VotG CGI The Central Railway Station AAR In Progress

[Rindis]

After a week or two off for our respective setups, Patch and I started VotG CGI tonight. (Who says we can't jump on the bandwagon?) We diced for it, and I got the Russians, so I got to try and figure out my setup first. The map surprised me, I wasn't expecting it to be quite so long and skinny. I could really wish for a bit more backfield.

Anyway, we got through the first German turn, and most of the first Russian Turn tonight.

Patch set up a lot more North-heavy than I was thinking in terms of. I've got to stop letting him do that to me. So the initial line of pickets didn't last long at all (no surprise), and there's a lot less in front of him than I'd like.

Then again, with these forces, he could attack anywhere, and I would want twice as much in front of him. I'll admit the idea of defending this area for multiple CG dates has me a bit rattled.


Opening setup, 15th September.

At least he got off to a poor start. Prep broke a conscript, but out of three search attempts, he got 6, 6, 5; and that last was with a CX unit, so he still didn't manage to search. Also another HS that was about to search got Pinned on a SFF shot. Sadly, that same shot activated his Sniper and he killed one of my only non-Commissar leaders.

Advancing fire revealed dummies in I30 and D34. He also pinned a real conscript in E30, but that activated my Sniper and he managed to fatally wound a 7-0. Sadly, he then performed a successful Sniper Check and reduced my SAN to 4. With the way the Sniper has been for me the past few games, that could be very bad.

He advanced into a couple of close combats, ambushing the conscripts in E30 and revealing another dummy in D31.

On my rally phase, a Commissar promptly reduced my broken conscripts to a HS for abandoning their post. Generally, my turn is just rushing troops up from the extreme south end of the board, where he hasn't put anyone to create a new second line.

I hope.

[Patch_Bunny]

An interesting start to what may be a long campaign.

I took a look at the map and a few AARs, and decided I wanted boots on the ground. Lots of them. Thus, there's a great deal of infantry pouring onto the map on turn 1. My intent is to overwhelm the forward lines and push deep, hopefully isolating and eliminating forces that set up on the northern half of the board. I took a look at the Rail Station, my lack of heavy units for an assault on a fortified building, and decided to pass. That will have to fall on a later date, hopefully when my Engineers aren't led by Col. Klink (where the hell are all of you people getting those 9-2s, 10-2s and 10-3s????)

Turn 1 didn't go as well as I'd have hoped. I forgot to Prep Fire my main stack, forgot to move a scout, and none of my searches panned out. On an interesting twist both Rindis and I traded "1" SAN dr's for the loss of a leader each, and a Sniper Check by a single squad rolled a '2', popping his SAN down to 4. After 20 years of ASL, that's the first Sniper Check that's actually done anything.

The assault through the railyard went well. I found several dummy stacks, and the conscripts guarding the front line fell rapidly. I'm slightly further ahead of where I expected to be, and am primed for turn 2.

The downside I'm seeing is the potential for HIP units. There's so many possible locations I'm not certain it's worth the SAN risk to fire at empty hexes with the hope of revealing a unit. I'm scouting instead, and time will tell if that's a good ideas.

Nothing happened Russian Turn 1. Those units still on the front line fell back, those in the south shifted north, and defensive fire was universally ineffectual. I'm hoping my Stukas finally come in Turn 2 to reduce this annoying bit of reinforcing he's doing.

[Tater]

I took a look at the Rail Station, my lack of heavy units for an assault on a fortified building, and decided to pass. That will have to fall on a later date, hopefully when my Engineers aren't led by Col. Klink (where the hell are all of you people getting those 9-2s, 10-2s and 10-3s????)

I am playing the Ruski in this one.

Based on our playing (Turn 4 of 9/17 day) I am beginning to think that the German needs to drive for the Rail Station ASAP. Do whatever it takes to get it in scenario #1. Attacking else where just seems to bog down...and the longer the Ruski keeps the Rail Station the more fortifications he can pile on it.

[Patch_Bunny]

I am playing the Ruski in this one.

