Nirosi vs Boldairade(Nirosi welcome)

[John B.]

Wow, looks like your plan of pressure on all fronts is paying off, at least for now. Must feel nice to be on the attack!

[boldairade]

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US bomber command has debriefed B-17 pilots following the horrific losses during the April raids in an effort to determine the cause for the absurd losses.

Claims by US pilots and gunners of German interceptors closing and ripping through bomber formations at never before seen speeds were dismissed as absurd.

Gun camera footage, however, doesn’t lie.

[boldairade]

June 2, 1944

BOA-Convoy attacks in the S Atlantic and Arctic routes sink 5 MM with German subs taking 2 step hits. Spanish cruisers are also raiding, but cannot sink any MM. US adds 10 MM.

Norway-The stalemate continues.

US Bomber Command-US flight crews get their briefings and are both surprised and excited-BERLIN! With the extended range of US escorts, all bomber formations are at full strength and most get supply trucks to bring readiness into the 80% range.

Only one jagdkorps is in range to protect Berlin and active, and it takes a savage beating losing 16 steps in the first 2 raids(that's 4 dogfights for the Germans though-they have to engage both the escorts AND the bombers). After that, it is just US bombers vs German AA defenses(which are considerable). Overall, 12 strikes hit home in Berlin, reducing the city from 25 PP to just one. It will be some time before it can rebuild. The cost is significant, though-we used quite a few supply trucks, and suffer 12 step hits.

In the Med, US bombers run into Italian interceptors over Taranto and take heavy losses. We then switch to bombing Bucharest, but get picked up by Romanian interceptors and get handled there as well. Mediterranean bombers are no longer unopposed.

Spain-US forces force back an Italian corps in the north and overrun a Spanish corps in the south. US 2nd Armor Corps loops through the southern breach, and we almost encircle the German 4th Pz Grenadiers-but did we overextend? They could pretty easily attack to the west. They could also combine with other formations to possible maul 2nd Armor. This may have been a mistake on my part. More and more Allied formations are arriving each turn(2 US Corps, 1 UK Corps and an airborne formation this turn), and I am eager to get them into the fight. Perhaps too eager.

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[boldairade]

June 2, 1944

Greece-In the aftermath of ZEUS, the Germans decide to retreat, while Italian formations position in the mountains to slow our advance north. WDF armor with aid for the UK Iraq Corps catches one German mountain corps in the open and gives them a good thrashing, while Canadian and UK forces plod up the western coast of Greece. We want to pressure the Axis forces here and give the impression that it is going to be a straightforward northern advance.

It is a tremendous relief to have Athens no longer existing under the Sword of Damocles, and frees some naval assets, as well as making that port a resource for Allied fleets. The last two turns we thought we had enough PP to change the mode of the Canadian corps in Athens from garrison to active but we still do not have enough. These are some of the subtleties that still elude me and slow my operations.

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[boldairade]

July 2, 1944

EAST FRONT

North-The slow advance continues here. German formations withdraw behind the Sorot River, where they will likely dig in.

Center-The 1st Pz Grenadier Corps is caught east of the river. We bring all assets to bare on it, using two infantry armies, a mech corps and two armored corps. We hoped to overrun it, but only succeed in mauling it. Along this front, the Germans have successfully withdrawn behind river lines without experiencing heavy casualties. They will look to reset their defenses much like they had them along the Lovat and Dnieper rivers previously.

Stavka does not want this. Even without entrenchment, the Germans' superior formations combined with the river barriers make a general attack completely unfeasible. Instead, Stavka again targets a land bridge between rivers-basically the entire Minsk sector.

Nirosi knows this. The very best formations in the Wehrmacht are there. Rokossovsky is given instructions from the very top-attack here. Losses will be horrific. That is accepted. To this end, the southern portion of the Soviet wedge is heavy with armor and mobile formations. Additionally, all Red Air Force formations are positioned to be in range of this area.

The bleeding here will not stop.

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South Assets for SERPENT are largely in place. Specialized formations are being brought up in their readiness.

