Slitherine

Berlin – June 01 1943 – Hauptquartier der Deutschen Wehrmacht

Top secret meeting between Reichsfeldmarschall Ludwig Werner, his military advisors and the leaders of the German Heer, Marine and Luftwaffe to explain the global Wehrmacht strategy for the years 1943 and 1944 that Werner and the OKW (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht) has worked out. After presenting this strategy Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is ending his speech with the following sentences:

“Meine Herren,
as you know in these days we face a lethal military challenge and we have to prove that the outstanding military power of the German Wehrmacht can still change the course of this war.
The last months brought us shocking and shameful defeats at Tobruk and in Stalingrad. You all know that the war in the east was nearly lost begin of this year but we were able to stabilize our front again. It is now the last chance to turn the table in the east. With our new Panzer weapon - the Panther and Tiger divisions - we have the most powerful tanks on the battlefields. And we have the most experienced and best soldiers in the world.
With operation Zitadelle we will start a decisive blow against the Red Army frontline at Kursk. We will break through the Red Army front line and encircle and destroy several of their best armies. This will provide us the last chance to win the war in the east. And winning in the east will lead to success also in the west and in the south.
Operation Zitadelle is planned to start on June 5 6am with the largest tank battle the world has seen so far. We will use the next 5 days to move all our Panzer reserves including the new Tigers and Panthers to the east.

That’s all for today. You have your orders.

Sieg oder Untergang, meine Herren!”

Kiev, occupied city – July 12 1943 – temporary headquarter of Heeresgruppe Mitte

While far in the east the German tanks are approaching the Red Army defense lines around Kursk cutting deep gaps in the enemy lines, Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is looking at the huge map that the OKW has provided for him. The map is showing the master plan for the next months.

Main target, operation Zitadelle: Encircle and destroy several Soviet armies at Kursk regaining the initiative at the eastern front. To bind as many Red Army troops as possible in the north the Finnish troops will attack Leningrad from north and from the east. To bind as many Red Army troops as possible in the south the last occupied city in the Caucasus at the Black Sea – Novorossiysk – will be defended by German and Romanian troops by all means.

Secondary target, operation Achse: The Italian ally is using his Navy and Army troops to slow down the Anglo American invasion of Sicily. In the meantime several German and Slovakian divisions are transferred from Greece and the Balkan to the Italian mainland. The OKW rates the situation on Sicily as critical. The Italians will not be able to stop the invasion. The OKW is preparing the defense of the Italian mainland near Rome.

Secondary target, operation Seelöwe: The forces of the German Kriegsmarine are gathered in the Skagerrak. From there the Kriegsmarine will search the decision battle against the Royal Navy in winter 1943/1944. The goal is to land German divisions near Edinburgh to capture Glasgow and cut off Scotland from Great Britain. In case of success the feared Anglo American invasion of France will be postponed long enough to end the war in the east.

Risks: The main risk is the start of a Russian counter offensive at the long weak northern German front line Leningrad - Smolensk – Orel. To gather troops for Seelöwe and Achse we have to order Wehrmacht divisions to leave France, Greece, Norway and the Balkan. Thus partisan activities in these areas will be difficult to control. The OKW rates the possible loss of Greece and Norway as acceptable.

I like the way you write.
I am very dry with aar's. (It is all I am willing to do at this point, maybe I can learn from you and others on this forum.)
You provide enough info in a short amount of space yet convey the feel of playing this mod.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and imagining the details.
Well done.

Yes, its great to see you back again with another AAR GW. I also enjoy the way you write them, as its much more colorful and interesting than standard AAR’s.

You are playing one of McGuba’s pre-saved games, right? I will get into them once I finish my current playthrough.

I do wonder though that invading the UK in ’43 is a little optimistic though. Wouldn’t you be better concentrating your forces on the Eastern front and once that is dealt with, switching to the West?

Yes indeed I started with McGubas Kursk scenario in round 51 mid of July 43. That is already the (historical) end of operation Zitadelle because the attack was stopped by the Wehrmacht when the Anglo Americans landed in Sicily mid of July. Of course here it is possible to go on with Zitadelle trying to close the Kursk pocket or to stop it and send troops to Italy.

