Slitherine

leridano wrote:I think one of the things that make CEAW a little bit unrealistic is the excessive spotting range of the units specially air units for with the current spotting range you almost see everything of what your enemy is doing or is going to do. For this reason, I think you don´t have to worry with a cautious advance in the Caucausus because as it´s showed in the image posted you are "seeing" 6-8 hexes behind the front line and there´s no enemy units around. The same thing in France: with a reduced spotting range you would see 2-3 hexes from the coast line and you currently are seeing all of those Luftwaffe units 6-7 hexes from the coast. With this excessive spotting range it almost has no sense the fog of war option.

The rationale for big spotting ranges in air units is that a turn lasts 20 days, and that gives air units plenty of time to fly scouting missions. Even if the unit officially remains inactive for a turn, I figure a few pilots would get sent out to scout each day. This is a negligable oil expense but explains why air units have greater spotting than anything else. It also explains why spotting increases as air tech and range improve.

joerock22 wrote:

leridano wrote:I think one of the things that make CEAW a little bit unrealistic is the excessive spotting range of the units specially air units for with the current spotting range you almost see everything of what your enemy is doing or is going to do. For this reason, I think you don´t have to worry with a cautious advance in the Caucausus because as it´s showed in the image posted you are "seeing" 6-8 hexes behind the front line and there´s no enemy units around. The same thing in France: with a reduced spotting range you would see 2-3 hexes from the coast line and you currently are seeing all of those Luftwaffe units 6-7 hexes from the coast. With this excessive spotting range it almost has no sense the fog of war option.

The rationale for big spotting ranges in air units is that a turn lasts 20 days, and that gives air units plenty of time to fly scouting missions. Even if the unit officially remains inactive for a turn, I figure a few pilots would get sent out to scout each day. This is a negligable oil expense but explains why air units have greater spotting than anything else. It also explains why spotting increases as air tech and range improve.

This is another area where dynamic weather would add a lot to the game. If the Luftwaffe were unable to detect a large invasion force massing off the Normandy coast, or the Allies were unable to spot a reserve building up toward a counterattack in Belgium later in the war based on weather conditions, it would bring another element to the game to plan around.

Clark wrote:This is another area where dynamic weather would add a lot to the game. If the Luftwaffe were unable to detect a large invasion force massing off the Normandy coast, or the Allies were unable to spot a reserve building up toward a counterattack in Belgium later in the war based on weather conditions, it would bring another element to the game to plan around.

CEaW Grand Strategy includes dynamic weather effects (fair, mud, winter & severe winter) in three weather zones. Mud, winter & severe winter halves the spotting range of all units.

Clark wrote: This is another area where dynamic weather would add a lot to the game. If the Luftwaffe were unable to detect a large invasion force massing off the Normandy coast, or the Allies were unable to spot a reserve building up toward a counterattack in Belgium later in the war based on weather conditions, it would bring another element to the game to plan around.

You have catched it, Clark. The germans didn´t know about the huge Allied army that was deployed in the south coast of England but in CEAW if you move a Luftwaffe unit (fighter, tac or strat bomber) with 4 or 5 tech level to the coast line hexes of France, you could see ALL the allied units from the Dover coast to Scotland. As Joerock says above, this large spotting range could represent air reconnaissance missions but in WW2 this kind of missions didn´t make possible such an exact information about all the enemy units. This is why I think it should be reduced a little a bit the units spotting range for gaining realism.

leridano wrote:

Clark wrote: This is another area where dynamic weather would add a lot to the game. If the Luftwaffe were unable to detect a large invasion force massing off the Normandy coast, or the Allies were unable to spot a reserve building up toward a counterattack in Belgium later in the war based on weather conditions, it would bring another element to the game to plan around.

You have catched it, Clark. The germans didn´t know about the huge Allied army that was deployed in the south coast of England but in CEAW if you move a Luftwaffe unit (fighter, tac or strat bomber) with 4 or 5 tech level to the coast line hexes of France, you could see ALL the allied units from the Dover coast to Scotland. As Joerock says above, this large spotting range could represent air reconnaissance missions but in WW2 this kind of missions didn´t make possible such an exact information about all the enemy units. This is why I think it should be reduced a little a bit the units spotting range for gaining realism.

This isn't necessarily true. The Germans knew there was a big army in the south of England, but didn't know where it was headed. I think it would be fairly difficult to simulate a true fog of war, in which not only are huge geographical areas "dark", but you also have spotty information about your opponent. Like you can see something is there, but not precisely how strong or effective the enemy units are.

