Normandy '44 AAR

[Indragnir]

Turn 62. 06:00 12 June 1994. Visibility good. Disrupted units are highlighted in red.

I've jumped ahead a few turns again, to the morning of the 12th of June. For the first time in a long time weather conditions are clear, giving a very good look at enemy lines. The downside of course is that the overwhelming Allied air power is back, which limits German moves.

Starting as usual in the eastern edge of the map, the image below shows the situation around Troarn, east of Caen. The village of Troarn has been ferociously fought over, changing hands a number of times. You can see the large number of disrupted units on both German and Allied sides. Overall however this does not appear to be an area where the Allies are looking to push, at least at the moment. Which is just as well as the weak 346th Infantry Division is the main defender here.

 
Moving further west, to Caen itself. As has been the case for a while, Allied advances here are minimal. The Canadians and 51st Highland have not made much of an effort here at all.



Moving further west again, to the Bayeux region. Germans units have had to give up a hex or two here - you can see the numerous Allied units in the image. This is after German moves, before I end the turn, so I have retreated the front line back one hex. There are a LOT of Allied units here, but I feel like Panzer Lehr (and the 12th SS further east) have things in hand.



Further west again, and this is the area in-between Bayeux and Carentan, south west of Utah Beach. You may recall that the Us 2nd Armored made a big push here a few turns ago. In response I moved the bulk of Panzer Lehr's armor here, which seems to have scared off the Allied armor, although perhaps only temporarily. The terrain here is not fantastic for defence, being mainly fields, so I have had to give up quite a few hexes to keep the defensive line intact and straight. 




Moving further west again, and to Carentan, probably my biggest worry. Two infantry divisions, backed by masses of artillery are pushing hard here. German defences are not up to the task, being worn out fallschirmjager and a few miscellaneous infantry units. That failure to blow all the bridges across the La Vire is really a problem now. I don't have many reinforcements to send here either, which is a problem. You can see how many German units are disrupted behind the front line.



Further west again, and looking at a zoomed out view of the Cherbourg peninsula. So far my staged withdrawal from the peninsula is working out well. There is Allied pressure, but no real attempt to outflank the retreating units (probably because my opponent is not aware of my plans and has become tangled in the fixed defences around Cherbourg itself). The arrows show the intended line of retreat.



Below is a zoomed in shot of the situation in Cherbourg. My defensive line is looking good, stiffened by units of the 17th SS Pzgdr (the blue units). However, I am nervous about the situation around Carentan. It seems clear to me that I am unlikely to hold my position around Hill 30, south west of Carentan, for long. I suspect the Allies will be driving south west from Carentan, which risks cutting off my defensive line north of la Haye du Puits. Hmmm.....



A look at the jump map, and I am reasonably happy with my position (apart from the Carentan issue).



And finally, the VP situation. I usually keep an eye on men losses and the differential between the two sides has been reasonably steady at around 6,000 more Allied than German. Most German gun and vehicle losses are flak units or fixed artillery units. A few tanks have been lost on the German side, however in the main I am saving those for when they are really needed.

Maybe it's time to move most of 17SS-PzGr Div to Carentan. Your line across the river should hold if 4th and 9th are around Carentan (and the paras at Cherbourg)