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Yes, hence the part of the story where Speer accelerates production of the ME-262 and HE-193 and has Werner Von Braun's team move from making rockets to improving turbojet engines. I am now presently intercepting and inflicted massive losses on bombing runs (as I mentioned in the main narration).
Sadly, no. See, my game has actually progressed to November of 1944 and has have many events happen. I'm simply going back and writing about my strategies and successes in a narrative story form at a rate of a few per week. Any screenies I could give you right now won't be relevant to the AAR.
[size=+1]August 18, 1944[/size]
The days in Hammerfest, close to the Arctic Circle, are dawning less and less, making Kesselring's job increasingly easy since all he has to do is dig in and keep the approaches to his lines well-lit. The increasing amount of darkness is favoring the defenders even as the howling winds drop the temperature well below freezing. Most importantly for Rundsteadt, the Arctic darkness is holding the northernmost Soviet armies in place, leaving his diversionary force to continue their march to Leningrad with the pursuers being drawn further and further away from the Danzig Line. The first real battle for the diversionary force happens within sight of the strategically-significant city when hastily-assembled militia attempts to flank them and inflict serious damage but more importantly, delay them so that the pursuers, much larger in number can strike their rear. The militia action fails, however, as they are enveloped by the crack infantry drawn from successes in France and Italy against the Western Allies. Traveling slowly but without a large number of fuel-hungry vehicles, the advance soldiers of the force start into the edges of the city by the 22nd of the month and prepare themselves to hold on and keep the pursuing forces, and some diverted from the offensive in Finland, in a suicidal hold until Rundsteadt pulls the trigger on his own offensive.
In the south, Rundsteadt decides to call General Franz Halder back into service out of the retirement Hitler had placed him in towards the end of 1942. Despite Hitler's belief that Halder was a "defeatist", Rundsteadt knew that the man had a good strategic intellect and would be the perfect field commander for the large Grecian garrison that he wished to slam into the southernmost edge of the Red Army. By August 21st, Halder is in command of the southern forces and Rundstead has divided responsibility for the Danzig Line between his own 2nd Army Group in the north and the 1st Army Group, commanded by the highly competent Erich von Manstein, in the south. All is in preparation but timing will be critical: by now, the German commanders are entertaining no illusions about the skill of Zhukov and Rundsteadt knows that the only way for this plan to succeed is for the Soviet marshal to be looking the wrong way when the attack hits. August 28th brings the first stage of the plan to catch Zhukov's attention and hold it: Army Group Greece hits the trailing edge of the upward-swinging Red Army, crushing it by the end of the day and rolling towards the Polesti oil fields of occupied Romania, directly threatening the closest source of fuel supplies for the Soviets. Since his reconnaisance planes (the ones that manage to return from German airspace under increasingly tight control of advanced Luftwaffe fighter jets) give him confidence that the Germans are not massing to take advantage of the diversion, Zhukov strips out the tank brigades from several divisions and sends them to cut off and annihilate Halder's offensive.
It is not until the rushing tank divisions reach Slovakian Kosice two days later that Rundsteadt gives the Wehrmacht the word and a massive offensive strikes the Soviet lines, bringing them to full engagement and keeping them immobilized trying to beat back the bold attack. As day turns to twilight and the day's actions wind down, Rommel and Guderian move a massive armored fist into place; at first light on the 31st, the fist rolls through Soviet lines and breaks out into eastern Poland, Guderian rolling north to Leningrad via Warsaw and Rommel dashing towards Kiev... and then on to Moscow. With the breakthrough achieved, Rundsteadt and Manstein start sending infantry through the gap to roll around and begin rolling up the Red Army flanks. Complete surprise has been achieved and there are no real forces to stop the blitzkrieg; victory is far from sure but by September 1st, there is light at the end of the tunnel.
The days in Hammerfest, close to the Arctic Circle, are dawning less and less, making Kesselring's job increasingly easy since all he has to do is dig in and keep the approaches to his lines well-lit. The increasing amount of darkness is favoring the defenders even as the howling winds drop the temperature well below freezing. Most importantly for Rundsteadt, the Arctic darkness is holding the northernmost Soviet armies in place, leaving his diversionary force to continue their march to Leningrad with the pursuers being drawn further and further away from the Danzig Line. The first real battle for the diversionary force happens within sight of the strategically-significant city when hastily-assembled militia attempts to flank them and inflict serious damage but more importantly, delay them so that the pursuers, much larger in number can strike their rear. The militia action fails, however, as they are enveloped by the crack infantry drawn from successes in France and Italy against the Western Allies. Traveling slowly but without a large number of fuel-hungry vehicles, the advance soldiers of the force start into the edges of the city by the 22nd of the month and prepare themselves to hold on and keep the pursuing forces, and some diverted from the offensive in Finland, in a suicidal hold until Rundsteadt pulls the trigger on his own offensive.
