'Odin' and Stalin's Secret Committee

[roverS3]

The 30th of December 1939, near Vologda, -10,7°C, 10am Moscow Time.

Report on the Finnish war for the ten days between 10am on the 10th, and 10am on the 20th of December,

XXIII SK has been given the objective of capturing Kouvola Air Base 65 km from Viipuri.

A new objective for XXIII SK, note 67 SD withdrawing from Antrea and the troop movements behind the front...
​

Viipuri 2

Shortly after the latests update Maj. General Bogdanov I.A. SK3, having improved his skills by now, ordered a standard Defence against the ongoing enemy Attack lead by Maj. General Valve SK2.
On the 21st, at 2am Maj. General Lebedenko's 73. SD finally joins the battle with 10.000 fresh troops, Maj. General Valve improves his skills to the same level as Maj. General Bogdanov I.A., who then starts a new Delaying action. Only two hours later, at 4pm, 67 SD could finally take no more, and retreated, into Finnish territory to the North-East. Maj. General Frenkel SK2 of 70 SD immediately took over command of the defensive operations.
On the 22nd, Maj. General Frenkel SK2 took on a Defending posture in the face of the enemy Attack that was lead by a now more skilled commander than himself.
Low intensity fighting continued for days with no changes in tactics or reinforcements, and by 3am on the 25th, 4. Divisioona halted all offensive operations, the men could take no more. In the end the 2nd battle for Viipuri involved a total of 26.380 Finnish soldiers of whom 1.603 were killed by ground troops or naval bombardments. 29.992 soviet troops rushed to the defence of Viipuri, losing 879 men in the 12 day battle, the brunt of the losses were from 67 SD, which held the fort on it's own for 5 days before any reinforcements arrived.

The VVS continued it's bombing campaign throughout Viipuri 2, with I ShAK flying 19 more missions over Hamina, causing 457 casualties for 7 downed Su-2's. I BAK, flew 19 more missions over Lappeenranta, causing 943 casualties for 7 downed Yak-4's.

Meanwhile, Finnish Air Maj. General Sarko, SK3 seems to have gone crazy, at 5pm he lead his Lentorykmentti 1, now counting 79 Gloster Gladiators, into Leningrad Air space, the many (Level 5) heavy AA guns in place immediately opened fire on the intruding biplanes, while all three runways were quickly abuzz with 400 I-16's taking off. Air Lt. General Khudyakov SK2, SAT and his I IAD showed no mercy for the Finns, and many a biplane found it's way to the bottom of the Baltic in the three hour battle, while 1 I-16 was lost, probably to our own AA guns.

Viipuri 3

At 11am on the 25th a small skirmish broke out in Viipuri, as the Defending 70 SD and 73 SD, lead by Maj. General Frenkel SK2, counting 19.993 men was under Assault by 2.998 second line troops of 1 Er.RTPsto (Garx1). One hour later the Finns had pulled back, as Viipuri 2 was clearly over, and they were outnumbered more than six to one. This mistake cost them 34 lives in ground combat, while they only managed to kill 1 Russian Defender.

A single bombing mission was flown by I ShAK, which has now been joined in action by the 100 La-5 Multi-Role Fighters of 44. IAD, over Lappeenranta, killing 31 Finnish soldiers without losing a single Aircraft.

Head of State Mikhail Kalinin visiting Viipuri and decorating the brave men who kept it out of Finnish hands
​

Käkisalmi and Suojärvi

1ya Armiya is taking some initiative now, and at 4am on the 25th, it started two simultaneous probing attacks.

From Valkjärvi, Maj. General Kurasov SK3 tried to organise an Assault across the Vuoksi river into Käkisalmi, with the 29.991 men of 38 SD, 43 SD, and 78 SD. Defending the fortified northern bank of the Vuoksi was Maj. General Blick's 23 Divisioona, along with two HQ's, II Ameijakunta (***), and 1st Army (****). The 10.992 man defence was thus lead by General Walden, SK2, commander of the 1st Army. After only a single hour of combat and 7 Soviet casualties, Maj. General Kurasov realised the futility of his attack, as crossing the frozen river under fire was going to be very costly as there was simply no cover at all. A Russian sharpshooter managed to kill 1 Finnish soldier who couldn't keep his head down.

The old Korela Fortress in Käkisalmi, an extra obstacle besides the wide open frozen river.
​

While the attack on Käkisalmi might have succeeded, the attack on Suojärvi was doomed from the start. Maj. General Popov M.M. SK3, DD seems to have been tired of waiting for the shooting to start and lead his 57 MSD (Motx3, Eng), counting 9.912 men, into a Shock attack through the dense forests of Suojärvi, it was a risky move as scouts had already determined that more than one Finnish Division was present in the province. As Maj. General Popov M.M. quickly found out, 26.980 Finnish soldiers from 3 divisions were dug in in the forests. Maj. General Hanell SK2, DD lead the Defending 11 Divisioona, 21 Divisioona and 12 Divisioona. In two hours, the skirmishes cost the lives of 13 Russian riflemen, as well as 3 Finnish soldiers, who were surprised in their advanced foxhole by the speed of the Russian attack and were killed only just after radioing their Division HQ.

Antrea

After retreating the wrong way Maj. General Bogdanov I.A. SK3 and his 67 SD, exhausted from the 2nd battle of Viipuri counted themselves very lucky that no Finnish units had been present in Antrea when they arrived on the 25th. The Fins, having noticed their mistake, decided to act on the 28th with the closest unit available. At 7pm Maj. General Snellman, SK1, WS, FB sent his Erilliset Pataljoona (Infx2), counting 5.995 men on an Attack on Antrea. He probably though that 67 SD, still disorganised from Viipuri 2, would be a pushover. He was, however underestimating, both the Red Army's morale, and the superior skill Maj. General Bogdanov I.A. acquired since the start of the war. Instead of routing tired and demoralised troops, he found himself in the face of a 9.540 man Counter-Attack, completely countering the Finnish strategy. The battle lasted until 5pm the next day before Maj. General Bogdanov I.A. ordered an organised withdrawal back to Viipuri, as his troops did need to rest, and the position in Antrea was particularly vulnerable to enveloping attacks. No official body count was submitted, but the records of 67 SD show 29 riflemen died, while conservative estimates based on interviews with the soldiers and previous experience put the Finnish casualties at somewhere between 50 and 55.
Even worse for Erilliset Pataljoona than the unexpected Counter-Attack, was the fact that they incurred the wrath of Air Lt. General Zhigarev SK3, TB, who, with his I ShAK's 200 SU-2's and 100 La-5's, flew 4 missions over Hiitola in 22 hours, killing another 86 Finnish soldiers for the loss of 1 single Su-2.

