User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

King (Whites) vs. Andatiep (Reds) mini-mod AAR

Mon Mar 07, 2011 5:11 am

RUS AAR: The Doctor versus Andatiep.

In a new departure for me, I am playing the whites against Andatiep’s reds in a campaign game. I am playing both White factions, loading up each and playing their turn.

We are using the mini-mods that Andatiep describes in the PBEM forum, so I won’t go into them at much greater length.

The early going for each white faction is pretty straightforward: a blitzkrieg against the weak Red formations that occupy your homeland.

In the south, I’m assuming that Andatiep will try to withdraw the larger Red units in the Ekaterinodar/Novorosyssk/Taman region as I have always done. If he sticks around and fights, so much the better. The Don Cossack army will block the escape routes while the Volunteer army pitches into any Reds who stick around to fight. My goal is to have the southern cone – northern Caucasus, Kuban, and Tzaritsyn – cleared before the end of summer. Tzaritsyn will be a challenge if the Reds dig in there, but hopefully with both of my armies operating against it the city will fall before he can get it fortified. If not, I won’t worry about it too much, as distance and a vulnerable supply line protect the Kuban as long as the Donbas remains White. I will prepare, come November, to send several large formations into the Ukraine with the goal of conquering it, or at least south of the Dnepr, by the end of winter. I want to start the 1919 summer campaign in the Russian heartland.

In Siberia, I hope to capture the Volga cities in a rush in the first several turns. I have managed it against the AI, but I expect that Andatiep will offer sterner resistance. I hope to get Saratov on the first turn, Ekaterinburg and Simbirsk within a couple more, and Kazan and Perm by the end of July. With all seven Volga cities in my hands, I will assure the continuity of Koumuch rule and thus permit me to choose “reform” options. Without that choice, my ongoing political action will be hard.

Early June, 1918: as indicated, the Orsk guys will rush west to capture Saratov, the Czech division in Chelyabinsk will take a stab at Yekaterinburg, the guys in the east will take out their indicated targets (Khabarovsk, Blagoveshchensk, Chita, Aralsk, and Irkutsk this turn). In the south, all the forces from the Don valley will concentrate against the Reds in Zernograd, with the Don Cossack Army ending up to the north with the goal of heading up the rail line towards Tzaritsyn while the Volunteer Army moves south towards Ekaterinodar and Novorossiysk. In the Caucasus, the Cossacks will try to take Grozny.

Late June, 1918: Siberian White morale 106, Reds 97, Southern Whites 101. Resources: Siberians 8 EPs, 204$, 130 companies, 37 WS, Southerners 2 EPs, 56$, 29 companies, 12 WS. As foreshadowed, the Siberians took Chita, Irkutsk, Blagoveshchensk, Aralsk, Khabarovsk, and Saratov. We failed to overcome the Red Guards under Berzin at Yekaterinburg. We got Tashkent, sort of by surprise as I had sent the Turkmen forces down there without an attack mission. Dieterichs was killed in the capture of Khabarovsk. Luckily I have plenty of officers. I see that Blucher and the Orsk forces are heading up the east slope of the Urals towards Chelyabinsk. The Bakshir army will remain there to defend against them. The newly-arrived Komuch forces along with the Czechs in the Volga valley will head north towards Kazan. The southern blitz was less impressive. We pushed the Red defenders out of the way at Zernograd and Tikhorestsk, inflicted some casualties, but no crushing victory, probably because for some reason the Don Cossack forces remained in their jump-off positions and went passive. Perhaps they have been listening to Red propaganda? Off with their heads! The Cossacks in the Caucasus took Grozny and Kizylar, losing their general in the process. We will continue on our planned course with Denikin and bring the Cossacks down to the rail line at Salsk and then northeast towards the big prize at Tzaritsyn. The Caucasus troops will go for Vladikavkaz and Derbent to complete the work in that region.

Early July, 1918. Southern White morale 106, Siberians 108, Reds 94. Resources Southerners 8 EPs, 14$, 64 companies, 11 WS, Siberians 14 EPs, 72$, 21 companies, 18 WS. The Red armies in the south are now clearly evacuating. Ekaterinodar was defended by a few measly Red Guard regiments. The Don Army will advance to Tzaritsyn and see if Voroshilov is up to fighting them. The Volunteers come up behind, less a few who go on to take Novorossiysk. The Komuch forces split a pair of battles with Muraviev between Syzran and Simbirsk, while other Komuch units advance adjacent to Kazan. We take Krasnoyarsk and Verkhnudinsk in Siberia. I have a small force down near Astrakhan who will probe the defenses there.

Oh, and that maniac Blucher is in Petropavlosk of all places. The West Siberian Army having pretty much org'ed up will converge on him and hopfully clean his clock for him. This is pretty wild stuff for Andatiep; he's normally much more conservative with his troops.
Stewart King

"There is no substitute for victory"

Depends on how you define victory.

[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Wed Mar 09, 2011 6:56 am

Late July, 1918. Siberian White morale 122, Southerners 107, Reds 90. Resources Siberians 31 EPs, 361$, 14 companies, 22 WS, Southerners 12 EPs, 5$, 56 companies, 11 WS. Siberians take Kazan, Yekaterinburg, and Tashkent, but Astrakhan is strongly defended. Blucher flees from Petropavlosk north to Ishim, cutting the other part of the trans-Siberian. The Siberian Army will pursue him. I got the Kazan Gold Train. The Czechs will advance down the rail line towards Perm. With all my EPs, I will do Limited Mobilization and start an arms factory. In the south, the Don Cossack and Volunteer armies will assault Tzaritsyn. The Communists have not yet evacuated all their forces; the Taman front is still around. I have one division of the Volunteer army in the area to keep them at a distance. I’m assuming that they are trying to evacuate but just in case I bring the Terek Cossacks up from the Caucasus to defend Ekaterinodar.

Early August, 1918. Southern White morale 106, Sibeirans 117, Reds 89. Resources: Southerners 14 EPs, 256$, 437 companies, 73 WS, Siberians 7 EPs, 601$, 1016 companies, 44 WS. Missions: Southerners one reform and two recruitments (the good ones, we’re using the war production mini-mod), Siberians 3 reforms, 4 recruiting, and limited mobilization. The Southern armies pushed into Tzaritsyn and defeated Stalin but he still holds the city. Our numbers are about equal and I see Bonch-Bruevich a few spaces to the north. The Taman guys have evacuated. I’m hoping for the best – with my new influx of resources at least I can send some replacements. In Siberia, The Blucher force has dematerialized. I expect they have headed west again into communist controlled territory in the Urals. Trotsky has appeared before Kazan with the Latvians, but can’t cross because the White river fleet is in the way. I am sending another Czech division to support the reasonably large garrison that is already there. Kamenev is in command in Perm, as I can now see since I have some rebels on the other side of the river. I have to send them a general before they can go anywhere because of the house rule we are using. I am starting to run a little short on Siberian generals. With my huge number of resources, I begin at once building a large army which is the only hope I have of holding my conquests against the huge Red hordes I can see coming.

Here's the situation in the north Volga. Note the presence of Mr. T (also known as "little Mr. T" to distinguish him from his lower-ranking but more fearsome comrade "big Mr. T" Tukachevsky) across the river from Kazan.

[ATTACH]14705[/ATTACH]
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Mon Mar 14, 2011 6:54 am

Late August 1918, Siberian morale 117, Communists 89, Southerners 106. Resources: Siberians 10 EPs, 301$, 709 companies, 16 WS, Southerners 16 EPs, 88$, 275 companies, 73 WS. Missions: Siberians had one requisition this turn, Southerners likewise. Siberians retake Semipalatinsk from the Greens. Blucher appears out of nowhere in Omsk! Luckily there is a fairly large garrison. The Siberian Army converges from all directions. The Czechs will storm Perm this turn. I’m still trying to rebuild the org of those guys in Izhevsk; for some reason, they won’t reorganize. Trotsky has disappeared from in front of Kazan, leaving the hapless Berzin in his place. I send a Czech division to look around to his west, hoping to cut off his supply and make him withdraw. The other two big groups of Komuch forces hold Simbirsk and Kazan in force. I see the S-R rebellion in Yaroslavl/Moscow is now a Green phenomenon instead of being controlled by me, a pity. For the Southerners, my probe at Vologda has met an unexpectedly large Red force there and will have to withdraw. The Archangel front is a pain for both sides anyway. Denikin and Krasnov fail to assault Tzaritsyn. No doubt squabbling about precedence. Or drunk. I’ll try the step out and step back in thing. My probe at the Red Don Front guys stuck in the mud west of Ekaterinodar is turned away without a fight. Wrangel arrives and I send him there to take command of the effort. Hopefully, we can smash Don Front and pick up a bunch of NM. On the Murmansk front, it is taking forever to move down and actually enter the map. I guess this is reasonable but it does demonstrate why Holy Mother Russia needs warm-water ports…

Early September 1918, Southern morale 102, Communists 96, Siberians 125. Resources: Southerners 18 EPs, 7$, 177 companies, 70 WS, Siberians 24 EPs, 388$, 928 companies, 18 WS. Missions: Southerners none, Siberians 2 requisitions. Well, this turn Denikin assaulted Tzaritsyn alone, Krasnov’s forces stood aside. As a result, the Volunteer Army suffered about 10,000 casualties and we lost 4 NM. I think the lesson is, don’t have two armies in the same region. Wrangel will lead a column against the retreating Red Don Front, though I very much suspect that they will have packed and gone by the time they get there. I saw the Red Don Fleet go by Azov last turn. The Siberians lost Iletsk to a commie partisan and suffered a 1 NM hit – I neglected to put that guy on “hold at all costs”, apparently. The Czechs push Kamenev out of Perm. Trotsky now appears in front of Penza, along with Berzin who was up by Kazan last turn. Now the Komuch army will have to go down there to face him. I’m beginning to think that if I want Tzaritsyn, I will also have to send the Komuch down there. And I don’t have much more time before the Czechs start to disappear.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Sun Mar 20, 2011 8:04 am

Late September, 1918. Siberian morale 124, Communists 99, Southerners 100. Resources Siberians 10 EPs, 137$, 750 companies, 14 WS, Southerners 20 EPs, 6$, 178 companies, 70 WS. Missions: Siberians one requisition, Southerners none. Red force under Berzin captures Penza, then Martyrov with a Komuch division comes down and takes it back again. In the process, we lose 1 NM – there were a lot of half-finished units in there. Blucher has disappeared once more. Hopefully he’ll starve this time. I can’t imagine where he would be getting supplies from. I’m running around snapping up all the little red towns which should leave him no refuge. I’m moving Komuch and Czech units south in hopes that I will get enough time to capture Tzaritsyn from the north before the Czechs disappear. Denikin was trying to pull out of Tzaritsyn but Stalin attacked him on the way out and pinned a loss on him for one NM. In the far north, a vagrant Communist column has besieged Arkhangelsk but the Allied navies have shown up to shut him in. The Americans and British are active there and will no doubt kick his butt for him as soon as they can finish their tea and/or coffee and trouble themselves to be active. Meanwhile, the Arkhangelsk army under Shapin is slowly marching back up from down by Vologda. The Communists certainly have a mobility advantage! Wrangel tried a push against the Communists west of Ekaterinodar and was pushed back. I see the Red fleet offshore now so I’m guessing those guys are leaving anyway. I am going to leave a large garrison in Ekaterinodar and head Wrangel north for one more stab at Tzaritsyn.

