My tanks are made of glass: what can I do to preserve them?

[$trummer]

Playing as BLUFOR, I can’t figure out how to leverage a tank platoon to anything approaching its full capacity on the battlefield. They go down like skittles, even from frontal shots from a distance. I think the problem is that I don’t know how cover works in this game. How can I give tanks — and other units — offensive LOS while being in cover? Is there any way to put tanks in defilade? Also, I don’t see tanks, or any other armour, popping smoke and pulling back when under attack.

[Veitikka]

A vehicle can automatically enter defilade when it stops. The chance is based on the terrain relief value and the training level of the unit. It's visualized by the green arc, showing the direction. In AB2, if the attacker is on a much higher ground he can negate the target's defilade state.

When the Scout waypoint is given units can pop smoke and reverse to safety. We have plans for unit 'stances' (e.g. neutral/aggressive/defensive), so the player will have more options for customizing their behavior.

One issue with pulling back when under fire is that some Soviet vehicles have extremely slow reverse speeds.

[$trummer]

The BLUFOR M1s seem much too fragile. Their survival rate is so poor, even when used cautiously, that either they are completely outgunned by REDFOR or the game simply does not enable the player to find effective defilade. When they are positioned to engage, they claim a couple of hits before they die. No smoke, no evasive action, no effective defense at all. I am disappointed.

[nikolas93TS]

Early M1s are completely different beasts compared to the M1A1 and M1A1HA that were used in Desert Storm. If you expect them to perform in the same manner, you’re in for a rude awakening.

[$trummer]

Early M1s are completely different beasts compared to the M1A1 and M1A1HA that were used in Desert Storm. If you expect them to perform in the same manner, you’re in for a rude awakening.

Fair enough but there has to be a better way of using terrain and cover for vehicles, especially now that the game has a 3D engine with topography. And stationary tanks should ALWAYS pop smoke and back up under heavy fire, not just in Scout mode.

[nikolas93TS]

Keep in mind that many, if not most, of the tanks in the game actually lack smoke capabilities (these only became widespread around 1978/1979, with the exception of British and West German tanks). Additionally, such a maneuver is not feasible for Soviet tanks due to their poor reverse speed, and the current terrain tiles are 30x30m. While there are certainly considerations for improvement, it is not as simple as it might seem.

[Nihilistkitten]

A vehicle can automatically enter defilade when it stops. The chance is based on the terrain relief value and the training level of the unit. It's visualized by the green arc, showing the direction. In AB2, if the attacker is on a much higher ground he can negate the target's defilade state.

When the Scout waypoint is given units can pop smoke and reverse to safety. We have plans for unit 'stances' (e.g. neutral/aggressive/defensive), so the player will have more options for customizing their behavior.

One issue with pulling back when under fire is that some Soviet vehicles have extremely slow reverse speeds.

Regarding stances, I would suggest the ability to jockey without the player micro managing reverse order (and thus having to suffer order delay). Without it, tanks in support or in a firebase are essentially sitting ducks.