Road to Smolensk scenario question

Gary Grigsby’s War in the East: The German-Soviet War 1941-1945 is a turn-based World War II strategy game stretching across the entire Eastern Front. Gamers can engage in an epic campaign, including division-sized battles with realistic and historical terrain, weather, orders of battle, logistics and combat results.

The critically and fan-acclaimed Eastern Front mega-game Gary Grigsby’s War in the East just got bigger and better with Gary Grigsby’s War in the East: Don to the Danube! This expansion to the award-winning War in the East comes with a wide array of later war scenarios ranging from short but intense 6 turn bouts like the Battle for Kharkov (1942) to immense 37-turn engagements taking place across multiple nations like Drama on the Danube (Summer 1944 – Spring 1945).

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JTP
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Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by JTP »

Haven't had a chance to research a possible why, but a remark about this scenario................


What's the deal with the zillion Russian units ?!?!

Not even historically close.

I'm at the Dnepr with pzg2 on the third turn, and there are dozens and dozens, three deep, of units opposing on the other side of the river !?

Playing with normal setting, no soviet bonus.
No idea
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by No idea »

Well, soviets forces in Western Front were (IRL, after 3 weeks of Barbarossa) the 13th, 20th, 21st and 22nd Armies. On top of that, the 19th Army was being formed in the rear and the 16th Army was being redirected to the Western Front. That should be around 40 units plus the ones forming or begin redirected (plus the ones that might have scaped your initial attacks).

On any case, dont worry. At this stage soviet units are a joke compared to yours.
JTP
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by JTP »

All true, however, they weren't all lined up, head to toe, front to back, several echelons deep, on the east back of the Dnepr, landbridge, points north,etc., especially in the first week of July.

To me, smacks of a game trigger resulting in a very arcade game-like tactic, used to make the game difficult, just for difficulties sake, for the axis player.

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morvael
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by morvael »

Time to play PBEM... AI has various helpers (from the perspective of human player cheats) to survive the onslaught.
JTP
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by JTP »

ORIGINAL: morvael

Time to play PBEM... AI has various helpers (from the perspective of human player cheats) to survive the onslaught.


Good point !
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HansBolter
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by HansBolter »

I'm still a noob myself, but have seen no difficulty in wading through the multiple echelons with my panzers like a hot knife through butter.

Bear in mind that you're seeing multiple echelons of combat value 1 units in level 0 forts.

Not to mention that many of the units in those echelons turn out to he HQs and air bases.

What it appears to me to be is a tactic designed to make me pay the maximum amount of movement points to wade through it.

Each echelon requires me to expend movement points to attack it and additional movement points for moving into and through ZOCs.

The key is to use your infantry as much as possible to bore the hole through the barrier leaving your tanks with the most possible movement points for exploitation.
Hans

JTP
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by JTP »

ORIGINAL: HansBolter

I'm still a noob myself, but have seen no difficulty in wading through the multiple echelons with my panzers like a hot knife through butter.

Bear in mind that you're seeing multiple echelons of combat value 1 units in level 0 forts.

Not to mention that many of the units in those echelons turn out to he HQs and air bases.

What it appears to me to be is a tactic designed to make me pay the maximum amount of movement points to wade through it.

Each echelon requires me to expend movement points to attack it and additional movement points for moving into and through ZOCs.

The key is to use your infantry as much as possible to bore the hole through the barrier leaving your tanks with the most possible movement points for exploitation.


<shrug> In the smolensk scenario, vast majority have at least a fort level of one, vast majority have decent combat values, and each turn spent wading through them, the others not involved have their fort level go up to two.

Well aware, and use the standard infantry tactic.

Heck, I took Vitebsk itself, had a bridgehead across the Dvina too, with the 3rd pzg on the *second* turn, facing only a few units in the area...............next turn, surrounded on three sides (not cut off) by several dozen two and three deep........and it's that way from the top of the map, to the bottom.

The world's most impressive logistical feat, in the time frame simulated.

It's like once you hit the Dnepr/Dvina rivers and/or the town on them, a trigger in the game kicks in.

con
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by con »

I too am having real difficulties on this scenario. I have played it 4 or 5 times and I just cant seem to get my units far enough forward by turn three to capture the key areas (the line from Vitbesk to the River).

What tips and or strategies have others done to win as the axis with the latest build? Am i missing something simple (like replacing a key leader, or only using your rail repair int he Baltic region etc)

Thanks
Con
JTP
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RE: Road to Smolensk scenario question

Post by JTP »

After playing this a few more times, it's become a piece of cake.

The key is, destroy Soviet units.

Period.

Not rout, etc., but encircle, and eliminate.

You should have units of both PzC at or over the Dvina and Dnepr by turn two/three.

Encircling units is the key.

I've found the historical PzC "lines of travel" if you will, work great.

Hope this helps.

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