Game Overview June I 41 – Dec II 44

The initial Axis strategy was a for a direct lunge towards Moscow and did not include any moves towards Leningrad. The southern area of the Ukraine east of the Dnieper River was to be taken by default but there was no strategic objective other than a view that Rostov was to be taken at some point to anchor the southern flank. The Axis were able to briefly isolate Moscow in the initial attack which was out of supply for one turn before the rains and increasing Soviet resistance forced a retreat of the German mobile forces west of the Moscow/Tula line. In the winter the Soviets took advantage of the retreat to fortify the Moscow-Tula defences and this line was never subsequently breached by German forces. It formed a dumbbell shaped bulwark against further advances East in the sector. To the north of Moscow the stop line was the Volga canal.

The Soviet Winter counteroffensive had the grand aim of reaching Smolensk from south of Tula and from the overhang of the Axis lines along the Pskov/Dno line. The northern drive made good initial headway against a thin German infantry line but ran out of steam north of Vitebsk. The lager drive east from south of Tula also made initial gains capturing Kursk and reaching a hastily fortified line north around Kharkov but was halted by Axis resistance and the end of the winter. The combined offensive caused damage to the Axis but within a few months of clear weather the Front line was pushed back towards the initial start line.

Exploiting weakness in the Soviet defences around Kalinin the Germans pressed through and strove towards the Vologda in an operation code named “Meat Grinder”. This was seen as vital strategic crossroad occupation of which would place all of Leningrad and Arctic Front forces out of supply and would facilitate the eventual destruction of the northern third of Soviet troops and free Finish forces to participate on the main front to a greater degree.

Frustratingly German forces were unable to reach the ultimate prize of Vologda although came within 32 miles of their objective and for two non-consecutive turns Leningrad and all forces in the north were placed at U-1.

This drive to the north was complimented by a secondary 1942 offensive towards Rostov the aim of which was the capture of the city and the bend of the Don River. This was never intended to be an attempt at a conquest of Stalingrad or the Caucasus. Indeed this drive was intended to draw Soviet Tank reserves and forces away from the main attack in the north. This southern offensive code named as Fishhook as it was to hook around the Soviet defences along the Stailno line towards Rostov. Initial battles caused large losses on the Soviet defenders and pockets were formed but after an initial engagement much of the Soviet armour was withdrawn East.

Fishhook achieved its objectives capturing Rostov and the bend of the river which was subsequently occupied by Rumanian and Hungarian forces and which with German support formed a good bulwark for the next 18 months against Soviet forces. However an ill judged and half-hearted attempt to sever the rail line south of Stalingrad and a move to encircle Rostov south of the Don drew German forces too deep into Soviet territory and embroiled them in battles which bogged them down in the south. The severely hampered their ability to disengage and undermined the aim of the offensive that was to tie up more Soviet tanks than Axis panzers who were therefore not able to provide the extra push needed to secure the northern objective of Meatgrinder. To that degree the operation failed and was a classic case of the unwise strategy of having two divergent objectives.

Despite this Meatgrider came so very close to securing its objectives. However it would be unfair to place the entire failure on poor Axis strategy. Soviet defences proved resolute and in particular an early decision to give no ground north of Moscow proved to be a key element of the successful defence. The fortified line running north along the East bank of the Volga canal system was breached just north of the city and a small German force advanced. However no fort was voluntarily abandoned and this German force was cut off. It battled East and did link with comrades further north but yet more panzers were tied up for no effective gain. Indeed the Soviet counterblow when it came exploited the weakness in the German line following the turmoil of this secondary action and hoarded armour struck northwest across the canal and eventually sealed the fate of the German northern forces.

In the retreat that followed the German swerpunkt lost most of its artillery, a blow from which the German forces never fully recovered. Soviet forces were pressing down from the north simultaneously, squeezing the Axis from north and south. Eventually the Soviets were paused slightly at the original German jump off point at Kalinin.

During this period Soviet forces were less active in the south and were consciously hoarding their strength for a fair-weather offensive in 1943 designed to replicate in essence their failed winter 41 offensive. In the south Axis forces still holding the bend of the Don launched an offensive diving between Stalingrad and Voronezh This ran out of steam and good weather before cutting off the south from the north but did gain the Axis ownership of Voronezh. This was a pyric victory because just as the Germans gained ownership the Soviets launched their 1943 summer Offensive.

Throughout the winter and despite Axis pressure at Voronezh the Soviets had carefully hoarded tank and mechanised strength including all the upgraded tank units and specifically the Guards Tank and most artillery corps.

The attack when launched gained the Soviets the Strategic initiative that carried them ultimately to the gates of Warsaw.

The initial attacks hit a strong fortified Axis line behind rivers for much of its length south of Moscow and then across open steppe to the newly conquered Voronezh and then along the Don. North of Moscow the line extends from Kalinin then east/West to Pskov and Narva. During the period above the Axis hold on Moscow itself has slipped from 5 hexes to 2.