[boldairade]

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Immense formations of US bombers form up over England for the massive Berlin raid.

[boldairade]

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Huge amounts of ordinance are delivered.

[boldairade]

But not without cost

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[boldairade]

442 Combat Team made up of Asian American soldiers moves up vs entrenched Italian positions in the Spanish foothills.

It is truly a world war.

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[boldairade]

July 16, 1944

BOA-Normal raiding in the Arctic, 2 MM sunk, 2 hits on the subs. In the S Atlantic, however, one attack sinks 6 MM and 3 escorts! Is this bad luck, or have the German Uboats achieved new tech?

Overall, our situation is pretty decent, with a 20 MM surplus, enough escorts to make good our losses with a small cushion there as well.

Norway-No activity

US Bomber Command-We consider giving the bombers a turn off, but decide on minor raids. Our opening raid hits Berlin, and rips up the Jagdkorps that tries to intercept. We then switch to deep raids on Stettin east of Berlin, and hit undefended Linz deep in SE Germany. We take losses, but Berlin and Stettin are completely leveled now. Med bombers continue to recover.

Spain-As we feared last turn, the Germans encircle the US 1st Armor Corps. Had it not been for rain, they might very well have destroyed it, but the poor weather and stout resistance by the US VIII Corps, slowed their operation. Unfortunately we have to try to reach the cut off formation in the same poor weather. We are very confident, despite that. We can bring air assets, 3 infantry corps and the encircled armor itself to bear on the German 4th Pz Grenadier Corps.

Our confidence is misplaced. Despite good odds, the US formations struggle to displace the grenadiers. Four attacks fail to push them back. Finally, a fifth attack with fresh infantry corps opens a corridor for the now exhausted US 1st Armor to retreat through, and it is pulled back to recover. We are relieved we did not lose our only mobile US formation on this front, but the relief effort stops the US eastern push in its tracks. More Axis(mostly German) formations are arriving every turn. The encirclement of Madrid is seeming far less likely to succeed.

This map shows the huge battle for encirclement and then extraction of US 1st Armor Corps.

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Greece-Poor weather precludes any attempt at CHARIOT. Allied forces continue to move up the coast and pressure Axis forces. No new enemy formations are arriving here. We are very hopeful something good could happen here in the next few turns. We genuinely need to achieve a breakout somewhere, and despite terrain this appears to be the most likely front. Canada finally has enough PP to activate the garrison unit in Athens.

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[boldairade]

July 16, 1944

EAST FRONT

North/Center- The North remains a "non battle" with nothing happening. The new German line is set upon the Sorot River in the North, and extends more or less in a straight line south. With Axis surface groups in Danzig harbor, we cannot sortie the Baltic Fleet.

In the Center, the Germans launch two counter attacks, driving back 6th Guards Tanks SE of Minsk and then shattering 2nd Siberian Army north of Minsk. Germany still can generate local tactical supremacy anywhere it chooses. Trying to maintain some kind of momentum, Stavka orders an attack east of Minsk, in the corridor that has been earmarked for heavy offensive operations. 5th Guards Tank, 3rd Guards Tank, and eventually 10th Mech all follow a massive air to ground prep and ultimately push back 5th Pz Grenadier. We do not have enough forces, however to make this anything more then a local success.

Stavka is trying to mass enough mobile groups to effect a breakthrough here, but right now we do not have anywhere near enough. Some formations are recovering far to the east and will be railed in, as well as transfers from other areas of the front. We need a critical mass of formations.

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South-The weather here is good. Although there has been fierce debate within Stavka that the units allocated to SERPENT could be better utilized in the Minsk corridor, the long planned operation goes ahead regardless. Soviet marines and the Soviet 3nd Naval Brigade land west of the Crimean peninsula. Soviet 1st and 4th Airborne Corps land in support. The Soviet 1st Red Banner Army is upgraded to engineer status to assault across the Dnieper. Red Air Army assets are in place. Shore bombardment will assist the attack. Again, we are almost supremely confident.