Early October, 1918. Southern morale 98, Communists 100, Siberians 119. Resources: Southerners 4 EPs, 190$, 179 companies, 69 WS, Siberians 10 EPs, 266$, 1020 companies, 30 WS. Missions: Southerners money option – my reforms option in Arkhangelsk was cancelled, probably because there was a Soviet column there – Siberians six reforms and three recruiting. The Brits and Yanks kick the Commies out of Arkhangelsk. The Red southern forces have indeed departed by ship up the Don so there is no more need of a large force down there. Wrangel heads north to join Denikin before Tsaritsyn. Hopefully next turn will see the capture of that place. The Turkmen finally take Samarkand from the stubborn Green defenders (the Reds down there disappeared long ago. They seem to have gone up to Guryev, in contact with their fellows at Astrakhan. Frunze and Chapaev appear on the left bank of the Volga between Saratov and Uralsk. This looks like a nice pocket and hopefully I can pick these guys up. I send two corps of the Komuch army to chase them down. The most annoying thing about playing the Siberians is the fact that the Reds control every area to start. This means that my units are very slow until I can gain MC in the rail regions. This is proving a real handicap to my intended blitzkrieg. Kamenev has escaped by boat down the Kama, evading my gunboats near Perm. He has disembarked on the north bank between Izhevsk and Kazan. I wonder if he is going to make a stab at Kazan? I imagine he is too weak but who knows.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Sat Mar 26, 2011 6:36 am

Late October, 1918. Siberian morale 119, Communists 100, Southerners 97. Resources: Siberians 14 EPs, 151$, 1012 companies, 8 WS, Southerners 6 EPs, 77$, 62 companies, 69 WS. Missions: Siberians one requisition, Southerners one reforms. Kamenev has moved on to Kazan, chased away the covering force and is besieging the garrison. They are on ‘hold at all costs’ so hopefully they’ll keep him away until the Czechs can catch up. Since the Reds control the rail net, Kamenev was able to move down here much quicker than his pursuers. Something seems to have happened to my rail capacity – I only have a few units on the railroad but I have little or no capacity left.

Here is a view of the north-central front, showing the situation of Kamenev's army:

[ATTACH]14758[/ATTACH]

Red forces are appearing throughout my rear area – there is a column besieging Aralsk, another at Uralsk, the irrepressible Blucher is wandering the Ishim Steppe. Maybe aggression is paying off for Andatiep? We’ll see. If I manage to catch and crush any of these stacks he will suffer a huge NM hit. I have a bigger problem with the Siberians, though – no infantry left to build. A pretty quiet turn for the Southerners. Wrangel has arrived in front of Tzaritsyn with another 800 strength points and we will make one final push for that city. If this doesn’t work, too bad. The Siberian attempt to cut supplies to the city doesn’t seem to be working, so we will proceed with caution. I don’t think the people are going to like me anyway, so maybe the requisitions and be damned route is preferable anyway…

Early November, 1918. Southern morale 102, Reds 103, Siberians 121. Resources Southerners 28 EPs, 59$, 59 companies, 94 WS, Siberians 38 EPs, 213$, 1171 companies, 51 WS. Missions: Southerners none, Siberians two requisitions. A big victory at Tzaritsyn costs the Reds 15000 casualties and no NM. How disappointing. But, we did capture Tzaritsyn. The Murmansk force has finally arrived down on the main map and is advancing along the rail line towards Petrozadovsk. I hope to capture it this turn though there is a Red leader there now. The Archangel guys have finally made it back home, nursing their sore feet and cursing the rail line people that wouldn’t carry them. The Red column that was up there has now completely disappeared and presumably is safely back in Red territory. What a pity. I call the navy back to avoid getting them frozen in the Northern Dvina for the winter. The Siberians are still holding Kazan, so I have all the Volga cities at once, meaning that under the terms of our mod, the Komuch survives and becomes the dominant faction in the White political coalition. Let’s see now if it works! I got a “Czech legion prepares to depart Russia” message this turn but the Czech units are still on the map. The Czech Legion and accompanying troops, about 700 strength points, will move to Kazan and hopefully dislodge Kamenev next turn. The Orenburg Army gets driven back from Tambov, and we lose 2 NM. They’ll fall back to Penza and regroup. Frunze takes Uralsk. The Komuch People’s Army will make its way down there to counter-attack while a force from Saratov advances east along the rail line. The Red column outside Aralsk has disappeared but Zinoviev is back, with a powerful Turkestan Army, in Fort Perovskiy. I thought he had gone up to the northwest to hook up with his friends near Uralsk, but apparently not. Guryev now appears to have only a supply unit in residence, so I am sending the little British Indian force I got to try to take control there.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
Pat "Stonewall" Cleburne
General of the Army
Posts: 639
Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2009 7:46 pm
Location: Kentucky

Mon Mar 28, 2011 7:42 pm

Hey Stewart. Looks like you've done pretty well with the Siberians so far. I remember having trouble with Tzaritsyn against the AI. Now you gotta get ready for the Ukraine opening up. Without the big Euro army helping much, it's gonna be even harder. They were a steamroller in my game. Ended up in Moscow with like 6 exp points a piece. :wacko: Those red units in Siberia look annoying, but just wait until all the greens show up...

