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Операция "Ой морозь морозь" - Maintain a high operational tempo through the winter, attacking weak points as able

6 (60%)

Операция "Не морозь меня" - Slow things down, making a few major and considered attacks without wasting strength

4 (40%)

Total Members Voted: 10

[Zrk2]

What we need Is a massive swarm attack all along the germans weakest area. Just push as far as possible and fortify the areas we capture. Rinse and repeat. Rocket artillery will help alot being cheap and effective. As well we can use the IC we saved to build tanks and reinforce our main attack units with maybe a little left over to add to our forces in turkey.

FTFY

Sounds like a decent plan to me.

[EuchreJack]

I disagree, IC spent on fortifying would be better spend on upgrading my tanks, mobile fortresses unto themselves once upgraded!

[Fishbreath]

The Russian word for '(tank) turret' (башня) was first used in the sense of 'fortified tower', just like 'turret' in English.

[Sheb]

I still vote for destroying the Balkans. The only way to know if they will surrender is to invade them. For !!SCIENCE!!.

[Jopax]

Just be gentle with my hometown

[stabbymcstabstab]

Don't worry We'll leave a few farm house standing besides if we fortify our captured areas we can build more tanks and make newer types.

[Jopax]

Also how are we standing with our airforces?
If we have some strats we could speed up the german starvation by further harrassing their supply lines (or was it tacs that did this?).

[Fishbreath]

We have 24 wings of interceptors and 20 of tactical bombers (or possibly vice versa), compared to a total of about thirty wings for the Luftwaffe. Tactical bombers and strategic bombers both can fly the logistical strike mission (which reduces infrastructure and thereby hurts supply efficiency), but I think strategic bombers are more effective. Tactical bombers are best at the Interdiction mission, which reduces enemy organization (necessary when our Russian troops generally have ~60 against the Germans with >100) and does a small amount of strength damage.

It's a moot point right now anyway, since most of our tactical bomber wings are being reinforced at the moment. We've lost rather a lot of them. On top of that, our next air force builds will probably end up being naval bombers and standard fighters (which have longer range than our interceptor wings). We'll need those to secure the seas around a province in the Far East where we can deploy our fleet-under-construction for the island-hopping campaign.

[Fishbreath]

I should be posting an update after work tonight. Major actions in both Turkey and the northern part of the front! Also, a little teaser for the next major Fishbreath's A Grognard LP/AAR, even if it's probably going to be another year or two before this one's done:

Spoiler: Teaser (click to show/hide)

[Fishbreath]

Spoiler: 18 July, 1943 (click to show/hide)

24 June
Molodeczno, the province north of Minsk, comes under attack, but we've been hammering the Germans hard in this sector over the past few weeks, so we'll defend it. Reinforcements inbound.

1300 25 June
Reinforcements arrive. We should be fine.

1400 27 June
The German forces in the provinces of Lida and Wilno are looking weakened. Their 24 divisions combine for a total of 1900 strength (with 100 per division being the norm). One of those two provinces might be the subject of a counterattack once they break off their attack on Molodeczno.

In Turkey, Field Marshal Afanasiy Pavlantievich Beloborodov arrives with the former garrison of Baku in tow, comprising six fresh (if outdated) infantry divisions, including elite mountain infantry (Tannu Tuvan forces have taken over the garrison of Baku). He leads a fresh attack on the province of Batman.

0000 28 June
Research into heavy submarines (along the lines of the German Type IX) and a tactical bomber doctrines finishes. Next on the list are 1938-model light cruisers and a fighter/interceptor doctrine.

1700 28 June
The Germans fall back from Molodeczno! Glory to the infantry of the Soviet Army! In about 48 hours, the counterattack on Lida will begin. I'm currently awaiting the arrival of a headquarters division to get our stacking limit up higher.

In Turkey, the attack on Batman proceeds well.



