Tactical Lifehack

[BTR]

Might be a placebo, but I've gotten better results that way. 

[LukeFF]

4 hours ago, Erwin said:

Are you sure that the stance taken during a PAUSE is actually calculated differently re LOS than from a normal resting position? 

Yes

[Erwin]

Very good to know...   I never noticed that a PAUSE puts a man in a different pose.

[Artkin]

This is PBEM gold 

[A Canadian Cat]

21 hours ago, Erwin said:

Are you sure that the stance taken during a PAUSE is actually calculated differently re LOS than from a normal resting position?  I thought stuff like that was only eye-candy.

No the spotting takes into account the eyeball level of the troops. Haven't we been through this before? Guys lying down is the reason they loose sight of things they saw as they were moving into position. As soon as they lay down in the tall grass they loose their LOS to the target they were just looking at.

[BTR]

5 hours ago, Erwin said:

Very good to know...   I never noticed that a PAUSE puts a man in a different pose.

Only if you have a move order issued. That is the key component.

[Artkin]

Is there any other way to get inf to stand up and spot? If not thats on the christmas list..

[Erwin]

19 hours ago, BTR said:

Only if you have a move order issued. That is the key component.

Will definitely be using that as a deliberate tactic. 

Generally, I QUICK move my recon guys using multiple 10-20 meters runs with a 5-10 second pauses at each waypoint - but only so they don't get tired.  Never considered that  would change their stance and therefore their spotting ability.   So thanks for the useful tip.  What I will do now when required for spotting is issue a movement order but give the unit a permanent PAUSE to force em to keep their heads up.

Question:  Can one order an FO in a similar way with it not affect his ability to order a strike?  Or, do FO's keep their heads up normally (ie FO's naturally spot better/more efficiently than regular troops)?  I already know that FO's and IIRC mortar units can spot further than regular troops.

(Am not aware of any other way to force the guys to change their stance other than by moving.  I think that stance is under AI control only.)

Edited September 20, 2017 by Erwin

[Sgt.Squarehead]

Great tips to be had in here.....Cheers all. 

[MOS:96B2P]

On 9/18/2017 at 2:10 PM, BTR said:

I don't know if this is such a lifehack or not, but in order to get more spotting out of your infantry issue a paused move order and watch them all take a crouched stance instead of laying around. 

 

On 9/18/2017 at 2:22 PM, Rinaldi said:

Fantastic, that slipped my mind. I use this when advancing and attacking in tall foilage/wheat as well.

I've been experimenting with this but can't get consistent results.  Are you guys doing this in CMBS Engine 4?   I tried it in both CMRT and CMBS (both engine 4) but the results seem random.  Maybe I don't understand this tactic fully.  The A-team split (with the binoculars) seems to have one troop up and looking more often than the B team does in the same circumstance but still random (and ironically the leader with the binoculars is always prone).  

I have tried it several different ways with different length pauses, at different waypoints and different movement orders but no consistent results.  If you still think it works and have the time step by step directions might help explain it.    

[Erwin]

Maybe this stance feature is only a feature of the later CM2 titles.  I have been playing CMSF at lot recently and experimenting with giving units a MOVE order and a PAUSE - and it doesn't seem to make any difference to their stance. 

Sometimes units are kneeling even without any move order.  Sometimes they are lying down even with a move and pause order.  I get the impression their stance is only a function of the current situation as their AI brains see it.   I haven't experimented with the WW2 or CMBS titles.

[Vanir Ausf B]

The Pause + move command thing does work with the caveat that the unit must be already moving when the pause order is applied, which obviously limits its utility in WEGO.

[Erwin]

"already moving..."   Ah, ok.

Nevertheless, I found that stationary inf units were either kneeling or lying down based on some sort of AI decision.  They were not all lying down - ie: did not all have the same stance. 

[Vanir Ausf B]

There is a random factor in each soldier's stance. If you change a squad's facing on flat ground you'll notice that different soldiers will be prone or kneeling. Terrain also has some effect. Soldiers on a slope facing uphill are more likely to kneel and may even stand up.

Edited September 23, 2017 by Vanir Ausf B

[Erwin]

Re spotting...  The point I was trying to make is that it's not necessary to go to the trouble of issuing a MOVE command with a  PAUSE in order to get in units to kneel for better LOS.  Most of the time, some or all are kneeling anyway.

[MOS:96B2P]

15 hours ago, Vanir Ausf B said:

The Pause + move command thing does work with the caveat that the unit must be already moving when the pause order is applied, which obviously limits its utility in WEGO.

Ahhh!!! Now the light bulb went off!!! I got it to work!  .  With different combinations of movement orders and Pauses this is kind of useful. 

This is some of what I learned: It will not work with Slow.  With Hunt you can get every member of the team upright or just half the team.  

1) Give the team a movement order (anything but Slow) they can't complete before the end of the turn.  A 45 second Pause before the team begins its movement will help to keep the team from reaching a close action square.   

2) Next turn cancel the movement and give the team a Pause. The team will stop moving with all team members upright instead of prone. The length of the Pause can be changed if you want the troops to spot for awhile and then go prone.  Give them a 15 second Pause.  They will stop, stay upright for about two spotting cycles and then go prone.  Give them a permanent Pause and they will stay upright the entire turn and longer.  

3) Hunt works a little different but gives you a choice of the entire team upright or just half the team.  For half the team upright use the above method with Hunt.  For the entire team to remain upright on Hunt do not cancel the movement but just give a permanent Pause.   

The learning never stops with this game. 

[Sgt.Squarehead]

Damn he's good! 

Come to think about it, it does make very good sense, especially the latter part.....'Hunt' = 'Acquire Targets' after all. 

I'm going to assume that was planned and that it's all part of the subtle genius of CM. 

Edited September 23, 2017 by Sgt.Squarehead

[Artkin]

Thank you MOS!

[BTR]

Lifehack at work. Also, I noticed a lot more squad members now carry two main weapons (MG + SVD or SVD + AK in this particular squad). Is this a bug or has Ai behavior upon weapon acquisition changed? Example with zero input from my side. 

Edited September 25, 2017 by BTR

[Apocal]

5 hours ago, BTR said:

Lifehack at work. Also, I noticed a lot more squad members now carry two main weapons (MG + SVD or SVD + AK in this particular squad). Is this a bug or has Ai behavior upon weapon acquisition changed? Example with zero input from my side. 

That has been happening occasionally for years. It is rare that I notice it because I don't often look at my own troops close up, but sometimes in the post-battle review I notice guys with two long arms. I don't know if it is a bug or unintended behavior from the bazooka/PF code or what and I can't figure out how to reliably cause it, but it does happen. Not really a big deal either way.

[BTR]

After applying V4 of the engine I've started noticing it in almost game I have, both on US side (guys with M4s and SAWs poor sods) and on Ru side. In that particular scenario above out of three squads two had this issue. Were it a rare occurrence I probably would not have noticed. 

[Oleksandr]

A little yet important thing - placing your soldiers under the hill while defending will give them huge advantage in terms of the "first shot." 

[Machor]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_slope_defence 

[Oleksandr]

Placing your armor on different levels but facing same direction will let your units attack together. What I like even more is that the more your enemy will push forward, the more firepower will work on him.  

[Oleksandr]

Another simple but sometimes ignored thing - using static MG's is way more effective when applying them to your enemy's flank. Meaning that when your MG team facing your enemy it engages few soldiers. But if you hit your enemy with your MG fire from the side - it will supress and affect way more. You basically can stop an advance of a platoon if you will hit it from a side in a right moment. Always remember that your advantage will decrease after your enemy will return fire on you. So use your MG teams wisely in a proper manner and always with cooperation of other units. The best thing you can do is to cross fire, yet setting up crossfire in meeting engagement or while attacking can be tricky due to your need to move forward.