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Playing as the Axis in the '43 grand campaign. No East Front control.

Campaign kicks off with threatening weather already descending from the north.



Air losses are still high in spite of the weather.



The Allied air force has opted for heavy ground interdiction on the Sicilian beaches.



I consider this a waste, as the Italians are in no shape to attack. I don't have too many hard and fast rules with regard to WitW. Playing as the Axis so far I've been better served to see how my opponent understands the game and seek the weak points in his strategy thereby. In this case, the neglect of the sea lanes provides an indication of what I should do.



The Italian air force is tasked with disrupting the Allied landing zones supply lines.





We also run a little recon over the beaches just to see what landed in this partial force.

The Italians perform admirably, choking off resupply and scaring the bejeezus out of the troops floating offshore waiting for their turn to get off of the boats.



On Sicily we redeploy the Italians to slow the Allied advance. The partial landing has me waiting to see where the other shoe will drop.

We plan to defend forward on the islands of Sardinia and Corsica, and forces are redeployed from the western theaters accordingly.

Turn 3
Weather picture is... complicated:



Air losses remain high, but the German contingent of these losses is acceptable.



Another shoe has dropped! Allies have forced a landing at Catanzaro which threatens to cut off the forces remaining in Sicily. Because it isn't August yet the Italian surrender can't be tripped, so we can use the Italians to help contain the beachhead while we evacuate.
First I setup some naval patrol and try to choke off resupply. S2Tanker isn't up to speed yet on providing the proper air cover to his invasions. He must be made to pay.





Results:



For some reason I didn't get the screen grabs of my movements after the air execution phase, but forces both north and south of the invasion are concentrated to oppose it.

Turn 4

Weather gets even more strange.



S2Tanker has tried to block the ferry passage on the Straits of Messina with a single TF. A single TF won't do the trick, and since the island has other ports supplies can continue flowing to the island.



As much as I'd love to smash the token force in Sicily the reality is the Germans can't afford the risk of operating on the island. The next turn he could place another TF in the Straits and whatever I had committed to fight on the island would be in serious trouble. The Italians will have to dish out the pain here for the next few weeks by themselves.



The Luftwaffe again controls the sea lanes, and this week TACB FW-190s have helped chew on the flanks of the invasion beachhead. Not willing to risk a direct attack on the beachhead. Naval guns are too much. Plan is to box him in and starve him for a bit. I MAY be able to try and force him off the island at the end of the month to avoid an Italian surrender trigger (Allies on the mainland), but that isn't the current plan.



The British infantry brigade is forced back from their toehold in the foothills.
Five mechanized divisions only muster 5-1 odds against the infantry brigade in the mountains...

The garrison situation has improved with the flow of supplies and refitting raising morale.



Strategic overview of the Med:



1st Army (blue) is assigned responsibility for Sardinia and Corsica (Operations Scylla and Charybdis respectively). Untrustworthy Italian troops are paired with German security forces and paratroops, as well as the newly minted 90th PzG Div. German orders are to disarm the Italians if they attempt to negotiate with the Allies. 1st Army is then expected to deny the islands to the Allies for as long as possible.
Here is an overview of the on map units currently assigned.



15th Army (green) is assigned responsibility for southern Italy. In a wait and see mode here. I do intend to fight as far forward as is practicable, in particular I want to deny the Allies airfields as long as possible.
Here is an overview of the on map units currently assigned.

Turn 5

Nice weather continues to dominate for the Allies.



Clomp! Clomp!
Two more shoes have dropped!
Gentleman, we're fighting a Centaur!
Two more invasions launched - east of Foggia and southeast of Salerno.

Must pull out of the toe and heel.
Should be able to slow one group and possible expel the other, but I have a feeling I won't be able to summon the manpower to kick him out. Should be able to isolate both beaches at least initially because again Allied air cover of the sea lanes has been ignored. With these invasions I should also have at least a short window where no more invasions can take place as the TFs are occupied, so we can respond more forcefully.

August objectives:
Hold him in the toe with two divisions and keep both the new beaches out of supply
Units available:

Feldherrnhalle PzG Div - on rails by Rome in regiments
9th SS PzG Div - two regiments in Naples, one in Salerno
4th FJ Div - two regiments in Taranto, one in Brindisi
10th SS PzG Div - Crotone
H. Goering Pz Div - Hills by Crotone
15th PzG Div - Cosenza (broken down in regiments)
16th Pz Div - south of Cosenza
3rd PzG Div - beachhead defense
29th PzG Div - beachhead defense
Schmalz PzG Bde - beachhead defense
XIV Pzr Corps (Hube)
LXXVI Pzr Corps (Herr)

Ashore at Salerno
3rd US Inf Div
45th US Inf Div
2/82nd US Arb (other two regiments lost the on drop)

Not sure what the British have ashore at Foggia.

The Luftwaffe sets up some naval patrols and recon to try and see what we're facing.



