Matrix Games Forums

As a result of over 5 years and several thousand games with the Steel Panthers series, I've evolved a set of tactical tips and guidelines.

Basic Sequence of Activities

1st -- Sequentially Rally Selected Units.
I play with Auto-Rally turned ON which means that all units capable of doing so will automatically attempt to rally at the end of my turn. This means that I don't have to spend time rallying units that do not demand my personal attention. This saves time and energy that can be used elsewhere. I am very sparing with my rally attempts. I do not attempt to rally a unit unless I have a definite mission for that unit that turn. Also, I usually rally units sequentially within one formation at a time. This means that I rally the unit with the highest supression first. When a unit no longer has the highest supression, then I rally the next unit with the highest supression, and so on. In addition, I usually only make a single rally attempt per unit. That is, I generally do not rally a unit two, three, or more times in succession. The reason is because multiple rally attempts of an individual unit in succession can result in inefficiencies in command control where the formation commander can lose his rally status for the turn when other units in the formation might need his help. I've found that it is most efficient to make a single rally attempt per unit and rotate the rally attempts sequentially within a formation using the guidelines I mentioned above. TIP1: If you don't have a clear mission in mind, then it is best not to rally a unit until such time as a mission presents itself. TIP2: Be thrifty and miserly with your rally attempts--wasting rally atempts early in a turn can cause big problems later that turn when you might really need them. Only rally when you feel a real need to.

2nd -- Check Lines of Sight for Hidden Enemy Units.
Immediately after I conduct whatever rallying I'm going to do at the start of the turn I then check the lines of sight of my recon elements by selecting each unit in turn and right-clicking in various directions. It is often possible to spot many previously-hidden enemy units this way without having to move or fire. TIP: Checking for hidden enemy units before moving or firing minimizes your casualties.

3rd -- Set Firing Ranges.
Opportunity fire in the previous turn may have changed the ranges of many of your units. It is prudent to check and set your firing ranges at this time before the heat of battle begins in your current turn.

4th -- Fight And/Or Move.
It is usually better to fire before moving because your hit percentages are almost always higher. I try to resolve as many firefights as I can before I move any units. Sometimes I will move some of my recon units prior to resolving firefights, but only if I feel a pressing need to do so. Some of the following tips seem contradictory. Your skill and experience and judgment must be relied on to resolve such situations. TIP1: When multiple targets are available, it is usually best to fire with the unit that is safest from enemy return fire (I almost never fire on an enemy unit if I have reason to believe that I will take multiple enemy return shots). TIP2: It is usually best to concentrate your fire on neutralizing one enemy unit at a time before engaging the next enemy unit (this will minimize your casualties in the long run, guaranteed). TIP3: When firing on a new enemy unit, it is usually best to take your best shot first (can occasionally conflict with TIP1 above--use your best judgment in this case). TIP4: It is usually best to conserve shots (saving shots minimizes breakdowns and allows for unexpected events later that turn). TIP5: Knowing when NOT to fire is usually as valuable a skill as knowing when to fire (this is one of the most important skills you can learn in the game and I cannot overemphasize its importance).

5th -- Reset Firing Ranges.
After you've performed all your moving and firing for that turn, then it is best to reset your firing ranges in preparation for the upcoming enemy turn (and the opportunity fire that comes with it).

6th -- Set Artillery.
It is ALWAYS (100% of the time) best to set your artillery at the very end of your turn because you then have the best information available to make the wisest bombardment choices (you lose precious orders when you set artillery earlier in the turn only to cancel those orders later that same turn).

7th -- Save Game and End Turn.
I always save the game right before the end of my turn because I often have computer problems and I hate having to have to replay entire turns that I've already finished. If you have faith that your machine will never crash and that you will never lose a turn (or turns) because of that, then you can ignore this step.


Happy Gaming
Victor

Good tips to go by! Mind if I can post these on the SP Arsenal Page August Edition, as well as any more you may have

Let me know - email me when you can..

Solid tips.
Good one.

Lynx

Great Tips Victorhauser! Thanks.

If you're smart folks, you'll listen to these tips and put them into action.

Salute!

WW2'er

Bryan:

Feel free to post these however you wish.

I'm considering putting together a list of tactical doctrines if there is an interest in them. But since that will involve a lot of effort, I probably won't do them if the interest level is low.

8th: Cycle your units using the "P"revious key and not the "N"ext key. This way you will move/fire/rally your precious command (x0) units last keeping your command points and extra rally option for when you really need it.

Saludos a Todos,
Cona.

I found your post very interesting, thank you, Victorhauser.

I for one would be very interested in a tactical doctrine guide and hope that many more will join me in encouraging you to publish one.

could always use tips
Would be muchly appreciated

Lynx

Cona: I'm not too sure about this, but there are instances where rallying the command first is the better thing to do. Should you rally the command last, if it is heavily suppressed I don't think it has much ability to rally other units, so it's getting rallied is important in those rare situations. I believe it also doesn't receive extra orders the next turn if it's not in very good shape. Another thing about that situation, if the other units are rallied first they may fail their rally, thereby eliminating their potential for rallying the command, as all the units would have a chance if the command were the first to try. It really all depends on which units are doing the most fighting and which ones are most suppressed, as to where you start rallying. That might sound like a good idea, but I rarely do it. I split my time, with some turns using the 'n' and some using the 'p', so it kind of averages out accidently.