In the south, Rundsteadt decides to call General Franz Halder back into service out of the retirement Hitler had placed him in towards the end of 1942. Despite Hitler's belief that Halder was a "defeatist", Rundsteadt knew that the man had a good strategic intellect and would be the perfect field commander for the large Grecian garrison that he wished to slam into the southernmost edge of the Red Army. By August 21st, Halder is in command of the southern forces and Rundstead has divided responsibility for the Danzig Line between his own 2nd Army Group in the north and the 1st Army Group, commanded by the highly competent Erich von Manstein, in the south. All is in preparation but timing will be critical: by now, the German commanders are entertaining no illusions about the skill of Zhukov and Rundsteadt knows that the only way for this plan to succeed is for the Soviet marshal to be looking the wrong way when the attack hits. August 28th brings the first stage of the plan to catch Zhukov's attention and hold it: Army Group Greece hits the trailing edge of the upward-swinging Red Army, crushing it by the end of the day and rolling towards the Polesti oil fields of occupied Romania, directly threatening the closest source of fuel supplies for the Soviets. Since his reconnaisance planes (the ones that manage to return from German airspace under increasingly tight control of advanced Luftwaffe fighter jets) give him confidence that the Germans are not massing to take advantage of the diversion, Zhukov strips out the tank brigades from several divisions and sends them to cut off and annihilate Halder's offensive.
It is not until the rushing tank divisions reach Slovakian Kosice two days later that Rundsteadt gives the Wehrmacht the word and a massive offensive strikes the Soviet lines, bringing them to full engagement and keeping them immobilized trying to beat back the bold attack. As day turns to twilight and the day's actions wind down, Rommel and Guderian move a massive armored fist into place; at first light on the 31st, the fist rolls through Soviet lines and breaks out into eastern Poland, Guderian rolling north to Leningrad via Warsaw and Rommel dashing towards Kiev... and then on to Moscow. With the breakthrough achieved, Rundsteadt and Manstein start sending infantry through the gap to roll around and begin rolling up the Red Army flanks. Complete surprise has been achieved and there are no real forces to stop the blitzkrieg; victory is far from sure but by September 1st, there is light at the end of the tunnel.
Are you really able to launch an offensive against the Russians in the 44 scenario? Good job, man! I'll be following your story. 
I picture of the new breakout would be most awesome! Nothing prettier than the German Panzers on breakthrough!
But Paris? Surely the mighty French Army will halt your advance!
With a gap punched in the Soviet lines and infantry moving in to keep it open, almost all of the Red Army has been bypassed. The only portions that are in a position to seriously contest the mechanized dash are trying to break the perimeters around Leningrad, Hammerfest, and Helsinki... and those around Leningrad have Guderian's columns charging straight for their backsides.The entire point of the attack all along the line is that the only way for the Red Army to chase the two mechanized forces is to disengage from a massive multiple-point assault over hundreds of miles and that would incur the very real risk of a complete rout with broken Red Army divisions being chased across country and worn down by the Wehrmacht as a largely infantry army tries to catch a mix of tanks and halftracks with their throttles open wide. Moreover, as I've been hinting, the increasingly large numbers of 262's and 193's are turning the skies above the Red Army hostile. I did some really deep strategic thinking on my plans, Cthulhu.
Are you really able to launch an offensive against the Russians in the 44 scenario? Good job, man! I'll be following your story.
It took some real doing, as you might have been able to tell from my story-form description of how events played out. I had to smash three separate Western Allied armies, pour out interceptors, reinforce my broken forces, and get armies into position with a numerically massive foe closing in. But fortune favors the foolish, the bold... and me.
Ah, I wish I could provide! But as I said before, in my actual game, the offensive has proceeded much much further than the AAR. In game time, the events I just described happened a month ago or more.
Towards the Dawn
[size=+1]September 1, 1944[/size]
It is the 5th anniversary of the beginning of the Second World War and once again, Germany is crossing the frontiers of Poland going east but this time, they are not facing a courageous but weak military power whose divisions still included horse-mounted lancers. The enemy this time is a massive and blooded Red Army equipped with the excellent T34 tank and a deadly combination of Yaklovev Yak-3 interceptors and Ilyushin Il-2 ground-attack planes commanded by the talented Georgy Zhukov. The Red Army in the beginning of September has excellent commanders, immense numbers, secure supply lines, and top-notch equipment.
