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 The start of campaigning for this year begins with a move toward controlling even more of Europe.  We were all set to make the move to take over Greece when Yugoslavia succumbed to a coup and turned on us. As a result, we're forced to split our efforts and divert forces to fight both countries. We do at least have the support of our other allies. Italy is lending a lot of support, but Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania as well are helping us (the latter two have no forces present on this map, though). Balkans April 6, 1941 25 Turns  Objectives: (Rijeka), (Kula), (Trun), (Babyak), (Devin), (Tirana), Kutina, Belgrade, Banja Luka, Novigrad, Sarajevo, Kragujevac, Bar, Kukes, Thessaloniki, Larissa, Agrinion, Athens, Kalamai Major: 19 turns.  This map not only covers a large area, but I believe it has the most objectives of any map in the game, so it's one of the most dense. It also covers multiple countries, and in short, this battle feels huge. It's essentially a series of separate battles that sort of run into each other. As for the terrain: Most of the northern part of the map - from Bulgaria to Yugoslavia - consists of a fair number of hills and mountains, but it is also well-connected by roads. Maneuvering large forces will be relatively easy. Greece is a completely different story. The route to Athens must not only cross the Pinios River but runs through a very narrow space. The chokepoint to the Peloponnesus is similarly narrow. The good news is that we are longer fighting the war on land only. With air and naval power we ought to be able to support our attacks and force our way into control of the whole region. OOB pre:Unit Name Unit Type [Transport] Exp
Land Units
1.4th Bridge Eng Bridge Eng [SPW] **
2.5th Pioniere Inf Pioniere Inf[Opel] **
3.15th Pioniere Inf Pioniere Inf[Opel] ****
4.17th 39 Wehr Inf 39 Wehr Inf[SPW] **
5.28th 39 Wehr Inf 39 Wehr Inf -
6.19th 40 LuftW FJ 40 LuftW FJ *
7.16th PSW 222/4r PSW 222/4r ***
8.9th Pz IId Pz IId ***
9.13th Pz 38(t)A Pz 38(t)A ****
10.10th Pz IIIh Pz IIIh ****
11.11th Pz IIIg Pz IIIg ****
12.PotatoManJack Pz IIIg **
13.23rd Pz IVD Pz IVd **
14.26th Pz IVD Pz IVd **
15.8th PzJager Ib PzJager Ib ***
16.7th StugIIIb StuGIIIb -
17.24th StuGIIIb StuGIIIb -
18.Die kleinen Stichel 10.5 IefH[Opel] *
19.12th 15 sFH 18 15 sFH 18[Opel] -
20.18th 15 sFH 18 15 sFH 18[SPW] -
21.25th SdKfz 10/4 SdKfz 10/4 ****
22.22nd 8.8 FlaK 18 8.8 FlaK 18 -
Aux land units (by qty)
1 Pioniere Inf *
1 39 Wehr Inf *
1 39 Wehr Inf [Opel] *
1 40 Wehr HW **
7 IT Inf [Fiat] -
15 IT Inf -
4 IT Bersglri [Fiat] -
2 Bulgarian Inf [Opel] -
5 Bulgarian Inf -
2 Pz IIIj *
2 IT L6/40 -
1 IT L6/40 **
4 IT M13/40 -
2 IT M13/40 **
1 IT AB-40 -
1 sIG Ib **
1 10.5 IefH [Opel] **
4 IT 105mm Gun [Fiat] -
Air Units
1.6th Bf109e Bf109e ***
2.14th Bf109e Bf109e ****
3.20th Bf 110c Bf 110c **
4.ADAC Vogel Ju87b ***
5.27th Ju87b Ju87b *
6.21st Ju88A Ju88A ***
Aux (by qty)
4 IT Re2000/F1 -
4 IT BA65 -
1 IT CA309 -
1 IT P108 Bi -
Naval Units
1 U-boat ***
1 Z-destroyer *
1 T-destroyer *
1 Battleship DI -
1 Heavy Cruiser **
1 Heavy Cruiser -
1 Light Cruiser -
Starting Prestige: 1037 (1227 before upgrades) This time out it's clear that our core is only fighting part of the battle. There are large areas that will be handled solely by the auxiliary forces. In most places this means Italians. Most of their infantry is of middling quality, but there are quite a lot of them (even when you take out those that remain stationed in Italy itself). They also have some tanks and artillery, and a lot of planes too. The Italian navy has a good fleet available, and if we support them from the air, they ought to take control of the Adriatic. We have one more ally with forces in the battle, The Bulgarians have a small force of infantry. They really are not the best of troops, but at least they are participating. As for the German auxiliary, we are fortunate to get some Pioniere infantry and a few of the newest model of the Panzer III. The IIIj isn't being produced in enough quantities that we can requisition it for the core, so we'll want to keep those protected.  The primary task of our core is to take control of Greece by attacking it from the north. This is the largest and strongest deployment zone for us. This is the one spot we expect to see British units, especially armor, so we're sending our best tanks to lead the charge.  The other two groups are set up to make the move into Yugoslavia from the east. The center group has quality auxiliary infantry, so we put more of out tanks there. If they have an easy enough time of it, they may even be able to head south to support the main drive. The last group is a small but stronger set of units, who will be operating on their own but don't have too much to do up there. Note that the paratroops are forced into transport at the start, even thought we don't want them there. It's a minor annoyance; they simply lose a turn.  