Tag: March to Victory (Page 3 of 5)

Winter and snow hit the entire maps. The British have four divisions and an artillery unit in each of their eight front line corps. The French have managed to build a front line of three divisions per corps and some artillery spread out along the front. The Italians have three or four divisions in most of their front line.

Tom: Another quiet turn before the fury of a Central Powers offensive. I truly expect him to attack the French line at some point. I know he is massing reserves behind the lines in several points, almost all of his artillery is out of the front line and I know he has pulled back some of his rifle divisions too. I can do nothing but build up my front line and hope that I am ready when it comes.

The Central Powers have created a reserve army (Str/C) based around three corps (3, 10, and 13 Wur). Six artillery divisions, all of the available assault engineers, and the majority of the heavier rifle divisions are part of it. It is massed in the Metz area and will be able to deploy quickly anywhere on the French front by rail. The idea is that two of the corps replace two defending corps which consolidate their three divisions with the corps adjacent to them. These two adjacent corps are then reinforced by the third reserve corps which becomes the single reserve corps for the offensive. With sufficient manpower and equipment points in the replacement pool, this should be able to sustain an attack on the Entente for several turns.

The Central Powers defensive line in France is three divisions per corps. In Austria, the defensive line varies depending on the terrain it is defending. The Germans have not yet pulled out, but there is the possibility of some shifts because of supply restrictions.

Carl: A quiet turn with one or more to come. It is time for rebuilding and formulating new plans. I think my new attack will come in the Jan II 16 or Feb I 16 turn. This gives me a few turns of attacking before the Entente (and myself) get a production cycle to build up more replacements. I am still not sure where I will attack, although it will probably be against the French.

Frost in the Alps and Winter in the rest of the maps. The British get four more New Army divisions, enough to replace the loss of the Indian divisions and the 28th Rifle division that are beginning to be pulled out of the line and sent elsewhere. The French do some minor realignment of their defenses while the Italians sit pretty still. The Italians use their Ca 2 and successfully hit the Austrian factory at Triest again. A massive (!) air raid is staged by the French, using Cau G4s and a Cau G3 in an attempt to bomb the German factory at Antwerpen. One Cau G4 is aborted by a patrol mission while the CAP mission by the Fok E1 over Antwerpen is unsuccessful. AA fire aborts the second Cau G4 and the mission becomes a scrub as the Cau G3 has only a single bomb point, not good enough to matter. (Actually all three bomb points would not have mattered since they would have been halved due to the winter weather!)

Tom: A slight mistake with the French air mission – nothing serious though, I have the ARPs to rebuild them. I think the next few turns will go fast as I have nothing planned and Carl seems to be in a build up phase. I will have to watch out in January, 1916 but that will give me a few months to build up some reserves of my own. The French mutiny will release a division or two from Paris in January, so that will help also.

The Central Powers pull back extra units into their reserve. The Zepplins terrorize London for the tenth hit! It is otherwise a very quiet turn.

The Italians just miss hitting the Austrian factory again.

Carl: A quiet turn and probably at least a few more in the near future. The air battle was fun – our first other than AA – even if it turned out to be unnecessary. I am building up my reserves, some of my best rifle and artillery divisions. I am not sure where they will be committed, but it sure seems to worry Tom!

There is now mud everywhere. The normal rifle divisions are no longer able to move up to the defensive line as reserves, so only the light divisions will now be held in reserve by the Entente. The other divisions and artillery are moved into the front lines to support the defense.

The Zepplins succeed for their eighth terror hit on London.

Tom: A quiet turn. The coming of bad weather is good for its negative DRMs to the Central Powers, but bad because of the problems in moving up reserves. The Central Powers appear to have a shortage in resource points at the moment and that will probably save me from any attacks this turn.

The Zepplins hit London yet again (that makes nine!). In exchange, the Italians use their Ca 2 bomber and succeed in hitting the Austrian Factory at Triest. The Central Powers do their reorganization for the winter.

Carl: A lack of extra resource points have stopped any thoughts of offensive actions. I have spent another resource point for a fort against those pesky British. There is no real pressing need to attack the Italians at the moment. Just a quiet turn for both sides.