Most interesting for me is that the whole German Navy is concentrated east of England in the North Sea. If you start from round 1 you have two fleets, one in the North Sea and one in the Atlantic that I always used separately. So with this single huge fleet I will try to attack England from the east in 1943. Risky yes, but if it will be possible to capture and hold a part of England it is worth the fleet. I will mainly use troops that are more or less doing nothing in Norway and France. The terrain around Glasgow is well suited for infantry, artillery and the 88ers anti air/anti tank. I plan to leave the tanks in the east.

The ressource situation is of course a desaster. Low income and British bombers over German cities. And this will not become better in 44 or 45. So I strike in 43 and hope that the strikes will be hard enough to turn the table.

As General Werner said to his Generals. The motto this time is "Victory or downfall!"

Kursk, occupied city – February 7 1944 – temporary headquarter of Heeresgruppe Mitte

Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is standing at the open window staring at the ruins of Kursk. “Damn weather”, he is mumbling. But he is not meaning the weather in Kursk. He is complaining about the weather in the Northern Sea.

Werner is sitting down at his desk taking the telephone. Somebody is asking: “Jawoll, Herr Reichsfeldmarschall?”. Werner is responding: “Immediately stop operation Seelöwe und evacuate all forces back to Norway and Germany.“

With a sigh Werner is looking at the reports that summarize the victories and the defeats of the last six month since the start of operation Zitadelle.

Heeresgruppe West and the Kriegsmarine
Our invasion fleet for operation Seelöwe was gathered in the Skagerrak. It contained 90% of the vessels of the Kriegsmarine and 10 transport convoys with infantry, artillery and 88ers. In January 44 the preparation were finished and the armada moved west to reach the coasts of Scotland near Edinburgh. We surprised the Royal Navy near Edinburgh and in Scapa Flow and quickly sunk British destroyers, submarines and battleships. As expected a strong counterattack of the Royal Navy crushed in our attack lines that tried to find a road through the mine fields to reach the British coast. Then the weather turned and the snow stopped. The attack of the RAF and the American bombers shattered our Kriegsmarine and the supporting Luftwaffe. Our fighter protection was annihilated. Our transport ships were bombed by enemy bombers and ships and were still far away from the beaches trying to cross the mine fields.

The OKW strongly recommends the Generalfeldmarschall to stop operation Seelöwe immediately and command the surviving troops back to the Reich.
After the loss of the battle of Scotland the forces of the German Reich in Western Europe are so weakened that no offense actions are possible anymore. Intelligence tells us that the Anglo Americans will invade Western Europe in the next 6 month. The Wehrmacht can only prepare for a fierce defense fight to stop the enemies at the beaches or in the hinterland.

Germany, Das Reich
Nothing to report. Sometimes carpet bombing of German cities.
For the next six month nothing special planned.

Italy
Our Italian ally did his best to postpone the Anglo American invasion of Sicily for several weeks. The OKW had decided to send no German troops to Sicily but to plan the defense of Italy in the mountains and hills around Rome. Finally the enemy captured Sicily, entered the main land and attacked our defense lines near Rome. Our experienced infantry divisions were already able to destroy three armored American divisions (two tank and one artillery). Due to this positive result the OKW has ordered an offense at the eastern Italian coast to push back the Americans while at the western coast around Naples the defense is intensified to stop the attacking strong American infantry divisions. The Anglo Americans have the naval and the air superiority in Italy.
For the next six month the plan is to hold the defense lines in Italy

Balkan
Fight against partisans.
Nothing special planned for the next six month.

Heeresgruppe Nord and Finnish troops
The attack on Leningrad was planned as a diversionary tactic to stop the Russians from sending enforcements from the north to the battle of Kursk. But in the meantime the Finish troops supported by some German divisions are so successful that Leningrad will fall in the next days.
The plan for the next six month is to capture and hold Leningrad and advance further to the east.

Heeregruppe Mitte
The decisive battle of Kursk is the main keystone in the OKW’s strategy to turn the table at the eastern front and get back the initiative in the battle of Russia. With our modern Panzer forces we were quickly able to close the pocket of Kursk and to destroy many Russian armies in the pocket. The Russian counter attack came as expected at our weakened defense line near Smolensk but by moving our victorious tank divisions quickly from Kursk to the northwest we are currently very confident to crush the Russian winter attack in this area.
The outstanding success at Kursk and the predictable defeat of the Russian winter attack near Smolensk – that is nearly at the gates of Moscow - will allow the Wehrmacht to attack directly the Russian capital in spring 1944.

