Before I begin this AAR, let me give it this brief introduction. I've been playing CEAW for a year and a half, and PBEM games for about 6 months. I play all of my games on my desktop Mac, and so I purchased the Mac version of CEAW from Freeverse. I've been posting commentary and AARs in their forum since last summer, while occasionally dropping a comment here and there in the Slitherine forum. I've enjoyed talking with Mac users over in that forum, even though there are few of us. I continued to post my commentary over there instead of on this site because I really wanted to show some loyalty and keep the flame alive for future updates to the game. Unfortunately, today I was banned for posting the same sort of update to my AAR that I've been posting for months now. I've received no response from site administrators to restore my access to the forum (I can't even view the Freeverse forum to see what I've posted,) and so I will complete my AAR over in the Slitherine forum.
Also, I think I will purchase the PC version of CEAW so that I can acquire the Grand Strategy expansion.
So without further ado (or further acrimony regarding other companies), I will continue my AAR here. I'm playing Vanilla 1.06 against Jim. This is our 4th game (the thread title is something of a misnomer), the first two of which he won rather handily. The last one I won in a squeaker after conquering the UK and Canada completely, only to lose North America and eventually the Soviet republics, Poland, and Rumania but holding out until May 1945.
If you want to read in detail what's transpired so far, you can read here:
http://forum.freeverse.com/viewtopic.php?id=3124&p=1
Briefly, we're in June 1941 - Jim has opted for a strange strategy where he attacked Scandinavia (including Sweden) before going through Belgium and France. Italy captured Marseilles and Lyon, and just captured an evacuated Bordeaux after Paris fell in May 1941. The Brits have a redoubt built with air cover in Brest, but Monty was lost a couple of turns ago in southern France against the Italians. It will be awhile until he returns healed from his wounds.
JimR (Axis) vs. Clark (Allies) - War is Over!
Moderators: Happycat, rkr1958, Slitherine Core
JimR (Axis) vs. Clark (Allies) - War is Over!
Last edited by Clark on Sun Apr 11, 2010 2:08 pm, edited 3 times in total.
May 13 1941. Paris falls.
An intercepted communication from the enemy claims "Never in the history of warfare has Paris held out so long." Not so sure about that, but beware invading France in summer 1940 or later!
The core Axis group that has taken Paris is actually in pretty good shape. In 3 turns, he could be fully repaired and in position at the ports for a Sealion launch. He might just be crazy enough to do it. In the south, the British armor is knocked back on its heels. Turns out to be a lucky stroke for me, because that kept it in supply this turn and left it in a position to evacuate.
I decided it would be best to evacuate all troops from southern France. I don't have the PP production to keep up repair on multiple infantry and aircraft units, and Bordeaux would possibly be surrounded by 4 ground units and is naked to the air. I don't have much on the ground in England either, so I want to make sure there's at least something there to stop or slow a Sealion if he's crazy enough to attempt it.
In the sea, my CV, BB, and airpower in range go to town on his U-boats while the DD withdraws to port for repairs. Out of the 4 he previously had, he now only has 1 at half strength. It's possible that he has more lurking about.
I've placed another fighter and upgraded one that couldn't quite reach the subs. I now have a higher dogfight ability than Jim, and once I upgrade the remaining fighters, I'll be able to cover Brest from all of Cornwall. One more fighter is on the way and will need the strategic ops upgrade to have the same range.
Jim is slowly advancing in North Africa. The British stupidly rush in on the Italian BB and get the worst of the exchange. Should have waited a turn to where I could have softened up his BB with an air attack first, then swooped in with my BB.
I suppose for this point in the game chronologically, Jim's casualties are not bad. But for fighting only in France, 900,000 dead Germans and over 1 million combined Axis casualties is horrendous. He still has to go to the East in both Egypt and in Europe, and he's ill-prepared for a war with Russia at this point (AFAIK).
One thing that worries me almost as much as being down a fighter against Jim in Britain is a much lower effectiveness. Next turn I'll buy whatever general I can to start raising effectiveness in those fighters. A tech advantage isn't worth anything without some parity in effectiveness.
