GS_Guderian

It wasn´t about getting on low, but thx for your tips. i absolutly love that you get low, when you fire forever. Sometimes they have all of their load, because I killed them before they fired a shot. I don´t mean direct hit by arty, we all know that you won´t finde much afterwards. But if the LIVING are using theirs, hell why not the enemy living? Where is the difference, especially when my men are using Ppsh anyway? If a group takes ammo from their own (even during attack, not defense in a trench!) then shouldn´t I be able to at least get something out of an overrun position? Or when I advance over the 2 beaten companies that just failed to assault me? I get your point, but when I "buy" 3 x 105mm Arty Support from my regiment/division, those artillery guns come from the same artillery regiment (most likely). The officers all know each other, the batteries fire positions aren´t to much scattered around (they are here to support me, obviously they are all about the same distance away) Major Figorov would be in charge of battery 1, while 2 other majors are in charge of the other ones. Lieutenant Vilishenko is one of the spotters of the artillery regiment. One of several. Today he is tasked to work for me (as the battalion commander who was admitted for 3 batteries of 105mm). He is not tasked to work for the artillery battery, and even if we say, that Russian Doctrine was that stiff, let´s make him the exclusive spotter of the day for battery # 3. Now his two comrades, both lieutenants and his friends in the rough days of war are also with me. They all carry the same low quality radio equipment to reach the batteries in the back. Now if those two other lieutenants die, and I order my brave Lieutenant Vilishenko to ask for the shells of those other two batteries, what will happen? This is the elaborate story I meant. I just feel that it is more then awkward that Arty Support is lost, when the observer is lost. Landline spotters ok, maybe the only rocket spotter, too, but if they are all the same type? You are right about the fire plan arty for Russia, it helps avoiding the trouble, but in Defense I love to work with a few target zones. In special occasions they did. It was a very common defensive strategy in the defense of eastern Prussia. Dammned to defend every meter of earth the defenders of e.g. Breslau did make use of that tactic intensivly. The pioneers picked a building most likely suitable for an enemy HQ to move in, cornerhouse, good cellar, etc.. Explosives where hidden, right after the forward lines were foced back and the house was left to the enemy. After some spotting to make sure the house is in good use, they blew it up. Btw. Breslau had tons of surplus exlosives left since it was manufactured there until the city got surrounded. I am aware that this is not the common everyday tatctic like barbwire, but it could be rather expensive aynway. I don´t doubt that they abandoded the gun to hide (too bad you can never take the gun back after that, in CM), but a 37mm ATG or a 2 pounder is very well maneuverable by it´s crew. And the general order surely wasn´t to get into one position and fire from there until dead or ammo gets low. It´s a common rule of combat to change your position after you fired. You can tell tanks to do so (or at least try it) but not your ATGs. That doesn´t make sense to me, really. I am not talking abou a 100mm late war ATG or a heavy AAG. The smoke still vanishes to fast, no matter what caliber imho. And yet, infantry smoke grenades existed. I never said, that those guys should have eneough to cover every crossing of a street. I don´t mind them having strict historical rarity on those either. But NONE!!!! is even more ahistorical.

You are welcome

Well, it´s not that important anyway I guess. Hopefully HE shells and Pioneers can do harm to wire in later versions. Without proper Infantry smoke grenades it seems to be hard enough to attack positions behind wire. As long as the defender has a decent amount of firepower you will loose many men. Fair enough for now, I suppose. Just love to lay kilometers of wire

Another question: Do Pioneers work against barbedwire? Can you blow it up? Sad enough, that you can´t boobytrap it, because even covered wire is penetrated by enemy infantry without damaging the wire, it seems!?!

