Matrix Games Forums

 Forums  Register  Login  Photo Gallery  Member List  Search  Calendars  FAQ 

My Profile  Inbox  Address Book  My Subscription  My Forums  Log Out

Italian Front

 
View related threads: (in this forum | in all forums)

Logged in as: Guest
Users viewing this topic: none
  Printable Version
All Forums >> [Current Games From Matrix.] >> [World War I] >> Guns of August 1914 - 1918 >> Italian Front Page: [1]
Login
Message << Older Topic   Newer Topic >>
Italian Front - 9/25/2007 4:36:04 PM   
adamc6


Posts: 46
Joined: 4/21/2003
From: Canadensis, PA
Status: offline 		Hey Gang, longtime player of Matrix games and several of Mr. Hunter's.
Really enjoying this game -- I'll play alot more before I make too many comments, but one question needs answering before Munich falls to the Entente!

How does the CP defend on the Italian Front? I knew they were going to declare, so I moved in German and Austria troops and positioned them in the mountains to hold the italians at bay. First turn, TONS (not enough air recon available to know how many) of UK troops, and obviously Italians, storm the defenses, which seemed to have fallen apart due to supply issues (realistic, fair enough) in the mountains.

So the question is, how do you defend there? Do you keep your troops behind the alps and then try to cross the mountains fast in an offensive (meaning the mountains are in fact, almost a no-man's land, as troops cannot be maintained for long there?).

I like the realism of the issue, but just trying to understand how to hold this line. I guess the easy answer is that I need to storm down onto the Northern Italian plains ASAP ... though the hordes of Brits and Italians make that seem unlikely to happen.

Thanks.

AC

_____________________________

If hindsight is 20/20, what is foresight?
Post #: 1
RE: Italian Front - 9/25/2007 5:39:23 PM   
hjaco

 

Posts: 872
Joined: 3/23/2007
Status: offline 		Hello Adamc6

It really is a matter of personal preference and your overall strategy.

You are correct about the vitality of the offensive solution especially because the Brits must either take the rail to Italy or be debarked in the rear area which gives you a chance to crush some Italians and get a defensive buffer.

On the other hand you should still be on the strategic offensive somewhere in 1915 or at the very least hold the initiative.

The question you should ask yourself in each game is - does this further conquest of France or Russia ?

If you are still on the offensive in France you should be happy with lots of Brits in Italy and on their own Italy won't get anywhere.

(in reply to adamc6)
Post #: 2
RE: Italian Front - 9/25/2007 5:54:19 PM   
Walloc

 

Posts: 3141
Joined: 10/30/2006
From: Denmark
Status: offline 		Hi AC,


I havent played as CP enough to have a fool prove methode for the italian front yet
I've noticed some of what u mention tho and this is what i've comed up with so far.

First the premise. By the time the italian front has open in my 3 games as CP so far i had either knocked out France or Russia before the front opened. Or it happen in same turn.
This ofc free's up troops for that front so my advice should be seen in that light.

The Terrain. Mountains seems to have a very low resupply rating. Since the italians and brits that i as u do, see swam the plains below the alps are in clear aka 100% resupply hexes. (in my knock out france early game more or less the entire british land army moved to italy). What does this mean.

First if u strategic rail a unit in to defend the alpe line and it has low rdy factor it wont regain much of its rdyness. That in it self makes its questionble if u can use the first alpe hex line as a defence line, but more on that later. At leased make sure u only strategic move in high rdyness units. To booth the West most hex in the first alpe line has such a low supply factor that units actually lose rdyness aka that hex is more or less indefensible.

The 2nd problem with defending the first alpe line is even if u initially succesfully defend that line less the indefensible hex, the rdyness u lose is cuz of the much lower supply factor for u than Italians/brits is regained much slower. Aka u find ur self in a losing rdyness game if they continue to pound you, meaning at some point u will break, less u can switch units out of there and move in high rdyness units.

The solution i see, is moving back to second hexline of the alps. Then u both in similar supply problems and a prolonged fight should be on much more even terms. U can even with out using strategic movement move a unit out to open hexes just behind for fast rdyness regain while moving another unit into its place.

Ok that was theory as i see it of now.

My pratical experience has been for example in my last game which was a Russia first type game that i had knocked russia out long before the italian front opened. That meant i could defend in the first hexline of the alps with 2 units in each hex, obviously refusing my line fróm the "indefensible" hex. I had trench 3 at this point and i only ended up losing 1 of my initial defence hexes. Should be said since many of the brits was still in france that there was only round 6 british corps in italy. At the same time i lunched right of teh bat a counter offensive from the eastern most hexes near Trieste towards Venice. The whole idea being this is open hexes country which had 100% supply value which means i could keep my rdyness up, there by keeping up a momentum in the offensive. I had around 10 units avaible for that. In 5 6 turns italy was knocked out of the war.

Ok so my pratical experience in a Russia first which does seem to have less british troops in Italy is that u can actually defend the alpes, if u counter attack at Venice. Still doing the theoricing given all other. Defending in the 2nd line of alpe hexes should be better for u, negating his supply/regain rdyness advantage he would have if u defend in the first line of Alps.


Hope it helps,

Rasmus

< Message edited by Walloc -- 9/25/2007 6:20:01 PM >

(in reply to adamc6)
Post #: 3
RE: Italian Front - 9/25/2007 6:39:58 PM   
adamc6


Posts: 46
Joined: 4/21/2003
From: Canadensis, PA
Status: offline 		Thanks to hjaco and Walloc/Rasmus for responses.

hjaco....it is my first game....I have only knocked out Belgium and Serbia at this point (autumn 1915). I have bled the French white, they are deploying "D" formations against me and I hold a large area of theirs, but have not gotten to Paris. I think I have been a bit slow in attacking -- or I am just a bit casualty averse (sorry, too much modern thinking here). Don't even want to mention the Russian front, where my one attempt at a pincer movement converging on Warsaw cost me about 600k casualties and gained little.
I'll learn more as I go.

Walloc/Rasmus: Good advice on which hexes to defend. I must have been in low supply and that's why I was so easily bounced from my position. Excellent info you provided me will be applied to my next CP game.

I'll play the Entente next game to see the flip side of the coin -- but I always play the historically "losing side" in war games -- just seems like more of a challenge!

< Message edited by adamc6 -- 9/25/2007 6:41:30 PM >

_____________________________

If hindsight is 20/20, what is foresight?

(in reply to adamc6)
Post #: 4
RE: Italian Front - 9/26/2007 12:46:53 AM   
SMK-at-work

 

Posts: 3396
Joined: 8/28/2000
From: New Zealand
Status: offline 		The Italians are dead meat if you have properly tied up the TE forces elsewhere and at least seriously damaged the Russians.

You should have 2-3 Corps per hex along the border with them, and artillery in the rough hexes as well.......2 HQ's with 1 Activation point each lets you capture Mantua and Venice on the 1st turn, completely or nearly completely destroying the Italian corps in those cities.  After that yuo roll them up.

The AI will rail in a few French and British Corps....but half the time these are weak ones that have been recuperating behind their lines.

On a good day it takes 2 strategic turns to KO the Italians by capturing Venice, Mantua, Genoa and Florence and compeltely destroying their army.

So the trick is to ensure you're tying up plenty of TE resources elsewhere - it pays to delay Italian entry at least a few turns (I have delayed Italian entry until mid 1916 some times) and if you've done a half-way decent Schliefflen plan then you shuold have done serious damage to both the French and the Brits and by the end of 1915 have a done over the Russians a bit too, so you should ahve the corps and leaders spare.

(in reply to adamc6)
Post #: 5
RE: Italian Front - 9/29/2007 4:28:18 AM   
Walloc

 

Posts: 3141
Joined: 10/30/2006
From: Denmark
Status: offline 		An Update.

With 1.2 much has changed.
First u get alot lot more montain bonus on defending so it seems lot easier to defend the alps now.
Secondly the supply rating has been reworked in the montains so u dont really have the same reason as previously to "lure" the AI into montain hexes and stay out ur self.
Keep up the good work Frank


Kind regards,

Rasmus

< Message edited by Walloc -- 9/29/2007 4:30:52 AM >

(in reply to SMK-at-work)
Post #: 6
RE: Italian Front - 9/29/2007 6:28:50 AM   
SMK-at-work

 

Posts: 3396
Joined: 8/28/2000
From: New Zealand
Status: offline 		Plus you can now heavily entrench the mountains in 1.2 much more easily on top of their bonus.

(in reply to Walloc)
Post #: 7
Page:   [1]
All Forums >> [Current Games From Matrix.] >> [World War I] >> Guns of August 1914 - 1918 >> Italian Front Page: [1]
Jump to:





New Messages No New Messages
Hot Topic w/ New Messages Hot Topic w/o New Messages
Locked w/ New Messages Locked w/o New Messages
 Post New Thread
 Reply to Message
 Post New Poll
 Submit Vote
 Delete My Own Post
 Delete My Own Thread
 Rate Posts


Forum Software © ASPPlayground.NET Advanced Edition 2.4.5 ANSI

0.890