Operation Destroy the bed-wetting communist menace

[Habsburg]

If you had put off Sealion, you could have done a snap invasion of Russia in 1940, when they are much less ready for it.

I love this and shall try it next time.

Problem this time, I wouldn't have been ready either.
My MO with Germany is to hit France with a bare minimum of divisions, then build division like no tomorrow JUL40-APR41.

[Ed Anger]

If you had put off Sealion, you could have done a snap invasion of Russia in 1940, when they are much less ready for it.

I love this and shall try it next time.

Problem this time, I wouldn't have been ready either.
My MO with Germany is to hit France with a bare minimum of divisions, then build division like no tomorrow JUL40-APR41.

The way I did it was hit France as soon as the divisions redeploy from Poland recover their org. So by the beginning of '40, the west is secure. Do the Denmark/Norway thing, then hit the Sovs in late spring/early summer. I also didn't build many air wings, and no navy, and poured the extra IC into tanks and infantry.

edit: Even better if they haven't absorbed the baltics. Narrower front to attack through.

[Lucidor]

Wouldn't Scampi Frown be a low org province, with attrition, or did I remember wrongly from HOI?

[Norgy]

Scampi Frown is hi infra. But the AI cheats, I think, on Stornoway. Of course, anyone has heard about the highways and 4 track railroads in the Western Isles. That's how they get the Oban whisky to The People.

[Habsburg]

Scampa Flow is actually 80%, and it wasn't hard to take.

It's that damn western Island off Scotland that has become the problem.  The Mystery RN Fleet always comes to the rescue when I try sub patrols.  The Allied AI has stacked 25 divs as of May '41.  My strategy (at the moment  ) is 15 divs in Inverness and upgrading to a lvl 5 fort in Inverness.  Oh and Log Bombing the Island to single digits.  Can hardly wait for US to join war.  I do have all of metro UK and Northern Ireland, for now. 

Hoping Italian AI takes Crete (they have tried.)  May have to take control of Italian military (at least temp.)

Hoping I have enough units for a grand Barbarossa spearhead.

[Norgy]

Okay, Habs, not to question your strategy much, but why do you build forts? You are Germany. The maneuvre warfare giant among midgets. The longer you wait, the harder it becomes as W. Allied doctrine brings them up to the 80s in ORG in 1942-43. Unless you are the Soviet Union and need to hold Moscow or something, I've found forts to be a gigantic waste of IC for Germany. Use the coastal forts on the coast and stack 2-3 GAR troops on each and place the old moustached goobers in command and keep two mobile corps in the UK, and you should be able to stave off any liberation attempts and can freely hoard fish & chips at least until 1944.

[Habsburg]

Okay, Habs, not to question your strategy much, but why do you build forts? You are Germany. The maneuvre warfare giant among midgets. The longer you wait, the harder it becomes as W. Allied doctrine brings them up to the 80s in ORG in 1942-43. Unless you are the Soviet Union and need to hold Moscow or something, I've found forts to be a gigantic waste of IC for Germany. Use the coastal forts on the coast and stack 2-3 GAR troops on each and place the old moustached goobers in command and keep two mobile corps in the UK, and you should be able to stave off any liberation attempts and can freely hoard fish & chips at least until 1944.

Question me, please. 

It was too late by the time I got Scapa Flow, they moved the ANZAC armee on to Stonerway.
12 divs against my 16 w/interdiction strikes and I couldn't quite beat them.  Now they have 25 divs.  I can off and on again control the Sea, so I figured a lvl 5 fort at Inverness (the only prov Stoneyway has access to) with a decent garrison 14-15 divs some INF some GAR (it's Mountain terrain) will keep them at bay for quite sometime.

You think no fort + 2 divs will do the trick? (I would so love it if you do)

I'm comfortable with my defenses there otherwise (1GAR every prov, plus 1 INF every other prov) as the UK AI built coastal forts to 4-5 in most of the provs.


As for Barbarossa, my normal strategy normally wins me a slow bitter peace.  However in the past after my break-throughs I allow myself to get bogged down (mainly because I panic and send the armor all over the place  )

This time: all armor/motor INF moves in one spearhead to Minsk (INF follows), turns SE and meets up around Kiev with a pure INF spearhead.  Once the Red Army is encircled, I'll send the armor towards the Caucusus.  How do we like??

[Norgy]

Barbarossa needs four prongs.

Two Northern, one Central and one Southern.

The first Northern prong wipes out the Baltics and should be one infantry army and two-three mobile corps plus a CAS and a TAC 4-plane support.
This army group goes to Leningrad. If you can get a corps into Finland, fine. The Soviet AI sometimes leaves Leningrad undefended when you rampage through the Baltics.

The second northern/central prong goes to Moscow via Smolensk. This should be two INF armies and four mobile corps. Use the mobile units to break through, the INF to mop up pockets. Avoid the Pripet marshes and just leave some INF corps there to mop up the leftovers.

Why two Southern prongs? Well. One needs to go all the way to the Urals. One needs to bend south into the Caucasus and invade Persia.
For the Caucasus campaign, I suggest getting all the Romanian MTN troops and two corps of MTN, one ARM and two INF armies. The southern/central prong just marches straight ahead. 3 INF armies, at least 4 mobile corps and a couple of INF corps, and Heinrich Himmler is your uncle.
Stalingrad/the Volga is a good place to encircle Stalin.

You will probably notice how air support is left out. Unless you can garrison air bases, don't bother. Losing a 4-TAC under von Richthofen to partisans sucks.

IF you control Italy, don't move a single unit east. They need all the units they can due to low ORG and the British/American menace in North Africa. With Stony Road, you'll get a rather cute event sending Rommel and the DAK to NA.
You'll also be handed control of Graziani and some fairly decent Eye-Tays. When under your control as loans, the Eye-Tays will have German ORG. Push forward and leave the Tommies to burn in the desert sun as Rommel and Graziani toast their success in Jerusalem.

[Norgy]

Oh, and try and build a carrier or two with supporting CLs.
The Ghost Of Dudley Pound will be roaming around, but with a few carriers and the Bismarck and the Tirpitz at full ORG, you'll sink the majority of the RN outside of Stornoway, leaving the road open to smash, grab, cup a feel and kill the ANZAC and the remaining British army.

With Stony Road, I think there are some "New order" events, bringing partisan levels down to acceptable in the West when you murder civilians and Red Army in the east.

[Habsburg]

 

Norgy, excellent strategic and tactical advise I shall follow in my next try.  I am afraid my Feldmarshall doctrine would leave you going "op, no, op, NO."

Truthfully that is somewhat what I did.  Somewhat.

der östliche Krieg

June 20th The Austro-German (I'm thinking of moving my capitol to Wien  ) Imperial Army made it's move on the Soviet.  Four Main thrusts were highly successful. 

North thrust one to Riga, North thrust two to Vilno, Central thrust to Minsk and Southern thrust to Kiev.  Minsk was all armor and soon was joining with the Southern Army at Kiev.  Panzerarmee then moved quickly and with force to the Caucusus region.  Riga was caputred as was Vilno, where that thrust then turned towards Moscow.  A chunk of the Red Army had been encircled.

It is now late Oct '41 - the Baku Red divisions are cut off (unless the caspian allows for supply) Moscow is nearly encircled and I've got Stalingrad.  Leningrad is within reach, and should not be a huge problem.

Next time I won't hand wring about MP (I presently still have 950  ) and build more INF.  I probably could have Leningrad at the moment (I am about to bring the Finns in - error in diplo spending on my part.)

The UK and Commonwealth continue to stack units at Stoneyland Island, but I can probably counter as Dornitz is now a lvl 6 Vice Admiral with 12subs that eat up almost anything they bring on.  They are low on CVs.

I am about to launch a second CV with another on it's way in about 6 months.
Kreigsmarine is 1CV, 2BB, 4CL, 6CA, 8DD with another CV in days.  I'll likely start building more of a Navy to counter possible US entry.  That FDR is none too happy Ive occupied the UK.

It's been the most fun I've ever had! 

But like I said at Norgy, most of you would have a Nelly attack over the way I've achieved it thus far.    (Tanks in the Caucusus)

[Norgy]

Encirclements are the way to go.
The Soviets probably almost have a 2:1 advantage in raw men.

I have used tanks in the Caucasus as well, but the low infra means they're at 0 ORG when they get through there.

[HisMajestyBOB]

Monkeybuttpirate and HMBOB both get three, yes three Prada points for their help.

That pipeline is now closed.

Yay! 

I've never used Heavy tanks, the early heavies aren't as good as early SP-Art, and by later in the war, it's easier just to upgrade/build more SP-art.

[Admiral Yi]

Besides encirclements another good way to kill Russkies is to bomb the shit out of them while they are retreating.  Ground support against dug in troops is worthless; you lose about as many planes as the other guy does men.  Ground attack against moving units is fookin deadly.  Also a great way to build up air leader experience.

[Norgy]

Besides encirclements another good way to kill Russkies is to bomb the shit out of them while they are retreating.  Ground support against dug in troops is worthless; you lose about as many planes as the other guy does men.  Ground attack against moving units is fookin deadly.  Also a great way to build up air leader experience.

Yi speaks good words.

Just remember to garrison the fuck out of your airbases. As Germany, planes are damn expensive. Also get beetle-brow liar as armaments minister if you haven't got Schacht already.

And like Yi says, don't bomb an entrenched enemy.

[Habsburg]

I used Rumanian INF'36 to garrison the airfields.

I GOT BITTER PEACE Oct 05, 1942!! 

OMGZ! 

I know it's hokey, but I am so proud of myself.  NO cheats, probably not enough INF built for others comfort, but it was done.  I had Soviet Central Asia in my sights as it triggered. 

This is my first "real" BP.  The first time I got it Sealion had been successful so I acceptall'd a white peace.  This triggers Bitter peace much quicker.


Now to crush the evil and decadent Western Alliance.