[Mobhack]

Originally Posted by Lt. Ketch

Thank you all! I've known that there has been a lot that I needed to learn about strategy and tactics and this helps put me on a good track. There is much that I don't think of and miss (as is evedent in this thread, I'm sure), so thank you again. I'd love to keep this discussion going.

Additional thoughts:

I like the mortar idea and have used it before which is one reason why I don't use it much anymore. I imobilized one of my own tanks with a mortar shell. It probablly didn't help that it was a 100mm mortar. I studied in the school that when it comes to artillary, the bigger the better. However, I've identified the uses and needs for smaller caliber ART. What is a good size for mortaring your own tanks?

I also agree about the infantry, but have found that unsupported infantry get chewed up by ART and AFV in the open. I'm trying to work on my combined arms as I tend to swing to extremes.

I think one of my problems (in addition to the ones previously mentioned) is that I make "anihilating every last man" one of my objectives. I'll work on that. Thanks for the reminder.

Not a bad idea. What organization do you normaly have when you hit the rear area? For example, your set up your forces: recon up front, tanks and infantry main body, mobile reserve in rearish area of main body and then just press forward maintaining the spacing between the recon and body.
Or, after you hit the enemy do you fold around his flanks and penitrate his line at weak spots letting the units that penitrate in force ravage the rear? Let me put it another way, do you advance like a bulldozer or like water?

The reason I ask is because I'm curious how you keep from losing too many units to the rear forces. As I've related, I'm always losing the units that penitrate the line. I understand that good recon can help with this, but how do you set it up? A basic thought for me is to regroup my forces after sending the enemy packing and reestablish the scouts (which ever ones are left) and basicly begin another advance against the rear units. Any thoughts or personal experiences?

(Crap this has gotten long! Sorry about that. Kudos if you make it down this far.)

1) for danger close on armour only forces then I would go for 60mm (if you have the range) or 81mm mortars. Or 76mm arty and field guns, or infantry guns - your 75mm IG might have more reach than your 8cm mortar.

- the idea is NOT to drop on your boys, bar strays, but to pound the box you intend to go through next turn, then move the belt of fire and repeat. You may want an armoured OP vehicle with the force to shift arty further by having LOS to the pounded ground, as LOS to the impact zone is now critical, otherwise you will only get a shift of a hex or so without unacceptable delays (or will need more arty and accept that those on a long shift will get > 1.0 delay, and have to plan ahead more).

2)A pure tank penetration is likely to run into problems without grunts having eyes on the ground.

- best to have a platoon of APC with the tank coy, following behind (e.g. with the reserve tank platoon or coy HQ).

- Don't use snipers as drop-off riders, they have nil survival value if hosed off by MG fires and are less value as reactive armour than scout teams. But they can be useful if you leave them behind in overwatch, they have long range weapons and can deal with a discoverd AT gun. But a sniper is only useful when dismounted and unseen - so drop him off in cover behind a contour or building or wood, an let him walk forwards next turn before moving the armour and let him have a look-see first.

- If you intend to use small rider teams then use 3-4 man scout teams or inf-AT teams. Minimum size 2, but 3-4 better and size 0. At least 2 elements per tank platoon.

Small teams cost less MP to drop off and pick up. So drop some off each end-turn and see what happens. maybe they will draw fires, well that is information. Next turn, pick them up and trundle off. Do not worry if some are in retreat mode and cannot be rallied. Be prepared to leave passenger scout rider teams behind, to follow the advance on foot if they have to e.g once rallied. They may see things like flank attacks behind you.

I happily drop off non-command scout or AT teams behind a pure tank advance like a little trail of breadcrumbs !.

Actually the breadcrumb trail of little scout OP teams left behind a mobile advance as security elements is a rather good idea, since it gives you an over-watched corridor that you can then use to retreat back through or send reinforcements down.

I like the UK carrier section as a drop-off behind an advancing force - they can take over a hill, village or small wood and put 3 scout/inf-at teams on the edges looking out and the carriers can wait in cover or move to give MG support or pick ups as required. often I will do this a turn or 3 before the advancing tank company is due to go through the area. By then the carrier section has either cleared the box, or bumped into things. Unless you stupidly deploy all out in the open and buck nekkid to enemy fires then a contact on a carrier section will usually only lose an element or 2 rather than the entire section, and they are cheap anyway. No worries, there will be a second carrier scout section with the tanks - the 2 carrier sections should be leapfrogging through each other. 2 leapfrogging carrier scout sections and one supporting pair of armoured cars (Daimlers say) preparing the corridor of advance for a tank coy is a good idea.

Andy