Shivering in Stalingrad (Full Version)

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John B. -> Shivering in Stalingrad (5/7/2020 7:08:29 PM)

Fresh from our brutal slugfest over Korea, Marc and I are now moving on to another brutal slugfest. But this one is the Stalingrad campaign. I, again, am the army of Workers and Peasants. Marc, again, is the hireling of International Capital. The game starts with the Soviet offensive designed to entrap the 6th army. Here is my first turn, about halfway through. Several holes have been torn in the Romanian lines and they are in deep trouble. One note of concern however is that a German unit reacted over on the east flank and knocked one of my divisions cold. Apparently the Germans are unware of their assigned role of shivering to death while I crush them.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/97045A00309142FF8974CA19A41DA378.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/7/2020 7:10:42 PM)

And, south of Stalingrad more holes in the Romanian lines and no reacting Germans. :)

One difference I've noticed here is that Russian infantry units do not seem to advance after combat nearly as much. Probably too busy thinking about how much they love Comrade Stalin to remember to chase the Capitalist Lackeys when they run away.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/CA270A4BFCB9462F8ECB4C9F13861FF1.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 12:40:42 PM)

The start of the second game turn. Marc took all the hexes of Stalingrad and, in the north, he pulled some of his Germans out of their fortified positions. I did push back two of his German regiments but the most dramatic gains came against the Romanians who have essentially disintegrated in front of me. I'm heading for the rail line but I'm west of Kalach.

There was just one round of combat this time as I failed a force proficiency check. [8|] But, I foiled this particular plot of the traitors and wreckers who wrote this game by moving most of my units their maximum anyway.[:D]

[image]local://upfiles/39741/359DD940B4DF4AC1956C749AA339BD67.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 12:44:31 PM)

The breakthrough is not quite a clean in the south and Marc has moved his Germans to cover the northern flank of my advance. So, we're tying down each other's forces but on the tip of my push so far he only has weak Romanian units. I'm not sure how much his Germans can move or if he can ignore Hitler who just issued a stand fast order.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/1CA5E0E846B540659B73E5359B5F9841.jpg[/image]



MikeJ19 -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 6:19:29 PM)

John,

Which scenario is this one? I think I might give it a try.

Thanks and have fun!



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 6:24:17 PM)

Hi Mike,

I believe this one is called South Front 42 and its found in the WWII East Front folder. So far it looks pretty good!

Given how Red is doing in your Blitzkrieg game you might be playing this sooner rather than later. :)

Have a great weekend.

John



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 10:29:15 PM)

Turn three and Hitler ordered the Sixth Army to stay in Stalingrad, but I'm not sure what effect that has on the game. As you can see here in the South, Marc has been able to establish a very strong wall against my breakthrough. I keep extending him out further, but it puts my armies at risk of some sort of counter stroke.

Of course, it does not help matters that, again, I failed my force proficient check. [8|]

On the plus side, it's fewer pictures I have to upload to this discussion thread. :)

[image]local://upfiles/39741/33EDF00668C94450AD2791A7B0716713.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 10:33:06 PM)

Things are proceeding better in the north. I did cut the rail line that leads to Stalingrad. His Germans were able to hold the line, however, so, again things are getting bogged down.

One item I do find annoying about the game is the RBC. One winds up chasing tiny units around as they retreat in random directions. If you don't hunt them down they can wind up behind your lines and putting you out of supply so you wind up spending an entire turn of on of you major units on ant patrol. I think it would be much more realistic if these units just disappeared after a couple of successive RBCs.

We'll have to see how Marc responds to this challenge in the north. I'm not sure how much this will cut off his supply given that the pocket is open in the south.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/BD2238BD90E94C709027269D129EDC2B.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 11:44:08 PM)

Not helping STAVKA. Not helping at all. Err, I mean, Yes Comrade Stalin, Of course Comrade Stalin. [&o][&o][&o]

[image]local://upfiles/39741/8EAC3ECCF4F14017889C6BF8CB7A3BE1.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 11:46:05 PM)

More progress was made this turn in the north with a potential pocket of Germans forming at the hinge of the line. There are no real wholesale advances, more of a steady grind towards Kalach. I did get three attacks this time which helped to move matters along but still cleaing out Romanians over to the West.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/60B6830E3ABD4E9884E91C91FA49C6AA.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/8/2020 11:48:43 PM)

In the South I think that there may be a slight bug. That Romanian battalion is in Wadi but I am unable to attack it with either infantry or armor so it just sits there and helps to protect the German line. I'm just pushing him back a hex or two down here and it's unlikely that I'll close the gap and make Stalingrad into one giant pocket. I should start getting reinforcements pretty soon which may help push matters along.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/A026D2FE3A4A4991B1AFD300567377D0.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/9/2020 7:19:46 PM)

Another turn, another failed proficiency check. Given that my force proficency continues to be reported at 70% this seems high to me especially given that I'm supposed to be on the offensive. Also, since it appears that the Germans were basically free to move from the start this is looking like a Midway scenario where anyone who has even a cursory knowledge of the battle knows exactly what they need to do to save themselves and turn the table on their enemies.

But, enough carping. Here is the start line in the north, and, as you can see, a solid wall of German units standing between me and Kalach. I push a few units back but usually don't advance so the Germans just move back into the hex.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/6F1874C2032A41C3B00216711C20A5B5.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/9/2020 7:23:33 PM)

Ooops, that was the southern map. The Germans are apparantly massing for an attack down there. Also, as you can see, a solid wall of dug in German units. I pushed a couple of hexes back, but did not advance. The mysterious hex in the middle where there is the bulge near the Romanian unit won't let the Soviets move in there. It may be a map bug since infantry armor and artillery wont go it. Marc, as always, was a gentleman and moved his Romanian out so that I was, at least, not dealing with the adjacent unit problem when moving.



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/9/2020 7:25:33 PM)

Here is the Northern map. Another wall of German units between me and Kalach. As I noted above, I pushed back a couple of hexes, did not advance and the turn ended. Not much to see here.

I should get reinforcements in December so maybe that will be enough to push me on to cutting Marc off. But, for now, I think I'm pretty much stalled out and getting nervous about German counter attacks.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/1BFBF99AF1984A368E19B99992659755.jpg[/image]



MikeJ19 -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/10/2020 12:48:43 AM)

John,

I am enjoying this AAR, thanks for sharing. I hate failed proficiency checks...



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/11/2020 11:00:49 PM)

Hi Mike, thanks for the feedback!

At the start of this turn Marc only did some bombardments and did not engage in any attacks. My pincers are still separated!

[image]local://upfiles/39741/48D86D370907472F91A7A1898A6BB6D4.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/11/2020 11:01:24 PM)

Some on the southern front.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/19288B0863604B12BC31866A5E27BCC9.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/11/2020 11:03:48 PM)

But, by the end of the turn I actually got three rounds and was able to make some progress. Even against the German fortified line just north of Stalingrad. I guess I just have to keep pushing as we can now see the towers of Kalach in our sites. In the south it's a matter of keeping the pushing going. This is the Soviet army after all. Casualties are to be expected and the Germans/Rumanians have suffered along with me.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/0AA7CF806DCD4B4ABB44FABC3C050E47.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/12/2020 1:42:04 PM)

Marc has received panzer reinforcements to the south and started counter attacking at the southern tip of my line. He did not make very much progress but it is worrisome! Here is the main front at the start of my turn.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/437A467CB0444DB0969D4B253A1C2B49.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/12/2020 1:45:31 PM)

And here it is at the end. I actually got three rounds of attacks in so I don't mind the failed proficiency check. I've been driving my forces pretty hard and it had to come at some point. But, note the real progress made grinding through his lines north of Stalingrad. I'm through his fortified line and his units have been taking a battering. Also, I'm not that far away from actually linking up and forming a pocket. Marc does not seem to have much stuff to stop me in the north but the terrain is his friend as I can't cross the main rivers, so, I have to batter him out of the crossings. In the south he has a much stronger line so I don't have the same freedom of action. But, progress was made this turn.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/4507A79B5A584DF58AF071B52B430520.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/13/2020 2:58:09 PM)

Next turn has come and gone. Here is the situation in the crucial center of the map. Marc has continued his counter attacks down at the southern end of the line with no significant success. But, he is stuffing the line at the various river crossings so I can't really get odds needed to take Kalach.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/DC10D04226664622948F10BE27EC66E2.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/13/2020 3:02:29 PM)

And here it is at just before my last combat round (I actually got three this turn!). So close, so very close! The German line in the north is certainly in the crumbling stage and the question is can I get into the supply sources and cut him off. Off on the soviet extreme right flank there is a battle going on with an Italian division about to be wiped out and I'm hunting down some ants behind my lines but the main fight is to see if Stalingrad can get cut off and if I can reduce the pocket.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/B5A564BD8E29409D9FC5B39A6189C677.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/14/2020 10:00:24 PM)

