Core forces

[Bradock78436]

Thanks for the tactics.. I'm right now on the mission in sicily where you attack the town.. Now town fighting is especially bad, you can't see anything until you're right up on it.. So i'm just rushign it with mass infantry.. Now with the PZ4's, I'm using mostly M10 Wolverines to kill them, but what's the armor tactic? I know to target the enemy tank and then wait a turn for more accuracy. Anything else?

[skukko]

With US TDs you can shoot asap. They usually kill or damage target with first shot, then pull out of sight and in next turn use recon or infantry to spot target again for TD. With two Wolvies and this tactic you can succesfully kill whole company of Panzers.

mosh

[bigtroutz]

I'm using mostly M10 Wolverines to kill them, but what's the armor tactic? I know to target the enemy tank and then wait a turn for more accuracy. Anything else?

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strategy 1):
move tank-destroyers to overlook positions, unload sniper/scout, hopefully w/o getting fired on, by keeping em 'back'. Move ONE hex at a time and watch for "*" and examine units field of view after each move to find a good overlook.
then move a tank or empty truck, or some low value mech-bait into the 'firezone'. when it gets fired at, you can use the previously moved TDs to take out the enemy. it seems like the overlooking tanks will get higher prob of hit cause they were 'there' already.

strategy 2)
arty the hell outta them so you can move right up to em and finish em off while they're "routed or retreating". hit prob on these type of units are REAL high.

strategy 3)
some tanks are too well armored to kill at long range when firing at their front, eg Tiger. fire off some smoke rounds at the hexes in front of the unit so it cant see, then maneuver TDs thru woods, etc to get a close flank or rear shot. if i recall correctly, for USA only medium or better tanks have smoke rounds, so you may have to use 60mm mortars for smoke (make sure you have a FO to get a .1 or .2 delay on arty, or you will lose your mechs). use several TDs (swarm it) approaching from as many dirs as possible, firing ONLY one time from each unit in turn, to minimize the INCREASE in the probability of enemy tank's return fire hit, and also making an effort to hit the flank or rear with each unit. eventually, the target will cease its return fire. if you can move any units at that point, do so to get a killing shot position, or move a bazooka unit in to kill it. a good point of mech (trucks, halftracks, SPAA, etc is to have enuf mobility to do this.

[Bradock78436]

Yeah, I've seen that done.. Most lucky but three of my TD's slaughtered hoards of panzers. Nice 3inch at guns. As far as trucks, you won't have enough infantry, when it comes down to cities and the airfield you need a lot, you can't send tanks in their safely.. The airfield I hated most of all. Bunkers facing eachother, some AT guns, all mg's. Pretty fair death trap, and those air strikes didn't help either.. What are the consequences for getting draws or retreating if you lose to much.

[bigtroutz]

the trick with bunkers/caves/mg-nests etc is to find em early, then move up mech-/infantry, esp engineers or rangers from their flank or rear and blow em away w/assault. smoke helps also if they have excellent field of fire & overlooking units.

snipers and scouts are real important for spotting.

that core force i posted has plenty of infantry (2 companies), and starting with 2nd battle, can be rangers, airborne, and/or engineer elite units - use the upgrades on infantry early and they will have hi experience levels more quickly

upgrade trucks to halftracks gives em mobility, firepower, generalized force multiplication. having lotsa infantry wont do much good if it cant move to the fight. when a unit stumbles into a fight, move other units into overlooking positions and fire THEM 1st, finishing off the unit you stumbled into with the unit which found it AFTER its surpressed, if you need to.

[Bradock78436]

Don't caves have to be destroyed from the front? I mostly saw those fighting the japs. Their bunkers are a real pain, you can't scare them out, you have to destroy it... And I see your point.. I just have a bad habit of rushing units forward to fast to kill an enemy.

[Bradock78436]

Also, when you cross the airfield... Will tanks and trucks detect mines before you enter the hex or should you unload your roops and walk it?