After a few turns of resistance the river line south of Moscow was breached in a number of places and then followed many turns of Panzer groups acting as fire brigades attacking and holding any bridgeheads west of the river. Inevitably the infantry support was stripped away and the German forces were increasingly unable to form sufficient reserves to continue this defence as more and more mobile units are pulled into the front line. South of Tula a large bulge developed extending to Kursk and running East/West to Voronezh. This sector saw swirling tank battled across the steppe as first the Soviets, then the Axis achieve breakthroughs, penetrations and destruction of enemy assets. Inevitably the Axis line became more and more stretched as the Soviets pushed west until the line snapped at the junction of AGC and AGS. West of Kursk the gap opened up and Soviets poured through. Trying to maintain a good defence around Kharkov the Axis were slow to react. The dilemma for AGS was when to evacuate the Don river defence line. The effective ¼ erring of the generally weak Soviets on the front was kept in check by the Minor Axis with a leavening of German divisions but once the Don was evacuated the Soviet hoards poured over the river and were able to snipe away at the retreating Axis, first the Donets line then the Stalino line were breached and the bulk of Axis Allied forces destroyed in the retreat West. The winter weather prevented a speedy retreat and kept the forces in contact with the advancing Soviets. Sufficient forces survive to form a new defence at the Dnieper.

To the north the advance from Kursk has taken the Soviets over the Dnepr at Cherkassy where a bridged was established.

Meanwhile in the north the advance directly West from Moscow traps a large number of units south of Smolensk but AGC manages to exfiltrate most of its major assets. Nevertheless a large advance is made by the Soviets across the plains south of Smolensk. The northern Soviet prong of the attack was stalled for a long time just north of Vitebsk but the city finally falls and the two drives merge around Orsha by which time Riga has fallen and the Germans hold the river line from the coast to the Vitebsk.

The last significant Axis territory grab is now played out around Daugavpils where German forces mount a counter offensive aimed at cutting of the Soviet forces at Riga and driving to Narva. Airborne troops and armoured thrusts just fail to close the gap and having learned from 3 years of total war the Soviet response is quick a decisive. Within 2 months German units are back at their jump of points. The eastern “Battle of the Bulge” is over.

The final phase sees a constant and inevitable advance of Soviet forces to the Western map edge. Some highlights relive the pressure for the German forces such as the counterattack at Bialystok

But the relentless Western advance of the Soviets can only be temporally halted in places, barely slowed and certainly not stopped.

Meanwhile back in the south swirling tank battles destroy the cream of the Wehrmacht around Cherkassy and Kiev. The resultant collapse and annihilation of AGS brings the Soviets rapidly to the Rumanian boarders and Lvov. Here a temporary pause of a month is or so allows some regrouping as the Soviets outrun supplies and the Axis can concentrate to man the foreshortened front but soon the assaults continue apace until the fall of Bucharest and the assaults on Warsaw. The war in the East ends with the Axis having a shallow toe hold along the Western map edge.

The Arctic campaign follows a similar pace with the Finns deciding not to retake the Karelian isthmus but driving East, a decision they will later regret as the Soviets slice north to block the retreat of their eastern troops. Ever so briefly they cut the Murmansk line at the same time as Meatgrinder reaches its zenith but are then driven back by Soviet reinforcements. The Soviets decide to excise the boil and assign a number of Tank corps to a 1943 offensive into Finland which the Fins and the single panzer division in theatre are powerless to resist. In the far north German forces enjoy early successes against Murmansk and take the city but with the Finish collapse in the south and early surrender are soon harried across a wide front and forced to withdraw. The Kautokeino line holds for many months but Soviet build up is relentless and with few troops to spare Axis resistance is barely sufficient. However a withdrawal to the pinch point at the Swedish/Norwegian border holds the Soviets to the end of the game denying them the prize of Narvik.

Supporting Documentation

For those interested in such matters I have filed a spreadsheet containing the battle and loss statistics for the game. I also include a few play aids I have developed to speed/aid game play.

These comprise;

  • A general crib sheet coding various rules in table form.
  • A Reinforcement and Replacement sheet for each side enabling paper recording of replacements, A Rail capacities and Air force levels Chart (I find counters on the tracks can get knocked or mixed up and paper recording a more robust method)
  • I also include a “Upgrade and missed OB events chart.” As presented, this is simply a grid where players can record missed conversion events and especially keep track of permissible upgrades/conversions, their cost etc. (I have dallied with the idea of typing out all such events with a check box sheet(s) but this remains a future project)

Final Commentary.

It has some months since the final dice roll and the almost daily ritual of going upstairs to the games room and playing a part or whole player turn in an evening. The game was started in April 2018 so has been a part of my life ever since with few weeks passing without a turn being played or a report written. It is certainly a very good discipline to play; knowing there is report to write and hoping there is an audience to read. I trust it has been interesting to those who have followed this AAR and that there have not been too many rules infractions. To this I am indebted to the number of you who have posted words of encouragement and have corrected me where things have gone awry. I trust therefore the play through has been an accurate reflection of a game played as designed and that few if any distortions have occurred due to rules violations. That is not to say tactics and strategies have been optimal, far from it, and there have been blunders and lost opportunities on both sides. Such are the fortunes of war.

Finally I would like to thank the designers and developers who have produced such a fine game system as Europa. FITE/SE remains my favourite East Front game, unsurpassed in elegance and flexibility. A basic system loaded with well researched detail and a just the right amount of chrome that does not subvert the basic system beneath an impenetrable morass of exceptions, special rules and complications. Europa manages to achieve its aims by game design not weight of rules. One such example is the absence of Reserve Rules. An East Front game without reserves? But play the game and you will soon find that a player who does not have a reserve to plug gaps in the defence or exploit a breakthrough will fare far worse than the player who does, no special rules just elegant design.

Thank you.