Mud has started in the Alps. The French manage to recover from instability. The Entente pulls units back and begins to configure the defensive line for bad weather by pulling their light divisions into reserve, sending other units to the front line for more defensive factors. The rest of the French garrison artillery is mobilized and the Italians disband a large majority of their field artillery.

The Zepplins hit London again for their seventh terror bombing – the British will never see any of their fighters if this keeps up!

Tom: The past turn has been very rough for the Entente. The bright side is that the French have recovered from instability and things should start to settle down as winter approaches. The British are in good shape but they are limited by their three Army HQs in the line that they can take over. They are about stretched as far as they can go at the moment.

The Central Powers reorganizes their lines for better defense. The German 4th Army attacks the French 1 Colonial Corps by Toul and achieves a BX result. Another attack on Epinal by the German 6th Army results in the routing of the French defenders and Epinal falls. The German Alps Corps attacks the Italians and manages a BX result despite extreme mismanagement of the attack.

The Central Powers lost 32 German, 8 Bavarian Manpower and 36 Equipment Points. The Entente lost 20 Italian, 16 French Metropolitan, 10 French Colonial Manpower and 26 Equipment Points.

Carl: Another French fortress falls, bringing the French down to 75 morale points left. I could possibly cause a French collapse by the spring of 1916. The two fortresses that are left for me to attack easily are Belfort and Reims. Both will be difficult to attack and win, but the French cannot afford to lose them. The British are too strong and will probably have the NW advantage before too long. I think I have gotten as much as I can in Italy, it is time to stop my attacks down there for now. It is only a manpower and resource point drain without very many benefits. I succeeded in forcing the Italians back from Trent and Triest and back across the Isonzo. I am happy with the current situation there.

The British and French move up to their attack positions. The Italians entrench some more units. The French bombard the Germans near Reims and disrupts the three defending divisions. The Germans rush up three reserve divisions to bolster the defense. Foch comes through for the French and they end up with a BX result – another victory for the proud French army! (Only in their minds – the French lost 10 morale points while the Germans lost 6. A few more “victories” like this and the French will surrender!) The British assault the Germans at Lens, a precious coal site for the Germans. The resulting DX is a victory for the British and the Entente player breathes a sigh of relief.

The Bavarian 6^th Army reacts with an assault on Toul. Even though it is across the river and canal for two of the attacking corps, the French end up suffering a DD result. Toul falls to the German assault and the French have been reduced to a NW of 1! The French fail their check and are shaken (along with the French Mutiny). This combat has also seen the first air unit aborted by enemy action, a Drachen Observation balloon unit was aborted by anti-aircraft fire while attempting to perform the tactical recon mission. The German Alps Corps attacks the Italian entrenched line and gets a BX result. The losses reduces the Italian NW to 2. The Austrians now attack the Italians, recapturing Gorz and pushing another Italian Corps back over the Isonzo.

Entente losses were 58 French Metropolitan, 16 Italian, 7 Canadian, 5 British, 4 French Colonial Manpower and 51 Equipment Points. The Central Powers lost 58 German, 6 Wurttemburg, 5 Saxon Manpower and 21 Equipment Points.

Tom: I have been taking a chance with the French each turn and now it has cost me. The fall of Toul to an assault that quickly was a shocker. (During the reaction combat phase too!) Although there was some luck involved, the timing is deadly. With the French failing to make their instability check, they are now halved in attack until they recover during a future friendly initial phase. This lets the Germans concentrate on their other enemies and they could pull troops from their reserves against the French and use them against the British or Italians. This could be the turn that wins the game for the Central Powers.

The Germans replace their losses while funneling more troops to their possible breakthrough in Toul. The Germans on the Italian front are pulled back to receive replacements. Another Zeppelin raid on London scores another terror hit – that makes six now. The attempt to open a breakthrough near Toul fails with the Bavarians having two divisions cadred (AP result). An assault on Epinal is stopped with light losses on both sides (DX result). The Italian’s last corps over the Isonzo is forced back by an Austrian attack.

The French 3^rd Army is able to react and reinforce the French Corps defending the Toul breakthrough. The British 3^rd Army reacts and continues its assault on Lens. The British suffer heavy casualties without much progress.

The Central Powers lost 18 Bavarian, 12 German, 8 Austrian, 6 Wurttemburg, 5 Saxon Manpower and 18 Equipment Points. The Entente lost 40 British, 12 Italian, 10 Indian, 8 French Metropolitan, 6 Canadian Manpower and 42 Equipment Points.

Carl: The failed British attack in the Reaction Combat Phase definitely salvaged my portion of the turn for me. My Reaction Combat Phase during the Entente turn made this the most successful turn since almost a game year ago for me. The fall of Lille is probably the only thing that was more important for my war effort. The French are shaken in game turns and Tom is shaken in his own morale. I could not take advantage of the fall of Toul and the attack on Epinal definitely shook Tom. I almost had as good of a chance against that fortress that I had against Toul. I think both of us have been surprised by the effectiveness of attacking entrenched troops. We may not take the hex, but the attrition and morale loss has frequently been in favor of the attacker. I am beginning to get troops back from the Eastern front. This may make a large difference, I do not know yet. The Austrians have started sending troops to the Balkans for a large push against Serbia, so I think allowing the Italian front to settle down for the Winter is a good idea. The French are enticing, especially since the failed British attack has severely limited their ability to support the French. I will probably continue to attack in the Toul-Epinal area for a while and see if it pays off.

The war enters its second year. The Italians do a massive mobilization of their artillery and there will be a large amount of Entente equipment points available next turn. The British continue to consolidate their new defensive line while the French continue to move their new reserves south. The Italians manage to entrench their two corps holding the Germans back from the plains. It will now be trench warfare in the south too.

The Central Powers fail to react with anyone.

Tom: I hope to build up my artillery forces for both the French and Italians with the large store of equipment points. I will also be disbanding the French field artillery and the 1-3-5 infantry brigades to get more equipment and manpower points for the French. That is something I have noticed in the game, the Entente actually has more equipment points available because of mobilizing all of the garrison artillery than the Central Powers do. Carl seems to spend all of his equipment points on reorganizations rather than rebuilding lost units. An interesting development.

The Central Powers shift an artillery division to the Italian front along with two more divisions. The French front sees the maneuvering of engineering brigades and resource points into position to build some forts at strategic places along the line. The Austrians and Germans prepare to attack the Italians at the weaker spots of the defensive line.

The attack by the German Alps Corps against the Italian 3^rd Corps entrenched in the Italian plain demonstrates the benefits of entrenchments to the Italians. The Austrians, however, force the Italian 1^st Hv Cavalry Corps to retreat from the source of the Isonzo river and threatens to surround the Italian 11^th Corps near Villach.

The Entente is unable to react.

The losses are 25 German Manpower Points versus 11 Italian Manpower Points.

Carl: The Austrian success will force the Italians to retreat further, perhaps even to pull back behind the Isonzo River. The German attack was unfortunate, but it still bloodies the Italians. I am not sure if the Artillery Division will be very helpful, although the opportunity to bombard the Italians with a +1 DRM could prove to be very interesting. I will begin to build forts along the French front in some of the more vital hexes (such as Nancy, near Reims, and in the British sector). This may dissuade Tom from further attacks, although he really does have to gain some sort of offensive punch to keep me occupied there. I can understand why the Central Powers spent most of 1915 involved in the Eastern Front – unfortunately I do not have the benefits of being able to do things there to keep the game interesting. Trench warfare with a stalemate makes for a boring game. It is sometimes difficult to put plans together for an offensive. I shall have to work on putting one on, probably against a French fortress – probably an early Verdun. The resource points needed for such an offensive are very hard to come by. Equipment points are even more scarce for the Central Powers.

he British transfer four more divisions to the French Front. The British 3^rd Army is created and the British have extended their defensive front from the Channel to La Fere. The French transfer the relieved troops back to the Arras area for now. The Italians are forced to pull back from their attempt to cut the supply line to Trent and have dug fieldworks on the plains of Italy to aid in their defense against the German Alps Corps.

The Central Powers are not able to react in any meaningful way.

Tom: I have decided to hold off with a British offensive for the moment. They just do not have the necessary manpower reserves to truly do well. The French have exhausted their reserves and could use the four full corps that defended between the British and the channel. This will make a more cohesive front for the British and the French. Hopefully, the new Italian position will be able to hold the German offensive back until the entrenchments are done – although if Carl really wants to throw everyone down to Italy, the Italians may not last long. At least the French are getting a breather from the constant attacks. This is a nice thing and a major worry off of my mind.

