CMBO: Help needed dislodging the enemy

[JeremyCupit]

All,

I need some help in the mid to latter parts of battles. We are talking PBEM, ME, quick battles, generally combined arms.

My initial tactics seem okay including; first contact/advancing/keeping a reserve etc.

But I am having real trouble in continuing the drive of my attacks. If my enemy has found some cover I just seem to end up wasting loads of ammo firing from long range across open ground without achieving any real penetration into his positions. Remember that normally the "buy" points available don't allow for the purchase of any "heavy" arty or more than 1-2 AFVs.

I've read lots of the ideas already posted on these boards, but they don't seem to address the specific tactics involved in pressing an advance. Does anyone have some good ideas.

Thanks, Jeremy

[Screeny]

Hey,

Allways hard comment on such questions, as the replier never really knows what units you have and what the battlefield looks like. But here an "abstract" of all the post you probably read before : MASS OF FORCES!!!

target at the enemy location 2 units of inf, 1 AFV and some art. while all the units keep a sight of the enemy position, let 1 of the 2 inf units move into the enemies, position. How this should be worked out in detail all depends on the situation at hand. But this is the whole basic idea. (Remember all the articles, books, discovery docu's etc you read/saw about the blitzkrieg doctrine??? massing, concentrating, firepower, co-ordination.....well use this abstract ideas in your battles )

gr

Screeny

[Tigrii]

I had a similar problem and found that massed light mortars, medium radio arty spotters, and infantry guns are effective in getting your attack going again. Also, I agree with Screeny in that several platoons concentrated against a few squads can negate their defending advantage with overwhelming firepower and numbers.

[Cybeq]

An excellent question concerning an all too common reality of meeting engagements. What you essentially have are two equal forces contesting a small victory location on a much larger playing field. Typically this results in the two forces hunkering down in cover on opposite sides of the VL and exchanging fire. It's easy to conclude that the side that has better cover and more firepower has a better chance of winning. So what to do? Well, the advice above is certainly worth heeding. Mass of forces. Good. What do you do when your mass equals his mass? One platoon vs. one platoon. After all, isn't that what a meeting engagement is? Equal mass vs. equal mass? Strictly speaking if you have a platoon of inf. in scattered trees and the enemy has a platoon of inf. in scattered trees you can't press your attack. You're stuck, he's stuck. But, what if you had your squads split? Half in the scattered trees engaging the enemy at 12:00 and half in the woods engaging at 3:00? Incoming fire from two angles. Same mass. More targets for the enemy to engage. I'm not saying this tactic will work but it's somthing to think about. Angles count in this game.

Bottom line: You have to have firepower superiority at the point of attack. If you don't have it, don't attack. You're better staying put or manuvering for a better position.

[Screeny]

Yeppers!! ME's , with more or less the same force size on both sides. What if platoon vs platoon both under cover???? use two platoons against his single platoon!!!

Well that's the whole trick. With the danger of exposing my tactic here is what I always keep in mind:

Most opponents will start of spreading there forces acros there set up zone. 1 platton left, 1 centre, 1 right and probabaly 1 reserve. I place mine conctrated and focused towards a small area which I want to take control of. so instead of having the advantage of 1 of my platoons against 1 squad of his a gammble on 3 of my platoons against 1 of his. Move fast yet covered (The area I attack will almost always have a nice "lane of approach" i.e. nice patches of woods, trees, houses etc from my set up zone to the area to be attacked. Just in case we meet on the battlefield, now you know where i'll be coming ). As said in the previous post i'll try to position the heavy stuff in such a way that they cover this area of atack yet are themself NOT uncovered to all side (So no LOS in a 360 degree circle). Like said I TRY, because in practise this is still very hard to achieve. heavy stuff can be anything from tanks, mortars, FO arty, MG's. So summarised: I advance almost all my forces via a relative covered approach lane to the area of atack gammble that the opponent has not all his forces there (Once a opponent did exactly the same on the same area of attack....there went the theory.. but eh **** happens:), another time we both did the same but on different area's of attack....that was fun in a 30 turn game we were almost switched sides almost without any fire exchange and casualties in turn 22:) ). In these overwhelming attack my losses will be relative low and he will have one platoon orso killed/paniced/running for their lives. I still have 3 more or less ok platoons which I will order to take defence positions (the area of attack will result most of the time in controllng at least one flag). So now it's the opponoents initiative, he will probably advance with his remaining 2 platoons (or maybe even 1 , better for me ) towards my defenseiv positins.....from this point on the battle can go anywhere because just as some historical figure said once: A plan only survives untill enemy contact (or something like that).

