Scenarios by Larry Reese Offered for Play and Testing

[Crossroads]

Larry, you can attach files to these discussion threads as well. There's an option for that in the bottom of the page when making a new post or performing a full edit on your previous one.

Good luck, hang in there!

[Larry Reese]

Will that not freak out the BBS software? Can you attach that many files? I'll try it this evening.

LR

[Crossroads]

Or maybe you could combine all the scenario zip files into one large zip file. I believe there's something like 10 meg allocation for each member, so size should not be an issue...?

[Larry Reese]

Well, not on my home machine tonight, so this will have to wait until tomorrow.

LR

[Larry Reese]

To those additional folks who have e-mailed, apologies. I am away from my home set up and don't have the files available. Will get the mails out to you ASAP. Thanks to all for the interest!

LR

[Larry Reese]

Mail out.

LR

[Larry Reese]

For those who have an interest, as mentioned one of the "not ready for prime time" scenarios not available here is the giant Kirkenes-Petsamo scenario I'm working on (and the Lapland mod would be PERFECT for this). Another is a revamp of my Kursk scenario from way WAY back. There is a new book on this due out probably by the end of the year and I anticipate this will be as near as we get to a final word on the subject for quite some time. Eight years in the making, written by the guy that headed the army's big Kursk modeling project (which explained to me two of the major differences in deployment and usage between the armies at Kursk that was quite surprising and counter-intuitive), directly sourced from original primary documents, and somewhere between 400 and 1000 pages - this is the one.

Anyone have a huge Kursk game map lying around?

LR

[Crossroads]

Larry, kudos to you for filling the void of scenarios for the Arctic theater of WW II.

I was glad to find a couple of scenarios for Invasion of Norway in 1940, but after that, there's none.

Petsamo-Kirkenes operation was a huge effort from the Russians, how they manage to pull a campaign of that size is extraordinary and must have been a huge effort.

Similarly, Operation Birke, the evacuation of German 20th Mountain Army from Petsamo and Finnish Lapland was a piece of logistical genious as well. To pull out a 200 000 man foot army, despite of the Petsamo-Kirkenes operation and the Finnish efforts from the south, coud not be but admired as well. Unfortunately, such an organised withdrawal does not make for good gaming, as there was but a couple bigger battles apart Petsamo-Kirkenes.

The Lapland Mod I creted is mainly about an Allied Finland OOB, so they could be put vs Germans. As such, the mod is not required for your scenario as Finns and Soviets did not perform any combined operations together. The difficult conditions ensured that, although once the Petsamo-Kirkenes operation was underway Finns suggested on pincer would drive southwest, cutting the German elements retreating from Southern Lapland.

However, the landing at harbour of Tornio took the 20th Mountain Army by a surprise, and meant they had to compromise in sending one their precious few motorised units, the SS Ski MG Bde (what a name!) to Tornio area, where they got mauled pretty bad, before returning to assist the situation at Petsamo.

For the interested:


Ziemke, Earl F.: The German Northern Theater of Operations 1940-1945. (1959)
Available online for free, - note that there are two parts. A must have!
http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/cdm/compoundobje...729/rec/88
http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/cdm/compoundobje...729/rec/88

Gebhardt, James F.: The Petsamo-Kirkenes Operation: Soviet Breakthrough and Pursuit in the Arctic, October 1944. (1989)
Also available online for free
http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/cdm/singleitem/c.../331/rec/1.

[Larry Reese]

That's right Kat! I dont have my source material here, but if I recall correctly, during the Kirkenes-Petsamo operation (I'm talking all the way into Norway which my scenario is planned to cover from end to end) German units were pushed north by Finns at one point (evacuating to Norway through that route) and while it would only be minor compared to the Soviet operations I was hoping to include some of those Finnish ops simple because the scale of the map woudl allow it. I may have my timeline off, going just on memory right now, but I remember when designing earlier that I'd wished for the Lapland Mod or something like it.

I'm using the US Army's study on the Kirkenes-Petsamo ops. Will provide more info when available.

LR

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ALSO, Armored Inferno is looking for players to play test against. If you're interested in testing these scenarios and don't have an opponent, he might be able to oblige.

LR

[Crossroads]

Larry, the link I provided is to Leavenforths papers and I think I originally got it from you. We have the same source. I hope the link to Ziemke's book provides you with some additional information should you need any. :)

Here's the map of Lapland. As you see, the Finns were pushing North with three pincers, as there were only three roads available.



At the end, they did battle the Germans all the way to 'Finland's left arm' (Petsamo is in the right 'arm'). That is an area where Finns would have operated in close approximaty with Soviets, and they got there already in November 1944, but were unable to do anything but wait the Germans would leave their strong positions. At that time all that Finns had up there was one division, made of conscripts.

The eastern side saw Finns fight all the way up to Ivalo, where they indeed requested that Soviet forces should enter Finland to threten the rear of German units. That never materialised, as the Petsamo-Kirkenes operation soon bogged down in a similar fashion Finns had already experienced. With all road infrastructure thoroughly destroyed, it is very difficult to force a way open when the enemy enjoyes the full transport infrastructure in place, and can retreat from one prepared position to another, destroying all bridges etc while falling back.

I would be more than happy to look at the scenario you have put together so far, and to see how the Finns coulde perhaps play a role there.