Do You Take Riga in the First Turn?

[bin618]

[font="Verdana"]Do you take Riga in the first turn? How? Use panzer and motorized divisions? Is it kind of waste of tanks and motorized vehicles? How do you use the panzer and motorized divisions? To Spoil and entrap soviet units or to use them directly in combats? Thanks. [/font]

[NotOneStepBack]

Yes, I take it. You need to prioritize first the infantry of AGN to clear a path to Riga, so that the PZ's are able to reach the hex next to Riga that isn't swamp. There is a path to get there without crossing a minor river too.

Once established I bomb the units in the city.

Once that is set up, I send 2 PZ divs and 1 mot div to the hex next to Riga and hasty attack. It usually falls. Then you can occupy the city and cross the major river there.

[Telemecus]

I used too, but against the AI now I never do. You can get your panzers to Cesis and Madona on turn 1 which means Talinn and the gulf of Finland near Narva on turn 2. Unlike Riga you can ship infantry straight away to Talinn which means by turn 3 they are at Narva a dozen hexes from Leningrad.

Leaving Riga completely isolated will mean the AI abandons it straight away, and if it did not it would have only NKVD to defend it. Riga is not like Sevastopol or Odessa.

[bin618]

ORIGINAL: NotOneStepBack

Yes, I take it. You need to prioritize first the infantry of AGN to clear a path to Riga, so that the PZ's are able to reach the hex next to Riga that isn't swamp. There is a path to get there without crossing a minor river too.

Once established I bomb the units in the city.

Once that is set up, I send 2 PZ divs and 1 mot div to the hex next to Riga and hasty attack. It usually falls. Then you can occupy the city and cross the major river there.

[font="Verdana"]Thank you NotOneStepBack. But don't you bomb the airports in this turn? I always use all my bombing planes to bomb the airports, so I have no planes to bomb the units in Riga. Does it really help much to bomb these units? [/font]

[NotOneStepBack]

I do bomb airbases, but I usually save one airbase for Riga. It's not essential, just adds disruption before the attack.

[bin618]

ORIGINAL: Telemecus

I used too, but against the AI now I never do. You can get your panzers to Cesis and Madona on turn 1 which means Talinn and the gulf of Finland near Narva on turn 2. Unlike Riga you can ship infantry straight away to Talinn which means by turn 3 they are at Narva a dozen hexes from Leningrad.

Leaving Riga completely isolated will mean the AI abandons it straight away, and if it did not it would have only NKVD to defend it. Riga is not like Sevastopol or Odessa.

[font="Verdana"]It seems that some of my panzer and motorized divisions can push to Cesis and Madona after I take Riga in this turn.[/font]

[Telemecus]

I usually get 6 panzer/motorised accross the Dvina. The Cesis/Madona pair get to the Gulf of Finland on turn 2, one to cross between Lake Peipus and Lake Pskow, and the remaining 3 to encircle Pskow to its East. If I had another I would now still rather send it as far North or East than waste a single movement point this turn when Riga will be taken next anyway.

[bin618]

ORIGINAL: Telemecus

I usually get 6 panzer/motorised accross the Dvina. The Cesis/Madona pair get to the Gulf of Finland on turn 2, one to cross between Lake Peipus and Lake Pskow, and the remaining 3 to encircle Pskow to its East. If I had another I would now still rather send it as far North or East than waste a single movement point this turn when Riga will be taken next anyway.

I'll try your strategy next time.Thanks.

[821Bobo]

ORIGINAL: Telemecus

I usually get 6 panzer/motorised accross the Dvina. The Cesis/Madona pair get to the Gulf of Finland on turn 2, one to cross between Lake Peipus and Lake Pskow, and the remaining 3 to encircle Pskow to its East. If I had another I would now still rather send it as far North or East than waste a single movement point this turn when Riga will be taken next anyway.

This can work only vs AI.

[RoflCopter4]

I tend to do as few attacks as I possibly can against the AI on the first turn. It makes much more sense to me to do the bare minimum to open up pathways for the panzers to encircle as much as possible. The AI is too stupid to break out of pockets that early, and it abandons Riga anyway. I just ignore it, get a bridgehead over the Dvina, and go straight for Pskov.