[bigtroutz]

QUOTE] Don't caves have to be destroyed from the front? I mostly saw those fighting the japs. Their bunkers are a real pain, you can't scare them out, you have to destroy it... And I see your point.. I just have a bad habit of rushing units forward to fast to kill an enemy. [/QUOTE]

nope, absolutely not, altho the angle of attack affects probability of hit, bunkers, caves, etc can be assaulted from any direction. unless the fortification is routed, your unit will receive counter-fire if in the front. so i NEVER attack from the front, cuz after a failed assault, you are a sitting duck, if they rally. i rush units forward fast too, but circumspectly. it seems my biggest cause of casualties is stumbling into a unspotted unit or minefield. just use supporting units to respond in this situation or ELSE.

pop some smoke with units next to the cave to facilitate safe movement with other units,
deliver a smoke bombardment to cover engineers clearing a minefield. a unit in bad trouble can save its bacon with righteous smoke.

[bigtroutz]

Will tanks and trucks detect mines before you enter the hex or should you unload your roops and walk it?

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yep, mechs will detect mines by EXPLODING <img src="biggrin.gif" border="0">
hehe, seriously, i think only engineers will detect minefields by entering a mined hex. HOWEVER, an artillery hit in a hex with mines will often reveal em, especially big stuff [hint hint]. artillery hits on a hex supposedly lowers the numbers of mines. there was a thread a few months back describing the technique of using an intense mortar barrage to remove mines. dunno how effective it is, tho, cuz my mortars are usually pretty busy wiping infantry butt. <img src="eek.gif" border="0">

[Bradock78436]

So your best tip for attacking from the west is prayer? <img src="smile.gif" border="0">

[Bradock78436]

Also, you seem to know this stuff well. Post your email or ICQ and when you're not busy sometime show me some of these tactics in a two player game. I'm playing one now in the pacific, practice helps.

[bigtroutz]

So your best tip for attacking from the west is prayer?

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naw, those french troops are wussies and their tanks crack open like eggs <img src="tongue.gif" border="0"> just use your artillery to soften em up. split your tanks between the two NW and West lines of attack in a ratio of 2:1 . the sw attack doesnt need em. split the engineers even and send em to crack fortifications (move them last). honestly, the most difficult moments are the french tank attack south from town and the air attack. that little crescent of woods north of the cemetery that the 'path' winds thru is strategic. leave a TD or two, and some bazooka/infantry in ambush after you clean out the Legionaires growing like mushrooms in there. after that, other than enuf to ambush the counter-attack from the SE, all your troops should vector in to the far end of the barracks VHs, with the AA units well placed in overwatch to the east along the paved road to shoot down the air attack and trucks that drive by like ducks in an arcade. the heavy mgs are great for defending against the SE counter attack with maybe one light tank to over-run and one rifle squad.

the western attack should stay in cover until those buldings are well 'prepared' with arty, and the attack should be coordinated with the SW approach. the barracks and final VHs should be taken by the west and sw vectors with the northern providing suppresing fire from the cemetery and tree-line along the paved road. but these latter troops are usually bombing-bait in the games i played. all you can do is place the M15 spaa to their flank and pray you hit the bombers when they come. i usually take the last VHs after the 1st bombing run, so it isnt TOO bad.

after you dismount from the trucks to suppress all those troops in the barracks, move the "support" trucks to the woods east along the road away from your good stuff to act as bomber-bait, lessens the sting some.

[lnp4668]

Originally posted by Bradock78436:
So your best tip for attacking from the west is prayer? <img src="smile.gif" border="0">

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The US is extremely efficient with artillery and air. Use them and you'll beat anything.

[Jackk]

Originally posted by bigtroutz:


yep, mechs will detect mines by EXPLODING <img src="biggrin.gif" border="0">

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I call that "Recon by Dismemberment" <img src="eek.gif" border="0"> <img src="biggrin.gif" border="0">