DMS

Are Fire and Rubble Soviet squads changed to follow the changes that came in 1944 when it comes to the number of NCOs and riflemen in each squad?
 
 

In CM squad organization affect gameplay, unlike other games. You can't split Soviet squads, because they get morale penalty and start to panic after getting fire. The reason is absence of squad leader assistant. Soviet squad had only 1 NCO, while in German were 2. That is true... Until 27.09.1941. Below is Stalin's order №374. He states, that on machinegunners posts (Also ATR riflemen, mortar and artillery gunners) must be designated "most skillful and initiative" soldiers. They must be promoted to junior sergeants or gefreiters. In TO&E must be created new position - squad leader assistant. They got more salary, 12,5 rubles additionally. So, in Soviet squad of 1944-1945 were 2 NCOs, like in other armies. 
Another question - squad headcount. In 1941 TO&E squad headcount was 11 men. In 1943 in 4/550 TO&E headcount was reduced to 9-10 (including platoon HQ or not). In 1944 high command decided to stop reinforcing rifle divisions too full strength (according 4/550 TO&E), leaving maximum strength 6-7 thousands men. HQs of rifle divisions started to make calculations to define subunits headcount (As far as I know, there was no centralized TO&E like before) Some of them are published, I post them below (in next comment): for 141 men company (full strength 4/550: 4 squads, 9 men), 111 men (4 squads, 7 men) and 90 men (3 squads, 7 men).
I think these schemes are most close to reality. 1-st variant (141 men) is in the game already, it is called "1943". I would suggest to replace game TO&E "1944" by one of these schemes: for 111 men company or 90 men company. With 4 (3) squads, 7 men and 1 lmg in each one. I think 111 men companies are best for the game, because you can delete 4th squad if you want. Note that these schemes are not "under strength". They are for full strength divisions of 44-45 (6000 or 7000 strength). No divisions were reinforced to 4/550 TO&E as far as I know. May be few, coming from rear, that didn't take part in battles of 1943-1944. 11 men - this is from 1941, not 1944. And if some very lucky division would get large reinforcement, they would rather add 4-th squad instead of making 3 11 men squads. 
So, Soviet squad had 2 NCOs and 7 men with 1 lmg. (And 2 or 6 SMGs) There were no official "teams", but according to regulations lmg could act separately, covering movement of the squad. So, I think that squad could be divided to 2 teams: lmg team leaded by machinegunner (SL assisnant), 3 men, and rest of the squad, 4 men. Actually, lmg team had 2 men, but it's hard to believe that 1 assistant could carry 6 DP disks, having weight 40kg. + his own rifle.
 
 

Difficult to say as armour dominates in most of the stuff I've played. This is a real combined arms affair, and so infantry are just part of the puzzle. In simple terms most/all infantry is mechanised  and so this affects how things play out. In addition artillery and air support often features in high volumes (real "air land battle" stuff). I was working on a small scenario that was mainly infantry only but that's on hold as I work on other stuff. I might get it finished in time for release but there is a lot of stuff going down at the moment. 
One example of how infantry plays out though as a teaser - A US mech plt defending a small hill, can put up good fight against a BMP2 plt attack with tank support if the US player is canny. However if the Soviet player hits the position with cluster munitions as a prelude to the attack its not unusual to see the platoon pretty much destroyed. So good tactics and co-ordination are the real key, perhaps in a way the game has not really seen before due to the peer level tech.
P

Nah, for the Soviet side of the time the idea was to get as fast as possible to the ports to deny the US the ability to reinforce/resupply NATO forces in Europe. So as such:
Attacking force is not expected to face a defence not thouroughly softened by conventional artillery or tactical nukes. Heavy fire support would be used against probable enemy positions BEFORE the attack. Not a concept of a move to contact, relay enemy coordinates and lay in wait to see them destroyed. However attacking units would expect a SWIFT fire support should they run into troubles. I'd say in 80s Soviet fire support would be WAAAAY quicker then US's. And even in CMBS Russian fire support is unrealistically retarded as compared to US IMO. At the beginning of the UKR hostilities UKR Army basically didn't exist yet today UKR fire support is world class. Attacking units would need to absorb whatever casualties happen in the process. If a unit is thouroughly degraded then it will be replaced by a reserve one yet the tempo of operations needs to be maintained. Nobody cares to cleanse fortified areas, rather you avoid a head-on fight, go around and leave the mopping task to rear echelons. No one's stopping for a "smart" tactical fight - keeping the movement tempo is uber alles. As such the TACTICAL direction of attack may be changed at the discretion of lower-level commanders. It's up to the rear echelons to keep up. Again tempo is uber alles. You achieve "overmatch" on the battlefield first and foremost not by putting up an overwhelming force to fight in direct contact but rather by avoiding the costly head-on confrontation, maneuvering around the enemy and degrading it by fires. Then annihilating the weaked enemy if it's required for keeping your logistics lines. If it's not - then leave it behind and move on. So:
No sure if CMCW will show it this way - it's totally different from previous CM titles IMO. Hope it may expain many things about Russian side in other CM titles. To understand the origins of the concept it's worth reading about the political/economy side of the equation for both the West and the East.

