Allied VT arty

[Bruceov]

Someone mentioned in a post that people dont use vt arty properly. Does anyone know how to use allied (US) VT arty.

[easytarget]

don't know because i haven't used it

but i've had it used effectively against me

and when i play the allies next time in a pbem i'll consider buying it - damn effective - although i don't know what it costs - that may be the catch

[Kanonier Reichmann]

You may have thought I was being too flippant in my reply to your same question in the previous thread but it really is how you use it. VT artillery gives you the equivalent of treebursts with virtually every round so if you can catch troops out in the open with it, it is devastating. If the enemy are cowering within woods or scattered trees then it's stilll very effective since you're still getting treeburst explosions but at a far greater consistency.

The only time VT artillery isn't all that effective is when the enemy have managed to reach buildings cover since fragments bursting in the air aren't going to effect them much when they have a roof over their head plus those type of explosions don't do much to damage the house if you're trying to knock it down with the VT explosions. Lastly, VT artillery is very effective against open topped AFV's like Marders, Wespes, Halftracks etc. since the crew have virtually no protection from explosions overhead. Invariably the crew will abandon their vehicle if you manage to correctly target the VT barrage in the vicinity of open topped AFV's.

See, I really wasn't pulling your leg.

Regards

Jim R.

[MAsta_KFC]

I was reading that previous thread and tried VT arty myself. I'm absolutely amazed at how effective it is!! I wasn't much of an arty user before, but I'm a believer now

[MAsta_KFC]

BTW I know this isn't really related, but is there a CMBB equivalent to VT arty? Because I almost never use arty in CMBB either.

[Kanonier Reichmann]

No, I'm afraid both the Soviets and the Germans didn't have VT artillery during WWII although the Germans apparently had some special sort of manually adjusted timing based fuse which could achieve something similar but without the same sort of precision or consistency as the Western Allies VT fuses. Unfortunately, this special sort of fuse is not modelled in CMBB for the Germans.

Regards

Jim R.

[Broken]

VT is most effective when used as the attacker in an attack/defend game. The 155mm VT is the best bang/buck arty in CMBO, IMHO. 4-8 rounds will destroy most defending platoon positions, except in buildings. This means you can easily knock out four platoons with one 155mm VT module of 35 rounds.

To avoid wasting shells on spotting rounds, plot your target line slightly behind your intended victum and out of LOS (no spotting rounds for out of LOS targets). When the arty clock winds down to less than 30 seconds (spotting rounds are at 60 and 30 seconds), bring the target line back into LOS and apply a one minute dose. Send in an attacking platoon to round up the gibbering survivors, if any.

155mm VT is one of the most underpriced units in CMBO. Not a very subtle weapon, though.

[Maj. Battaglia]

KR,

Good explanations on the use of VT.

Regarding the German use of timers, actually this was not something they held a monopoly on (it is a very old principle). I believe every country used them in one form or another, including the US before VT was introduced (and one source I have says that for the Army this was not until Jan 1945--Cooper's "Death Traps"). I don't know how effective they were, or if they are at all modeled in CM.

This type of fuse was used in an AA role, and if Cooper is to be believed, the Navy pioneered its use.

[Maj. Battaglia]

If anyone is interested in further info about this topic (as I seemed to have been), here are some links that provide more info about fuzing:

43rd Annual Fuze Conference Keynote Speech

Royal Artillery Methods in WWII Actualy, this has a lot more info, but talks about fuzes in British use to some degree and when they become available in ETO.

Radio Proximity Fuzes This from the Southwest Museum of Engineering, Communications and Computation.