Oleksandr

Part 24. Keeping enemy closed, adjusting front line plans, cheking out those trees etc. 
Note: This mission got perfect conditions for a reason of showing some core principals. In real battle you should expect involvement of heavy armor (will talk about it later), aviation (will talk about it later), intell will not always be there from the very start (will talk about it later), and so on. The reason for this series is to introduce players who werent using massive amounts of units with some basics related to managment of huge force at once. Again - in real battle you will not have these conditions but by viewing this topic you might pick up something what you can further adopt to your own battles. Last but not least - fair and unfair scenarios will be shown here within time. This topic is not for days its for years to come so be patient - feel free to share your tactical lifehacks and feel free to ask questions. Critics are welcome as well - but a constructive one (imagine we are all sitting in HQ and thinking how to do things better together). 
 So from the previous posts about battalion level attack on a company you could see the general plan for adjusting and forming 2nd phase frontline. 
But before you do so you should take care of time consuming stuff like - calling for an arty support and for checking out those tree lines on the right and on the left.

In general you should always be careful while moving through forests and treelines. The reason for that is simple - your enemy can be waiting for you there and if his infantry is already in position it will see your infantry and will open fire first. Who opens fire first usually wins. But when you are in command of a larger forces you can let yourself do things what you would not be able to do while commanding smaller forces. 
So while planing all that movment you should also take care of further arty support. It will take time while commanding Ukrainian side so do it in advance. 
'
While that is going on start forming a group what will push through those woods. 

It would be great if you push those positions what you've managed to already put under fire few times. So for example - there were 3 vehicles standing in those woods - forces around them were in good moral and good standing. Now when as you can see smoke is going up - those units are not as tough as they were before. Pushing them with an entire platoon step by step from one side and flanking them with spec ops at certain moment will minimize your risks. 

It will take time but it is a good thing - sometimes under electronic warfare conditions your arty stike can be a long wait (up to 28 minutes actually). 
so use that time. 

End of Part 24. 

Part 24. Keeping enemy closed, adjusting front line plans, cheking out those trees etc. 
Note: This mission got perfect conditions for a reason of showing some core principals. In real battle you should expect involvement of heavy armor (will talk about it later), aviation (will talk about it later), intell will not always be there from the very start (will talk about it later), and so on. The reason for this series is to introduce players who werent using massive amounts of units with some basics related to managment of huge force at once. Again - in real battle you will not have these conditions but by viewing this topic you might pick up something what you can further adopt to your own battles. Last but not least - fair and unfair scenarios will be shown here within time. This topic is not for days its for years to come so be patient - feel free to share your tactical lifehacks and feel free to ask questions. Critics are welcome as well - but a constructive one (imagine we are all sitting in HQ and thinking how to do things better together). 
 So from the previous posts about battalion level attack on a company you could see the general plan for adjusting and forming 2nd phase frontline. 
But before you do so you should take care of time consuming stuff like - calling for an arty support and for checking out those tree lines on the right and on the left.

In general you should always be careful while moving through forests and treelines. The reason for that is simple - your enemy can be waiting for you there and if his infantry is already in position it will see your infantry and will open fire first. Who opens fire first usually wins. But when you are in command of a larger forces you can let yourself do things what you would not be able to do while commanding smaller forces. 
So while planing all that movment you should also take care of further arty support. It will take time while commanding Ukrainian side so do it in advance. 
'
While that is going on start forming a group what will push through those woods. 

It would be great if you push those positions what you've managed to already put under fire few times. So for example - there were 3 vehicles standing in those woods - forces around them were in good moral and good standing. Now when as you can see smoke is going up - those units are not as tough as they were before. Pushing them with an entire platoon step by step from one side and flanking them with spec ops at certain moment will minimize your risks. 

It will take time but it is a good thing - sometimes under electronic warfare conditions your arty stike can be a long wait (up to 28 minutes actually). 
so use that time. 

End of Part 24. 

I have wonderful friends with whom Im playing and some of them are not on this forum and also I have few people with whom Im working on maps and campign. And its players kind of thing to decide weather to use something or not. There will be 0 attention given to certain people because I have my reasons for that. So I mean you guys need to figure what will work for you the best on your own. And one more thing if you have any questions or like any suggestions - feel free to msg me. 