Still, as joerock22 points out, each turn simulates a 3 week period. I think it's fairly historically accurate to say that advanced aircraft reconaissance can see a decent depth into enemy territory over that period of time.

Clark wrote: This isn't necessarily true. The Germans knew there was a big army in the south of England, but didn't know where it was headed. I think it would be fairly difficult to simulate a true fog of war, in which not only are huge geographical areas "dark", but you also have spotty information about your opponent. Like you can see something is there, but not precisely how strong or effective the enemy units are.

This is what I mean: there wasn´t in WW2 such an effective reconnaissance missions to see EXACTLY how strong the enemy was. That´s why I think it should be reduced the current units spotting range to another shorter: you could see in a smaller territory but all what you see would be more or less exact.

Houston we have a problem!
I have lost contact with my opponent for almost 10 days. I have sent him several remainders about our epic struggle. But my last couple of mails to Ike99 have bounced back. It seems that his mail address has been deactivated!

I have sent him a PM on this forum. Hopefully we can continue our struggle.

I'll try to contact my opponent this week. Before declaring myself the winner...

A frustrating way to win, I wanted to see the outcome of this war

PanzerGeneral wrote:Houston we have a problem!
I have lost contact with my opponent for almost 10 days. I have sent him several remainders about our epic struggle. But my last couple of mails to Ike99 have bounced back. It seems that his mail address has been deactivated!

I have sent him a PM on this forum. Hopefully we can continue our struggle.

I'll try to contact my opponent this week. Before declaring myself the winner...

A frustrating way to win, I wanted to see the outcome of this war

If you don't hear for Ike99 you could always find someone to finish the game for him. It would be interesting seeing this game play out. We know ways of getting his password.

rkr1958 wrote:

PanzerGeneral wrote:Houston we have a problem!
I have lost contact with my opponent for almost 10 days. I have sent him several remainders about our epic struggle. But my last couple of mails to Ike99 have bounced back. It seems that his mail address has been deactivated!

I have sent him a PM on this forum. Hopefully we can continue our struggle.

I'll try to contact my opponent this week. Before declaring myself the winner...

A frustrating way to win, I wanted to see the outcome of this war

If you don't hear for Ike99 you could always find someone to finish the game for him. It would be interesting seeing this game play out. We know ways of getting his password.

I have not been able to get in touch with Ike99 (his email address does not exist anymore). Thus I declare myself the winner against him.

My allied spies have gotten the axis password Does anybody want to continue the struggle against me?? If so send me a PM.

Otherwise I will post a post-war report with the OOB for the axis forces later this week. I am dying of curiosity to see the deployment of the axis forces.

Ike99 has been replaced by a new axis commander: joerock22
joerock22 will continue as the new axis commander.

I expect to be beaten to a pulp, but it will be fun

Let the battle continue.

PanzerGeneral wrote:Ike99 has been replaced by a new axis commander: joerock22
joerock22 will continue as the new axis commander.

I expect to be beaten to a pulp, but it will be fun

Let the battle continue.

This will be fun to watch. I don't mean you getting beaten to a pulp but the continuation of this AAR. By the way I have it on very good sources that Joe's intel is excellent given that he's be following this AAR and has even posted in it.

I'd definitely watch out for an all out push against the second Russia capital (Perm). If Joe can knock Russia out then that would definitely change the dynamics of the game.

rkr1958 wrote:

PanzerGeneral wrote:Ike99 has been replaced by a new axis commander: joerock22
joerock22 will continue as the new axis commander.

I expect to be beaten to a pulp, but it will be fun

Let the battle continue.

This will be fun to watch. I don't mean you getting beaten to a pulp but the continuation of this AAR. By the way I have it on very good sources that Joe's intel is excellent given that he's be following this AAR and has even posted in it.

I'd definitely watch out for an all out push against the second Russia capital (Perm). If Joe can knock Russia out then that would definitely change the dynamics of the game.

It's been awhile since I looked at the AAR, and I don't remember much of it. So my intelligence probably won't be much better than what I can see. You guys are more confident in me than I am; I think the Axis situation is pretty dire and I'm not sure how much I'll be able to do. But I won't know until I take a look at the game file.

I will post a new AAR in this folder with lots of screenshots for your viewing pleasure.