No, the missile just gravitates to your mark so knowing the distance to the target and the missile speed you can firstly aim higher then lower the mark to the target. The missile will follow. The technique was actually developed early on to avoid entangling (and tearing off) the control wires in bushes that grow near the straight line to the target. So with BMP-2 you can go "hull-down" behind the bushes and yet launch the missile. And your skill will be your sensor  

Eighth Minute - One Meter too Many
“You win in battles with the timing in the Void born of the timing of cunning by knowing the enemies’ timing, and thus using a timing which the enemy does not expect.”
A Book of Five Rings, The Ground Book - Miyamoto Musashi
(Yes I have Musashi’s book sitting next to me on my desk --- the man was an Effing genius)
 
Clarity, according to the Oxford Dictionary is “The quality of being certain or definite.”  Warren’s movements gave me that this turn. 
First the good news!   I know where some of his armor is, and I know what the type is.  There are two T-64As and I have spotted four BMP-1s (yes the Sagger armed version).  So I believe this is a separate formation from what was already on the map.  This must be part of the FSE which I have been expecting… should be formed on one Motorized Rifle Company (BMP-1 evidently) with one four-tank platoon in support.  Of course the organization still needs to be confirmed.
CMCW Feature:  The unit organizations for this game include many preformed task groups, including Soviet Forward Security Element, US Company Teams (different flavors), etc.

Some tank porn for you perverts (you know who you are), I present Miss February, the T-64A:

Before we continue let’s answer some PIRs:
Priority Intelligence Requirements (PIRs):
1.      Where is/are the enemy SBF position(s)
Warren has spread several BMP-1PKs along the treeline, being careful to stay out of my tank’s line of fire… though maybe that’s coincidence as they just destroyed the two BMPs that were in their zone of fire.  I believe this line is his SBF position.
2.      What is the size of the initial Soviet force?
I am calling the initial formation the Recon Company, but I need to figure out why it has two BMP-1PKs… hmmm.
3a.       Where are enemy’s tanks?  This is a persistent PIR and should be kept updated throughout the action.
Two T-64As have been identified in EAA1.  There should be two more in the FSE but those have yet to be located
3b.      What model tanks are in the Reconnaissance Company?
No tanks have been identified in the Recon Company only BMP-1Ps   
4a.       What is the organization of the initial follow-on force?
4b.      What model tanks are in the initial follow-on force?
5a.       What is the organization of any additional follow-on forces?
5b.      What model tanks are in any additional follow-on forces?
PIRs 4a, 4b, 5a, and 5b cannot be answered yet.
 
Okay I admit it… moving my M-150s forward was ill-advised.. got a little impatient there.  Let this be a lesson to you.
1.      M-150(1/5) moves forward, and luckily is still Hull Down to the BMP-1P that fires on it…
The shooter (spotted after he launched):

The result (from two angles):

…meanwhile:
2.      M-150(1/4) moves too far forward.. sees the vehicles on EAA1 and then reverses as quickly as possible.. I really misjudged my Hull Down with this one.  Totally on me.
Two shooters (from EAA1):


Well he did get a TOW off right before he gets smoked... of course the TOW went wild after that.   
What did I tell you? Beware of the BMP in this game… they are deadly.
Okay.. it’s late and I need to process this one and decide how best to respond.  Stand by for that.

From FM 71-1 (1977)

I try it with .50 Cal, that thing has firepower. But people don't try to risk a halftrack or APC. A simple option of turret down but not too much down would be helpful. I once had an M8 Scout Car in just a sweet spot. It was too sweet and unrealistic nothing could spot it in the game. After 2 turns its position should have been obvious. Russian vehicles have often the Sagger ATGM System on top of their turret. In case of the BMP, you have to plot with the 73 mm smooth bore to get your hull down position. A gun which was designed for nearby targets which were too close for the Sagger. 

