Tactical Use of Split Squads

[grunt_GI]

This is sort of a general CM question I figured I would throw out in this forum.  What is the utility of splitting up a squad into teams?  

I am playing a PBEM Scenario right now with some of my squads split and some not.  Tactically, my fear is that split squads don't have a lot of firepower and can get cut up piecemeal in a firefight.  I guess my question is do other players have good tactics for using split squads, especially in different environments?  

I can see the use of split squads in an urban setting to provide covering fire for building assaults, but in more rural settings I wonder if keeping  squad together is better to provide more firepower.

Thanks in advance.

[Bud Backer]

One thought that comes to mind is recon teams - splitting them off is useful to not get the whole squad ambushed.

A second thought is dependent on whether you have a lot of squads or not: if you have very few to cover a wide area, then splitting them can give you fire and maneuver elements. If you have more units, then yes, I can see using a whole squad to maneuver while another covers. 

[Kieme(ITA)]

A few of the splits I have done in the past.

 

Russian/ukraine mechanized infantry squads on BMPs: I often split a "recon team" and leave it on the BMP (2 or 3 is the same) so that the commander's position will be occupied thus enhancing the vehicle combat capabilities.

US infantry squads: I often split an anti-tank team equipped with Javelin, to be able to better control the Javelin usage.

 

Other than this: when I need to hold an objective area I usually split all my squads in order to reduce the probability of massive losses due to a single enemy heavy caliber or arty shot. Not to mention to cover more lines of fire and give the impression of a larger force. Many reasons.

Edited January 10, 2016 by Kieme(ITA)

[BTR]

Split squads produce more contact reports amplifying your forces and reduce focused fire. 

[panzersaurkrautwerfer]

I'll leave the AT teams behind with US units if I'm assaulting to secure an objective.  Keeps them fresh to help stave off armor counter-attacks and keeps the assault element fast.  

[Kieme(ITA)]

Another idea concerning BMPs, is to split all squads before embarking them, then mix match all the resulting A/B teams, so that they will keep split even when inside the vehicle. It's a bit of a chore but you can manage to fill a mechanized infantry platoon with one or two additional teams (sold separately).

 

[grunt_GI]

Hmmm, well from a recon/scout perspective, that's what I was doing..advancing one team while using the other two for overwatch..but now I am in contact, so we shall see if the fire and maneuver part works as well.  Of course, that could just be their command element 

Good point about splitting a squad to defend a building or location..I just finished a QB where I had a whole squad in a building that ate a tank round...not pretty.

And yea, I definitely feel like it's better to split squads in a smaller scenario where you don't want to blunder your entire squad into a MG nest or ambush.

More learning to do, I suppose...thanks for the responses..I have just come into contact against my PBEM opponent...it it going to be interesting.

[Vergeltungswaffe]

A team never goes anywhere scouts haven't gone.  A squad never goes anywhere a team hasn't gone.  A platoon never goes anywhere a squad hasn't gone, etc.

[womble]

This is sort of a general CM question I figured I would throw out in this forum.  What is the utility of splitting up a squad into teams?  

I am playing a PBEM Scenario right now with some of my squads split and some not.  Tactically, my fear is that split squads don't have a lot of firepower and can get cut up piecemeal in a firefight.  I guess my question is do other players have good tactics for using split squads, especially in different environments?  

I can see the use of split squads in an urban setting to provide covering fire for building assaults, but in more rural settings I wonder if keeping  squad together is better to provide more firepower.

Thanks in advance.

For the WW2 titles, my SOP is to split squads out into teams during setup. Given much more widespread availability of automatic weapons, rifle grenades and the like, I'd expect "the firepower" of single teams to be greater in BS than the WW2 setting. But thinking of the teams' firepower individually is erroneous, since the squad is only "two teams next to each other". What splitting into teams gives you is flexibility. And spacing. The two things that splitting into teams gives you are flexibility and spacing. And discrete morale and suppression states. Three. The three things that splitting into teams gives you are: flexibility, spacing and discrete morale and suppression states. And potentially better fire positions. Amongst the many things that splitting into teams gives you are such diverse elements as: flexibility, spacing, discrete morale and suppression states and potentially better fire positions. And control. And (for some OrBats more than others) better division of weapons by range of use.

And the downside is a bit more micro.

Thinking of a team's firepower is an error, too, since you're actually looking at individual weapons firing. The firepower that any element of any size projects is dependent to some extent on the position it occupies. Some sites only let one or two weapons bear along a given axis; others allow the element to deploy with all weapons capable of firing pretty much 360 degrees. The Tac AI will try (with occasionally variable levels of success) to get the "main" weapon(s) of an element positioned to fire in the direction of the element's facing, which might mean that the rifles don't bear, while the LMG does, so the team's firepower may well vary all around the clock face.

[Melchior]

I've found splitting most useful for infantry forces with a wide variety of weapons, like squads having varied assortments of SAWs, grenade launchers, and marksmen. You can construct "task forces" with split teams and tailor a force to a specific objective. If the per-unit leadership and experience modifiers are high this is bound to work well given a proper objective. 

The modern titles warrant splitting more than the WW2 titles in my experience, since infantry are so much more useful. I don't do as much splitting with the WW2 titles of CM because fact is infantry shouldn't actually be seeing much of the fighting to begin with. Not until after the enemy has already been thoroughly pasted with supporting arms. 

[kraze]

Splitting squads for me is important in urban terrain since only 2 or 3 guys out of the whole squad will be able to fire when all are on the same floor and be quite blind versus being in open terrain - thus splitting squads makes for a superior situational awareness and increased firepower. Plus one lucky rocket or a tank shot will kill almost a whole squad when they are in a tight formation there, whereas even putting separate fireteams on different floors increases their chance of survival.

Recon split is also useful when you need to scout the area since it's potentially losing 2 guys and saving the rest versus getting your whole squad ambushed, pinned down and wiped out.

Splitting teams is also very useful when you want to advance through a risky terrain and have a lot more control than with an "assault" order.

Basically when I've learned how to use the ability to split squads right - my losses went down drastically

Edited January 11, 2016 by kraze

[gnarly]

With the caveat that I only have CM: Black Sea (I have none of the WW2 titles as yet, though that will change rapidly once CM: FB is out....); it is exceedingly rare that I don't have my squads all split in BS.  Even just from my play of the demo versions of the WW2 titles, the firepower of a Black Sea team is comparable (or more?) than a whole WW2 squad.

 

And as also mentioned, the BS environment is lethal; spacing is key to survivability, whether in urban terrrain or in a forest. A cluster of 7 or 8 men is simply a disaster waiting to happen, whether courtesy of a HE tank round, an arty shell or a burst of MMG fire...

 

How I split them depends on situation: normal Split for basic bounding overwatch/urban clearing; Scout for assembling a picture of the battlefield, and probing in front of my advance; or Antitank, typically with a javelin grabbed from the Bradley transport.

Edited January 11, 2016 by gnarly

[grunt_GI]

Wow..thanks very much for the inputs...obviously this is not something I have done a lot of in my <ahem> many years of playing...partly because I only play RT..unless a PBEM, and things get a big clustered when fighting on urban terrain on in a large battle.

BUT, lots of new TTPs to try...and I appreciate all the comments and viewpoints.