Thx for the quick reponses, looks like CMX2 will be my friend

Hi there, I know there might be plenty of those questions asked before and I even tried to pull some out off the achive but I failed so far. Actually I got lost in reading all kinds of other neat threads. Similar to the encyclopedia phenomena, you read all kinds of articles but the one you were looking up Ok, a short explanation of my thinking. I have been playing Close-Combat, mostly III (RR Mod) for years and actually never really looked deep into CM until a month ago. I never thought, that the 60secs turns could be fun, but after my first real game I noticed that the vast maps and great unit numbers cannot be handled by Real-time. Anyway, I must admit: I absolutly love the game. Especially from my professions point of view, German Panzergrennadier for some time now. Now here are some questions, that I hope one or two of you guys are able and willing to answer: Ammunition: I like the way you have to control your guys (Feuerzucht) and how fast you run out of ammo with "senseless" shooting. But why on earth don´t your troops fetch ammo from the dead. Do they? I am used to grab all knds of handweapons and ammo with my Close-Combat groups. I know it was awkward how the MG 42 was passed over 50m because Schuetze Mueller died and maybe they were to effective in finding PpsH and Ammo along their way, but at least they tried. My CM guys (Russian Theatre) don´t bother to search the dead (other then the ones in their group). Hell my guys even use captured handweapons from the scratch, how did they get them? Issued by the "Stabsfeldwebel" in the rear? Why don´t they grab russian handgrenades and a Mosin, if all they have left is a bajonet? I don´t demand them to use Panzerschreck and Flamethrowers (neat crew exploit from CC) but at least they could help me a bit. Also, if one group within your squad is low on ammo, you oughta be able to interchange with the rest of your platoon. Put them close together and they equal it out? At least what I would order in that case. Artillery Observers: An Artillery Observer is a trained soldier. Trained for the job of spotting and leading artillery fire. Why on earth should he only be able to lead the fire from ONE battery? Is it is personal battery? Will Major Figorov not let loose his rockets if Lieutenant Vilishenko asks for it? Just because he is the genuine Observer of another battery? I would love to see myself purchasing artillery rounds without observers. They could be added to support. Of course a skilled rocket man is better for the Nebelwerfer then a mortar spotter, but they can all do the job. Hell, even my training as a platoon leader including (Very basic) spotting and leading of artillery fire. I can understand it to a certain point when the landline spotters are restricted to talking to their battery, but all most of my leaders have radios. I might even allow the obsever to use it, if I don´t want to call in the fire on my own. All (radio) obsevers should be able to call in all of the fire which is granted to my battalion, regiment, whatever. Maybe worse results because the battery officer must cope with a new voice, but let them fire! Smoke Ammo: Why can I either use smoke or HE shells with Artillery. How do they know what I want to use before they pile up the ammo? Or do the XXX shots represent a certain time my artillery is willing to fire before changing positions? But the counter battery fire would almost always hit them, when I split the 2 x 36 rounds in half. I think it would make much more sense to say: Artillery type XY has 72 HE shells, and 36 smoke. Use them or not. Don´t make them smoke one time and HE another time. No magic in war, no? Defense in buildings: Is there a difference performance wise if I move an MG into a house and defend it, or if I was in there before? I know there is thread about the possible firepower out of the windows, etc., but that´s not the point. When I am ordered to defend a house with my platoon (yes platoon, any building that is bigger then a ranger hut can easily house all of my men, especially two story and or cellar buildings), and when I have time for it, I will "fortify" the house. Just like barbed wire, roadblocks and mines, I would like to have a "fortified" building for purchase. This represents: - the wiremash, empty sandbags and alike in front of windows, only fixed on the top of the window frame. This allows to drop grenades out, but enemy grenades will bounce off. - tables, cupboards and sandbags build nice fire positions in the rear of the room. The surroundings of a window can be strengthened by sandbags. - all unnessecary openings are closed and blocked or boobytrapped. - new openings are broken in to the walls, if possible to allow different fire angles. - fire positions inside behind most likely entrances. Well covered with furniture and sandbags. - all stairways are barbed wired or blocked with furniture, story to story movement only by ladders. (Obviously this is rather impossible in concrete buildings, but with thin and wooden floors you can easily drive holes from celler to attic. Ladders can be pulled up or down, denying easy access to intruders). - the cellar will be strengthened with balks (if you have much time and material) to sustain artilley strikes. Etc., etc. You see, there is a hell of a job a platoon can do to your house, if you let us Anyway this could and should make a real difference in defense and without proper preparation it should be harder to defend a building!!!!! Mining houses: It was a common way to defend a town with mines, boobytraps and other means of explosives hidden in house you willingly leave to the enemy. Once inside he looses men to grenades attached to doors or mines attached to stairways. Just like a normal "minefield". In other words, why can´t I "mine" houses? Blowing up houses: Another way of fighting in urban areas was to prepare large stacks of explosives inside certain buildings. Like the corner building of two streets. You are almost certain the enemy will use it in it´s advance. As soon as the whole group, platoon is in. You blow it up. Could be represented by engineers who are with a certain radius of such a prepared house. You buy the "explosives" place them like a minefield, and any pioneer within a vicinity of 100...200m (length of the fuse cable?) will detonate them as soon as infantry is detected inside. Result just as if a SU-152 blew the house up. Prisoners: I know some things have to stay abstract, but sometimes I end up with 2 companies of prisonders. Unguarded, standing in the rear. I disliked the concept in CC and it ain´t better here. Taking prisoners costs men, one of the reasons some leaders refrain from taking them at all. :mad: Fighting with ATG/IG: Is it only me or is it impossible to tell a gun to just shoot ONCE (1 shot!!!!) and then immediately move out of the position. I know it´s the same concept as in CC, you tell the group leader to attack. He will do as good as he and his men can do. But it´s simply annoying. My ATG opens fire, sometimes gets of a second shot, rarely a third. Often the enemy tank is killed after 1-2 rounds, but they won´t stop. Heroically they look for the next target, but sometimes the are facing 10-20 tanks. Why don´t they stop? Why don´t they move? Especially in Defense an ATG Crew would prepare several fire positions, to switch after a few quick shots. Right now I trade my guns one for a tank (If I kill it), a good quota? Yes, maybe, but I would still like to have my men survive. It can´t be that hard to rush backward 10-15m with a 45mm cannon. Especially if your position was prepared and the "retreat way" cleared. Smoke: If I see it right smoke lasts like 2-3 minutes. Even without wind. What kind of use does it have then? Is that because of performance problems? Where is infantry smoke? Right now pulling your troops out of a position is their death. You might as well give "Halte-Befehle" like the GröFaz himself. There is no way to cover your retreat, other then calling in mortar smoke. A little silly to do that every time you want to pull a group back. In most of my Defense/Offense games the Defender died in his position or ran panic stricken to got shot. The principle of no "Interleaving" (Verzahnung) with the enemy can´t be used. Pulling back troops should be a little bit easier with infantry smoke grenades. And even that smoke would last longer then 2-3 minutes.