Back after another long hiatus involving travel and toil.

Drove over to Tim’s for another grind through Pursuit of Glory.  Grind?  Yes.  As posted before, the game is a brain twister, but very enjoyable.

As always, too much fun chatter and perhaps not enough serious gaming.  But, we were able to get into 1916, with Tim’s Allies having a decided advantage.

We agreed this session was different than the others.  Fewer casualties, with more activity in Sinai/Palestine/Syria than usual, with less in Persia and “The Back of Beyond”.

Here’s a breakdown of action by region.

Sinai/Palestine/Syria:  The Turks actually made it across the Suez Canal,  but were quickly forced back by British/ANZAC/Indian units.  Tim continued placing pressure on the Turks, taking Jerusalem and Damascus.  He correctly pointed out that I should have built a corps in Damascus.  Corps building is a real challenge for the Ottomans.  They do not receive corps as reinforcements, just divisions.  So, corps (which have increased fighting and staying power) must be assembled from two (for reduced corps) or three (full strength) divisions.  This means using operations points move them to a common location and/or to assemble them.

Mesopotamia:  The Allies steadily advanced from Basra towards Baghdad.  Here, I was able to assemble two corps, which stopped the Allies just short of the city.  The Central Powers had difficulties generating tribal resistance, which can be very effective  stopping/delaying an Allied advance.

Caucasus:  Not the usual bloodbath.  I attribute this to the few mandated offensives for either side, as well as no dreaded “Enver” offensives that can be devastating to the Turks, especially in the Winter when combat odds are very unfavorable for the attacker.

The Balkans:  This theater developed rather late in the game with first Romania (Allies) and then Bulgaria (Central Powers) entering the war.  The Serbs (Allies) were in an unfavorable position when the game ended.

Other:  Tim opened up the possibility of a landing in Gallipoli, which achieved its purpose of drawing valuable Ottoman units West, instead of East – where most of the action took place.  He did land at Salonika, but had not advanced by game’s end.

Tim did an excellent job of maintaining pressure on the Turks, forcing me to spend Operation Points on reacting as opposed to proactive uses such as corps building and strategic movement.  The latter is very important for the Ottomans, given the distances to be traveled and poor infrastructure.  Their “interior lines” are more of a handicap than advantage.

At game’s end, Tim had a decided advantage, with the Ottomans just five victory points from defeat.

Here’s a quick pic of the board at session’s end.

Quick Comment:  This game was played using the First Edition, not the recently published Second Edition which, from what I gather, contains some significant rules modifications.

And now….Wargame Forensics.  Why?  I forgot to include the cards played in my map photo.  So, here’s a stab at what happened during the Summer 1915.

The major development was the Allied invasion at Gallipoli and accompanying Central Powers response.  It was business as usual in Caucasia – with more attrition – and a lack of activity on other fronts.  At this point, the Ottoman replacement pool is dangerously shallow.

During the Fall 1915 turn, the Allies shifted focus to  Mesopotamia, eyeing an undefended Baghdad.   The Marsh Arabs tribe frustrated the Allied advance, buying time for the Central Powers to deploy forces to the threatened city.

The Romania Enters The War card was played in error.  Tim noticed that the pre-conditions had not been met (Allies in Salonika), so the forces involved were taken off the table and Tim used the card for operations.

The Central Powers were in reaction mode, trying to cobble defenses together in Mesopotamia and Caucasia, attempting to build up the replacement pool, as well as maintaining some momentum in their effort to “Set The East Ablaze” using dissident tribes.

Our final turn was Winter 1916.

The Allies played the Russian Winter Offensive card, reducing the negative effects on winter attacks, and so maintaining the momentum of  their  push towards Anatolia.  The Asquith-Lloyd George card allowed an increase in British aid to Russia in the form of replacement points.  These positive developments would help Russia delay the beginning of the revolution.

The Central powers gained Bulgaria as an ally  (forces cannot be set up until the end of the turn), and the Ottomans were able to stabilize both the Mesopotamian and Caucasian fronts.   For how long is anybody’s guess.

As usual, just when things were getting good, or dicey depending on one’s perspective, it was time to pack it up.

One overarching observation is how both of us shied away from any significant effort(s) outside of the Caucasian front.  Yes, Tim did invade both Mesopotamia and Gallipoli, but with limited assets.  Neither of us showed any interest in the Sinai or Egypt.  The historical Allied invasion at Salonika did not occur in this game.

My other impressions from the Central Powers’ perspective are:

1.  Is it worth pursuing a peripheral strategy focusing on Jihad and tribal actions?
2. How quickly Ottoman forces are reduced.
3. Given this attrition, is there a more defensible series of positions in Caucasia that will not provide the Russian player with the ability to further delay the revolution?
4. Outside of Bulgaria (and perhaps the peripheral strategy) what are the opportunities for the Central Powers to be pro-active?

My head is starting to throb.  Time to play something less taxing.

The first rule of Blogging an After Action Report (AAR) is to blog right after the game.  The second rule of Blogging an AAR is to……you know the rest

I’ve let two weeks pass since Tim and I sat down for a session with the game that gives both of us headaches.  So many situations, so many theaters,  and so few cards

We managed to get through the Winter 1916 turn, and left it with Bulgaria entering the game.  Tim had a definite advantage at that point, as my Ottomans were badly attrited, and barely hanging on in Caucasia.  But, that situation had stabilized to some degree and his Commonwealth forces had bogged down in Gallipoli.  On the other hand, my situation in Mesopotamia was not the best, with only a corps between him and Baghdad.  Still, I now had the Plucky Bulgarians along with their powerful German friends ready to go.

Here’s a shot of the situation at the end of the (first) Fall 1914 Turn.  Plot Spoiler:  These photos are up to my usual (sub) standard.

I failed to capture the cards played in this photo and, as you will see, it happened again in the Summer 1915 turn.  Lack of attention to detail.

My strategy from the outset was to increase the Jihad level as quickly as possible by playing  event cards and capturing Jihad cities.  Of course, starting the time track towards the Russian Revolution was a priority.  I needed  the “Parvus To Berlin” card on the table as quickly as possible.  From an operational standpoint, I wanted to actively defend my victory point cities in Caucasia.  Any loses would delay the revolution. I kept a relatively strong force in Western  Anatolia to act as a reserve, especially to counter an Allied amphibious invasion of Gallipoli.  One challenge for the Ottomans if reserves are kept there is their rudimentary rail system, limiting their ability to shift troops from one theater to another.

I’ll ask Tim to provide some comments on his strategy and operational intent.  From my perspective, he was aggressive in Caucasia, and did an excellent job of wearing down the Ottomans.  This is important as the Turks have limited and dwindling replacement opportunities as the game wears on.

During the turn I played the “Goeben”, “Persian Push” and “Pan-Turkism” cards.  I was able to destroy the fort at Batum, and the latter two cards started jacking up the Jihad level, and my ability to place dissident tribal units on the map.  These tribes can take isolated victory point cities and delay/defend Allied moves in Persia and Mesopotamia.

Tim enjoyed playing the “Enver Goes East” card, forcing me to undertake mandatory attacks at time I wasn’t quite ready for them.  He also opened up the Mesopotamia theater by playing the “Russo-British Assault” event.  Surprisingly, he played the “Churchill Prevails” (more on this later) event for replacements.

Here’s the situation at the end of the Winter 1915 turn.

The Allies began the turn by playing the “Kitchener” card.  This allows the British player to provide the Russians with replacement points.  The “Project Alexandria” initiated a build-up of forces in the Aegean.   And,  it got worse for the Central Powers.  The “Royal Naval Blockade” event was played.  It “caps” the Ottoman replacement pool at 25 points, with each point taken reducing those available and with a -1 Victory Point (VP) adjustment each winter.

The Central Powers used their cards for operation points to undertake less than successful mandatory offensives and taking advantage of victory point opportunities in Persia.

The situation at the end of the Spring 1915 turn is shown below:

During this turn the Allies played the “Churchill Prevails” card, bombarding  forts guarding the entry to the Bosphorus.  Fortunately, for me, only two forts were destroyed.  The “Murray Takes Command” card was also played.  This card initiates the construction of the Sinai Railway,  required for an Allied corps size unit to participate in any regional offense/defense.

Again, the Central Powers concentrated on operations in Caucasia and Persia, launching a corps eastward into Persia, while playing the “Enver To Constantinople” to reduce the havoc that rascal plays on operational planning.

I’ll leave this fragmented account for now, with a follow-up post later this week.