Encirclement Mechanics

[stefankollers]

Hi Just bought my first Campaign.....Moscow 42. Very impressed with the depth of the game and the massive maps and campaigns.

I thought I would ask a question regarding Encirclement....Pocketing enemy forces. Is it enough to just get behind them and "cut off lines of supply" Blocking roads and or railways ? Or do I have to cover every hex with a unit ? Lastly do the enemy units in the "Pocket" lose strength quickly or does this take many turns ? Or even surrender ? I noticed a Surrender button in the Optional rules......I think that is what its called.

I have been playing Gary Grigsby's War in the East quite alot, but I thought I would like to try this...Being down to Company and Battalion level rather than Divisions and Brigades, although the Divisions can be broken down to Regiments.

Anyway thanks for reading hopefully someone can point me in the right direction with advice or a link to a Thread.

[Compass Rose]

[Xaver]

You need cover every hex with an unit ZOC (the hexes around a combat unit is the ZOC area, 1 hex of size the ZOC area), if is a free gap units are not isolated the only diference is if are rivers or obstacles, them you only need cut the bridge-pass with an unit doing ZOC over the hex where is the bridge... apart this be carefull with engeniers because they can work as "ferry" to transport units and supplies.

At best you need unit-empty-empty-unit-empty-empty-unit.

Units isolated simple lose 1 quality level and after shot become automatically in next turn LOW OF AMMO with a penalty in fire power (50% and in certain engines they cant shot in your turn, only defensive fire) and an extra quality level down.

For example a unit with C quality isolated become D AND if shot when is isolated next turn is E quality.

Isolated units dont suffer casualties, simple become more sensible to assaults and have very low offensive value and are less powerfull in defense.

[stefankollers]

You need cover every hex with an unit ZOC (the hexes around a combat unit is the ZOC area, 1 hex of size the ZOC area), if is a free gap units are not isolated the only diference is if are rivers or obstacles, them you only need cut the bridge-pass with an unit doing ZOC over the hex where is the bridge... apart this be carefull with engeniers because they can work as "ferry" to transport units and supplies.

At best you need unit-empty-empty-unit-empty-empty-unit.

Units isolated simple lose 1 quality level and after shot become automatically in next turn LOW OF AMMO with a penalty in fire power (50% and in certain engines they cant shot in your turn, only defensive fire) and an extra quality level down.

For example a unit with C quality isolated become D AND if shot when is isolated next turn is E quality.

Isolated units dont suffer casualties, simple become more sensible to assaults and have very low offensive value and are less powerfull in defense.

Thank you for replying...Most helpful, I guess the longer a unit/s are surrounded the unit quality drops, assuming it fires have I got that right ?
I was wondering if you could pocket in this game, now 101 other things to learn. I guess the more you learn the more you enjoy the game. Sometimes the manual is not very clear. Again thanks for the help.

[Mr Grumpy]

As stated in the last post you need a complete ZOC "barrier" in order to "isolate" your opponents units by cutting their ability to trace a line of hex's back to a supply source that is not blocked by ZOC or a terrain feature like a river that supply can only cross at bridges, obstacle and mine hex's also block supply unless they are shown as "penetrated" (white line on symbol).

Your opponents units will then show the word "isolated" on their portraits and as stated they will lose one level of quality and will show "low ammo" the next time they fire, when the next supply fuel calculation for motorised units is made they will also show "low fuel", both of these effects will drop the units quality another level. 

Low fuel and low ammo status cannot be seen by opponents when FOW is in use.

Once these effects kick in the ability of these units to either attack or defend will be markedly reduced making them much easier to round up and destroy so becoming isolated must be avoided at all costs and is something that the attacking player will always strive to achieve.

The effects of the optional surrender rule are explained in the sticky thread on optional rules at the top of this forum.

[Mr Grumpy]

Thank you for replying...Most helpful, I guess the longer a unit/s are surrounded the unit quality drops, assuming it fires have I got that right ?

The actual amount of moves a unit is surrounded has no bearing on the mechanics other than to allow the effects stated above to occur.

[phoenix]

Thank you for replying...Most helpful, I guess the longer a unit/s are surrounded the unit quality drops, assuming it fires have I got that right ?

The actual amount of moves a unit is surrounded has no bearing on the mechanics other than to allow the effects stated above to occur.

It's a great question. Can I ask those who have replied so helpfully to clarify for me please? 

See the image below (apologies for poor graphics efforts). Yellow box at top of map is supply source/HQ etc. Black hexagon are units whose supply I'm querying in 3 different situations. Red units are those units cutting it off. 

In example 1 there are no hexes free around the unit - it's clearly isolated. The same would be true even if this was done via interlocking ZOCs.

In example 2, the unit's passage to its HQ/supply source is cut off via interlocking zocs at one hex distance. Still isolated? 

In example 3 the main roads and routes to the supply source/hex have been interdicted. Isolated? 

Thanks! 

Peter

[Ricky B]

1 and 2 isolated, as long as the units in 2 are not certain types. HQs and AT guns, maybe a few others, have no ZOC. and so those types wouldn't block the trace to supply. 3 is not isolated unless that is a river nearby and even then would take another unit down on the south map edge, I think? Possibly not though, it is hard to judge.

Rick

[phoenix]

Thanks Ricky. Would 3 have more chance of being low on ammo/fuel/out of command though - because the min route supply calculation would have to circumvent the blocking units?

By example 3 I was wondering if the AI supply chain will go to unlimited lengths - diverting from roads across other terrain - to get to the supply source? Or is it possible that you make its route so roundabout and long - via distant blocking units interposing between the unit and its HQ/supply source - that the unit becomes isolated? For example, is there a limit in hexes as to how many non road/rail hexes the supply route can be traced across? If a line unit is 10 hexes away from its HQ and the HQ has a command range of 15, if I block all roads back to the HQ so that the min supply route has to trace through 20 hexes, does the line unit become isolated?

Peter

[Ricky B]

I don't believe the unit would ever be actually isolated in your cases, even if the effective supply value fell to 0. But there would definitely be a higher chance of low ammo/fuel when using VST, but not the other supply rules. A unit would also be pushed out of command too, as the path would have to avoid ZOCs. But isolated is different, with its various penalties on top of the above impacts.