Slitherine

Turn 37 – 14 December 1942
Weather: snow and frozen

Ostfront:
Russian tanks also appeared North of Vologda. It is expected that the frozen rivers will become a real challenge for defense in winter.
The area East of Orel is still quiet… question is how long…
KV-1 tanks are attacking along the Kuma River. Von Manstein and Paulus are not sure how to react as Guderian kept the stronger tanks with Army Group North and the Luftwaffe will be grounded for weeks as well. What an unfortunate timing…

North Africa:
Same procedure as last time… The Brits are attacking towards Tobruk and Rommel established defense positions once again… This time a combination of entrenched infantry around Tobruk, capital ships as artillery support, some 8.8 in AT mode behind Fort Capuzzo and a few mobile tank units… Will Rommel be able to come out on top once again?
First Axis units reached the outskirts of Tunis. An effective defense line will need to be established quickly over the next few weeks as the Allies will arrive soon given their various landing spots along the coast.

England:
British counteroffensive West of London! Von Rundstedt is requesting additional tanks and maybe even mobile AT units. However, do we actually have anything to spare for him given the unpredictable situation at the Ostfront, especially with the oil fields still being in limbo?
Western Europe:
The new Tiger units ready at Hannover will need to be shipped to Tunis as soon as possible. Operation Torch needs to be extinguished before it can set Southern Europe on fire. Hopefully the route through the Mediterranean Sea will remain open until the Tigers arrive...

Amazing report, looking forward to seeing how things fare in North Africa and the Race to Tunis.

huckc wrote: ↑Tue Jul 10, 2018 4:08 pm Amazing report, looking forward to seeing how things fare in North Africa and the Race to Tunis.

Thanks huckc. Yeah, let's see what Rommel and his Italian comrades can still pull off in North Africa...

Turn 38 – 29 December 1942
Weather: snow and frozen

Ostfront:
The Finns almost reached Archangelsk despite the really bad weather.
In the Northern Caucasus von Manstein is trying to hold the line but the tanks of Army Group South are being pushed West… Paulus has the idea to trap the tanks in the forests or hills but a real solution hasn’t been found yet!
At the same time, Gebirgsjäger are working through the Caucasus Mountains towards Grozny and the first oil field.

North Africa:
Rommel experienced heavy casualties once again but his overall defense, kind of an ambush, seems to work! It also has to be noted that a British light cruiser attacked the two Italian battleships in front of the port.
Italy:
The Italians mobilized additional troops for their expeditionary forces in Tunis and Rommel is very glad (and also proud of his comrades) when he heard the good news!
Western Europe:
Strong British battlecruiser HMS Renown at the French Atlantic Coast – maybe Dönitz’s many submarines can be of any use… finally?

Turn 39 – 13 January 1943
Weather: snow and frozen

Ostfront:
New year… and new modern Russian tanks in front of Moscow!
In the South, only limited (scouting) attacks along the Dnieper River can be reported.
German Gebirgsjäger almost reached the first oil field!

Greece:
Greek partisans threaten Athens.
Maleme airfield in Western Crete got seized by partisans already. This will need to be recaptured to support the operations around Tobruk.
Balkans:
In the Balkans, Sarajevo and Dubrovnik were lost to partisans as well.

North Africa:
Heavy casualties around Tobruk, especially for some 8.8 units, but the first British wave has been repelled. More to come, intel said something about six or even more tank units plus supporting artillery and infantry, so a complete army...
The Italians reached Tunis. However, heavy German armor is still stuck around Rome. Now the Italians hope the German Tigers can be on time… “suppose they gave a war and no one came”
Continuous naval battle South of the Spanish Balearic Islands.

Turn 40 – 28 January 1943
Weather: cloudy and frozen

Overall situation:

The OKW sees risks and opportunities with the current situation. Overall, prestige and fuel continue to remain very low. Key objectives for the short to mid-term include:
1. Capture and hold Soviet oil fields in Grozny and Baku, if possible occupy the entire Caucasus
2. Maintain bridgehead in England and occupy London
3./4. Capture Archangelsk and Vologda to shorten front line of Army Group North
5. Hold front line from Moscow to the Crimea along Oka River, Desna River and Dnieper River
6./7. Hold front line in Tobruk and Tunis
8. Limit partisan activities in the Balkans and Greece
Despite some additional casualties since the beginning of Operation Barbarossa, no core slots are open so far.

Ostfront:
Russian counter-offensive West of Vologda and only limited Axis armor available.
It seems the Russians are suspending their tank offensive North of the Kuma River, maybe due to some casualties as well?
Greece:
Greek partisans occupied Athens, luckily Italian forces are close by.

North Africa:
The fox hunting continues… However, the coastal road North of Halfaya Pass and Fort Capuzzo “squeezes” the British units into some kind of a lemming queue. Rommel hopes that Tobruk can be easier defended this way.
England:
The frozen Thames River enables Matilda II tanks to push German troops westwards. Von Rundstedt now hopes that he can also apply his 8.8 units to deal with these heavy tanks, at least until the requested StuG IIIG arrives.
Meanwhile, two British destroyers appeared between England and the Netherlands. However, Dönitz thinks they (as well as the entire home fleet) won’t attack anyone as they are afraid of his submarines…

Turn 41 – 12 February 1943
Weather: cloudy and frozen

Ostfront:
The Finns are starting their attack on Archangelsk.
A T-34 tank occupied Orel.
A new Russian offensive has been started around Zaporozhye and von Manstein is suggesting to formally establish a new Army Group Center, headed by von Kleist. The main reason is that von Manstein is cut off (as Rostov was lost again) and that he is also very busy in the Caucasus. In addition, Guderian in Moscow is too far away as well to be effective. OKW agrees, von Kleist will now lead the defensive operations along Desna and Dnieper River. However, Bryansk will remain the responsibility of Guderian as part of Army Group North.

So yes, the Russian tanks North of Voroshilovsk took a break to refresh their units. Despite heavy Luftwaffe support, von Manstein still has no clue how to get rid of them. They are just too many and the tanks of Army Group South are too weak. Von Manstein is thinking of a stratagem…
Good news is that Paulus and his Gebirgsjäger seized the first oil field adjacent to Grozny. Will this be the turning point of the war in the East?

North Africa:
As the weather is getting better, the Regia Aeronautica Italiana is Rommel’s latest best friend…
At the same time further West, allied fighters and bombers pushed the Regia Marina away from the Balearic Islands.
England:
An additional tank unit arrived at Southampton airfield.

Turn 42 – 27 February 1943
Weather: cloudy and frozen

Ostfront:
Suspicious troop movements have been registered… something is going on around Kursk…
Von Manstein is confused, the Russian tanks around Voroshilovsk are moving West now?
The Romanians captured Tbilisi in the Kura valley (South of Grozny) and of course additional Russian tanks are in sight.

North Africa:
Crusader tanks are back at Halfaya Pass… however, Rommel is very happy that his 8.8s also work against latest Sherman tanks…
And by the way, what happened to the Americans in North Africa, did they get lost on their way to Tunis, maybe around Kasserine Pass? Well, German Tigers haven’t arrived yet either…
England:
The situation in England remains critical as the British tanks now retreated behind the Thames River and reinforced as well. The only good news is that von Rundstedt is able to hold Bristol so far… but why on Earth has the OKH sent him a recon unit, he had asked for a StuG… do they actually know the difference in Berlin?!

Turn 43 – 14 March 1943
Weather: clear and frozen

Ostfront:
The Finns made good progress at Archangelsk, the topic will be closed soon, it’s only a question of a few weeks now.
Guderian received new fancy tanks (IIIM) in the area around Moscow but are they actually any better?
Even more enemy troops around Kursk and Orel… as well as newly established fortifications!!!

Heavy Soviet tank attacks to recapture Grozny and its oilfield.
Greece:
Even the partisans are getting more and stronger in 43. Italian reinforcements on their way to Athens, just in case…
North Africa:
More Crusader tanks on the road to Tobruk as well…