STAVKA - 8 player multiplayer Soviet thread

[M60A3TTS]

No problem, as soon as you have time.

[Lictuel]

done

[M60A3TTS]

S-T is up

[SparkleyTits]

I am done comrades!

Looking forward to the muds, communism has taken a beating this year

[M60A3TTS]

Your two small victories are precisely what is needed in these dark times. Well done. General Bobkin's 237th Rifle Division will be recommended for a guards banner.

The Western Direction is up now may need the day to finish adjustments to the front line.

[M60A3TTS]

Center done. Lictuel, you will need to extend your defense to include Lipetsk.

[Lictuel]

okay I'll have a look at the turn right now

edit: done with the turn

[M60A3TTS]

ORIGINAL: Panzerjaeger Hortlund

From: STAVKA

To: All Front Commanders

Orders:
We are under attack. The General Secretary of the Communist Party's Central Committee has ordered the armed forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics to resist the invasion by all means neccessary.

The superior forces of the Red Army should have no problem repelling this desperate attack by the fascist warmongers. All front commanders should therefore use the forces at their disposal to beat back the invaders and prepare to liberate the workers of Europe.

The Red Army is to reorganize into a more suitable organization for this war, therefore all corps HQ will be disbanded and units are to be organized into field armies. STAVKA will handle the disbanding of the HQs and each front commander is given 5 APs to use as they see fit in order to organize their forces accordingly.

Comrades, be ruthless in the defence in order to ensure that we can switch to offensive operations as soon as possible. The invaders must be crushed without mercy. Any sign of treason must be dealt with by the harshest means. Assign trusted commissars to the army headquarters and report any signs of defeatism to your superior officer.

Your priorities should be:
1. Organize your forces into suitable groups and take up defensive positions
2. Preserve your forces in order to wait for the mobilization of the workers of the Soviet union.



SIGNED
Marshal Hortlundski

Time to catch the curious reader up on where things stand. Even though I was not part of this at the start, I can still comment on it.

STAVKA disbanding headquarters is ok where they are not automatically disbanding starting on turn 5. In this case, STAVKA went ahead and disbanded a lot of corps HQ before then and wasted a lot of APs in doing so.

[M60A3TTS]

ORIGINAL: Panzerjaeger Hortlund

From: STAVKA

To: All Front Commanders

Orders:
The invading German forces have displayed unimaginable speed in their advance. We must therefore postpone our plans for attack and focus on defending our country first and foremost.

To this end, the following actions should be taken:

Commander of North and Northwestern fronts:
The Valdai hills are the key to the defence of Leningrad. Your defensive efforts should focus on holding the Germans at the foot of these hills, and make them pay dearly for any advance in this area. 24th and 22nd Armies are put at your disposal along with 7th Mechanized Corps.

Prepare to defend the Valdai hills, and make sure the approaches to Leningrad is garrisoned properly.

Commander of Western Front:
Prepare to defend Moscow. This is the most, and only objective for the forces under your command. You are given command of 20th army (minus 7th Mechanized Corps), 16th Army, 20th Rifle Corps, 63rd Rifle Corps and 66th Rifle Corps.


Commander of Southern and Southwestern Fronts:
Set up defensive positions on the Dnepr and prepare to hold the eastern banks until ordered otherwise. Kiev must also be held. You are authorized to give up all ground west of the Dnepr. You are also authorized to use as much rail capacity as you need to save as many troops as possible from the southern sectors of the front.


SIGNED
Marshal Hortlundski

Orders from Turn 2.

The Valdai Hills have never been the key to the defense of Leningrad. The Axis can still right hook around Lake Ilmen with the Soviets holding those hills. Hex X83 Y16 is the key to the defense of Leningrad,notwithstanding HLYA's L-Grad defensive plan. I'll say it again for those that missed it.

Hex X83 Y16 is the key to the defense of Leningrad

Yes, the Axis can bring Walter Model, arty, sappers, etc. but it doesn't change geography. The best chance to either successfully defend or delay the inevitable is to do everything possible to hold that hex. That means bringing good units, bringing sappers, bringing Zhukov. And starting all this on Turn 1 is equally important.

[M60A3TTS]

ORIGINAL: Panzerjaeger Hortlund

From: STAVKA

To: All Front Commanders

Orders:
The Fascist invaders are pushing east despite your efforts. In order to secure our armaments production, a relocation of certain strategic production elements has begun. Kiev and Mogliev have been evacuated.

To ensure the defence of Moscow, STAVKA has taken control over three armies. They have been color coded to make sure you do not touch them. The red and black armies are now under special STAVKA orders and you are not to interfere with these units for any reason whatsoever.