Unfortunately for them, however, what they lack is the initiative.
In a series of well-choreographed movements, the bold German commanders, freed from the restraining hand of Hitler by successful assassination, drew off much of the Soviet armor towards the south before a combined force of Panther tanks and mechanized infantry commanded by Heinz Guderian and the famous Erwin Rommel smashed the thin Soviet lines at Lodz and are running hard for their objectives: Leningrad to threaten the Red Army on the move in Finland and Moscow to cripple Soviet central command although they have no illusions about their chances of capturing Stalin: there is plenty of safe places for the Soviet dictator to go and no pressing reason to imperil the advance in an effort to stop him. As intended by Field Marshal Rundstedt, Zhukov has been placed in a hellish dilemma: many of his tanks have been stripped from his divisions to lend their great combat power to a southward run at the large Grecian garrison under General Halder that is heading towards the Polesti oil fields to impair the flow of fuel to Zhukov's advance. Every hour brings extremely fast mechanized forces, their supply lines braced by infantry and shielded by an umbrella of jet fighters, closer to their objectives deep in Russia. The Wehrmact 1st and 2nd Army Groups are threatening both flanks of the now-split Red Army with ample support from HE-162 fighter and Hs-129 ground-attack aircraft which can compete favorably with the Yak-3/Il-2 combination. And at Hammerfest, Kesselring, seeing the Red Army divisions opposing him dwindling in a race to push German forces out of Leningrad, has begun a long-range two-pronged move to push the Red Army back from their advanced positions.
On the home front, Speer continues to work his magic on German industry, the mounting losses of Allied bombers giving him more and more breathing room and opening up the possibility of dramatically moving up scheduled upgrades of existing German aircraft which, as the triumvirate running the government has told him, are to be his top priority to ensure that the Luftwaffe remains in control of the air during the critical offensives to come. But as industrial capacity expands, planes are not the only things experiencing improvement. The venerable MP-40 is being phased out in favor of the StG-45 assault rifle and an emphasis is being put on producing a mix of the agile and deadly Panthers and the extremely effective Jagdpanther tank-destroyers to turn the tide against the superior T34 and the IS-2 heavy tank that was beginning to become increasingly common. The perception of Germany getting stronger, the USSR being threatened, and the paralysis of the Western Allies in the face of crushing defeats in France and Italy adds a component of shaky morale to the Soviet soldiers as the German offensive begins to move into high gear, yet another advantage for the Wehrmacht on the ascendancy.
By September 9, Guderian is within sight of Warsaw with almost no Soviet soldiers to contest his movement. However, the extremely rapid advance makes fuel supplies incredibly shaky and Guderian sends a request back to Rundstedt for permission to swing north and free Riga before going back towards Leningrad, a move that would shorten his supply lines by allowing fuel to be shipped via tanker instead of by vulnerable rail. While the Allies are still gathering their military strength, the Ultra program, which has been able to read Enigma intercepts for most of the war, informs Zhukov of the possible vulnerability and the portions of the northernmost Red Army with some sort of motorized or mechanized transport, are instructed to make a dash to Riga to fortify it against the expected swing. Reconnaissance by ME-262s flying out of Konigsberg gives Guderian warning but it is the only asset he can be given; by September 12, improvised defenses are slowing his advance to a crawl and imperiling both the Wehrmact timetable and the German forces holed up in Leningrad.
But Guderian is suspicious of this turn of events since neither air nor partisan spying could have allowed the Red Army to know his destination which leaves two possibilities: either German high command has a mole at the higher echelons... or Enigma is no longer secure. A spy is a problem that will take significant time and care but replacing a machine is a less difficult and much quicker goal. By the middle of September, Wilhelm Canaris, head of German intelligence has accelerated development of the Enigma-IIC, an improvement upon the immensely complex and sophisticated but unreliable Enigma-II which had been used for high-level military communication, and the Enigma G2 to replace the code machine in current use by military intelligence.
