What Would Stalin do?

[ThomasJefferson]

I am a history major, so I have a small amount of insight into this area, and the primary reason that the Russians were able to push the Germans back is because of immensely horrible leadership by Hitler. Had Germany followed Guderian's encirclement plans at the time of invasion, or had the 2nd or 3rd panzer corps not sat still for 39 days after the fall of Smolensk, or had Hitler not sent Guderian to the assistance of Rundstedt, or had Hitler used Gen Student's paratroopers. Or had Hitler merely besieged rather than conquer Stalingrad, or allowed Von Paulus to break out and meet Manstein, or really just allowed Gen Bock to command the South in 1942. Any of these things would have brought victory to the Germans.

[Antonescu]

This is obviously simplistic but in the broadest sense the Rise and Fall of the Third Reich had the same cause - Hitler.  He created it and he destroyed it.

[Kobu]

Russia has been getting more fun to play with each new edition. You have lots of ways to respond to Germany. One of my recent experiments as Germany allowed Russia to buy a couple bombers and transports to great affect. Don't sit idle even if you see nothing but a stream of troops coming in. Artillery are a great buy a huge offense boost for little cost. Tanks, planes, and mechs can also be part of the mix depending on what Germany is buying and how they are moving.

[Karl7]

Germany can either attack north towards Leningrad or South toward Stalingrad.  Russia cannot defend both against the German tide. So it seems the only way that Russia could take an aggressive posture would be to place the majority of its troops oriented toward one sector, hope to stop the Germans there and then turn to the other in time to stop the Germans from wheeling around toward Moscow.  Ironically, I think defending Leningrad and the northern sector is more crucial in the long run even though the Ukraine is more valuable.  The northern sector has the convey NO, access to Scandinavia (the only plausible rout of allied reinforcements) and deprives the Germans use of the Baltic as a highway to reinforce troops easily close to the front.  In this sense I think the USSR buying tanks is a waste.  Planes and guns are the most effective. 

[Maddog77]

that's wrong!! yeah you need to defend but don't give up all that money and territory. the key to defending Russia is simple: layers of defense. have a defense line at the boarder and each territory line after that. i.e. Novgorod, Belarus, pripet marshes, western Ukraine, Ukraine.  just build inf. and a few tanks. make the Germans pay for each bit of ground they take. but its most important that you don't let them destroy your whole army. what i mean is don't bunch up your forces at one defense line. do some small counter attacks.

also don't give up Leningrad or Stalingrad with out a major fight. if you do the Germans get a minor factory. the same goes with the Ukraine.

This tends to work quite well for me, as long as i don't leave stacks within reach of germanys tank stacks. I've found it's a rare day that germany can keep the supply lines constant on it's march to Russia. I can usually chop them up at some point or another.