Damn, 1500 is a really big blow. If you're gonna lose them anyway, why not risk it, and try to get to Saloniki, to get evacuated from there?
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Thanks, Anthnytdwg!
Thanks
"Gets his unit encircled and destroyed by the AI"
"Alt+F4"
Advice noted
Well, it's not as simple as that
I usually save once a month (approx rate of updates), and reload mostly in cases when I go on an adrenaline-induced rush at 3 a.m. in the morning when the head is not working anymore - such as, what if I tried taking Bulgaria? or.. let's land deep in Yugoslavia and see what happens But in general, I play quite conservative, trying to save as many people as possible.
Well, losing 1500 is a hard blow, but not a deadly one - this is approx. 1 month MP growth at the moment. But in comparison, my losses are already almost equal to Sicilian campaign, but do not yet reach North Africa. The loss ratio is a bit better, though.
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It's Not Always Easy. July - August, 1943
Their losses might have been in vain, after all - in the meantime, the Brits have managed to drive two German infantry divisions out of the mountains further north, at Florina, and opened an alternative supply road for us. With supplies secured, Marines pushed Romanians back from Kozani, while we stopped our probing attacks on Sykia and counted casualties - 278 guys were lost on our side against 725 of the enemy.
In early morning of July 9, our whole camp was woken up by an alarm. Our battalion, which was assigned to guarding western approaches, was stormed by 1st Yugoslavian cavalry division, coming from Sykia, while German 52. Inf. division managed to get close under the cover of the night through the coastal plains from Larisa. After brief initial chaos, we managed to withstand the hurricane of fire, and were able to keep their onslaught at bay with the help of secure machine gun nests.
Bloody and hungry night in the mountains. July 9, 1943
Marines counter-attacked without hesitation, while our 2nd Inf. Division, after recovering a bit already, have retaken Paliouria with insignificant losses. Soon the Yugoslavian cavalry turned tails, and we were left tet-a-tet now with desperate Germans..and an occasional Bulgarian bomber.
By July 14, our comrades have managed to take over the mountains of Sykia, with about equal losses on both sides - 464 of ours and 590 of theirs. And just late in the night that day - after 5 days of bloody battle, the Germans retreated. We won, but the price was almost unbearable - 1240 were lost from our division alone - almost 13 percent, while they have lost 1433 soldiers out of 26000 in total, participating in the attack under German command.
A few similar victories, and there would be no one to return to Lithuania. July 15, 1943
Guys from the 2nd. Infantry pushed disorganized Germans further south, while we, together with rested Marines, turned north - to Meliki, where a German infantry division, led by an experienced Maj.Gen. von Förster, had been hitting us in the back two days ago.
It was always fun to fight alongside Royal Marines - truly fine lads. Especially, when they did the most of the fighting. And swearing. And drinking.
It did not take us long to dislodge the Germans, with loss ratio again close to 1:2 - 500 against a 1000 Jerries.
Operation 'Alexander'. Phase III. Once the corridor from west to east was secured - at least 50 kilometers wide, it was announced that the 2nd Phase of the operation was successfully accomplished. True, the losses were high, but the prize was thought worth this sacrifice - 55000 of Axis troops were caught in the kettle, including three nearly full German infantry divisions. Combined with advance of the Allies in Italy and, especially, in France, we felt almost invincible - the war is coming to an end!
Free France troops enter Dijon. July 20, 1943
However, just two days later we hears grim news both from south and north - 2nd Inf. division 'Vilnius' was struggling to break the surrounded Germans, as their counterattack (though unsuccessful) has left 300 dead on both sides in Larisa, but the news from the north were terrifying.
Possibly under direct Hitler's orders, two tank divisions, led by Germany's one of the most capable Generals, were sent from East front to Greece in order to break the encirclement - 4th Panzer division, under command of Gen. Model, and 1st Schwere Panzerdivision, under command of Gen.Jodl himself. Panthers and Tigers...
The Poles held till the very end, but after 4 days of very fierce fighting, they were forced to lay down their arms and surrender.. It was not for naught, however, as then the Germans turned east, instead of south, apparently after the hope was lost to break through the encirclement in time.