Meanwhile, Rommel's advance continues, experiencing the same fuel problems as Guderian but Rommel's ingrained habit of moving around the battlefield himself and conducting his own reconnaissance seriously complicates any efforts to guess his goals through communication intelligence and Rommel is well-known for his remarkable tendency to successfully do utterly counterintuitive things, a fact that makes Soviet intelligence very hesitant to try and guess what he will do and therefore making Zhukov's view of the strategic picture very murky where the southern arm of the German mechanized advance is concerned. The Soviet marshal takes solace in the fact that Guderian is stalled near Riga where he can be enveloped by as many soldiers as Zhukov dare divert from the severely-pressed Red Army positions on the Danzig Line. He also feels hopeful about the tank-heavy mechanized force approaching Halder's flank, knowing from reconnaissance that the German general is traveling light and heavily orientating towards fighting infantry instead of tanks. As September 18 dawns, the situation is still on the edge of uncertainty although the Wehrmact is increasingly confident... not the least of which because unknown to Zhukov, the tank divisions rolling south are about to experience an extremely unpleasant surprise...
[size=+1]September 1, 1944[/size]
It is the 5th anniversary of the beginning of the Second World War and once again, Germany is crossing the frontiers of Poland going east but this time, they are not facing a courageous but weak military power whose divisions still included horse-mounted lancers. The enemy this time is a massive and blooded Red Army equipped with the excellent T34 tank and a deadly combination of Yaklovev Yak-3 interceptors and Ilyushin Il-2 ground-attack planes commanded by the talented Georgy Zhukov. The Red Army in the beginning of September has excellent commanders, immense numbers, secure supply lines, and top-notch equipment.
Unfortunately for them, however, what they lack is the initiative.
In a series of well-choreographed movements, the bold German commanders, freed from the restraining hand of Hitler by successful assassination, drew off much of the Soviet armor towards the south before a combined force of Panther tanks and mechanized infantry commanded by Heinz Guderian and the famous Erwin Rommel smashed the thin Soviet lines at Lodz and are running hard for their objectives: Leningrad to threaten the Red Army on the move in Finland and Moscow to cripple Soviet central command although they have no illusions about their chances of capturing Stalin: there is plenty of safe places for the Soviet dictator to go and no pressing reason to imperil the advance in an effort to stop him. As intended by Field Marshal Rundstedt, Zhukov has been placed in a hellish dilemma: many of his tanks have been stripped from his divisions to lend their great combat power to a southward run at the large Grecian garrison under General Halder that is heading towards the Polesti oil fields to impair the flow of fuel to Zhukov's advance. Every hour brings extremely fast mechanized forces, their supply lines braced by infantry and shielded by an umbrella of jet fighters, closer to their objectives deep in Russia. The Wehrmact 1st and 2nd Army Groups are threatening both flanks of the now-split Red Army with ample support from HE-162 fighter and Hs-129 ground-attack aircraft which can compete favorably with the Yak-3/Il-2 combination. And at Hammerfest, Kesselring, seeing the Red Army divisions opposing him dwindling in a race to push German forces out of Leningrad, has begun a long-range two-pronged move to push the Red Army back from their advanced positions.
On the home front, Speer continues to work his magic on German industry, the mounting losses of Allied bombers giving him more and more breathing room and opening up the possibility of dramatically moving up scheduled upgrades of existing German aircraft which, as the triumvirate running the government has told him, are to be his top priority to ensure that the Luftwaffe remains in control of the air during the critical offensives to come. But as industrial capacity expands, planes are not the only things experiencing improvement. The venerable MP-40 is being phased out in favor of the StG-45 assault rifle and an emphasis is being put on producing a mix of the agile and deadly Panthers and the extremely effective Jagdpanther tank-destroyers to turn the tide against the superior T34 and the IS-2 heavy tank that was beginning to become increasingly common. The perception of Germany getting stronger, the USSR being threatened, and the paralysis of the Western Allies in the face of crushing defeats in France and Italy adds a component of shaky morale to the Soviet soldiers as the German offensive begins to move into high gear, yet another advantage for the Wehrmacht on the ascendancy.
By September 9, Guderian is within sight of Warsaw with almost no Soviet soldiers to contest his movement. However, the extremely rapid advance makes fuel supplies incredibly shaky and Guderian sends a request back to Rundstedt for permission to swing north and free Riga before going back towards Leningrad, a move that would shorten his supply lines by allowing fuel to be shipped via tanker instead of by vulnerable rail. While the Allies are still gathering their military strength, the Ultra program, which has been able to read Enigma intercepts for most of the war, informs Zhukov of the possible vulnerability and the portions of the northernmost Red Army with some sort of motorized or mechanized transport, are instructed to make a dash to Riga to fortify it against the expected swing. Reconnaissance by ME-262s flying out of Konigsberg gives Guderian warning but it is the only asset he can be given; by September 12, improvised defenses are slowing his advance to a crawl and imperiling both the Wehrmact timetable and the German forces holed up in Leningrad.
