Eastern Front 1941 campaign

[AngrySwan]

After playing the AA campaign where Operation Barbarossa ends in 1942 I had an idea to recreate the historical course of the war using the existing scenarios. The result is the Eastern Front campaign with all battles of 1941 and a possibility to take Moscow and cut off Leningrad.

What you have in the game now is an ''alpha version''. There is a ''beta version'' under development that needs some minor fixes, like changes in mission debriefings.

The 1941 campaign - what is it?

The idea is to recreate the historical course of Operation Barbarossa giving the player a chance to link up with the Finns and cut off Leningrad completely, take Rostov and hold it and take Moscow. After that the Soviets have lost their best forces and are shocker by their defeats - and the German panzer divisions are short of fuel.

You will have a possibility to replay the historical battles in the sequence they took place. The strategic choices are made on the top level and you cannot change these like in the AA campaign but you can move panzer armies between army groups, keep up your army and buy reinforcements. You also have complete freedom in tactical decisions.

Course of the campaign (in the new beta version)

Operation Barbarossa starts as in the original AA campaign. Army Group South marches into the Lvov area. Army group Antonescu takes Moldova and then Army Group South encircles the Soviets near Uman. Army group North takes Riga and Tallinn region annexed by the USSR in 1940. Army Group Center takes Minsk and proceeds to Smolensk.

The rest of the campaign is different from the AA because the High Command decides to attack with all three army groups and take Rostov, Leningrad and Moscow by the end of 1941. The campaign continues like this:

I have left the Schwerpunkt choice after Smolensk but there is no real choice because all choices lead to Kiev. You will have a chance to send a panzer army from Center to South, to encircle the Soviets as it was done in history. Then Army Group South continues as in the AA campaign, Melitopol - Crimea - Rostov. The panzer army you took from Army Group Center goes to reserve before Melitopol and you will not see it again until the final battle.

After Rostov the campaign switches to Luga and then to Staraya Russa. Unlike the original campaign you may deploy forces from Army Group Center and get them back for attack on Vyazma.

The end of the campaign is different because the battles will follow in their historical sequence:
Vyazma - with a chance to take a tank army from Army Group North. In Riga scenario you have a non-core StuG unit that is not available in later scenarios. I buy a StuG brigade of my own and keep it in the core; it also goes to Vyazma. You have a chance to take Vyazma with two panzer armies. The third one that you took from Army Group Center is on its way to Orel.
You have 30 units for these scenarios.
Mozhaisk - still two panzer armies, the third one advancing to Tula.
Tikhvin - Army Group North leaves a part of its force to block Leningrad and the other part will take Volkhov and Tikhvin and link up with the Finns. In AA campaign you have a choice to attack Leningrad, here you do not.That was the historical decision, to take the city by siege.
And, finally, Moscow. The initial plan to take the city has obviously failed and the army desperately needs rest but so does the enemy. So we will not give them any rest; at least not in this world.
Winter almost stops the movement of mechanized units and running out of fuel can stop the advance altogether. But you have the third tank group back and can buy some other reinforcements.
The old plan I used for version 1.05 no longer works because tanks do not only consume all your fuel; they can hardly crawl. But the High Command wants Moscow before the end of November!

The High Command is very demanding in this campaign. They may accept some normal or tactical victories before Moscow but one defeat sends you to vacation in France; or to reserve with shame.

Red Blitzkrieg theory

There is a theory that Germany and the USSR planned attacks in 1941 and the Soviets had not deployed their forces yet, or their commanders were not up to modern warfare in 1941.

Why do I make references to this theory?
- It makes the player's mission more challenging because fighting a tough enemy instead of attacking someone unprepared.
- In some scenarios you will see AI behaviour that matches this theory. There was a Northern and Southern variant attacking Poland from Lvov area and Northern variant attacking East Prussia, so they say. It seems that the AI has chosen the Northern variant - when you advance in the Baltics do not forget to secure Eastern Prussia or you may lose it.