At the same time, we were given urgent orders to return south from Meliki and assist with destroying the Axis pocket before German tanks could reach them. Within the first week of August, famished and disoriented Germans were fully surrounded and gave up after a short battle on August 8, 1943.
So, by the middle of August, the remaining 5 divisions of British expeditionary corps were trying to keep another incoming tide of German war machine, while we were refitting and reorganizing further south before returning to battle.
3rd Infantry division and all the militias will be ready to fight this time as well. August 18, 1943
Their losses might have been in vain, after all - in the meantime, the Brits have managed to drive two German infantry divisions out of the mountains further north, at Florina, and opened an alternative supply road for us. With supplies secured, Marines pushed Romanians back from Kozani, while we stopped our probing attacks on Sykia and counted casualties - 278 guys were lost on our side against 725 of the enemy.
In early morning of July 9, our whole camp was woken up by an alarm. Our battalion, which was assigned to guarding western approaches, was stormed by 1st Yugoslavian cavalry division, coming from Sykia, while German 52. Inf. division managed to get close under the cover of the night through the coastal plains from Larisa. After brief initial chaos, we managed to withstand the hurricane of fire, and were able to keep their onslaught at bay with the help of secure machine gun nests.
Bloody and hungry night in the mountains. July 9, 1943
Marines counter-attacked without hesitation, while our 2nd Inf. Division, after recovering a bit already, have retaken Paliouria with insignificant losses. Soon the Yugoslavian cavalry turned tails, and we were left tet-a-tet now with desperate Germans..and an occasional Bulgarian bomber.
By July 14, our comrades have managed to take over the mountains of Sykia, with about equal losses on both sides - 464 of ours and 590 of theirs. And just late in the night that day - after 5 days of bloody battle, the Germans retreated. We won, but the price was almost unbearable - 1240 were lost from our division alone - almost 13 percent, while they have lost 1433 soldiers out of 26000 in total, participating in the attack under German command.
A few similar victories, and there would be no one to return to Lithuania. July 15, 1943
Guys from the 2nd. Infantry pushed disorganized Germans further south, while we, together with rested Marines, turned north - to Meliki, where a German infantry division, led by an experienced Maj.Gen. von Förster, had been hitting us in the back two days ago.
It was always fun to fight alongside Royal Marines - truly fine lads. Especially, when they did the most of the fighting. And swearing. And drinking.
It did not take us long to dislodge the Germans, with loss ratio again close to 1:2 - 500 against a 1000 Jerries.
Operation 'Alexander'. Phase III. Once the corridor from west to east was secured - at least 50 kilometers wide, it was announced that the 2nd Phase of the operation was successfully accomplished. True, the losses were high, but the prize was thought worth this sacrifice - 55000 of Axis troops were caught in the kettle, including three nearly full German infantry divisions. Combined with advance of the Allies in Italy and, especially, in France, we felt almost invincible - the war is coming to an end!
Free France troops enter Dijon. July 20, 1943
However, just two days later we hears grim news both from south and north - 2nd Inf. division 'Vilnius' was struggling to break the surrounded Germans, as their counterattack (though unsuccessful) has left 300 dead on both sides in Larisa, but the news from the north were terrifying.
Possibly under direct Hitler's orders, two tank divisions, led by Germany's one of the most capable Generals, were sent from East front to Greece in order to break the encirclement - 4th Panzer division, under command of Gen. Model, and 1st Schwere Panzerdivision, under command of Gen.Jodl himself. Panthers and Tigers...
First blow fell on Tirana, guarded by a British division and British and Polish Garrison. July 22, 1943
The Poles held till the very end, but after 4 days of very fierce fighting, they were forced to lay down their arms and surrender.. It was not for naught, however, as then the Germans turned east, instead of south, apparently after the hope was lost to break through the encirclement in time.
At the same time, we were given urgent orders to return south from Meliki and assist with destroying the Axis pocket before German tanks could reach them. Within the first week of August, famished and disoriented Germans were fully surrounded and gave up after a short battle on August 8, 1943.
So, by the middle of August, the remaining 5 divisions of British expeditionary corps were trying to keep another incoming tide of German war machine, while we were refitting and reorganizing further south before returning to battle.
3rd Infantry division and all the militias will be ready to fight this time as well. August 18, 1943
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So many Lithuanian units on the last screenshot. If that's not your whole army, then I don't know where the hell did you get 10 divisions
So many Lithuanian units on the last screenshot. If that's not your whole army, then I don't know where the hell did you get 10 divisions
There is no trick
I split 3 Mil (x4) divisions into 4 Mil (x3) divisions, each approx. 4-5000 soldier strong to cover more ground. Additionally, there is a brand new 3rd Inf Division (x3 Inf) in addition to two already existing (2x4 Inf), plus Marines (1x3Mar+Eng). Three remaining units are HQs (Patra Theater, Army and Corps). I will post the latest OOB as soon as I get the chance 
If It's Not Okay, It's Not Yet The End. August - September, 1943
We were undergoing extensive refitting during those two weeks in August, readying ourselves for a(nother) fight for Greece ahead of us. New artillery guns have just arrived - QF 25 Mk II. Also, and perhaps even more important, we got first shipment of sticky Gammon 82 grenades, one of the few tools that we could use on enemy armour.
This was all Lithuania could contribute to fight the Axis. August 25, 1943
Even though my own division, Independent Div. 'Vytis', was organized similarly to other Infantry divisions - the focus in our training was on small-unit tactics, instead of battalion sized forces. There was a talk among our more senior officers that this was needed as the preparations were being made for amphibious or air landing in Lithuania to kick-off the resistance movement sometime soon. Of course, we did not get any confirmation on this then.
Squad of Sgt.Katilius from the most experienced (and depleted) 21st. Infantry Regiment of our division. August 25, 1943
In the meantime, Brits were making impressive gains - they managed to surround 4th Panzer division in the mountains of Sykia, and our task was to bring this operation to an end.
Romanian and German commanders are watching the crossing of Achelous river. August 28, 1943
With 22 Lithuanians lost, Romanians retreated next morning, leaving 275 dead. Without waiting for long, our division and 2nd Inf. were ordered to approach the surrounded Panzers under cover of the night, as they were trying to escape through Paliouria, defended by British tanks, but even under those circumstances Germans counter-attacked without hesitation, foiling our attack.
The signs of intense tank battle in the fields of Sykia. August 29, 1943
Only when Lt.Gen.Zemaitis took over the direct command in the morning of the 30th and our attack turned into a shocking hurricane of coordinated fire, we managed to balance the fight, while Germans were still able to use their mobility to elastically counter our advance.
It appears, that German command had issued orders break through the encirclement at any cost, again. Two infantry divisions attacked Thesprotiko, now defended also by Marines and two Volunteer divisions, while Tigers and supporting troops of Gen. Jodl smashed into the backs of defending 9th Armoured in Paliouria.
It was all in vain, however. Gen. Model and his 4th Panzer division (along with some scattered Infantry division) could not take it any longer and surrendered on September 1st. The losses on both sides were not that high - 385 troops on our side, against 286 of theirs. One thing I clearly remember from that day in Sykia, was the sight of burning Panthers...
This did not stop the Germans. 94. and 196 Inf. divisions were still trying to breach our mountain defences, and Gen. Jodl took Paliouria. But even though the 9th Armoured retreated from incoming Tigers, they did their work splendidly - it was mostly thanks to these guys, Germans lost their hope, their tanks, and surrendered.
QF 25 pounder gun blasts at incoming Germans. September 4, 1943
As later told by some guys in the 2nd, it did not look nice. By early morning the attack ceased. During those six days we lost 251 in killed and wounded, and Germans lost 2041.
We were undergoing extensive refitting during those two weeks in August, readying ourselves for a(nother) fight for Greece ahead of us. New artillery guns have just arrived - QF 25 Mk II. Also, and perhaps even more important, we got first shipment of sticky Gammon 82 grenades, one of the few tools that we could use on enemy armour.
