France '14 AAR Turning the flank !!

[Mr Grumpy]

Turn 14

French commander (Foul) turn 14 thoughts:
In the north
Things are still very static, it seems Rick just does not have the forces to make headway quickly, i believe he is hoping events further south will force me to pull back.

In the centre
A dramatic reverse! Two of my battalions are cut off and with only 2 out of 37 units undisrupted this turn i cannot save them, my worst fears about the sector west of Fresnoy have been realised with Ricks forces slicing through my units with ease, it is a good job that i reinforced this area with Corps troops otherwise complete collapse might be on the cards, however i still think the game will be won/lost in this sector so i take a momentous decision......

In the south
With this sector looking settled at the moment i sneek away the 38e Brigade from the southern ridge hoping Rick will not notice, i will use this unit to thicken the line to the north of Arras, this may turn out to be a very bad move if Rick has hidden forces he can commit to assaulting the southern ridge, but quoting the SAS "who dares wins". LOL

Night turn next with its restrictions on movement, this cannot come soon enough...........

German commander (RickyB) turn 14 thoughts:
Nothing exciting this turn. I continued to move forward in the south center from Vimy to the Scarpe river, trying to keep pressure on the French. The northern half is static as I try to hold my positions, not enough strength to advance right now. The south is fairly static although I am moving my right flank forward some but overall, the French firepower is causing my infantry to disrupt before it can assault.


Observer (Volcano) thoughts:
The battle now seems to be centered on an outright push towards Vimy Ridge and Arras. The Germans have strength to break through around Athies, but recognizing this, the French are sending all they can to reinforce that place with a sneaky night move to the center.

This goes to show that in First World War Campaigns series, the intelligence gained from seeing the unit’s organization name and divisional color (when you are in contact with the enemy) is a vital clue as to how spread out your enemy is. Rick already sees the 10e CA corps troops committed to the line which is probably what is letting him know that the situation is critical for the French near Athies, but if the Germans notice that part of the 19e DI is still in the south at Henin-sur-Cojeul, and part of it is in the center at Athies, then it might provide a tell on just how spread thin the French are. This in turn may cause the Germans to conduct an all out attack in both places knowing that the French are spread very thinly here. Should this cause the French to reinforce those places from other sectors, then it might clear up a German attack in those other areas in an alternating series of pushes.

Stay tuned...