March to Glorious Victory Post #2 - When Bourgeoisies Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (1-4 mins)
So we are off.  On map, I have a Recon Company of the finest young men that the Soviet Union has ever produced.  Given my relatively crappy position the good news is that there are a lot of trails and cutline so I have room to spread this Coy out and take a wide - EYES (wink, wink) stance.  This shot of initial setup turn one from Bil's (soon to be my) side:

You will note that I am going to leave my tank platoon back, saving it for the big push.
Then in the second minute I immediately see that decrepit old goats little ploy:
 
Oh Bil, you dirty capitalist dotard!!  Yep, he knows that Soviet troops do not do so well in smoke, while a lot of his units have fancy sights etc.  Next turn the smoke continues to build:

So this was turn three and by now, I am all along that tree line, playing the role of the Sneaky Pete, while Bill continues to pollute the planet.  S'ok, my tanks are still back and I have a screen of BMPs out there playing silly buggers.  Turn 4:

First shot, you can see my recon squads, already dismounted and starting to push out across the open area.  They are dead men already but they play their part.  My FOs are already laying in this nice red lines in my brilliant plan, but it is going to take a looong time for that to drop (18mins for big guns...thank you EW).
Second shot:

And there on a hill, through the smoke is a suspected contact, probably a TOW, which means it can see through the smoke like the world sees through the corrupt Yankee economic system.  That's it Bil, up on your hill....feeling so safe and superior...I can hear him whispering "come to me...come to Dollbach"...oh we are coming alright....
 
 

March to Glorious Victory Post Number One.
  So Bil and I have a loose-agreement (I would say gentlemen's but that is probably a stretch) to not peek at each others threads.  The dirty truth here is that this isn't really an AAR per se, it is more of an IAR (In Action Report).  Full disclosure, we are only about 6 mins into the thing, so I can't really put a spin on my plan or anything because I have no idea how this will end.  So far so good  but we are in early days.  We should start posting turn summaries tomorrow but for now may I present an end-product of about roughly 32 years of military training in both line and staff positions...The_Capt's glorious Mission Analysis!  
So here we are on this grubby little peice of West German real-estate (seriously, Pete Wenman is a freakin wizard with these maps btw) facing off against what I am sure are overfed, overpaid and over-entitled Yankee capitalists all huddled in their vehicles waiting for something to happen.  So like they taught me back in the day..let's start with terrain:

So my guys are coming from the bottom, Bil and his jerks are up near the top.  I have a bunch of woods except for this defile behind a hwy bridge that I have to deploy my main force out of.  We have a big valley between us and the town of Dollbach in the center which is the golden goose we are both lining up to grab, whilst killing the other guy.  Not much to see on my map edge except a bunch of woods with some dirt roads cut through them.  
Bil has the high ground ridge up there and there are three major wooded areas that him and his ilk are no doubt hiding out in.  It is more one on the left but pretty much that approach along with the Valley is dominated by Bil's thugs.  In short, this is not an optimal starting position.
Bil's Plan.  So I have learned some time ago that you are not fighting vehicles and equipment, you are fighting a person (Capt's rule #1).  So spend time understanding and getting inside the head of that person.  With Bil it is easy because we have been sparring in CM for just about 2 decades now.  So here is what I am thinking, that Bil is thinking:

So Bil is probably going to be cautious and build a nice path to victory here.  First he is going to put out Eyes in those woodlines, then he will reinforce with teeth because why stick his neck out if he does not have to?  Then once I have watered the West German countryside with my blood (and other fluids) he will make his reach for Dollbach (Hands...dirty, old, wrinkly hands with yellow fingernails).  I will be at a significant disadvantage at this point because I will be dead, and you do not fight so well when dead (Capt's rule #2).  So my role here is to play peeky snipey from a really crappy position with Soviet gear that does not see as well as his sexy US optics...hmm...Capt no-likey, no likey...one bit.  So now the Plan:

My end goal is to make Bil more dead than me, not to get heavily invested in the West German real estate market.  So we are going to try something simple and blunt.  First, I will get Eyes on my woodline, gotta see what I can see (Capt's Rule #3).  Then I am going to put out hands...fingers really, to make it look like the land grab is my only game.  Then once my art start dropping (could be wait here cause he has EW turned on), I am going to bull rush that corridor and swing up into those hills to kill Bil (Teeth).  This is going to be tricky and I am going to take losses but I can afford them.  I get a MIC FSE in 5 and another Tank Coy-ish in 10, so I will have mass because I am betting the best he has is an Armd Cav platoon, maybe two.  So basically we will play Bil's snipey peeky game for a bit, push recon out into that town to make me look desperate and then freakin charge on the left.  Questions?
 

