It will be good to cut them off their suply lines but for the moment i think
that we lack the appropriate resources for doing this.
The moment that we ll be able to purchase some armour we ll counterattack.
I bought 6x37mm guns in Dec '42 and they all had Stielgranate (hollow charge), 181 penetration, between 1 and 7 shots per gun.
But, considering the wind and how slow the Stielgranate is they would be strictly short range weapons (200m or so) so I think that having one heavy AT platoon would be better than having 2 light ones.
I m with u Glider, Heavy AT Guns will be our choice if noone objects.
What about our KGs positions? I think that KG C needs to pull back because it is too exposed... :chin:
I still believe that KG D (or just part of it) should try to cut the road or hit the flank of the enemy formation attacking the KG B. But since KG D is lacking AT capabilities it is better to try and disrupt enemy supply line.
In any case we need to put some active defence and not let the enemy completely dictate the course of battle.
You are right Herr Chuck KG C is exposed and the salient that is created most probably will attract the Russians,i agree that we should retreat it in order to line it up with our other forces.
As for cutting their supply lines im with u and the opportunity given is great
but there are a lot of reasons that the attempt will fail or will succeed but just temporary.
If KG D with all of its strength (Coy+MG Plt) advances it ll have to advance in open ground without art support and with only 2 MGs supporting.
The slightest Russian force in its path (1-2 Inf Plts)will cause casualties and even if we succeed in dislocating them we ll have to reinforce them for the next round with forces that will be needed in other parts as the Russians most probably will attack in strength in the center.
Even if we cut their supply line we ll most probably face a counterattack by armour in open field during the next phase and KG D most probably will be destroyed.
I think we have to stabilise the front first, to receive some armour and then counterattack.
We are not sure if there are any forces along that road and it is possible that we'll hit the undefended area. If we menage to cut the road we don't have to hold it for the next round. It'll be enough to provoke enemy response. They need to react to this threat and we can simply pull back and let them have it. On the other hand if we encounter heavy resistance we can abort the attack and pull back to starting positions. That will probably force them to reinforce that region for the next round or even to attack in that direction. Anyway they will need to put some resources into that and that means lifting some weight from the center. It's a risk, of course, but I think it's worth taking. :chin:
It's not a counterattack, it's just a provocation. For the real counterattack we'll have to wait for some armor, but until then we need to make our defence active. They have the initiative and that is already bad. We can't just sit and let them carry out their plans without interference. Maybe this is not the best course of action, but we definitely need to do something.
Opinions?
It could work only if KG B holds its position with the current strength as it will not,due to the KG D action,receive any reinforcment at all.
Also keep in mind that if we succeed we are cutting one out of three Russian supply routes which will not have any impact in their supply status.
We will provoke some countermeasures but still they can cut KG's retreat route and isolate it in the next turn.
If KG B will not stand our entirely right flank will be on the air having nothing except KG E between them airport and our main rear supply routes.
So far we ve gambled leaving our left flank empty but the loss of our other flank will be a destruction.
An alternative is to try by betting 1 purchase point to buy a T34 and if we are lucky to create a small raid force by 1 Tank and 1 Plt to perform this action .
Opinions?
We need to be really lucky for that to work and even then I am not sure we should risk the precious T-34. We could push forward a single inf platoon and see whether the road is empty. But I must point out that the KG B held the crossroad by the narrowest of margins and is now at half its original AT strength. KG A is also seriously depleted and the Russians now know that it has no true AT assets.
Basically, our resources are stretched very thin and we have no mobile forces. Our stance necessarily has to be strictly defensive and we must accept the fact that victory in this phase is almost impossible. The best we can hope for is to slow down the Russians and damage their forces as much as possible. So any offensive move on our side must be extremely limited in scope because losing a single inf platoon would hurt us badly.
Good points, gentlemen! I like the idea of betting one remaining point on tank, but if we get one then we should preserve it for the later rounds.
We still need to decide what to do with our KGs and how to deploy our available reinforcements? Should KG B try to hold on to their current position?
Hi to all!:)!
Hope all is going well! We are having a super time in Prague!!
I tend to agree with Chuck! We need an active defense so the we are taking some initiative resulting in the the Russians responding to our moves as much as possible! Being passive will ultimately lead to defeat! That way we will keep them off balance and not able to follow their carefully made plans!
In the meantime, have a great day!:)!