Not sure if my SOV strategy is the right one...

[unmerged(48743)]

I play SOV '36 1.3beta game. I built about 2 rounds of factories (40-50). I just ended with Winter War (dec '40). I have 10x3 MTNs, about 100 INF in queue (plus the starting ones) and will be finished until may '41 (when GER is expected to attack). I also plan to build until then ACs to all of my MOTs and SPART to all of my ARMs. I hope, all of my ARMs will upgrade to "ARM III" until spring '41. I have 2x4 INTs, 4x4 FTRs, 4x4 TACs - I will try to keep control about the critical regions (Leningrad and Stalingrad).

My slider moves are always towards standing army, the rest goes automatically.

I DOWed the Baltics (+9 dissent) just before the Winter War ended (-10 dissent - I know, this was gamey). The point is, I can not fight those small countries. I have 3 armored groups there, 2x3 MTNs, about 3x9 INFs and I "stuck". OK, it's winter, bad weather, but stil...

Baltics are not the problem, I will annex them sooner or later (better later, so I can train my leaders). The problem is, that i think the GER army (I played GER lot of times and know how good they are) will overrun me.

So the question is, how should I build several hundred of INF more? Or my panic has no reason?

 

[unmerged(132371)]

Rather late now to change plans. Normaly build forts just behind rivers , use defense in depth, and put almost everyone in reserves, use mobile forces to counter attack and cut off the enemy, use air force on ground attack because he is moving . Good luck have fun

 

[unmerged(132371)]

Forts behind rivers, ground attack from airforce and mobile reserves to counter attack and cut off the enemy. Use defense in depth and put secondary line troops in reserves. Sorry to double post there was a glitch and the first post did not show up

 

[unmerged(48743)]

That's how I wanted to do, but not sure about the quality and quantity of the army necesserry for that.

I wanted to use 1xARM+SPART with 2xMOT+AC as a mobile army as a firefighter or counterattack on clear terrain. 10x 3xMTNs to counterattack during the winter and to fortify in difficult terrains and maybe key cities. As much as possible INFs positioned tactically optimally for defence (behind rivers, in forests, etc). And that's the point: how much INF? I thought I could manage that with in average 12xINF (from 9x to 15x) per province (depending how many directions the attacker can come from and how important the province is). In provinces, where I don't want to withdraw (like Moscow) from 12x to 15x INF+ART or INF+AT. Plus about 6xINF in far east (Vladivostok)...

I planed to control 2 sky-areas (nord and south) with 3x4xFTR or INT and have 4x4xTAC+ESC to slow down the main attacking directions.

Will this be enough?

 

[unmerged(105989)]

keep in mind that the SU has a terrible combat modifier to start the game with, and it only gets better after 1941. That is a large part of your problem in trying to take out the Baltics right now.

 

[unmerged(13610)]

I never build forts and have never had more than a localised problem with German advances.

Typically I build 4 series of factories but I dont think much turns on that. Lots of infantry and make sure you research your doctrines well in advance. You do need one slider move to hawk I think, the rest will come through events or GOIs (for intervention moves).

 

[unmerged(48743)]

keep in mind that the SU has a terrible combat modifier to start the game with, and it only gets better after 1941.

I've never played SOV yet, so I've never had a problem with that (GDE - that's what you are talking about?).

Any tipps, how can I improve this modifier?

 

[unmerged(105989)]

GDE is right. Not sure how to improve it early besides modding. I'm pretty much a solid Germany player.

 

[unmerged(17893)]

I've never played SOV yet, so I've never had a problem with that (GDE - that's what you are talking about?).

Any tipps, how can I improve this modifier?

http://www.paradoxian.org/hoi2wiki/index.php/USSR_strategy

Soviet Ground Defense Efficiency

In order to simulate the ineffectiveness of Soviet defenses before the war with Germany, the Soviet Union has significant defensive penalties for its military that cannot be adjusted in-game by the player. The GDE (Ground Defense Efficiency) score is essentially a percentage of the effectiveness of your units on defense. Thus, a GDE of 0.2 means 20% effective, or put another way, fighting at an 80% penalty when on the defense. The normal value of GDE for other nations is 0.8: due to all the advantages defenders have in the game, GDE never rises above 0.8.