All airborne troops are to disengage from frontline fighting, and are to move to MOSCOW as soon as possible.

To Commander of Northern Front:
You are to take control of all units north of the Dvina, and any units that are under the command of your fronts. STAVKA has assigned some units to your Fronts and these are yours to control. Previous orders remain in effect. Withdrawal from the Pskov-region is encouraged, in order to mount a more effective defence elsewhere.

To Commander of Western Front:
STAVKA has assigned additional forces to your command, mostly units from the Southwestern front. These units are yours to use. You are to continue fightning a delaying action in the direction of VYAZMA. You are NOT authorized to retreat east of the line VYAZMA-RZHEV.

To Commander of Southern Front:
You are to continue fighting a delaying action. Avoid losing troops at any cost. You must hold KHARKOV until end of July and you should hold SEVASTOPOL into the winter. You are allowed to retreat east to VORONEZH and ROSTOV. But further withdrawal than that must be authorized by STAVKA.


SIGNED
Marshal Hortlundski

Orders from Turn 3

There has yet to be made any attempt to analyze where the German panzer corps are focused. This is rather important for front commanders to know as it affects their defensive plans. In retrospect, it would have been particularly useful information for the northern commander as he would soon realize he was facing three panzer corps on the road to Leningrad.

Orders to the Western Front make no mention of defending the land bridge north of the Dnepr. That can be an important choke point. It is premature at this stage to be talking about delaying to Vyazma.

The orders in general are so lacking in specifics that it seems odd. Historically, STAVKA would not hesitate to give very specific orders. But that was a call for PH to make.

[M60A3TTS]

ORIGINAL: Sardaukar

Western Front troops are preparing to fight behind upper Dnepr-River, with 3 possible defensive positions (as in picture).

This was a plan to be destroyed piecemeal. Leaving a single row of defenders in three locations is not a valid defense or delay tactic. It just gets your units killed. And it's too soon to be activating the Moscow Military District. At this stage, Western Front should have fallen back to the Dnepr and the black and orange units headed west at top speed for the land bridge and points north.

[M60A3TTS]

ORIGINAL: Panzerjaeger Hortlund

Turn 4

The seeds for Moscow's fall are already planted and watered. Hanging out on the Berezina too long, the land bridge undefended, and the Western Front is hanging out at Kiev.

[M60A3TTS]

ORIGINAL: Sardaukar

SITREP: Western Front

I have tried not to make counter-attacks but instead preserving troops and fighting defensively to slow down enemy. Also trying to slow down AGC by imposing as much ZOC I can.

We'll have to stand in front of Moscow.

Can STAVKA HQ colour troops that I can command with something, so I do not accidentally poach troops from STAVKA? [8D] It was honest misunderstandment (said Front Commander in Ljubjanka cellars...) [:D]

Bordering on defeatist talk, comrade. Our commanders later received clear instructions that attacking the enemy is essential to the victory. But again, we wouldn't be talking about defending Moscow if these divisions in the rear had been brought forward.

[M60A3TTS]

Turn 5 in the north.



A question, what is the most significant unit on this screenshot? It's as much a question of "what unit doesn't belong?"


The answer is the 18th Motorized Division, and it should be setting off the alarm bells. That division at the start of the campaign belongs to Kuntzen's LVII Panzer Corps of Hoth's PG3. That tells us there is a reasonable chance that the north is facing three panzer corps. This unit tells us if in fact there are three panzer corps here, the defense is not going to hold. But this is picked up by neither the northern commander nor STAVKA.

[M60A3TTS]

Week 6

We'll look at the south.



The original Soviet southern commander just decided to disappear and leave no word which is unfortunate and the game is stalled. EvK will fill in and has these STAVKA orders.

Southwestern Front:
The breach of the Dnepr by German panzers make any defence of the Dnepr impossible. We can expect rapid thrusts towards KHARKOV and KURSK.

Abandon the Dnepr defensive line and move troops towards KURSK and VORONEZH. The Southwestern Front will ultimately be given defensive responsibilities in the VORONEZH - OREL - TULA area. Prepare for this defensive operation.

Southern Front:
The Nikolaev area must be evacuated immideately. A temporary defensive line should be set up on the south bank of the Dnepr, while the units move towards STALINO. Southern Front will be expected to defend ROSTOV and SEVASTOPOL, as well as the Kerch strait.

There are several issues to address here.

