Armies Surrounded Escape

[unmerged(130437)]

When playing as Germany in '41 and invading USSR in Barbarossa, I can't capture mass armies like I did in HOI 2 Armageddon. Everytime my panzers surround the Russians their massive armies live to fight another day. I can clearly see their divisions moving east through the provinces that I have captured. Is this accurate to others experiences?

 

[x260bm]

I don't understand what you mean. Please explain this better. Is it a big pocket you think should be out of supply or a single province?

 

[Gringoesteban]

When playing as Germany in '41 and invading USSR in Barbarossa, I can't capture mass armies like I did in HOI 2 Armageddon. Everytime my panzers surround the Russians their massive armies live to fight another day. I can clearly see their divisions moving east through the provinces that I have captured. Is this accurate to others experiences?

IIRC one of the important changes in AoD vs. HOI2 is that in AoD units carry some supplies (and oil) with them, and if they are surrounded they can continue to fight at almost full strength until they use up all those supplies. The impact is that surrounded units are much more difficult to capture/destroy in AoD than they were in HOI2.

 

[unmerged(130437)]

I don't understand what you mean. Please explain this better. Is it a big pocket you think should be out of supply or a single province?

Thanks for your question. So what happens is when I encircle a "pocket" (maybe 1 or 2 provinces are completely cut off from Moscow with large Soviet armies inside them) with strong armies all around - like 10 - 20 divisions per province in the front and then maybe 5 - 8 armored/motorized armies with HQs, great strenght and organization on the sides and back, so a complete encirclement - the Soviets still escape.

Even though they have supplies and fuel, wouldn't it make sense that an army effectively blocking their retreat would stop them in their tracks and capture them?

In this case the Soviet divisions are either disorganized or have been caught off guard by Blitzkrieg. In either event, they are literally walking over the panzer armies that created the province encirclement and re-joining their forces to the east - no engagement.

I could understand maybe a few divisions "slipping through", but in this case it hasn't worked like HOI 2 Armageddon where the armies are stopped as soon as German completes the encirclement. In this case they don't stop; they keep moving and can't even be engaged.

In HOI 2 you could target these units with your air force and wipe them out.

Even if they aren't on the move, one I attack from all directions back to the center, (like from 4 or 5 provinces that are controlled by Germany - they've turned grey) they still go back across to re-join their army. In the old HOI 2 once you have engaged and won the battle because they are out of supply, they dissappear by fading away. I haven't seen this happen in this game.

Can't imagine that in the real world that every division that got clobbered or surrounded would escape...

Thanks for your thoughts. It just seems strange that ALL the divsions could escape through enemy held territory that is held by strong, strong armies.

 

[unmerged(130437)]

IIRC one of the important changes in AoD vs. HOI2 is that in AoD units carry some supplies (and oil) with them, and if they are surrounded they can continue to fight at almost full strength until they use up all those supplies. The impact is that surrounded units are much more difficult to capture/destroy in AoD than they were in HOI2.

Thanks, yes this is a noted change that I love (the units have their own supplies so they don't just immediatley run out of juice when surrounded - allowing for a breakout opportunity). Please read the above and see what you think. Like that they can't be captured as easily, but for all units to escape is not historically accurate. The Germans were capturing hundreds of thousands of Soviets at a time in '41 and in '42 until the Soviets got better organized.