AO 1941 - Klin
Sure, I have points to spare and not much I can do with them besides this.
Starting Prestige (after purchases and replacements): 32366
Hero:
Final hero of this DLC will get assigned to II./AG 9 as I'm quite curious about recon plane potential to block fighter support fire and I'm also curious if it will work on ground units.
New Equipment Provided:
I./SG 7 - Ju 87D
II./SG 7 - Ju 87D
IV./SG 7 - Ju 87D
Just one upgrade, but what an upgrade it is! One extra point of passive air attack does not change much, but soft and hard attack boost is great.
Starting Army Composition:
Infantry
Infanterie Reg 99 (span.) - Azul Infanterie (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Ignores Entrenchment, No Retaliation, Survivor,
Helmut Wirnsberger
Pionier Brücken Bataillon 2 - Brückenpioniere (Opel Blitz) - Learns From Mistakes
Pionier Brücken Bataillon 3 - Brückenpioniere (Opel Blitz) - Learns From Mistakes
Gebirgsjäger-Reg 88 - Gebirgsjäger - **** -
Oleh Dir
Grenadier Reg 4 - Grenadier (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - First Strike
Tank
PzAbt 401 - Panzer IIIJ - **** - Fearsome Reputation, Steamroller, Survivor
PzAbt 402 - Panzer IIIJ - **** - Provocator, Tank Killer, Steamroller
PzAbt 412 - Panzer IVF - **** - Fearsome Reputation, Ignores ZOC, Steamroller, Survivor
PzAbt 501 - Panzer IVF - **** - Envelopment, Steamroller, Survivor
PzAbt 502 - Verdeja 2 - **** - Steamroller, Survivor,
Albert Kerscher
Recon
AufkAbt 21 - SdKfz 232 8Rad - **** - Overrun
AufkAbt 22 - SdKfz 232 8Rad - **** - Hit and Run
Anti-Tank
Panzerjäger Abt 202 - Panzerjäger 35R - *** - Double Attack, No Retaliation, Survivor
Artillery
Artillerie Abt 601 - 21 cm Mrs 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Zero Slots, Skilled Support,
Elsa Kloss
Artillerie Abt 602 - 15 cm sFH 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Counter Battery Fire, Zero Slots, Skilled Support
Anti-Aircraft
FlaK Abt 272 - SdKfz 7/1 - ***
Fighter
I./JG 61 - Bf 109F - **** - Fast Rebase,
Adolf Galland
II./JG 61 - Bf 109F - **** - Leadership, Fast Rebase,
Heinrich Bar
III./JG 61 - Bf 109F - *** - Fast Rebase, Legendary, Thorough Preparation
IV./JG 61 - Bf 109F - *** - Aiming Assistance, Fast Rebase
Tactical Bomber
I./ZG 6 - Bf 110F - **** - Readiness
I./SG 7 - Ju 87D - **** - Double Move, Crippling Blow,
Hans-Ulrich Rudel
Reserve
Pionier Brücken Bataillon 1 - Brückenpioniere (Opel Blitz) - No Surrender
Infanterie Reg 100 (span.) - Azul Infanterie (SdKfz 250/1) - *
Gebirgsjäger-Reg 89 - Gebirgsjäger - ****
Gebirgsjäger-Reg 90 - Gebirgsjäger - ***
Pionier Bataillon 33 - Pioniere (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Fast Deployment, Survivor
Pionier Bataillon 34 - Pioniere (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Butcher
Infanterie Reg 57 - Wehr Infanterie (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Avenger, Prudent, Survivor
Fallschirmjäger Reg 1 - Fallschirmjäger - *** - No Surrender, Survivor
Fallschirmjäger Reg 2 - Fallschirmjäger - ***
Fallschirmjäger Reg 3 - Fallschirmjäger - **
Fallschirmjäger Reg 4 - Fallschirmjäger - *
Fallschirmjäger Reg 5 - Fallschirmjäger - **
Fallschirmjäger Reg 6 - Fallschirmjäger
PzAbt 411 - Flammpanzer II - **** - First Strike, Vigilant, Steamroller
PzAbt 511 - Neubaufahrzeug - *** - Butcher, River Assault, Steamroller, Survivor
AufkAbt 11 - SdKfz 222 - **** - Envelopment
AufkAbt 12 - Panzer IIF - **** - Distraction, Field Repairs
Panzerjäger Abt 201 - Panzerjäger 35R - *** - Field Repairs
Panzerjäger Abt 203 - 10.5cm K Gepanzerte (Sfl.) - *