This was all Lithuania could contribute to fight the Axis. August 25, 1943
Even though my own division, Independent Div. 'Vytis', was organized similarly to other Infantry divisions - the focus in our training was on small-unit tactics, instead of battalion sized forces. There was a talk among our more senior officers that this was needed as the preparations were being made for amphibious or air landing in Lithuania to kick-off the resistance movement sometime soon. Of course, we did not get any confirmation on this then.
Squad of Sgt.Katilius from the most experienced (and depleted) 21st. Infantry Regiment of our division. August 25, 1943
In the meantime, Brits were making impressive gains - they managed to surround 4th Panzer division in the mountains of Sykia, and our task was to bring this operation to an end.
Romanian and German commanders are watching the crossing of Achelous river. August 28, 1943
With 22 Lithuanians lost, Romanians retreated next morning, leaving 275 dead. Without waiting for long, our division and 2nd Inf. were ordered to approach the surrounded Panzers under cover of the night, as they were trying to escape through Paliouria, defended by British tanks, but even under those circumstances Germans counter-attacked without hesitation, foiling our attack.
The signs of intense tank battle in the fields of Sykia. August 29, 1943
Only when Lt.Gen.Zemaitis took over the direct command in the morning of the 30th and our attack turned into a shocking hurricane of coordinated fire, we managed to balance the fight, while Germans were still able to use their mobility to elastically counter our advance.
It appears, that German command had issued orders break through the encirclement at any cost, again. Two infantry divisions attacked Thesprotiko, now defended also by Marines and two Volunteer divisions, while Tigers and supporting troops of Gen. Jodl smashed into the backs of defending 9th Armoured in Paliouria.
It was all in vain, however. Gen. Model and his 4th Panzer division (along with some scattered Infantry division) could not take it any longer and surrendered on September 1st. The losses on both sides were not that high - 385 troops on our side, against 286 of theirs. One thing I clearly remember from that day in Sykia, was the sight of burning Panthers...
This did not stop the Germans. 94. and 196 Inf. divisions were still trying to breach our mountain defences, and Gen. Jodl took Paliouria. But even though the 9th Armoured retreated from incoming Tigers, they did their work splendidly - it was mostly thanks to these guys, Germans lost their hope, their tanks, and surrendered.
QF 25 pounder gun blasts at incoming Germans. September 4, 1943
As later told by some guys in the 2nd, it did not look nice. By early morning the attack ceased. During those six days we lost 251 in killed and wounded, and Germans lost 2041.
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Nice update as ever. And so soon too. Are you having holidays still?
BTW why is there "royal" marines in the Lithuanian army? Are you planning to look for relatives if Mindaugas?
And where do you find all those black and white pictures that sets the mode of the updates so nicely?
Questions, questions, questions.
Are you having holidays still? BTW why is there "royal" marines in the Lithuanian army? Are you planning to look for relatives if Mindaugas?
And where do you find all those black and white pictures that sets the mode of the updates so nicely?
Questions, questions, questions.
Thanks, johho888!
Sadly, no more holidays for me, it's just that I got some time to finally play HoI, so I have something to post. If I am not mistaken, I am approx. 2 months ahead, so at least one update is in the making (at least in my head, for now)
As for Marines, they were just given to me by the Brits as expeditionary forces, so I count them as mine No plans to recreate the kingdom at this point, I believe
And pictures are just that, some pictures from the Internet, it just takes a while to get the right search words and go through the least known to find the ones I want. Sometimes the picture I find gives an idea to rewrite or add something in the story, so it's all fine
Sadly, no more holidays for me, it's just that I got some time to finally play HoI, so I have something to post. If I am not mistaken, I am approx. 2 months ahead, so at least one update is in the making (at least in my head, for now)
As for Marines, they were just given to me by the Brits as expeditionary forces, so I count them as mine
No plans to recreate the kingdom at this point, I believe And pictures are just that, some pictures from the Internet, it just takes a while to get the right search words and go through the least known to find the ones I want. Sometimes the picture I find gives an idea to rewrite or add something in the story, so it's all fine
Hmmm, why not create a volunteer corps? You need all the bonuses you can get!