9. December 1943 – New axis supreme commander, major redeployment of the axis armies, the Red army starts its offensive in the North
Ike99 has been replaced by joerock22 as the axis commander. I assume that my opposition should become much harder.
I feel that now is the time to attack as much as possible before Joe gets his axis armies under control. I believe that the axis situation right now is critical. This assumption is based upon the fact that the previous axis commander abandoned his post

The allied forces available for the upcoming offensives.

I spot one error in the listing. I do not have a French army anymore!

Russia get a tech this turn.


Joe redeploys his forces in Western Europe. The Luftwaffe does not move. Does the axis have little oil left?


My allied fighters attack a Luftwaffe fighter and Italian tactical bomber near Paris. My strategic bomber attacks Ruhr and reveals a Luftwaffe fighter near Berlin.


The assault against Romania and Bulgaria will start next turn. Joe has assembled more forces around these capitals. No easy victory here . My planes attack units around Bucharest.


At the Perm front Joe has started a general withdrawal.


The Red army starts a general offensive and attacks along the entire front. The axis suffers heavy casualties. On the southern edge I manage to open up a supply route to my partisan units near Astrakhan.


I expected a withdrawal at the Caucasus front after seeing what happened near Perm. But no such luck. Joe has strengthened the defence here. The allied fighters attack the lone Luftwaffe bomber. There are no axis fighters in the vicinity.

29. December 1943 –Heavy casualties on the Western front, the Red army is unstoppable in the North, the assault in the Balkans has started
The allies get some techs this turn.


The previous axis commander had lulled me into a false sense of security in the West. I lose two fighters in a single turn on the Western front. One in a troop transport which is sunk and another perish near London.
I pull back my navy and planes so that they are out of harms way. But still better here than on the Eastern front (I wonder how long I will still say this).


The assault into the Balkans has started. An Italian fighter is destroyed and several axis units suffer some damage. More axis units have arrived to defend Bucharest and Sofia.


Winter has still not arrived in Russia. This means that my advance can continue at maximum pace. This turn many axis units perish at the Perm front. I advance everywhere. Kazan is surrounded and will be liberated next turn.


In the Caucasus my allied fighters start their redeployment towards the Balkans. My two allied korps are soon at the front line, and will facilitate in limited attacks later on. In the Crimea I feel bold and move at the Sevastopol unit and attack a Wehrmacht garrison.

18. January 1944 –Patton is wounded in the Balkans, winter arrives in Russia, Kazan is liberated
The allies get some techs this turn.


After pulling my planes away from southern England I am blind to what is happening in France. Britain has built some fighters which should allow me to send my planes south again in a couple of turns.


Another worry is where are the uboats? I spotted 4 uboats just before Joe took command of the axis. What evil scheme is he plotting? My convoy sail untouched, but for how long?

Disaster in the Balkans, the mech unit with Patton is destroyed along with another mech unit. More axis units have popped up along with what I believe is the entire Luftwaffe from the Western front. My Balkans campaign has turned into what seemed like an easy victory over Bulgaria and Romania to a fight for survival. The two fighters arrive from the Caucasus they will be a welcome reinforcement in order to stop the axis planes. A German korps is destroyed. An infantry korps is shipped to Istanbul. Another two tac bombers will arrive from the US in two turns. The Balkans is where the allies will make their stand defeat Joe, or be pushed into the sea.


Winter has arrived in Russia. At the Perm front the rapid advance turn into a very slow advance. Many units receive upgrades for the winter offensive. Kazan is the first Russian city to be liberated, a glorious day for the Red army.


My tank army punish an infantry korps in the Caucasus. My bold attempt from Sevastopol has failed spectacularly. The army has been destroyed and the city is now open for Joe to capture.


The allies have a lot of fighters in the build queue. Russia has invested in more armor for the summer offensive this year.

I think the best you can do now is to engage as many oil consuming German units as possible. Use your airforce to engage German fighters in the Balkans by attacking his bomber airbases. This way both the fighter and bomber will burn oil. You probably have other areas you can engage the German air units as well.

Your main goal should be to get the Axis oil down to 0. Then you can attack at will and don't have to worry about counter attacks. Build more fighters and bombers and use them aggressively. E. g. you can just send tac bombers on raids in France, not to invade, but to lure the German fighters to intercept. You should also consider building strat bombers to bombard the German resources in Germany.

I think you will eventually be kicked out of the Balkans if the Germans use their air and land units aggressively. So be it. The price will be that he will deplete his oil reserves. Then you can continue to bombard every oil producing hex so he won't get a lot of new oil.