Heeresgruppe Süd, Romanian&Hungarian Allies
Until today the southern front line is more or less quite. The last occupied city in the Caucasus at the Black Sea – Novorossiysk – was defended by German and Romanian troops for several months to bind the southern Russian troops at the Caucasus. As foreseen the city was lost to the Red Army in the last days.
The plan for the next six month is to hold the defense lines as the main battles against the Red Army will happen in the north.

Global summary:
The OKW is very satisfied with the strategy in the east. In Italy we have currently a draw. In the west the defeat near Scotland made clear that an Anglo American invasion of Western Europe can’t be prevented anymore and will for sure happen in the year 1944.

1944 June 02, urgent telegram from Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, Marshal of the Soviet Union
to the Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Force General Dwight D. Eisenhower
Towarischtsch Eisenhower,
the German invaders are standing at the gates of the Kremlin. It is urgently required to open the second front against the Axis immediately!

Zhukov, Marshal

Hair obviously wasn't a big thing back then.

Or maybe it was the stress of the battlefield that resulted in the lack of it?

Most leaders of that time liked to smoke: perhaps it got burnt off one day?

- BNC

Moscow, occupied city – September 5 1944 – temporary headquarter of Heeresgruppe Mitte

Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is sitting at his desk in his temporary office in the Kremlin reading the OKW reports about the military operations of the last six months. About 80% of the Kremlin was destroyed in the battles but some rooms are still useable. Werner has stayed here for the last weeks to control the most important battlefield of the Wehrmacht directly. But today he will fly back to Berlin. Other front lines in the west and the south of the Reich became more and more important in the last days.

Heeresgruppe West and the Kriegsmarine
After the loss of the battle of Scotland and the stop of operation Seelöwe it became clear that the invasion of Western Europe can’t be prevented anymore and will happen in the first months of 1944. Due to the also critical situation in Italy and the clear air supremacy of the Allies in France the OKW has decided to prepare the defense line against the Allies not in France but at the Rhine River. Exception is the city of Paris that will be defended until the last man. Substantial ground forces were moved from the eastern fronts to the west. In June 1944 the huge allied invasion happened in the Normandy. Our troops in the bunkers, the rest of the German Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe in the west did their best to hinder and damage the attacking Anglo Americans forces.
In the next six months the Allied invasion has to be stopped and repelled at the Rhine River. In winter 44/45 a counter offensive is planned out of the Ruhrgebiet to the west.

Germany, Das Reich
Continuous carpet bombing of German cities especially Berlin.
For the next six month it is planned to set up an effective air defense at Berlin.

Italy
In spring and summer 1944 more and more extremely strong Anglo American tank and infantry divisions were sent in the battle of Italy supported by ship artillery and bombers. The Axis troops fought deeply entrenched in the mountains and hills south east of Rome but had to retreat more and more to the north. Finally in August 44 the OKW commanded the remaining troops to stop the fight of Rome and to retreat to the new defense line at Venice. Intelligence tells us about an upcoming landing of an Allied invasion force in the south of France.
For the next six month the plan is to hold the defense lines at Venice by all means.

Balkan
The situation at the Balkan became critical in the last weeks. Partisans together with British commandos were able to recapture great parts of Greece. This raises a great risk for our ally Romania to be attacked from the back. The OKW will send experienced troops from the eastern front to Romania to protect the borders and to recapture the Balkan in the next six months.

Heeresgruppe Nord and Finnish troops
The great victory at Leningrad was the first heavy blow against the Red Army. In the meantime the main core was transported to the south to support Heeresgruppe Mitte at Moscow.
The plan for the next six month is to hold Leningrad and advance further to the east from the area of Moscow.

Heeregruppe Mitte
The outstanding success at Kursk was the second (and main) heavy blow against the Red Army and the third one was coming after short time.