Overlapping ground attacks are planned to try and raise interdiction values and slow the expansion of the Foggia beachhead. Every MP matters as we gather our forces!



Happy with the results of my ground attacks and naval patrols. I'm still waiting for the My Bf 110G-2 crews to finish their bomber training!
Without the Sicilian air bases the Allies will have a hard time contesting the Luftwaffe over Italy proper. His attacks have also been largely railway interdiction (not railyard attacks), and from the German side at this stage, that's fine by me.
I'll also add that I see Allied players using LBs for ground interdiction frequently. Without good recon, and especially spread over a wide area or anything but clear terrain, this seems like a pretty ineffective tactic. In game terms the scope of Operation Cobra's breakout bombing was inside of one hex...



The Italians see an opportunity to torment the Sicilian invaders and take it, cutting off units from their base of supply.



Unit placement in Italy before moves:



Unit placement in Italy after moves:



While my overriding concern is not letting any Germans get caught in the jaws of this trap, I appreciate my opponents aggressiveness. This opening would have been even more effective against me but for one thing, at this stage (July) the Italians by rule cannot surrender, so the result is that surrender triggers are obviated, and the Germans didn't have to worry about partisan uprisings linking with the beachheads and creating a disaster. If the Salerno and Foggia invasions had come just one week later I likely would have lost the use of rail that I maintain, and found 15th Army's head in a noose. So I commend the strategy, just observe that the execution was a touch eager to maximize effectiveness.

With the invasions ashore on mainland Italy threat of an early invasion of N. Europe is on the shelf. I move some garrisons toward N Italy in response.

Turn 6

Weather remains favorable, with rain only over the Arctic.



Now that the mainland invasions are underway the Axis begin racking up VP for Allied losses.



I knew S2Tanker had hit Pelton with a lot of invasions, but what wasn't clear from Pelton's AAR was what kind of air cover he was giving these invasions. My guess at this point is - not much, if any.
I continue establishing naval patrol ADs over the mainland invasion beaches. If S2Tanker hasn't figured this part of the game out he's going to have to learn the hard way.








We also run some ground attacks over the Salerno area beachhead, trying to soften this area up to concentrate on initially.
Pleased again with the results overall:

Hube makes an effort against the Salerno beachhead, but it is a failure.



In Sicily the Italians continue their maneuver and harassment of the Allies.



While the Italians are still in the fight, now that the Allies are on the mainland my deployments must take into consideration that they will soon evaporate.
I decide to relegate defense of the southern river boundary of the Foggia beachhead to Italian units. I hope to draw the Allies this direction, so I place the 4th FJ in position to maintain the ports in The Heel. If the Allies take this bait while continuing to press toward Termoli (port on the Adriatic coast) it will help thin their ranks for a counter stroke. If I just push them onto the beachhead I'll face the same stalemate I have at Salerno, without the advantages of terrain to protect my units.

Italian theater after moves:




Garrison situation:



Continuing to rail in reinforcements from the Eastern Front.



Pleased to note that Allied troop (49) and cargo ship (150) losses are mounting now that the mainland has been invaded.
The Allies are now at 89% of their starting troop ships and 100% of their starting cargo ships.

Turn 7

No weather to report.
Italians are still in the fight!

In Sicily the Allies again try to expand their gains against the Italians.



In The Toe the Canadians force the Italians out of the port at Crotone hoping to alleviate their supply woes.



American efforts to expand the Salerno beachhead come to naught.



The British take the bait, splitting their armor both south and west. 6th BR Armored Division makes the drive south, trying to create a link up with the Salerno beachhead. 7th BR Armored Div is in the vanguard of the western push, and the Canadian armor is identified in reserve in the center.

Air Directives still focusing on maintaining the blockade over the Allied beaches, but I also throw in some level bomber raids on the Allied airfields at the Foggia landing areas. They're supply starved, and we hope to catch a lot of them on the ground. Still waiting on the twin engine fighter groups to get back from retraining as bombers, but I do generate a little ground interdiction on the Brits southern salient from Foggia.











Over 180 Allied planes are destroyed on the ground, but I think on net I should have just rested the groups involved for later operations.
Unopposed the supply blockades remain in effect. Resupply is off the table, and reinforcement or withdrawal will surely generate losses.

Attacks are launched to isolate the 6th and 7th BR Arm Divs, as well as the northernmost British infantry division.








I fill the gaps units and bring the Italians back to help guard the rail line near 6th BR Arm Div, and a regiment of paras are also shifted forward to cover the hills behind the Italian line.

I don't expect the pockets to hold, I expect the British to be forced to further divide their forces in an effort to rescue the isolated units. Our movement also identified the Guards Arm Div in the center, but we anticipate the center being thinned to reinforce the wings. To that end we have gathered several SS panzer units opposite the center, and hope next turn to make a drive for the beachhead.

