[Mobhack]

Originally Posted by Soldiercrush

Great tips fellas--i am much appreciative. I am now trying to start a campaign but am getting bogged down into what types of units to buy, how many units to buy, what fires smoke, what is my spear head, how much armor, support armor, artillery and batteries, infantry and what types-spot 1,2,3,4 lmg-smg-mortors-flamers-so much, scouts--mobile-2 man teams or should they be snipers, AT weapons, AA weapons, and engineers. Holy sleepiness from all this reading. I have opened the game like 10 times only to close it again to read more online...

By the way I read 90% of Larry Holts guide--fine info here.

I am now, as described above, bogged down in what my starting core will be. I work in Iraq and have many hours a day to devote to study. I figure within the next few days I will figure out what types of units I want to start with--holy complications. I always kind of considered myself s minor ww2 historian, but I am quickly realizing I don’t know bupkiss in comparison to some of you all. I am glad to be in likes of some of you guys who know, for example, that certain weapons weren’t utilized during the war because the ammo production was halted.

By the way what exactly is FOO?

If you are having problems then simply start with a learner core and be prepared to dump the campaign 10 battles in if it proves a dead end.

Start with Germany or the UK (both are entire WW2 length)
- Italy is only recommended for an experienced player since they are so far behind equipment-wise.

[HQ and support coy]
HQ
FOO (on foot) - buy him right after the HQ so he is easy to find on the HQ menus!
1 Mortar platoon (4-6 tubes) or 1 battery of off-map 25pdr or similar light arty
1 or 2 FLAK sections (SP or towed)- use for grunt bashing if you have the air superiority
1 or 2 ATG section (towed) - useful even when attacking - GE may want a couple of 88 by France to deal with Char-b etc
1 or 2 light tank or armour car recce sections
Maybe - a CS tank unit (e.g UK 3.7inch or German short 75mm on P4 or stug, or 15cm SiG) for direct fire HE bashing of enemy grunts, or
UK - (a fast cruiser tank platoon as recce/reserve + a light truck or bren carrier mounted rifle platoon), or
GE - (Panzer 3/4+75 platoon + mech platoon) as reserve/recce/fire brigade force

Company team:[2 or 3 of]
1 Leg rifle company. If you have an AT grenade choice - get them!
1 scout section (if not already part of the coy) - possibly in bren carrier etc
1 mortar section (2 tubes) - if not already part of the coy (GE could use the 75mm infantry gun here instead - very long range c/f mortar)
1 MG section - if not already part of the coy
1 light truck section - to move the mortars and MG about. rescue chopped up squads etc
1 medium tank platoon for close support of the leg coy (important!) - these do not wander off from the grunts!

The medium tanks will be your main anti-tank weapons so should a) be best armour you can get for the period and b) have decent a-tk guns (ie not the 75mm short of the Germans). Germany - P3/37 and then upgrade to 50mm ASAP, UK Matilda or a cruiser with 2 pounder (A9 is slow and thin tin, but has an extra hull MG - useful v Italians)

First buy of support troops in any battle will be a few ammo carriers for your mortars. Then whatever specialists you may need e.g. engineers if an assault. Germany - in Poland get some of the cheap armoured cars with only an MG for hosing down grunts (when tank threat gone). UK - light tank VI ditto for Italian grunt removal.

Upgrades - when infantry with decent AT grenades come available, then upgrade to those. Germans - 50mm Panzer 3 at end of France. UK not much till Valentines come available (slightly faster than Matilda 2 and much the same armour, there is a version with the AAMG and extra MG are always useful). Daimler A/C with 2 pdr when available (fast ambush predator, use as a mobile tank destroyer).

Once available, then a SP tank destroyer section per rifle coy is a good idea. UK - when deacon (6 pdr) arrives, GE when stug+long 75mm or marder+75/76mm. (Or replace existing towed ATG and trucks with SP)

Save up your unused buy points and eventually buy a third/fourth company - possibly a tank coy + an armoured inf platoon, in 42 or 43 or so, and another battery of off-map. No other buys needed other than tank and weapon upgrades, really other than maybe an engineer platoon and as Germany, some more SP-AAA come 1944 when Allied air becomes a pest.

If you are more of a tread head then try:
[HQ and support coy]
HQ
FOO
2-3 AAA or SPAA sections
arty or mortar bty, on or off-map
1-2 Scout car or light tank sections (recce) or leg+truck scouts or M/cycle
GE - an 88 section by France
1 light truck platoon - to move your mortars or "taxi" your leg grunts (e.g support engineers) with

1 tank coy
+ A light truck/carrier/mech infantry platoon to keep up with the tanks

1 leg grunt coy group as above (to hold objectives taken by the tanks in advance, or defend with)

Those cores are not too large, so the battles will be manageable affairs for learning from.
- do not lose the FOO, he will gain experience as he lives and become a very quick caller of fires eventually
- use the HQ as an additional FOO, he will also become good at it
- your core arty units will improve in response times too, if you don't lose them. Shift them if they come under counter-battery fires!

Germany - if you think you are still learning by Barbarossa then don't take your troops to Russia to meet the KV and T-34! - remain in the desert, Sicily, Italy, etc and the biggest thing you will meet is Western Allied Shermans and Churchills.

Tactics in the advance - choose an objective group (make sure the shotgun is off when learning as a scattered battle is difficult) - take it, then move up grunts to "go firm" on it. Now take the next, and go firm on it, then repeat with #3. Be prepared to fight a counter attack at some point, hold fast and break him at that point. See my post #7 here for an attack strategy: http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/showt...highlight=lawn

Andy