Initial Phase
With a 3 rolled it remains mud in D and clear in zone E. In the Atlantics storms roll in with a 6 rolled, while to the south and east in the Med, the clouds kick up rough seas (5 rolled.)
Supply issues remain much the same as last turn. Five hexes north of Madrid are OOS, with 3 units going U-4 black but receiving supply via GSPs cartaged last turn. Another unit is U-2 red, while ‘edge’ units and the cartaging XX are U-1 red. In the south btw Teruel and the Aragon front 2 more hexes w/1 unit each are U-1 red, as is one hex NW of Teruel. For the loyalists, just one hex NW of Teruel is U-1 black. After GSPs are used to put units into supply the on map ones are removed, and 2 more generated at Zaragoza while 3 are generated at Valladolid.
A goodly number of cities are fully pacified this turn, including San Sebastian (which gains its intrinsic garrison thereby), Ubeda, Puertollano, Ciudad Real and Valdepenas. To the rear, Osuna and Talavera have units begin pacification (Cadiz Fal X and 7th Cav respectively.)
In reinforcements and replacements, the 1st and 2nd LE Inf III’s are replaced at Caceres, having been used for XX builds. They are each then used again to form the 1st and 2nd Avila Inf XX’s, which are in turn equipped, at all the cost of 5 Nat and 1 Art RP. The 20 GC Sec III and ZMO Eng III, killed defending the airfield NW of Toledo in the Loyalist turn, are rebuilt at Sevilla and Valladolid respectively.
At 2714 the 2nd Soria XX begins entrenching. No air declarations are made by either side.
Movement Phase
In naval mov’t, the 3 NT’s with an AS aboard at Sevilla unload, and then move to Ceuta, where they wait to join with other naval units. The CATF uses the first substep to replenish, then waits. The three CTV SS units all move to Ceuta and then replenish. Twenty nmps into the 2nd step, the CATF and NT’s form one group, while the SS’s form a 2nd, both groups travelling together to 3111 at night, and then in the 3rd step running to 3511 at night, then towards Palma within reaction range of the enemy CLTF at Cartagena. The Loyalists ignore this grand fleet (any reaction for combat would require the CLTF to fight the 6 pts of subs ‘screening’ the Insurgent surface units first, as submarine combat proceeds surface.) The AS at Palma is loaded, and then the whole group proceeds to head back west, reaching 24:2409 before the naval portion of the move phase is completed.
In Aragon, ground mov’t is limited. The weak 1 pt line along the Cinca remains in place. Thirty miles west of Lerida, the ZC Eng III rails into 4429, allowing the 2nd Mech III to cross the Ebro in the mud to the rail line. It can be railed back west later from this point. 3rd Mad XX moves into 4630, establishing a strong defensive unit at the bend in the line where the Insurgent line goes from running SW to W. In turn, 16L Art & 10 GC Sec III’s shift 15 miles westward into the wooded rough, improving defense in that key piece of terrain. An Eng III shifts west, and the 18th Inf III pulls out of the line for movement elsewhere in Spain next turn. SE and NW of Teruel units do a supply shuffle, and while 5th Mtn II is added to the defense of 3303, by and large the area around Teruel remains static. East of Guadalajara the Hue and 3rd Soria XX’s switch about, taking position in 2606 and 2706, where they can begin the slow process of entrenching next turn. NW of Madrid, more supply shuffling goes on at the edges of the supply dead zone, while the ZMO Eng at Valladolid admin cartages GSPs forward (after the Mxd T attempts to drop GSPs from Zaragoza, with both again being scattered). 2nd Madrid XX moves into the line at 2410. The mountains in 2410 are held weakly with a single point, while two mtn II’s rail into Avila from Santander province to join the 10th Cav already there. Unfortunately they can’t quite reach 2313, so the mtns west of Avila are left undefended for the moment. 2nd Cav backs out of 2513 to defend the mountains at 2413, so the gap is at least limited to a single hex. On the otherhand, 1st Madrid XX and the strong 1 P Art III move into 2513, while the 2nd Avila XX and 4 Lar Col Inf III are railed into Talavera and then move east a hex into the front line, joined by the 15L art from 2513. 7th Bdr III moves to 2614, and then 1stAvila XX is railed to Talavera, moving overland to 2714, where it is joined by the 26th III and the CTV’s Ter Art III and Bab Lt Arm II. The PA salient at 2613 from last turn’s battle is pinched off and ready to be counterattacked next phase. 1 AS is already in Talavera, ready for just this purpose.
