I need tactical help

[hawk66]

Is there any special tactical field manual for the Vietnam area available?

[Breakerchase]

A while ago I found some papers written by the then-Soviet Army Studies Officer (now the Foreign Military Studies Office) during the late 1980s. They really provide a view of the late Cold War Soviet Army different from the sterotypical inflexible Red Horde thought of when one thinks of a Soviet offensive and should be applicable for the game.

Soviet Non-Linear Combat

I asked one former intelligence guy about this paper and he replied that the Soviets were anticipating non-linear combat long before we recognized that they were. In a mid to late '80s conflict like he said the he would expect the better-trained Soviet units to be able to carry out those sort of concepts.

Heavy Opposing Force (OPFOR) Tactical Handbook

It's a manual for opposing force training published in 1994, but my contact says that the text was taken straight out of an updated draft of a Soviet Army field manual that never got printed due to the end of the Cold War. It contains a better understanding of Soviet tactics over the old manual which some people are still using as a valid resource!

[skyray]

Hello all: I have played the Tutorial scenario so I'm familiar with some of the game ops now. I have also been perusing the forums for additional info. One thing that caught my attention was the "After Acton Report" section. I wanted to create a report on my first campaign but I don't know how to post the map images of the current game turn to the forum. How do you do that?

The first campaign I chose was "Heart of Africa". I was hoping that this would be a good campaign for a beginner and it seems to be so far. I'll point out the reasons if I can learn how to post properly to the AAR section. I'm on T3 and just tried to call for mortar fire. When I go to the bombardment screen, it reads that artillery is unavailable. I checked the mortar tam and they have a radio. The units I would use to spot like A0 and B0 have radios also but the mortar team is showing as 'out of contact'. How is that possible? I realy need those mortars and I'm sure I'm making some kid of FUNG mistake. Any enlightment will be appreciated.

[DRG]

Read the game guide, units relying on radios CAN and WILL occasionally go out of contact just like in real life.

Don

[Imp]

To add attachments press go advanced (under where you enter the text) & then select the paper clip

[Griefbringer]

For further clarification, for an onboard unit to be able to fire indirectly, it needs to have a contact to it's own platoon HQ first. In the case of the Heart of Africa campaign, the mortars are unit C2 and their platoon HQ is C0.

If one is unwilling to rely on the vagaries of radio communication, then the surer way of establishing contact is having the platoon HQ in close physical proximity to the indirect fire unit - being within 5 hexes or so tends to provide very reliable line of communication to the platoon HQ.

However, in a platoon with mixed units - such as in the case of Heart of Africa campaign - this can cause a conflict of interests, since you want to have your platoon HQ both sitting back (to provide control for the mortars) and further front to provide leadership, fire support, spotting capability etc. to the rest of the platoon closer to the enemy. One way around this would be to attach the mortars to some other platoon that is more likely to be hanging back (such as the HQ A-platoon).

Ideally, the mortars should be organised as their own platoons, so the whole platoon can safely hang back and provide indirect fire.

[skyray]

Originally Posted by Griefbringer

For further clarification, for an onboard unit to be able to fire indirectly, it needs to have a contact to it's own platoon HQ first. In the case of the Heart of Africa campaign, the mortars are unit C2 and their platoon HQ is C0.

If one is unwilling to rely on the vagaries of radio communication, then the surer way of establishing contact is having the platoon HQ in close physical proximity to the indirect fire unit - being within 5 hexes or so tends to provide very reliable line of communication to the platoon HQ.

However, in a platoon with mixed units - such as in the case of Heart of Africa campaign - this can cause a conflict of interests, since you want to have your platoon HQ both sitting back (to provide control for the mortars) and further front to provide leadership, fire support, spotting capability etc. to the rest of the platoon closer to the enemy. One way around this would be to attach the mortars to some other platoon that is more likely to be hanging back (such as the HQ A-platoon).

Ideally, the mortars should be organised as their own platoons, so the whole platoon can safely hang back and provide indirect fire.

I did catch enough of the rally ops particulars to re-assign platoons directly to B0 but I left C platoon under the A0. I didn't think to attach the mortars (C2) directly to A0 which may have prevented the problem. I'd actually organized for control exactly as you stated with only 2 squads in reserve and the transport out of the way. Mortars are set up way back to the east near the green victory markers.

Though I had read that units will just drop out of comm from time to time, I guess it just didn't stick the way it should have. Typical noob mistake but we learn by doing. Thanks also for the warning about out of comm arty continuing to fire onto an area I intend to occupy or not being able to check fire that's drifted onto me.

[Mobhack]

Ideally, the mortars should be organised as their own platoons, so the whole platoon can safely hang back and provide indirect fire.

And then making sure that the individual firing elements are all within 3-5 hexes of the command element, so they then do not continually drop off the radio net. Not the mistake that many newbies make of dotting indirect fire elements 10 or more hexes apart "because they have radios". Radios are not reliable.

A dead/routed leader (usually but not always the 0 element) can also lead to subordinated fire units not being on the arty radio net for a while or more - they may need to close up to the new leader or wait till the guy stops doing a runner and returns from his panic etc.

Off map arty will also occasionally not be available on the bombardment screen (not sure about on map, but I think they are supposed to be more reliably "there for you"). Just because you have bought 2 batteries or planes - does not mean that they are always available. Can be rather annoying if they go "off the net"" while still firing a mission that drifted into your own position or perhaps onto a spot that your troops want to go to this turn (you then cannot shift it or cancel it).

That behaviour is also deliberately coded in by us and is not a "bug".

Andy

[Griefbringer]

Originally Posted by Mobhack

Can be rather annoying if they go "off the net"" while still firing a mission that drifted into your own position or perhaps onto a spot that your troops want to go to this turn (you then cannot shift it or cancel it).

Even worse if you have just moved in that position, and then go to the bombardment screen at the end of the turn to find out that the 155 mm battery is going to bombard it again and there is no way you can cancel that fire mission...

Lesson: before moving into a position, check that there are no friendly artillery units still bombarding it.

On-map units tend to be easier, since even if they end up losing contact, you can still manually stop them from firing eg. by moving them (though this might be considered a bit gamey).

[gila]

Originally Posted by Griefbringer

Even worse if you have just moved in that position, and then go to the bombardment screen at the end of the turn to find out that the 155 mm battery is going to bombard it again and there is no way you can cancel that fire mission...

Lesson: before moving into a position, check that there are no friendly artillery units still bombarding it.

On-map units tend to be easier, since even if they end up losing contact, you can still manually stop them from firing eg. by moving them (though this might be considered a bit gamey).

Yes you can stop a out com arty unit from errent bomard by just direct firing them or moving them, not at all gamey imo.