Again, we should not be. The defending Romanian I Corps simply refuses to crack. We only have enough OPs to launch two full attacks with the marines and airborne units. These attacks weaken the Romanians but do not displace them. The Red Banner Army then makes two unsupported river assaults and is summarily slaughtered in both.

We move up our ace formation, 1st Guards Tank, freshly reassembled from its heavy action in the Vitebsk breakthrough. It is up to full steps, but not close to full readiness. Still, it is thrown in. If it fails, this entire operation is doomed. Its first attack does little damage(1 step), but its second inflicts 3 hits and the exhausted Romanians are finally driven back after 6 assaults. 28th Mech motors into the breech.

As much as possible, we rail and move formations to be in position to attempt to widen the breakthrough here next turn. We have a lot of formations-but not particularly good ones. Again, Stavka is glad it avoided disaster, but the final dispositions here are not what was hoped.

[boldairade]

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Soviet AT gunners of the 2nd Siberian Army attempt to slow the counter attack of German panzers in the east.

[boldairade]

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US tankers from I Armor Corps rest before making another breakout attempt vs 4th Pz Grenadier.

[John B.]

Nice job on serpent. Looks like you're across the Deniper with not a lot of nearby Axis units to close the gap.

[boldairade]

Nice job on serpent. Looks like you're across the Deniper with not a lot of nearby Axis units to close the gap.

thx JB.

I'm not sure all these ops are getting me any closer to real victory, but honestly, it's really more fun than just trying to figure a way to outpoint Nirosi.

I hope you end up playing a bit, this is easily my favorite wargame of all time.

[John B.]

I'm very tempted!

[boldairade]

June 30, 1944

BOA-Another tough turn, 9 MM go down, 1 escort. The Spanish surface fleet sinks 4 on its own. 3 hits on uboats. It would seem the BOA will be a difficulty for this entire game. Uboats are working off the northern coast of England, but a special anti sub air formation is shipping over from the US this turn.

Norway-No activity, but there are still 8 German formations here.

US Bomber Command-Although the bombers are showing wear and tear, we again 'go hard'. 12 strikes are flown deep into Germany against cities with lighter flack defenses. Again, the Luftwaffe can manage only one intercept, and it is mauled by the escorts and bombers. Stettin is still in ruins. Only one strike hits Berlin, but it too is still smashed. Both Linz and Stuttgart are leveled. The occupied cities of Paris and Lille also are hit with punishing strikes. Overall, I believe bombing will cost Germany 48 PP this turn alone. Due to only hitting cities with light AA, we lose very few steps.

Spain-The Germans attempt two counter attacks here. The first runs off Omar Bradley's HQ group, which was trying to hold a front line position. Probably it should have been overrun, but we were lucky. The second is a major attack on the UK lines SE of Madrid-a fairly key position. It is held by VIII Armor, but it is hit by an infantry corps, 2 Pz Grenadier Corps, and XVI Pz Corps. These forces, with air support, launch two attacks and despite heavy losses on both sides, VIII Armor holds. Not sure if it can hold again next turn, but its defense here is key.

We are finally in a position to really start pushing here-we have enough formations and more coming. Next turn, we will attempt to clear the areas west of Madrid(orange indication) so that they can be used to stage an attack on Madrid proper. In the north, the US finally has enough formation to apply pressure across the front. More forces are on the way. Overall, we are hoping this front will be exactly what we wanted it to be-a place where we can simply bring enough formations into play that we can just grind the Germans down, despite the superiority of their formations.

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[boldairade]

June 30, 1944

Greece-Good weather means its now or never for CHARIOT. We have too many formations in Greece to supply, more portage is needed. The target is Tirane, a good sized port occupied by the Italian Albanian Corps north of the Greek mountains. To take this city, the UK allocates the fresh 6th Airborne which drops SE of the port, and lands I Corps on the beaches to its west. The port is hammered by US strategic bombers as well as UK tactical bombers. The attack will be supported by battleships, carriers and cruisers, and still more tac bombers.