Vokhtozero

Men from 12 Divisioona in Suojärvi getting ready to go on the offensive in temperatures as low as -11°C.
​

The skirmish in Suojärvi exposed a weakness in our positions to the Finnish Army, and at 7pm on the 29th Maj. General Oinonen, SK1, WS, Eng tried to exploit it. Luckily for Maj. General Popov M.M. SK3, DD, who would be in trouble with the Red Army high command if he were to lose his position because of his blunder in Suojärvi, Maj. General Oinonen used just his own 12 Divisioona (Infx3), counting 8.991 men to attack 57 MSD, now 9.976 men, Defending Vokhtozero.
The battle is still ongoing 15 hours later, I'm not worried, especially with Air Lt. General Golovanov's I BAK already flying missions, the first 2 missions killed 57 Fins, for the cost of 1 Yak-4.

To sum things up:
Soviet Union:

Men sent into Battle: 253.308 (+89.412), ground combat casualties for finished battles: 1216 (+929) men,
Planes sent into Battle: 1.600 (+400) (Air Battles only), 54 (+17) planes lost (31 (+8) Yak-4's, 9 CAG's, 19 (+8) Su-2's, 4 (+1) I-16's)​

Finland:

Men sent into Battle: 146.824 (+55.956), ground combat casualties for finished battles 2.515 (+1.692) men, Bombing Casualties: 4.941 (+1.574)
Planes sent into Battle: 351 (+79) (Air Battles only), at least 1/3 planes lost.

Finland on the 30th of December 1939.
​

The Southern advance has stalled, but we haven't lost any ground, 1ya Armiya is moving up more troops, as always the VVS is putting any Finnish unit that lifts a finger under enormous pressure, and we should be able to keep it that way.
It's not a disaster (like it was in real life), but it's not a cakewalk either, this war. It was to be expected with these freezing temperatures, and a disorganised officer corps, let's hope we move forward in the next ten days...

Greetings,

'Odin'​

 

[roverS3]

The 30th of December 1939, near Vologda, -10,7°C, 10am Moscow Time

Report on the state of the Soviet Union for the ten day period between the 1st hand the 10th of December 1939,

by 'Odin'

Army:

A new Motorised Rifle Division, 84. MSD has been delivered to 1st Army Group, Leningrad-Archanglesk HQ. Once it has been reinforced with 8 IP (Eng), and 293 MSP (Mot), already deployed, it will join Lt. General Timoshenko S.K.'s XIV MSK, 1ya Armiya, 1st Army Group, Leningrad-Archanglesk HQ, which will then be at full size. A leader or the new DIvision will be selected in the first days of January 1940.
Army numbers (Brigades/Personnel) Reserves included (these numbers don't include regiments being upgraded):

Front line troops: 516 / 1.548.000
Support troops: 146 / 146.000

Total fighting troops: 662 / 1.694.000​

Headquarters: 52 / 26.000

Total Army Personnel: 714 / 1.720.000​

Officers: 62.977 + / 71.970 needed / 87,505 %
Active Leaders: 211 / 37 Reserve
Production has started on a full size Motorised Rifle Division (Motx3, Eng)
​

Air Force:

No changes in the VVS, nor the Navy Air Fleet in the last ten days
​

Navy:

No changes in the navy for the last ten days
​

Politics / International:

No legislative changes, nothing of not on the international scene for the last 10 days
​

Industry:

Industry Numbers:

Working Industrial Capacity / available capacity: 232 / 307
IC Usage: ( Allocated IC / Need )

Upgrades: 38,79 / 43,07
Reinforcement: 1,29 / 1,28
Supplies: 14,29 / 29,03
Production: 225,00 / 228,64
Consumer Goods: 27,63 / 27,63​

Stockpiles:

Energy: Maximum =
Metal: 78.237 tonnes +
Rares: 27.823 tonnes +
Crude: 75.459 barrels +
Supplies: 30.879 tonnes +
Fuel: 98.997 barrels -
Money: 1.914 -
​

Intelligence:

Spy numbers, spies in (active / added / lost / caught by us)

France (Tech Espionage / Counterespionage): 10 / 1 / 1 / 0

{ Germany (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 1 }
{ Japan (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 1 }​

UK (Tech Espionage / Counterespionnage): 2 / 0 / 2 / 0
Other: 0 / 0 / 0 / 2

Total: 10 / 0 / 2 / 4​

Reserves: 3
Spy training leadership expenditure: 0,5
​

Research:

No completed projects, and no new projects for the last 10 days
No changes to LS distribution
​

Statistics:

National Unity: 82,713 (+0,01)
Neutrality: 0,00 =
Dissent: 0,00 =
Manpower:

Available: 1.936.000 Men
To reinforce(need): 1.730 Men
To mobilise(need): See above
Monthly gain: 43.800 Men (1 fully mobilised Infx3, AT Division every 7,8 days)​

No changes in Party Popularity for the last ten days.
Party Organisation:

- Communist Party: 61,00 (+0,4)
- Trotskyite: 12,80 (-0,1)
- Bukharinite: 7,90 (-0,1)

- Octobrist: 8,40 (-0,1)
- Trudoviks: 5,20 (-0,1)
- Social-Revolutionary: 0,00 =
- Kadets: 0,00 =

- Tsarists: 1,70 =
- NTS: 2,70 (-0,1)
- POA: 0,00 =
​

Convoy Raiding:

No more Finnish merchant ships sunk or detected. Did they stop trading? Did they start trading from Petsamo, through the frozen Arctic Ocean?
​

This Information is accurate on the morning of the 30th of December 1939, I hope it serves you well in fine-tuning your possible suggestions.

