I think I followed 4 gren + 1 mg (mg before) and improved early this game, but, on the other hand, as it was lacking in the other replay, the late game however was hard, and I believe the soviet player dropped too early.
You were doing well in the early game.
I really enjoyed your early game capping order. Hammering the north flank was certainly different and fresh and forced your opponent to make a decision on how to react to you. Great job taking the initiative AND keeping the pressure on. His response was, probably the highest equity play, punching through, but again, you did a superb job staying calm, minimizing the damage and containing the majority of his forces with minimal commitment and maximum flexibility of your own by utilizing that MG at distance and once your grenadiers had secured his cut off, surrounding them in force. Seriously, that enclosure on your ammo, both isolating his forces and threating his cut off was simply marvelous, bravo.
It did; however, tax your attention and delayed your tech and, excuse the presumption but I felt, you were perhaps a bit too eager to follow a sort of… “optimal” play, or something as you kind of bottlenecked yourself with the bunker, reinforcement and teching after that engagement. Your economy just can’t handle that sort of stress in a small space of time, and that in turn hurt your map presence as your army was idle trying to recover it’s cohesion after taking some losses after the encirclement. This in turn allowed your opponent back into the game, letting him catch his breath and take back his cut off. Don’t be afraid to delay things a little, obviously don’t forget them, but you really have to be flexible and make decisions based on what’s going on in game.
This is very prevalent in your next and in my opinion fatal decision, please don’t consider it a slight, after all I have the benefit of hindsight. Allow me to explain. The Pak gun is a very expensive and wrong decision at this point. He has built two early caches; presumably for sustainable late game fuel income. You have two options, the early Pak, or you can win in the next 10 minutes by continuing your aggression and punishing his lack of units, tearing his investment to shreds. The only thing you see at this point indicating any tech at all are his medics and a mortar. You are ahead. You don’t have to worry about armour yet. A 250/7 would have been a great choice to allow you to siege his base, a 222, maybe even a sniper, or even perhaps the best decision, a 251 would have allowed you to take basically the map and allow your already superior in tech and size army to stay on the field, choke him out and not give him a way back into this game. The Pak gun(s) were a 640mp investment that didn’t bear you ANY dividends for 12 minutes ie, when the 34/85’s rolled up. That can be a whole game. Effectively 15 minutes of income equity that’s not doing anything for you, and if anything hampering you. That’s 3 squads. 2 snipers etc. You can do a lot with that income. This is why frankly, I think where you lost this game, and yes despite the drop, I’m considering it a loss. So strategically, don’t be afraid to drive the nail in his coffin, finish it early. If you have the initiative, by all means utilize it.
Along the same lines, I’d like to see mines at this point at a more strategic location than your own VP. Good use of them, for sure, but again, they didn’t go off until what… 21 minutes? That’s a lot of time for your investment to not be doing anything for you in the immediate term. Next time, really take a critical look at the tactics employed against you when you decide to dig in, force him to uproot you if he wants his resource income.
Anyways. Once the guards hit the field, you’re forcing your early game units to do too much, and essentially you gave him 18 or so minutes to recover. Your late game struggles are based on these early game transition mistakes. The panther as well as a supporting puma doesn’t provide you any value against his primarily infantry army composition which is gradually getting stronger, and starting to run ruck shot over your army which I think is exposing a pretty drastic tactical flaw, evident in the way you utilize your MG. As time went by you stopped using it as support for your grenadiers and strictly as bunker, without the bunker. This is emblematic of how you utilize your infantry during the mid-game. The MG has value throughout the game, but it requires micro. I wonder if you were starting to get exhausted just before losing your Panther, as well as you mentioning playing before bed.
Treat your Grenadiers with care. Bosstruppen are no replacement for these battle hardened veterans with a munitions investment. Grenadiers and support teams have got you this far, they don’t suddenly get outclassed once the cons and guards get vet. There’s no need to start playing any differently with them and especially your support weapons, which should be used to multiply your grens, turning them into untouchable monsters. You went away from that, instead forcing low% rifle nades, multiple inequitable engagements, 1onX etc. Tactically you started to fall apart, and got away from the principles which gave you tremendous success earlier.
So, strategically, I think you were too busy focusing on some romantic notion of a late game. By playing for every outcome and preparing for the worst you didn’t take the opportunity to win. Tactically don’t be afraid of what worked for you. Sound play works at every stage of the game. Don’t be so afraid to win and always try to squeeze every last minute of an advantage you build before transitioning. Don’t give your opponent a chance, don’t let him use his units. I would be hunting that Katushya neigh on immediately especially when, with the resources and units you had, a Puma, even if it dies is still netting you a small profit, and is effectively doing a lot more damage to your opponent considering his position.
In closing, I hope I haven’t come across as too harsh, I empathize with you, it just always disappoints me when I see games deteriorate and losses which could have been avoided, ‘cos it’s happened to me countless times before and is absolutely heartbreaking haha.
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Stoned_Killer
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IULIUS
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