You can play with someone or against AI and check those things if you want. I mean thats why Im posting them. Yet many people here thinking that they can put out of the contest what I am saying or showing and by that they think they can make this super vieweble topic less interesting for other players. I guess someone still didnt got one thing - Im stronger than 2nd amendment lol But again - you guys can do whatever you so desire) There are few people on this forum with whom I will never talk, dicuss or get involved in any  type of activity. So i mean if someone will do "myth busting" thing it will make me only more popular lol. Last time those people tried to do harm to my posts I won a medal here on this forum lol 
 
And there will be so many more content going on man you dont even know... Like right after I post this reply there will be actually new content))) 

Well...   you clearly don't live in NY.

The Russians must also have this problem because they seem to have stopped as well.

You can play with someone or against AI and check those things if you want. I mean thats why Im posting them. Yet many people here thinking that they can put out of the contest what I am saying or showing and by that they think they can make this super vieweble topic less interesting for other players. I guess someone still didnt got one thing - Im stronger than 2nd amendment lol But again - you guys can do whatever you so desire) There are few people on this forum with whom I will never talk, dicuss or get involved in any  type of activity. So i mean if someone will do "myth busting" thing it will make me only more popular lol. Last time those people tried to do harm to my posts I won a medal here on this forum lol 
 
And there will be so many more content going on man you dont even know... Like right after I post this reply there will be actually new content))) 

CMBS: Ukrainian Marines In Field Toad Camouflage By Oleksandr

This is a huge mod what will replace standard ukrainian uniform with two new ones: Ukrainian “Assault Suit” and “Mabuta Mk-2” both in Field Toad Camouflage.

Ukrainian Marines and Special Forces are wearing both types of uniforms finished in this unique camouflage.


It was created by the same company what created “Varan Camouflage” and Mabuta-Mk 2 uniform – P1G-Tac.

Wearing this uniform your units will perfectly fit in the game.

This is how Mabuta Mk-2 will look like in the game (you might remember that uniform by using my first mod “Mabuta Mk-2 Varan Camo”):

This is how Assault Suit will look like:

 
Units in the game will be predominantly wear Assault uniforms while fewer soldiers will be wearing Mabuta Mk-2 (its way more expensive).
All the gear was reworked accordingly – for example knee protection:

 or helmets 


Patches of Ukrainian Marines were added as well.

NOTE: This mod will not work with my “Varan Mabuta Mk-2” mod. You need to delete it before using this one. But you will lose nothing because Mabuta Mk-2 itself is part of this mod, although it is covered by a different camouflage now. 
NOTE N2: All the skins for this mod will came out as a stand alone mod because I want people with any of my mods seing those boots, gloves, eye protection, face masks etc. So it will came out soon as a stand alone mod. 
NOTE N3: This mod will not conflict with any of my Digital Camouflage mods. 

I hope you will enjoy it!
Link to Download: http://cmmodsiii.greenasjade.net/?p=5841
Glory to Ukraine!

Some of @Oleksandr mods at work in the field.  Very cool. 




Thanks for the mod work. 

General "Mill" tactics. 
While working with tanks it is iportant to change position often. But sometimes you find yourself such a nice spot on a map that you dont want to change it. Well in that case you will need to look for 2 additional positions near by. Put one tank into position by giving him movement order +plus add up to 30 seconds pause on his position and give him "reverse" order. During those 30 seconds your tank will be able to located and fire on target at least once, then he will retreat. After he moved back use the same technic to your "replacement" tank - let him take exactly the same position as your first tank and also give him 30 seconds to work on target before reverse move. By doing that you will make it nearly impossible for your enemy to take out your tank. You need to set your "Mill of death" in a random place on a map, while doing raiding with your tank unit - you should not apply this tactics while hitting your enemy directly in the face. Because in that case "reversing" will benefit your enemy. Sometimes while playing against skilled opponent you can be hunted for doing this, and this is where the "Covering" tank will work. "Covering" tank should be located under the certain angle towards your enemy position. That tank should not be exposed to enemy positions yet, it should control area in front of your target. If your "Mill" tanks will be hunted during those sneaky rotations your "covering" tank will simply execute those who will go after you. So the logic is simple - destroying your enemy shot after shot without giving him time to lock on your units. If your enemy will dare to move some armor forward your covering tank will punish that armor right away. This technique will take some time and practice before you will master it but if you will it will come in handy. It is important to remember that controling areas where your enemy is is always nice but thinking one step ahead will make you even more effective. 
 