An intercepted communication from the enemy claims "Never in the history of warfare has Paris held out so long." Not so sure about that, but beware invading France in summer 1940 or later!
The core Axis group that has taken Paris is actually in pretty good shape. In 3 turns, he could be fully repaired and in position at the ports for a Sealion launch. He might just be crazy enough to do it. In the south, the British armor is knocked back on its heels. Turns out to be a lucky stroke for me, because that kept it in supply this turn and left it in a position to evacuate.
I decided it would be best to evacuate all troops from southern France. I don't have the PP production to keep up repair on multiple infantry and aircraft units, and Bordeaux would possibly be surrounded by 4 ground units and is naked to the air. I don't have much on the ground in England either, so I want to make sure there's at least something there to stop or slow a Sealion if he's crazy enough to attempt it.
In the sea, my CV, BB, and airpower in range go to town on his U-boats while the DD withdraws to port for repairs. Out of the 4 he previously had, he now only has 1 at half strength. It's possible that he has more lurking about.
I've placed another fighter and upgraded one that couldn't quite reach the subs. I now have a higher dogfight ability than Jim, and once I upgrade the remaining fighters, I'll be able to cover Brest from all of Cornwall. One more fighter is on the way and will need the strategic ops upgrade to have the same range.
Jim is slowly advancing in North Africa. The British stupidly rush in on the Italian BB and get the worst of the exchange. Should have waited a turn to where I could have softened up his BB with an air attack first, then swooped in with my BB.
I suppose for this point in the game chronologically, Jim's casualties are not bad. But for fighting only in France, 900,000 dead Germans and over 1 million combined Axis casualties is horrendous. He still has to go to the East in both Egypt and in Europe, and he's ill-prepared for a war with Russia at this point (AFAIK).
One thing that worries me almost as much as being down a fighter against Jim in Britain is a much lower effectiveness. Next turn I'll buy whatever general I can to start raising effectiveness in those fighters. A tech advantage isn't worth anything without some parity in effectiveness.
June 2 1941.
No pics this time, but there's not much to show. The Italians whaled on my BB north of Port Said, taking it down to two steps. It withdraws through the Suez, where (I hope) it is safe. The Italians have free rein over the Med right now.
In Britain, my transports land safely after the journey from southern France. The weather isn't as nice in Cornwall, but mist and rain are certainly preferable to bullets and artillery shells in a certain loss. I make whatever upgrades I can to the RAF. The Brits pay to bring in Auchinleck, the best general they currently can afford.
The Russians begin placing some units in preparation for possible war later this year. Stalin has been eagerly watching his avowed enemy bog down in war against the West, and may soon find it necessary to swoop in to the aid of the Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe suffering under the German (and its allied puppets') boot.
No pics this time, but there's not much to show. The Italians whaled on my BB north of Port Said, taking it down to two steps. It withdraws through the Suez, where (I hope) it is safe. The Italians have free rein over the Med right now.
In Britain, my transports land safely after the journey from southern France. The weather isn't as nice in Cornwall, but mist and rain are certainly preferable to bullets and artillery shells in a certain loss. I make whatever upgrades I can to the RAF. The Brits pay to bring in Auchinleck, the best general they currently can afford.
The Russians begin placing some units in preparation for possible war later this year. Stalin has been eagerly watching his avowed enemy bog down in war against the West, and may soon find it necessary to swoop in to the aid of the Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe suffering under the German (and its allied puppets') boot.
June 22 1941.
The Germans are moving to eliminate the British infantry defending Brest. The RAF swoop in on the attack, doing little damage but also lowering German effectiveness. At the end of the turn, the RAF gets another fighter, with another one in the build queue. Let's see if the Luftwaffe move in to help reduce the British defenses or take on the RAF directly.
The only other visible action is in North Africa right now. Some very sad looking Italian corps have made their across the desert and stand at very low effectiveness along the Nile. The Brits bring up an infantry corps and begin moving their infantry stationed in Iraq slowly toward Egypt.
I imagine these images look bizarre to people used to playing the BJR Mod and now GS.
The Germans are moving to eliminate the British infantry defending Brest. The RAF swoop in on the attack, doing little damage but also lowering German effectiveness. At the end of the turn, the RAF gets another fighter, with another one in the build queue. Let's see if the Luftwaffe move in to help reduce the British defenses or take on the RAF directly.