Panzerjäger Abt 211 - 5 cm Pak 38(Sf) - ** - Double Support
Panzerjäger Abt 212 - 5 cm Pak 38 (SdKfz 11) - ** - Ferocious Defense
Werfer Abt 621 - 15 cm Nblwf 41 (SdKfz 10) - *
Artillerie Abt 701 - 15 cm sFH 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Counter Battery Fire, Skilled Support
Artillerie Abt 702 - 15 cm sFH 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Counter Battery Fire, Double Support, Skilled Support
Sturmgeschütz Abt 751 - StuG IIIB - ** - Skilled Support
Sturmgeschütz Abt 752 - StuG IIIB - ** - Skilled Support
Panzer Artillerie Abt 611 - sIG 33 II (Sf) - *** - Skilled Support
FlaK Abt 271 - 8.8 cm FlaK 36 (SdKfz 7) - ** - Fast Learner, Lethal Attack
FlaK Abt 273 - SdKfz 10/4 - ***
FlaK Abt 274 - 2 cm Flakvierling 38 (SdKfz 10) - ***
II./ZG 6 - Bf 110F - * - Entrenchment Killer 3x, Readiness
II./SG 7 - Ju 87D - **** - Crippling Blow, Entrenchment Killer 4x, Survivor
III./SG 7 - Il-2 Shturmovik - * - Lightning Attack
IV./SG 7 - Ju 87D
I./AG 9 - He 70 Rayo - **** - Prudent
II./AG 9 - Fi 156 Storch - * - Distraction
I./KG 43 - Do 217E - *** - Survivor
II./KG 43 - Do 217E - ***
III./KG 43 - Do 217E - **
Panzerzug Berlin - Armoured Train - ** - Fast Learner
Panzerzug Hamburg - Armoured Train - **
Highlights
The convoy is evacuated from Klin and escorted by mobile, elite support units.
Meanwhile Rzev itself is quite secure, as attacking Soviet troops cannot do much to my defenses.
Solid defensive formation on open ground. AT guns protecting tanks who in turn protect the AA gun thanks to Provocator hero and any unit getting caught by this ability would in turn provoke AT fire. With a fighter overhead, this should block any tanks pursuing my transports
Wrecks of pursuing Soviet vehicles are scattered all over the road.
Finally, all the convoy units reach Rzev successfully and without a scratch!
Time to trade those KV-1/40 tanks collected over the course of the campaign for something good for the future.
Summary:
Other Equipment Gained:
Jagdtiger - 1 (up to 1)
ZIS-30 - 19 (up to 33)
BM-13 Katyusha - 18 (up to 51)
MiG-3 - 29 (up to 58)
Petlyakov Pe-2 - 26 (up to 52)
Final Prestige: 33843 (up 1477)
CP gained: 0 (5 used, 10 remaining)
Overall:
A change of pace for the last mission of the DLC. After attacking all the way in previous scenarios with very little purely defensive action, it is now time to retreat and do that in style. I made a bet on high unit mobility and dense fighter cover for my units. I quickly realized, after deployment, that airfields are separated in a way that requires capturing a soviet airfield in the middle, so Infanterie Reg 99 (span.) with its insane attack capability alongside PzAbt 412 were responsible for taking it. Defending Rzev itself was not a problem at all, even considering the fact I had to deploy bridge engineers as roadblocks due to pure lack of core slots. The mobile escort force was quite busy, but Rudel made sure anything that came too close got nuked. In the meantime, PzAbt 402 with Provocator did an amazing defensive job, this hero really shines when it comes to scenarios like this and it's the moment he's been waiting for. The only unit that in hindsight under-performed was FlaK Abt 272 - it became a prime target for ground units and my fighters managed to provide cover just fine without its assistance. At one pint things stabilized enough that I could probably go retake Klin, but a sneak peak of my recon revealed a huge force positioned there, so it would probably require amazing heroes and perfect knowledge of the map beforehand - maybe something of a challenge for my Wunderwaffe AAR?