'Odin'​

 

[Eurasia]

Well, the numbers look good. And I don't see an issue with speed as long as the Front Line Commanders keep the numbers of Soviet soldiers killed lower than the Finnish. Still, a amphibious operation would be very useful if carried out. Open up another front.

If the Finnish military collapses on itself or stumbles, leaving gaps, do you have the reserves to rush into the holes?

 

[roverS3]

Well, the numbers look good. And I don't see an issue with speed as long as the Front Line Commanders keep the numbers of Soviet soldiers killed lower than the Finnish. Still, a amphibious operation would be very useful if carried out. Open up another front.

If the Finnish military collapses on itself or stumbles, leaving gaps, do you have the reserves to rush into the holes?

The premise of this AAR is to let the AI run most of the show, except naval invasions, the Air Force and the Navy. 1ya Armiya (the highest level AI in the winter war) has all the reserves it could wish for, the question is whether it will use them wisely, I guess we'll have to see... If the stalemate drags on for too long I might do another amphibious operation in Helsinki with another Rifle corps I pull off the western front...

 

[Macke11]

Comrade Popov was fortunate to avoid humiliation. Hopefully we can avoid such precarious situations in the future, as otherwise the war seems to be going well.

The air force continues to make sure Finnish casualties remain greater than those of the motherland, that's good. Let's hope it remains that way, throughout as well the conflict with Finland as the inevitable war against the Fascists.

 

[roverS3]

The 9th of January 1940, near Vologda, -10,7°C, 10am Moscow Time.

In the early days of 1940 only a single battle took place, that for Maj. General Popov M.M.'s honour. I he were to prove unable to hold Vokhtozero in the face of anything but an overwhelmingly larger force than his own 57. MSD, he will be facing demotion, or being sent off to the Far East Theatre.

Maj. General Markian Mikhaylovich Popov, considering his options and his fate, failure is not an option right now. He should have less stars, this corresponds with his real life rank of full Army General. Historically he was the commander of the entire Leningrad Military District in 1941 and was instrumental in halting the German advance before they could reach the city. He was considered a 'Hero of the Soviet Union' for this, and also gained many other medals and awards later in the war... In 1939 he was commander of the '1st Red Banner Army' in the Far East, before he was called back to the Western Front because of Barbarossa.
​

Vokhtozero

Despite the cold and inferior numbers, 12. Divisioona, lead by Maj. General Oinonen, SK1, WS, Eng, kept it's Attack on Vokhtozero going. Maj. General Popov M.M. SK3, DD, switched tactics every day, on the 30th, while the previous report was sent out, he ordered 57. MSD to Delay the enemy, the on the 31st they were to Defend again.
On the 1st of January 1940, Maj. General Oinonen , who just gained in skill (SK2 now), seems to have caught on to Maj. General Popov M.M.'s habits. When the Soviet commander ordered another Delaying action, the Fins launched a Shock attack, entirely countering the Russian Delaying strategy.
In response Maj. General Popov M.M. ordered his troops to Defend again on the 2nd, while the Fins went back to a conventional Attack.
On the 3rd Maj. General Popov M.M. changed things up again by ordering Ambushes to be set up to catch the Attackers by surprise.
On the 4th Maj. General Oinonen, tired of the constant Ambushes by ordering an all out Assault, which was less effective than he might have hoped,
making him order another Attack on the 5th in the face of even more Ambushes.
On the 6th Maj. General Popov M.M. finally showed his superior skill when he had 57 MSD execute a large scale Counter-Attack in the face of the continuing Attack by 12. Divisioona, rendering the Finnish strategy entirely useless.
This was the final straw for the Finns, as on the 7th at 8pm, they halted all offensive operations, their men exhausted by the cold, and the heavy fighting in the dense forests of Vokhtozero.

On the ground the final count was 384 Russians (out of 9.976), and 661 Finns (out of 8.991) killed or missing in action.

The VVS certainly didn't hurt either: First Air Lt. General Golovanov lead his 200 Yak-4 Bombers on a series of back to back bombing missions over Suojärvi. On the third run, at 6am on the 31st they were intercepted by the now 99 Gloster Gladiators of Lentorykmentti 1, lead by the now infamous Finnish Air Maj. General Sarko SK3. Air Lt. General Khudyakov SK4, SAT and his I IAK wasted no time, taking off from Leningrad Air Base in a big hurry. When the 400 I-16's got to Suojärvi, at 7am, it was too late for the crews of the 6 Yak-4's that had already been shot down, by 9am the Finnish biplanes had been routed and we wouldn't see them for days afterwards. Angry about being too late, I IAK participated in I BAK's next bombing run between 10am and 1pm, this just proved why we have bombers, as in three full hours of strafing by 400 I-16's, they killed only 4 Finnish soldiers, moreover they hindered the bombers, limiting the damage they could do during this run, and they lost 1 I-16 that hit a treetop flying too close to the ground... In the end I BAK flew a total of 10 missions, ending at 1pm on the 2nd of January. The damage from the Air Battle to both the planes, and the crew's morale weighed too heavily to continue, and I BAK returned to Tallin for some well deserved rest, and repairs to their planes. A total of 8 Yak-4's were lost, including the 6 shot down by Gloster Gladiators.

One of II BAD's Obsolete Tupolev SB-2's on it's way to Suojärvi.
​

This was not the end of the VVS's efforts though, as in the aftermath of the Air Battle of Suojärvi, II BAK was quickly re-based to Leningrad from Murmansk, as there is no need for AIr support in the Far north of Finland right now, and I ShAK does not have the range to reach Suojärvi. II IAK was sent back to Moskva to make space, having met only a single Finnish Air Group, I IAK should be able to handle the Finnish Air force on it's own, especially as it would receive 400 new LaGG-3 Interceptors, fresh from the factory, on the 4th.
II BAK, still using the obsolete Tupolev SB-2 Bombers, has now been prioritised for upgrades, but replacing their Aircraft will take time. In the meantime, they did do some good...
Lead by Air Lt. General Yakovlev SK3, TB, (who would really like some Yakolevs...) the 200 SB-2's executed another 16 bombing missions over Suojärvi, starting on the 2nd at 5pm, and killing 960 Finnish soldiers, before halting operations on the 7th at 10pm because the battle on the ground was over.
During that last bombing run, II BAK was intercepted by Lentorykmentti 1, now sporting 97 Gloster Gladiators, at 7pm, two hours into their bombing run. Most of their bombs had been dropped, and I IAK, with their 400 brand new LaGG-3's arrived faster than on the 31st., and by 8pm they were already tearing the Finnish biplanes to shreds, only 3 SB-2's were lost before the Finns ran at 10pm with less than half their planes still in the air. A total of 11 SB-2's were lost as these are more vulnerable to heavy Machine-Gun fire from the troops on the ground than the Yak-4's.