The only other visible action is in North Africa right now. Some very sad looking Italian corps have made their across the desert and stand at very low effectiveness along the Nile. The Brits bring up an infantry corps and begin moving their infantry stationed in Iraq slowly toward Egypt.
I imagine these images look bizarre to people used to playing the BJR Mod and now GS.
One thing I might not have mentioned back in the Freeverse forums. You might want to build a sub (or two) for the Allies. It will give you the capability to see his naval units & moves in stealth mode (unless he runs across the sub), which can still be useful (moreso in the Med).
Still, barring any bad moves or luck on your part, you should have this game won by late 1942 to mid 1943. At this stage time is on the Allies side, so while you shouldn't just sit around doing nothing until the overwhelming force arrives, don't take any needless risks either. Right now it's "Monty" strategy time, come mid-late 1942 then you can go into Patton mode. That said, anything on the coast or in range of your air should be hit as much as prudently possible. More for him to worry about.
Oh, and think about starting the strategic bombing campaign agaist the Ruhr region. 17 PP in total there, which is a good chunk of production that two strategic bombers can knock down to almost nothing given time.
Jyri
Still, barring any bad moves or luck on your part, you should have this game won by late 1942 to mid 1943. At this stage time is on the Allies side, so while you shouldn't just sit around doing nothing until the overwhelming force arrives, don't take any needless risks either. Right now it's "Monty" strategy time, come mid-late 1942 then you can go into Patton mode. That said, anything on the coast or in range of your air should be hit as much as prudently possible. More for him to worry about.
Oh, and think about starting the strategic bombing campaign agaist the Ruhr region. 17 PP in total there, which is a good chunk of production that two strategic bombers can knock down to almost nothing given time.
Jyri
My next purchases were to buy strat bombers to hold down German production before the Americans arrive. I wondered if Jim would do something crazy, like have a go at Turkey, but I think it's too late for that now. But then again, I thought he would invade Belgium before summer 1940!JyriErik wrote:One thing I might not have mentioned back in the Freeverse forums. You might want to build a sub (or two) for the Allies. It will give you the capability to see his naval units & moves in stealth mode (unless he runs across the sub), which can still be useful (moreso in the Med).
Still, barring any bad moves or luck on your part, you should have this game won by late 1942 to mid 1943. At this stage time is on the Allies side, so while you shouldn't just sit around doing nothing until the overwhelming force arrives, don't take any needless risks either. Right now it's "Monty" strategy time, come mid-late 1942 then you can go into Patton mode. That said, anything on the coast or in range of your air should be hit as much as prudently possible. More for him to worry about.
Oh, and think about starting the strategic bombing campaign agaist the Ruhr region. 17 PP in total there, which is a good chunk of production that two strategic bombers can knock down to almost nothing given time.
Jyri
Re: JimR (Axis) vs. Clark (Allies) - The Rubber Match (No Ji
I got wind a few days ago of some things that were happening over at Freeverse so I visited their CEAW forum and was reading through some posts. I saw your AAR and that your were also banned. Do some checking in other posts I saw that your ban was for trying to post pictures with your AAR. That's sad. That's really sad.Clark wrote:Unfortunately, today I was banned for posting the same sort of update to my AAR that I've been posting for months now. I've received no response from site administrators to restore my access to the forum (I can't even view the Freeverse forum to see what I've posted,) and so I will complete my AAR over in the Slitherine forum.
http://forum.freeverse.com/viewtopic.php?id=3124&p=1
Re: JimR (Axis) vs. Clark (Allies) - The Rubber Match (No Ji
I wouldn't have necessarily had any problems with them placing restrictions on pictures (there can be bandwith concerns, I guess), but there was no warning at all. I had put pictures in my AARs for months, as had others. One day, when I hit post on the description of the most recent turn, I got a message that I was banned. I sent them an e-mail asking what the problem was, but there has been no response at all to this point. I can't even read the Freeverse forum from my home computer, even when I delete all the cookies or use a different browser. Looks like it's an IP ban.rkr1958 wrote:I got wind a few days ago of some things that were happening over at Freeverse so I visited their CEAW forum and was reading through some posts. I saw your AAR and that your were also banned. Do some checking in other posts I saw that your ban was for trying to post pictures with your AAR. That's sad. That's really sad.Clark wrote:Unfortunately, today I was banned for posting the same sort of update to my AAR that I've been posting for months now. I've received no response from site administrators to restore my access to the forum (I can't even view the Freeverse forum to see what I've posted,) and so I will complete my AAR over in the Slitherine forum.