* The Soviet Union starts with 0.2 GDE.
* It increases by 0.1 in May 1940 and later years for a total of +0.4.
* When anyone DOWs you get all these future increases plus an additional 0.1 are received.
* When Finns offer you peace through the event you get +0.1 (note this is the event not any other offer of peace).
* Grand total gets you back to 0.8.
* AI gets +0.6 at the start instead of the above events EXCEPT that they still get the Winter War event allowing the AI to get 0.9 GDE.


Timeline of GDE values:

* Prior to Dec 12th, 1939, your GDE should be 0.2
* From Dec 12th, 1939 to May 1st, 1940, it should be 0.3
* From May 2nd, 1940 to May 1st, 1941, it should be 0.4
* From May 2nd, 1941 to May 1st, 1942, it should be 0.5
* From May 2nd, 1942 to May 1st, 1943, it should be 0.6
* From May 2nd, 1943 to May 1st, 1944, it should be 0.7
* From May 2nd, 1944 on, it should be 0.8

Being attacked by a major power (eg: Germany) will automatically boost your GDE up to 0.7 (after a random delay of a few weeks to as much as several months)... but ONLY if they attack you, not vice versa; and the last boost (from 0.7 to 0.8 GDE) only happens in 1944, regardless. Note that all of this applies ONLY to a Human-controlled Russia... an AI-controlled Russia has a GDE of 0.8 right from January 1936 on.

Details are available in this thread.


In Doomsday or Armageddon

There is a different event chain in Doomsday and Armageddon. One important difference is that the Finnish Winter War has no effect on the GDE. The Winter War is fought at 0.4 GDE. Then there are two GDE gearing up events in January 1940 and June 1940, raising GDE to 0.5 and then 0.6 GDE. In June ´41 the GDE gets the last but one raise to 0.7 GDE. The last raise to 0.8 GDE depends on whether the Soviet Union is human or AI controlled. The AI gets maximum GDE when they lost 10% of their provinces in the "Great Patriotic War" event. A human controlled Soviet Union gets the same event when it is under attack (!), lost 5% of its territory and lost one major western city OR by June ´42 at the latest.

 

[Pal]

I wanted to use 1xARM+SPART with 2xMOT+AC as a mobile army as a firefighter or counterattack on clear terrain.

You surely meant 5xArmoured Corps, each consisting of what you described... Right?

And that's the point: how much INF? I thought I could manage that with in average 12xINF (from 9x to 15x) per province (depending how many directions the attacker can come from and how important the province is). In provinces, where I don't want to withdraw (like Moscow) from 12x to 15x INF+ART or INF+AT. Plus about 6xINF in far east (Vladivostok).
...
Will this be enough?

LOL

Better plan with 24 to 30 per province. And that will still not make you hold the line everywhere, so have several dozens of inf in the second line...

 

[Major Ballache]

When I play SU I plan on a steady retreat with armoured corps in reserve (tank/mot/mot all with SPART attachements) to try and cut off over earger german breakthroughs. I have the INF in 9 div units, with as many as possible with Artillary attached. I also try to keep some spare INF armies close behind the lines in order to plug gaps.

Eseentailly you need a flexible denfense line with planned retreats - when attacked, pull you INF back before they get totally wasted. You are trading land for time. I tend to have as many armoured corps as I can at the end of each flank (Oddessa and Leningrad regions) and to give way in the middle.

As as teh germans advance their supply prob get worse and as you get into October the weather will start to favour the defender more and more. At the same time you will be building more and more units so you should be able to pretty much hold the germans along the line of the river that runs from south of Kiev to Smolensk. They may well get accross the river, so make sure you have some reserve infantry on hand to contain any breakthoughs and use armoured units to cut them off of possible. Keep Attacking any weak points on their front to keep them off balance - but dont expect to make any big breakouts yet. Only keep terrriotory you are confident of holding.

Come the thaw of 42 (april in the south, may in the north) use your armoured units to try and breakthrough from the edges of your northern and southern flanks - ideally you want to trap as many german units as possible in an enourmous salient. Airbourne units are priceless for this - particaurly if you drop them straight onto those movement sapping marshy areas in the middle of russia (have the airbourne units and air transport organsied in single divisions - it gives you loads of flexibiity and you can always drop in an extra division if one is not enough) . It may take weeks of hard slogging to break out - but once you've cut off the Germans its simply a matter of rolling over them. Without supplies they will crumble very quickly. Then you should be able to roll on to Berlin pretty easily.

Good luck comrade.

P.S I also use lots of CAS which you seem have ommitted - but theres nothing better then watching them whittle away panzer divisions strenth bars to nothing.