#16_14s Wacht am Rhein (Herbstnebel)

[Plain Ian]

It will be interesting to compare the losses in this game to your previous Bulge AAR, though it's a different scenario.

US losses of Men and Vehicles were roughly 2.5 times as high as German losses by turn 36. Gun losses are difficult to compare because I recall you were playing with counterbattery on, which tends to lead to extreme artillery losses.

Do you perhaps remember if US-Allied losses were roughly even in the opening day in the other game as well?

Based on this AAR thus far, the defender can inflict decent losses with artillery and direct fire from bunkers, but will lose units when trying to hold positions against a numerically superior foe. As soon as you can reduce those pockets, US losses will spike for a couple of turns.

By the looks of it, as soon as Allied artillery needs to keep moving to stay away from your spearhead until it can reposition behind natural obstacles, artillery losses are likely to drop sharply over time before additional artillery units arruve and the redeployed artillery is back in action.

I'll check to see if I still have the old files. It might be quicker if I load up Wacht Alt and play through the first turns myself. 

Firing from Bunkers when un disrupted does seem to be the best option. However I think it still carries risk of being disrupted by German artillery and even by German infantry defensive fire because some of their units have very decent hard attack values. I didn't do this but Brian did. With mixed results. I guess it all depends on the player. If you think that you will be disrupted and assaulted anyway next turn, you might as well try to inflict as many casualties as you can during your own turn. 

US artillery when it fires does hurt. Expect to lose 10+ men even if you are in woods and Bunkers. That's the heavy stuff 155mm. Any thing heavier will be more. 105mm then its 5 at least although it does vary. Thats just off the cuff observations. The more units stacked then the higher the losses but of course they are spread though the different units. I think losses will be proportional to strength though?

That's a good point about US artillery. A lot of V Corps artillery starts around Saint Vith. Thats why I'll push hard to get there.

Last map below. 212th VGD area. On paper it looks like big gains for this B rated unit. (I've marked up some of the starting positions of US forces 06:00) Losses are low. 

I rolled into Consdorf last turn. It was undefended. Not because he retreated from it, but because the US player doesn't start the game occupying it. He has now been able to react (un Fixed?) and moved armoured units next to it. The 14./GR 423 occupied it during his turn and the power of the Zerstorer company was shown when they managed to kill a tank, and take out 2 men later when his infantry arrived. Unfortunately his tanks took out 10 men. I've pulled out the 14./GR 423 and put the A rated 15./GR 423 into the town to hold it. 

4th Armoured tanks also appeared last turn on the main n-s road from Echternach but I suspect this is to help his infantry withdraw.

Rather than fight I've continued infiltrating through the woods trying to use this as cover.

At Langsun and Mompach he is holding because he knows the Festung units are not great quality. Plus he needs to try and get the unit that was stationed at Dickweiler to safety. I deliberately avoided this unit and just advanced south. Hence why it was isolated.

I've managed to get a Bau Battalion over the river but this isn't a real engineer unit? It has no Mine/Obstacle clearing functions but can ferry units. I've read discussions about how the PzC OOB can be used to denote engineer type units but the pdt determines its abilities? (or is it the other way around?) Anyway I thought I'd illustrate this unit and a few others. Especially German supply units! The horse drawn supply wagon. Don't laugh but on certain occasions eg poor roads or rail tracks these things are more mobile than trucks!