But Guderian is suspicious of this turn of events since neither air nor partisan spying could have allowed the Red Army to know his destination which leaves two possibilities: either German high command has a mole at the higher echelons... or Enigma is no longer secure. A spy is a problem that will take significant time and care but replacing a machine is a less difficult and much quicker goal. By the middle of September, Wilhelm Canaris, head of German intelligence has accelerated development of the Enigma-IIC, an improvement upon the immensely complex and sophisticated but unreliable Enigma-II which had been used for high-level military communication, and the Enigma G2 to replace the code machine in current use by military intelligence.
Meanwhile, Rommel's advance continues, experiencing the same fuel problems as Guderian but Rommel's ingrained habit of moving around the battlefield himself and conducting his own reconnaissance seriously complicates any efforts to guess his goals through communication intelligence and Rommel is well-known for his remarkable tendency to successfully do utterly counterintuitive things, a fact that makes Soviet intelligence very hesitant to try and guess what he will do and therefore making Zhukov's view of the strategic picture very murky where the southern arm of the German mechanized advance is concerned. The Soviet marshal takes solace in the fact that Guderian is stalled near Riga where he can be enveloped by as many soldiers as Zhukov dare divert from the severely-pressed Red Army positions on the Danzig Line. He also feels hopeful about the tank-heavy mechanized force approaching Halder's flank, knowing from reconnaissance that the German general is traveling light and heavily orientating towards fighting infantry instead of tanks. As September 18 dawns, the situation is still on the edge of uncertainty although the Wehrmact is increasingly confident... not the least of which because unknown to Zhukov, the tank divisions rolling south are about to experience an extremely unpleasant surprise...
The Soviets being pushed back in September '44? That's quite a surprise, especially for them!
The Soviets being pushed back in September '44? That's quite a surprise, especially for them!
Ah, but I didn't say they were being pushed back (unless you count the preparations Kesselring is making to push the weakened northernmost forces back). I simply said that the mechanized thrust, like the original blitzkrieg, is being quite successful although minor problems are appearing.
IRL, by the way, the British intelligence program ULTRA gave Germany endless headaches. This was especially true for Rommel since the Allies always knew when and where his fuel supplies were arriving and where he was weak. It being Rommel, knowing where he was weak wasn't always particularly helpful since he had the aggravating habit of attacking when no sane general would and being successful (my reference to him successfully doing utterly counterintuitive things) but historians estimate that ULTRA shortened the war by 1-2 years. In my story explanation of game events, I ignore it until now because either generals were given instructions face-to-face or they were lying to Hitler about their plans and status over the radio. Guderian radioing back to Rundstedt to inform him about his minor change to the route of advance would be the first time that ULTRA could come into play.
Quick question for anyone following this AAR: should I conclude it with the fall of the USSR or with the end of WW2 (i.e. Germany no longer at war)?
Hi, it'd be interesting to see how/if you deal with the UK, but that might be rather tricky with no fleet (I'd guess) or strategic airforce?
As I discovered in a previous 1936 game, planes with paratroopers can replace marines embarking from transports. They get me a port, they get mechanized. It's a beautiful thing. ^_^
Dawn's Full Burst
[size=+1]September 18, 1944[/size]
September 18 dawns in the south with Soviet tank divisions, backed by some of the motorized infantry under the general command of the brutal Marshal Ivan Konev heading at full speed towards Halder's Army Group Greece as they make slow but steady progress towards the Polesti oil fields. Halder is well aware of the fast-moving forces closing on him and painfully aware of his lack of anti-armor assets but he doesn't turn, reluctantly obeying Rundstedt's orders to keep going no matter what he heard unless directly ordered otherwise. Rundstedt, with an intricate plan to take care of the Soviet armor (which he doesn't share with Halder) partially influenced by Rommel, had taken great pains to emphasize that Halder should not turn or try to set up a rearguard lest he induce the Red Army to change their full-throttle pursuit. It isn't until well over a week later that Halder learns why; Konev, however, finds out on the 20th as he's moving through the forested terrain around the small city of Sibui.