0000 30 June
Lieutenant General Aleksandr Vasilevskiy (presently stationed in Vladivostok) is pulled from his unit and promoted to Field Marshal, as he'd turned into one of my best commanders when I wasn't looking. He'll trade units with Cherevichenko (who had been in Turkey), and will be redeployed to the Ukrainian Front alongside other noted commanders such as Georgy Zhukov and Konstantin Rokossovsky, where they'll form the major striking force for our eventual push through Romania (and will probably also be responsible for taking the Bosphorous and giving us some usable Mediterranean bases).

1800 30 June
47 Soviet divisions under General Ptuihn attack Lida from Molodeczno, Minsk, and Bobraisk. This is the largest Soviet attack of the war to date.



0600 1 July
In Turkey, Italy may be about to break, given their supply situation and the number of battles their troops have lost. If we do, it would be a huge boon for our eventual taking of Italy proper-- they have something like thirty divisions in Anatolia.



0900 1 July
Falaleev's fighter group, flying air cover over Lida, encounters a force of Czechoslovakian bombers and sends a hundred or so to the ground.

0600 2 July
The Italians, to their credit, fought ferociously in Turkey, but this marks the end of their presence on the mainland. 26 divisions will be captured by the middle of the month by a force of 24 mostly-outmoded Soviet divisions.



0700 3 July
Both sides shuffle forces in and out of the battle for Lida. Axis minor allies reinforce for the Germans, while fresh Soviet infantry divisions replace some of the ones that had previously taken part in the defense of Molodeczno.

0900 5 July
The attack on Lida is making steady progress.

0000 7 July
The end for Italy in Turkey. Volskiy and the other armored forces in Turkey will soon be headed north to face the Germans and the Romanians.



1300 7 July
Bagramian's armored corps (1x armored division - T-34 обр. 41, 2x motorized infantry divisions) arrives in Smolensk, the last of our combat reinforcements from the Far East (another HQ division is inbound). He's dispatched toward Odessa as well, to join the spearhead for Romania.

1400 9 July
The Italians refuse to give up, necessitating further victories in combat to demonstrate to them that they can't win this one. In Lida, the well-known German leader Heinz Guderian is leading the defense with seven divisions against our 45.

0500 11 July
The Germans are cycling defenders in and out of Lida, which is making it difficult to make progress, but certainly proving the name of this particular operation (Meatgrinder) well-chosen.

1300 11 July
Kiev comes under attack! Not one step back, comrades!



0000 12 July
Research into basic naval bombers is complete. We'll return to that before long. Next: transport aircraft. Soviet paratroopers are the eventual goal here.

0300 13 July
The battles of Lida and Kiev continue; tactical bombers fly in support of both.

1800 13 July
Reinforcements arrive in Kiev. It should be safe now.

2300 14 July
It takes the Germans a day and five hours to notice and break off their attack. The battle for Lida has been going on for two weeks now, with no reduction in ferocity.

1100 16 July
Cherkassy (drained of forces by the defense of Kiev) is attacked; only six divisions defend it.

2200 17 July
Fortunately, mechanized reinforcements down here in the steppes are absurdly fast, and Cherkassy remains in Soviet hands.



0000 18 July
The attack on Lida is called off due to a lack of progress and a need to rest the attacking units. Even though we didn't regain territory, it was a significant victory for us by my standard.

Spoiler: Unit updates (click to show/hide)

Taricus - 6-y Korpus (Zhukov): having been deployed in the south, supported (and commanded) the defense of Cherkassy.
Zrk2 - 1-y Korpus (Bondarev): participated in the defenses of Kiev and Cherkassy.
Barbarossa TSG - 16-y Korpus (Malinin): stationed in Korosten, waiting for a counterattack on Zhitomir.
Elfeater - 48-y Korpus (Bulganin): once again managed to be just out of the action in Molodeczno; I think he's probably the general who's been next to the most battles without being involved.
EuchreJack - 15-y Korpus (Rokossovsky): still in Odessa.
mcclay - IX Aviatsionniy Korpus (Falaleev): flew air cover over the Battle of Lida, shooting down a number of bombers in the process.
LAAT501legion - 17-y Korpus (Volskiy): participated in the victories in Turkey. Currently en route to Stalino on the Black Sea coast, due to arrive on the 27th.

