Case Blue (turn-limit)

This is free turn-limited version of Case Blue: 1942 Offensives

In spring 1942 Wehrmacht was preparing to launch Case Blue, German summer offensive on the Eastern Front. The plan outlined advance to Stalingrad and then the main force would turn south and drive to Caucasus to seize the crucial oil fields of Maykop, Gorzny, and Baku. As a preliminary step for the Case Blue, Wehrmacht was gearing up for two pincer attacks to cut off strong Soviet forces in the Izyum bulge, south of Kharkov, meaning German forces in the area were in offensive positions. However, just 6 days before the start date of the German operation, Red Army launched a massive campaign of their own from Izyum to re-take Kharkov, smashing directly into one of two the German armored pincers preparing for their own attack. German generals wanted to go on the defensive, but Berlin HQ ordered Wehrmacht to go on the offensive, and the resulting victory in the Second Battle of Kharkov wiped out strong mobile forces of Red Army in the southern sector of Eastern Front, allowing the following Case Blue attacks to advance fairly effortlessly towards Stalingrad. This lack of fierce Soviet resistance mislead Germans to split their force into two: One group moving towards Stalingrad, the other south towards Caucasus. The split caused fatal logistic issues: Germans could not know which Corps would be advancing how much at any given week, so there was never enough fuel at the right time at the right place, forcing entire corps to stay put even when they faced only token Soviet formations, giving the Red Army time to rebuild their defenses along the river Volga and Caucasus mountains.

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