How to cross a shallow river?

[otto]

I need to cross a shallow river and my opponent has blown the bridges!!

Can anybody give any advice? I'm getting my biggest baddest tanks bogged. Is it any better to drive slower, maybe one hex a turn? Does vehicle weight matter?

What's a guy to do?

[Orzel Bialy]

to all your questions.

Here's what I do just to error towards caution.
I will usually drive my AFV's to the river bank and stop there...if they have used more than three quarters of their movement I don't start crossing that turn...otherwise I start taking them across one hex at a time.

Don't race them across...especially any "Heavies". Move them slowly and make sure that if possible you get them on sand or rough terrain rather than mud or swampy ground.

It doesn't always work...sometimes at even 1 hex per move they get flooded and immobilized...but taking it slow has always seemed to help cut down on the number of problems for me.

[Capt. Pixel]

See? I'm just the opposite - Get up a good head of steam over a couple of turns. Get going really fast and barrel across the river at top speed. this way, even the 'heavies' can skip across like a rock.

(BTW - I use this technique all the time during desert flooding situations here in Arizona. The real trick is to avoid slowing down halfway across. Falter, and you'll most certainly fail.)

[chief]

Go Very S L O W L Y

[otto]

Thanks for the advice. Going slowly isn't working well, will have to try the full speed ahead method.

What I really need is an armored bridgelayer!!

[chief]

Try smoke, if you go to fast you'll swamp out and be a pretty target for the otherside.

[Vathailos]

If you're the Soviets, I have an answer bordering on gamesmanship, and stealing from Chief above.

Smoke the far side of the river, park all your YaG-6's at the river bank, and load your heavies into them. Then, next turn, drive them all into the river. If they get stuck, immediately unload. Next opportunity, drive your unstuck heavies one hex out of the river to the opposite side.

I promise to stop saying "YaG-6" at every opportunity from this point forward.

Not playing the Soviets? Got a barge carrier perhaps?

[Drescher]

well Vathailos , it seems to me that this YaG-6-thing is still working in your mind...
the idea to load a heavy tank on a lorry


so which vehicles do usually get stuck either in a thick wood or in a river , regardless of how carefully or how fast you let them cross :
those that you desperately hope not to get stuck

so here is my plan : when i cross a river i turn on music and the teli and try to avod looking at what im doing in the game... :rolleyes: