World in Flames via FB - 28

There is a long orange line that is holding on the Eastern Front.

AUSGAME 2020 1942 J/A – OPERATION BARBAROSSA 42 STALLED

M/J EOT rebasing, production and reinforcements and then the BIG roll for initiative! Could the Axis win the JUL/AUG initiative and get two impulses in a row and eliminate the trapped Russian Corps or exploit their bridgehead in the Ukraine? Anti-climax as both the GERM and Russian roll 3’s, Russia wins the first round as the Allies win ties - the GERM demands a reroll (+1 to the Allies), Russia rolled 8 with a +1 to win the initiative and crush GERMs hopes on the Russian front.

US and CW declare Naval with Russia and China declaring Land impulses. Allied shipping sail convs, their escorts and loaded Tpts across the seas of the world. The W Med is again contested as 14 allied planes fly into the 1 box hunting a lone Italian CA – the Axis react and contest the Sea area and also fly 14 acft to the 1 box for the biggest air show in town, but only if they find – no side does. A U-Boat in the N Atlantic runs out of luck as it is sunk by the newly arrived escorting Allied CA’s. Another British HQ, Gort arrives in Archangel. US Subs search for convs in the South China Sea and roll a find and avoiding the Jap Nav air sink 3 convs and abort 2 more – S China Sea OOS and the oil link to Borneo cut again – more pain for the Japanese. Russian land sees reinforcements rushed to the front, including the important A-Tank Guns and a handy 9.6 ARM (the T-34s have arrived) together with replacement FTRs. The trapped Mech, given a reprieve extricates itself from the GERM trap, leaving the Russian Inf to absorb the Axis attack. Arty in Odessa hammer the Rumanian Mountain unit. Zhukov moves forward and reinverts the arty, the two inverted units in the pocket and a couple of reinforcements that railed to the front. China attempts a GS with its only Land Bomber but without an escort, it is intercepted by long range Zeros operating from Hong Kong and is promptly shot down, with its pilots captured and executed by a well rolled 18! An important loss for the Chinese which has limited opportunities to GS (invert Japanese units)

Axis first impulse, GERM declares a LAND and Italy an AIR in order to fly air into the W Med and support bombing missions in Russia to support GERM land Ops as well as opportunities to rebase forward. The Italian GS are mostly driven away by the excellent Russian AA gunners and another Italian NAV attempting a speculative GS is short down, a Russian FTR is also eliminated, although the pilot manages to bail out over friendly territory to fight another day. With few ‘bonus’ opportunities from the GS the GERM only attacks the ‘pocket’ from 5 hexes, with a blitz attack they top the table (25) for a no loss and no invert. Little other activity on the Russian front, as the Russian line has been strengthened and with out the bonus plusses from GS, attacking and inverting too early is not in the GERMs best interests – the GERM Stukas have yet to fly.

The Allies 2nd impulse sees the CW and Russia take a land and the US a Combined. A search in the W Med which fails to find the Italian CA or the Axis acft stack – a continuing trend, and somewhat expected as either need 2’s since the Axis aborted their Convs. The US aborted ‘at risk’ tpts sitting in several sea area ‘zero boxes’ to Ireland and in the Pacific naval reinforcements arrive in Pearl from the US. Two ships, a tpt and the CV Saratoga being reinverted by the HQ in Pearl. The CW land sees Saudi Arabia’s capital, conquered as their 1.5 Camel Corps is overwhelmed by attacking Australians and Indian Corps and Lisbon is assaulted in a less than a perfect attack of +16 as a number of British Heavy BS remained in Gibraltar rather than sail to provide essential shore bombardment. Defiantly defending Lisbon, the Portuguese defenders eliminate a British Div as the first combined US/CW assault struggles to a 22 for a 1/2 loss and ½ invert – it would appear that the US and Brit Paras will take the rest of the J/A turn off. Russia steps back a few hexes and straightens its front line, now a very strong front line that extends from the Black Sea to the Baltic, from Odessa to Riga, leaving few opportunities for the GERMs next impulse. Several Portuguese distant territories were occupied by CW Territorials and MIL. The Russian’s content in stalling OP BARBAROSSA, declined a +8 blitz attack against some Axis minor allies as GERM Stukas could interfere with it and an early ‘poor roll’ would see Russian units inverted on the Russian front line – what the GERM wants to see, but certainly not what the Russian wants early on in the turn.

Summary

Somewhat slow night with rebasing and builds followed by CW/US Naval actions – the first IMPULSE naval moves for these ‘big naval’ powers always take time. The loss of the initiative for the J/A clear weather turn was not the start the GERM was looking forward. Having spent heavily on O-Points to break the Russian line in M/J and ending it – his double impulse turn was lost on the two failed initiative rolls. All at the table recognised the lost opportunity that the GERM had created, albeit with a lucky EOT roll of a 3, on the last turn (M/J). A better, morale lifting session for the Japanese who shot down the only Chinese Land bomber and its pilot for no loss, finding and inflicting minor losses on US subs, convs and CA’s and having ‘cleaned up’ pesky Partisans in Manchuria and re-established their front line in China.

The Allies cleared up (conquered) some minor countries (Saudi Arabia and Portugal) and the US seemed less than confident to contest the S China Sea until CV and land based Ftr reinforcements arrive from the W Coast of America. Next session a full day as we have a Holiday Monday here in West Oz, this should see the end of the fine weather in Europe 42 with J/A and S/O being played out, depending on the length of the turns, the Axis may start passing rather than the Allies now to slow the Allied advance!

JA 42 Russian Front - a straight front line from the Black sea to the Baltic

- tough work ahead for the Axis

Army Gp North defensive cities, river lines and AT guns halting the breakout.

Army Gp South - Russian ARM and MECH slows the GERM advance in the Ukraine

The great Air war in the W Med - all these 28 acft are in the 1 box -

Russia is well pleased that they are in the Med and not the Russian Front

The W Med Lisbon falls at the cost of a Brit Div and all the paras inverted.

The Far East - China stabilised for the moment

South China Sea - yet to be contested this turn, Jap Convs lost

Saudi Arabia now in allied hands