Historical background
Before Colonel Talvela's magnificent counterattack at Tolvajarvi, the disastrous (for the invading side) encirclement at Suomussalmi, and the "miracle of Summa", the Finnish Defense Forces had a single task – to survive the Soviet onslaught. Considering the Red Army's overwhelming numbers and serious technological edge, for most of the world the outcome seemed clear and inevitable: the redrawing of the USSR's Western border.
Taipale was the easternmost sector of the Karelian Isthmus frontline. The brunt of the Soviet attack was focused in the West, on the way to Viipuri, and that's where it made sense for the Finns to make a stand – in the East, the Soviet High Command expected an easy breakthrough. Nonetheless, two whole Rifle Divisions – 49th and 150th – were devoted to the initial crossing of the Taipaleenjoki river, and against such overwhelming numbers, the Finnish pickets retreated with minimal resistance, emboldening the Soviets.
It was a trap. The Finnish artillery was well-camouflaged and already zeroed in at the crossings – the barrage at Taipale decimated the invading force.
A day later, an even more disastrous crossing attempt took place, this time with amphibious tanks: out of the nine pontoons spanning the river only four survived, the soldiers were lit up with searchlights and riddled with bullets, while most of the tanks ended up dragged down by the strong river current. Only 30 Red Army troopers made it across the river – scared and confused, they were all taken prisoner.
By then, the Soviet troops at Taipale were completely demoralized, believing (rightly so) that their supposed punitive expedition against hapless Finns had become a suicide mission.
It would take almost two weeks for the Soviet High Command to even consider advancing at Taipale again, this time with 30,000 personnel and more than a hundred tanks, including flamethrower ones.
And once again, it was a miserable failure. Expertly concealed positions helped the Finns survive a devastating but practically blind-firing artillery barrage. Then, accurate anti-tank gun fire disabled most of the Soviet armored fist, allowing the great and terrible Red Army only a few hundred meters of progress. Several similar assaults followed, met with similar resistance, and similarly disastrous results.
The incredible success of the Taipale defense earned high praise from Mannerheim. In his own words, "I did not think that my men were so good, or that the Russians could be so bad".
Gameplay
In Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty, the Battle of Taipale is the second operation of the historical campaign. In this scenario, your task is to hold the line against the Red Army attack. Then you are to counterattack and recapture some of the previously lost positions.
There is also a number of side objectives, build around eliminating the enemy commanders and capturing some extra trophies.
This battle happens early in the campaign, so naturally, your army is not very strong and experienced yet. That is why it is critical to use the terrain advantage of being behind a river and exploit the Red Army’s reckless attacks to overcome the enemy and maybe even strengthen your troops with extra trophies and combat experience. You will definitely need all of that in your next battle.
It is also critical to use your very limited air force wisely to avoid unnecessary losses and keep your planes going for later battles in the face of a numerically superior foe.
Please, let us know: would you like to see more scenario overviews from the upcoming Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty in future dev updates?
Support us by adding Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty to your wishlist:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1474770/Strategic_Mind_Spirit_of_Liberty/
With Best Regards from Kyiv
Starni Games team