The expected Russian winter attack near Smolensk was stopped and a counter attack directly on Moscow was started.
In the meantime substantial forces were transferred to the west to defend the Reich against the Allied invasion in France. Other troops had to be sent south to repel another strong Russian attack at Kursk with the goal to recapture the city. Thus our attacking force around Moscow is noticeable reduced. The OKW hopes that also the resources of the Russian army in the north are exhausted due to their multiple failed counter attacks in this area.

Heeresgruppe Süd, Romanian&Hungarian Allies
The duty of the Heeresgruppe Süd is to hold the whole front line from Kursk south to the city of Rostov.
The strong Russian attack on Kursk was stopped and will soon be repelled by sending our Tiger division in. But the Wehrmacht has already lost two valuable tank divisions in that area that can’t be replaced anymore due to the new situation in France and in Italy.
We hold the city of Rostov with strong forces to cut off the Russian troops in the Caucasus from the main battlefields in the north.
The plan for the next six month is to hold the defense lines and if possible to regain the initiative also in the south by defeating the attacking Red Army forces at Rostov and moving our forces again to the Caucasus.

Global summary:
The OKW is very satisfied with the strategy in the east. In France and Italy we plan to stop the Allied attacks at our well prepared defense lines. Of course the Wehrmacht now has to set up much more troops in the west to stop the Allied invasion forces than if the whole invasion would have be prevented by operation Seelöwe. We expect that the Russian army is weakened after the loss of Leningrad, Kursk, Moscow and all the failed counter offensives to recapture these areas. This will allow us to send more troops to the west but still have the capabilities for offensive actions in the east.
Except from some submarines the whole Kriegsmarine is destroyed. But the upcoming battles will happen far away from the coasts. More critical is the situation of the Luftwaffe. In the west nearly non-existent and in the east also reduced to a (but still powerful) small core.

Berlin, bombed city – February 17 1945 – bunker of the OKW

Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is sitting at his desk. He is tired and also a little bit disappointed. The hope that the Red Army would be really exhausted and could be overwhelmed in winter 44/45 faded away with every kilometer the Wehrmacht stroke deeper to the east. Starting from Moscow the Axis troops have finally reached the Volga River and a new offensive was started in the south to attack again the Caucasus. But still Russia is far away from being beaten, the resistance is fierce and in the west the second front of the Allies has reached the Rhine River and the Reich.

Time to stop the attacks in the east and move the troops back to defend the Vaterland!

Heeresgruppe West and the Kriegsmarine
The Allies have captured Paris and finally reached the Rhine River to start the attack on several German cities. The Wehrmacht has set up a strong defense and is repelling the Anglo American attacks. But now the weather gets better and the Allied bombers again strike hard against the German defenders. Some last German submarines are fighting in the English Channel to hinder the supplies of the allied invasion force. Generalfeldmarschall Rommel has requested more troops from the east to the “Wacht am Rhein”.

Germany, Das Reich
With the end of the snowfall the Allies have started again carpet bombing of German cities. The Flak is doing its best, but it is not enough. The German Luftwaffe nearly plays no role anymore in the west and in the Reich.

Italy
The defense line at Venice is holding back the Anglo Americans to reach Austria and the Balkan. Loosing the control at this front would be a lethal blow for the German defense strategy in Central Europe. The OKW has decided to send a Panther and a Tiger division to Venice to neutralize the fierce American attacks.

Balkan
The situation at the Balkan is still critical. The OKW has transferred several infantry divisions and even a tank division to this battlefield to hunt down the Partisans and recapture all lost areas.

Heeresgruppe Nord and Finnish troops
Leningrad is hold.

Heeregruppe Mitte
After capturing Moscow and defeating all counter attacks from the Red Army the Wehrmacht stroke quickly to the east and reached the Volga River at Yaroslavl and Gorky. Yaroslavl was captured but the attack on Gorky was stopped by Reichsfeldmarschall Werner. The troops were ordered back to Moscow and set to defense. Several tank and artillery divisions were pulled out and sent to the west. These troops were replaced with infantry, mainly Finish and Romanian. In the meantime the next strong Russian counter attack to free Moscow is hitting our defense lines from the east.

Heeresgruppe Süd, Romanian&Hungarian Allies
The Red Army attack on Rostov was defeated and the Wehrmacht went over to attack. So after two years the German troops have entered the Caucasus again.

