?

[larryfulkerson]

Here's what's going on in the far south right now. I'm using the 11th Army to try to push over Sevastopol and the Rumanians to push through the Kerch Straits and it's slow going at both battle sites. The Soviets are defending with fairly stout units and they have naval support and there's some lethal CD guns within range so the fighting is savage and bloody. So far Elmer has parked his ships in a port so I've been doing port attacks and mostly losing Ju-87B's for no return. It's starting to be frustrating not being able to leave a mark on any of the Soviet ships. There are Soviet supply sources just offshore so I can't starve them out with a seige. Right now I'm trying to take apart their defenses a piece at a time so I can concentrate the arty support. I'm making some slow progress. I suppose there's no big hurry. I have until 04Dec41 for the deadline to activate the Bulgarians.

[larryfulkerson]

Here's a T28 view of the Rostov area right now. I've defeated some Soviet defenders and have crossed the river and have units heading into Soviet territory converting the roads and rails to get some supply flowing into the areas I'll be moving into soon. The supply level is really low in this area since the railhead is so far away. Most of the progress I've been making is in this area.

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: StuccoFresco
Are the counterattacks only in the Moscow region?

Not at all. The Soviets act like their strategic bias got switched to "attack" instead of "defend" and the attacks are happening all over the map. They have made several breakthroughs in my front lines but so far I've been able to plug them. There's going to come a time when I won't be able to plug it and I'll have to pull everybody back toward Germany, probably during the Soviet Winter Offensive. We'll see.

[larryfulkerson]

02:51 local...This is the T29 view of Leningrad looking south. I'm terribly outnumbered and it's only because of the natural defensive features of the terrain that I'm able to hold back the majority of the Soviets. They have broken through my lines in several places during their most recent turn and I now have to find the assets to plug the holes. Several Soviet units evaporated during attacks so they are giving it the old college try. The Soviet stacks are getting taller and there's a LOT more of them at the front lines so I'm pretty sure the advance has come to a halt along most of the front lines. Progress is still being made in the south but the supply levels down there are getting too low to operate any longer. My railheads aren't anywhere close to the places I need them except in the north. The railhead up there is just south of Leningrad heading east.

[larryfulkerson]

03:18 local This is what's going on in front of Moscow looking south. The front is very fluid here and the Soviets have blasted a hole in my front lines and I'm going to have major difficulties getting it plugged again. It's a huge hole and there are many Soviet units to contain. The Soviets are attacking with a vengence all over the map.

[StuccoFresco]

You are just about to close the Life Road on the Ladoga, though. That would isolate Leningrad, right? Or is there a Soviet supply point in the city?

[larryfulkerson]

ORIGINAL: StuccoFresco
You are just about to close the Life Road on the Ladoga, though. That would isolate Leningrad, right? Or is there a Soviet supply point in the city?

I actually got a unit adjacent to the Life Road and it cut the supply to the city. Since then the Soviets have moved some units up there to reestablish the flow of supply. I'll have to cut the road again. The RR arty is pulverizing the Soviet defenders in the city hex so I should have the city soon.

[larryfulkerson]

Have I mentioned that it's T29 now? Here's the current Rostov area right now. I'm getting across the river and spreading out to convert the roads and rails to help the flow of supply which is really low. Single digits. I may have to halt everybody to wait for better supply. The railhead is way way to the west and almost useless.