AO 1941 - Summary
Starting Prestige: 19594
Final Prestige: 33843 (up 14249)
Final Army Composition:
Infantry
Infanterie Reg 99 (span.) - Azul Infanterie (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Ignores Entrenchment, No Retaliation, Survivor,
Helmut Wirnsberger
Infanterie Reg 100 (span.) - Azul Infanterie (SdKfz 250/1) - *
Pionier Brücken Bataillon 1 - Brückenpioniere (Opel Blitz) - No Surrender
Pionier Brücken Bataillon 2 - Brückenpioniere (Opel Blitz) - Learns From Mistakes
Pionier Brücken Bataillon 3 - Brückenpioniere (Opel Blitz) - Learns From Mistakes
Gebirgsjäger-Reg 88 - Gebirgsjäger - **** -
Oleh Dir
Gebirgsjäger-Reg 89 - Gebirgsjäger - ****
Gebirgsjäger-Reg 90 - Gebirgsjäger - ***
Grenadier Reg 4 - Grenadier (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - First Strike
Pionier Bataillon 33 - Pioniere (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Fast Deployment, Survivor
Pionier Bataillon 34 - Pioniere (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Butcher
Infanterie Reg 57 - Wehr Infanterie (SdKfz 250/1) - **** - Avenger, Prudent, Survivor
Fallschirmjäger Reg 1 - Fallschirmjäger - *** - No Surrender, Survivor
Fallschirmjäger Reg 2 - Fallschirmjäger - ***
Fallschirmjäger Reg 3 - Fallschirmjäger - **
Fallschirmjäger Reg 4 - Fallschirmjäger - *
Fallschirmjäger Reg 5 - Fallschirmjäger - **
Fallschirmjäger Reg 6 - Fallschirmjäger
Tank
PzAbt 401 - Panzer IIIJ - **** - Fearsome Reputation, Steamroller, Survivor
PzAbt 402 - Panzer IIIJ - **** - Provocator, Tank Killer, Steamroller
PzAbt 412 - Panzer IVF - **** - Fearsome Reputation, Ignores ZOC, Steamroller, Survivor
PzAbt 501 - Panzer IVF - **** - Envelopment, Steamroller, Survivor
PzAbt 502 - Verdeja 2 - **** - Steamroller, Survivor,
Albert Kerscher
PzAbt 411 - Flammpanzer II - **** - First Strike, Vigilant, Steamroller
PzAbt 511 - Neubaufahrzeug - *** - Butcher, River Assault, Steamroller, Survivor
Recon
AufkAbt 11 - SdKfz 222 - **** - Envelopment
AufkAbt 12 - Panzer IIF - **** - Distraction, Field Repairs
AufkAbt 21 - SdKfz 232 8Rad - **** - Overrun
AufkAbt 22 - SdKfz 232 8Rad - **** - Hit and Run
Anti-Tank
Panzerjäger Abt 201 - Panzerjäger 35R - *** - Field Repairs
Panzerjäger Abt 202 - Panzerjäger 35R - *** - Double Attack, No Retaliation, Survivor
Panzerjäger Abt 203 - 10.5cm K Gepanzerte (Sfl.) - *
Panzerjäger Abt 211 - 5 cm Pak 38(Sf) - ** - Double Support
Panzerjäger Abt 212 - 5 cm Pak 38 (SdKfz 11) - ** - Ferocious Defense
Artillery
Werfer Abt 621 - 15 cm Nblwf 41 (SdKfz 10) - *
Artillerie Abt 601 - 21 cm Mrs 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Zero Slots, Skilled Support,
Elsa Kloss
Artillerie Abt 602 - 15 cm sFH 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Counter Battery Fire, Zero Slots, Skilled Support
Artillerie Abt 701 - 15 cm sFH 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Counter Battery Fire, Skilled Support
Artillerie Abt 702 - 15 cm sFH 18 (SdKfz 7) - **** - Counter Battery Fire, Double Support, Skilled Support
Sturmgeschütz Abt 751 - StuG IIIB - ** - Skilled Support
Sturmgeschütz Abt 752 - StuG IIIB - ** - Skilled Support
Panzer Artillerie Abt 611 - sIG 33 II (Sf) - *** - Skilled Support
Anti-Aircraft
FlaK Abt 271 - 8.8 cm FlaK 36 (SdKfz 7) - ** - Fast Learner, Lethal Attack
FlaK Abt 272 - SdKfz 7/1 - ***
FlaK Abt 273 - SdKfz 10/4 - ***
FlaK Abt 274 - 2 cm Flakvierling 38 (SdKfz 10) - ***
Fighter
I./JG 61 - Bf 109F - **** - Fast Rebase,
Adolf Galland
II./JG 61 - Bf 109F - **** - Leadership, Fast Rebase,
Heinrich Bar
III./JG 61 - Bf 109F - *** - Fast Rebase, Legendary, Thorough Preparation
IV./JG 61 - Bf 109F - *** - Aiming Assistance, Fast Rebase