Zhukov and his subordinate generals had been receiving reports that there had been very few sightings of the several groups of tank destroyers that the Wehrmacht operated but had attributed it to breakdowns and lack of fuel, something that was affecting a greater and greater number of German vehicles as the Red Army had moved west. With a greater number of Panthers appearing, their natural reasoning was that the Germans had retooled all of their vehicle production lines to build halftracks and medium tanks but Speer had been given special orders by the triumvirate of generals to dedicate a good deal of his productive capacity to building certain tank destroyers, especially the superheavy Jagdtiger, Elefant, and Nashorn models. Knowing the most direct and ideal course for the Soviet pursuit of Halder to take, Rundstedt laid an ambush. Just as the main body of Soviet armor and vehicles were crossing the Olt River, a fusillade of 88mm shells erupted from the forest, firing from an enfilade to catch the T34s in their thinner side and rear armor; a minute later, as Konev turns his tanks to charge the guns before the gunners can reload, a second salvo erupts from his flank, smashing most of his IS-2 and rare IS-3 tank destroyers. Konev's branch of the Red Army has been effectively surrounded and is being torn apart but Rundstedt has even worse than largely immobile tank destroyers waiting. With the easing of Allied bombing, Speer had tapped Henschel & Son (the primary designer of the Konigstiger superheavy tank) to implement their proposed engine upgrade for the behemoth, increasing its horsepower from 690 to 986 and making it half again faster than it had previously been. Now, these faster and more agile "Bengal Tigers" came crashing out of the woods, literally driving through the smaller trees, and began to maul the frantic Soviet tankers. Perhaps the worst thing for the trapped Soviet armor was the terror from the skies. They were familiar with the HS-129 "Panzerknacker" ground-attack airplane since it had been in production for a couple years. What they had never seen before was an HS-129 mounting a 105mm cannon on its undercarriage, giving them an attack against which the tanks had no real defense since the top armor of a tank, given that anti-tank guns and other tanks cannot usually hit it, tended to be thin. In a final coup de grace, a small formation of Panthers showed up to run down any tanks or infantry that attempted to flee. It would be two days later until a Soviet recon aircraft slipped through German patrols and photographed the grisly remains of almost half of Zhukov's tanks. Among the wreckage is slumped the scorched body of Marshal Konev, denying Zhukov an immensely valuable command asset. On the 24th, Zhukov receives the expected news of the capture of the Polesti oil fields and realizes with dread that there are no longer any Soviet assets to stop Halder from moving on the oil-rich Caucuses.
While much of the Soviet armor is being ambushed and destroyed, Guderian and Rommel continue their separate branches of the campaign. Outside of Riga, Guderian is beginning to benefit increasingly from Luftwaffe support, especially the help of the new Panzerknackers. Moreover, Focke-Wulf, Junkers, Heinkel and Messerschmidt have begun working on prototypes of their separate optimistically-named "America Bombers" which may yet give the Germans access to the heavy bomber support that they have hitherto lacked--and frankly, regarded as unnecessary. However, Jodl argues and his two compatriots agree that with strategic bombing raids replacing V1 and V2 attacks, they will be able to force the Western Allies to choose between escorting their own bomber raids deep into Germany and defending England from carpet bombing. Meanwhile, Willy Messerschmidt had begun experimentation with his HG-2 and HG-3 variants on the famous ME262, proposing a swept-wing design to significantly increase speed and maneuverability, widening the performance gap between Allied fighters and the Luftwaffe still further. With these developments on the fast track, and practical tests already beginning on the new Enigma machines ordered by Wilhelm Canaris, Guderian was making real progress towards Riga although, realizing that progress was slow enough to seriously threaten the occupation forces in Leningrad, he risked another radio conversation in the open with Rundstedt although he was vague enough that the Ultra decryption project couldn't use the conversation to warn the Soviets of any specific plans or possibilities. Knowing that the rail lines along Rommel's axis of advance were secure, Rundstedt used a rail-bound courier to get a message to Rommel informing him both of their communication complications and Guderian's concern that he wouldn't be able to push through Riga in time to reach Leningrad and hit the besieging Soviets from the flank. Rommel was familiar with the importance of the Leningrad operation beyond its use as a distraction and split his forces, combing out his lighter tanks and mechanized units and letting the heavies protect the rest of the infantry in a continued drive toward Kiev. First, however, Rommel had business to attend to with the Ukrainians.