Viipuri 4

As I am writing this report, news reaches me of another battle for Viipuri, 38.810 Finns are Attacking the city from the West, North-West, the North-East and the East at the same time. Luckily 1ya Armiya has shored up the defences, and 49.999 Soviet Riflemen from 5 different DIvisions are defending the strategic fortified city. Thanks to their numbers, they are able to cover all of the different axes of attack simultaneously. The VVS is already scrambling all available bombers to the area, I will elaborate in the next update, as this is just beginning.

To sum things up:
Soviet Union:
Men sent into Battle: 303.307 (+49.999), ground combat casualties for finished battles: 1613 (+384) men,
Planes sent into Battle: 2.800 (+1.200) (Air Battles only), 74 (+20) planes lost (39 (+8) Yak-4's, 11 (+11) SB-2's, 9 CAG's, 19 Su-2's, 5 (+1) I-16's)
Finland:
Men sent into Battle: 185.634 (+38.810), ground combat casualties for finished battles 3.176 (+661) men, Bombing Casualties: 6.330 (+1.389)
Planes sent into Battle: 547 (+196) (Air Battles only), at least 1/3 planes lost.

Things should start to pick up from here, Popov's reputation is intact, and I'm not too worried about Viipuri, it seems like a futile attack, especially considering Soviet Airpower, they will lose, and once they do, I'm sure there will be plenty of weak spots in the Finnish front line for our reserves to exploit, until the next update...

Greetings,

'Odin'

P.S. No screenshot this time, nothing has really changed anyway, and I accidentally saved over my save file from the 9th of January before I made a backup.​

 

[Eurasia]

Looking look. Four enemy soldiers die for every Soviet soldier, roughly. My worry is, once the front line starts to move deeper into Finnish territory will the supplies and fuel keep up with the men and equipment? And being that this is winter I fear that the weather, and lack of airbases, may cause problems with the air support.

Well, can't do much about it now. The balloon is up and the fight is now in the handles of the Generals.

 

[roverS3]

The air force continues to make sure Finnish casualties remain greater than those of the motherland, that's good. Let's hope it remains that way, throughout as well the conflict with Finland as the inevitable war against the Fascists.

All of the VVS's bombers are deployed to the Finish front, sadly I don't think we will have the bombers to provide this level of Air Support along the entire western front, not in 1941 anyway. It all depends on how many battles are going on, but we will probably have I & II BAK with 2xTac each and I & II ShAK with 2xCAS, Ftr each. So three different bombing missions with 700 bombers for the same battle won't be an option once Barbarossa gets underway.

And being that this is winter I fear that the weather, and lack of airbases, may cause problems with the air support.

I & II BAK have the range to cover the entire front up to Turku. Once we get Helsinki, we should be able to rebase I ShAK with reliable supply. Luckily we don't need many interceptors over Finland, otherwise we would have needed quite a bit more Air Base space to provide the same amount of bombing missions...

 

[roverS3]

The 9th of January 1940, near Vologda, -10,7°C, 10am Moscow Time

Report on the state of the Soviet Union for the ten day period between the 31st of December and the 9th of January 1939,

by 'Odin'

Army:

A new Mtnx2 unit has been deployed directly to Lt. General Potapov's XX GSK, 5th Army Group, Stalingrad HQ.
Army numbers (Brigades/Personnel) Reserves included (these numbers don't include regiments being upgraded):

Front line troops: 518 / 1.554.000
Support troops: 146 / 146.000

Total fighting troops: 664 / 1.700.000​

Headquarters: 52 / 26.000

Total Army Personnel: 716 / 1.726.000​

Officers: 63.225 + / 72.230 needed / 87,533 %
Active Leaders: 212 / 134 Reserve​

Army Leadership

New Maj. General Biriuzov SK3, BM has been given command of the new 84. MSD, XIV MSK, 1ya Armiya, 1st Army Group, Leningrad-Archanglesk HQ.
​

Air Force:

No changes in the VVS, nor the Navy Air Fleet in the last ten days
Production has started on 100 new Il-2M Shturmovik's to form 77. ShAD
​

Navy:

No changes in the navy for the last ten days
​

Politics / International:

No legislative changes, nothing of not on the international scene for the last 10 days
​

Industry:

Industry Numbers:
Working Industrial Capacity / available capacity: 232 / 307
IC Usage: ( Allocated IC / Need )

Upgrades: 33,61 / 38,41
Reinforcement: 1,47 / 1,48
Supplies: 14,29 / 29,04
Production: 230,00 / 232,82
Consumer Goods: 27,63 / 27,63​

Stockpiles:

Energy: Maximum =
Metal: 78.267 tonnes +
Rares: 27.834 tonnes +
Crude: 75.999 barrels +
Supplies: 30.425 tonnes -
Fuel: 99.020 barrels +
Money: 1.914 -
​

Intelligence:

Spy numbers, spies in (active / added / lost / caught by us)

France (Tech Espionage / Counterespionage): 9 / 0 / 1 / 0

{ Germany (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 1 }
{ Japan (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 }
{ UK (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 }​

Other: 0 / 0 / 0 / 2

Total: 9 / 0 / 1 / 3​

Reserves: 3
Spy training leadership expenditure: 0,5​

Research:

No completed projects, and no new projects for the last 10 days
No changes to LS distribution
​

Statistics:

National Unity: 82,723 (+0,01)
Neutrality: 0,00 =
Dissent: 0,00 =
Manpower:

Available: 1.945.000 Men
To reinforce(need): 1.840 Men
To mobilise(need): See above
Monthly gain: 43.800 Men (1 fully mobilised Infx3, AT Division every 7,8 days)​

Party Popularity

- Communist Party: 54 (-2)
- Trotskyite: 16 (+4)
- Bukharinite: 3 (-5)

- Octobrist: 5 =
- Social-Revolutionary: 9 (+3)
- Trudoviks: 2 =
- Kadets: 1 (-1)

- Tsarists: 2 (-4)
- NTS: 3 (-2)
- POA: 5 (+5)
Overall only minor changes, the Social-Revolutionaries are getting close to the 10% popularity for which they could realistically feel they 'deserve' a cabinet position.​

Party Organisation:

- Communist Party: 61,3 (+0,3)
- Trotskyite: 12,70 (-0,1)
- Bukharinite: 7,80 (-0,1)

- Octobrist: 8,30 (-0,1)
- Trudoviks: 5,10 (-0,1)
- Social-Revolutionary: 0,00 =
- Kadets: 0,00 =

- Tsarists: 1,60 (-0,1)
- NTS: 2,60 (-0,1)
- POA: 0,00 =
​

Convoy Raiding:

Still no Finnish merchant ships sunk or detected.
​

This Information is accurate on the morning of the 9th of January 1939, I hope it serves you well in fine-tuning your possible suggestions.

'Odin'​

 

[roverS3]

The 13th of January 1940, Lwow, 2,6°C, 2pm

Another meeting reviewing our Infrastructure, same rules as before. There were still no surprises:

The 20 Infrastructure projects on which only the final touches are still to be done are the following:

-Transsiberian railroad, Kuybyshev-Omsk:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Golovtsevo and Barysh.

-Dniester North Bank, Odessa-Lwow railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Tiraspol, Ananyiv, Rybnica, Kodyma, Vendychany, Borsuky, and Kamianets Podilskyi.

-Don South Bank, Rostov na Don-Stalingrad railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Kuznetsovka, Nikolaevskaya, and Logovskiy.

-Don East Bank, Stalingrad-Voronezh-Tula-Moskva railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Petropavlovka, Davydovka, Kraslonesnyy, Usman, Dobrinka, Skopin, Donskoy, and Laptevo.​

'Level 1' fortifications in Haradok have been delivered. Work has started on the first Machine Gun Bunkers in Krasne.​

The same strategy has been followed to decide on the next 20 projects which will now start.
Most of the new projects are in Eastern Poland or the Baltic Provinces, only the last river line before Stalingrad still needs some work.
In the following 20 provinces work will begin, adding an extra track or another hardened road.

-Transsiberian railroad, Kuybyshev-Omsk:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Nagatkino and to 'Level 6' in Sengiley.

-Memel Northern Bank, Minsk-Kaunas-Memel railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 6' in Jeremicze and Iwje, and to 'Level 7' in Lida, Mosty and Alytus.

-Dniester North Bank, Odessa-Lwow railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Husiatyn, Rohatyn, and Shodorow.

-Mukhavets East Bank, Lwow-Brzesc-Litewski railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Maloryta, Luboml, and Wlodzimierz Wolynski.

-Vitba North Bank, Vitsyebsk-Riga railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Madona, Rezekne, Daugavpils, and Dagda.

-Don East Bank, Stalingrad-Voronezh-Tula-Moskva railroad:
Infrastructure will be upgraded to 'Level 7' in Kozlov, Glubovskiy, and Panshino.
​

The goal of bringing infrastructure up to 'Level 7' in all the Provinces behind strategic river lines (all rivers that are sort of well oriented to create a good defensive line, and provinces between the rivers) in the Soviet Union, including Eastern Poland and the Baltic Provinces is now almost done, next time we might move the objective to 'Level 8' and restart the whole process, or maybe propose some upgrades in Finland.

Greetings,

'Odin'​

 

[markkur]

The premise of this AAR is to let the AI run most of the show, except naval invasions, the Air Force and the Navy. 1ya Armiya (the highest level AI in the winter war) has all the reserves it could wish for, the question is whether it will use them wisely, I guess we'll have to see... If the stalemate drags on for too long I might do another amphibious operation in Helsinki with another Rifle corps I pull off the western front...

Just thinking out loud mate. Not wanting to interfere with your plans but what about you controlling an Army? or at least a Corps? I think the A.I. will do a decent job with the Planes as long as they are reporting to an AG but maybe you could command a "focus-army" of some size for your tale? - where the rest of the A.I. OOB impacts you and your command? If you make your own personal AG reporting to the same HQ, I think that will work - if you give the A.I. all the other AG-commands but I've only done that with Minors since with the Majors I always run the show.

 

[roverS3]

Just thinking out loud mate. Not wanting to interfere with your plans but what about you controlling an Army? or at least a Corps? I think the A.I. will do a decent job with the Planes as long as they are reporting to an AG but maybe you could command a "focus-army" of some size for your tale? - where the rest of the A.I. OOB impacts you and your command? If you make your own personal AG reporting to the same HQ, I think that will work - if you give the A.I. all the other AG-commands but I've only done that with Minors since with the Majors I always run the show.

I was controlling a Corps (XXIII SK) until a supply link was established between the Viipuri beachhead and the main front, so in situations where the A.I. really wouldn't cut it I might make exceptions, but in general, it's A.I. vs A.I. I'm also testing the A.I. in Finland, to get a better feel of what it can, and can't do... The possibility of taking out a single corps and controlling just that might be interesting story-wise. I might take that advice for Barbarossa, maybe commanding a specialist corps, like the Guards Corps (now in training).
For your further information A.I. command will probably be at Army (like in Finland) or AG level throughout the game. In my experience of the game, controlling more than a couple of Divisions myself feels like an unfair advantage, as coordination is obviously better than in real life. I don't mind setbacks, and if that means we are left pulling our hair out, that just reflects the reality of commanding a large Army / Country, blunders will be made, and that's what makes things interesting... I also plan to build up passive reserve infantry corps in a separate AG, dug in in strategic cities, they will be transferred into the A.I. chain of command once the Germans reach said city.
Thanks for the input, as I'm writing as I go, so I'm figuring out where this AAR goes day by day. And I hadn't really thought about taking command of a single corps to tell a story, so thanks for that, the next update is coming soon...

