Soviet Tank Divisions

[thedoctorking]

Supposing I manage to save some tank divisions from the original debacle in 1941, what should I do with them? They don't appear to upgrade to anything, their TOE calls for some seriously outmoded vehicles, I'd imagine that by 1943 or so they would be pretty much useless. But by surviving, they have acquired good experience and plenty of victories. If I could turn them into corps or even brigades, that would be great, but I can't see how to do that. Am I just supposed to get them all killed in the August and September 1941 battles?

[FortTell]

They will convert to brigades anyway in January 1942, so use them before that, either in counterattacks vs panzers or during the winter counterattack (preferably letting infantry open a hole in the enemy frontline and flood it with tanks and cav, forcing the enemy to abandon forts to avoid encirclement)

[malyhin1517]

I send depleted tank divisions to other theaters (if you have advanced theater management). In return, I take infantry onto the map from there.

[thedoctorking]

Yeah, I did that, actually - thanks for teaching me about enhanced theater box management, by the way - and it was a good way to get good infantry on the map from the East and Transcaucasia. They still used up a lot of tank replacements, though, dragging down the on-map units. I'm happy to see that they will be turning into brigades - the TOE doesn't show that, so there's no future TOE date showing in the editor or when I look on the commander's report. Is this some undocumented rule? Will the new brigades keep the win/loss record of the previous units? I have a couple of divisions in my current game with more than 10 wins, and I'd love to be able to have some guards tank brigades in January.

[malyhin1517]

Yes, these new brigades keep the record of tank division victories. Later, I put them back on the map when I plan a counteroffensive.

[DarkHorse2]

In 1942 I believe, the Soviet Union began reintroducing the Tank Corps & Mechanized Corps.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tank_corps_(Soviet_Union)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanise ... iet_Union)

[thedoctorking]

In 1942 I believe, the Soviet Union began reintroducing the Tank Corps & Mechanized Corps.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tank_corps_(Soviet_Union)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanise ... iet_Union)

In the game, you can start building Tank Corps in April 1942 and Mech Corps in September, IIRC. They are built from Tank, Motorized, and Mech brigades, either existing ones that you first withdraw to the Reserve box or new ones created ad hoc when you pay for the corps (don't do the latter - you get a corps with like 20 experience, your poor guys can barely even start their tanks to say nothing of shooting at Panthers and Tigers). My question was about the divisions you get at start. Mostly, those guys get wiped out in the summer of 1941, and when they come back (as all units killed before November do automatically), they come back as brigades. But if any survive, what becomes of them when the USSR switches over to brigades and corps for the motorized formations?

[malyhin1517]

The surviving tank divisions will almost all become tank brigades, except for those historically located in the Far East. In the game, it is possible to bring them to the map, which is unhistorical. Therefore, I try to bring all tank divisions to the theater of operations and then use them to form tank corps. It also helps save tanks.

[thedoctorking]

Got up to turn 31 - January 18 1942 - and still no divisions turning into brigades. There's one that's set to disband on turn 34, but everybody else is fine.

[Jango32]

From memory the surviving divisions will convert in March 1942 the latest.

[thedoctorking]

The 41b Tank Division wants 71 Cavalry Tank elements. What will it do if there aren't any more elements of that type? I know that, for example, a T-60 is designated as a Recon Tank, but it will go in a TOE slot designated for Light Tank. Will they also go in Cavalry Tank slots? Once all my BT-7s are dead? Or (hopefully) will Medium Tanks (like T-34s) go in that spot? If the latter, the Tank Division would be a formidable force, especially with an infantry brigade attached.

[Jango32]

I believe so. For example my StuG IIIBs, the ones with the short 75mm gun, filled up a Panzer division's medium tank TOE elements.

[Denniss]

Medium or Light tanks and Heavy Cavalry tanks may substitute cavalry tanks

[M60A3TTS]

Got up to turn 31 - January 18 1942 - and still no divisions turning into brigades. There's one that's set to disband on turn 34, but everybody else is fine.

They will convert on the next turn.

[thedoctorking]

OK, thanks, yes they switched over on turn 32. Still a couple hanging around, but they are either bound for disbandment or intended for the Far East theater box. Be nice if this was documented.

[M60A3TTS]

What there is is in the Living Manual but like everything else it helps to know where to look.

Page 788 Section 27.5.1. Any surviving Soviet Tank Divisions will convert to Tank Brigades in late January 1942, not March 1942.

[malyhin1517]

What there is is in the Living Manual but like everything else it helps to know where to look.

Page 788 Section 27.5.1. Any surviving Soviet Tank Divisions will convert to Tank Brigades in late January 1942, not March 1942.

Several armored divisions in the Far East and in the game survived until the end of the war. In the game, they are not blocked and can be displayed by the player on the map.