Anyway, good job on capturing Model there, though I'm afraid you'll meet him soon enough
Anyway, good job on capturing Model there, though I'm afraid you'll meet him soon enough
Actually this is quite a puzzle to solve.. It took me 3 years to upgrade 11 Mil to Inf (12th is in progress), so I presume it would take at least another 2 years to have all-Inf. At this point in game, I am thinking about switching to support brigades (most likely - AT, maaaaybe TD, but that is costly) by scraping my MP pool as much as I can and keeping my current forces afloat at the same time. This was also the reason not to create another Corps HQ, as it takes 1MP (my guess), and since I use Militias just as a reserve or garrison force, I did not see it as a worthy investment..
So, guys, your advice on this would be highly appreciated. I just try to keep in mind that I also need UR cells, and will most likely have to fight Japanese before engaging Soviets, once Germany surrenders and on a condition my forces are still alive.
As you are going to fight some armour, AT would definitely be good if you have enough piercing else try Mot-AT. TD has the additional advantage in giving you some armour value, turning the table on piercing vs armour, the German AT capability will be so good by now that they always are able to pierce your TD. All considered I would guess you should go for Mot-AT if it has enough piercing for Armour or even H.Arm, else AT is cheap.
HQs aren't created at full strength, they have only 25 men after creation and can have up to 500. Anyway, you don't need to keep it reinforced (unless the cheesy AI decides to bomb it), unless you consider to use it as a combat brigade. And since vanilla HQs are somewhat "weak", yet still support unit, you might consider merging your existing corps HQ with the 3rd Infantry division "Zemaitija". This would prevent it from shattering even if the brigade itself reached zero men and added some more combat value to the division. The bad thing is that brigades directly underneath it won't receive corps HQ bonus.
Thanks guys for your advice, that's really nice
I somehow did not even think about MOT-AT, but wouldn't it be wasted on leg infantry? I will compare the AT/piercing values of MOT-AT and AT when I get a chance, and will choose then, I guess. In any case, I will not be able to pierce German HARM, as it's currently at 12 pierce/12 armour, while US or British TD's have 10 piercing, IIRC.
As for creating additional HQs, the idea of attaching my Corps HQ to an Inf division is great, but the loss of flexibility to use my lvl 5 general at needis a bigger benefit, I think , than giving some advantage to one of the divisions.. Will think about it in the future though, especially for my Mil Corps/divisions.
What I was referring to in my post above, is that in order to create a HQ, I need to have at least 1 MP (not tested, so not sure), and since I am constantly reinforcing, I have a constant 0, i.e. the button to create a HQ is grey. So this is a decision making issue, and I cannot make my mind on many things
And even if I manage to reach 1 or 2 MP, I think it's more worth it to invest it into some support brigade. Well, in any case, this gives something to think about before I start playing again. Thanks!
I somehow did not even think about MOT-AT, but wouldn't it be wasted on leg infantry? I will compare the AT/piercing values of MOT-AT and AT when I get a chance, and will choose then, I guess. In any case, I will not be able to pierce German HARM, as it's currently at 12 pierce/12 armour, while US or British TD's have 10 piercing, IIRC.
As for creating additional HQs, the idea of attaching my Corps HQ to an Inf division is great, but the loss of flexibility to use my lvl 5 general at needis a bigger benefit, I think , than giving some advantage to one of the divisions.. Will think about it in the future though, especially for my Mil Corps/divisions.
What I was referring to in my post above, is that in order to create a HQ, I need to have at least 1 MP (not tested, so not sure), and since I am constantly reinforcing, I have a constant 0, i.e. the button to create a HQ is grey. So this is a decision making issue, and I cannot make my mind on many things
And even if I manage to reach 1 or 2 MP, I think it's more worth it to invest it into some support brigade. Well, in any case, this gives something to think about before I start playing again. Thanks!
The emergency button for no MP is pressing the do not reinforce button until you have build what you need.
The Power of Words. September - October, 1943
The Power of Words. September - October, 1943
Within the next week we chased down Germans from 196. Infantry division further north, while 94. Inf., almost 8000 men, in Arta just surrendered after a short fight. Then, after an attack on our 3rd. Infantry in Kozani was repulsed with high casualties (on Yugoslavian side - more than 1200 against our 133), we got a chance for a short respite.. And a lot of marching. Trucks or even fuel was very hard to find, except for an occasional helpful Greek farmer with his horse cart.
