Aerosans???
 

Is there any chance of getting some Russian/Finnish aerosan units? Alternatly, is there a tutorial somewhere on making your own icons? I've got all the technical information I need, and have a good idea on most of the game stats needed, but the "how-too" on the visual end still evades me.

Thanks


Matt

Re: Aerosans???
 

I am not aware of Finland having had any aerosans. Soviets had them, but the actual amount of combat they saw was quite limited.

They would also need their own movement mode - the hovercraft from SP:MBT might get pretty close, being able to move well over open land but not in forests.

Griefbringer

Re: Aerosans???
 

The Finns got their aerosans like they got much of thier military equipment, they beat on Ivan till he gave it up. :D :D :D The movement mode was something I had considered, I felt for most poeple using them, a set of "house rules" would probably be easier than building a new movement mode.
We've got unit types here in SP that have seen less combat than aerosans, and they bring an mobility elemenent to the Winter War that I currently find somewhat lacking :)

Anyhow, anyone have an "Icons for Dummies" tutorial???

:D


Matt

Re: Aerosans???
 

If you MobHack one and make it Class 167 'Snow Vehicle', that should sort out the movement problem. I've done one, but haven't yet had time to playtest it.

Richard H

Re: Aerosans???
 

Which did you do RF-8,NKL-16 or NKL-26?

Send it over, I'd be glad to give it a spin :D I've got all the info and spec's needed for the three main aerosans, but my drawing abilities SUCK. :( If somebody could put together the icons, I could mobhack up the specs fairly quickly.


Matt

Re: Aerosans???
 

For making icons, see my notes at Game Squad:
Making Icons - Draft Notes

Re: Aerosans???
 

NKL-26. Class 167, Availability 3/42 - 12/49. Crew 4, Size 3 (should maybe be 2?), Carry 8, Speed 15, Radio 11, Survivability 2, ROF 9. 1 x Weapon 172, 120 HE rds. Armour 1 all round except top. Everything else = 0. Photo (of an NKL-16) attached and no, I haven't made an icon - my abilities in that direction are probably worse than yours! Feel free to disagree with any of the stats - it's a long time since I did this, & I was relying on Steven Zaloga's book on Russian armour. There's probably a load on the Net by now.

Re: Aerosans???
 

Do you have a top view and or physical dimensions? I'll see what I can do.

Re: Aerosans???
 

Found some. :)

Re: Aerosans???
 

Pat- Anything you scrap up is going to be worlds better then my best, many thanks :D

Richard:

Looks pretty good, I think size 2, and carry capacity of 4. I know where the 8 figure came from (4 riders and 4 towed on skies), and while it's possible, the perfomance would be so far reduced as to be really unusable. Weight is the enemy of aerosans. Realistic crew was 2, and with only front armor 1, but I think we might need either the 4 man crew or the all around armor for the type to have SP utility. Having both might be a bit extreme, but only playtesting will tell us for sure. Another option might be to keep the realistic crew and armor and bump up the survivability to say 4-5.

Heres specs for some more:

RF-8 class 167, Avail:12/41-12/49. Crew 2 (4 in game???), Size 2, Carry 4, Speed 16-17, radio 11, Survivability ?4?, ROF 9, 1x wep 172, 120 HE rounds, zero armor.

The last two are a pretty generic transport aerosan, I think they should be run in pairs with carry 12. A single aerosan with a 12 man squad is barely going to move, a pair of them with 6 each is going to be acceptable. The NKL-16 ran the same powertrain as the NKL-26, but isn't carting around the weight of armor and weapons.

NKL-16/ANT-IV: class 167, ANT avail 1/39-12/41, NKL 01/42-12/49, Crew 2, size 3, carry (as a paired unit) 112, speed 15, radio ???, survivability 2, no weapons or armor. I think you need to have the carry at 112 to allow them to move some of the light guns. Obviously this could/will be misused, with teams of snowmobiles moving heavy AT guns, but what do you do??? I've seen pics of ANT's towing medium sized sledges, so it's not beyond relm of reason for them to move the smaller infantry guns/mortars, ect.

Matt

Nkl 26
 

First pass. These things are tiny ;)

http://i370.photobucket.com/albums/o...p/nkl26_V1.jpg

Re: Aerosans???
 

nicely done, Pat! I can olny imagine what a bugger it is to get much detail in something that scale.



Matt

Re: Aerosans???
 

My thanks to both of you. Knowledge expanded, plus a nice icon. Can I use it in my mod, Pat?

Re: Aerosans???
 

Absolutely Richard.

Re: Aerosans???
 

There is an interesting article about Soviet aerosans here:

http://www.battlefield.ru/content/view/216/123/lang,en/

Steven Zaloga’s Red Army Handbook claims that some aerosans were grouped into aerosled battalions:

“A unique Soviet formation was the aerosled battalion equipped with the unique powered snow vehicles that the Russians called aerosan. An initial group of 62 battalions was raised starting in January 1942 but as warm weather approached they were disbanded, the last 17 in June. A second group of 70 began forming in October but this time they were kept on duty through the summer of 1943, although their numbers slowly declined to 57 at the end of the year. In May 1944 reduction began anew and in June all the remaining aerosled battalions were disbanded.

The battalions were exceptionally small, even by Soviet standards. The basic unit, the platoon, consisted of three NKL-26 armoured aerosleds, each with a 2-man crew and armed with a light machine gun. Three such platoons, plus a tenth aerosled for the commander, made up a company. The battalion consisted of three such companies plus a headquarters and a supply company, the later with 10 cargo/utility aerosleds. These elements gave the battalion a total strength of around 100 men.”