What do you do with your armored trains? I notice you still have alot of uncontrolled rear area rail lines. I pretty much used them solely for rail line control, but you have the new train rules. Also, how are you liking the new general supply and the other mods so far? They seem like they would really change strategy.

Anyway, good luck against the Red manace. I always root for the underdog side, but not so much in your other PBEM :neener:

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Sat Apr 16, 2011 3:52 am

I have used the armored trains to stiffen up shock troops, especially in rear areas where they are chasing down Green raiders. I have provincial shock brigades with a leader, three or four regiments of infantry, one or two cavalry, and an armored train. They can drop the train if they have to go off-road but with the train they can pretty much steamroller any little Green or enemy unit that happens to get in their way.

The GS and ammo rules have not been a problem so far, for me anyway. I made sure to take control of all the little towns and have a good network of depots everywhere. I've built two weapon factories but neither one has finished yet. My ammo supply seems sufficient. We haven't fought a huge number of battles yet either. It has been more of a war of maneuver with the occasional storming of a town.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Sun May 01, 2011 6:24 pm

We've been taking a break waiting for the new patch but did one more turn last night:


Late November, 1918. Siberian morale 119, Reds 104, Southerners 105. Resources Siberians 12 EPs, 280$, 1228 companies, 37 WS, Southerners 13 EPs, 78$, 302 companies, 101 WS. Missions: Siberians 1 recruitment, money from home, Southerners 1 requisition. The rains have set in with a vengeance, leaving me with little to do. Siberian forces have massed at Kazan as the Reds retreat onto their riverboats. Next turn, I will build a fort there, hopefully keeping the Red fleet north of that point on the Volga. My armies would take more than a month to ford the river by the southern bank, however. The Siberian Army continues to move slowly up the rail line toward Samara, clearing out Green and Red pockets. In the meantime, the Komuch forces, having retreated from Tambov, now dig in at Penza. Columns converge from three directions on Antonov-Ovseenko, dug in at Uralsk hundreds of versts from the nearest other Red force. He has plenty of supplies, no doubt, but little or no hope of rescue. A small force will proceed along the Perm-Vologda rail line, while Molchanov and his brigade will move up to Kotlas. I hope to take Kotlas and open up communication with the Southern Whites at Archangel. When winter sets in fully, I will see if I can muster enough force for an offensive into the heart of Sovdepia along the Kazan-Moskva rail line. The Brits abort their landing in Guryev after discovering that the Reds there actually outnumber them about 2:1. In the south, we are regrouping after our remarkable victory at Tzaritsyn. I choose the “White Verdun” option to build a fortress there and send Wrangel out to pursue Stalin’s forces with the majority of my cavalry and armored cars. I hope that Vatsetis doesn’t have the org to launch a counter-offensive… Otherwise, we are building more Don Cossacks and waiting for the Ukraine to open up.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Mon May 16, 2011 12:52 am

Early December, 1918: We are playing with the events and gamedata folders from 1.02b but the engine from 1.02a. Hopefully it will be stable enough to allow us to continue until a stable 1.03 appears. Siberian morale 108, Reds 108, Southerners 102. Resources Siberians 12 EPs, 443$, 1774 companies, 43 WS, Southerners 0 EPs, 1$, 238 companies, 67 WS. Missions Siberians 1 requisition, 3 recruitment, 5 reform, Southerners 1 reform. Bad news for the Siberians this turn: Frunze and Antonov-Oveseeneko have broken out of Uralsk and have successfully crossed the Volga and captured Saratov. They managed to fight their way through two large detachments. My guys need to reorganize, hopefully we’ll be ready to fight faster than they are. I see that Trotsky is hanging out near Penza, so I expect an all-out attack by him to try to break through to his buddies. I am sending the Czech forces down from Kazan to try to intervene there. The Siberian army will arrive in Syzran this turn and hopefully will be able to intervene in that sector next turn. Siberians gain control of a whole bunch of Ukrainian regions. There’s a Bolshie armored train that has suddenly appeared on the line between Novorossiysk and Ekaterinodar. I wonder where he came from? The southerners don’t have any money and now that those Ukrainian regions have been taken away from them they aren’t going to get any any time soon. What you see is what you get for those guys, I guess. Wrangel didn’t make it to attack Stalin last turn and now his org is getting low so he will return to the main army. Kornilov transfers back from the Volunteer army at Tzaritsyn to Krasnov’s Don Cossack army, allowing the small Don force to begin to move into the Ukraine. In principle, Wrangel will form a new force coming up from Sevastopol, if we can still get in there.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Tue May 24, 2011 11:37 pm

Late December, 1918: Morale: Siberians 104, Reds 112, Southerners 121. Resources Siberians 19 EPs, 336$, 1662 companies, 6 WS, Southerners 24 EPs, 126$, 248 companies, 108 WS. Missions: none for either faction . The Reds under Molotov put a big hurt on the Siberian boys at Penza. For some reason, they passed on through the region, leaving me in control, but my units are badly shredded. I put them on “evade combat” and hope to slip away to the south before Trotsky comes back. Meanwhile, my push to recapture Saratov is not going well. Forces are converging from all points of the compass, but there is a large Red army under Frunze now nicely dug in. I build a fort this turn at Syzran and the Czechs take control of the defenses there. Siberian Army will arrive there next turn, hopefully before Trotsky. The Czechs send a small force out to take care of a Red force between there and Simbirsk. Small forces around Kazan confront a moderate Red force on the direct line to Moscow; I elect to hold my ground. Up by Viatka, a large Red force under Kamenev is pushing my boys around. Building for the Siberians is a host of infantry and cavalry since they have almost no WS. A couple of mysterious increases in EP/NM for the Southerners, I believe because of the arrival of the Ukraine in the war. The southerners have finally gotten some supplies from the Brits but are still very limited in what they can do. The Volunteer Army will push north out of Tzaritsyn headed upriver to Saratov. The Don Cossack Army is pushing slowly up the rail line towards Kharkov, while the guys who just appeared in the Crimea will try to gain control of the countryside and smaller towns there. Hopefully, we’ll be able to build some units there sometime. I will start a reform mission there as soon as I get a slot. God knows what I would do if I couldn’t start any more reform missions.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Sun Jun 05, 2011 2:08 am

Early January, 1919: Morale Siberians 101, Reds 115, Southerners 123. Resources Siberians 25 EPs, 112$, 1288 companies, 11 WS, Southerners 17 EPs, 211$, 111 companies, 101 WS. Missions: Siberians one reform, Southerners none. Kamenev pushes a small Siberian force out of Vyatka. Frunze pushes out of Saratov, knocking off one of my small columns in the vicinity, but the Czechs are pushing in from the other direction; maybe they’ll get there first! The Communists are pushing into northern Ukraine, and in Turkestan a disturbingly large Red force is nearing Samarkand. I now have two small columns caught between Penza and Saratov. Hopefully, with the exception of the bloody useless armored trains, we can escape across country. The Czechs and the Siberian so-called Army, both rather small formations, will advance carefully along the Syzran-Penza rail line, hoping to catch Trotsky by surprise. I have a number of Ukrainian units that have sprung up, but they are still all locked in place. Volunteer Army pushed the Reds back from outside Tsaritzyn, gaining one NM and inflicting almost 10,000 casualties. Stalin is not looking like a military genius now! The Volunteers will continue to push up the rail line towards Tambov, hopefully distracting Trotsky from punishing the Siberians south of Penza. The Greeks and French arrive in Odessa but they are locked up. I’d like to move them to someplace more useful, where they could cooperate with the rest of my forces. In the Crimea, we are still footling around taking control of towns from the Greens. I wonder how I will ever be able to get into action since the Ukrainians are in front of me. Maybe I’ll have to go up against the Anarchists? The Don Cossack Army pushes towards Kharkov, hoping that the Red force there is small.

Late January 1919: Morale Southerners 123, Reds 114, Siberians 100. Resources Southerners 19 EPs, 88$, -3 companies (?), 44 WS, Siberians 30 EPs, 163$, 1405 companies, 19 WS. Missions: Southerners one reforms and a bunch of missions were cancelled?, Siberians 1 requisition . The Volunteer Army pushed Stalin out of the way and got as far forward as Balashov. Tambov beckons! The Don Cossack Army takes Kharkov. I beat up on a group of partisans in the Caucasus but others are still active. The Cossacks will advance on Kursk while smaller columns head for Poltava and Ekaterinoslav to link up with the Ukrainians. My forces advance out of the Crimea but supply is beginning to be an issue. My expeditionary forces are still locked, I suspect this might be permanent. A confused situation around Saratov; it looks like both sides tried to cross the Volga at the same time. The Reds end up in control of the town but apparently without any troops there. My guys are on both sides of them along the rail line and Frunze is off to the north. At the same time, Tukachevsky with a large force has run down to Uralsk and tried storming the town, but fought to a stalemate (my guys were on hold at all costs). I’m rushing them reinforcements while my other guys are trying to get into Saratov while the Reds are elsewhere. We’ll see what happens next turn.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Thu Jun 23, 2011 9:28 pm

Early February 1919: Morale Siberians 95, Southerners 122 (can’t see the Reds any more). Resources Siberians 31 EPs, 1275 companies, 100$, 31 WSU, Southerners 13 EPs, 276$, 179 companies, 76 WSU. Missions none for either faction as we are switching over to having missions take one turn, so all outstanding missions were cancelled. Berzin pushes the Czechs under Syrovy out of the way between Saratov and Penza. Tukachevsky takes Uralsk and nearly wipes out the garrison, costing me 4 NM. The Reds are also rolling back my Czech/Ural forces between Perm and Izevsk, costing me another 2 NM. A rough turn for the Siberians. The Czech Legion (about 400 points) will press on towards Saratov to join with troops coming across the Volga. Frunze is just across the river; we’ll see if he tries to intervene. The Orenburg Army (about 200 points, plus reinforcements coming up from Syzran) will hold Kuznetsk on the Penza-Syzran railroad) against Trotsky. A new fort will be going in at Simbirsk. The Siberian Army (375 points), currently just north of Penza, will move north to Saransk, hoping to link up with several of its corps currently west of Kazan, ultimate objective Nizhniy Novgorod. Up around Perm, the army that is currently out of position up in the taiga north of the town will try to edge around the Reds and back into Perm, meanwhile I will hurry up garrisons from the rear to strengthen that area. Still no option to bring the Ukrainians into the war on my side. Don’t know if there is some prerequisite that I have to fulfill. The Southerners finally captured that annoying Communist armored train that was running around between Novorossiysk and Ekaterinodar. Denikin and the Volunteer Army are pressing on Tambov. Wrangel’s Corps was unsuccessful in its attack on Stalin and now has to retreat back across the Don. A number of Cossacks have appeared in the Donbass and I send some of them back towards Tzaritsyn to back up Wrangel if he gets in further trouble with Stalin’s army. Down in the Caucasus, the Chechen Division has cleared Kirov out of Petrovsk-Port. He now appears to be out at sea – I send the British gunboats from the Siberian faction to hunt for him. It looks like the Anarchists have joined up with the Reds and are making an incursion into my zone around Rostov. The Cossack Army will advance up the rail line from Kharkov towards Kursk with a conservative stance, since I have no idea at all what awaits me there. They drop off a brigade to secure the Kharkov area, while the two small flanking columns peel off to protect Lugansk and Novocherkassk against the Black Menace. Meanwhile, the forces coming up from the Crimea will operate against the Anarchist base in Huilapole, which appears to be garrisoned with a single partisan unit (though appearances can be deceiving). No diplomatic options open for the Southern Whites either.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Sun Jul 17, 2011 4:29 pm

Late February, 1919: Morale: Southerners 118, Siberians 88. Resources Southerners 17 EPs, 168$, 144 companies, 43 WS, Siberians 38 EP, 107$, 1234 companies, 39 WS. Missions: Southerners 3 requisitions and 2 reforms, a number cancelled no doubt due to the transition in how the mod is handling missions. Siberians: one requisition, two recruitments, five political. Wrangel recrosses the river back into Tzaritsyn without engaging Stalin on the far bank, I will send him up to join the main army facing Tambov, where my probe was turned away with surprisingly heavy losses. Obviously, the Reds have sufficient forces to hold Tambov and keep the pressure up against the Siberians to the west. A pity. I will send some small cavalry raiding forces to cut rail lines and try to at least slow supply delivery while I bring more forces up. I notice also that quite a bit of the Volunteer units are actually Don or Southern Cossacks, and they are now out of their turf; perhaps this is hurting their combat efficiency. I have a lot of ‘all area’ units down in the south but they are all conscripts. I don’t know which is worse – a Cossack out of his native territory or a conscript unit. My Cossacks in the Don region have succeeded in driving off the Anarchists and capturing their depot, which is surprisingly short of supplies. They still hold one town so they are probably getting enough supply to keep alive. The Don Cossack army took Kursk – Orel beckons, once I can reorg and bring up reinforcements. For the Siberians, the Czechs have been driven back from Penza with light losses, but enough to cost us another NM. On the other hand, the British spanked some Red transports off Krasovdsk and killed 1200 men, but no NM gain for that. I guess we expect the British to rule the waves, even on the Caspian! Just north of Penza, we won another victory but still no NM gain… Frunze appears between Syzran and Samara, pushing out of his bridgehead at Saratov with 20000 men. I think I have both cities garrisoned well enough to stand him off, but I’ll rush some reinforcements to the area. Luckily I bought some more rail capacity last turn. We are maneuvering around Saratov but the Reds still seem to have left the city empty. I’m rushing towards it in hopes of capturing and fortifying before Trotsky, Vatsetis, and Tukachevsky can converge. If I can hold Saratov that will be a big step forward, restoring my NM a bit and cutting off the Reds. I still think they have been too aggressive in their crossing of the lower Volga.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Mon Aug 01, 2011 9:07 pm

Early March, 1919: Morale Southerners 117, Siberians 85. Resources Southerners 21 EPs, 96$, 156 companies, 31 WS, Siberians 47 EPs, 138$, 808 companies, 36 WS. Missions Southerners one recruitment, one requisition, 3 reforms, Siberians 6 reforms, four recruitments. Ghai-Khan turns back my forces coming up from Kazan with heavy losses! We will have to retreat across the Volga and refit. On the southern front, we have taken Saratov but 60,000 Reds under Vatsetis are on the other side of the river. They pushed my garrison back with heavy losses. Hopefully, we can hold onto the city for a couple of turns, enough to get properly dug in. I’m hoping the rains will start early and the ice will break up on the river. The Siberian Army will strike northwest along the rail line from Saransk, hoping to sow confusion and distract the Communists. Everybody else digs in and hopes that the onset of the spring rains will slow down the Red juggernaut and allow us to recover our position somehow. The Cossacks have taken Kursk, but the supply situation will not permit them to advance further at this point. I am still building a string of depots behind them, and the Anarchists are still active in the rear. The Volunteer Army has been disbanded since I don’t have any other 3-star generals; quite disturbing. For the time being, I will pull them back to Balashov and rebuild, and send a column under Wrangel to support the Cossacks. A Red raiding party has landed at Kizylar; the Chechen Division will move down to deal with them. The British Caspian fleet will be back next turn so they can cut off the Red supplies and maybe land a force somewhere to take advantage. It would be nice to be able to take Astrakhan and Gurjev. In the North, the Brits got hammered going up against Vologda. Miller and the North Army will try against Timoshenko on the road to St. Petersburg this turn, taking advantage of my newly-created Marines to see me safely across the river, hopefully. I’m trying to recognize the independence of the non-Russian states this turn; I’m not sure if I need 20 or 30 EPs.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Wed Aug 17, 2011 2:31 am

Late March 1919: Morale Siberians 81, Southerners 112. Resources Siberians 54 EPs, 99$, 545 companies, 31 WS, Southerners 25 EPs, 168$, 181 companies, 31 WS. Missions: Siberians 6 political, 2 requisition, 1 recruitment, Southerners 3 political, 4 requisition, 1 recruitment . Frunze hammered my garrison in Samara for 4 NM, then lost a battle on the second day with no NM lost. I wonder how much ammunition he has left? They don’t have any supply lines back to Sovdepia since I’ve taken Saratov. With any luck after two pitched battles he is out of ammo and organization. I send a two-star to command the defense and next turn I’ll have a fortification package there. So we hold the city but our morale has been further bashed. Kalnin is pushing down the rail line back to Aralsk, sweeping my weak garrisons out of the way. Mostly defensive this turn, rushing reinforcements to Samara. The Siberia Army is heading for Nizhny Novgorod, hoping to cut the rail lines behind the northern Red forces, then get on river boats and return to Kazan. The Orenburg army is quite large, holding Saratov, but I decide to keep it in place waiting for the Red attack. If Trotsky or Vatsetis go the other way, then I’ll go after the other one, but I can’t afford to lose Saratov. In the north, Miller’s attack on Petrozadovsk was a failure, for a loss of 4 NM. Bad news all over. But somehow we managed to gain control of the town anyway. Three days of battle, we lose two and then they retreat. Ouch! The Don Cossacks continue to press the offensive, heading for Orel. A parallel column moves north from Voronezh. I transfer General Ironside from Murmansk to command the ex-Volunteer Army, now the British Expeditionary Force (!). He’s the only 3-star I have left and better not to leave him sitting around at Murmansk while my boys down south suffer for lack of leadership. They will take another stab at Tambov. It is a heck of a big force by the standards of the White army at 1250 points, all under good command.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Tue Aug 30, 2011 5:39 am

Early April, 1919, Morale Siberians 79, Southerners 104, Reds 134. Resources Siberians 59 EPs, 180$, 423 conscripts, 43 WS, Southerners 26 EPs, 163$, 124 companies, 37 WS. Missions: Siberians 6 political, 2 requisition, 4 recruitment, Southerners 3 political, four requisition, 2 recruitment. My foolish garrison in Tobolsk surrendered to the Greens and cost me an NM; I must have forgotten to put them on hold at all costs. Trotsky in Penza turns away a probe from the Komuch, and inflicts enough losses to take another NM. The NM situation is becoming critical now that I’m below 80. The reds are pushing for the Volga cities now. Their columns approach Kazan, Syzran, Simbirsk, they continue to lurk outside Samara. Supplies don’t seem to be an issue for them despite the large force I’ve concentrated in Saratov. I use river transports to send troops from Kazan to reinforce Samara and Simbirsk. I’m still playing defense on the Siberian front and hoping that the Southerners will achieve success. In the south, though, Makhno has taken Kharkov. Kirov has taken Petrovsk-Port and in a stunning upset, his rag-tag navy has beaten the proud British fleet offshore. The Americans coming down from Kotlas tried to take Viatka but it turns out that there is a very large Communist garrison there. Where do they all come from? So the Don Cossack Army has to turn back to deal with the Anarchist threat to its rear. This is really getting out of hand now, I don’t know how much longer I’m going to last.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Wed Sep 21, 2011 2:20 am

Alot going on in my life these last couple of weeks, so I haven't had a chance to catch up with the game until today.


Lat April, 1919, Morale Siberians 79, Southerners 104, Reds 135. Resources Siberians 66 EPs, 269$, 382 companies, 57 WS, Southerners 31 EPs, 259$, 273 companies, 39 WS, Missions Siberians 4 reforms, 4 requisitions, 4 recruitment, Southerners 1 reform, 2 requisitions, 4 recruitment. A Red fleet passed in front of Kazan and we pummeled them, dealing out 49 hits though the system doesn’t report how many ships we sunk. Zinoviev now has a large army in Turkestan, almost 20,000 men. Luckily he is an incompetent, or he would have overrun me long ago. The Poles have captured Vilnius but are no closer to declaring war, apparently. The Siberian Army’s raid west of the Volga ends with an embarrassing brush with a small force led by that paladin of Communism, Ordzhonikidze, who manages to drive us back from Nizhny Novgorod. Since we still control the rail line behind our front, we will withdraw to Simbirsk. Stalin appears opposite Saratov, while the Reds continue to besiege Samara. In each case, I have larger forces, but given the difference in NM I am reluctant to launch and attack and wait for the Reds to make the first move. I send my navy up to Kazan to pursue the Red fleet there, hopefully they will be weak enough from my bombardment last turn that I can sink a bunch of them. The garrison in Vladikavkaz has surrendered, costing the southerners one NM. The Southern assault on Tambov was unsuccessful, despite inflicting almost twice as many casualties as we suffered. Problem with having a 30 NM deficit, obviously. In the north, Timoshenko pushes past our northern army and takes Petrozadovsk. Despite being defeated at Tambov, Mai-Maievski qualifies for promotion and can now become a 3-star. He may take command of the Volunteer Army from Ironside. And the British troops garrisoning Kotlas are experiencing mutinies. How special! I think the American forces near Viatka are out of luck, having retreated the wrong way they are now stuck out in the Siberian Taiga. My only hope is to have them try to sneak past the Bolsheviks. Miller, in command of North Army, will try to slip past the Bolshies in Petrozadovsk, leaving the mutinous Brits behind as a rear guard. Another large Red force has materialized in front of the Cossack army in Kursk, and I continue my retreat towards Kharkov, still controlled by the despicable anarchists. Wrangel transfers from the Volunteer army to the east Ukraine, and gathers a scratch force to take on Kharkov from the east.

Early May, 1919. Morale Siberians 77, Southerners 103, Reds 86? (It appears that Lenin has been killed, how, I don’t know. Perhaps a bug?). Resources Southerners 7 EPs, 204$, -58 companies (?), 47 WS, Siberians 71 EPs, 275$, 316 companies, 71 WS. Missions Southerners 4 reforms, 1 requisition, 1 recruiting, Siberians 4 reforms, 3 requisitions, 4 recruiting. Miller fails to slip past Timoshenko in Petrozadovsk, despite the fact that a good-sized detachment of Reds pushed forward to Segezha and takes on the small British garrison there in an inconclusive struggle. Miller is still trapped south of Petrozadovsk with no apparent way out. Another huge stack of Reds appears and captures Voronezh. Wrangel takes Kharkov, but the Anarchists head north to Belgorod and slap the Don Cossack army around. It is now a mere shadow of its former self and running for cover. The Reds capture Kotlas, now the Americans are really cut off. I wonder if they can make it across Siberia to join their friends in Vladivostok? It is their only hope right now. In the south, we mass reinforcements in Kharkov, while the defeated elements of Cossack army try to slip around the flank to join them. Mai-Maievski takes command of Volunteer Army, while Ironside heads for Azov preparatory to jumping ship back to Murmansk to try to repair the situation there. I elect to bring the Finns into the war, which will cost me 10 NM but hopefully I will be able to recover with their help. Otherwise, I’m doomed. Miller’s Northern Army falls back towards Finland, hoping to find supplies there. We also recruit and requisition like mad, even in the places where we don’t have really great loyalty levels. Political reforms can wait until after the crisis has passed. The communists crush our defenses in Simbirsk, despite having only about even odds to start with. It’s their “Iron Division”, though, so it must have been high quality troops. We still hold the town, behind fortified lines, though. I send the Peplaev Corps down from Kazan to try to repair the situation. Vatsetis assaults Orenburg and cleans my clock despite nearly even odds, the presence of one of my best defensive generals (Gaida) and level 4 fortifications. And then in a follow-up attack, Gaida was killed. Now Vatsetis’ army is showing a strength of 4, but somehow I don’t trust that. And my poor Ukrainians are getting pulverized and since they are all locked up there is nothing I can do. So let’s hope that my new allies will tip the balance. Supply situation is still a little chaotic with many units showing no supplies or ammo but still they don’t starve to death.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Tue Sep 27, 2011 4:02 am

The Lenin Dies event was a bug, that should have been corrected some time ago except that I did not properly install the needed patch. So I went back and did my turn again and the outcome was pretty much the same except no dead Lenin. I tried to do everything the same I had before.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled AAR.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

User avatar
TheDoctorKing
Posts: 1664
Joined: Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Portland Oregon

Sun Oct 23, 2011 11:44 pm

Late May, 1919. Morale Siberians 77, Southerners 100, Reds 138. Resources Siberians 75 EPs, 203$, 542 companies, 57 WS, Southerners 11 EPs, 296$, 250 companies, 72 WS. Missions Siberians 4 recruitment, 4 requisition, Southerners 4 recruitment, 2 requisitions. The Communists from Samara have moved on up the railroad to Ufa, leaving substantial garrisons in their rear. I can’t resist the temptation to sortie out and clobber them. They may have high morale but we are better troops. I am rounding up a garrison for Chelyabinsk, just in case. The rivers have finally cleared so I can send my river navy out to contest control of the Volga again. Zinoviev takes a stab at Tashkent, but my new reinforcements down there mean that my forces are at least a match for his. We inflict 4000 casualties on his force for a loss of only 2000 of our own. I’m hoping to send some Turkestan troops to fight in the Caucasus if they can be spared. The Southerners have massed their forces at Kharkov, centrally located to smash at Makhno or the real Reds to the North.

Early June, 1919. Morale Siberians 74, Southerners 99, Reds 141. Resources Siberians 81 EPs, 40$, 414 companies, 74 WS, Southerners 15 EPs, 254$, 245 companies, 71 WS. Missions Siberians none, Southerners none. The idiots in Syzran surrendered rather than sortie, despite the fact that a large army was only one region away and they had an open river route for supplies. Thus demonstrating the problem with having a low NM. In addition, the Ukrainians, who are somehow allied to me despite being almost entirely immobile, lose Cherkassy, costing me more NM. In Simbirsk, the garrison failed to launch a sortie despite significantly outnumbering the enemy outside. This is quite frustrating. At least the Syzran sortie worked, as we gain control of the region and the Reds retreat to the south. The Finnish declaration of war didn’t fire (again). I think it must be bugged in some way. Wrangel suffers another defeat at the hands of the Ukrainian anarchists. In the Caucasus, the Chechens push the Reds back towards their strongholds on the Caspian shore. A corps from Tsaritsyn pushes up to try to cut the rail line supplying Stalin near Saratov. The other southern forces mass south of Tambov and around Kharkov, trying to provoke a Red attack.
Stewart King



"There is no substitute for victory"



Depends on how you define victory.



[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

Return to “RUS: Revolution Under Siege AARs”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 6 guests