Best German Rail Repair Unit (and Construction Unit) Use in 41?

[rainman2015]

OK, my first real game question. Playing my first campaign game vs the Soviet AI.

How do you best use your 4 Rail Repair units?

I am thinking

1) no more than one in AGN, heading on the rail line just south of Riga and up to Pskov

2) just one for AGC heading i am not sure which rail axis east

3) combining (?) two of them working in tandem in AGS heading along which rail axis east?
The rules seem to almost kill the idea of using two in tandem (one ahead of the other on the same rail line axis). If any AG needs the longer rail line, it would be AGS though, right?

If not using two in tandem, then where do you put the 4th RR unit, along what axis?

And finally, i have read a number of ideas as to how to best use your construction units to do the auto fixes of the railroads. What are yall's thoughts on exactly how many construction units to put into each AG HQ. Can you move the AG HQ and have it effectively use the construction units? Where do you place the AG HQ for best effectiveness in using the construction units to auto-repair RRs?

Thanks
Randy

[Gabriel B.]

Double up the north sector taking advantage of the baltic rail net .

fdb 4 and 2 on the same track spliting out south of Siaulai.

Fdb 4 goes north to riga than pskov.
Fdb 2 goes east to Dvinsk than Polotsk (behind Pz Groupe 3)
fdb 3 goes east to Vilnius than Minsk and Orsha( behind Pz Groupe 2)

fdb 1 rails south to Romania advancing on Vinita than Cherkasy. (behind pz groupe 1) .

All rail repair batalions are asigned to army group level .

If you keep the rear area security HQ , give each at least 3 batalions ( for instance army group center regional comand can repair the Vitebsk - Orsha side line) .

[Denniss]

OKH has the highest range to issue construction units for rail repair. You may want to assign the majority of construction units to OKH and keep only a very limited amount on Armies and a tad more on AGs.

[Gabriel B.]

ORIGINAL: Denniss

OKH has the highest range to issue construction units for rail repair. You may want to assign the majority of construction units to OKHand keep only a very limited amount on Armies and a tad more on AGs.

I want control , okh send rail repair units everywhere except where you want them .

[panzerzombie]

Well then, Gabriel, how about putting the surplus ( meaning all of the SU not in FBD´s ) rail repair crews into Corps HQ´s. Where they appear to fix the rails is still random but the randomness is confined to a 5 hex radius, so a 10 x 10 cube. When they follow the main thrust they should at least get some spots right.

[Chris21wen]

ORIGINAL: Denniss

OKH has the highest range to issue construction units for rail repair. You may want to assign the majority of construction units to OKHand keep only a very limited amount on Armies and a tad more on AGs.

I want control , okh send rail repair units everywhere except where you want them .

FDB are used for manual repair where you choose what, when and where to send them.

Other construction units are used for automatic repair letting the HQ decide. The lower the HQ the smaller the command range the HQ has for the automatic assigning of them. E.g for a Corps is 5 hexes. This has the advantage of keeping them local to the HQ. Disadvantage is the damage rail in under the HQ controll can quickly become repaired AND they may not be able to repair rail as there's not any undamage rail in range to connect too.

As damaged rail can only be repaired if it can connect directly to an undamaged rail network, it's not these construction units that drive the rail repair system, but the FBDs. So the vast majority of construction units should be in the higher HQs thus giving them more range to work with.

Don't forget that construction units also aid fort building but as support units can onlu support units directly attached to the same HQ. I'd put no more that 3 in any Corps, maybe as few as 2.

[Chris21wen]

Also, the speed at which a FBD works is determined by the size of it's TOE. Anything over 90% is ideal, anything less and it's RRV drops from max 16.

There's also a Roumanin Rail HQ but it's slower and withdraws not long into the game.