 

[roverS3]

The 19th of January 1940, near Vologda, -10,7°C, 10am Moscow Time.

A lot happened in a very short amount of time, and theh everyone caught their breath.

Viipuri 4

Viipuri was under attack again, and this time it was serious. Maj. General Valve SK3, was leading a coordinated Attack from 4 sides:
The main thrust of the attack came along the coast from Hamina to the West, with 5. Divisioona (Infx3) and Maj. General Valve's own 4. Divisioona (Infx4). A single Garrison Regiment, RT3, was charging in from Lappeenranta to the North-West. Crossing the Vuoksi river from Antrea in the North-East was Maj. General Snellman's Erilliset Pataljoona (Infx2), and crossing it from Käkisalmi in the East, was Maj. General Blick's 23. Divisioona. The total Finish force consisted of 38.810 men in 13 Regiments.
Defending the enveloped city and the woods surrounding it was a force of 5 standard Rifle Divisions (Infx3, AT) (191 SD, 122 SD, 31 SD, 70 SD, 73 SD), totalling 49.999 men, lead by Maj. General Solyankin SK2, BM. 67. SD was also present, but i's men were too exhausted to offer any kind of defence.
On the 11th, the Finns stepped up their game with an all out Assault, which was countered with Delaying actions on the Russian side. The increased tempo of the operation, combined with constant VVS bombardments were soon too much for RT3, and by 4pm it was pulling back to Lappeenranta.
Neither side could keep this up, and on the 12th they went back to Attacking and Defending.
At 6am on the 13th, 23. Divisioona pulled back to try and defend Käkisalmi, having come under attack (see Käkisalmi 2).
By 9am on the 13th the Finns left, demoralised and tired. Viipuri has withstood another assault. The final casualties were 1.815 Finns for 664 Russians.

The Viipuri Library, built in 1935, a masterpiece of Modern architecture by Alvar Aalto, still in our hands, and miraculously undamaged thanks to the Finnish army's lack of Artillery.
​

During the 4th battle for Viipuri the VVS was at it's most active of the entire campaign.
Air Lt. General Yakovlev SK3, TB's II BAK, with it's 200 obsolete Tupolev SB-2's, was the first to strike, and carried out many bombing missions:
9 bombing missions over Lappeenranta causing 527 casualties among 5.997 Finns. 3 joint missions with I ShAK over Käkisalmi causing another 122 casualties (just the SB-2's). A single joint mission with I BAK over Hamina, killing 33 out of the 26.807 Finns there. 3 missions over Antrea, killing 149 out of 5.789 FInns. In a total of 16 missions, 6 Aircraft were lost by II BAK for 1.209 Finnish casualties.

Only minutes after II BAK struck over Lappeenranta, Air Lt. General Zhigarev SK3, TB's I ShAK, counting 200 Su-2's and 100 La-5's started a series of bombing runs on Käkisalmi. Including three joint missions with II BAK, on it's way to Antrea, 17 missions were flown with the loss of just 4 Su-2's, and a total of 609 out of 9.976 Finns killed from the sky.

I BAK, lead by Air Lt. General Golovanov SK3, CB, was a bit less active, as it was still recuperating from a hectic month in which it had taken the main role in the VVS bombing campaign. Nevertheless it still executed 5 missions over Hamina, including a joint mission with II BAD. Out of 26.596 Finns it killed 242, for the loss of 2 Yak-4's.

Käkisalmi 2

The church in Käkisalmi, after the battle, undamaged and ripe for the taking, the Finnish army nowhere to be seen.
​

Maj. General Rodin A.G. SK3, BM showed us that some people in the Red can seize an opportunity. When he noticed the state of 23. Divisioona, he ordered his 78. SD, 10.000 men sitting idle in Valkjärvi, to charge over the frozen river Vuoksi in a violent Assault on Käkisalmi. After several days of fighting for Viipuri, and under constant Air Bombardment from I ShAK, Maj. General Blick SK3(+1), OD, WS and his 23. DIvisioona (Infx3) were showing signs of severe strain, when they were attacked on the 13th at 4am. The 7.615 men it had left rushed to keep the front intact with an Elastic Defence, while they tried to keep up the pressure on Viipuri. By 6am it became clear to them that they couldn't do both, and by 7am it was all over, with only 4 casualties on the Soviet side, and 5 on the Finnish side, it was clear that 23. DIvisioona had been on it's last legs from the start of the battle.

Vokhtozero 2
In the meantime, north of Lake Ladoga, a 2nd battle for Vokhtozero started. It is getting hard to keep blaming this on Maj. General Popov SK3, DD, as his initial blunder was 17 days ago, and no reinforcements have been moved up to Vokhtozero, even though 2 Motorised Rifle Divisions are available nearby... At 7pm on the 12th Maj. General Talvela SK3, OD ordered his 8.994 man 21. DIvisioona (Infx3) to Attack the trenches Defended by Maj. General Popov's 57 MSD (Motx3,Eng), which counted 9.990 men. This could probably be handled by 57 MSD alone, however on the 13th 12. Divisioona (Infx3) joined the Attack with another 8.994 men. Knowing his men wouldn't be able to handle that kind of pressure on their own, Maj. General Popov slowed down the Finns, first with an Elastic Defence on the 13th, exploiting the mobility of his Motorised troops, and finally with large scale Delaying actions on the 14th and the 15th. No reinforcements were forthcoming, however, and by 5pm on the 15th 57 MSD retreated en masse as their lines were being overrun, leaving behind 251 dead Russians for 216 dead Finns. Already exhausted from previous battles they had bravely held the line against almost twice their number for close to 4 days, longer than anyone expected.

II BAK tried to help, somehow still organised enough after supporting the 4th battle of Viipuri, Air Lt. General Yakovlev SK3, TB 's 200 SB-2's flew 7 missions over Suojärvi, killing 378 out of the 26.807 Finns present in the province while losing 4 Aircraft.

II BAK even narrowly escaped an intercept by Lentorykmentti 1. Resurrected again, now counting 87 Gloster Gladiators, Lentorykmentti 1 was intercepted instead by I IAD and it's 400 LaGG-3's. Air Lt. General Khudyakov SK4, SAT, was starting to admire the spirit of the Finnish commander, Air Maj. General Sarko SK3, no matter how many times he was humiliated in battle, he would keep coming back... In the end, no LaGG-3's were lost, while Lentorykmentti 1 will be out of action for another couple of days...

Suomussalmi and Polyarny
Even further north, two probing attacks were executed and quickly halted, as attacking an entrenched enemy in temperatures below -10°C quickly seemed like suicide...
In Suomussalmi, our Maj. General Gorbatov SK3 probed the Finnish Defences with his 9.000 man 18 GSD (Mtnx3), he found Maj. General Sundman SK3, LW had his 8.994 man 9. DIvisioona (Infx3) well dug in. This cost him 6 men for the killing of 4 Finnish scouts, in a single hour between 11pm and midnight on the 13th.

Finnish scouts pointing out on a map where the Russians are advancing in Suomussalmi
​

In Polyarny, just outside Murmansk, the Finns were on the offensive. 2. GarD (Garx3, Art) had been shipped to Murmansk, when a Finnish Division appeared in Petsamo, and sure enough, 6. DIvisioona started advancing towards Murmansk. 2. GarD, counting 9.999, and lead by Maj. General Goryahov SK1, OG, moved into defensive positions behind the Pilkhinkuul river in Polyarny. The 8.994 Finns didn't see the Russian Garrison across the river at first, but at the first Artillery shell, killing 1 man, they ran to cover and stopped any attempt to cross the river. This took all of 5 minutes around 6pm on the 14th.

To sum things up:
Soviet Union:
Men sent into Battle: 342.296 (+38.989), ground combat casualties for finished battles: 2.528 (+925) men,
Planes sent into Battle: 3.200 (+400) (Air Battles only), 86 (+12) planes lost (41 (+2) Yak-4's, 17 (+6) SB-2's, 9 CAG's, 23 (+4) Su-2's, 5 I-16's)
Finland:
Men sent into Battle: 229.225 (+43.591), ground combat casualties for finished battles 5.217 (+2.041) men, Bombing Casualties: 8.234 (+1.905)
Planes sent into Battle: 634 (+87) (Air Battles only), at least 1/3 planes lost.

Then there was silence, the entire front fell quiet, no more action on either side after the 15th.

Finland on the 19th of January 1940.
​

1ya Armiya seemed shocked by the defeat in Vokhtozero, and the only significant troop movement, was a pathetic attempt by 1ya Armiya to march 71 SD, and 138 GSD, both stationed near Leningrad to Vokhotozero, presumably in the hope that they get there before the Finns, they are about 2/3 of the way right now... When 81 MSD is only 80 km and 84 MSD only 129 km away, both not actually holding anything on their own, and both motorised.
Strangely no division is taking advantage of the win in Käkisalmi, as 78. SD stopped it's advance for unknown reasons...

Well that's it for now,

Greetings,

'Odin'​

 

[markkur]

Thanks for the input, as I'm writing as I go, so I'm figuring out where this AAR goes day by day. And I hadn't really thought about taking command of a single corps to tell a story, so thanks for that, the next update is coming soon...

If you avoid all land-control, you could pinpoint say a single notable i.e. Armored-division with a General of your choosing and only detail what happens to him/them. If I do another AAR I will add something like that, because when I have read that added sub-story once before, I found that as well as the progress of the War - it was interesting to watch the progress of a single General. As good as you are with stats, etc, that should be a nice addition to the grand reporting tale you are telling and cannot interfere with your using/testing of the A.I. Okay, ol' markkur opined enough...over and out.

I'm really interested to see how your preparation, infra-planning etc. works behind the A.I. masterminding your doom, er, I mean, your Fate.

 

[Eurasia]

Still going strong. Four Fins killed in action for every Soviet soldier killed. Mostly because of that wonder support from the air. Once the Fins REALLY start getting worn down they will just break - as it seems they have started to do - and withdraw. They will lose heart.

As the AI Generals is running most of the Ground Combat the Division Commanders should be building up skills and tactics. Any of them going to get promoted after the war? Or transferred to future hot-spots?

 

[roverS3]

I'm really interested to see how your preparation, infra-planning etc. works behind the A.I. masterminding your doom, er, I mean, your Fate.

We'll have to see about that. Picking a General seems like it could be fun, seeing him rise through the ranks... not that I would change the meritocratic selection procedures of the red Army in his favour...

As the AI Generals is running most of the Ground Combat the Division Commanders should be building up skills and tactics. Any of them going to get promoted after the war? Or transferred to future hot-spots?

Yes, the commanders are gaining lots of experience, Popov (SK3-SK4) and Bogdanov (SK2-SK3), and maybe some others, even gained a skill level. I will have to do a big redistribution of leaders as soon as the Winter War is over, as I also haven't done anything meaningful with all of this year's fresh leaders yet, there are some pretty good ones in there... I don't see the Red Army going back to a situation with insufficient leaders anytime soon, we will probably be able to take out at least all the level 1 and 2 's without traits... I'll do a special update about this later on.

 

[roverS3]

The 19th of January 1940, near Vologda, -10,7°C, 10am Moscow Time

Report on the state of the Soviet Union for the ten day period between the 10th and the 19th of December 1939,

by 'Odin'

Army:

A new Mtnx2 unit has been deployed directly to Lt. General Klyuchko's XXI GSK, 5th Army Group, Stalingrad HQ.
An Infx2, TD unit was deployed directly to Lt. General Homenko's XVI SK, 4th Army Group, Odessa HQ.
79 SD, a new Infx3, Art Division was deployed to Lt. General Semenovskij's XXVII SK, 10ya Armiya, Far Eastern Theatre.
Army numbers (Brigades/Personnel) Reserves included (these numbers don't include regiments being upgraded):

Front line troops: 525 / 1.575.000
Support troops: 148 / 148.000
Total fighting troops: 673 / 1.723.000
Headquarters: 52 / 26.000
Total Army Personnel: 725 / 1.749.000
Officers: 63.469 + / 73.190 needed / 86,718 %
Active Leaders: 213 / 135 Reserve
Training of 3 more Infx2, TD units has started, soon all of our Corps HQ's will have their full complement of men.
Army Leadership
New Maj. General Nikitin N.A. SK2, OD has been given command of the new 79. MSD, XIV MSK, XXVII SK, 10ya Armiya, Far Eastern Theatre.
​

Air Force:

No changes in the VVS, nor the Navy Air Fleet in the last ten days
​

Navy:

No changes in the navy for the last ten days
​

Politics / International:

Finland has joined the Axis.
Germany then Asked for, and was given Military Access to Sweden.
Now the real risk exists that Germany will send some of it's crack Divisions into Finland through Sweden, as an expeditionary force.
This also cements the case for conquering Sweden after Finland has fallen, as this behaviour is very far from neutral, and a thorn in our side.
No legislative changes for the last 10 days
​

Industry:

Infrastructure was improved in 20 provinces, another 20 projects have started (see infrastructure update above)
The Air Base in Novomoskovosk was upgraded to 'Level 3', work is now underway to build some more maintenance hangars and lengthen the main runway. ('Level 4')
The Polish Air Base in Brzesc-Litewski is now up to VVS standards with a concrete control tower, and larger hangars ('Level 4')
Both the Air Bases in Minsk and Kaunas, are now being upgraded with a second runway ('Level 3')
Industry Numbers:

Working Industrial Capacity / available capacity: 232 / 307
IC Usage: ( Allocated IC / Need )

Upgrades: 30,45 / 32,59
Reinforcement: 2,14 / 2,13
Supplies: 14,29 / 29,40
Production: 232,50 / 234,95
Consumer Goods: 27,63 / 27,63​

Stockpiles:

Energy: 99.975 tonnes -
Metal: 78.295 tonnes +
Rares: 27.845 tonnes +
Crude: 76.496 barrels +
Supplies: 29.947 tonnes -
Fuel: 99.027 barrels +
Money: 1.915 +
​

Intelligence:

Spy numbers, spies in (active / added / lost / caught by us)

France (Tech Espionage / Counterespionage): 10 / 1 / 0 / 1

{ Germany (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 1 }
{ Japan (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 }
{ UK (/): 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 }​

Other: 0 / 0 / 0 / 0

Total: 10 / 1 / 0 / 1​

Reserves: 3
Spy training leadership expenditure: 0,5
​

Research:

No completed projects, and no new projects for the last 10 days
No changes to LS distribution
​

Statistics:

National Unity: 82,733 (+0,01)
Neutrality: 0,00 =
Dissent: 0,00 =
Manpower:

Available: 1.934.000 Men
To reinforce(need): 5.620 Men
To mobilise(need): See above
Monthly gain: 43.800 Men (1 fully mobilised Infx3, AT Division every 7,8 days)​

No changes in Party Popularity for the last ten days
Party Organisation:

- Communist Party: 61,8 (+0,5)
- Trotskyite: 12,70 =
- Bukharinite: 7,80 =

- Octobrist: 8,30 =
- Trudoviks: 5,10 =
- Social-Revolutionary: 0,00 =
- Kadets: 0,00 =

- Tsarists: 1,60 =
- NTS: 2,60 =
- POA: 0,00 =
​

Convoy Raiding:

1 Finnish Merchant ship sunk
​

This Information is accurate on the morning of the 19th of January 1939, I hope it serves you well in fine-tuning your possible suggestions.

'Odin'​

 

[Eurasia]

Finland has joined the Axis.
Germany then Asked for, and was given Military Access to Sweden.
Now the real risk exists that Germany will send some of it's crack Divisions into Finland through Sweden, as an expeditionary force.
This also cements the case for conquering Sweden after Finland has fallen, as this behaviour is very far from neutral, and a thorn in our side.

What are the chances of Germany really sending in a expeditionary force? I mean, doing so takes some time, surely. And they have their own plans that may not involve the northern nations.

So it looks like Sweden and Norway next. Would the defeat of Finland drive either nation into one of the factions? Who are they drifting to?

 

[Macke11]

Finland and Sweden forging bonds with the Fascists is interesting. But I get it that the Axis have not gone to war with you yet, the Fins have only joined them, is that right? Then you can still avoid dragging the Germans into a war. If that's not the case, well, then things happened quickly.

 

[roverS3]

What are the chances of Germany really sending in a expeditionary force? I mean, doing so takes some time, surely. And they have their own plans that may not involve the northern nations.

So it looks like Sweden and Norway next. Would the defeat of Finland drive either nation into one of the factions? Who are they drifting to?

I'll admit a sizeable expeditionary force is very unlikely, but as the Western Front is frozen in place and the Germans haven't DOWed the Benelux yet, who know where the Germans will strike yet, especially if Finland joining the axis this early in the game changes things for the German AI...Maybe they will go for Norway before the Benelux? There is no way to know than to play on...
Actually, I would like to see something like a single Gebirgsjäger Division in Finland, it would strengthen our case for war with Sweden, and show us how our respective units stack up in battle before the start of the Great Patriotic War.

Strangely, Sweden just started actively aligning towards the Comintern, but this just seems part of a bid to stay neutral, it seems Sweden, along with Switzerland, is constantly aiming for the middle of the Diplomatic triangle...
Norway is slowly drifting towards the Allies. There is also no 'benign' justification for a war with Norway, they refused military access to and from Finland, and have never done anything that

Finland and Sweden forging bonds with the Fascists is interesting. But I get it that the Axis have not gone to war with you yet, the Fins have only joined them, is that right? Then you can still avoid dragging the Germans into a war. If that's not the case, well, then things happened quickly.

Yes, as we were already at war before Finland joined the Axis, the defensive clause of the faction doesn't apply, so we are still only at war with Finland. But, all of the Axis members can join the war whenever they please, regardless of neutrality, in defence of a fellow axis member, except Germany (non-agression pact part of Molotov-Von Neurath can only be broken on the 6th of February 1940 contingent on respective numbers of troops on the border, and normally only expires in May 1943), I haven't seen the AI do this very often, or at all, but you never know. Military access through Sweden means Germany shouldn't have any trouble sending expeditionary forces to help the Fins, it's still pretty unlikely though.