Based on our playing (Turn 4 of 9/17 day) I am beginning to think that the German needs to drive for the Rail Station ASAP. Do whatever it takes to get it in scenario #1. Attacking else where just seems to bog down...and the longer the Ruski keeps the Rail Station the more fortifications he can pile on it.

Unfortunately, I am not in any condition to do so this date. If all goes well I won't approach the northern outskirts until turn 4.

On the bright side of things, three Stukas arrived this turn.

[pward]

I've got the Russians in this one as well.

The German player (BruceC) did a strong push with engineers for the station (taking it handily) and a reasonable push south from the northeastern corner of the map (scrubbing the edge). Conscripts in the burnt out buildings have basically no maneuverability, and you certainly don't have many leaders to go around to speed things up. The scripts are speed bumps, save the NKVD and Commissars for the night and later days conflicts.

I regret fortifying the train station, then not putting more troops inside. I didn't allow enough "reserve" to keep unbroken folks up front. Against FT toting AEs, I don't think it would have made a difference. In the long run it probably wouldn't have helped to put both NKVD companies in there in the first place. Use those forts elsewhere to hold the Germans north of the block containing the Nail Factory, or to fortify the Children's Home perhaps.

Whatever you do, don't expect too much from your Katushas (even with pre-reg) and don't give darn near every German LOS to a level 2 building location, thus granting unilateral freedom of movement on turn 1 of a night scenario. The German 10-3 and his ever present stack of MG's is also making my scenarios into a game of cat and mouse. (I recommend staying out of LOS from a 10-3 whenever possible...)

[Patch_Bunny]

I've got the Russians in this one as well.

The German player (BruceC) did a strong push with engineers for the station (taking it handily) and a reasonable push south from the northeastern corner of the map (scrubbing the edge).

My Engineers came on reduced and I thought it best anyway to throw that second full company on board Day 1 and make a heavy infantry push. We'll see how leaving the rail station for now goes for me.

I don't have any 10-3s. Hell, I don't even have any 9-2s.

[Rindis]

My Engineers came on reduced and I thought it best anyway to throw that second full company on board Day 1 and make a heavy infantry push. We'll see how leaving the rail station for now goes for me.

The good news is that your depletion rolls couldn't have been worse than mine....

[Patch_Bunny]

Just mailed off the end of German Turn 2 to Rindis. There's still a CC to resolve on his end, and there's the possibility I moved into a HIP location, but for now, I think below is fairly final for our entry into Russian Turn 2.



The NW rail yards cleared out easier than I had expected. Rindis FPF'd his remaining conscript, breaking him, and I captured him in Rout. A second conscript fell when he was CR'd by my sniper, and killed in Advancing Fire.

My strategy this turn was to capture the K31 building, and prepare for the assault on H33. No longer useful where they were, I moved all of my armor, and Rindis revealed an NKVD 628 with ATR in the K31 cellar who took as ide shot at a StuG B, but failed to kill it. Glad I didn't go with my first impulse, which would have given him a rear shot! The lowly 628 is being swarmed by 6 squads and the StuG, and I don't think he'll last. In the meantime, I've moved the second StuG to D37 where he can peek at the Rail Station, and the third is slowly moving south in the hope of finding Russians. Elsewhere I'm across the C-column road, but I'm hanging back to gain concealment and wait for the northern troops to arrive before starting an assault.

[CraigBenn]

The NW rail yards cleared out easier than I had expected. Rindis FPF'd his remaining conscript, breaking him, and I captured him in Rout. A second conscript fell when he was CR'd by my sniper, and killed in Advancing Fire.

No quarter is in effect in all VOTG scenarios and CG games - which is a big and needed advantage to the Russians I think. Great AAR by the way.

[Tork]

Pushing south along that eastern edge is going to be important for the Germans. If I got the rules right, then those hexes under German control are not eligible for Russian entry. I'll see how reducing the perimeter exposed to the Russian night attack works out.

Otherwise, my map looks very similar to yours, with my Germans in a couple hexes of the Station.

Any guesses as to what the Russians (and Germans) bought? I've been keeping track of various purchases...