Sur les traces de l'empereur / Tracking Napo (Vorsteher welcome)

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Fri Mar 01, 2013 11:05 pm

Having read a lot of AAR, I will try to share my own experience while describing my game against Vorsteher (GC260, server game, non random weather). Of course, like Napo in 1812, I'm the invader and he tries to defend Mother Russia. As you noticed, I'm not native english speaking. It's my 4th GC41 as GHC versus a human. 2 wins, 2 ongoing. It's the first time I enter summer 1942.

We did a traditional first year.

GHC took on 1941 Leningrad and we begun blizzard on a line following Ladoga, Ilmen, VL, Smolensk, Orel Kursk Karkhov, and south to the sea. The gain in territory isn't impressive but I was focused on encirclement. Losses on turn 24 were as follow:

As illustration, on the first turn of blizzard, northern part of the front

The center

The southern part

And Crimea

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Fri Mar 01, 2013 11:30 pm

First major error during the blizzard, I try to hold the line...

Losses are climbing, see below on turn 37, 26/02/1942

And I lose between five to ten hexes from north to south.

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Fri Mar 01, 2013 11:40 pm

Then I begin to grind from March to mid june. We are now on turn 55, 02/07/1942, summer begins and it's my last summer of offensive

Losses

Nothern Front

Southern Front

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Fri Mar 01, 2013 11:57 pm

Focus on the Stalino sector. I've decided to hit here and try to maintain SHC OOB close to 6M

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And the OOB

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 8:23 am

Turn 56, 9 July 1942

Key decision, the target will not be Stalingrad or Caspian Sea but upper Don and Voronej. The nut is big, but I will try to crack it.

And the SHC OOB is declining for the dirst time since several weeks

GHC OOB

I suppose that SHC will react strongly

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 8:31 am

First star!

On the path to glory?

KenchiSulla · Post by **KenchiSulla** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 9:30 am

Hi Stef,

Looks like you are doing pretty good! How would have not standing your ground during blizzard have changed the game? Would your army be in better shape?

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 10:05 am

ORIGINAL: Cannonfodder

Hi Stef,

Looks like you are doing pretty good! How would have not standing your ground during blizzard have changed the game? Would your army be in better shape?

I suffered a lot of retreats during the blizzard and I had to use most of my pzd/mot to stop the SHC The consequence is shown below, I have few INF div with good morale

KenchiSulla · Post by **KenchiSulla** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 2:35 pm

I don't know if that is good or bad to be honest. The morale drop is hardcoded for the most part. As long as you get chances to grind away at the soviets you might still recover a bit.

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 3:49 pm

ORIGINAL: Cannonfodder

I don't know if that is good or bad to be honest. The morale drop is hardcoded for the most part. As long as you get chances to grind away at the soviets you might still recover a bit.

From my experience, having a bulk of Inf with morale > 80 is very helpfull to breach level 3 entrenchment.

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 4:18 pm

Turn 57, 16 July 1942

My Pzd/Mot are moving west to close the pocket. SHC is gathering reinforcements and counterattacks near Rostov. I choose to be weak near Rostov and strong west of Boduchar.

GHC Infs also attack from the west.

But it's 2 hexes too far and I realize it would have been better keeping a PZG on the other side... Too late, too stupid, success is not guaranted!

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sat Mar 02, 2013 4:22 pm

A short view of the units destroyed during the last turns

And the OOB, SHC is still above 6,2M

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 5:42 am

Turn 58, 23 July 1942

Heavy counterattacks from the SHC from Rostov to Boduchar. My PZG are isolated.

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 5:47 am

I break the pocket and maintain the pressure on the SHC. I keep losing ground near Rostov.

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 5:49 am

The OOB, SHC is below 6.2M

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 5:55 am

But looking closely, things are not as good, I'm burning my AFV and planes at high rate since the beginning of the summer offensive. SHC can afford such rate of losses, GHC can't.

The loss ratio for AFV and planes must be much greater than to 3 for1!

juret · Post by **juret** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 9:05 am

nice battle!

swkuh · Post by **swkuh** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 11:37 am

Enjoying your AARs. Good analysis and presentation. Also appreciate your aggresive strategy-mistakes (?) and all.

Seems whenever (not just your game) GHC mixes it up with STAVKA, GHQ gets worn out too early. There are just too many Soviets, too much gear, and a simple strategy-organize the big push and do it.

If there is a winning Axis strategy, its yet to be seen by me in games of evenly matched opponents.

Good luck.

loki100 · Post by **loki100** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 1:15 pm

agree, like the way you are concentrating on the central issues. Interesting to see that while the Axis is still dangerous in 1942 - you can take what you want - the attrition aspect becomes limiting. I've only managed the 1941 scenarios so had little intuition as to how much the loss ratio equalises as the game goes on

STEF78 · Post by **STEF78** » Sun Mar 03, 2013 3:32 pm

Turn 59, 30 July 1942

As expected, SHC retry to isolate the spearheads, but it holds!