Jump to content

Kingfish

Members
  • Posts

    4,211
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by Kingfish

  1. Jason,

    I also thought of the III Flak Corp, but considered it a less likely candidate for several reasons.

    First, the sector assigned to the 192nd PzGr regiment, the Colombelles factory and Caen south, was predominately urban, or at least built up to a much greater extent than the towns and villages surrounding Caen. This strikes me as terrain unsuitable for the deployment of an 88 battery, be it for air or ground defense, since these weapons work best when engaging at extended ranges.

    Secondly, there is no mention (that I can find) of 88s engaging the British armor from this sector.

    Reynolds made it a point to mention the 4-gun battery at Cagny, and what a thorn in the side it was for the Guards armored during its advance on Vimont. An 8-gun battery in the Colombelles sector would have been smack dab in the path of the British 29th armored brigade, and would have caused considerable loss and delay, yet the lead regiments did not encounter any opposition until they had advanced as far as the Caen-Vimont road.

    Now, it is possible that this unit was one of those caught in the carpet bombing attack, but from what I read the targetted area was further east.

  2. On a somewhat-related-note, Reynolds describes the German defenses on the eve of Goodwood as including the 192nd PzGr regiment and an attached Luftwaffe panzerjager battalion deployed in and around the Colombelles factory area and Caen south.

    My question is - what was the ID of the Luftwaffe unit? Part of 16th Luftwaffe div, and if so which Kompanie?

  3. An alternative strategy, and one that has worked for me, is to send your entire force minus the tanks up and over pink hill to come up from behind the village.

    The allied player gains two advantages from this approach:

    a) you place your force between the Germans and their friendly map edge, something the AI does not like.

    B) the buildings on the back side of the village mask those on the front, meaning you've cut the defender's firepower in half.

    The tanks should be held back and in cover, with short covered arcs. As soon as the main assault begins the tanks should race up to a position where they can cover the main road and prevent the Germans from redeploying.

    It takes a while to get your force into position, so once the assault begins it must be carried out aggressively. One company on overwatch / fire support while the other advances, then leapfrog forward again. The Germans will put up a spirited defense, but the combined firepower of over a hundred Lee-Enfields plus Brens will slowly grind them down.

  4. Originally posted by Nemesis Lead:

    Would love it if my column got flanked. Then they are in real trouble because I will just turn toward them and hit them online.

    This is assuming of course that the enemy is only going to hit you from one flank. Besides, turning 90 degrees to face an enemy on the flank exposes your own flank to the FLOT.

    With the alternative, attacking on line, getting flanked is a real worry as you can be rolled up.
    Not on line, but in depth. 2 up, 1 back is a classic example. If your lefthand force gets flanked, you still have your reserves to

    a) reinforce your LH force -or-

    B) flank the flankers -or-

    c) provide a fallback position.

    Attacking in column does not negate the danger of getting your flanks rolled up. In fact, it increases it since your depth is only as wide as your column.

  5. Originally posted by Nemesis Lead:

    The biggest problem with most attackers is that they attack online. Without depth, you can't sustain casualties and push through an MLR in most cases.

    Advancing across a broad front certainly does lack depth, but allows the opportunity to flank any strongpoint encountered while protecting your own flanks. The best approach is a combination of broad and depth.
  6. Does anyone know the actual OOB of this unit during Goodwood?

    Zetterling shows 4 batteries, each a mixture of 4x 75mm and 6x 105mm armed assault guns.

    However, Reyonolds describes the unit's OOB on the eve of the attack as being divided into 5 batteries, with a total of 30x 75mm and 20x 105mm assault guns.

    Also, I understand these vehicles were field modifications built atop French chassis. Would they be closer in comparison to the Marder / Wespe line, or StuG / StuH?

    Thanks

  7. Yes, because CM does not add 'under the hood' modifiers for specific formations or time periods. A regular VG platoon in May '45 will perform the same as a PzGr platoon of June '44. Assuming the same bonuses from HQs and/or terrain, the two will only differ in the firepower rating, and that is due only to the different TO&E.

    As Vergeltungswaffe pointed out, it is up to the scenario designer to simulate the historical modifiers.

  8. Originally posted by Der Kuenstler:

    It appears not by looking at the stats. For example, it is possible to buy "crack" volksgrenadiers for QBs the first month they come out in August of '44. Shouldn't it be only possible to get them as conscripts?

    Not always. Note the last sentence in the Wiki quote:

    ...usually organized around small cadres of hardened veterans."
    It certainly is possible that those hardened veterans would have had 4+ years of war under their belt by the fall of '44. Granted, the likelihood of seeing a full battalion of crack volksgrenadier is very slim, and chances are these would have been parceled out to the newer formations to serve as 'backbone', it isn't entirely out of the question.

    Just prior to the launching of the Ardennes offensive Field Marshal Manteuffel ordered the creation of special inflitration units composed of the best men from each of the divisions assigned to the opening assault. These men were all handpicked, and would have easily fallen in the 'veteran or better' category.

  9. I looked at it, and agree the map is very nice, although the combination German / Spanish landmarks seem odd.

    One other thing I found odd about the map is the general arrangment of the craters, which seem a little too evenly spaced. This is just an observation based on personal preference.

    This would no doubt be a challenge for the German player in a H2H, but I would recommend removing the padlocks and allowing freedom to deploy as he sees fit. Perhaps two versions of the scenario - H2H and against the Axis AI.

  10. Unlike the smaller guns, such as Pak 40s or 75mm IGs, the 88s are immobile the moment the carrier unloads them. Therefore, the best thing to do is deploy them at setup, where the LOS tool can be used to scan the terrain for the optimal location. If the first spot is not to your liking simply pick up the gun and redeploy, something you won't be able to do with an embarked 88.

×
×
  • Create New...