Like the situation with the political prisoners, the triumvirate of generals had decided that the previous Nazi occupation policy towards the USSR was unwise and had provoked a severe guerrilla problem for the Wehrmact as it went deeper into Soviet territory--and, as such, specifics of ideology aside, any further penetrations into the realm of Stalin had to be handled differently. While the reception to the Germans was hostile this time around, Rommel published an order, making sure to put it in written form, forbidding severe depredations being inflicted upon the civilian population. Along with this order, which the triumvirate decided to dub the "Weiche Hände" ("Soft Hands") policy, Rommel also spread the word among the Ukrainians that the German Army was come to liberate them this time. In language suggested by Colonel von Stauffenberg (who, as a Catholic, was somewhat familiar with the Eastern Orthodox religion of the Slavic peoples), Rommel explained that "the hand that oppressed you at first has offended us and we have cut it off", an explicitly Biblical reference that they felt would appeal to a people whose religion had been trampled by the atheistic Communists. It did not gain any immediate results (nor was it expected to) but the hope was that as the offensive advanced and treated the subject peoples of the USSR as people to be liberated rather than "under-humans" to be exterminated, they would stymie guerrilla warfare and perhaps even strike a body blow at Red Army morale as soldiers from the Army inevitably heard of their families being freed from Stalin's clutches and treated well.
In the meantime, Halder slogs onwards, moving towards the main Soviet oil fields with very little in his way. In the far north, Kesselring advances steadily and patiently as the Red Army collapses back to remove the threat to is rear in the form of Leningrad. While Guderian advances on Riga, the strain telling on the cobbled-together defenders, Rommel wheels north to Leningrad while his subsidiary force rolls onwards towards Kiev. And on the Danzig Line, the long struggle is slowly tilted towards the Wehrmact as a new influx of light infantry flows into their ranks... accompanied by a sizable group of Great War veterans that will come to be informally known as the "Judegruppe", stepping into the breach to demonstrate beyond all doubt their loyalty to their Fatherland--no matter what the Nazis may have believed. With much of the Soviet armor a smoldering wreck, Marshal Konev dead, and German forces advancing on important strategic objectives, the tide has definitely turned.
[size=+1]September 18, 1944[/size]
September 18 dawns in the south with Soviet tank divisions, backed by some of the motorized infantry under the general command of the brutal Marshal Ivan Konev heading at full speed towards Halder's Army Group Greece as they make slow but steady progress towards the Polesti oil fields. Halder is well aware of the fast-moving forces closing on him and painfully aware of his lack of anti-armor assets but he doesn't turn, reluctantly obeying Rundstedt's orders to keep going no matter what he heard unless directly ordered otherwise. Rundstedt, with an intricate plan to take care of the Soviet armor (which he doesn't share with Halder) partially influenced by Rommel, had taken great pains to emphasize that Halder should not turn or try to set up a rearguard lest he induce the Red Army to change their full-throttle pursuit. It isn't until well over a week later that Halder learns why; Konev, however, finds out on the 20th as he's moving through the forested terrain around the small city of Sibui.
Zhukov and his subordinate generals had been receiving reports that there had been very few sightings of the several groups of tank destroyers that the Wehrmacht operated but had attributed it to breakdowns and lack of fuel, something that was affecting a greater and greater number of German vehicles as the Red Army had moved west. With a greater number of Panthers appearing, their natural reasoning was that the Germans had retooled all of their vehicle production lines to build halftracks and medium tanks but Speer had been given special orders by the triumvirate of generals to dedicate a good deal of his productive capacity to building certain tank destroyers, especially the superheavy Jagdtiger, Elefant, and Nashorn models. Knowing the most direct and ideal course for the Soviet pursuit of Halder to take, Rundstedt laid an ambush. Just as the main body of Soviet armor and vehicles were crossing the Olt River, a fusillade of 88mm shells erupted from the forest, firing from an enfilade to catch the T34s in their thinner side and rear armor; a minute later, as Konev turns his tanks to charge the guns before the gunners can reload, a second salvo erupts from his flank, smashing most of his IS-2 and rare IS-3 tank destroyers. Konev's branch of the Red Army has been effectively surrounded and is being torn apart but Rundstedt has even worse than largely immobile tank destroyers waiting. With the easing of Allied bombing, Speer had tapped Henschel & Son (the primary designer of the Konigstiger superheavy tank) to implement their proposed engine upgrade for the behemoth, increasing its horsepower from 690 to 986 and making it half again faster than it had previously been. Now, these faster and more agile "Bengal Tigers" came crashing out of the woods, literally driving through the smaller trees, and began to maul the frantic Soviet tankers. Perhaps the worst thing for the trapped Soviet armor was the terror from the skies. They were familiar with the HS-129 "Panzerknacker" ground-attack airplane since it had been in production for a couple years. What they had never seen before was an HS-129 mounting a 105mm cannon on its undercarriage, giving them an attack against which the tanks had no real defense since the top armor of a tank, given that anti-tank guns and other tanks cannot usually hit it, tended to be thin. In a final coup de grace, a small formation of Panthers showed up to run down any tanks or infantry that attempted to flee. It would be two days later until a Soviet recon aircraft slipped through German patrols and photographed the grisly remains of almost half of Zhukov's tanks. Among the wreckage is slumped the scorched body of Marshal Konev, denying Zhukov an immensely valuable command asset. On the 24th, Zhukov receives the expected news of the capture of the Polesti oil fields and realizes with dread that there are no longer any Soviet assets to stop Halder from moving on the oil-rich Caucuses.