South of Talavera, 2nd Soria XX and some smaller units west of the Guadiana move up to re-engage the retreating Loyalist line. The smaller units engage the PA’s 40th III, which couldn’t quite make the main line. They are assisted by the Van Inf XX, which shifts north a hex into this area from Ciudad Real. Along the Valdepenas front 4 strong stacks of attacking units form up for continued attacks into the Loyalist line that is constantly being pressured. Two Loyalist stacks with hard to replace units are targeted, including one with the 12th Garibaldi X (an international X) and an Art III, and one with the 1st Mech III and the PA’s strong 1st Art III (a 1-2-6). To the rear, a Sec and Col Inf III admin cartage some AS forward, while SMPs are used as well. Only 2 AS can be moved to Linares or just east of that town, but they should be sufficient to feed the better units in the upcoming combat phase. Down in southeast Andalucia, the line remains basically the same. A temp airfield at Almeria is completed however.
In the north, the Nationalist line remains essentially the same. Only some minor shuffling occurs to make up for the loss of the 2 Mtn II’s sent to Avila. 7 SMPs are used to move 1 res pt from Oviedo to 30 miles southeast of Leon. The current plan is to move the res pt to Valladolid, for a later permanent rail cap build at the RMY there. Of truly minor note, the 31st III continues gaining ownership of unowned hexes in northern Asturias.
Combat Phase
The phase starts with the PA air force flying DAS with Bre19s to 3513 to protect the Garibaldi group, escorted by I-16’s. The CTV CR.32bis is in position to intercept, but I don’t wish to put the unit at risk of being damaged in air to air (or bypassing) since the DAS was presumed and accounted for. The KL He51 and Mxd B floatplanes fly GS to the same hex, essentially canx’ing the DAS.
The first combat goes very well, east of Talavera. The PA’s 21st X is smashed to pieces by a combined arms assault including CTV Arm and Artillery units, Nat Inf XX’s, Nat Art III’s and a Col Inf III (6:1 even, 6 RE’s supply plus the CTV inherent attack supply, no PA morale effects with a 5 rolled, 1 pt GS from Bre19, 6 rolled for combat for a DE.) All Insurgent units west and northwest of 2613 advance, putting 7 pts of DS into the hex, no doubt sufficient to end the Loyalist offensive in this area.
Next, the 40th Inf III at 3014 is killed, albeit not without giving a good account of itself (5:1 -1, 2 rolled for morale, so no effect thanks to rough terrain, no AS provided, ½ pt DAS and 2 pts GS, 2 rolled for an HX, a shame since a DR would have resulted in a zoc kill.) 1st Sev Fal X is killed to absorb the HX, while three 1 pt unsupported units move into the hex.
The next attack goes in at 3513. If cleared and then 3412 is successful, even with just a DR, another c/m raid can be launched in exploit. The attack at 3513 is successful, eliminating the Garibaldi and the 1 L Art III, units requiring rare RPs to replace, albeit again at the cost of more Insurgent infantry, in this case, the 4th and 5th Lt Inf II’s (4:1 even, partial AS provided to the larger units, 3 rolled for no PA morale effect, a 2nd 2 rolled for combat for another HX.) The 3rd Ceu Col Inf III, 2nd and 3rd Lt Inf II’s and E Art III advance into the hole in the Loyalist lines. Unfortunately, the PA’s 1st Mech manages to fight yet another successful delaying action along this portion of the front (5:1 -3, no morale as both units are non-militia, partial AS provided to the better units, a 3rd 2 rolled, for an AS… the 2nd time this PA unit has been involved in a battle with an AS result.) Unable to clear this hex, the KL c/m II’s that were poised to launch another raid behind the Loyalist line are stymied, as they couldn’t return to the lines by the end of exploit without this wooded hex in Insurgent hands. This is indeed a shame, as Albacete had naught but a single pt of pos flak and an attack supply point in it. The KL would easily have destroyed them both and then returned unscathed, while putting a crimp on the loyalist supply situation as well thanks to pacification issues. Drat.
The PA I-16’s return to Albacete, while the PA Bre19 returns to west Madrid. The Nat Bre19 returns to Caceres, while the He51 returns to the 3414 temp field and the Mxd B (f) to Almeria.
Exploitation Phase
In naval movement the CTV subs and CATF return to Ceuta and wait, with the subs eventually returning to station of Cartagena in the 10th substep. The NT’s move to Sevilla, unload the AS point they are carrying, then move to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, where they replenish and await their next opportunity to move attack supply to the front.
In ground mov’t the Dro Lt Arm II remains at 3313, unable to raid. The 88th Lt AA does shift from 3313 to 3513, the hole in the Loyalist line that was punched in the first attack in this area. This will bring the defense of the hex up to 6 pts and add some flak as well. In the east the 2nd Mech III moves one hex along the rail toward Zaragoza, slogging through mud.
In the air, the CR32bis and the Ju52g4e launch airbase bombing raids against the Bre19 just returned to west Madrid. Both get by flak, but neither manages to gain a hit. This then ends the Insurgent turn.
This is as far as my current AAR carries me, even though we are currently playing the Loyalist Jul I 37 turn. Now I’ve got my inducement to start writing again J More to follow!
