The Fate of Sovisum III Multiplayer AAR

[Nachtjager]

I've been running an AAR of an invasion I launched on another played over on the Something Awful forums and it would probably be of interest to readers here. I'm not sure if I could recreate the formatting I used over there on this forum so I'll simply link it.

https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3934505

[Nachtjager]

I've wrapped up this game on the Something Awful forums, and now I'm going to try and post a summary of events here with the benefit of hindsight, a proper after action report.

The First Orange War.

The New Republic of Sovisum III was formally established in the Winter of 231AA following the centuries of darkness brought by the Dissolution War. Oral histories spoke of a republic spanning many stars, and out of the ruins of the former planetary senate rose a city-state trying to emulate that great empire of old.

The Spring of 240 marked the ninth year of expansion out of the capital city of Silvervale. In the process of expansion, other states attempting to reclaim the planet were encountered. The so-called 'Queenstate' emerging from the great southern deserts was particularly aggressive in clawing their way outwards from their capital of Regula. Things were coming to a head, and the Rostock crisis proved to be the boiling point.



After offering their protection to the far-flung farmer state of Rostock, Queenstate found themselves in possession of the territory after an aggressive theocracy out of Sparenhausen declared war on the farmers. These events were observed with horror in Silvervale, who had until now considered Rostock to be within their sphere of influence, the senate decided that something must be done. The theocracy was invaded and Sparenhausen taken. Queensstate was badly stretched by the sudden acquisition of Rostock and had needed to raise a second SHQ to simply supply the farmers. By the Spring of 240 a simple dirt road now wound all the way from Regula to Rostock, but lay on a thin undefended corridor. As Queenstate moved to consolidate their foothold in the north by taking the raider city of Lodmont, it was time for decisive action. The Republic was going to war.

[Nachtjager]

Early Summer 240

A lightning attack on Queenstate has found their advance forces caught totally out of position. An emergency brigade has been raised at Rostock, but it won't save the city as the narrow road from Blue Baths has been cut by irregular forces. It's clear that the Republic will take the initial war-goals and quickly, but the scale of the conflict remains to be seen.

[Nachtjager]

Early Winter 240

Though Rostock and Lodmont are taken, both empires are now operating on the tail end of long logistical pipelines. Queensstate is desperately building a dirt road to their beleaguered northern troops while the Republican offensive is hampered by the limited mobility of the foot infantry that makes up the majority of the fighting forces.



Elsewhere, an ill conceived intervention is obviously in the making despite friendly relations with our eastern neighbor the Hold.

[Clux]

These chokepoints are really hot, and I would suggest using independent artillery battalions or heavy siege formations to stop them, since they're not using tanks and you're fighting mostly in forest areas

[Nachtjager]

Spring 241

As a new year dawns on Sovisum, the offensive against Queenstate is progressing well. Mountains that would otherwise have posed a formidable defensive line are blown past as logistical issues force almost all Queenstate reinforcements to slow-march from Regula.



After apparently frantic communication from Queenstate, the Hold violated a non-aggression pact and attempted to attack over the narrow one tile isthmus connecting them to the Republic. The attack was repulsed with almost no Republican casualties at the cost of about 2,000 Hold soldiers. Their population, enraged by the betrayal of a friendly neighbor, has risen up in rebellion and even sized some of the largest cities.

[Nachtjager]

Fall 241

After a successful summer campaign, the initial goals of the war are totally accomplished and the traitorous Hold has tapped out of the war as their nation crumbles from the inside. There is a chance to stop now and consolidate our hold on the newly won cities by a negotiated peace. Drunk off a year of nothing but victory, the political leadership in Silvervale declares that Blue Baths will be taken and Queenstate will crumble on it's rotten foundations.

In a seldom visited building adjacent to the high command palace, a group of staff officers are desperately trying to call attention to a "crippling economic disparity." Their reports go unread.

[Nachtjager]

Late Winter 242

Tactically, the offensive is continuing well with an armoured fist of several independent tank battalions operating together to smash through small portions of the Queensstate line. Unfortunately, the staff college hasn't caught up to these new tactics and there's no possibility of uniting them under a single brigade headquarters for now.



To put things in perspective, since the start of the war we've suffered about 9,000 infantry casualties while inflicting about 20,000.

[Nachtjager]

Late Summer 242

After a successful campaign season that nonetheless saw our economic resources stretched to the limit, the armoured spearhead of the Republican army is on the outskirts of Blue Baths. After several attacks in close succession, the exhausted tankers make one last effort to breach the city. In what will go down as one of the great 'what if's' in Sovisum history, the battle is a standoff. The defenders retreat, but so do the attackers. The city is left empty but there are no units with enough action points left over to actually occupy it.

[Nachtjager]

Fall 242

Following the failure to capture Blue Baths by the summer's end, a sudden counter-thrust by Queensstate encircles the Republican spearhead. The course of the war hangs in the balance.

[Nachtjager]

Winter 243

After fighting bravely for months within a pocket and briefly breaking out several times, the armoured fist of the Republic is finally caught and killed. Four battalions of tanks and their veteran crews are lost as the offensive is thoroughly stalled and Queensstate starts to regain ground.