True.  But, often one has to advance into and through a forest (eg you only have inf in a forest scenario or clearing a way for vehicles along a road).   Be good to discuss best tactics for that at a later time.
Also, you are not using covered arcs.  One wants to have vehicle turrets facing in the direction of the enemy - so esp on flanks.  And often you want the individual vehicles' turrets facing in different directions.  Currently, it's a PITA to have to create a whole bunch of unique covered arcs for a company+ of vehicles.  A reason why I hope we'll eventually get the "one click" 180 degree arc feature that was so easy to do in CM1.
"Do not get cocky when you dont need to."
Words to live by.  Impatience and hubris are the real killers in this game.

LOL thanks. He is doing well in school and probably heading for grad school. I hope he keeps playing hockey but it will not be professionally.

Indeed. I always remember what my son's hockey coach used to say (and now I say it:-): winning is nice and all but if you cannot have fun while you are loosing you need to find a different game cause you *are* going to loose.

Is this referring to the duration of shelling, or the number of shells used?  As mentioned earlier in CMSF tests I found that long barrages using HARASS seemed much more effective than a short HEAVY barrage.
And yes those are all Olek's mods.  It's his Ural you're liking.  All available at CMMODS.

Olek, is this a truck mod that you made ?  I don't remember seeing this one.  It looks very cool. 
Also the artillery = 1/2 the mortar barrage is an interesting idea.  Similar to the artillery pinning the OpFor and then the mortars maintaining the pin while the maneuver elements move up to close and hose.  
 
Your mods look really cool in this screenshot.  +1

Agreed.  The WW2 tutorials are fine for WW2 era.  While I am a very experienced player of both CM1 and CM2, I find CMBS particularly challenging and very hard to get a handle on when playing Red (or Ukrainian) forces with Red-type vehicles - and that is vs the AI. 
One simply has to forget everything about what one learned about how to use NATO forces.   It takes a different mind set - especially when playing the large missions where one has around a Battalion sized "kampfgruppe".  Olek's attempts to help are the only ones I am aware of that deal with modern era tactics and so am certain that many of us appreciate his ideas - even if one doesn't necessarily agree with all of them.  As someone who helps gamers with tactical ideas rather than an "academic" dealing with weapons systems comparisons, Olek is a wonderful asset to these forums.
 

Really appreciate your job but, more the time that you take to explain, with lot of text, giving some examples, defined in details situations, added somes personals infos, take time to respond to some posts...ignore the others one... and almost every week, a beautiful mod...man... YOU alone, let working the forum...😊👍👍

One more thing - I will not talk, react or support any toxic stuff. I don't have time or willing to do that. 
I found out that something was said about me just because Mr. Steve quoted. I've blocked few individuals long time ago and I have no intention to keep in touch with them.
If they are saying something here (which I dont see) it is your right to listen or to ignore them. There are few people with whom I have no desire to talk to, and I will not. Now they can say anything they want - there will be "0" reaction from my side. I do what I do - they do what they do. 

One more thing - I will not talk, react or support any toxic stuff. I don't have time or willing to do that. 
I found out that something was said about me just because Mr. Steve quoted. I've blocked few individuals long time ago and I have no intention to keep in touch with them.
If they are saying something here (which I dont see) it is your right to listen or to ignore them. There are few people with whom I have no desire to talk to, and I will not. Now they can say anything they want - there will be "0" reaction from my side. I do what I do - they do what they do. 

Part 11. Last preparation before making that move. 
So lets say we planned all of our companies movements. We did our arty thing, we prepared positions for heavy weapons. We already did a lot of damage to a defending company. We are ready to advance with an entire battalion on a bleeding company (military math: platoon against squad, company against platoon, battalion against company, regiment against battalion and so on). Everything seems right? Well yes and no. Before making that massive push forward I would still reccomend you to use good old scout teams. 

Just in case - just to make sure that your enemy is ready to be smashed. 

Those moments will pay off trust me - sometimes a well trained scout team can give you some intell what will change your general plan. Be careful while sending those men forward. 

Its all will pay off when this is going to start happening: 

So take your time while preparing hell. 
End of Part 11. 