The Zepplins attack London successfully once more! This is the third morale hit for the Zepplin fleet and the British would have to transfer a fighter to the English Garrison – if they had any! The main front in France is stable but the Central Powers advance in Italy continues with the Austrians taking the ground vacated by the Italian pullback near Trent. Now it comes down to whether the Germans will be able to continue their advance into the plains of Italy.

There are no attacks and the Entente does some minor troops shifting during the reaction phase.

Carl: A very interesting turn although no combat took place. The British have extended their lines so I do not expect an offensive from them very soon. They have no reserve divisions and very few manpower points. The new French reserve from the northern corps will be able to bolster the French forces in quite a few areas. This may put hold on any of my plans for attacking the French and wearing them down. The true focus is now developing into the Italian campaign. I have another two divisions in place (for a total of five) with some good mountain support troops that the Italians will be hard pressed to defeat. I can afford to lose a hex or two with these troops without endangering the Austrians. If I can drive down to the Adriatic, the Italians will have to withdraw from across the Isonzo River or lose the major portion of their army.

The French build in preparation for their attack. The British decide to delay their offensive until the new divisions are formed next turn. They are just spread too thin to really manage any type of concentration. The Italians manage to form a defensive line and pull back from hex GW2:4606 to shorten their line and be in better defensive territory.

The French offensive begins with a lengthy artillery bombardment which succeeds in disrupting two of the three defending divisions, but the Germans manage to reinforce with three reserve divisions. The attack goes home on a 2.8:1 DRM -1 (Foch’s doing – great French leadership!) and achieves a BX result. The Germans lose 30 German and 12 Saxon Manpower Points and the French lose 54 French Metropolitan and 8 French African Manpower Points. In addition, the Germans lost 6 morale points while the French lost 9.

The Austrians react and follow the Italians as they retreat near Triest. The German GAE/B Army HQs reacts and the Alps Corps attacks part of the Italian defensive line and eliminates it, opening a hole in the line. The Italians lose 6 Italian Manpower and 2 Equipment Points.

Tom: I figured that I might be crazy to attack the Central Powers but it turned out as well as I could expect. The French will not be able to maintain these losses – particularly in morale – so the French offensive may be over now. Hopefully, the attack will make Carl hesitate a bit more before stripping too much from the Western Front. The continued offensive in Italy has me worried. I think the Italians will have to withdraw from their attempts to cut off supply from Trent. It was not going anywhere too fast anyway.

The French are almost able to replace all of their lost strength from their offensive. The Zepplins strike and actually manage to bomb London successfully! It has been a long time since their last success. The Central Powers keeps all of their equipment points in reserve but use their new manpower points to rebuild cadred divisions. Some resource points are expended on rebuilding captured coal fields.

The Alps Corps moves a division through the gap in the Italian lines and captures the Italian 3 Army HQs, destroying two resource points. The Corps then attacks and forces back an Italian Corps. The Alps Corps has now reached the Italian plains with two divisions holding the edge of the Alps. There were no losses in the attack to either side.

Neither the French nor the Italians are able to react.

Carl: The French offensive was instructive. A low odds attack with a negative DRM, yet it was still successful. I know he was hoping I would have to react stronger to his attack, but the Italian front beckoned – especially with his unguarded Army HQs with two resource points. The Italians are now in a fix. They will probably have to retreat from the Trent area and this will open up a rail supply line for my Germans and Bavarians. I am not sure, but he may have to withdraw from Triest also because I am threatening to cut off their supplies. I have two more divisions ready to head south (I received them from the Eastern Front this turn as cadres) and that should aid in a drive to the coast near Mestre. The Entente may have to ship troops to Italy from France to help the Italians.

The French and British move their troops around in a reorganization that may enable them to launch an offensive. The Italians also reorganize, pulling the 1^st Army from the north western side of Trent and help defend the front against the German Alp Corps. Cadres in the 6^th and 7^th Corps pull back from the front to rebuild. The Italians do manage to form a line of defense along the border against the German’s threat, but there are no troops available for attacking anywhere.

The Bavarian 6^th Army reacts and attacks the French 8^th Corps again. The French reinforce the hex with a single division and suffer a BX result. The French 8^th Corps is left with three divisional cadres left to hold the hex. Losses are 22 Bavarian Manpower Points versus 17 French Manpower and 7 Equipment Points.

