Halmbarte

Barring access to VT I'd take ICM. ICM works for a lot of the same applications I'd pick VT for, plus I might get lucky and actually hit an IFV with one. H

I preferentially use VT fuze unless I'm targeting a vehicle or building. Given I've had friendly fire hits from VT at 200m I'm suspecting that VT gives a much wider area of coverage than impact fuze. I have had near misses from arty punch thru M113 & BTR armor. I don't remember seeing fragments ever make it into a tank, although I have had plenty of tanks immobilized by arty near misses or direct hits. H

I use the hull down command a lot as a time saver. The method that works for me is making the endpoint the point where I don't want the vehicle to move past, then setting a firing point to the spot I want to be hull down to. There are a couple of limitations: 1) The target spot is ground hight, not vehicle height. The difference can cause problems*. 2) The problem* that gets me the most often is that I'm hull down to the spot I wanted, but another, unnoticed location has a better line of fire, again leading to problems*. H *Problem = significant emotional experience for the crew.

I would be all over that like ugly on Danny Trejo. H

Will tank riders fire the .50? H

Conversely green troops with poor leadership are great for 'exploding mine detector' recon. If you're a heartless bastard. Like me. H

You can turn it around too. Use MGs and mortars to get the German TCs to button up and take away that advantage. If you manage to plink a TC or three it's a bonus. H

My short version of the excellent write up by Centurian52: Using Sov tactics to beat the Germans/NATO in RT/CW: Time spent on recon is never wasted. Time and resources spent killing enemy recon is never wasted. Have a plan and execute it. The artillery fire plan must support the maneuver plan. The maneuver plan dictates the fire plan and they must be mutually supportive. A company of Sov tanks spots better than any single German/NATO tank. Take away the better spotting offered by the German/NATO habit of fighting unbuttoned. Get them heads down to decrease their situational awareness. When you attack, attack! Don't poke him with one finger at a time. Make a fist and crush the enemy with overwhelming force. Use a platoon to crush a squad > use a company to crush a platoon >> use a battalion to crush a squad. Fair fights are for suckers. Keep pressing attacks until they aren't feasible anymore, but don't reinforce failure. The Germans/Americans never have enough troops/tanks. Just because you have mass doesn't mean the only way forwards is a frontal assault. There are other ways to win that don't involve sticking your dick into the meat grinder until it jams. Recon routes that bypass the enemy, the Germans/NATO never have enough troops/tanks to cover every avenue of approach. Infantry infiltration is a thing. If you're playing the Sov: Your man portable ATGMs (>AT3s) are scary. Use infiltration tactics to get the ATGMs forward into range to support attacks. Make sure to protect the carriers since they are stuffed with reloads and make big boom if hit. Take your time, don't be in a rush to die. You'll probably run out of people, tanks, and/or ammo before you run out of time. Urban warfare: Don't move in the streets. Mouseholing is optimum, then back gardens, then alleyways. Stay out of the streets. Use supporting weapons to create mouseholes and gaps in walls. Don't go in through the front door. If you can arrange it start at the top and clear down. Suppress every building that has line of sight to your maneuvering force. If you can't suppress or smoke it don't move that way. H

When playing the Sov I generally have the recon guys unbuttoned. If I'm using tank destroyers or tanks for recon I'll unbutton them. If they are the follow on forces I'll generally leave them buttoned up. Either way I tend not to try to force them to unbutton manually. H

Any unit can deactivate a mine or IED. Once. H

Yes, we have mines but no way to clear then so a vehicle can pass. H

It seems like that sometimes. And sometimes you get this: T62 crossing open ground spotted the M150 launch, got off a shot and a hit while the missile was still in flight. H

I really, really want the Arab-Israeli wars. Interesting mix of equipment, capabilities, and terraine on both sides and it is the last time entire nation states went all out prior to Ukraine-Russia. WWII Africa would be acceptable too. H

I tried that vs the AI and got whipped. T64s & BMP2s are a rough ride for M60s & M113s. Plus it's a tiny map with short sight lines so TOW & Dragon get spotted and ventilated very quickly after launching. H

Resign your commission and take a plane ride back to the land of the round doorknob? Stem the Tide is a tough ride for the American player. That one & Rumpenheim Rumpus are a hard row for the US. H

The Soviet Army had very good teachers in WWII. It was a pass/fail course, and by about the 3rd year of the war the survivors had learned how to do dynamic operational warfare at least as well as the early war Germans and they were resourced to a level that the Germans couldn't dream of. H

I usually fight in alignment with the doctrine of the forces. US I keep TCs out as much as possible. Sov I'll turn out the TCs if the tanks are doing recon, but if they button up due to threats I'll leave them alone. Same with APCs/IFVs. About thermals, as far as I know nothing in CW has independent thermals for the TC. So I'd expect the spotting advantage from thermals to stay entirely with the gunner and have a very limited FOV. H

No, I had very bad problems with getting them to spot the tanks. H

The1st time my guys hiding in a building got hosed by multiple 30mm auto cannons from BMP2s was shocking. H

Maybe I'm just not seeing it when I search, but where is the CW demo? I want a buddy to be able to try the game out but can't find a link to the demo for CW. H

Exposure times and angles. Where would you put ATGMs if you were the enemy? Get eyes on those areas and if you have the assets hit them with arty or airstrikes. Minimize exposure of your vehicles by moving them down covered routes and don't expose them long enough to be spotted, aimed at, and have ATGMs guided onto you. Suppress spotted enemy elements and those 'really good' locations before moving into the open. You'll still lose units, but fewer of them. Don't advance into obvious kill zones w/o stacking the deck in your favor. H

In general, I don't try to play thru w/zero casualties. I will redo turns if I make a bonehead mistake, but I generally only save each 5 minutes or so. Suppression is the key. You've got a lot of ammo, use it on spotted enemy positions & suspected enemy positions, and on places where you would put a position. Suppression lets you move, movement gets you better positions to destroy the enemy. As far as the mortars go, the OPFOR call in times are glacial. Try to keep moving faster than the Syrian FOs can call or adjust fire. Move by routes where enemy FOs can't see into. Put artillery or airstrikes on those spots where you would put an FO. H

You been celebrating New Year's too early? H

I think I will let someone else test this in the wild as I kinda got burned the last time. H

I know, right!