JadamoW

When troops are assaulting, do they carry their gear? (i.e. Backpack, full kit etc.) You'd think they'd drop it off at the bivouac and take essentials (water, couple of rations maybe, ammo, weapons). Or at least park it and come back after the battle is over. Todays infantry packs come with quick releases so you easily can drop'em if you come under fire. I wouldn't think that there'd be an expectation for a grunt to be loaded down in a combat situation. Humping between fights is anothr matter though I also recall watching footage of American troops advancing on a german position in a village. They didn't run, but rather loped (still quicker than walking) at a almost relaxed easy pace. (they seemed to have a confident nonsense attitide.) I don't recall if they were wearing packs or not. For certain, if you were a defender in the scenario, you definitley wouldn't have reason to be toting your pack around. Tiring is probably also a matter of Experience as well. The more experienced troops would have a higher fitness level and higher physical resiliency.

The key here is 'scattered' trees. These are suppose to be 'grove' like areas of small trees with little or no underbrush. Not very effective hiding places. What really happens when you give a hide command to troops/crews in 'scattered' trees, is that they spread out and begin collecting Cherries, oranges, olives and other 'grove' like treasures. This in turn pisses off the pixies and nymphs who will obligingly point out your troops to any aircraft that happen by. Just thought you should know. JOHN

Yes, 'some capability'. Whilst the a Tiger, Panther or even PzIVH have a much greater capability. MY 'point' - the Soviets are outclassed. Grenadier 44S show up in QB troop selections in July 44. My 'point' - these units are not all that uncommon. Correct Sir!. My 'point' is that the Russian infantry don't have an agile unit capable of dealing with larger threats. (AT guns are not what one would call 'agile') My 'point' is that the Germans do have an agile infantry unit capable of dealing with any armour. (at least the schrek gets a shot...ATR would get zip.) My overall 'point' is that in CMBB player playing the Soviets will have a very challenging time of it when dealing with German armour. The player playing the Germans will find that the worry is not Russian Tanks, but the Russian terrain itself. Tiger's and even Panthers seem to bog a lot. JOHN

Schrecks are a pain in the behind though ,and a much more effective AT weapon than an ATR. The point is that the Russian player must work very hard to take out German armour. (especially true against a human opponent.) I stand corrected - Panzerschrecks only have an 'effective' range of 100M. That and the ammo load out does put a damper on their effectivness. However, at 100M they're rated at penetrating 148mm of 30 degree armour. They use HC which is also effective against infantry. Like ATR and Tank Hunter teams, Panzershreck teams have a 'Fast' speed class, and are also very good at hiding. On the other hand, ATRs have a range of 500M at which they are rated at penetrating 19mm of armour at 30 degrees. (at 100M they'll do 26mm). They do have a higher ammo loadout. They're useless against infantry. Yes, the ATR is great aginst the light stuff. Now what to do with that PzIV or Tiger? Yup. definitely the best approach to using these guys. Rush them up to hopefully some key spots and hide. Check out Grenadier44S Battallion. Comes with 18 Panzerschrecks. In 44, the Grens, PanzerGrndr and FalshernJager muster up with PAnzerschreck teams at the Company and Battalion level. Not so for the SS though...heheh...they like to chew on T34s I guess Overall, the ATR is more of a nuisance than a threat. I've had nothing but bad luck vs the bigger tanks with these guys. A platoon backed by a Stu42H or a Tiger is not going to feel all that threatened by ATR teams. On the other hand a platoon of Russians backed by an ISU-122 are definitely going to worry about the possibility of encountering Panzerscherek teams. JOHN

The Soviet ATR is a waste of time. Taking on a PZ1VH is a long shot. In general, the SOV's are out of it when it comes to anti-tank. The SU-85 and T-34/85s will take on the German heavier tanks as long as Tungsten is available. Otherwise, the brittle SOV APBC tend to break up.(OF course, you've slyly manouvered your opponent so that your taking side-shots from 500M or less) Russian infantry have hopeless Anti-tank capabilities. Suuuuuure...the ATRs will take out HTs and LTs...If you've craftily manouvered your ATRs for Side/Rear shots and managed to avoid all those 'schnitzel' eating grunt escorts then you might get lucky and get a hit on a PzIVH. Meanwhile, the German PanzerSchreck teams in the woods 250M away are popping T34s like pimples. I think the key to Russians is to be overwhelming. You don't just send 1 or 2 ATR teams, send 6. Of course, this tactic works for the Germans as well...Aieeeee!, How many PanzerShrecks did you get with a Battalion!?!? JOHN

LOL! So how'd the battle go?

Thanks for taking the time to post again!It's exactly what I was looking for.

I was looking forward to playing CMBB for some a little while, and for no other reason than getting my hands on some Russian armour that would face up to the German juggernaughts. Boy, was I dreaming or what!

Well, the M3 (White) Scout Car was not exactly a small vehicle. The name is somewhat misleading, as the official British designation was: "Truck, 15-cwt, 4x4, armoured personnel". Soviets mainly used the vehicle for liaison and as a prime mover. Still, the mortar issue is a bit strange. Maybe the fact that the later Soviet 82mm mortars had wheels and could be towed has something to do with this. Zak</font>

I stand corrected. 2 Maxims will fit into a M5 HT.

In a scout car? That sounds completely wrong. I'm :confused: too. Michael</font>

:eek: CORRECTION :eek: Only 1 Russian Maxim Team fits into a M3 Scout Car. (In original post I wrote 2 Maxim MG teams could). You can pack 2 Maxim teams in an M5 Halftrack. As an aside, you can place only 1 (2 men - Transport Class = 1) team in an M3, be it a PTRD, Tank Hunter, DP LMG.

A huge THANKS Chris! Gunslinger gets kudos as well. It's funny that people will go on about how great graphics aren't really important in a game like this...and funnier that they'll all be along to download your mod Good work Guyz!

A Soviet 82mm Mortar team is stated as having a Transport Class of 3. (7 men, tube + ~40rnds) However, they won't embark on the M3 Scout Car (Transport Class 6). OK. It might make sense that a teeeeeny Scout car wouldn't be able to accomodate the Mortar team. But then, when I could fit 2 X Maxim MG teams (also Tranpsort class 3) each containing 6 men, 1 HMG with wheels and ~75rnds ammo, :confused: :eek: CORRECTION :eek: Only 1 Russian Maxim Team fits into a M3 Scout Car. (In original post I wrote 2 Maxim MG teams could). More observations posted. I concluded that the Scout Car was muuuuch bigger and really should accommodate at least 1 Mortar Team. Has this been logged as a bug anywhere? I did a search and came up with only 1 other related posting. Didn't notice it in the bug list. [ November 13, 2002, 01:25 AM: Message edited by: JadamoW ]

Now that makes terrific sense. It's too bad we can't apply this during Setup (hiding a tank in a building that is.) Which brings another question. Should we be able to deploy AT guns in a building or rubble?