Terreain effect of Polder

[HMSWarspite]

I am only playing my first game of the Historic Arnhem, but have noticed somthing that puzzles me. I have 43rd Wessex attacking from Elden to Arnhem, and they are moving units around on the Polder like it was Salisbury Plain! I have even got the Notts Yeomanry with 100+ AFV driving across it. I feel this does not reflect the considerable problems that vehicles had on the Island, mostly due to the difficulties in operating off road.

Does anyone else have an opinion (or has this been raised before?)

[Golf33]

Vehicles on the polder move at about 1% of the speed of those on roads. Vehicles were able to operate on the polder, though not with any great ease; in the area south of Arnhem the problems were more related to the steep embankments on the highway than to the ground surrounding. The Germans, after all, with their heavier vehicles, were able to operate successfully on the polder in order to challenge British control of the highway.

Regards
33

[Matt Erickson]

in the book "a Bridge too far" one german self propelled gun astride the raised road held up the entire advance of the gds armoured div.theres no getting around it.

[Golf33]

But tanks were used, off the highway, in the battle to clear Oosterhout; and armoured recce forces also moved through the German lines to link up with 1 Abn Div at the Heveadorp Ferry. It is however possible to send small units or numbers of AFVs along routes that are not practicable for an entire armoured corps, hence the vital need to clear the highway. The steeply embanked sides also created difficulties since in many places these were not negotiable by tanks, so once on the highway they had to stay there until the next useable exit; and I imagine it is quite difficult to turn around in the face of enemy opposition in such a place. Significant delays were also caused not so much by the opposition in front of XXX Corps on the Island, but by the German attacks that were cutting the road behind it.

Regards
33