Slitherine

quote:

ORIGINAL: Beria

Turn 37 Soviet North - End of Blizzard

End of the blizzard in the north from the Soviet perspective.




In the south we had a plan but it was abandoned when all the Soviet units were surrounded and destroyed in the snow. In the centre we had no plan but seized an opportunity and got a pocket. In the north we had a plan for a pocket but got none.

The blizzard offensive was a success in beating out a corner of the German advance and getting many wins in the process. But the sector had been chosen precisely because it was a salient that could have been a pocket. And at times it did look close. But to start our offensive in the area we had to spend turns of the blizzard getting cavalry there. And supply so far from rails round the back of a lake after crossing swamps was always bad. If we were not going to get a pocket then it would have been better to farm far more wins at less cost elsewhere.

I think the lesson for us in this blizzard was make your plans for the best supply and rail connections. Farm wins as much as you can. But pockets can only happen if the enemy is stubborn in retreating - and then you just have to take the unplanned opportunity wherever it is.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Crackaces

quote:

ORIGINAL: Beria

Turn 37 Soviet North - End of Blizzard

End of the blizzard in the north from the Soviet perspective.

In the south we had a plan but it was abandoned when all the Soviet units were surrounded and destroyed in the snow. In the centre we had no plan but seized an opportunity and got a pocket. In the north we had a plan for a pocket but got none.

The blizzard offensive was a success in beating out a corner of the German advance and getting many wins in the process. But the sector had been chosen precisely because it was a salient that could have been a pocket. And at times it did look close. But to start our offensive in the area we had to spend turns of the blizzard getting cavalry there. And supply so far from rails round the back of a lake after crossing swamps was always bad. If we were not going to get a pocket then it would have been better to farm far more wins at less cost elsewhere.

I think the lesson for us in this blizzard was make your plans for the best supply and rail connections. Farm wins as much as you can. But pockets can only happen if the enemy is stubborn in retreating - and then you just have to take the unplanned opportunity wherever it is.

Excellent analysis!

Creating a pocket in the North depended on the North Commander cooperating with the plan. Deep thinking might be described as thinking about "what is my opponent thinking about how I am thinking about my opponent?" This changes from player to player. How does my opponent view the game and what is my opponents understanding of the game and situation are a part of the calculus.

I think one other consideration for a Soviet blizzard offensive is knowing where the level 4 towns lay. The place the Soviet's decided to attack had multiple level 4 towns housing Panzer divisions. Most of the 4th Panzer army was in winter quarters very close to the front. As the salient collapsed, the reaction was swift. The only question was how much blood to spend for how much space and time. The logistics of execution was a very straightforward decision. However, there were areas on the front line where marshaling the Panzers meant railing in forces. This would have caused much consternation -- especially in a team game.

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
also, don't forget to use the Light transports

Darojax, Soviet Centre Commander
Im going to suggest you for air commander
in fact I insist
: P

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
well since you did most of the work...
I wanted to avoid it. but I can take it off your hands

Darojax, Soviet Centre Commander
Good, you shouold

quote:

Neogodhobo, Soviet Supreme Commander
@Erzac Welcome Marshal,
You will find your office in this sector, I left every paper you would need on your desk. Please get acquainted with @Mamluke , he his the current officer who will put you up to date with your current task.
Do NOT disappoint us as you will suffer the same fate our previous air marshal suffered. And trust me, you do not want this.
Dismiss, and good hunt.

Oh I see you've already met Mamluke. Good then, carry on, carry on.

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
BTW Erzac, we have been using the "long range Air command" as a air commander only air force, do you want to keep it that way?
or do you intend to control the entire air force?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
I certainly would prefer to control the entire force altogether

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
but what about bombing units after they have been defeated?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
I can do rough geographical allocations for each commander, that if such a situation presents itself, they know what forces they can use.
But basically the goal would be that the ground commanders need not touch the air force much or at all.

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
it would be interesting indeed, but I would like at least one air army (about 2 or 3 airbases for my self)

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Also on the turn order
I'd require to have a go before any ground commanders do, and then a smaller turn after ground has done everything.

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
after Sum. commander turns(doing reinforcements) you get 2nd turn
would you like a small turn after 1 front commander does his turn, or just a final air turn?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Just a final turn should work

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
ok, so, I won't mind, you heaving the entire airforce for turn 30, except the Crimea, leave that one to me ok?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
On the controlling of air force
Basically any air groups that are not set to ranges between 1-40 after my go can be flown as the ground commanders please.
Also we can set some priority groups that are for a ground commander's own control, but with the caveat I may use them if needed.

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
you can just switch off air units with range, is that right?
that mechanic will came quite in handy

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
I'm happy to assign groups to each commander to peruse, but I'd also require direct control of most everything(and fly missions like bombing along discussed attack routes etc. in advance). Then if there's supplementary missions to be flown(like bombing retreated units) the ground commanders could do it with the assigned air armies.I'll only do the start and the ending air turn, and as the situation changes as the ground commanders go, the allocated air forces are there to be used as they see fit. can point out staging bases that could be moved if needed
For now just to sum it up
-I'll control the airbases (with the exception of staging bases that can be moved around)(edited)
-Allocated air armies are there for the commanders to use, but I also can use them to fly missions.
-Long range bombers are entirely under my command (unless stated otherwise)
Everything but the long range bombers are under the direct control of ground commanders and can be used during turns without any further ado.
But I'll also use them should I see any targets of opportunity etc.
Some groups, (mainly the very long range bombers) will have their range set to "1", and those are reserved for my nefarious purposes.
Other than that it's probably business as usual for the ground commanders. And winter is quiet time for air warfare anyways.)

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
First of all, I'd like to radically change the air doctrines at the beginning of next turn
Basically the req. to fly percentage to 0%, other mission setups between 100-150%, escort levels to ~10%
What that will mean is less missions, but in greater force.
But I very much prefer that when something is flying, it's in numbers that can make an impact.

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Recon spam won't be an issue during the winter though.
But it's certainly something to keep an eye on.
Percentages can always be tweaked if problems arise.
...
I should be able to set up the air force so that recon spam won't be a problem.

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
interesting settings, but wont" req. to fly percentage to 0%" mean our air units will keep flying until they bleed themselves to death? is that a good Idea?
for sure you will NOT do this to the Recon units!? we have so few of those planes!

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Well those settings are for mostly automatic missions anyways, recon and such will be manually flown, so it won't make a difference there.
Also, if the required to fly % is something else than 0%, it can be deduced quite easily by the opposing air force, and be taken advantage of.

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
you don't mind doing manual recon missions? this is funny, I do manual bombing missions but I do recon automatically

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Well, personally I'll prefer to do everything manually
Recon, bombing, you name it

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
dam, intense

quote:

ORIGINAL: tyronec
Where is the front line in the South for this game, haven't seen a screen shot for a while ?

quote:

ORIGINAL: Zorch
What were the total losses during the blizzard? What would they have been in a smaller offensive, or if no offensive at all?
How would you quantify morale changes during the blizzard? With the # of elite Axis units wrecked and # of Soviet Guards units created?

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Another note, don't bomb the axis airfields near Moscow, 400+ 88's

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Also
We just bombed Germany
Just because

quote:

quote:

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
sweet
also, noticed the bombing of a German Village, well done, how about bombing Finish manpower to oblivion? consedering how aggressive their army was. it's quite the bottleneck.
however I do know that most of Finnish F regiments are over 90 exp and morale.....

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
I'll have to look into that, bombing Finnish manpower might be a good option
Already went after their planes, since they basically have no production they'll be gone for good.
Also manpower bombing can be a good way to build up some experience and morale for the bombers, given that there is no interception.