http://forum.freeverse.com/viewtopic.php?id=3124&p=1
August 1 1941. Battle of Brest begins in earnest.
Jim has moved the Luftwaffe in with Rumanian and Italian air in support. He also has a strat bomber in place. Useful perhaps for spying into East Anglia, but the Brits get much of their PPs from convoys right now anyway. I tried to engage the Luftwaffe in Brittany, with mixed results.
In Egypt, the Italians are on the march. The British infantry corps on the Nile is reduced to 3 steps and withdraws east of Port Said. British infantry continue to march out of Iraq toward the Med.
Also this turn, the Axis has invaded Yugoslavia and nearly taken Belgrade. No Germans are involved in this campaign other than a single squadron of TACs.
I hope to keep distracting Jim with Brest (no pun intended!) so that he has to keep focus here rather than preparing for Russia. And in the Med, the Italians have been successful in pushing a single infantry corps around, but I don't think they can do much to root well dug in British garrisons from Cairo and Port Said. At least, not before reinforcement arrive.
Jim has moved the Luftwaffe in with Rumanian and Italian air in support. He also has a strat bomber in place. Useful perhaps for spying into East Anglia, but the Brits get much of their PPs from convoys right now anyway. I tried to engage the Luftwaffe in Brittany, with mixed results.
In Egypt, the Italians are on the march. The British infantry corps on the Nile is reduced to 3 steps and withdraws east of Port Said. British infantry continue to march out of Iraq toward the Med.
Also this turn, the Axis has invaded Yugoslavia and nearly taken Belgrade. No Germans are involved in this campaign other than a single squadron of TACs.
I hope to keep distracting Jim with Brest (no pun intended!) so that he has to keep focus here rather than preparing for Russia. And in the Med, the Italians have been successful in pushing a single infantry corps around, but I don't think they can do much to root well dug in British garrisons from Cairo and Port Said. At least, not before reinforcement arrive.
August 21 1941. Worst turn for the Allies yet.
I got a little cocky and started in on my turn without surveying the whole map. I started repairing fighters in Cornwall and took on the Luftwaffe down in western France before I realized that there were 6 transports off the coast of East Anglia!!! Basically this means I used up all of my PPs repairing the fighters and redoubt infantry. The fighter are now mostly out of position to provide adequate cover for ground forces battling in East Anglia, and I had nothing left to order up some infantry to deploy.
I sortied the strat bomber and wounded one German transport before bringing a BB down from Scotland to finish it off. The BB in port next to London moved up and nearly destroyed another transport. But then I chanced the CV coming through the Channel from Brest, and sure enough, a U-boat blocked its path and took 4 steps off. It's now a sitting duck for the Luftwaffe to take out. The other available RN in the area (a DD and a 6 step BB) head north around Scotland to remain out of the Luftwaffe's reach.
The good news for me is that only 3 out of the remaining 5 transports will be able to land, and one of those will have to be the 2 step one. Jim didn't plan his landing very well, because the possible landing hexes overlap in a couple of cases. Unless of course the landings were bait to draw the RN out. I do think I will have to give up the redoubt, pulling the infantry out of Brest (or what's left of it, if it survives the next turn) and moving my air cover and Auchinleck's infantry corps to the southeastern portion of the UK. But that's a fair trade if I get to wipe out several more German corps.
The situation is little better in Egypt, where a very weak Italian force is having its way with all in its path. Luckily I have a few reinforcements that will make their presence felt in a few turns. I'm still confident that Cairo and Port Said will hold out until then.
I got a little cocky and started in on my turn without surveying the whole map. I started repairing fighters in Cornwall and took on the Luftwaffe down in western France before I realized that there were 6 transports off the coast of East Anglia!!! Basically this means I used up all of my PPs repairing the fighters and redoubt infantry. The fighter are now mostly out of position to provide adequate cover for ground forces battling in East Anglia, and I had nothing left to order up some infantry to deploy.
I sortied the strat bomber and wounded one German transport before bringing a BB down from Scotland to finish it off. The BB in port next to London moved up and nearly destroyed another transport. But then I chanced the CV coming through the Channel from Brest, and sure enough, a U-boat blocked its path and took 4 steps off. It's now a sitting duck for the Luftwaffe to take out. The other available RN in the area (a DD and a 6 step BB) head north around Scotland to remain out of the Luftwaffe's reach.
The good news for me is that only 3 out of the remaining 5 transports will be able to land, and one of those will have to be the 2 step one. Jim didn't plan his landing very well, because the possible landing hexes overlap in a couple of cases. Unless of course the landings were bait to draw the RN out. I do think I will have to give up the redoubt, pulling the infantry out of Brest (or what's left of it, if it survives the next turn) and moving my air cover and Auchinleck's infantry corps to the southeastern portion of the UK. But that's a fair trade if I get to wipe out several more German corps.
The situation is little better in Egypt, where a very weak Italian force is having its way with all in its path. Luckily I have a few reinforcements that will make their presence felt in a few turns. I'm still confident that Cairo and Port Said will hold out until then.
Interesting. I don't see any German surface ships in that landing force. At this stagte, I'd say when you rebase your air make sure that while it's out of German fighter attack range, it's in range to attack any coastal hex where his fleet can supply the invasion force. Once that force is out of supply, it's pretty much dead. If you evacuate the Brest garrison, definitely stick in in Cardiff and let it dig in. There's still the possibilty of a sneak attack out of Bordeaux. THE important thing is to make sure the Germans don't capture a city. If that happens, things will get very unpretty for you. That said, the Russian entry countdown starts next turn, so sometime in the 5 turns starting September 10th the Russians will enter. Considering the amount of airpower he has, a limited drive towards Ploesti seems like a good idea (just make sure not to get over extended. It's better to wait and get all the armour to the front before going full bore than losing them piecemeal).
Jyri
Jyri
An interesting note on how convoys can change a lot in the game - I'm also playing blaxsun in vanilla, and the game took a very similar track, where I held him out of France until January 1941. In that game, I managed to do inflict more casualties but lost France a lot sooner. In any event, I'm doing much, much better against blaxsun because the UK has received an absurd amount of PPs through convoys. Almost every single northern convoy past the first one has been at least 80 PP and two have been upwards of 130 PP. Consequently, the Brits have lots of tech upgrades and airplanes, and the redoubt was easily defended from the air.
Yeah, the HSF is still out there somewhere.JyriErik wrote:Interesting. I don't see any German surface ships in that landing force. At this stagte, I'd say when you rebase your air make sure that while it's out of German fighter attack range, it's in range to attack any coastal hex where his fleet can supply the invasion force. Once that force is out of supply, it's pretty much dead. If you evacuate the Brest garrison, definitely stick in in Cardiff and let it dig in. There's still the possibilty of a sneak attack out of Bordeaux. THE important thing is to make sure the Germans don't capture a city. If that happens, things will get very unpretty for you. That said, the Russian entry countdown starts next turn, so sometime in the 5 turns starting September 10th the Russians will enter. Considering the amount of airpower he has, a limited drive towards Ploesti seems like a good idea (just make sure not to get over extended. It's better to wait and get all the armour to the front before going full bore than losing them piecemeal).
Jyri
September 10 1941. An absolute disaster.
Jim has made a little headway on the ground in East Anglia (he's flattened Norwich - prematurely ending the sad career of Alan Partridge before he was ever born) but he's positively wrecked the RN and severely damaged the RAF. The infantry corps is pulled out of Brest and sent to Cardiff, and everything in range is chucked at the HSF. It stands up to attack and will continue to supply the German assault on London at least one more turn. Meanwhile the RN is in danger of being completely wiped out.
I should still be able to win handily once the Russians enter the war, but the sooner Stalin makes up his mind to join in the better. Britain may not be able to withstand the invasion if the RN and RAF are no longer able to intercept transports.
Jim has made a little headway on the ground in East Anglia (he's flattened Norwich - prematurely ending the sad career of Alan Partridge before he was ever born) but he's positively wrecked the RN and severely damaged the RAF. The infantry corps is pulled out of Brest and sent to Cardiff, and everything in range is chucked at the HSF. It stands up to attack and will continue to supply the German assault on London at least one more turn. Meanwhile the RN is in danger of being completely wiped out.
I should still be able to win handily once the Russians enter the war, but the sooner Stalin makes up his mind to join in the better. Britain may not be able to withstand the invasion if the RN and RAF are no longer able to intercept transports.
September 30 1941.
The situation is becoming more dire in the UK. The Germans are now in the outer suburbs of London in relatively good shape, and the Royal Navy is all but lost. The Royal Air Force has been ravaged in its desperate attempts to sink the High Seas Fleet, which fortunately returned to port this turn. I now have just six weeks to make sure that the German ground forces are sufficiently ground down that they cannot recover on the island.
I spent all of my PP repairing fighters this turn, and placed a purchased infantry corps defending Birmingham. In the next few turns, I'll have to make sure to purchase some more ground forces in the hopes of keeping London. I believe that if I lose London, I can no longer place purchases in England or Scotland.
The USSR remains on the sideline for at least another 3 weeks.
The situation is becoming more dire in the UK. The Germans are now in the outer suburbs of London in relatively good shape, and the Royal Navy is all but lost. The Royal Air Force has been ravaged in its desperate attempts to sink the High Seas Fleet, which fortunately returned to port this turn. I now have just six weeks to make sure that the German ground forces are sufficiently ground down that they cannot recover on the island.
I spent all of my PP repairing fighters this turn, and placed a purchased infantry corps defending Birmingham. In the next few turns, I'll have to make sure to purchase some more ground forces in the hopes of keeping London. I believe that if I lose London, I can no longer place purchases in England or Scotland.
The USSR remains on the sideline for at least another 3 weeks.
October 20 1941. No pic this turn - forgot to take one.
Back and forth in the UK. The HSF is still in port, but I expect it will arrive on the coast to drop off some supplies next turn. He's knocked Auchinleck's infantry down to one step, which withdraws to ostensible safety. The British armor charges in and pushes a German infantry corps back to the coast, blocking the possible landing of yet another German transport. I purchase a garrison to defend the outskirts of London and hold the out of supply Germans back against the coast.
I'm incredibly worried that Jim will take London, although I don't think he can have much of a defense set up in Poland.
Back and forth in the UK. The HSF is still in port, but I expect it will arrive on the coast to drop off some supplies next turn. He's knocked Auchinleck's infantry down to one step, which withdraws to ostensible safety. The British armor charges in and pushes a German infantry corps back to the coast, blocking the possible landing of yet another German transport. I purchase a garrison to defend the outskirts of London and hold the out of supply Germans back against the coast.
I'm incredibly worried that Jim will take London, although I don't think he can have much of a defense set up in Poland.
Assuming there are no new transports on the coast, I'm guessing that the all infantry force is a spoiler hoping to cause as much damage to the British as possible while he gets ready for the eatern front to open. That said, I wouldn't take any sort of risks in England at this time (or even after the Russians enter). Slow and solid for the next 3-5 turns should allow the German lodgement in England to be knocked out. I would also pull any fighters in range of direct attack by his fighters to 1 hex past their attack range. If you manage to maintain those you have (or even add a couple) then along with the Russians fighters, his airpower situation is not going to be good. (BTW, in 1941 and early 1942, the only thing Russian fighters should do if there's German fighters around is repair & intercept German attacks. The Red Air Force's quality is pretty pathetic at this stage.
Jyri
Jyri
Nov. 9, 1941. England hangs on.
British armor counterattacks north of London, wiping out a German infantry corps. I purchase an infantry corps and repair my destroyer, which is hemmed in on all sides in Scapa Flow and was down to 1 step. It's possible that his weakening subs might finish it off this turn. There's also a 128 PP convoy due to arrive next turn, so I should be flush with PP if I can survive the next couple of turns in the UK.
Also, Jim might have been in better shape this turn, but there was some confusion on the rules. My interpretation of the vanilla house rules is that you may not invade from the sea in the fall and winter onto a hostile coastal hex, but that once it's occupied and under your control from a previous invasion, it's fair game to land on in any season. Jim understood it to mean that amphibious landings aren't allowed in the storm season in a hostile country, no matter if you control the beaches or not. In any event, he could have landed the transports that are currently off the coast.
Oh, and the USSR declared war at the end of the turn. Looking at the map before it went back to the title screen, Jim has the mountains from Poland to Odessa entrenched with units, but north of Brest-Litovsk, it's free and clear for an advance.
British armor counterattacks north of London, wiping out a German infantry corps. I purchase an infantry corps and repair my destroyer, which is hemmed in on all sides in Scapa Flow and was down to 1 step. It's possible that his weakening subs might finish it off this turn. There's also a 128 PP convoy due to arrive next turn, so I should be flush with PP if I can survive the next couple of turns in the UK.
Also, Jim might have been in better shape this turn, but there was some confusion on the rules. My interpretation of the vanilla house rules is that you may not invade from the sea in the fall and winter onto a hostile coastal hex, but that once it's occupied and under your control from a previous invasion, it's fair game to land on in any season. Jim understood it to mean that amphibious landings aren't allowed in the storm season in a hostile country, no matter if you control the beaches or not. In any event, he could have landed the transports that are currently off the coast.
Oh, and the USSR declared war at the end of the turn. Looking at the map before it went back to the title screen, Jim has the mountains from Poland to Odessa entrenched with units, but north of Brest-Litovsk, it's free and clear for an advance.
November 29 1941.
After the darkness of the summer and fall, a ray of hope shines in England while a great bright dawn appears in the East. The Russians have entered the war and are marshaling their resources for a great thrust through to Berlin.
In the UK, air attacks have taken their toll on British ground troops. The frontline British armor and garrison have been practically dismantled:
I placed the infantry again in the outskirts of London. All damaged ground units get repairs. The infantry that once occupied Brest and has sinced been refitted now launches an assault and wipes out a weak German infantry. All RAF units have been ordered to Scotland. There are two convoys coming in next turn unless Jim blocks them, and the Brits can't afford to have the German U-boats hold them off for any number of turns. My hope is that even in their weakened state, together the RAF units can pick off a sub. I also have one BB slowly being repaired in Gibraltar. When it's competely repaired, I'll send it in to action again if necessary.
Here's an overview of the Eastern Front after the first German turn. The Germans have taken Brest-Litovsk, but not much else is showing. Deep winter has set in for the Russians, so it will take a little bit more time to rail far-flung units in to assemble one or more armies to strike into the heart of Germany. I mean, I can rail them in and spend a lot of PP doing so, but the units would then crawl from the railheads to the staging areas to the west.
After the darkness of the summer and fall, a ray of hope shines in England while a great bright dawn appears in the East. The Russians have entered the war and are marshaling their resources for a great thrust through to Berlin.
In the UK, air attacks have taken their toll on British ground troops. The frontline British armor and garrison have been practically dismantled:
I placed the infantry again in the outskirts of London. All damaged ground units get repairs. The infantry that once occupied Brest and has sinced been refitted now launches an assault and wipes out a weak German infantry. All RAF units have been ordered to Scotland. There are two convoys coming in next turn unless Jim blocks them, and the Brits can't afford to have the German U-boats hold them off for any number of turns. My hope is that even in their weakened state, together the RAF units can pick off a sub. I also have one BB slowly being repaired in Gibraltar. When it's competely repaired, I'll send it in to action again if necessary.
Here's an overview of the Eastern Front after the first German turn. The Germans have taken Brest-Litovsk, but not much else is showing. Deep winter has set in for the Russians, so it will take a little bit more time to rail far-flung units in to assemble one or more armies to strike into the heart of Germany. I mean, I can rail them in and spend a lot of PP doing so, but the units would then crawl from the railheads to the staging areas to the west.