Good, interesting tips!

One tip left: Don´t slam your computer if your infantery attack is hit in the open by katjusha fire and you lost half of your tanks because they were blown up by mines.
(stalingrad campaign)

Moreover your computer isn´t responsible that numerous of 37mm AA guns smash your core force into pieces!
(stalingrad campaign)



Marder

victorhauser-Great tips. Also, remember to slow down and do not send you AFV's speeding ahead.

victorhauser: lots of good tips in there, thanks

parusski: I agree entirely, speed kills as someone on here said.
[:)]

Victor: You state you rally units in order of highest supression. And only one rally attempt per unit. And I think you say you rally units before the command unit.

Charles: You question these tactics, stating you should rally command units first.

Open question: Is there a correct answer here?

I always rally top to bottom: A0 on down (using "N" to scroll thru units). This will rally command units first. I also rally as many times as I can to reduce all suppressions before any fire/move. I also continue to rally any unit that takes any enemy fire / suppression. I feel suppression on my units is bad, I reduce whenever I can.

I wish there was a Preference to Auto-Rally at the beginning of the turn, as well as the end of turn.

Rallying the command units first can lead to less effective rallying overall: if the command unit fails, the subordinate units will only be able to rely on their own organic leaders to rally; they lose the "chain-of-command" rally advantage.

While I agree that removing as much suppression as possible is a good thing, cycling through each member of the formation and making one rally each maximizes the formation's rally action. It helps get the whole formation back in good status, instead of risking some of the units staying Routed or Retreating because of a failed roll.

DROregon,

Remember that I posted that 6 years ago (the original post date is 24 Jul 2001).  Charles-22 is no longer active on this forum. 

The truth is that I was a better player then than I am now.  My focus and concentration was much stronger then.  These days I often forget to follow my own advice.  I still think that the advice is sound, though.  Also, these days I play with Auto Rally OFF, which makes rally choices even more important.

EDIT: Also, I play very deliberately and purposefully. It is not uncommon for me to spend an hour or two at the start of every turn just looking over the situation and determining what I'm going to do (I prefer big battles with hundreds of units). Sometimes I even sleep on it. Then, after much deliberation, I determine what unit I'll select and what actions I'll perform. I try not to select any unit until I'm certain what I'm going to do. I try to look into the future to see how events are going to unfold. Visualization of the future course of events is a big part of how I play. The better I am at visualizing and predicting the way the course of events is going to play out, then better my results during that turn (and future turns) will turn out. This requires great focus and concentration, something I lose a little more each year.

Flash, I don't understand.

You must be saying a rally-failed command unit is less effective to it's subordinate units than an un-attempted rally command unit, even when they have the same supression level. Makes sense, I guess.

But seems to me that the opportunity to reduce a command unit's supression in half is always worth pushing the button.

DROregon,
 
Rallying is often like firing.  It is often as important (or even more important) to learn when NOT to fire (or rally).
 
If you expend your rally attempts at the start of a turn (especially in a big battle involving hundreds of units which is the kind of game I prefer), then later in the turn when an emergency arises you might no longer be able to rally at all due to failed rally attempts earlier in the turn.
 
Further, rallying from 4 to 2 is usually a waste.  You only gain a percentage point or two in improved chances to hit.  Whereas rallying from 18 to 9 is much more valuable since that will usually result in changing from Pinned or Retreating to Ready.  Choose your rally attempts wisely and you will greatly improve your battlegroup's overall effectiveness.

Thanks, Victor, I'm getting it.

Yes, I see the 18 to 9 vs. 4 to 2 advantage. (That's why you said in 2001 you start at the highest suppression unit).

Question: Is a rally at suppression level 4 more likely to occur than a rally at 18?

DROregon,
 
There are cases where I will indeed attempt to rally from a 4 to a 2, or from a 6 to a 3.  For instance, if I am in a firefight and I get a unit shot at giving it a few points of suppression that takes away its last shot.  If I succeed at the rally (say from 6 to 3), then I might get 1 shot back which might make all the difference.  But if I have wasted those rally attempts earlier in the turn, then I don't have that option, which could result in not only losing that firefight, but also allow the enemy to take advantage of the situation the following turn.
 

What I want to understand is if there is a predefined number of rally attempts.  You talk about "wasted attempts".  I don't understand this.
 
I do understand if a rally fails, you're stuck.  It won't rally that turn (I think) and it impacts the sub-units as a fail.
 
Still, seems to me, (as a trained statistican) if the expected likehood of supression improvement is noteworthy, go for it.
 
Example:  If at 18, and likelihood is 9.5, then go for it.
If at 4, and likelihood is 3.8, then maybe not.
 
I understand your scenario of getting that one last shot that may turn the tide.