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What is your opinion of the following screenshot? You can vote for A or B, whichever is closer to your opinion. Later I will go back and add up votes for either A) or B).

What is closer to your opinion. Would you say:



A) This is perfectly fine.

B) Axis ought to be allowed to have at least some of the security divisions which are assigned to the Soviet Garrison Theater Box instead to be actually on the map and available to sit in the rear and deal with cases such as this, to surround the suicidal 500-1000 man tank brigade and cause it to surrender the next turn.



The tank pictured in the screenshot is a 500-1000 man tank brigade.

I tried to make it wide enough to include the larger front, to make sure it is clear it is not like this is part of some larger offensive, and there is not some attempt to try to link up an encirclement at Bryansk or something along those lines:

Also FYI the tank brigade started several additional hexes behind the Soviet lines, so theoretically you could probably go a bit further.

Ultimately in the mod that I've done I've 'removed' (erased the need of a TB value) in the Soviet Garrison - an idea that came from you.
I checked over time the need of freight in there. Decided that such required 3 extra railyards spread between Vienna and Prague - to make up for the freight that otherwise freely appears in the TB.
Ontop of that I added 1 Security Regiment for each Army / Panzergruppe, and 1 Security + 1 Infantry Regiment for each AG, as I feel the 'Security' Divisions will also be needed to keep fortified lines and the like as well among their many rearline tasks.

There are also ongoing evaluations of how to make regimenting a bit more viable, at least early on before Russians have overwhelming odds.

The opinion is B but in most cases to surround and destroy 1 Brigade is not worthy the same if they can burn and torch railyards, or simply sweep around units to have them rout once attacked.

Wikipedia wrote:Under the overall command of the commander of the 32nd Cavalry Division, Colonel A.I. Batskalevich, from July 23 to August 5, the cavalrymen carried out a raid behind enemy lines. In the operational reports of the German Army Group Center for July 1941, there is no mention of enemy actions in the German rear. But the morning report for July 28 includes for the first time the report of the commander of the rear area of ​​the army group that, as a result of the explosion of the bridge, communication on the Minsk - Bobruisk section was interrupted , Soviet cavalrymen surrounded the 1st battalion of the 461st regiment and the Yasen railway station. To eliminate the breakthrough cavalry group, he attracts the 162nd Infantry Division and the SS Cavalry Brigade. But the very next day they sent two more fresh infantry divisions to the combat area. Thus, the cavalry group disrupted the work of an important railway line and diverted three full-fledged infantry divisions and an SS cavalry brigade from combat missions [18] .

Weird long special signs Wikipedia URL

I guess some of the issue with this is due to the fact that it's one week and you can only react to it when the enemy has already advanced quite a bit, which makes one feel somewhat helpless.

Now imagine there would be a "stance" besides REFIT/RESERVE/READY, which you could put a Unit in ...GUARD is already used in game, SECurity is used, Garrison is used ...let's call it WATCH.
This WATCH stance would allow the Unit to reduce enemy movements either

• of the type "pending Hex->Enemy Hex" (excluding ZOC movements)
• or it would actually increase the ZOC of the WATCH units by 1 or 2 Hexes

...so it could just assert control over an area. The radius could be like 2-3 Hexes or so. How it reacts is the next question. Something like increasing MP spent for the enemy in this area (like +1MP if you have a Regiment/Brigade and +2MP per Hex if you have a Division in the new WATCH stance) would be an idea. If it would just be "increased range of ZOC" then normal ZOC rules could (mostly) be used.
The downside of WATCH could be to start next turn with 0MP (only being able to move a single Hex).
Putting a Unit into/out of WATCH could cost AP and both things could only be done when X Hexes away from an enemy in supply unit.
Bigger Soviet Corps Units could be excluded from being affected by this "area effect".
Or all units with X amount of CPP (or whatever) could be excluded from this effect.

And yes, I know it's unlikely the Devs would implement a whole new mechanic.
And yes, I know if probably could be cheese'd especially thinking about 1941 if Soviets would also be allowed to use the WATCH stance.

From what I see, if you'd make it Axis only and Exclude Corps units being affected, this would mean no chance to exploit it as Soviets and it would allow Soviets to still do proper advances with serious (Corps) units and it would lower the effect/reward of using "cheap" units for Suicide runs (with which TB units would deal initially/historically).

With open TBs I keep a few SEC units anyway, however, the Axis should be aware of this and counter with some regiments. This doesn't need to cover the entire front, merely critical supply lines/VP locations.

3 or 4 divisions (preferably beaten up ones), split into regiments is more than enough to cover the rear areas. (plus the Roms in the south)

You can tempt the Soviets into a hidden nest of regiment ZoCs for some free trucks