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"They came on in the same old way and we defeated them in the same old way." - Duke of Wellington



My first attempt at the Westwall scenario. I'm playing a server game as the Axis. As the defender I should have the easier time of it in this scenario. Interestingly the objectives are basically at the frontline, so there isn't really any room for the Germans to fall back and regroup. They need to hang on tenaciously.

My opponent conducts the opening landings of Operation Market Garden, while 1st Army succeeds in taking Aachen by direct assault. Farther south Patton's 3rd Army launches its attacks into the Saar region.

German forces race to respond and isolate the Allied paras. The garrison at Dunkirk is evacuated to Den Hague.
A very crowded scene at the north end of the line:




The Allies are too strong to counter at Aachen. Here we can only hold for now.




Patton's 3rd Army is attempting to drive into Germany, but 5th Panzer Army has different plans.
They meet head on, and the Americans are forced back across the river when news comes from German scouts that the American flanks are unsecured.




Von Maneuffel seizes the opportunity immediately, creating a strong cordon of infantry and panzers isolating two armored divisions and two infantry divisions in the vanguard of 3rd Army's assault.




Overall view of the front lines after turn 2 moves:

Turn 3

Recon is ordered at several key spots along the line:




The Allies attempt to relieve their paras, but they only succeed in reaching the Americans. 101st Airborne forces back a German regiment so that the 82nd can retreat west back across the river toward friendly lines. The Poles are still trapped and the 9th SS PzG Div accepts the surrender of 1st BR Airborne.




Patton's efforts to re-open lines of communication with his vanguard fail.




The consequence is that 5th Panzer Army bags 4 divisions, and the offensive threat posed by 3rd Army is now but a shadow.




With 5 Allied divisions being processed for POW camps von Manteuffel implores von Rundstedt to seize the initiative. He presents his plans, which call for the relocation of all available panzer forces. One brigade (111th Pz Bde) is sent to refit in the south at Strausburg. This is the only local reserve to parry any future efforts in this region during von Manteuffel's gambit.

To the northwest, near the depot at Breda, I SS Panzer Corps is gathered to refit and resupply under the command of 7th Army. 15th Army will supply the infantry to bridge the Albert Canal, while the SS Panzer Corps will be responsible for gaining and holding the bridgehead south of the canal.
5th Panzer Army will be responsible for smashing through the Ardennes west to Namur, then bridging the Meuse and turning north to link with I SS Panzer Corps. To this end some initial attacks are launched to try and secure better ground at the edge of the Ardennes. In this area nearly 40 miles of front line are lightly screened by regiments of the 4th US Inf Div. There is some concern that the enemy may percieve the weakness highlighted by these attacks, but the risk is worth seizing the terrain, eliminating fortification efforts, and bleeding the target of next week's full out assault.
To mitigate the risk of reinforcement on the intended axes of advance it is decided to leave the paras as 'bait'. The Poles and Americans won't be captured, or forced back. Instead after we pull the panzers we flood in some regiments, hoping this weak screen draws an aggressive response that pulls more of the allied armored units northeast.

interesting to see such an aggressive response to a scenario that puts you very firmly on the defensive at the start

Interesting development. How high have the levels of interdiction been? The allies should have been able to make it very costly for you to manoeuvre in Holland.

How high have the levels of interdiction been? The allies should have been able to make it very costly for you to manoeuvre in Holland.

WA air interdiction was focused mostly between Nijmegen and Aachen, and consequently didn't provide much disruption. Not sure if my opponent was using AI created directives, or making his own. As things would develop I tend to think the former.

Turn 4

Rainy weather. This is a mixed blessing. It should put a damper on WA flights, whereas I hope more of mine get through due to shorter range, and the fact they've been resting until this point.

Basically all of the FBs are put on bomber duty. Hope is to lay down a carpet of interdiction at both the intended breakthrough points. This should aid the breakthrough as well as help hold the shoulders of the salients both north and south.




NFs are put on daylight duty to conduct fighter sweeps in support of these ground attacks.




Results are lot of missions over the target areas. I forgot to get screenshots of the interdiction levels, but they were very good (mostly above 5, up to 8 in some places).




I SS Panzer Corps' refit has helped, although their highest morale unit, the 9th Pzr Div, is still very weak. Morale and MP matter more than CV for the panzer corps.




In 5th Panzer Army it is 130th Panzer Lehr Div and the 15th PzG Div that will be our most important assets for linking the pincers.




At the northern pincer the Western Allies have reinforced this position by adding an infantry division in one of the gaps. The infantry of 15th Army gather to smash these defenders and reach the Albert Canal.




We cannot afford failed attacks, so much weight is brought forward from the rear to assault the initial enemy position.




The second attack on the line is also successful, and the British infantry are forced back behind the canal.




A final effort by the infantry fails to cross the canal, so the SS panzers are called forward to continue the advance. They succeed in gaining a foothold across the canal. So far the operation is on schedule.




5th Panzer Army brings its weight to bear on the strung out 4th US Inf Div.




With only scattered regiments and a Belgian motorized brigade in the vicinity the Americans cannot hold 5th Panzer Army back.




Morale is beginning to falter under the flurry of blows.




5th Panzer Army has created a 30 mile wide breach in the American lines, and have seized the road hub at Bastogne.




Additional panzer divisions race through the Ardennes, pushing back token resistance.




130th Panzer Lehr seized Namur uncontested, while their scouts report no enemy resistance to be found.




Von Manteuffel uses 130th Pzr and 15th PzG to finish the link up, and then breaks them down to regiments in order to try and cover as much ground as possible. While I could have elected to cut a single, solid, thin line, I decided instead to create this coil in order to try and gain more space, particularly the river edges. I expect I have more available assets to reinforce next week now that the greater part of the British 21st Army Group has been bagged, the key is having a little breathing space remaining to slide those reinforcements in.
Just below the southern pincer efforts are made to pinch the 5th US Arm Div. I could have cut this unit off entirely by using an available panzer brigade, but I decided to commit them to the pocket perimeter instead. Farther south of that Cossacks and some German infantry move forward to threaten the flanks of the Free French Armored division. Anything to possibly slow their ability to relieve the 21st Army Group.




Losses for this operation so far are surprisingly light:



At least on the ground:

Montgomery scrambles to respond to the panzer encirclement. The gaps in the cordon are exploited to open LOC to the front.



Inexplicably the British fail to garrison Brussels and the 712th Inf Div is motorized to exploit the oversight while 1st Fallschirm Army accepts the Polish surrender.



The cordon is strengthened and the northern pincer is re-assigned to the 6th Panzer Army.



Approximately 20 division equivalents are trapped in the pocket (6 arm./14 inf.)
Units identified:
113th US Cav Grp
8th BR Arm Bde Grp
50th BR Inf Div
101st US Arb Div
1/1st PO Arm Div
82nd US Arb Div
34th BR Tnk Bde
Guards BR Arm Div
Princess Irene NE Inf Bde Grp (Mot)
43rd BR Inf Div
4th CA Arm Div
6th Guards BR Tnk Bde
4th BR Arm Bde Grp
7th BR Arm Div
3rd BR Inf Div
51st BR Inf Div
15th BR Inf Div
11th BR Arm Div
Unknown US Arm unit
4th US Cav Grp
3rd US Arm Div
30th US Inf Div
1st US Inf Div
49th BR Inf Div
30th BR Arm Bde
9th US Inf Div
1/4th US Inf Div
I BR Corps
33rd BR Tnk Bde
28th US Inf Div
2/4th US Inf Div
53rd BR Inf Div

ETO overview:

Ike tries to plug the huge gap in the lines with anything available.



The 53rd BR Inf Div east of Brussels is captured and the panzers move to encircle the British paras.



With the paras routed the SS panzers ranger behind enemy lines, reaching the garrison of Dunkirk while under the cover of darkness LXXXIX Corps HQ and reinforcements enter the Calais harbor.



With the British Army on the continent largely lost Churchill's appreciation of the overall strategic picture changes. A failure to make peace with the Germans could mean eyeballing the Red Army across The Channel. FDR, facing fall elections, likewise cannot abide a disaster in the ETO.
Montgomery's gamble to end the war before xmas has the desired effect, just not in the desired way.

wow @,@

Oh, this is looking bad for the Allies. Very bad.

Oh, this is looking bad for the Allies. Very bad.

Aye, the Allies resigned after this turn. I've just been too caught in games to post more AARs, but I'm trying to do so when I don't have a pending turn now.

The German mechanized forces, especially those over 80 morale, are extremely dangerous. I've more than once caught Allied players with insufficient defense in depth. Even a shell, if under a Panzer Corps with a decent mech commander, can get 48-50 MP from a turn of sitting on a depot in refit. A gap in the line and the short (relative to the Eastern Front) distances make them scary.

It's fun as the Germans to try and seize the initiative, and to try and have the fight where you want to have the fight, even if on the strategic defensive. I can't do the 'bunker Fuhrer' thing of just battening down the hatches and waiting for Fate (or the internal game clock) to save me.

Once my ongoing games wrap up I'm going to tackle the Allied side and see if I can avoid making a hash of it.