Panzergrenadiers on watch in Paliouria. September 14, 1943
The situation on the front line was quite precarious, even if it did not look like it - we had 9 divisions, including one armoured with a mix of Crusader and Churchill tanks, not counting the militias, against basically a single Heavy Panzer division, equipped with Tigers, led by Lt.Gen.Jodl, and supported by a mix of several auxiliary Infantry divisions from Romania, Germany and Yugoslavia on the outskirts of northern mountains.
Our command did not seem to be particularly keen on trying them out directly, luckily for us, and none of us were either. Everyone still remembered the clash with Panthers just a few weeks ago.
Second contact with the enemy at Kozani was made in the middle of the night, on September 15, when we heard the roar of the tank engines coming from the valley west from us, up the mountain road. At the same time, further north, our comrades from 15th 'Scottish' division were attacked by sole Romanian division. As the tanks turned back just before sunrise, we were left wondering, whether they underestimated our forces here, or just tried to take us by surprise, hoping to scare us away.
Romanians did not have a chance to cross the fields of fire, defended by fierce Scots, even under cover of darkness. September 15, 1943
Noone of us had yet forgotten the slaughter of our guys in June, earlier that year, in these very same hills, just slightly more to the north west, thus, we were not overly sad when the Romanian will to attack faded away by the morning of September 16, with their loses mounting close to 15 percent - more than a thousand, while the Scots lost 74 guys.
We were ordered to immediately rise and move forward, to Florina, along with our 3th Infantry, routing the disheartened Romanians without a fight, while Marines were clearing Kastoria further west from the remnants of another Romanian division.
By the 20th of September, even though we were yet to reach our destination, most of the guys were overjoyed - 'Finally, we have taken German panzers in a sack! Now to push from all sides, finish them off, and onwards to Berlin!'
Obviously, this was not going to happen. German commander, seeing that single relatively easily traversable road from Paliouria was being blocked, did not wait a minute and moved west, to Kastoria, before Engineers form 3rd Marine could even properly begin their preparations for building anti-tank defences. An order was given for them to move north, after a short skirmish on the main road.
Digging-in into the rocky ground is not that simple. September 24, 1943
By September 27, Marines reached Florina, even before us, and way ahead of German 196 Inf. Division. Their battle took 4 whole days until we arrived, but finally Germans were pushed back with several hundred lost on our side, and more than 900 on theirs. This created a perfect opportunity for a counter attack, which we took without hesitation - and on October 5th, we held Gostivar.
Not all pieces were in place again for the encirclement - are they ever? Even though eastern side of the circle was firmly held by troops under direct Lithuanian command, western side left much to wish for - British 9th Armoured left Korce - single province, separating Jodl's tanks and the port of Tirana - to reinforce southern segment at Pramanta, already defended by British Infantry, while all our 4 Militia divisions were transported to man the old fortress at Ioannina. Only the HQ of Lithuanian Liberation Army was left in Korce, undefended and vulnerable.
When getting back to our tent, I saw that most of my men were really afraid of what was to come this time, even though almost all of them already had a fair share of fighting under their belts - Soviet, Italian, German troops, you name it, machine guns, mines, mortar fire, artillery bombardment, bombers, even other tanks.. But the tales were going from tent to tent for some time then about roaring fire breathing deadly beasts, tearing open Allied tanks before they can even see anything coming, not speaking about simple leg infantry.. With no way to stop them. I tried to keep the spirits up as much as I could. But the voice of none other than our President A.Smetona sounded that night from our radios and worked miracles, encouraging everyone of us to never lose hope, to fight for the freedom of others, as this was also a fight for our freedom, our families, our land and our lives.
The speech that changed lives of many of us. And saved some. October 5, 1943
Within the next week we chased down Germans from 196. Infantry division further north, while 94. Inf., almost 8000 men, in Arta just surrendered after a short fight. Then, after an attack on our 3rd. Infantry in Kozani was repulsed with high casualties (on Yugoslavian side - more than 1200 against our 133), we got a chance for a short respite.. And a lot of marching. Trucks or even fuel was very hard to find, except for an occasional helpful Greek farmer with his horse cart.
