Matrix Games Forums

Many IJA units start in regimental size with the possibility to combine into divisions. Is it better to keep them or combine? Does divisional unit perform better in combat?

Thanks.

For organizational reasons and on assaults, sometimes divisions have an advantage, at least if you have several of them.
Also a bonus is that you only have to assign one good leader. On regiments you´d need 3 of em.
 
If its a small divisional attack, or for garrison duty, or for spread out or longer sieges, regimental units are better because
you have more tactical options.
 

Divisions have lot better staying power in battle.

Recombine them into divisions as fast as you can. Infantry regiments are not a problem, but those small engineer or tank regiments are. All you have to do is make one mistake, send them somewhere where enemy has lots of firepower, get unlucky for them to become main target and they will get destroyed in one day combat even though they were at full strength and even though you won that battle. And since you can't resurrect dead ground units you will never be able to recombine the rest into division.

Once you remake the parent division you can divide it in 3 equal sections, A,B and C that have 1/3 of every item from division's TOE. A/B/C segments are much more resilient in combat.

ORIGINAL: Djordje

And since you can't resurrect dead ground units you will never be able to recombine the rest into division.

That is not correct; if a sub-unit is destroyed, you can still rebuild the division. In fact, once rebuilt you can effectively rebuild the strength of that destroyed unit, if it's in the Division TOE.

I agree with the rest though: Recombine, and if you need tactical options, the A/B/C route gives you stronger units

One thing I have noticed is that attacking or defending with three regiments might leave one or two relatively unhit while the third take all of the casualties. Conbined in a division the losses will be spread out. Also, it seems that some combined divisions have more devices (say heavy guns) than the indivdual units do when broken down.
 
So it comes down to tactical choices and needs. But basically, fighting a unit as a division looks like the better choice than fighting it as three broken down units.

The only bad thing about merging and splitting into sub units at will is that you loose the cool regimental names/numbers and get lousy /A, /B and /C as identifier.

ORIGINAL: Q-Ball

ORIGINAL: Djordje

And since you can't resurrect dead ground units you will never be able to recombine the rest into division.

That is not correct; if a sub-unit is destroyed, you can still rebuild the division. In fact, once rebuilt you can effectively rebuild the strength of that destroyed unit, if it's in the Division TOE.

I agree with the rest though: Recombine, and if you need tactical options, the A/B/C route gives you stronger units

This must have been changed since WITP days then. I wonder how many other things I still do the old (hard) way just because I don't know they were changed...

Thanks Q-ball.

Newb question.  How does one rebuild a destroyed unit?  I can get to it on the OOB screen, but I can find no way to breath life back into Frankenstein.

ORIGINAL: Lecivius

Newb question.  How does one rebuild a destroyed unit?  I can get to it on the OOB screen, but I can find no way to breath life back into Frankenstein.

If you have no fragments left the unit is lost. If you have an element (ie /C) or a fragement left just set replacements to on and park it at a base with lots of supply.

Some HQs (I believe the unrestricted ones) reappear as reinforcements with 90 (?) days delay.

ORIGINAL: Mistmatz
If you have no fragments left the unit is lost. If you have an element (ie /C) or a fragement left just set replacements to on and park it at a base with lots of supply.

Some HQs (I believe the unrestricted ones) reappear as reinforcements with 90 (?) days delay.

Gotcha, that clears up my confusion.

If you lose a unit that goes towards being able to recombine to a larger unit, the larger unit is still able to be formed up once all the surviving sub-elements are brought together.
 
In some ways, losing small chunks is very handy!  I've had a few units that were widely dispersed and would have taken ages to recombine where losing some elements saved me lots of time in shipping!
 
Of course, it still takes time to refill the missing bits of the TOE.

I was under the impression that units when A/B/C units were lost you couldn't recombine the unit again (unless this was changed in a later patch). Losing other kinds of sub-units doesn't prevent recombining though.

ORIGINAL: Smeulders

I was under the impression that units when A/B/C units were lost you couldn't recombine the unit again (unless this was changed in a later patch). Losing other kinds of sub-units doesn't prevent recombining though.

That's correct, if you lose an entire A/B/C unit, you can never build the parent back. But if you save a FRAGMENT of one of those units, you can.

BTW, for the purpose of saving fragments, a smart Japanese player would concentrate on building MAVIS transports for your IJN transport units, instead of the Tina.....

Can sub-units combine if one of them is under restricted command? 

Only if in same command.