Re: Plaid (axis) vs Vokt (allies) GS 3.0 beta AAR
Posted: Fri Aug 23, 2013 5:24 pm
I will make some comments now that game is over. First, thanks to Plaid for this game and congrats for such well presented and commented AAR. Comments from forum readers were interesting too and in some cases have predicted really close what has happened afterwards.
I thought Plaid was going to follow fortress Europe strategy when I saw such really powerful Afrika korps approaching from Libya that made the british to completely evacuate Nile river delta. Nothing 8th army could have done against those forces even risking the loss of Irak if I would have decided to engage them in battle. Anyway, he was able to launch a decent Barbarossa with increasing number of german units deployed in USSR in late 1941 so no fortress Europe at all. Still, not a strong Barbarossa made possible soviet 1941 winter counteroffensive to reach Dnepr river by 1942. I rarely achieve to reach such position with the soviets that early. This did not make me overconfident since I know Plaid is good playing as axis so when axis summer 1942 offensive in the south started I was tempted to retreat Red army to Donets river. I did not so first, because I got offensive upgrade (+1 attack) for soviet infantry units right in mid 1942 and also good upgrades in armour and mechs. And second, because by the time the offensive started, germans still had 2 panzerkorps deployed in Egypt to keep the british from attacking Suez canal, units that could not initially participate in the offensive. Soviet organization levels were good either so Red army was ready for counterattacking and the narrow sector of the front choosen for the offensive would help the russians too. Attrition battles that ensued slightly favoured the soviets so the only sector where the german significantly progressed in 1942 was Novgorod.
Mid game was a typical one regarding front lines reached although 8th army was a little bit behind schedule because of axis stand in Egypt. That +8 PP's bonus thing (+4 for the conquest of Greece and +4 for taking Port Said) for the italians has been a really good addition because when I saw such strong Regia Aeronautica of 3 fighters and 2 tacs that made me think in an almost empty of units Italy mainland. Anyway, to my surprise italians were still able to man Sicily and Sardinia and they do that mostly with corps and not garrisons. Later, when I checked almost no italian subs opposition things made more sense to me. High organization allied levels made possible paratroopers operations in the Med, one of them launched from Malta fortress that allows that kind of units to be dropped in the Calabria 1 hex width region thus cutting Sicily main supply. I first wanted to do this with the 82nd american division stationed in Malta but finally decided to disembark troops with the result that the readers of this AAR know. As I told Plaid in one of my emails the failure of the landings in Calabria meant a really low advance hex by hex until Taranto was reached. But IMO the most decisive action in 1943 was the german withdrawal in the eastern front. May be a wise decision with the axis forces avoiding the combined effects of upgraded soviet units-severe winter penalty. In fact, such retreating kept the german from losing any unit in a long period of time thus making possible Wehrmacht to build that many units later in 1944. I think that Kragdob made a comment about this retreating to be too early but in the eastern front you never know when is too late or too early. I think that an early retreat allows you to make an organized one and that to make a stand put more pressure on the soviets but risks the loss of many units. So in both situations you will be finally retreating anyway to a similar position with the difference that if you hold eastwards too long you will be losing units too.
Late game (1944-45) was marked by operations in France since nothing weird occurred in the eastern front with the soviets pushing hard once fair weather began. I have read the AAR (it took me a while!) and checked that Plaid's objective was to ruin any allied landing operation in France. As you know he mostly succeeded in this. But it would have to say that germans paid a high cost in units and steps lost for that and, which IMO is more important, those units could not be redeployed in the east to slow a little the advancing Red army. So here is the main dilemma in late game: to focus in stopping the soviets a little thus weakening France and aiming for a stand in Albert canal and west wall or to do what Plaid has done denying the allies a foothold in France. In late war, real germans also faced the dilemma of priorizing the fight against the soviets or the western allies. With all of those allied mechs and armoured units being killed one by one the only landings that seemed to be progressing were the ones in southern France. Finally, it was the armoured units landed in Marseilles that let the allies to liberate Paris in 1945. Anyway, allies were lucky about the weather in 1944 (so air attacks of german mechs and soviet offensive continued during several turns) and in 1945 when the allies enjoyed 2 consecutive fair weather turns in february. About Italy, I could not really progress and to take Rome until an american mech with +1 attacking bonus commander (Craig) landed in april 1945 south of the city.