Panzergrenadiers on watch in Paliouria. September 14, 1943
The situation on the front line was quite precarious, even if it did not look like it - we had 9 divisions, including one armoured with a mix of Crusader and Churchill tanks, not counting the militias, against basically a single Heavy Panzer division, equipped with Tigers, led by Lt.Gen.Jodl, and supported by a mix of several auxiliary Infantry divisions from Romania, Germany and Yugoslavia on the outskirts of northern mountains.
Our command did not seem to be particularly keen on trying them out directly, luckily for us, and none of us were either. Everyone still remembered the clash with Panthers just a few weeks ago.
Second contact with the enemy at Kozani was made in the middle of the night, on September 15, when we heard the roar of the tank engines coming from the valley west from us, up the mountain road. At the same time, further north, our comrades from 15th 'Scottish' division were attacked by sole Romanian division. As the tanks turned back just before sunrise, we were left wondering, whether they underestimated our forces here, or just tried to take us by surprise, hoping to scare us away.
Romanians did not have a chance to cross the fields of fire, defended by fierce Scots, even under cover of darkness. September 15, 1943
Noone of us had yet forgotten the slaughter of our guys in June, earlier that year, in these very same hills, just slightly more to the north west, thus, we were not overly sad when the Romanian will to attack faded away by the morning of September 16, with their loses mounting close to 15 percent - more than a thousand, while the Scots lost 74 guys.
We were ordered to immediately rise and move forward, to Florina, along with our 3th Infantry, routing the disheartened Romanians without a fight, while Marines were clearing Kastoria further west from the remnants of another Romanian division.
By the 20th of September, even though we were yet to reach our destination, most of the guys were overjoyed - 'Finally, we have taken German panzers in a sack! Now to push from all sides, finish them off, and onwards to Berlin!'
Obviously, this was not going to happen. German commander, seeing that single relatively easily traversable road from Paliouria was being blocked, did not wait a minute and moved west, to Kastoria, before Engineers form 3rd Marine could even properly begin their preparations for building anti-tank defences. An order was given for them to move north, after a short skirmish on the main road.
Digging-in into the rocky ground is not that simple. September 24, 1943
By September 27, Marines reached Florina, even before us, and way ahead of German 196 Inf. Division. Their battle took 4 whole days until we arrived, but finally Germans were pushed back with several hundred lost on our side, and more than 900 on theirs. This created a perfect opportunity for a counter attack, which we took without hesitation - and on October 5th, we held Gostivar.
Not all pieces were in place again for the encirclement - are they ever? Even though eastern side of the circle was firmly held by troops under direct Lithuanian command, western side left much to wish for - British 9th Armoured left Korce - single province, separating Jodl's tanks and the port of Tirana - to reinforce southern segment at Pramanta, already defended by British Infantry, while all our 4 Militia divisions were transported to man the old fortress at Ioannina. Only the HQ of Lithuanian Liberation Army was left in Korce, undefended and vulnerable.
When getting back to our tent, I saw that most of my men were really afraid of what was to come this time, even though almost all of them already had a fair share of fighting under their belts - Soviet, Italian, German troops, you name it, machine guns, mines, mortar fire, artillery bombardment, bombers, even other tanks.. But the tales were going from tent to tent for some time then about roaring fire breathing deadly beasts, tearing open Allied tanks before they can even see anything coming, not speaking about simple leg infantry.. With no way to stop them. I tried to keep the spirits up as much as I could. But the voice of none other than our President A.Smetona sounded that night from our radios and worked miracles, encouraging everyone of us to never lose hope, to fight for the freedom of others, as this was also a fight for our freedom, our families, our land and our lives.
The speech that changed lives of many of us. And saved some. October 5, 1943
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Hi and welcome, GermanKaiser! I intend to continue the AAR to the sweet or bitter end of it
Short update (which actually had to be a part of the previous one) in a minute.