One more thing - I will not talk, react or support any toxic stuff. I don't have time or willing to do that. 
I found out that something was said about me just because Mr. Steve quoted. I've blocked few individuals long time ago and I have no intention to keep in touch with them.
If they are saying something here (which I dont see) it is your right to listen or to ignore them. There are few people with whom I have no desire to talk to, and I will not. Now they can say anything they want - there will be "0" reaction from my side. I do what I do - they do what they do. 

Gentlemen - none of you should follow my advices. It is all optional and if you guys dont feel like following what I am saying. 
About online games - I've lost only one game in my life and it was my first online via email game. I dint knew what to expect and thats why I picked units as I picked them. And I never said that I was undefeatable. 
I did lost a battle because I picked wrong units. But loss can happen to anyone. And what I like about losses in general is that they teach us more than our victories. The purpose of this topic is to share ideas and approaches, experiences and tricks. In my latest screens Im talking about controling large force on macro and micro level. That can be useful or usless depends on your views and approaches. It is optional to take what I'm saying into consideration. Im not a 100 dollar bill to make everyone like me. Yet, I will keep on posting because there are many people who texting me and telling me "thank you" for what I do. Besides those who disagree I've met those who asked me for more content like that. I have my pleasure to see that some players are using my mods, asking me questions and sharing their emotions and knowlage with me. All I can do in return is to keep on doing what I'm doing. 
Now this thing what im showing here has only one goal in its core - to show variety of things what people can take and adopt to their games, battles, etc. 
I've decided to go from small to big - first I was talking about how I place tranches and stuff, then I was talking about certain small things - and now I've decided to make a post series about Mechanized Battalion attacking mechanized company just to show how I see it should be controlled. Then I was planing to make a series of those posts about deffense, then about different types and ways of using artillery as a stopping factor, as a tool of a direct hit and then as a trick for switching attention. Besides that I would like to talk about raiding operations, recconissance and so on. 
I like this game and I enjoy making statements supported by screenshots from my own battles. Moreover, this topic wasnt created for me only - many people shared their thoughts here and I was hoping that it would be a place where new players will be able see different ways to do things in CMBS. Ive actually recived few thankful letters few days ago from new players who recently bought the game. So all i do and post here is to make it look as simple as possible so that in the future in way more difficult battles players who viewed this topic would have a thing or two adopted from me or from other players what were sharing their ways of doing things. 
Once again gentlemen - you should not follow my posts if you dont like them. The amount of views of this topic and positive comments+msgs on other topics of mine made me think that some people do like what im doing here. So am I the greatest strategist of all times? No I'm not. Have I lost a battle? Yes once I've lost one battle (it was my first one via email battle). But I'm not about victories Im about the spirit. It is a wonderful game and I love it. Ill show you what I do in it - you guys please show what you do in it and how. Let this community grow. 
Last but not least - its not about my ego - there are many ways to do things right and there are many ways to do things wrong.
Everyone can be defeated here and there, but it is about keeping our heads up and learning from our mistakes so that one day you will enjoy your victory as a deserved one. 
And this is what I wish to all of you - be strong and keep on going even if you've lost once.

 
 

Yes, very happy that we are starting to discuss tactics on these forums again. 

It's pretty ridiculous how often the forum has to be regulated nowadays. It's nearly March... SF2 time !

Very useful, Olek.
The use of Red arty has always been a challenge for me as it's so easy to make the mistake of using it like NATO's - ie economically and precisely with plenty in reserve for unexpected targets or situations.  But because Red arty is usually much slower to arrive than NATO's one has to have the "courage" to commit each Red arty battery in one big fireworks show and don't bother keeping any shells in reserve - it will usually take too long to retarget and to arrive.   One wants to smash a sector of the front completely quickly and early and use Direct Fire for anything else.
Some other comments and questions:
1)  You seem to have quite a lot of intel at the start represented by enemy icons.  A bigger challenge is how to plan arty strikes when there is no obvious targets.  Based on my point above, you usually only get one barrage per battery and it is heartbreaking to waste it all on nothing.
2)  In CMSF I did some tests years ago and found that a LONG or MAX length of fire along with HARASS or LOW rate of fire seemed to create more enemy casualties than a high rate of fire for a shorter period.  Not sure if that is the same in CMBS.