Spoiler: Losses charts (click to show/hide)

I've included three losses charts below. The first is the losses we've sustained, the second is the losses we've inflicted, and the third is a chart showing the relative pain the various alliances have been subjected to (the number in parentheses is the number of members in that alliance).

[Elfeater]

My god you seem to purposely leave me out, I want to attack!

[Fishbreath]

It's not that I'm leaving you out on purpose so much as I don't often consider which commanders are involved in a fight beyond the one who's leading it.

Which, I've just discovered, is not something I need to worry about (barring concerns about racking up a good mouseover history for my top commanders). Here's how the command system works (roughly from bottom to top):

1. A formation (that is, one counter on the map) gets the combat bonuses for leader skill and leader traits from its leader.
2. Any units over a leader's command limit (1 for a Mj. General, 3 for a Lt. General, 9 for a General, and 12 for a Field Marshal) do not receive those combat bonuses, and in addition receives a -75% overstacking penalty.
3. A headquarters division (provided it's commanded by a General or Field Marshal) in an adjacent province will double the number of units a commander can lead before they begin to receive the overstacking penalty (and also increase the unit's Effective Supply Efficiency). The headquarters division will not double the number of units a commander can transfer his skill and trait bonuses to!
4. Each stack is handled individually on defense for the purposes of stacking limit-- it's the sum of every commander's limit in the province.
5. On the attack, the stacking limit is the sum of the HQ-modified command limits (1/2, 3/6, 9/18, 12/24) from the highest-ranking commander in each province the attack is coming from. The largest possible attack without command penalties from one province is therefore 24.
6. The commander shown to be 'in overall command' of the attack or the defense has no effect on the battle outside his effects on his own formation.
7. The commander in charge of the HQ division has no effect on the battle outside his own formation.

So, since I prefer to have my HQs detached from armies for better striking power, my best move is rather paradoxically to put my worst generals/field marshals in command of my HQ divisions, saving my best commanders for leading actual combat corps.

I just noticed that this thread is now OVER 9000 views. Thanks for reading so far! I'm glad there was enough interest to get me to pick this back up, and to keep me going. I'm certainly enjoying AoD on a much deeper level than I ever had prior to the start of this AAR, particularly in how I feel bound to care for and nurture my commanders, and to understand in depth how all the mechanics fit together. There's certainly more depth to it than even I'd given it credit for.

[Fishbreath]

Merry Christmas!

Spoiler: 27 August, 1943 (click to show/hide)

0000 18 July
To open the session, the Germans make an attack on Molodeczno and the Americans do their usual monthly not-gonna-happen attack.

1200 18 July
It appears that Molodeczno's going to take some reinforcing-- the units therein are disorganized from the attack on Lida.

0800 19 July
Molodeczno appears to be safe. Khabarovsk is, as usual, going to result in two or three times as many American casualties as Soviet. Research on a naval doctrine has finished, and a new team is tasked to research in supply lines.

1200 20 July
Victory in Molodeczno. In a day or two, forces will be in place for a Zhukov-led counterattack into Zhitomir, to open the possibility of retaking Vinnitsa.



1400 22 July
Forces are in place for the attack on Zhitomir. The main striking force will cross the river from Vyshgorod, as it'll be behind the lines once Zhitomir is retaken. Forces in Korosten and Kiev will provide support.



2200 22 July
We win another crushing victory in Khabarovsk.

The attack on Zhitomir is now in progress: Zhukov leads 51 divisions against 26 under von Kluge, many of them with supply troubles.

Germany attacks into Bobraisk again, but reinforcements are available.



0700 23 July
Germans under von Blomberg attack Balta (just south of the Zhitomir action), and forces aren't really present to hold it. We'll fight a standard holding action here, falling back once our organization gets down to 40.

2200 24 July
Our forces in Bobraisk are victorious.