First, the factories are still in place at D-Z as well as Poltava. What is STAVKA's industrial evacuation plan? It is important to have one and the armies need to maneuver in support of it. There is mention of a possible thrust to Kharkov, but no mention of how to defend it. For all intents and purposes, the Southwestern and Southern Fronts are split in two. Let's see what can conceivably be done. We have 135 railcap to work with. So with that:

Evac 8 arms from Poltava. 96k railcap left.
Evac 10 of 16 arms from Dnepropetrovsk. 48k railcap left
Evac 3 of 5 heavy industry from Dnepropetrovsk 24 railcap left

So we have Poltava no longer a target of value to the Axis and D-town somewhat of interest with 6 arms and 2HI. Zaporozhye is still in possession of 4 arms and 4 HI but is on the east bank of the Dnepr. And from what we can see, the panzers are for the moment running low on gas. STAVKA orders can now be along the lines of:

Southern Front to fall back on the River Bazavlik to defend the D-Z area. We will evacuate the remaining industry from those cities next week. You may use 5k railcap to move 9th Army units to that area.

Southern Front now assigned 18th Army with 3 rifle divisions to cover Kharkov. This will be temporary only. Once Southwestern Front can pull back fully, they assume responsibility for Kharkov.

Southwestern Front to withdraw to the River Psel to cover the Axis direct route to Kharkov. 10k of railcap is available to facilitate their withdrawal.

Back to the original orders. Talk of Southwestern Front having responsibilities in the Orel-Tula region makes no sense at all. That area is the responsibility of Bryansk Front. If it hasn't arrived yet, remaining Orel MD, it can still support two armies and be augmented by two more from STAVKA until the conversion.

With what is the Crimea to be held with? Coastal Army and...? If it is just that one, fine. But say so. "Coastal Army to form nine rifle divisions and be responsible for holding Sevastopol/Kerch/entrance to the Crimea/whatever."

Finally there's this, that I'm still working to fix ten turns later.



Apparently this is some attempt to re-create the West Front at the time of Operation Mars? It's hopelessly overloaded, but by the blizzard, after wasting a huge # of admin points, it will be back to the normal allocation of four armies.

[EwaldvonKleist]

I remember my dissent with PH about this overloading of fronts, IIRC he did the same with my Leningrad and Northwestern Front.
Interesting reflections and thanks for that.

[HardLuckYetAgain]

ORIGINAL: M60A3TTS

Week 6


Finally there's this, that I'm still working to fix ten turns later.



Apparently this is some attempt to re-create the West Front at the time of Operation Mars? It's hopelessly overloaded, but by the blizzard, after wasting a huge # of admin points, it will be back to the normal allocation of four armies.

YUK! That is BUTT ugly. I would almost be tempted to just disband the extra HQ attached to Western Front.

Awesome write up M60 showing the trials and tribulations you had to overcome when you took over command. You have a great deal of patience I will say that.

[M60A3TTS]

ORIGINAL: EwaldvonKleist

I remember my dissent with PH about this overloading of fronts, IIRC he did the same with my Leningrad and Northwestern Front.
Interesting reflections and thanks for that.

Yes, and I'm fixing those too. [8|]

[SparkleyTits]

Our great comrade M60 shall have kicked into shape and outside of Berlin in no time

[M60A3TTS]

Before moving onto Week 7, let's pop back up north.



Northwestern Front oddly ends up defending against the main treat to Leningrad. As EvK pointed out, Northwest Front ended up with 6 armies, and Northern Front had 3. One army of Northern Front is 7th Independent facing the Finns in Eastern Karelia, and the 20th is south of Reserve Front; effectively leaving only the 23rd to defend Leningrad.

Northwestern Front has two armies, 22nd and 24th south of Lake Ilmen. Only the 24th is really in a position to block a right hook, if that is a real concern.

Of the Northwest Front Armies between the Germans and Leningrad, only Bobkin's 33rd is fully capable. The 8th, 11th and 27th are all in need of refit.

What could have happened is admin points could have been used to empty 8th Army of its units and sent them to Eremenko's 11th. Then 3-4 Northern Front rifle divisions could have rounded out Eremenko's Army and it could have been used as a second defensive line to protect Leningrad. Finally, the STAVKA divisions unassigned could have gone to Berzarin's 27th and almost a fourth full army would have been in place, with the 8th Army sent to the rear to re-form.

Here is Northern Front HQ. Note the divisions out of command range, and since they are assigned to a front vs. army, not as useful.



Finally, STAVKA helps the north by giving Govorov the 23rd Army. But the 23rd Army is almost half mechanized. Maybe there was a better choice waiting in the wings?



Something of a moot point. EvK has established his Maginot Line on his left flank to stop the Germans should they go in that direction. But just as in 1940, the Germans have other ideas.