Battle of Ploesti

**Battle of Ploesti** is a scenario in *Panzer Corps 2*.

## Briefings

We have fought defensively for long enough, Herr General. Now, at long last, it is time to strike back decisively.

I'm just glad we were able to convince High Command of that as well.

Indeed. The threat to Hungary and Romania seems to have shaken High Command enough to stop fortifying East Prussia.

As a result, we have been reinforced to our strongest level to date.

And it's a good thing too. I have a feeling we're going to need every last man for this battle; it is no small task that we have been ordered to undertake.

**Primary Objective: Eliminate Marshal Malinovsky's HQ.**

**Primary Objective: Eliminate Marshal Tolbukhin's HQ.**

**Primary Objective: Annihilate 6th Guards Tank Army.**

**Primary Objective: Defend Antonescu Bunker.**

**Primary Objective: Defend All 4 Oil Pumping Stations.**

**Elite Objective: Apprehend a Third Soviet Marshal.**

Our efforts in securing Hungary and Northern Romania have paid off handsomely.

­It is clear now that the Soviet plan was to turn these regions against us, but now we can instead use them to launch a flanking attack against the spearhead of the Red Army.

?Our enemies are clearly aware of this. Scouts have found serious defensive positions guarding many Carpathian Mountain passes.

Many, but not all.

This pass here has been retaken by friendly Romanian forces, and it's our best bet to quickly get the bulk of our forces across the mountains.

I agree. Rather than fight our way through hostile chokepoints, we should reroute our forces to the one open mountain pass available to us.

Such a course will leave our forces a long distance from the Romanian objectives we need to protect from the Soviets.

So I recommend we rebase our aircraft to Bucharest and Ploesti right away. Our air support will be very effective at assisting the Romanians in holding their defensive lines.

Meanwhile, our ground forces will have quite a fight on their hands. There are reports that the elite Soviet 6th Guards Tank Army is leading the assault into Romania.

And radio intercepts point to at least two Marshals of the Soviet Union directing the battle. The task to decisively defeat all of these forces is immense, but if we can pull it off...

We will have shattered the spearhead of our enemies, and decisively removed the threat against Romania and our link to the distant Caucasus in one stroke.

To victory, for Germany!

### Debriefing

We have won an incredible victory today, Herr General.

He's right. The reports are still coming in, but it looks like we have dealt a tremendous blow to the Red Army. Our flanking assault has crippled, captured, or outright destroyed more than 30 divisions belonging to multiple Soviet armies.

Our victory was so crushing that there is talk that we might be able to launch the first winter offensive of our own.

I suspect High Command is eyeing the huge salient that has formed between Army Groups West Ukraine and East Ukraine.

Perhaps, but for now our campaign is at an end. It has been another hard fought year, but I believe this battle has given us renewed hope for victory.

Without a doubt we have demonstrated that we are capable of defending our conquests against our enemies. From France to Romania, we have thwarted the plans of our enemies.

For now, we have a moment's respite in our Romanian winter quarters. I have the latest letter from my wife, if you care to see what she has written.

Oberstleutnant Fuchs shifts uncomfortably at the mention of mail from home.

Oh, forgive my insensitivity. It must be hard for you, knowing your family believes you are gone, and you unable to tell them otherwise.

Oberstleutnant Fuchs offers a smile.

It's quite alright. Thoughts of letting my wife and son know I still live, to see them once again, and embrace them tightly... these are the strongest of motivators for me to help finish this war in any way I can. One day, I will make things right again, but for now... we have a war to win first!

My dearest Stefan,

Your friend Adolf Galland dropped by for a visit the other day. He says he was just passing through, but I think he was lying. I think you asked him to check on me, because he was awful concerned with my well being. Much more so than usual.

Well just to be sure, I thought I'd write to you to allay your concerns. I will admit, this was the first time since first coming to Germany that I was more than a little afraid. Not of Allied bombs this time, but the atmosphere of suspicion that hung over everything after that June Plot happened.

t was a crazy time, headlines bouncing back and forth between the victory in France and the escalating investigations following the June plot... I heard a lot of families of the guilty men were being punished. Something about "blood guilt" laws?

I don't know, but I would rather not dwell on it. That was months ago, but it still looms large every now and then, especially any time a party official gets arrested. So if you did send Mr. Galland to check on me, thank you. It was also most reassuring to see him well, and he still speaks very highly of you.

I wonder if he was secretly pleased with the recent news that the Reichsmarschall has stepped down as head of the Luftwaffe. Galland speaks much better of his replacement, Albert Kesselring, though I do not believe you have ever met him.

I was terribly sorry to hear of the death of your friend, Rommel. And as you requested, I have gotten to know his family. Young Manfred has decided to continue his service in the Luftwaffe as a Flakhelfer. He says the death of his father could have been prevented by better defensive Flak support, and I think that is keeping him motivated. He is so young though, only 14. But we don't want him to despair, so we do our best to encourage and support him.

His mother Lucia was much harder to console. I could barely get her out of her house for the first few visits, but after I feigned needing more help with Johanna, I think her motherly instincts started kicking in. She'll get better, she just needs time.

It doesn't help that we are certainly feeling the effects of the 'Total War' declaration of last year. I think luxury items have all but completely disappeared. I tell you, chocolate has never tasted so good, now that it is almost impossible to find.

Thankfully there is no shortage of basic goods. Gasoline is widely available for civilian use again, after it was strictly rationed for most of last year. By the way, your mother is still very proud of you for that. She gleefully repeats the story of how her son helped to 'Conquer the Caucasus' to anyone and everyone who will listen.

The newspapers have been printing a new story lately, a lot of headlines about the major operations underway to save Romania. I know you are fighting there, and I wish you every success. If only so that you will be free to come home again for the New Year, and I can show you for myself how quite well I really am.