All goes well with the landings. It takes two attacks, but we manage to overrun the Italian defenders. That said, we have no OPs to move either of the attacking formations into the port. Fearing a disaster similar to Rhodes(remember that debacle), we try to land an additional UK division, but cannot manage it. Finally, a US division is pulled out of Port Said, lands north of the port and is able to march in and occupy it. Not smooth-but the port is ours! We now should have adequate supply(depending on now much Axis interdiction occurs) and should be able to flank the German mountain formations setting up to hold the port of Salonica to the east. Additionally, a major attack is launched south of the port by UK II Corps, Canadian II Corps and the WDF armor vs the Italian VII Corps. They are in tough mountain terrain and entrenched, but our forces are relentless and on the 5th attack, we overrun them as well, which leaves the whole west coast cleared of resistance.

I really did not think we would be this successful with the combined ZEUS\/CHARIOT ops. The question is now, can we maintain the momentum? And if so, which direction to go? Bulgaria? Yugoslavia? Italy? The Allies are definitely leaning in one direction.

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[boldairade]

June 30, 1944



EAST FRONT

North-No activity

Center-Our attack last turn left us in a fairly vulnerable position. The German counter stroke is swift and punishing. A major attack utilizing infanrtry, 2 Pz Grenadier formations and ultimately 2 Pz Corps easily drives back 5th Guards Tank, then slugs it out with 25th Tank which repels two attacks before being forced back on the third. The Germans attempt to widen the breach by hitting 10th Mech Corps with multiple formations, but it repels two attacks-at a heavy cost. Finally, north of Minsk, the Germans easily drive back 1st Ukranian Army.

The losses here are heavy-but not devastating. Stavka has moved several mobile formations into this sector last turn. The Germans are not in dire condition-but they are worn down. That makes them roughly on par with our formations-except we have more.

As per doctine, the Red Air Force hammers XIX Pz, and it is hit by 16th Army, 3rd Guards Tank and 10th Mech Corps. Our formations are far from top condition and take heavy losses, but we drive back the panzers. 7th Tank chases the XIX Pz through the breach and forces them further back. Unlike the Vitebsk breach, we do not attempt a deep exploitation, instead we look to widen and secure the gap. 7th Tank 44th Army and 1st Siberian Tank slam into worn down 6th Pz Grenadiers and drive them back as well. Having opened up the south, we turn NW and use 7th Tank and 1st Siberian Tank with very heavy air support to again drive back beleaguered XIX Panzer and partially encircle Minsk.

We leave a hex in case we get driven back, but the German mobile formations here are absolutely chewed. It will be difficult for them to even hold a position, never mind counter attack. If the German infantry manages to pinch this breakthrough, Stavka moves up two mech corps and an armor corps to blast it open again.

Nirosi has done a very good job at withdrawing in good order, and for the most part his front remains very stable. However, the Red Army is becoming formidable in its ability to sustain absolutely withering casualties and still grind forward. This is another case where Warplan does an absolutely marvelous job of capturing the feel of history.

Even considering this, the Russians cannot maintain this pace. That said, I doubt the Germans can either.

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[boldairade]

June 30, 1944

South-There is no attempt here to seal the breach made by SERPENT. Instead, a general withdrawal from the Dnieper is undertaken. I would love to try to smash the retreating Axis forces, but these formations are not worn down by fighting all winter spring and summer. They are in good order. Instead, we will just have to snug up to them. Notice, Nirosi has deployed a Pz Grendadier Corps far to the south-this, I think, is to make sure we do not repeat SERPENT. That trick won't work again.

Overall, I am actually somewhat worried that this is poor timing. By straightening the front here, the Axis will occupy a shorter front, freeing up 4-6 units. These troops can be sent to stabilize the Minsk sector, the Greek front, or perhaps both. Also, unlike the Minsk sector, there is no land bridge here where I can attack to attempt to retain momentum. We again face a river defense. We had hoped the Axis would try to hold and we planned on racing west with our mobile formations to get across these rivers-but that will not happen.

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