First things first - Dave played an excellent game and deserved the win. It was one of the more enjoyable games I have played despite being behind the curve all the way.
Rubble - I used rubble to prevent bypass movement and force any German vehicles to remain on the road as much as possible. Infantry is also forced to spend 3 MF to enter the location or risk FFMO.
When this scenario was handed to me and we determined sides I did what I usually do and asked, "How would I attack?"
I ruled out a forward defence as too easy to overwhelm with German a "human wave". Too far back and the Germans get a free advance, deploying as they close on the factories. With this in mind I tried to place as many 1, 2 and 4 FP shots in hex numbers 1 and 2 as possible with everything from +1 to a -2 DRM. This was especially true to the left of the hex row Q road and to its immediate right. That said, cowering with the first few DFF shots didn't help, nor did lack of ROF for the 45LL AT gun for the first three fire attempts (the 45LL is really a 4 FP MMG with ROF 3 and a chance for an HE CH).
I had hoped to immobilise the StuG III that came down the centre as I had a good flank shot on the first DFPh and a PB shot from the front in my PFPh. Not retreating on Turn 1 on the left was a calculation based on having the 10-0 Commissar available for rally DRs of 10. In the long term, exchanging the 8-1 for the 10-0 was a good idea.
The early dice were not terribly friendly as two attempts to Dash across the main north-south road vs a 1 FP w/ -2 DRM ended up with a break and a pin. This was followed by 2 FP attack w/ a -1 DRM getting a KIA against another squad, leaving an ATR in the street (a second malf'd). My 9-2 and 8 morale troopers didn't seem to stand up to the PTC, NMC and 1MC results very well this day either. One can only laugh. Thank Gawd for the 10-0 Commissar. He kept me in the game.
Oh!! SAN 5 - 1 activation at the end when it no longer mattered. ?
That ends the whinging.
Dave's attack was textbook in my opinion. He had a large numerical and firepower advantage but faced a time constraint. Dave made use of deploying into HS, as he should, to increase the unit ratio heavily in his favour. This presents the Russian defender, who is entirely lacking in machine guns, with far more targets than he can deal with. If you ignore the early moves by HS they can get around behind you for encircling fire, blocking rout paths or pinning you in CC/Melee. Shoot at the HS and, short of killing them outright, you are left with the usual problems of SFF and range.
The German ability to deploy means the Russians are not really facing 2:1 odds but closer to 3:1 or more without any real loss of German firepower as they close on the factories. Dave took full advantage of this.
My only criticism of Dave's attack was the use of the assault guns. The StuG IIIs have S8, SD7 and possibly crew smoke grenades on a dr 1 or 2. I think Dave could have overwhelmed the defenders sooner by using these Smoke capabilities. They are certainly not a guarantee but the odds are they will help. I am not sure of Dave's losses but they could not have been more than three or four squads plus the tanks.
I am surprised the scenario has the ROAR record it does but then again, I have only played it once.
Final thought #1 - Molotov Cocktails - Use of these are a big risk to the Russians in this game. You get the 4FP boost on 1 or 2, however, the big risk is the dr 6 and breaking. With only 6 squads you are 'statistically' likely to break a squad every turn if they all try for the Molotov. That would very likely mean a lot of pain for the Russian defence if even one squad breaks early or while defending a factory. With the Germans deploying and 'swarming' the factories with their mob, supported by very good MG FP, the Russians need to weigh the cost/benefit ratio carefully.
Final thought #2 - Dave,... stop teasing Martin about the first round.
That's my job.