Hammer's Flank Mission 3 pointers (General strategy)

[Sulman]

I returned to Red Thunder having never really given it a fair shake (I don't have F&R but will soon) and resolved to try and grind through the Soviet campaign.

I struggle with the Micro at Bn scale but have got used to it now, and I enjoy trying to apply lessons from @Bil Hardenberger's great blog. 

 

Honestly I am struggling a bit. The issues with Hammer's Flank are well known (there's at least one huge thread) and It is what it is, but I'm able to get some successes but still can't quite work the Soviet infantry properly.

Specifically, I've got competent at scouting but on the third map It's extremely difficult to achieve fire superiority. Time and again I try and set up a base of fire and a defending MG squad overwhelms them with relative ease. The 2 81mm mortars I have for battalion support take 10 minutes for a fire mission and aren't particularly effective as keeping the spotter alive that long is a challenge. The map is wide flat with hedgerows and cottages for cover. There is a slightly elevated railway line towards the back but I am not there yet...

The fundamental issue is a base of fire from concealment (hedgerow or treeline) is vulnerable

Usually I'd bring up an assault gun but the map is laced with AT guns and they simply can't maneuver into firing positions. Plus the SU76 is probably the most brittle thing out there.

I'd picked an approach using the nearest edge of the town, which went okay but as soon as I find a dug in position (just beyond, right on the railway line) the I struggle to get effective fire on it. Then of course the arty comes in, exacerbating things.

I cant bring up an SU76 because it'll get popped by an AT asset (there's a big AT gun under the 'Depot' label, plus some others off to the right). The one mortar strike I managed did nothing, and if I position supporting fire troops in the hedge rows they get wasted after a turn or two. Anything inside of 200yds vs an MG42 team needs very good cover.

It's really, really hard to pull it off with just infantry. Any tactical pointers are appreciated. I'm thinking I need to use the hard cover of the houses more. I'll try that, but there's a whole company on this flank and bringing them all to bear is difficult.

Edited October 17, 2022 by Sulman

[Phantom Captain]

Smoke is your friend!

Try to use smoke and time it to be able to move your units into position under the cover of it.

[Ts4EVER]

Generally, losses aren't that bad in this one. Best to bring as many weapons to bear on one target as possible. If you move up 4 SUs at once, 1 or 2 will get popped, but the rest will be able to chuck HE at the AT guns.