Global summary:
Except from the Caucasus the OKW has stopped the attack on the Soviet Union and ordered the whole eastern front to defense. It is clear now that without the 30 divisions that are standing in the West the final blow on Russia to win the war in the east is not possible.
The strategy for the next month is to force the Allies to a draw and start negotiations about peace. Hold all positions in the east, capture as many cities as possible in the Caucasus, defend the Reich in the west at the Rhine River and south of the Alps near Venice.

Berlin, destroyed city – July 3 1945 – bunker of the OKW

Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is sitting at his desk and is listening. After so many months of daily bombing of Berlin now it is silent since one day. The Great War is over. Yesterday the allied commanders in the west and in the east accepted an armistice.

The Russians accepted that the Red Army is too weakened to have a chance to recapture Moscow, Leningrad or Kursk. In the last weeks the Russians even lost more and more cities on the Caucasus to the Wehrmacht without serious resistance.

In the west the Anglo American forces are bleeding out at the Rhine River defense line. Several times the Americans were able to capture parts of Cologne and Strasburg but their bridge heads were immediately crushed by the Germans. Even with air supremacy the Anglo Americans couldn’t break the German defense and Eisenhower (who wants to become the next president of the USA) fears that in the next winter the Germans will go to offensive with their strong tank divisions and press his troops back to the channel.
In the south the Americans tried to cross the Alps but failed.

In the Balkan the uprising was knocked down.

Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is satisfied with the result. After the disasters at Tobruk and Stalingrad it was feared that the whole German east front would sink into chaos opening the Red Army the roads to Berlin. But the victories at Kursk, Leningrad and finally Moscow changed the table in the east. Even a successful attack on the Caucasus was possible in the last months. In the west France and Italy got lost but the defense is stable. Huge parts of Central, North and East Europe are in German hand. The dream of the “Lebensraum im Osten” finally came true.

GeneralWerner wrote:Berlin, destroyed city – July 3 1945 – bunker of the OKW

Reichsfeldmarschall Werner is satisfied with the result. After the disasters at Tobruk and Stalingrad it was feared that the whole German east front would sink into chaos opening the Red Army the roads to Berlin. But the victories at Kursk, Leningrad and finally Moscow changed the table in the east. Even a successful attack on the Caucasus was possible in the last months. In the west France and Italy got lost but the defense is stable. Huge parts of Central, North and East Europe are in German hand. The dream of the “Lebensraum im Osten” finally came true.

Does the Reichsfeldmarshall want to take the challenge of War of the World II now? He may be able to create some "Lebensraum im Amerika" (though I'm not sure if this is possible yet, I wasn't able to do it)

- BNC

Nice result GW. Especially after your failed invasion of Scotland, i thought you were doomed to a loss. However you seem to be in quite a strong position by the end of it.

Trying to invade England from the east was a risky/crazy idea. But I used only troops that were not so important for me like the surface fleet and some infantry/artillery/88 from France. So I did not feel desperation after the plan failed. (I felt a little bit desperation when I inadvertently pulled all the allied bombers to the continent by retreating my troops)

I am unsure whether the invasion of England could be a success with bad weather (without interference of the air force) but I have seen the British fleet to be clever and attack the troop transports first. But the weather stayed good for a longer period and so the question is not answered this time.

In the east it worked better then expected.

In the south the allied tanks from Italy try to cross the Alps at the Swiss border. But until they can do this (hindered by my infantry) I guess the situation at the Rhine River is cleared so I can send some units south to welcome them.

Setting up the defense at the Rhine River has also a disadvantage. If the Allies by chance capture one of the 4 German cities in the last turn the Draw is gone.

Hi,

Another most interesting AAR by GeneralWerner, many thanks!

GeneralWerner wrote:I am unsure whether the invasion of England could be a success with bad weather

I think there was a good chance for it. Additionally, there is a "hidden" objective in the mod i.e. all the Allied aircraft in the UK are spawned in the Edinburgh area so if the player can capture that part the Western Allies would not get more air reinforcements in England from that point to avoid new Allied units being spawned in an Axis controlled area. I set it up like that as it seemed reasonable that the majority of the players would take that area last in case of a "normal" Sea Lion operation (which would start in the South) and than the Allied planes could keep harassing them until the very end of the invasion. For me it seemed unlikely that an invasion in Northern England could be succesful and / or reasonable. However, your AAR showed the opposite so maybe I should make it even harder as I do believe that if you had more bad weather you could have successfully landed a few units and presently that area is not very well defended.