Situation in The Toe:



Situation in Sicily:



Reinforcements continue streaming into N. Italy:

Turn 8

Some rain systems enter the picture, but won't be affecting the Med. this week.



The Italians have surrendered (after the Allied turn), so here's a snapshot of the losses page at the moment:



Not easy to separate the Italian portion, but it is in the lion's share.
In the air it is a little easier to differentiate.



Just over 50% of the air losses were borne to this point by the Italian Air Force.

The British react as expected, launching attacks to free their trapped units, but also do us the favor or making some additional attacks against the Italians still on their SE flank. This just burns more of their scarce supplies, and increases their losses and fatigue.



Placements prior to movement.



The Allies have dropped in some Polish Airborne to try and support the 6th BR Armored Div salient. There has been some unit swapping at the Salerno beachhead, I suspect that's where some of the Allied losses this turn have come from (at sea).
Weakness is perceived SW of Foggia, and an effort will be made to force the line there with the SS Panzers.



Luftwaffe again masters of the skies over the landing zones on mainland Italy. Additional efforts made to generate ground interdiction over the Foggia invasion area as well with good effect.

I SS Panzer Corps assaults the center of the British line, hitting the weakened 78th BR Inf Div.



A follow up attack clears the way.



With the 78th retreating into Foggia the British interior is laid bare. Dietrich wastes no time in urges the 9th SS PzG Div into the breach.



Relatively few casualties are incurred bagging an entire British army!



Garrison situation:



Med theater overview:

I like the animations. Rough going for the Allies so far. At least with the Italians gone those Allied units in the toe can come up and join the party.

I like the animations. Rough going for the Allies so far. At least with the Italians gone those Allied units in the toe can come up and join the party.

Thanks. We intend to prepare a warm welcome for them as quickly as the Foggia pocket can be liquidated.
I don't like giving up great defensive terrain without making the enemy bleed for it first. Rough terrain really helps negate the Allied advantages in the air.

Turn 9

Rain across the map. Allied casualties begin to mount with so many troops isolated, trying in vain to regroup.




Areas of interest before German moves:





Continue with naval patrols over the Allied ports on mainland Italy.



The Foggia pocket is collapsed in on itself, but it will be at least another week before everyone surrenders.
German armor moves into The Toe in an effort to screen the Allied advance.
Elements of the 15th PzG Div enter Rossano to locate the enemy vanguard before re-positioning to defend the Crati river.



Allied losses are skyrocketing with 78k British troops sent to POW camps this week.

bloody and daring but alas a bit too aggressive for the allies and this is a beat down ....

Wonderfull AAR [X(][X(]

Thx [&o][&o][&o][&o]

Turn 10

Weather is not currently threatening.



Keeping an eye on Allied shipping losses:


This bumps them down to 71% of their starting troop ships, and 101% of their starting cargo ships.

The Allies try to push up The Toe, but our screening forces and their desperate supply situation keep them on the south side of the river for now.



The Foggia pocket is finally liquidated and more units are sent to help block The Toe while a screen is maintained around the 6th BR Arm Div and the Polish paras.



Another 77K Allied POWs are processed. This should put the British manpower pools in a real pinch.

Turn 11

Again no threatening weather to report.

Allies build 4 troop ships and 30 cargo ships per turn. We keep wearing down the troop ships as he tries to move forces into (or out of) his beachheads.



Units lost so far in the mainland invasion by the Allies:





Here's the view on the mainland before German moves:



The British attempt to push back the German screen in The Toe, but are unable to make headway without sufficient supplies.

Air Directives.

We finally have our twin engine fighters back from retraining as bombers, and we intend to put them to work immediately generating interdiction in The Toe.
Three ADs are established to create interdiction on either side of the river while another is created to bomb the airfields near Crotone (with level bombers).







Recon directives are created to help ID units in the Salerno beachhead, as well as supporting our efforts in the The Toe.



Finally, we continue our naval patrols off Salerno to deny supplies to the invaders.






Results:

The 6th BR Armored Div is chased into the mountains while an attack is launched against the salient of the Salerno beachhead (importantly, this hex has no TF fire support).
Due to a quirk in how the game works the retreating units actually route to the closest supplied hex, which puts them in The Toe.



Infantry reinforcements continue to be railed in as we execute a planned withdrawal on the eastern side of the The Toe.
Plan is to suck the Allies into our interdiction, and then to counterattack them on the plains - forcing them to retreat under interdiction and across the river for extra losses. I don't want to wait until the 2/15th PzG Div is forced out of the rough and pushed across the clear terrain by sheer weight of numbers. They've done their job of stalling the enemy advance until I could rally more forces and create a more formidable line on the ridges north and west of the river.
I also hold my position in Cosenza for several reasons. Favorable defensive terrain, the length and terrain Allied supplies must travel, and denying the Allies the opportunity to establish a depot closer to the front lines.

Overview of force allocations in the Med Theater: