German forces are aiming to clear the road and exit the map, so they basically just set up in a column with the heavy weapons bringing up the rear in their wagons. The expected point of resistance is the center town. The plan is to bring up the heavy weapons down the road while the cavalry surrounds the town to exploit any vulnerabilities that the heavy weapons and off board artillery can produce. The cavalry can then fan out, mop of the stragglers, and run off the map before time expires.

The Soviets concentrate their defense in the town, setting their heavy weapons there along with roughly half the infantry. The goal is to generate the step losses they need through this concentrated defense, and then try to be generally irritating with the remaining batch of infantry. This force spread into 3 groups, each commanded by a leader. One in the north woods, and one in the south woods on the eastern map, with the last setting up behind the hill on the center map with an aim to march west and take up positions in the woods there. These disparate groups aim to dilute the Germans, forcing them hopefully into 1 on 1 assaults that will stalemate out, preventing them from exiting the map in time. Alternatively, if ignored, they can run out and sit on the road in the final turns.

The town fell relatively quickly with no German losses due to artillery rolls and a few well placed cavalry charges on the already disordered defenders. This sealed off any chance of a Soviet victory, but the secondary strategy of playing for a draw was still a go. The Germans were succesfully bogged down in the west, unable to root out the infantry hiding in the woods there, but were able to clear off the eastern woods defenses in time to walk off the board.

I see this as a very tough scenario for the Soviets to win based on the victory conditions, however if you consider a draw to be a Soviet win, it would be far more balanced. At least from my sample size of one play.