Matrix Games Forums

ORIGINAL: notenome

-What should I do with those tank brigades? I'm just dispersing them around hoping they'll do something in reserve mode. But each has 6-8 tanks, so it seems just a tremendous waste.

I would put them to good use. According to my nasty war philosophy all my pixel-truppen must earn their weekly vodka or drop dead...

But anyway, I tend to mass the rifle divisions (I want Guards DIVISIONS, that's the top priority), so it's all about free space: is there any room for an extra unit (let's say a tank brigade) at the massed frontline?

If you have let's say in some places a 2-units stacks (instead of the ideal 3-unit), you might want to add a tank brigade. The rifle divisions will do the real job, and if successful, your tank brigade (involved in the attack) will be closer to Guards status [:)]

Finally a Soviet player called TDV used the tank brigades - cavalry units combo to literally annihilate enemy units... He succeeded. Not sure it's 100% fair but it's more than possible [;)]

well brigades have the highest percentage chance to enter battle in reserve mode, so hopefully setting them all as reserves may yield some results. Beyond that I can only really think of them for exploitation or stacking up with cavalry. The problem is that there are so many tank brigades that this is diluting armour strength, all of them have 4-10 tanks, increasing at around six tanks per week, they're never gonna be up to strength in time to have any effect during the blizzard. Unless I refit them, but that reroutes reinforcements from the much more important rifle divisions.

Turn 15:

All hell breaks loose.

Axis conducted upwards of 200 attacks this turn, I didn't think this was possible.

This should give you some sort of idea on the scale of the carnage on the Moscow Front. A lot of those battles began as holds, requiring repeated attacks.

You just need to suck it up for two more turns.

The good news is, you can bust out Bryansk Front with ease, at least from what I can see on the screens.

I'd seriously consider sending off some of those units due west and go raiding in AGC's rear, btw. That cavalry division NE of Orel in particular.

Screw busting out, I'm encircling them wholesale. Or at least that's the plan.

Problem is, I can't figure out how to airdrop an airborne brigade. I stack it with an airbase, select the brigade, press f9, left-shfit click and... nothing. What am I missing here?

Yeah, that panzer group's flanks are hanging by a thread.

ONE MORE HEX DAMMIT!!! HOW DO I AIRDROP A UNIT! IT'S AN ENTIRE PANZER ARMY

Edit: Feel the pain.

Is there any reason why I can't drop an airborne regiment on that village? The game isn't telling me anything, am I doing something wrong?

You either don't have the necessary lift or the unit's experience is too low is my guess.

Fiddle around with the air settings, maybe that'll do it.

minimum experience is 40, the airborne brigade has 50 experience. This seems like a bug, as nothing is happening, I'm not being told anything by the game. And this is a bug that is gonna cost me very dearly

oh another nice counterattack.

although you fail to encircle the PG it will buy you one more turn. he needs to head back and reestablish the supply lines.

nasty one with this cavalery divisions.

Maybe there is a some kind of unit there.

New Airdrop routine:

Interface Change (Section 5.3.9.3) – To airdrop a unit, now you must go to air transport mode and then left click on the hex containing the airbase and airborne unit. Make sure the airborne unit(s) you wish to drop are selected in the unit bar. Next, shift-left click on a hex near the airfield. This will cause the pick air units mission window to be displayed. Close this window and you will now see the hexes where you may conduct an airdrop lit up, while those that are not possible will be displayed in. Shift-left click on the hex you wish to drop the airborne unit and the pick air units mission window will appear. Due to some issues with the interface, the only way to indicate the valid hexes to airdrop in is to click on a valid hex. If you click on an invalid hex it will not bring up the air window nor will it indicate the valid hexes. This is why we suggest you click somewhere near the airbase. Whenever the air window appears, you can execute the air drop. It is important that you select the airborne unit after you have entered air transport mode (previously the airborne unit was supposed to be selected while still in movement mode).


Marquo

i realy underestemate the movement abilities of this early war russian cavalery.

in my running game with gids i managed to copy some kind of "the historical kiev pocket" (PG1 from D/Z area and PG2 of guderian from gomel area) and thought that i have a stable pocket until from somewhere gids got his cavalery into the action and reopen the pocket.

i have a stable pocket now with 60 or so russian units inside but from first hand experience i know how annoying such a move like you did can be to a german player. it causes gray hairs and it costs time which the germans don't have a lot.

Its very hard to keep Cav from breaking a pocket.

End of turn, zoomed out picture (haven't offered that one up yet. The direct road to Moscow is protected by our two Guards divisions, triple stacks all along the center. The vulnerable area is Reserve Front, north of Moscow, where its a mess. I managed to sort out our command and control, but its a weak carpet and not much more. Our failed attempt to encircle the entire southern pincer left many stacks of divisions due south, and I can't use them to reinforce the north. Let's hope I don't pay for my failure. Elsewhere, I'm warmimg up to tank brigades. They are the ultimate tarbaby/picket units. The axis can shatter a dozen of them for it to equal one division's worth of men. Rostov is evacuated, the evacuation of Moscow should begin next turn unless Voronezh is threatened. These next two turns are gonna be hell.

For the curious,the three western front armies directly in front of the Axis are commanded by Tobulkhin and Malinokvsy, with Rokossovky in reserve. Konev commands Western Front, Zukhov STAVKA.

My one hope (and I forgot to take an oob screeenshot) is that 821 cooked his armour on this turn. Operational tank numbers dipped from 1400 to 1000 during his turn, and his entire armour force was in the red fuel wise. Hopefully my brigade tarbaby will also help, especially in the Tula area.