While much of the Soviet armor is being ambushed and destroyed, Guderian and Rommel continue their separate branches of the campaign. Outside of Riga, Guderian is beginning to benefit increasingly from Luftwaffe support, especially the help of the new Panzerknackers. Moreover, Focke-Wulf, Junkers, Heinkel and Messerschmidt have begun working on prototypes of their separate optimistically-named "America Bombers" which may yet give the Germans access to the heavy bomber support that they have hitherto lacked--and frankly, regarded as unnecessary. However, Jodl argues and his two compatriots agree that with strategic bombing raids replacing V1 and V2 attacks, they will be able to force the Western Allies to choose between escorting their own bomber raids deep into Germany and defending England from carpet bombing. Meanwhile, Willy Messerschmidt had begun experimentation with his HG-2 and HG-3 variants on the famous ME262, proposing a swept-wing design to significantly increase speed and maneuverability, widening the performance gap between Allied fighters and the Luftwaffe still further. With these developments on the fast track, and practical tests already beginning on the new Enigma machines ordered by Wilhelm Canaris, Guderian was making real progress towards Riga although, realizing that progress was slow enough to seriously threaten the occupation forces in Leningrad, he risked another radio conversation in the open with Rundstedt although he was vague enough that the Ultra decryption project couldn't use the conversation to warn the Soviets of any specific plans or possibilities. Knowing that the rail lines along Rommel's axis of advance were secure, Rundstedt used a rail-bound courier to get a message to Rommel informing him both of their communication complications and Guderian's concern that he wouldn't be able to push through Riga in time to reach Leningrad and hit the besieging Soviets from the flank. Rommel was familiar with the importance of the Leningrad operation beyond its use as a distraction and split his forces, combing out his lighter tanks and mechanized units and letting the heavies protect the rest of the infantry in a continued drive toward Kiev. First, however, Rommel had business to attend to with the Ukrainians.
Like the situation with the political prisoners, the triumvirate of generals had decided that the previous Nazi occupation policy towards the USSR was unwise and had provoked a severe guerrilla problem for the Wehrmact as it went deeper into Soviet territory--and, as such, specifics of ideology aside, any further penetrations into the realm of Stalin had to be handled differently. While the reception to the Germans was hostile this time around, Rommel published an order, making sure to put it in written form, forbidding severe depredations being inflicted upon the civilian population. Along with this order, which the triumvirate decided to dub the "Weiche Hände" ("Soft Hands") policy, Rommel also spread the word among the Ukrainians that the German Army was come to liberate them this time. In language suggested by Colonel von Stauffenberg (who, as a Catholic, was somewhat familiar with the Eastern Orthodox religion of the Slavic peoples), Rommel explained that "the hand that oppressed you at first has offended us and we have cut it off", an explicitly Biblical reference that they felt would appeal to a people whose religion had been trampled by the atheistic Communists. It did not gain any immediate results (nor was it expected to) but the hope was that as the offensive advanced and treated the subject peoples of the USSR as people to be liberated rather than "under-humans" to be exterminated, they would stymie guerrilla warfare and perhaps even strike a body blow at Red Army morale as soldiers from the Army inevitably heard of their families being freed from Stalin's clutches and treated well.
In the meantime, Halder slogs onwards, moving towards the main Soviet oil fields with very little in his way. In the far north, Kesselring advances steadily and patiently as the Red Army collapses back to remove the threat to is rear in the form of Leningrad. While Guderian advances on Riga, the strain telling on the cobbled-together defenders, Rommel wheels north to Leningrad while his subsidiary force rolls onwards towards Kiev. And on the Danzig Line, the long struggle is slowly tilted towards the Wehrmact as a new influx of light infantry flows into their ranks... accompanied by a sizable group of Great War veterans that will come to be informally known as the "Judegruppe", stepping into the breach to demonstrate beyond all doubt their loyalty to their Fatherland--no matter what the Nazis may have believed. With much of the Soviet armor a smoldering wreck, Marshal Konev dead, and German forces advancing on important strategic objectives, the tide has definitely turned.
More maneuvering and hardware seems to keep the Soviets on the defensive. How're you dealing with your low manpower btw?