To make it even worse, in case the player can capture that area currently the English would do nothing to take it back, just wait in the south patiently to be conquered. So I have just added another script which would make several English units to move to the north to try to recapture that area in case any of those cities or the airport is taken by the Axis. I think it is reasonable and necessary to make the AI try to take back that area as it would not get more air units as reinforcements until it is in Axis hands.

Alternatively (or maybe additionally), I could make a few Allied air units appear in England anyway in case the Edinburgh area is taken, but some other English victory objectives are still owned by them.

Setting up the defense at the Rhine River has also a disadvantage. If the Allies by chance capture one of the 4 German cities in the last turn the Draw is gone.

Yes, it is indeed quite risky, but that's the price if you retreat that far instead of trying to keep the Allies away from the German border.

Trying to invade England from the east was a risky/crazy idea. But I used only troops that were not so important for me like the surface fleet and some infantry/artillery/88 from France.

And yet still, those units could have been just enough to turn the tide in the East! I am only saying this as Uhu was able to achieve a (marginal) victory starting at Kursk by defeating the USSR. And I also think it is possible to make it, even if very hard.

On the other hand, your original plan, if successful, could have negated the chance of D-day AND (inadvertedly) could have stopped the flow of the Western Allied aircraft from the UK. So it was indeed a reasonable all-or-nothing gamble, even if unsuccessful. Even then, after its failure, just as JimmyC, I was also expecting a much worse result, so in the end it turned out quite nicely, so congratulations!

The last days I investigated whether there is really a chance to invade England in winter 43/44 from the east.

I loaded my game around round 60 (the whole AAR starts with round 51 by using McGuba's Kursk-savegame)
I attacked as early as possible with bad weather in November 43. First the 4 destroyers removed one of the sea mines to get a hole in the defense (red cross). Takes approx. 3 rounds (!)
Behind the mines there is a battleship waiting but more nasty: a submarine again blocking the way for the transporters
The weakened destroyers attacked the submarine and my battleships the enemy battleship.
Now the Scapa Flow fleet came south and shells were flying everywhere.
I was able only to land one infantry unit near the city (red circle) and capture it
All other transporters were destroyed in the crossfire from British ships, submarines and the fortresses. The AI is clever to shoot first on transporters and destroyers and "ignore" my battleships.
Then the weather became better and the Anglo American planes started to destroy everything in the area that was on water or in the sky. So the surviving ships and planes retreated to Norway.
Using the prestige from the capture of Leningrad and Moscow I bought several mountaineers, artillery and AA guns, moved through the mountains to capture the key objective and .... did not stop the invasion in France because I came one round too late (round 73).

I think with a better preparation (for example repairing the destroyers to max. strength first followed by a quicker destruction of the sea mine and the submarine) one to two rounds could be saved. Then capturing the key objective really would stop the invasion and would extremely change the rest of the game.

BUT in total the whole thing was academic. Buying new units in an English city from where there is definitely no save supply route to Germany (the sea east of England was ruled by English ships and especially overwhelming bomber forces) is a form of cheating. Even if the game allows it. I would say if there is no chance to land approx. 8 units unharmed at the English coast that can attack and capture the key objective in time the whole England-invasion has no chance for success.

The yellow route could be an alternative. It is far away from Scapa Flow and the northern fortresses.

After this experience I would say it can't be done. But maybe other players want to proof that I am wrong.

GeneralWerner wrote:BUT in total the whole thing was academic. Buying new units in an English city from where there is definitely no save supply route to Germany (the sea east of England was ruled by English ships and especially overwhelming bomber forces) is a form of cheating.

There was enough Nazi sympathisers in the UK to form a decent form of supply line, and possibly a couple of units. Those British Nazi's would probably smuggle guns into the occupied zone or something until the army you purchased had been formed.

I'm not so sure about how they could have managed to get there in the first place, but if they did there was some chance they could have taken the north.

-BNC