By killing German units in the east you will drain the German manpower as well. War of attrition will save the day for the Allies.

Just be patient and wait for the German war machine to stall. The worst you can do is to become passive and allow the Germans to build a strategic reserve in units and oil. Then they will attack somewhere in force.

7. February 1944 –Heavy allied losses in the Balkans
The allies get some techs this turn.


I redeploy my fighters and strategic bomber to the south of England. As I expected most of the Luftwaffe has been redeployed to the Balkans along with many units. I move in my fleet and attack the garrison at Brest. The Luftwaffe tac bomber is attacked by my CV’s, and reveals a lone Luftwaffe fighter in central France.


The disaster continues in the Balkans more heavy losses. I feel like crying, sob
I pull back my army towards Istanbul. The allied air force attacks at will to draw out the Luftwaffe fighters. The losses are equal. My hope is that I will win this air war of attrition in this theatre.


Gorki is attacked and almost surrounded. It will surely fall next turn. The Red army stops for repairs and upgrades. The Red air force spots the pitiful remnants of the Perm army south west of Gorki.


My tank army continues to punish an infantry korps in the Caucasus. Sevastopol has fallen.


I will follow Staufenbergs good advice about keeping up the pressure. The axis war machine should stop or fall apart either by the lack of oil or manpower reserves.

How the fortunes of war changes. A year ago Russia was fighting for its very survival. Now it is my best bet to defeat the axis, as the allies are stranded in the Balkans.

Just keep pushing as fast and as hard as you can in Russian, and dont regards losses as important, since you can permit yourself to loose some stuff and your opponent cannot.

One good advice i could give you: You should consider opening a new front with the Allies. This front should be were you could set it up the fastest, that is in France. Quite litterally, build up some infantry and keep your remaning airpower in england so you can force Joe to rail move troops to that area.

The way to win for you is to put pressure in every front and open ne ones. Joe will have no choice to beef up his western defenses, thus depleting his capability to stop the Russians.

The balkan front is nice and i know youd like to keep going at it, but bear in mind that you have no chance of keeping it. My advice there. Retreat as many troops as you can to Turkey... Why? Because Joe needs more and more troops agaisnt Russia anyway, so if there is no more allied troops in Europe proper he wil inevitably lower his guard... and beside, you can still bomb ploesti from Turkey( the main reason for your presence in Turket/Balkans anyway). So once the main axis forces are gone you can either send the troops back to fight another day either in The balkans or southern Russia.

27. February 1944 –Where is the Luftwaffe?
The allies get lots of techs this turn.


The Luftwaffe in France has disappeared. My navy bombard the poor garrison in Brest, which only have two steps left.


My allied army continues to pull back in the Balkans. One infantry korps is shipped back into Turkey. But most important, where is the Luftwaffe units that were located around Sofia? I suspect I will find out. My guess is that Joe feels that he has the Balkan theatre under control and sends his Luftwaffe fire brigade to the next area. My guess is the Russian front.


In Russia Gorki is liberated. The Red army stops for upgrades and repairs. Since winter slows my movement down. I have prioritized to repair and upgrade my Red army for the spring and summer offensives.


All quiet in Caucasus.


Supermax have come with some excellent tips. The British have purchased four infantry korps. Along with two other korps in Britain, a landing party of 6 units should be able to hold the Bretagne area. A landing near Brest will occur in the spring. More fighters will be deployed in England to act as cover for the dreaded Luftwaffe bombers.

I think your main goal should be to make sure Joe burns oil every turn. So engaging his units even if you're stonewalled is not a bad thing.

In Russia you could try to re-establish a supply link from Perm to the Caucasus. This way you can start building units there again. If you build units in
Batumi you can use them to invade behind the line in Caucasus to break the deadlock. If you get Astrakhan you can get more units there to invade behind the line in eastern Caucasus.

If you keep up pressure then Joe will eventually be overwhelmed and when the oil is down to 0 and manpower likewise then you can just pick every Axis controlled city one by one.

Beware that Germany is still a threat. Ask yourself what Joe can do to disrupt your plans. WHERE can he hurt you the most. Make sure you do something to never let that happen. Then I think you will win.

The Balkan defeat is a setback, but not dangerous for you. Get back to Turkey and use the airforce to burn Axis oil. Keep Ploesti down to 0 production every turn.