0200 25 July
General Berzarin reaches a skill level of 3.

1400 25 July
Falling back from Balta.

0800 26 July
The Germans are bringing reinforcements into Zhitomir.

1000 27 July
The Germans have a total of 57 divisions in Zhitomir against our 51, so I'm going to launch some attacks at things beside it instead.



1600 28 July
Counterattacks begin into Rowne and Vinnitsa.



0000 2 August
Rowne attack stops after the Germans pull reinforcements from Zhitomir, with roughly even losses on both sides. The attack on Vinnitsa continues.

0700 3 August
Trying Zhitomir again.



2300 4 August
Battles up and down the front: our attacks on Zhitomir and Vinnitsa, and a German attack on Swieciany, for a total of 70 or 80 Soviet divisions engaged.

0500 6 August
The attacks in Ukraine might finally stick.

1400 6 August
Vinnitsa's original defenders fall back, having put up stiff resistance.



1100 7 August
The attack on Swieciany stops.



2100 7 August
Zhukov rolls into Vinnitsa, but he'll have to hold on for a few days before other elements of the attack arrive to hold the line.



0800 10 August
It's been a busy few days. Zhitomir is about to fall to us, and the Germans are making some counterattacks south of the main event, to whose aid Rokossovsky will rush.

17 new divisions were deployed today.

0200 11 August
Cherkassy, one of the German targets, is successfully defended.

1900 12 August
Zhitomir is now under attack from four sides.



0000 13 August
Nooooo! General Berzarin has died in combat. Cherevichenko takes over his corps.

2200 13 August
The Germans attack 9 divisions in Odessa with 5 from Chisinev. We should be able to handle this one.

1400 16 August
Nothing to report. Zhitomir still is not yet ours.

0500 17 August
Odessa's defenders drive off the attack. Zhitomir has been under attack for two weeks now.

1000 19 August
The Germans are cycling reinforcements into Zhitomir to be ground up. Works for me.

0000 21 August
The VVS flies to help evict the Germans from Zhitomir.

1800 21 August
Zhitomir's defenders fall back!



1600 24 August
Soviet divisions pour into Zhitomir to secure it against counterattacks.

0000 27 August
Germans continue to counterattack ineffectually. I'll stop here.

---

So we've (hopefully) permanently retaken some ground now, which is nice. I also see why the Germans were having trouble with continuing attacks; the infrastructure in these two provinces is so low that our organization regain has gone from ~3 per day to ~0.3 per day for the units we've moved up. Obviously, we're going to have to maintain some strategic depth and cycle units behind the lines to reorganize, and we're certainly not going to be able to ignore province repairs.

Spoiler: Unit updates (click to show/hide)

This is somewhat unusual in that nearly all of our stars are in the same area.

Taricus - 6-y Korpus (Zhukov): led the opening attacks on Zhitomir, the attack on Vinnitsa, and the latter stage of the final attack on Zhitomir.
Zrk2 - 1-y Korpus (Bondarev): took part in the defense of Cherkassy and supported the attack on Vinnitsa.
Barbarossa TSG - 16-y Korpus (Malinin): took part in the attack on Zhitomir, taking minor casualties. It'll be a few weeks before he's ready to return to action. Malinin is now skill 4, making him one of my better commanders.
Elfeater - 48-y Korpus (Bulganin): took part in the defenses of Bobraisk and Molodeczno.
EuchreJack - 15-y Korpus (Rokossovsky): finally moved from Odessa to beef up the defense against German attacks at our flanks.
mcclay - IX Aviatsionniy Korpus (Falaleev): flew air cover for operations in the north, but didn't see any combat.
LAAT501legion - 17-y Korpus (Volskiy): defended Cherkassy and took part in the attack on Vinnitsa.

Spoiler: Losses charts (click to show/hide)

[Sheb]

Why didn't you circle Zithomir? Also, what about the attacks in the Balkans?

[Zrk2]

My understanding is that this was for the Ukraine, so it's sort of in the way of attacking the Balkans.