Names for the Baltic cities
From 13th to 16th centuries there were crusader states in what is now Estonia and Latvia: It means the cities had German names which Germans also used in World War II. Klaipeda was possessed by Germany from 1939 to 1945 and was named Memel.
These are names for German scenarios in 1941. The Soviets did not recognise or use these names so if we get a Soviet campaign later the cities will need the same names as in the AA scenarios.

One new event script for Riga scenario (not done yet)
The Soviets left Riga in 1941 but not without a fight. Artillery fire destroyed the historical city hall, an old merchants guild ''Blackheads House'' and the upper part of the tower of St Peter's church. The tower was rebuilt in early 1970s but the buildings were considered ''unworthy'' by the Soviets and were only rebuilt after the Soviet era, in late 1990s.
This fight is not in game but will be in a script.

House rules

FW190 is available on the purchase screen but they were not in the East before the fall of 1942 so Bf 109 is all you get.

The winter moves for trucks and APCs seem too long when everything else slows down. Move units with transports, like artillery, only to the blue hexes, not green.

You may buy reinforcements or rearrange your force as you see fit.

It will be my last battle,
Rain falling on the positions,
Then you will hear the bells of Kremlin towers
When they bury me in the Russian land.
But if I survive this fight
And come back to my homeland,
Then I will meet my best girl
And love her for the rest of my life.

The beta campaign is here

Unzip all in C:\Users\Your Name\Documents\Germany at War\Campaigns
You will find the campaign on the Campaigns list with the name The Eastern Front (Die Ostfront in the German version) 1941 107.

[AngrySwan]

There will be some more changes in debriefing texts after scenarios and I need to double check the losses after some later scenarios, to make sure they really mean a loss. In this version you can play the campaign and reach Moscow if you keep winning. The standard setting should give you enough resource points.

Some new scenarios have been created so that panzer groups and reserves can be moved between army groups as needed to replay the historical operations. This campaign is not ''playing every move by the book'' but it can get pretty close.

[terminator]

Hi Marechal,
What are new scenario ?

[AngrySwan]

Hi terminator,

So far I have changed choices and reserves in some 1941 scenarios. After Smolensk all three choices lead to Kiev; before Vyazma Army Group Center gets all tank divisions from North; etc.

I am thinking about a ''more historical'' beginning for the AG North. The tank group could go the historical way to Kaunas; there were fights for Riga in summer 1941 but that was not the main attack.

The problem is, AG North may overrun Kaunas too easily; they already do that with infantry and with another tank group their life will be to easy. The attack to Liepaja and further north along the sea cost will remain because historically it happened.

Later there could be more scenarios. The Romanians could take Odessa and nothing happens to Murmansk in the north. Odessa will need a new map. Murmansk already has a map and a scenario for the Soviet counter-attack in 1944 but there is no scenario for 1941.

The version posted here must be free of major bugs; keep winning and it will lead you to Moscow. Maybe you have some ideas that I missed?

[terminator]

Hi Marechal,
It is a little bit difficult to follow you.
To build such a campaign asks a lot of work and especially a lot of test.
Two remarks:
- I think that Operation Barbarossa should begin with the battle of Brest-Litovsk (maybe a small scenario ?)
- For the battle of Odessa 1941, there was a scenario in "Forgotten Battles" for Operation Barbarossa: The Struggle for Russia. I finished to convert the map :

[AngrySwan]

Hi terminator,

Right now there are no new scenarios; I have modified some of the old ones.

The campaign looks like this:

Lvov - go to Kishinev if you win;
Kishinev - go to Uman, a loss is allowed;
Uman - go to Riga if you win;
Riga - go to Tallinn if you win
Tallinn - split AGS and take Estonia with the 18th army; go to Minsk if you win
Minsk - go to Smolensk if you win

and from here it is different from AA original

Smolensk - if you win; all 3 choice buttons bring you to Kiev

Kiev - you can take some forces from AG Center before the scenario; go to Mariupol if you win
Mariupol - some forces go to OKH reserve like in the original AA; go to Crimea if you win
Crimea - go to Rostov if you win
Rostov - go to Luga if you win
Luga - go to Staraya Russa if you win (AGS gets 18th Army back but no forces from other army groups)
Staraya Russa - you get the "Leningrad or Tikhvin choice" buttons but they bring you to Vyazma. Why? because an attack on Moscow starts and Leningrad will be taken later;
Vyazma - you can take some forces from AGN to AGC (this is thje historical transfer of the tank army from AGN to AGC); you have two tank armies to take Vyazma and go to Mozhaisk if you win;
Mozhaisk - go to Tikhvin if you win
Tikhvin - AGN is split and one part remains near Leningrad; the other one takes Tikhvin and Volkhov; go to Moscow if you win
Moscow - the tank group that went to OKH reserve after Mariupol comes back; take Moscow with a brilliant victory.

This is how the campaign looks if you follow the historical decisions.

We could think about a Brest-Litovsk scenario.

The Odessa scenario looks good because the Bolsheviks have two defense lines; one would be too easy. The Romanians can attack the city while the German divisions march into Crimea. The Soviets can get some ships and reinforcements; historically they come by sea but in this scenario they may show up in the city or on the sea coast; there was a large landing operation and a counterattack:

[AngrySwan]

Some changes in the Kiev scenario settings. If you want to replay the historical events you need to bring a tank army from AGC to AGS and that is 4 tank divisions, 2 motorised divisions and 1st Cavalry division. So I changed the size of AGS resource pool from 40 to 47 but the player does not get more units for any of the battles.

I have merged my motorised divisions into division size battlegroups and hope it is not too much of a cheat. Two motorised divisions can fight like one force under one commander and have one objective.

Also testing some new air tactics. Since I do not have real Italian fighters in version 1.07 I will use a Bf 109 named Italia.

[terminator]

Hi Marechal,
If you are interested, I redid the Crimea Map based on the original (for future scenario). Now the Crimea is whole with Sevastopol !
You can use it in your campaign if you want.
It is one of the biggest map (67 x 47) after From Petsamo to Kirkenes (82 x 56).
The map is easily modifiable. Many details are misssing and require retouch but it is a good base.

[Ronald Wendt]

Hi terminator,

that map looks very nice. Any plans on using it for one of your own scenarios ?

Regards,

[AngrySwan]

Hi terminator,

This as well as Odessa will keep AG Antonescu busy, right now they seem to be totally forgotten.
The advance in Crimea ends on October 15 so there could be attacks on Sevastopol in November and December.

[terminator]

ORIGINAL: Ronald Wendt

Hi terminator,

that map looks very nice. Any plans on using it for one of your own scenarios ?

Regards,

Hi Ronald,
Yes but not for at once and I will use a new thread.

[AngrySwan]

The victory path now works as planned, with a possibility to mowe the tank divisions between army groups. Now it is time for final bug hunt (to see that a loss really ends the campaign) and there are some new German texts. Most have been copied from the existing ones, like messages ''You have failed army group... so we send you to France/Reserve''. There are some new ones, like the text after Smolensk scenario explaining what will happen later in the campaign and there is a new text after Staraya Russa. Do not be surprised that after Staraya Russa you go to Vyazma - the battles take place in the historical sequence.

There will also be a readme file to understand this campaign better - a separate file, not a part of the manual - and the official AARs when 1.08 is released.

Also tested the new winter conditions. People on some Russian history sites argue that rain, mud and snow can slow down advancing forces but only the enemy can stop them completely. The player will have a chance to prove this point in the Moscow scenario.

[terminator]

Hi Marechal,
The Odessa scenario is finished. You can use it if you want. It will be necessary to make modifications to integrate it into your campaign.
tm.asp?m=4239530

[AngrySwan]

Hi terminator,

An interesting scenario and good practice before taking Moscow, the main objective of the 1941 campaign. The army can also win more resource points it will need for Operation Typhoon.