A few fun screenshots for everyone:





 

CM Cold War takes place on the cusp of big changes happening to both the American and Soviet armies. The arrival of Abrams and Bradley changes the nature of the fight in Europe. Also in this time frame we get a fashion change! See attached, the Americans switching to battle dress uniform. This is new-new art that's still not in the current Beta so you won't see it in any of the posted screenshots. Please forgive my crappy graphics card.

So welcome to our Beta AAR.  Introductions, I am The_Capt...hello.  Some old timers may remember me from back in the day but for the newbies (and hopefully there are a lot of you) I am the Simon to Bil's Garfunkel.  While Bil is detailed, deliberate and cool all resting on a foundation of real talent; I am erratic, insecure and hot-headed resting on very occasional unpredictable sparks.  Between the two of us we try to make wonderful music.
So first the obvious, what is CM Cold War and where did it come from?  Well the game is our brainchild, not that it took a serious leap of imagination as people had been talking about a Cold War game for years.  Bil and I had been looking for a title to cut our designer-teeth on for years as well, and after a few false starts we approached BFC with the idea about 7-8 years ago, to which Steve sagely looked at two complete amateurs and said "uh, sure...why don't you guys go pull some stuff together and we will do lunch".  So we did up all the boring and work-like stuff most of you never see; project documents, historical research, backstories, TO&Es (pouring over things like Senate Arms Committee records and back issues of the US Army magazines), and campaign designs.  Once we did all this we came back to Steve like proud children that had just performed surgery on the family cat.  Steve's eyes went a little wider and very Bruce Willis-like said, "ok let's give these kids a shot".  I am pretty sure we were to remain a weird side project in the basement - that is where the older Beta Testers go in the end - but last year things accelerated and we found ourselves suddenly thrust into the rock and roll lifestyle of computer wargame designers...without the groupies, cocaine or leather pants.
So with a very small team, a tight timeline and another look from Steve that was somewhere between "ya, there is no way these guys are going to make it" and "but if they do...?" (seriously, support from the BFC guys has been outstanding) we started the journey.  So when you play the game on release (it is no secret we are on track for Apr, after Easter) you know who to curse when something either does not look quite right or you are getting beat up on a campaign (the Soviet one is particularly brutal).  If you love the game, praise the entire team, if you are angry that the Soviet officer holster does not look right, feel free to vent at either Bil or I, mostly Bil.
Onto the AAR.  Ok in the proudest tradition of this thing, Bil will wow you all with dazzling intelligence products that would make an ASIC weep.  I, on the other hand, prefer a  more tactile and coffee-stained approach...I also tend to lose these fights.  This map comes from the US campaign, a scenario called Dollbach Heights, but do not worry the scenario is completely different so no spoilers.  This whole thing is occurring in the backdrop of a Cold War-gone-hot strategic situation set in summer of 1982, which may seem quaint today but back in '83 we actually came pretty close.  The Soviets are basically making a break for the Rhine as fast as possible before reserves can be called up and fly-overs conducted.  The US forces are the tripwire forces of V Corp with units like the 11 ACR and 3rd Armd Div (for this AAR we do not assign particular units) as the game centers on the Fulda corridor (between the West German border and Frankfurt).  So the strategic game is simple, Soviets have to move fast as possible to get in close to the major urban areas, knock France out and put the UK into close range.  The bet back in Moscow is that at this point NATO will fracture as half of them sue for peace...we will see how that works out.
A couple points on force balance and doctrine.  So this is 1980, the beginning of a vapid and synthesizer-infested decade (trust me I was there). The US forces are still recovering from the entire Vietnam experience.  Goldwater-Nicols has not happened so we are still talking about conventional service competition in the US military, which was unhealthy (still is) and a US Army that was slowly coming out of the old ROADs models and heading towards AirLand Battle.  The TO&Es are based on the '77 force structures (you will note US tank platoons have 5 tanks).  The "so what?" is that US forces are pretty much at their most vulnerable point in this era.  They lack mass and are moving to active defense and maneuver warfare but the equipment has not caught up.  It is going to feel weird to some but this is a modern (well semi-modern) title where US forces do not dominate the battlefield.  They have to be played carefully to achieve parity.  For example the T62 can kill an M60A3 in the front from about 1500m, so the US player must be elegant and clever...like the gentle fox.
The Soviets on the other hand are the bear that eats said gentle fox and then poops him out, barely breaking stride.  The Soviets at this point are pretty much near the top of their game.  Their equipment is solid, if a little blind, and they have mountains of it. Soviet operational doctrine is actually very good, it uses mass much like it did in WW2, and frankly Genghis would be proud at how well the Soviet can throw MRRs at a problem and simply keep going.  The T64 is a beast, probably the best Soviet tank in the game (particularly the B versions), the T80 can throw a punch too.  The Soviet use of ATGM is frankly terrifying.  First, they literally put those things on just about everything, and the AT 5 feels like the modern day Javelin in that, if it can hit, it will kill.  In testing one scenario of the US Campaign, I played sloppy and watched an BMP MRB shred all the US armor in about 5 mins...so there is that.   
At a tactical level the Soviet are all about lining up the punch.  They were not mindless hordes, they would prepare and shape with recon but when they decided to throw that punch...oh, my.  First they would drop the sky on top of you using massed artillery.  Then they would advance en masse  along multiple axis projecting dilemma everywhere for an opponent.  They would then trade shots until your armor is gone and finally they might dismount and clean up any poor infantry you have left.  I say 'might' because they would often simply bypass those huddle GIs and just keep going.
So for this AAR, I will try to emulate the soviet approach as much as possible.  Stay tuned and see how it turns out.       

