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Breaking The Siege

 

BREAKING THE SIEGE

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 THE RELIEF OF LENINGRAD, 1944

By Stoney74

 

 

                                                     
In the Spring of 1941, Operation Nordlicht brought German forces into the Russian North as part of the overall German offensive into Russia.  Hitler intended for Leningrad to be in German hands by the end of 1941.  As Finland had become an ally of Germany, Finnish forces were used to secure and anchor the German northern flank and by August of 1941, had reached the northern suburbs of Leningrad.  German forces continued to press the Russians, and by September of 1941, had completed the encirclement of Leningrad.  The siege of Leningrad was to last 2 and a half years, and resulted in tremendous amounts of casualties and destruction, as much of the civilian population died either through starvation or German bombardment.  During the winter of 1942, Russian estimates stated civilian deaths reached levels of 100,000 deaths per month.  By late 1943, the fortunes of war had shifted in the Russians favor, and after the Battle of Kursk, Russia shifted forces north to end the siege of Leningrad.  During late 1943, Russian forces began pushing the German army west, and by January 1944, the siege was broken.  This FSO attempts to recreate the battles surrounding Leningrad circa January 1944.

This setup will use ground vehicles.  All 3 frames will highlight pitched ground battles, reinforced with close air support, with a battle for air superiority high above each battlefield.  Squadrons will have the option to request either ground vehicles or aircraft, depending on their preference.  Those squadrons that request ground vehicles will be given two (2) lives--one life in GV's at the beginning of each frame, and a following life in their assigned aircraft.  Those squadrons that request aircraft will be given a single life, as per a typical FSO.

The general concept of the FSO is this.  There will be four (4) ground engagement areas each frame, with a minimum of 15 vehicles per side assigned to each engagement area (HAKA "EA's").  Each engagement area will have two spawns, one for each side.  At the beginning of each frame, the ground vehicle units shall spawn into their assigned EA from their assigned vehicle base. The composition of each sides' GV forces will be at the discretion of the CIC for that frame, using the minimum / maximum types of GV's per the rules listed below.  The ground battle in each EA shall run for a maximum of 45 minutes.  After the 45 minute mark (T+45), all ground vehicle players shall tower out, and shall then be able to take off in their assigned aircraft to continue the air fight  over those engagement areas.  The objective of all GV forces shall be a Team King of the Hill type objective.  The side that achieves supremacy on the ground in each EA shall be awarded victory points, from which the winner of each engagement shall be determined.  For the air fight, there will be no attacking bases or other fixed targets.  The air fight shall consist of either close air support aircraft, or the fighter force assembled to achieve air superiority over each assigned EA.  CIC's will therefore be responsible to assign a GV force, a close air support force, and an air superiority force for each engagement area.  Once the fight has begun, CIC's shall be permitted to shift air assets from one EA to another, as they see fit, to address the tactical situation.  GV forces cannot shift from one EA to another.  Total victory conditions shall be a mixture of the combined scores from each EA.  Both sides shall have the same ultimate potential score, but the ultimate actual scores will vary depending on air kills and EA victories, to determine which side achieves victory for the frame.

Due to the mechanics of the FINRUS map, there will be EA's positioned in areas outside of the historical Leningrad battlefield area.  This should be fairly transparent to the gameplay, which is intended to offer a combined-arms battle, using a historically representative airplane and GV mix to simulate the forces actually involved during the battle.

Vehicle and Plane Set:

Germans: 

Bf109G6
Fw190A5
Fw190F8
Bf110G2
Panzer IV
M-16
M-8
M-3 (Vehicle Supplies Only)

Russians: 

LA-5
Yak-9T
Yak-9U
IL2
T-34
M-16
M-8
M-3 (Vehicle Supplies Only)

Side Assignments:
Germans 50%
Russians 50%

Special Information:

--Wind will be used (variable speed and direction per frame)
--20,000 ft ceiling in effect
--Each side must plan to employ a minimum of 15 aircraft per engagement area.
--Each side must use at least three (3) different aircraft each frame and plan to employ a minimum of twelve (12) aircraft per type
--Each side must plan to employ a minimum of 15 and maximum of 25 vehicles per engagement area. (Maximum limit is in place to avoid frame rate issues.)

Victory Conditions:

Both sides will have the same potential score each frame.  Each EA is worth 10 points. and Air-to-Air Kills will comprise a total potential of 60 points, for a total of 100 potential points for either side each frame.  The side with the most kills per EA ?wins? that engagement and will receive 10 points.  The Air-to-Air points will be awarded as a percentage computed from (total aircraft shot down / total aircraft launched)*60.  So, for example if one side shoots down 90 % of the other sides aircraft, they will score 54 points.  If they win 3 engagements, they will score 30 points, which would give them an ultimate score of 84.  This ensures that regardless of the number of players on each side, both have the same potential to score the same number of points.

Field Order:   Germans      Bishop
                      Russians      Knight
                      CM               Rook

Arena Settings:

 --Finrus Map
 --Fuel Burn 1.5
 --Icons Short
 --.5 Ack
 --Fighter and Bomber Warning Range 52,800 (10 miles)
 --Tower Range 52,800 (10 Miles, To Match Warning Range)
 --Visibility 17 Miles
 --Radar Off
 --Enemy Collisions On
 --Friendly Collisions Off
 --Killshooter Off
 --Takeoff time 1100

Contact all the squads on your side at: 
http://events.hitechcreations.com/squadops/assignments_fri.php

Updated FSO Rules at:

http://www.ahevents.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=95&Itemid=121



 

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