[AngrySwan]

The campaign now works as intended.

The Odessa scenario will go into the AGS path after Kiev. No core units for this scenario, the Romanians will have to take the city on their own since the Germans are busy advancing towards Rostov.There will be no consequences if Odessa is not taken on time - siege is enough since AGS is pushing forwards and the Soviets will have to abandon Odessa anyway when AGS breaks into the Crimea.

[terminator]

Hi Marechal,
Historically, the Rumanian army had German reinforcements :
- Air support was provided by the Gruparea Aeriana de Lupta (Combat Air Grouping), which consisted in 5 bomber groups (1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th) and 4 fighter groups (4th, 6th, 7th and 8th), as well as 7 observation squadrons and several other long range reconnaissance squadrons. These forces were joined by the German KG 27, KG 51 and II./JG 77 in the initial phases of the operation.
- On 28 August, the Romanians resumed their offensive, reinforced by a German assault battalion and ten heavy artillery battalions.

You could maybe allow to deploy some German units which would leave the core army?

[AngrySwan]

Hi terminator,

What the Romanians really need is another fighter group - in the scenario they have 2 fighters against 3 Soviet ones that give the Luftwaffe hard time and the Soviets can even try to win in the air or at least protect the city well. Also Romanians have 105 mm artillery that is good for infantry support but not so good as counter-battery guns against the Bolshevik 150 mm because 105 mm guns have shorter range. What would you say if the player has a chance to buy some reinforcements that would later remain in the Romanian army? 1 fighter and 2 150 mm guns?

The Luftwaffe could be reinforced with fighters from Army Group Antonescu and that army group also had some German artillery in Moldova. One 150mm and one 105 mm unit. If the Romanians got the fighter from AG Antonescu and these two guns (with a chance to upgrade the 105 mm to 150 mm) they would have some real counter-battery artillery and a fighter force that would let them be more active in the air and even take out the Bolshevik fighters. After Moldova the Romanians have nothing to do anyway - except for some limited battles near Uman - so they can take Odessa.

This is a large scale scenario so a German battalion would not do very much there; the Soviets are good counter-attackers and a battalion on the front line would not have too many chances to survive if sent to battle early. If there is an assault battalion it is better to keep it in reserve until the last fight for the city.

[terminator]

ORIGINAL: Marechal

What the Romanians really need is another fighter group - in the scenario they have 2 fighters against 3 Soviet ones that give the Luftwaffe hard time and the Soviets can even try to win in the air or at least protect the city well.

Hi Marechal,
In the original scenario it were so.
The air forces in Operation Barbarossa :
- Russia :
- 20th Fighter Division (MIG-1) 5/10
- 21st Fighter Division (MIG-1) 5/10
- 45th Fighter Division (MIG-1) 5/10
- Romania :
- 1st Fighter Wing (Bf109E) 10/10
- 2nd Fighter Wing (Bf109E) 10/10
- 1st Bomber Wing (He 111-H3) 10/10
- 2nd Bomber Wing (He 111-H3) 10/10

It had a little surprised me as well at first as the Russians have more fighters certainly less strong and no bombers. I read that the Rumanian aviation had some successes at the beginning of the battle and that the Russians had reinforcements by planes (fighters and bombers Il2) during the siege. Bombers based in Crimea and to Nikolaïev also intervened over Odessa.

What do you think of to delete at first a unit of russian fighters and to give it as additional help in the middle of party as well as a unit of russian bomber (Il2) ?

[AngrySwan]

Hi terminator,

Three fighters are more interesting for gameplay. An extra Il-2 will also make the mission more challenging.

[AngrySwan]

The campaign with the new scenarios. The new scenarios are named EF-...

Place the campaign and the in C:> Users > Your Username > Docments > Germany at War > Campaigns.