Your Capitana,
Ana Sofia

**In this alternate history, the German counterattack against Soviet forces attempting to invade Romania ended in a major Axis victory.**

**Thousands of Soviet tanks and more than a hundred thousand troops were lost. In addition, Marshal of the Soviet Union Rodion Malinovsky died when his headquarters was destroyed by an air strike, and Marshal of the Soviet Union Fyodor Tolbukhin would later be captured on the outskirts of Bucharest.**

**These tremendous losses completely destroyed all Soviet plans to continue their advance into Romania and sever Germany's connection to the occupied Caucasus region.**

**Erwin Rommel, acting under his alias of Oberstleutnant Fuchs, is largely credited as the mastermind behind the victory. He was among the very first to figure out the true intentions of Operation Kutuzov, and influenced by his secret guidance, the focus of the German Wehrmacht was slowly steered towards Romania.**

**But as staggering of a victory as this was for the Axis Powers, it is still not enough to end the fighting on the Eastern Front.**

**Meanwhile, on the Western Front, the lull created from the defeat of the invasion at Normandy has ended. Brand new B-29 strategic bombers, originally intended to attack Japan, have instead been sent to England.**

**While these new bombers attempt to fly over the ceiling of Germany's fighter interceptors, British and American fighter squadrons rush to develop new tactics against the sudden arrival of German jets.**

**Attacks targetting German airfields intensify five-fold, as long range Allied fighters attempt to catch German jets at their most vulnerable.**

**And so continues the war into 1945..**

## Walkthrough

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## Locations

* Ploesti

* Bucharest

* Dambovita River

* Teleajen River

* Focsani

* Galati

* Siret River

* Danube River

* Prut River

* Barlad

* Buzau

* Slobozia

* To Chisinau

* Jijila

* Red Army Base

* Ploesti

* Bucharest

* Dambovita River

* Teleajen River

* Focsani

* Galati

* Siret River

* Danube River

* Prut River

* Barlad

* Buzau

* Slobozia

* To Chisinau

* Jijila

* Red Army Base

## Messages

***Field Marshal Habermann:*** I congratulate you on another unexpected triumph, Herr General. I have been informed that your forces have captured a Soviet Marshal who was observing the battle. Apparently Marshal Voroshilov was overseeing field tests of new Soviet tank designs. In case you were wondering, yes, this is the man who the Soviet KV tanks are indeed named after!

***Field Marshal Habermann:*** With his capture, those prototype Soviet tanks have also fallen into our hands. I think it is only fair to allow you to test them yourself. Though it is too late to deploy them for this battle, I am certain you will find a future use for them as this war rages on.

***Field Marshal Habermann:*** I congratulate you on another unexpected triumph, Herr General. I have been informed that your forces have captured a Soviet Marshal who was observing the battle. Apparently Marshal Voroshilov was overseeing field tests of new Soviet tank designs. In case you were wondering, yes, this is the man who the Soviet KV tanks are indeed named after!

***Field Marshal Habermann:*** With his capture, those prototype Soviet tanks have also fallen into our hands. I think it is only fair to allow you to test them yourself. Though it is too late to deploy them for this battle, I am certain you will find a future use for them as this war rages on.

## Notes

* Capturing Jijila will complete the Elite objective and award 85 Strength points worth of KV-85 Tanks and 40 Strength points worth of T-44 Tanks.
* Enemy reinforcements will appear in the fortified zone on turns 8, 10, 14, 16, 18, 20, 24, 26 and 27.
* Notable enemy formations:
	+ 6th Guards Tank Army
* Notable allied units:
	+ Antonescu Bunker, a Level 1 Strongpoint that has 25 Strength points.
* Notable enemy units:
	+ General Kravchenko, a Level 5 Guards unit that has 20 Strength points.
	+ Malinovsky's HQ, a Level 5 IS-2 that has 14 Strength points and a hero with the Leadership, Rapid Fire 1.5x and No Surrender traits.
	+ Tolbukhin's HQ, a Level 5 ISU-152 that has 14 Strength points and a hero with the Double Attack, Survivor and No Retaliation traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army 37mm Zis-42 that has 13 Strength points and a hero with the Double Support and Ambusher traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army BM-31 Katyusha that has 13 Strength points and a hero with the Resilient, Readiness and Shock Tactics traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army Guards unit that has 18 Strength points and a hero with the Overwhelming Attack, Fearsome Reputation and Resilient traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army IS-2 that has 15 Strength points and a hero with the Vigilant, No Surrender, Low Profile and Evasive traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army ISU-122 that has 13 Strength points and a hero with the Vigilant, No Surrender, No Supply and Ferocious Defense traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army SU Cavalry 43 that has 18 Strength points and a hero with the First Strike, Low Profile and Tank Killer traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army T-34-85 that has 13 Strength points and a hero with the Vigilant, No Surrender, Tank Killer and Aggressive Counterattack traits.
	+ A Level 4 6th Guards Tank Army T-34-85 that has 13 Strength points and a hero with the Vigilant, No Surrender, Readiness and Crippling Blow traits.
	+ 41st KV-85, which is Level 5 and has 15 Strength points and a hero with the Vigilant and Cheap Replacements traits.
	+ 62nd T-44, which is Level 5 and has 15 Strength points and a hero with the Vigilant and Cheap Replacements traits.
	+ 132nd 85mm M1939, which is Level 5 and has 15 Strength points and a hero with the Double Support and Cheap Replacements traits.
	+ The Strongpoints protecting the Soviet fortified zone, which are Level 2 and have 50 Strength points.
	+ The 100mm M1944s protecting the Soviet fortified zone, which are Level 2 and have 50 Strength points.