This is, as noted, really a series of battles that are all close to each other. It's going to be pretty involved. Fortunately we don't really have to coordinate much. We have enough troops that can be shifted around whereever they're needed, and the terrain will confine the enemy movements within each region. The main thrust of our core will head a bit west and then straight south into Greece. The Italians on the west and the Bulgarians on the east will mostly be there just to engage whatever Greek forces are present on our flanks. On the west side, we'll need to make sure to take control of the seas using our naval and air assets. Once this happens, the Italians will likely be able to use offshore artillery to support an offensive toward Agrinion. The plan of attack on Yugoslavia is that the Italians (and German auxiliary) will move from the northwest all the way to Sarajevo. Our core will handle some of the eastern objectives, and the most northern units will be sent where necessary, once Belgrade has been taken. Axis Turn 1: April 6, 1941 Clear(dry)  With supporting attacks from the tanks, the 5th push the enemy back and march up to the gates of Belgrade.  The first push westward toward Kragujevac isolates and eliminates many of the disorganized front-line troops.  Farther down the line, we continue to take advantage of the unprepared Yugoslavian positions and eliminate many more troops.  The forces heading south from Germany have an easy time capturing Karlovac.  Italian troops advance cautiously along the coast. Thanks to the new Panzer III's, the German forces continue to capture more Croatian territory. Infantry casualties are high, however.  The search planes of the Regia Aeronautica locate the British fleet and attack, with mild success.  The Italians in Albania probe the Greek lines for weaknesses. Allied Turn 1: April 6, 1941  The Allied fleet bombards the Italians as the Greeks make an effective ground assault. The Italians lose ground at the coast.  Yugoslavian scouts encounter the Italians in the north, and hit some of their trucks. Screenshot missed the combat result, but they did inflict damage.  AT guns push back the Bulgarian infantry back from the Greek border. Axis Turn 2: April 7, 1941 Clear(dry)  The Pioniere drive the Yugoslavian infantry out of Belgrade right into the face of our paratroops.  Italian bombers hit the scouts on the road, and with the route cleared, the Italians press on.  It does not take long for the infantry to clear out Kragujevac. The tanks mop up the rest of the Yugoslav forces here, and this central group can now continue westward.  Enemy resistance in the southeast remains light. The road toward Greece is opened up. (Also, a FW190 was added last turn and gets its first chance to fight by attacking infantry near Kekes.)  The Italian fleet advances as their planes continue to harrass the British ships.  On land, their troops scout enemy positions north of Albania.  The core adds a HW infantry unit in Babyak, while the Bulgarians try to find gaps in the enemy line. Allied Turn 2: April 7, 1941  British planes supporting the Greeks hit the Italians hard, while the Allied ships continue shelling from offshore.  Losses among the Italians are heavy, with British, Greek, and Yugoslav forces all getting in hits on them. Axis Turn 3: April 8, 1941 Clear(dry)  The fleet engages the enemy. Thanks to the effective spotters, they get the first shots in, and sink two cruisers with ease.  Initial assaults by the Italian infantry at Shkoder are ineffective. They are forced to pull back.  A large array of guns is spotted at Kutina. With Belgrade under control, we can send a few forces to open an attack on the other side.  The main force drives all the way to Debar. Meanwhile, the Italians probe the Allied line and discover British troops reinforcing the Greeks. Allied Turn 3: April 8, 1941  The Allies push back against the Italians, knocking out one unit of tanks. With support from their fleet, they even drive into Albania.  RAF planes strike the Italian bombers in Yugoslavia, while the troops on the ground are driven back from Shkoder. Axis Turn 4: April 9, 1941 Clear(dry)  A few units push deeper into the center of Yugoslavia. They only encounter light resistance.  The northern lines in Yugoslavia quickly form up from Kutina in the interior to Novograd on the coast.  The central force moving through Kukes will be able to mop up behind our advance force. The main group will move south immediately. Allied Turn 4: April 9, 1941  The Greeks push the Bulgarians off the fortified line, but they have also taken heavy casualties. Axis Turn 5: April 10 1941 Clear(dry)  The Italians press hard all day into Novograd, and gain ground while reducing the enemy forces.  The British fleet chose to ignore the advancing Italian naval forces in favor of shelling ground troops, and for this, they have been destroyed.  Our fighters show up to the fight and immediately knock out one unit of British Spitfires.  As our core troops cut off the roads from the rest of Greece to Kevalla, the Bulgarians gain back ground at the border.  Air strikes and artillery soften up Kukes and Debar before we take them with ground forces. Blitzkrieg has come to southern Yugoslavia. Allied Turn 5: April 10, 1941  The Italians have taken heavy losses in Greece. Finally they are able to make a strong defensive stand.  Attacks from the Yugoslavians result in only moderate casualties on both sides. Despite our rapid capture of the capital at Belgrade, Yugoslavia remains resolute. We have at least taken control of most of the former Serbia, and the main core force is now poised to strike into Greece. 
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| ← # ? Sep 3, 2015 23:02 |
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