Thunder in the East - First Contact

TITE - First Contact

I will not repeat what has already been said on the web: the game is beautiful. Here, you don’t get excited about components, you comment on their use. Nor will I give you the size of the table needed to play comfortably at TITE, nor a guide to make a die tower from recycled cardboard.

The Barbarossa scenario – setting up

So we start small, with the iconic scenario for any game on the Russian front: June 41. No campaign rules, so. Ship management is simplified because there are none, we also won’t use partisans or reserves. We play "vanilla," as they say.
Russian army is in good shape. There are people on the border. We can block entire sectors of the front. However, there is no depth. You can feel that once the curtain is pierced, the huns will run amok.
The Germans are numerous, powerful and compact. There is no rule that requires attacking any part of the front, so an original strategy can be developed.

 

Ok, it's beautiful ...

  The Initial Blow

The "Blitzkrieg" card gives mixed benefits. You have a movement bonus but no fixed combat bonus (a free die with a white lightning bolt allows you to get a one column bonus in case of a good result, but nothing’s garanteed ). Overruns are, in my opinion, essential to breakthrough, but they are risky. I lost two panzers steps.
However, the attack on the airports is of Germanic effectiveness. You can choose to destroy all the Soviet air force and you still get a stuka for ground support. I used it to attack Brest Litovsk.
The results of the initial round are average. A good bunch of Russians have been destroyed, but there are pockets that need to be removed, notably Brest, which is a resilient point of fixation. Only Lwow falls directly; the present unit, face-down, turned out to be militia.
At the normal stage of movement, one is tempted to run deeply into Russian territory. But the lack of supplies is fast coming. The Hqs get 8 hexs, or 12 hex for motorized vehicles in offensive mode. Afterwards, combat effectiveness becomes low. I chose to stay compact, we’ll see if it’s the right decision.

Situation at the end of June 41

Alarm, comrades!

Russian counts his deaths and expresses satisfaction with his position in the Baltic countries. Only Ukraine is worrying. He chose to leave his units in contact with the enemy, to block the German infantrymen in the next round. Well done!
The game gives little rail to the armies. Only two armies can be moved per turn. A line is being reconstructed in Ukraine near Zhitomir. Behind the front, it is the mass lifting of inexperienced troops whose command does not know the value.
There is an attempt of air force rebuilding, three fighters are repaired.
I feel that the Soviet game is going to be to sacrifice hordes of pedestrians so that the units from the rear can be properly equipped.
For the time being, we have a good feeling of the Russian front in 1941. 

Entering in Ukraine

 

Next time: the first week of July with the choice of strategic cards.