Shannon versus C

[Shannon V. OKeets]

I started a second NetPlay Global War game last week against C.

Here are the Optional Rules.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is the setup in Manchuria. Note that I am playing the Allies in this game. The two USSR units in the north are both cavalry units. I have swapped out the infantry corps for the Siberians, which makes the USSR forces somewhat imposing.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is northern China. I was worried about the Japanese launching an all out attack on the Communist Chinese, so the Nationalists are standing at the ready to help out.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is Southern China. I am being punished for not putting another corps or two along the southernmost border. Japan has 6 more land units available in Japan with enough transports to get them over to China in one impulse, even taking a Combined. Sigh.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is the setup in Italy. Pretty standard stuff with Italy positioning its forces to attack France and France setting up a solid front line opposing them.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is Northern Africa. Also fairly standard for both sides. I gave Alexandria some light cruisers as sort of an immediately available naval reserve for the Eastern Med.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is the French/English setup. The fourth Commonwealth transport is the Queens and it is in South Africa, ready to bring a SA Infantry unit up to hold Gibraltar. You can see that I Lend Leased a Boston I from the US to the Commonwealth. France has left some hexes empty in the Maginot Line, to be filled by Reserves. Note that Germany has put all 3 fortifications opposite the Maginot Line.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is the German/USSR setups. Another standard positioning of the USSR forces ready to DOW Rumania if the demand for Bessarabia is declined. At first I thought the Germany forgot to scrap bombers, but n, they just had a really bad random draw. Those JU 88G's are of very limited use.

Take a few minutes and figure out how you would set up the Polish forces. The next post show what I did - no peeking![:-]

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is the Polish setup. I thought about putting a corps in Danzig, but it would only cut off supply for one hex, and they would be back in supply after Germany moves a unit into the hex SW of Danzig. So the corps would only affect one unit, the Stuka - unable to ground strike. That was tempting, ... but I preferred defending Lodz and Warsaw with the extra corps.

The 1-4 Div is in the forest to keep it from being overrun. It also prevents Germany from getting two full hexes on Lodz from the south. If Germany can get 3 full hexes attacking Lodz, then there is a high risk of losing it in the first impulse. The German schedule then becomes Lodz or Warsaw in impulse 3 and the other city in impulse 5. A bad weather roll might make that take even longer. Or a bad die roll on the first city might not leave enough organized units for a good attack on the second city. How effective will all the Polish prayers be?

Yes, I am being clever with the Polish air units. I didn't want them to be in hexes that would be ground struck or attacked. I want the Polish air force to fight in the second or third impulse. If they can destroy a German fighter or bomber, then that would be a major victory. Even disorganizing German units will help the Lowland countries this turn. In my army units don;t get paid to eat borsch (or vacation in London).

[Shannon V. OKeets]

The Axis first impulse attacks. These all succeeded without any losses to the Axis. Note that the ground strikes were pretty successful too, especially given the poor set of bombers.

[Grotius]

Hey Steve,

Looks good to me! Can I ask a newbish question? In another AAR, someone mentioned that Poland can sometimes save its HQ and an INF division (I think) by running them over to the Soviet sector to be interned. Is that part of your plan? I notice that you're playing with unlimited breakdown, so I'm not sure if that makes INF divisions more or less valuable. (Maybe less?)

And yes, I'm still beta-testing, in an off-and-on way. My solitaire game is now in summer 1941, and I haven't encountered a bug in a long time. But then, I play very predictably -- following the historical path -- as I still don't really know what I'm doing.

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Grotius

Hey Steve,

Looks good to me! Can I ask a newbish question? In another AAR, someone mentioned that Poland can sometimes save its HQ and an INF division (I think) by running them over to the Soviet sector to be interned. Is that part of your plan?

warspite1

Well the infantry division is about to die in the front line north of Katowice and the HQ is in Warsaw. So probably not... [;)]

EDIT: If the Poles are going to try this, then they need to ensure that the units are well away from the front line for three reasons:

a) If they are right in the front line they WILL be attacked
b) If they are in key hexes (Lodz and Warsaw) they are likely to be groundstruck
c) Remember that the Commonwealth ideally does not want to do a combined or land on its first impulse. Better to get the naval done and units to sea. The further away the Poles are, the more likely they can then escape in subsequent impulses.

[Grotius]

Thanks, Warspite. Maybe Steve hopes to save the HQ?

Also: the CW needs to take a Naval to get its convoys set up? Does it have other naval priorities?

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Grotius

Thanks, Warspite. Maybe Steve hopes to save the HQ?

Also: the CW needs to take a Naval to get its convoys set up? Does it have other naval priorities?

warspite1

The convoys should already be set up - what isn't is the ASW units. In addition they need loaded TRS in the North Sea - especially if the Germans have gone light on Poland and are massing for an early Case Yellow. So yes, the Commonwealth has plenty to do in addition to anything offensive they may want to try - e.g. bringing an HQ from Africa to France or attacking Italy etc.

