How do you use the hunt command?

[phil stanbridge]

Apart from the fact you can select it from the menu, how is it best to use this command?

Will the vehicles search for a hull down position? Do they physically slow down and search for an enemy position?

I can't personally see the difference between hunt and move.

[xerxes]

Hunt does a couple of things.

1. moves very slowly

2. afv has the highest ability to identify targets/threats while on the move

3. if enemy afv is seen your tank will stop in a hull down position if possible and fire.

Note: while moving your afvs are very poor at spotting enemy infantry in cover which can make for nasty surprises.

-marc

[Hawk]

When hunting the unit will stop if engaging an enemy unit. When moving, it will try to complete the move order (unless pinned or self-preservation kicks in). At least I think that's how it works...

[Redwolf]

Actually it is faster than move.

Move is the same speed as infantry move, usable for coordinated attacks.

Hunt is a little slower than fast over short periods - most AFVs accelerate slowly enough that the difference isn't big for the usual cover-to-cover move.

Speaking fo cover-to-cover, I use the hunt command much less than in my early CMBO days because it leaves AFVs stranded in enemy LOS and/or causes traffic jams.

[CombinedArms]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by redwolf hates artillery:

Speaking fo cover-to-cover, I use the hunt command much less than in my early CMBO days because it leaves AFVs stranded in enemy LOS and/or causes traffic jams.<hr></blockquote>

I also find I'm using "hunt" a bit less, esp with thinner skinned AFVs. It can be risky in that the AFV will stop and try to engage enemy targets when it encounters them. If your tank is a Sherman and your enemy a Panther, or if you've got a PzIV and the enemy's a heavy-model Churchill, you can get killed using the "hunt" command, while with "fast" you will scoot to safety. If you use a tophat-lowsky tactic (popping over and reversing down from a ridgeline), with "hunt" the tank will stay up there as long as it sees targets, which may not be what you want.

So I'd suggest using "hunt" mostly when:

1. You think the main threat is from enemy infantry or hand-held ATs.

2. You really want to achieve a hulldown position.

3. You've got the enemy on the run and are closing in for the kill--and not expecting much in the way of armored threats or AT guns.

4. You've got stronger frontal armor than the enemy. (This is particularly true for Axis tanks which won't fire in "fast mode.)

I've gotten so I'm using "fast" about 70% of the time or more, esp. with Shermans. Then maybe "hunt," then "reverse." I hardly every use "move." Am I missing something?

[Moon]

Hunt means that the tank is going to move forward at combat speed and is actively looking for targets of opportunity (usually enemy vehicles or AT Guns). This implies that the tank should be deemed in a position to be able to engage targets, i.e. you shouldn't order a tank to hunt when actually what you want is to cross an open field quickly and get back into cover. Use FAST MOVE for that. Personally, I like to use HUNT when I have 3 or 4 tanks moving ahead in formation and with good fields of fire, as this gives me confidence that they indeed can stop and engage pretty much anything coming at them.

[Cameroon]

I find hunt to be useful when you have a good idea of what your hunting vehicle will find. Especially if you're using it to peek out of cover at one target, like from behind a building. That way as little as possible of your tank will be hanging out (with luck).

Also, regarding it finding hull down positions, it does not actively seek a hull down position. Rather, it is up to you to plot a line of movement that will hopefully let the AFV stop while hull down if it spots an enemy.

[Dirtweasle]

A note on using HUNT/MOVE with the StuG and other tanks without turrets. I have never had one stop and turn while under the MOVE command to shoot at something. You almost have to use the HUNT command with them I think, or be very good at moving them into the right position. Though as others have pointed out, they will stop and turn perhaps in a bad position will HUNTING, so you have to careful with it.

[phil stanbridge]

So would it be considered *gamey* to use the hunt command throughout afv movement?

[Monty's Double]

Hunt gamey? Absolutely not. As our learned friends have pointed out, Hunt tends to be what less experienced players use, and quite accurately replicates how inexperienced tanks commanders move. Against a more experienced opponent you are likely to get your armour picked off piecemeal using Hunt all the time, though it usually works well enough against the computer. The real secret of using armour properly is how you identify enemy armoured units, isolate them and destroy them with overwhelming odds or careful ambushes. One of the best maxims I've heard on this site is "always assume you will lose a 50:50 encounter". Oh yeah, and once you've sprung an ambush, reverse out and move somewhere else.

[phil stanbridge]

Right. So if I was to use the hunt command following a set waypoint, would my afv try to find the best hull down position automatically?

[Moon]

Phil, not really. You CAN use hunt this way when, for example, cresting a hill. That way, when your HUNTING tank spots enemy, it will automatically halt - often - not always - in a hull down position. But that's all the HUNT command does - it instructs the tank to halt immediately, it will NOT look for hull down positions, even if they're close. In CMBB, the SEEK HULL DOWN command will take care of this, btw.

Dirtweasle, the MOVE command will never have your vehicle stop, even if it encounters enemy. What CAN happen is that your vehicles will accelerate when it spots enemy, but its main goal is to reach the target destination (waypoint) of the MOVE command.

[Redwolf]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by phil stanbridge:

So would it be considered *gamey* to use the hunt command throughout afv movement?<hr></blockquote>

Why the hell should anyone do that?

Please explain!