This game has showed us how fast axis can crumble in late game no matter apparently there's no time for the allies to reach Germany in time. Also, (as in real war) the importance of weather.
I thought Plaid was going to follow fortress Europe strategy when I saw such really powerful Afrika korps approaching from Libya that made the british to completely evacuate Nile river delta. Nothing 8th army could have done against those forces even risking the loss of Irak if I would have decided to engage them in battle. Anyway, he was able to launch a decent Barbarossa with increasing number of german units deployed in USSR in late 1941 so no fortress Europe at all. Still, not a strong Barbarossa made possible soviet 1941 winter counteroffensive to reach Dnepr river by 1942. I rarely achieve to reach such position with the soviets that early. This did not make me overconfident since I know Plaid is good playing as axis so when axis summer 1942 offensive in the south started I was tempted to retreat Red army to Donets river. I did not so first, because I got offensive upgrade (+1 attack) for soviet infantry units right in mid 1942 and also good upgrades in armour and mechs. And second, because by the time the offensive started, germans still had 2 panzerkorps deployed in Egypt to keep the british from attacking Suez canal, units that could not initially participate in the offensive. Soviet organization levels were good either so Red army was ready for counterattacking and the narrow sector of the front choosen for the offensive would help the russians too. Attrition battles that ensued slightly favoured the soviets so the only sector where the german significantly progressed in 1942 was Novgorod.
Mid game was a typical one regarding front lines reached although 8th army was a little bit behind schedule because of axis stand in Egypt. That +8 PP's bonus thing (+4 for the conquest of Greece and +4 for taking Port Said) for the italians has been a really good addition because when I saw such strong Regia Aeronautica of 3 fighters and 2 tacs that made me think in an almost empty of units Italy mainland. Anyway, to my surprise italians were still able to man Sicily and Sardinia and they do that mostly with corps and not garrisons. Later, when I checked almost no italian subs opposition things made more sense to me. High organization allied levels made possible paratroopers operations in the Med, one of them launched from Malta fortress that allows that kind of units to be dropped in the Calabria 1 hex width region thus cutting Sicily main supply. I first wanted to do this with the 82nd american division stationed in Malta but finally decided to disembark troops with the result that the readers of this AAR know. As I told Plaid in one of my emails the failure of the landings in Calabria meant a really low advance hex by hex until Taranto was reached. But IMO the most decisive action in 1943 was the german withdrawal in the eastern front. May be a wise decision with the axis forces avoiding the combined effects of upgraded soviet units-severe winter penalty. In fact, such retreating kept the german from losing any unit in a long period of time thus making possible Wehrmacht to build that many units later in 1944. I think that Kragdob made a comment about this retreating to be too early but in the eastern front you never know when is too late or too early. I think that an early retreat allows you to make an organized one and that to make a stand put more pressure on the soviets but risks the loss of many units. So in both situations you will be finally retreating anyway to a similar position with the difference that if you hold eastwards too long you will be losing units too.
Late game (1944-45) was marked by operations in France since nothing weird occurred in the eastern front with the soviets pushing hard once fair weather began. I have read the AAR (it took me a while!) and checked that Plaid's objective was to ruin any allied landing operation in France. As you know he mostly succeeded in this. But it would have to say that germans paid a high cost in units and steps lost for that and, which IMO is more important, those units could not be redeployed in the east to slow a little the advancing Red army. So here is the main dilemma in late game: to focus in stopping the soviets a little thus weakening France and aiming for a stand in Albert canal and west wall or to do what Plaid has done denying the allies a foothold in France. In late war, real germans also faced the dilemma of priorizing the fight against the soviets or the western allies. With all of those allied mechs and armoured units being killed one by one the only landings that seemed to be progressing were the ones in southern France. Finally, it was the armoured units landed in Marseilles that let the allies to liberate Paris in 1945. Anyway, allies were lucky about the weather in 1944 (so air attacks of german mechs and soviet offensive continued during several turns) and in 1945 when the allies enjoyed 2 consecutive fair weather turns in february. About Italy, I could not really progress and to take Rome until an american mech with +1 attacking bonus commander (Craig) landed in april 1945 south of the city.
This game has showed us how fast axis can crumble in late game no matter apparently there's no time for the allies to reach Germany in time. Also, (as in real war) the importance of weather.
Have a fight in 3.0 ? 