[Grotius]

Ah, OK, thanks!

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: Grotius

Hey Steve,

Looks good to me! Can I ask a newbish question? In another AAR, someone mentioned that Poland can sometimes save its HQ and an INF division (I think) by running them over to the Soviet sector to be interned. Is that part of your plan? I notice that you're playing with unlimited breakdown, so I'm not sure if that makes INF divisions more or less valuable. (Maybe less?)

And yes, I'm still beta-testing, in an off-and-on way. My solitaire game is now in summer 1941, and I haven't encountered a bug in a long time. But then, I play very predictably -- following the historical path -- as I still don't really know what I'm doing.

I am old school, with the Polish units fighting in Poland. Removing any of them (i.e., air units, HQ, Division) helps Germany conquer Poland more quickly. My opinion it is ultra important to slow Germany down early in the war. If France is conquered "on schedule", then the Axis has a lot of choices about what to do before attacking the USSR. Basically I think of: for the want of a nail, a shoe was lost, for the want of a shoe, a horse was lost, for the want of a horse, a soldier was lost, ... the war was lost. Fewer nails for the Axis is good for the Allies.

Now later in the war, it will be the Allies that want the lost Polish units.

Indeed, the pilots could be used immediately. But to a large degree, the Germans control the air war in France and the Lowlands. They get to decide when and where their air units fly. Another British bomber can be ignored, if they so choose. And another British fighter with a range of 3 and an air-to-air rating of 3, isn't a whole lot of threat either. The third choice for the pilot is a carrier air unit, but they are also quite weak, and very limited when flying over land.

EDIT: Compare that to the effect of a Polish bomber disorganizing a German HQ in Poland on the second impulse of the game. Poland still around in Nov/Dec 1939 with Germany fighting in winter weather. All the German forces not getting back west and ready to go until Mar/Apr 1940, with the task of taking out the Netherlands and Belgium before entering France.

[Grotius]

Thanks for that thorough reply, Steve! That all sounds reasonable to me. I wasn't aware of the interning rule in the first place, so my natural instinct would've been to fight for every inch of Polish soil. I'm glad to see someone taking that approach. I look forward to seeing how it plays out.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

As a point of reference, we have had 2 sessions for a total of 3 hours 48 minutes and are now on 2nd Impulse Choose Action.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is an overly busy screenshot.[&:]

Germany had really bad dice for their attack on Lodz. A 3! Even after adding 14 they failed to take the city and all their attacking units became disorganized. But a couple of HQ's were sitting out the attack, so Germany reorganized what they could and killed the remaining 5-4 Inf in their next impulse.

On the plus side for the Axis, the weather has stayed Fine in the North Temperate and the turn hasn't ended. The Axis had a 10% chance and then the Allies had a 30% chance. There will be another attack in Poland - on Warsaw in the 11th impulse of the first turn. Then a 50% chance of the turn ending.

I also had good luck in strategic bombing during the surprise impulse for the Commonwealth and France, taking out 2 production points. Then the 2 factor tactical bomber succeeded in disorganizing the Inf Div that was positioned to invade Denmark.

The German convoys in the North Sea are very vulnerable, but the entire German navy is sitting in Kiel should the Commonwealth send any SCS out to do damage. The French are all in Marseilles (a mistake?), so they aren't capable of doing anything in the Baltic Sea.

Note the terrible bombers Germany drew.

[Courtenay]

ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

Here is an overly busy screenshot.[&:]

Germany had really bad dice for their attack on Lodz. A 3! Even after adding 14 they failed to take the city and all their attacking units became disorganized. But a couple of HQ's were sitting out the attack, so Germany reorganized what they could and killed the remaining 5-4 Inf in their next impulse.

On the plus side for the Axis, the weather has stayed Fine in the North Temperate and the turn hasn't ended. The Axis had a 10% chance and then the Allies had a 30% chance. There will be another attack in Poland - on Warsaw in the 11th impulse of the first turn. Then a 50% chance of the turn ending.

I also had good luck in strategic bombing during the surprise impulse for the Commonwealth and France, taking out 2 production points. Then the 2 factor tactical bomber succeeded in disorganizing the Inf Div that was positioned to invade Denmark.

The German convoys in the North Sea are very vulnerable, but the entire German navy is sitting in Kiel should the Commonwealth send any SCS out to do damage. The French are all in Marseilles (a mistake?), so they aren't capable of doing anything in the Baltic Sea.

Note the terrible bombers Germany drew.

Given the weather, it was a good thing that the Germans did not attempt an early go-west strategy. It probably would have worked very well. With the good weather, horrible things should be happening to the Chinese. Are they?

Yes, I think not setting a few French units to raid the Baltic was a mistake. Forcing the Germans to make a naval move is always good.

Those might be the worst German air draws I have ever seen. That will hurt the Germans the whole game, as normally the Germans don't build very many LND-3s.