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Somewhat decent loss ratio to start off with...
7% of axis total fighter losses came on this turn alone...
Have to be careful with the recon planes though.
But some inevitably die finding the right airfields to strike.
...
recon is one of the most precious resources of the Red air force. Probably have to take it a bit easier for a turn or two now, I'm fairly certain they'll stack airfields with AA in response to this turn's attacks.

quote:

quote:

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
Holy moly! 1st turn as air commander and already got 34 Fighter kills! for just 80 casualties? nice
what do you think of our Red air force in General?
also, We must save as many recon as possible before and after mud, even if we have to cooldown on attacking their air force, don't you agree?
...
BTW will you be monitoring the Fatigue as well? keeping below a certain level? like 20 or 25?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Naturally, 15+ is when I'll consider pulling fighter groups back for a rest, depending on the situation.
...
Bombers are not as sensitive, so those I'll only pay attention on around ~30 or so.
But I've rarely seen bombers accumulate a lot of fatigue.

quote:

quote:

quote:

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
I am/was planning on recruiting the U-2 on mass to serve in our "frontward" airbases
what do you think of the U-2?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
U-2 is great for consistent night bombings
Over a long campaign they do significantly add to axis casualties
Just requires quite a bit of micromanagement
But that's what you get a dedicated air commander for

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
cool, they also have other benefits
1 - Lot's of production so losses are irrelevant
2 - they are considered tactical, so will have up to 40 planes per unit
3 - we use then in the forward airbases, where they are more exposed to axis air attack
4- we can use then exclusively in dangerous areas.
for what they are, they sure do their part

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
What's the team policy on building bases and units anyway?

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
since Airbases only cost 1 AP
and we are no longer in a crunch for AP, I wouldn't mind if you created one every turn from now
assuming you would stop at a later point, they still cost manpower and trucks
as for regular units, that is a bit more complicated, but nothing for now.
ho you meant air wings right?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Probably start by creating some airbases for cycling resting fighters back and forth.
Also yes

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
well, just for now, how about creating just 4 or 5 air wings per turn? just so we accumulate more AP, I'm planning on changing army HQ to other fronts, I'm sure other commanders will want to do so eventually.

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Works for me

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
out of curiosity, what is your build plan for the red air force?

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Oh, yes, the plan... cough

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
when ever your ready comrade

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Well, haven't formulated a detailed build plan yet
The overall strategic plan is to be able to wrestle local air superiority in limited areas we want, and have sufficient amounts of bombers in those said areas to make a notable effect in ground ops.
For 42 anyways
So building towards that end

quote:

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
Percentages can always be tweaked if problems arise.

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
interesting settings, but wont" req. to fly percentage to 0%" mean our air units will keep flying until they bleed themselves to death? is that a good Idea?
for sure you will NOT do this to the Recon units!? we have so few of those planes!

quote:

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
you don't mind doing manual recon missions? this is funny, I do manual bombing missions but I do recon automatically

quote:

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
fighter losses for the current turn
I'd say that's an acceptable exchange rate

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
1 for 1 at this point in the war? I say that is swell for now

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

quote:

Erzac, Soviet Air Commander
I'll be away this week from Wednesday till Sunday, but I'll set the air up so that no air ending turn is necessary.
And I'll also have to announce my retirement from this game after this turn

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
any takers for the air force?

Darojax, Soviet Centre Commander
The crowd goes wild

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
ha a volunteer!

Darojax, Soviet Centre Commander
Not likely
sorry : p
...
Ha a volunteer

Mamluke, Soviet South Commander
this is a volunteer face to you!?

quote:

ORIGINAL: Telemecus

Someone did actually want to be an air commander and told the Soviet team at the time. No interest was shown.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Zorch

quote:

ORIGINAL: Telemecus
Someone did actually want to be an air commander and told the Soviet team at the time. No interest was shown.

The applicant had an unfortunate accident.