Another turn has come and gone and this one illustrates what I really don't like about this scenario, the super RBC units. I've marked two for your viewing pleasure. The German company was part of a battalion that broke apart under attack from a Soviet division. Two of the companies headed south to German lines but the other one retreated north. I chased it with Soviet divisions and it RBC'd about 6 times. I finally ran out of movement points and it's in a perfect position to cut off my entire front. But, of course, it does not really need to since the two Romanian cav units have been out of supply and cut off for more than a week and been RBCing the entire time. But, that just meant that they were in a good position to take the soviet supply source which I was finally able to liberate. Remember all those stories about die hard Romanian units fending of Soviets for weeks at a time behind the lines and taking key positions? Yeah, me neither. I dislike this because (a) I don't understand it and (b) it does not seem to make sense to me.

There also seems to be a bridge hex (circled and empty) that I can't enter. This matters because (as you can see to the north of that hex) I'm stuck at the other crossings as well. I can only attack from one hex so Marc just piles up the units and a lot of Soviets die. This includes Kalach which I need to take to have any real impact on the German supply near Stalingrad.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/FF0606ADF13B48B498822A9D627A4485.jpg[/image]



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/14/2020 10:04:48 PM)

By the end of the turn, no real progress was made and the ommph seems to have gone out of the Soviet divisions. I had a number of attacks rated as "excellent" that wound up with 100+ Soviet casualties and 2-3 German. No progress on the bridges just more stacks of Soviet bodies. What Marc is likely to do is to continue to move the RBC units to keep the southern flank cut off (by RBC'ing them I basically gave them free movement points to get deep into my lines for the start of their turn). He can also afford to now pull some troops back to blunt my attack from the north and keep the pocket open since all he has to do is stack units up on the bridges (or find ones I can't enter) and that will pretty much be that.

We shall see.

[image]local://upfiles/39741/201C842E9BFD42F0A726BE269FD1A0D1.jpg[/image]



MikeJ19 -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/14/2020 10:49:06 PM)

I understand your pain. I wish that units that were cut off for a long period would more quickly drop down in size. I can understand a division behind enemy lines, but a company no, it would not last long.




rhinobones -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/15/2020 12:33:29 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: John B.

There also seems to be a bridge hex (circled and empty) that I can't enter.


The bridge in question is a railroad bridge. TOAW does not allow land troops to cross unless there is a road bridge. Have no idea why.

Regards



[image]local://upfiles/5722/467652F54D434C57806833FE10C210B3.jpg[/image]



cpt flam -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/15/2020 6:39:37 AM)

instead of RBC'ing them, you must try to make an assault by double clicking them.
This way, you get a chance to kill them.



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/15/2020 12:32:12 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: cpt flam

instead of RBC'ing them, you must try to make an assault by double clicking them.
This way, you get a chance to kill them.

I did not know you could avoid the RBC by double clicking! I'm going to see if I can get that to work. They've always retreated as soon as I've done one click on them. But, I'll see if I can figure this out. Thanks!



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/15/2020 12:33:15 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: rhinobones


quote:

ORIGINAL: John B.

There also seems to be a bridge hex (circled and empty) that I can't enter.


The bridge in question is a railroad bridge. TOAW does not allow land troops to cross unless there is a road bridge. Have no idea why.

Regards



[image]local://upfiles/5722/467652F54D434C57806833FE10C210B3.jpg[/image]

Ah, thanks! At least I'll stop trying to approach it from different angles. :)



John B. -> RE: Shivering in Stalingrad (5/15/2020 12:37:54 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: MikeJ19

I understand your pain. I wish that units that were cut off for a long period would more quickly drop down in size. I can understand a division behind enemy lines, but a company no, it would not last long.



I agree! And, I wish that they lost movement points. As it stands, basically they've been pushed several hexes behind my lines during my turn and then they get their full movement allotment (or so it seems) during their turn. Or, each time a unit RBCs it has a greatly enhanced change of reorganizing the next turn.

As it stand, you can almost hear the commander during the planning meeting "Take your seats gentlemen! It is imperative that we advance 300 miles tomorrow. As you know, we can only move 150 miles on our own with no opposition. So, my plan is to have the enemy attack us in overwhelming force. We'll flee in panicked retreat for 150 mile and then we can move the extra 150 miles on our own!" :)



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