Tactical Bomber
I./ZG 6 - Bf 110F - **** - Readiness
II./ZG 6 - Bf 110F - * - Entrenchment Killer 3x, Readiness
I./SG 7 - Ju 87D - **** - Double Move, Crippling Blow,
Hans-Ulrich Rudel
II./SG 7 - Ju 87D - **** - Crippling Blow, Entrenchment Killer 4x, Survivor
III./SG 7 - Il-2 Shturmovik - * - Lightning Attack
IV./SG 7 - Ju 87D
I./AG 9 - He 70 Rayo - **** - Prudent
II./AG 9 - Fi 156 Storch - * - Distraction
Strategic Bomber
I./KG 43 - Do 217E - *** - Survivor
II./KG 43 - Do 217E - ***
III./KG 43 - Do 217E - **
Armored Train
Panzerzug Berlin - Armoured Train - ** - Fast Learner
Panzerzug Hamburg - Armoured Train - **
Trophies of War:
Tank:
FT-17 - 35
Vickers Mk.III - 13
BT-5 - 39
T-26 - 100
Trubia - 57
Char B1 - 27
AMC 35 - 26
Somua S35 - 34
Renault R35 - 7
7TPdw - 33
7TPjw - 11
TKS - 18
FT-17 (pl) - 7
KV-2 - 55
T-15 - 4
Hotchkiss H35 - 18
Matilda I - 33
Matilda II - 74
Char 2C - 35
Cruiser Mk.I - 3
Cruiser Mk.IV - 12
L6/40 Lf - 105
38 M Toldi I - 100
M14/41 - 70
BT-7 - 31
R-1 - 35
KV-1/40 - 54
T-28 - 11
OT-133 - 17
T-34/40 - 57
KV-1/41 - 35
T-34/41 - 35
T-50 - 3
Recon:
Bilbao - 25
UNL-35 - 58
AAC-1937 - 15
BA-6 - 3
AMC P16 - 6
Panhard 178 - 38
SP wz. 29 - 27
SP wz. 34 - 2
DK Motorcycle - 6
Daimler Dingo - 7
Humber AC Mk.I - 3
BA-10 - 20
T-38 - 11
Anti-Tank:
37mm M1930 - 12
45mm M1932 - 6
25mm SA 34 - 15
37mm wz. 36 - 3
AT-1 - 8
T-13 - 4
QF 2 pounder - 2
45mm M1937 - 16
ZIS-30 - 33
57mm 1941 - 2
SU-100Y - 1
Artillery:
105mm Vickers M22 - 31
70mm Schneider M08 - 21
203mm M1931 - 54
152mm M10/30 - 13
122mm M10/30 - 25
75mm Schneider M06 - 16
75mm mle 1897 - 13
155mm C mle 1917 - 20
105mm mle 1913 - 28
105mm wz. 29 - 12
155mm wz. 17 - 6
75mm wz. 97 - 3
76.2mm M1939 - 24
BL 5.5 inch - 1
QF 25 pdr - 15
BL 6 inch 26 cwt - 5
BL 4.5 inch - 5
Cruiser Mk.II CS - 37
105mm M.1925/27 - 7
SU-5-2 - 9
BT-7A - 24
122mm M1938 - 26
BM-13 Katyusha - 51
Anti-Aircraft:
20mm M33 - 48
75mm Vickers M1931 - 6
76.2mm M31 - 8
37mm mle 30 - 10
75mm mle 39 - 5
25mm CA mle 39 - 8
40mm wz. 36 - 23
75mm wz. 36 - 15
85mm M1939 - 2
20mm M/38 - 3
75mm FRC M27 - 5
40mm m/36 - 3
40mm Bofors - 17
QF 3 inch - 4
Vickers AA - 4
20/70 quadruplo - 35
37mm M1939 - 2
SU-6 - 7
Fighter:
I-16 - 30
PZL P.11c - 18
I-15 - 19
Fokker D.XXI - 30
D.520 - 35
Spitfire Mk.II - 70
Hurricane Mk.IIC - 31
Me 262A - 5
MiG-3 - 58
Tactical Bomber:
Breguet 693 - 30
Beaufighter Mk.IF - 48
Bf 109Z - 45
Ca.135 - 35
Petlyakov Pe-2v52
Strategic Bomber:
PZL P.37B Los - 17
He 111Z - 42
Stirling Mk.I - 29
Thoughts:
I'm torn between AO 1940 and 1941 in terms of my favorite DLC so far. AO 1941 really kicks in with Barbarossa ideally capturing the flow of the campaign, but partially due to that more realistic approach it is not as difficult as some AO 1940 scenarios. This can also partially be caused by access to better and more experienced units and total air dominance. However beyond difficulty I think this ad-don again does more to provide some interesting challenges like Klin or Operation Mercury, has interesting idea of getting equipment for pure prestige, new heroes (Rudel!), very varied captures and gift and tons of potentially interesting event for later. I'm also immediately curious about my other AARs. Retrograde coming up next might not be as bad, since a more siege path with a lot of Double Attack artillery should work fine. Panzermon will have tons of new captures to use and with the greatly increased slot limits some older units might appear once more and finally Wunderwaffe run, while not getting much in terms of actual Wunderwaffe, will have more than enough unique prototypes to enjoy. Onward then, while these forces rest until 1942!