Matrix Games Forums

I am wondering about the rules for changing HQs, because it seems to be possible to create very strange chains of commands.

For example in Campaign 41, I was able (using Alt+H) to assign the 1st Panzer Armee to the 6th Armee (this is OK as Panzer Groups were indeed under army high commands in 1941) and also the Southwest Front under Kharkov Front. I ran the game for a few turns to see if they would revert (especially the Southwest Front to STAVKA), but they didn't. Also, Reichenau did appear as a commander in one battle of a 1st Panzer Armee corps.

Is there anything to stop a Soviet player to create a totally new command structure by assigning all frontline Fronts to a front under Zhukov and assigning that HQ to itself. This would avoid the 'Stalin takes over' problem but I don't think that was the original intention.

I see no problem for that with german HQs though: for example, the Manstein's 11th army HQ was in fact converted to AG Don.

Originally posted by Stolpnik:
Is there anything to stop a Soviet player to create a totally new command structure by assigning all frontline Fronts to a front under Zhukov and assigning that HQ to itself. This would avoid the 'Stalin takes over' problem but I don't think that was the original intention.

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Yes, fullscale changes are possible (and exist in the scenarios). The player can create on the Soviet side a chain of command similar to the Germans (the Army Groups command layer). The only restrictions I am aware of is trying to change minor ally leaders in German minor ally HQs, and you can't remove Stalin or Hitler from their HQs.

In the case of Hitler/Stalin it doesn't matter who the main HQs are attached to. For example, for some strange reason OKH is not assigned to OKW at the beginning of '41, yet Hitler clearly can and does muck things up in the chain of command that leads to OKH. In this situation, the chain of command is not even used.

Has anyone tried setting up a 3 tiered chain of command for the Soviets? Does it make a big difference that you can tell?