The 80's coming !
Yes for DDR helmets
yes for the cold war
Yes for 67' 73'
 I would like be 3 months  older !!
You guys are really awesome !

This is something I threw together in my own time. Please remember that this is from a beta build of the game and is subject to change. 

Ukrainian MR platoon has correct organisation in CMBS, 1 of 3 BMPs has undismountable (sorry for my English ) commander. Like in Soviet TO&E. Russian and Syrian not for some reason... So player has to use snipers or scout teams. Syrian BMPs haven't radio communications with infantry. It's a nightmare, to properly organise "red" motor rifles, so units would share intel and stay in command chain.

BMP-1 is an "armoured taxi" and infantry cannon in 1 piece. In 1944-1945 Soviet infantry was supported by direct lay 76 infantry guns, 7,62 HMGs. BMP-1 was intended to replace infantry guns and heavy MGs. After dropping infantry they must stop and fire to supposed enemy positions.  I use "target area" order, placing target on question marks or randomly. If BMP company randomly shoots ahead, suppression is usually enough to get closer.
By the way, IRL PL assistant stayed in 1 of BMPs. So 1 BMP of 3 had a commander.

In Poland or Germany?

They should be tough. ATGs had armor shield, that covered crew from bullets and shrapnel. In German manual was prohibited to fire mg at distant guns.
Shooting in the question mark with on-map units is a gamey, I think. IRL gunner wouldn't know where exactly is the gun. He could only know that it is "2 hours, 1000m", for example. And using area target player can direct fire with accuracy +-2m.
 

So this warmonger rhetoric is still popular in the Ukraine. I hoped that Ukrainians have woken up after this 6 years. Bad...

but the october is Russian october(means november)
😉

yep for the October revolution to celebrate our comrades

“Cyborgs,” as the Russians came to call the Ukrainian defenders when referring to their perseverance and bravery"
OMG. It's self-claimed nickname, of course. As Russian proverb says, if you don't compliment yourself, nobody compliments you.
 

I would exchange Maus, IS-3, Jagdtiger and anything else for a horse! And German infantry carriage.

Battalions were deeply echeloned. If division attacks in 2,5km front, in 1-st line are 4 rifle battalions (each on 750m front), in 2-nd line 2 rifle battalions, then goes 3-rd regiment. Divisions had objectives deep in the rear and had to be deeply echeloned to achieve this objectives. 
During Vistula-Oder offensive each division transferred 1 battalion to "special echelone", to capture German positions by surprise, during pause in artillery preparation. So this "special echelone" battalions attacked on division frontage, 2-2,5 km (followed by other battalions, in usual formation).