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broccolini wrote: Tue May 07, 2024 2:45 pm The Axis side is more difficult in my opinion but not impossible. You have to be very careful how you spend your available resources and use them at the right time. An offensive launched with fresh divisions (not worn down by repeated frontal assaults'), when the Shock advantage is in Axis favor, and after a week or so of artillery bombardments, would have shattered the line and probably destroyed desert force.

Curtis Lemay wrote: Tue May 07, 2024 3:07 pm

broccolini wrote: Tue May 07, 2024 2:45 pm The Axis side is more difficult in my opinion but not impossible. You have to be very careful how you spend your available resources and use them at the right time. An offensive launched with fresh divisions (not worn down by repeated frontal assaults'), when the Shock advantage is in Axis favor, and after a week or so of artillery bombardments, would have shattered the line and probably destroyed desert force.

It's so hard to avoid 20:20 hindsight issues with this entire topic. Historically, O'Connor didn't know Rommel was on the way and the entire theater had gone into "occupation mode". You, however, knew he was coming and fortified all you had at a constriction point.

Nevertheless, the Axis could have played better, starting with not pointlessly squandering bunches of Italians around Bengazi for no benefit (it actually doesn't take much skill to salvage much of the Italian artillery - giving a huge edge when Rommel arrives). Then he put the foot-bound Italians in the open and the motorized DAK in the dunes. The other way around would have worked much better. And, as you said, waiting for the shock benefits would have helped, too.