Tom: I am crazy, I am actually planning to launch an offensive with both the French near Reims and the British near Le Fere. After production next turn, I hope to be able to afford some bombardments and actual attacks on these two locations. It will probably result in BX results, but it will sting Carl and maybe catch him by surprise. We shall see.

The Italians look like they will be able to hold onto their gains. At least, they look like that now. We shall have to see what Carl really has planned down there. The DRM in favor of the Germans could help him throw the Italians down to NW of 2 and give some support to the Austrians in the area. Of course, the Austrians are probably going to go down to a NW of 2 soon due to out of theater losses. This should at least keep the majority of the combat equal.

The Central Powers ship reserve divisions from the Lille area to aid the 6^th Bavarian Army’s offensive. German units of the Alps Corps move into the northern portions of Italy and prepare to attack the Italian defenders.

The Alps Corps attacks the Italian 3^rd Corps destroying the Corps. The 6^th Bavarian Army continues its offensive against the French 8^th Corps (back up to one full division and two cadres due to replacements). The French decline to reinforce or expend combat supply. (Why throw away more brigade/cadre level troops and lose the additional morale points?) The 9:1 +2 DRM attack succeeds with the destruction of the defending forces and the hex is captured by the Bavarians without loss. This exposes the fortress at Toul to three hexes of attacking Central Powers Corps.

Combat losses are 7 German Manpower Points versus 6 Italian, 5 French Metro, and 13 Equipment Point losses.

The French 6^th Army reacts and sends three of the reserve divisions to aid the French 2^nd Army against the Bavarian attack.

Carl: I suspect that Tom is up to something with the French and British. Too much French heavy artillery concentrating near Reims and the reserve buildup there is a large percentage of his reserves. The Bavarian attack was more successful than I had hoped – I have actually captured a hex! The French were caught off guard and too many reserves are near Reims for them to have responded well. I suspect that the French will attack during this next turn to draw off my Bavarian offensive. I am almost in a good position to start using Toul as another French manpower and morale drain – something I think Tom is very worried about. I think he will have to try and recapture the hex from me before I have time to settle down and dig in – this should keep him from too much mischief.

The Alps Corps attack into Italy was successful – a small (very small) corps has been destroyed. This is also something to play with Tom’s mind with. Now he has to consolidate the Italians in defensive positions – possibly giving up some of his captured ground near Triest – or my Alps Corps will just be able to munch on too many small Italian units and possibly reach the Italian plains.

The British prepare to relieve one more hex from the French in northern France. The Italians divert a corps of light troops to protect the flank of the 4^th Army. The 3^rd Army prepares to attack the Trient supply line once more.

The Italian 3^rd Army attacks and is beaten back with losses. The Italians lose 28 Manpower points.

Tom: If it weren’t for bad luck. Another roll of 1 causes an AP result. The Italians are stymied and it really looks as though the Germans will be declaring war in their initial phase. Carl has too many resources gathered for the entry of Austria for him not to be getting ready for that. Depending on how aggressive he is, the Italians may have to fall back and defend with the 4^th Army.

The Austrians are heavily reinforced from the east and the units are rushed into the defense around Triest. The Germans declare war on Italy and advance the Alpen Corps into the gap between the Italian 3^rd and 4^th Armies.

The Bavarian 6^th Army reinforces and attacks just south of Toul. The French manage to reinforce the attacked corps with divisions and a brigade. The defenders manage to hold. The French 2^nd Army is able to react and reinforce the devastated corps while pulling back the divisional cadres for rebuilding. The Central Powers lost 31 Bavarian Manpower Points while the Entente lost 20 French Metro Manpower and 11 Equipment Points.

Carl: I decided to declare war on Italy, perhaps it will force the Italians to withdraw from Triest and have the Entente reinforce them with British or French troops. The quick attack near Toul with the Bavarian 6^th Army is to keep Tom on his toes. The attack occurred out of the blue with artillery divisions, engineers, and resource points railroading in from other points in the front. The damage to the French was not overly dangerous, but all of the French reserves in the area have been used up temporarily. I will have to wait and see how Tom responds to this action before I decide whether to continue my offensive there or not.