Well so much for my 2 cents on massing of forces in a balance ME. Summarised: make sure you attack him with more than units than he has on defence gammbling the other forces of him can't approach fast enough to help them out.

gr

Screeny

[JeremyCupit]

Thanks for the replies.

I guess I need to spend more time idenitifying weak points in the enemies positons and concentrating my firepower on those places. I think trying to gain a firepower ratio of at least 2:1 (3:1 would be much better) is the key.

I should already have known this anyway. Having read John Keegan's excellent books regarding the Normandy landings (Six Armies In Normandy), where these kind of ratios in firepower were achieved by the allies, it becomes kind of obvious when you think of these real world examples. BUT its much harder to put into practice when the size of the two forces is the same.

I guess its therefore VERY difficult to dislodge the enemy unless you have some kind of advantage. The factor that you as commander are in control of is how and where you apply the firepower available to you.

Jeremy

[Big Ron]

You pointed out that you don't have enough points for heavy artillery. I imagine that you'll have got 81mm mortars or their equivalent though so here's a plan:

1) Get your HMG's, on-map mortars and any AFV's you have left to form a fire base from cover to supress your opponent.

2) Use the 81mm mortar to lay a smoke screen that allows your infantry to approach without obscuring the fire base from their targets

3) Attack with infantry under the cover of the smoke.

If you have no mortar FO then do the same but be prepared for heavy losses as no matter how suppressed the enemy are by your fire base they'll hit your infantry with something.

Good luck!

[NewSocialistMan]

The general rule on meeting engagements is that the first team to set up a good established firebase wins. Make sure that you include the following factors into your calculus:

1) overlapping fields of fire

2) advantageous use of cover/concealment

3) placement that maximizes your firepower at optimal ranges.

4) anticipation of enemy approach

5) denial of the same to your enemy

[jtcm]

Hi Jeremy, an old post by JasonC, which is well worth pondering (I hope he doesn't mind if I just repaste it). it;s long but worth pondering.

*****

Now, as to implimentation of an infantry heavy force in a large ME. You keep your own

armor back. It is supposed to hunt enemy armor shooting at your infantry and thus

already distracted. Pairs or solo vehicles, not more.

Layer your infantry in 2 waves, the first one broader than the following one, which

"thickens" the force behind your intended main effort. Gaps are fine, but isolated

platoons are not - at least two supporting each other. The first wave should have LOS

to the whole frontage, but 1/2 to 2/3rds of its men should be directed at around 1/2

to 1/3 of the frontage. That portion leads the "main body", where the second wave

adds depth.

The thinner portions of the first wave screen and scout the rest of the frontage. They

can go somewhat faster, or employ some split squads to provide deception about

numbers in this area vs. that area and where the main body is likely to show up.

When I say "first wave", I mean in lines of infantry platoons. But detach some half

squads from some of the forward platoons, to have advanced scouts ahead of even

the first wave by 1 turn.

Advance the infantry platoons from cover to cover, of course. Before contact, keep

"traveling" - meaning everyone is moving and more or less maintaining station with

each other.

On contact, the forward guys stop in the nearest cover. Neighboring platoons lap

around IDed enemies. The second rank (or in a pinch lateral transfers) can then

"maneuver to KO", meaning plan an assault from this or that direction on the already

fixed enemy. Artillery before a rush if there are a lot of defenders - more than a

platoon - in the "embraced" area.

When you see armor, avoid its LOS by slinking to the back side of whatever cover you

are in. If a few units have to run a ways to the rear, so be it. Sneak&hide schrecks to

forward sides of cover to restrict livable spots for enemy vehicles. Retreat here or

there to draw AFVs into range of the schrecks, if he will "play".

Pick enemy AFVs engaging your infantry and hunt them with your own "back" TDs. Try

for "keyhole" angles that only allow LOS between the pair you want. That helps show

only front armor, avoids distraction, keeps the engagement short, and limits the

number of enemies firing back. When you succeed and bag one, relocate the

successful TD by reversing out of sight and then picking a new area to intervene.

Don't let him track your AFV locations or plan elaborate group "jumps" at stationary

TDs.

What you want is to set up a sort of "escalation chain". When he has only infantry

somewhere, more infantry of your own collects around it and starts beating them.

When he sends AFVs forward to help, he can momentarily redress such local odds

imbalances. But only by exposing his AFVs to hunting retaliation by your own TDs. So

you get an "escalation food chain" - his infantry is "eaten" by your infantry, his AFVs

"eat" your infantry, your AFVs "eat" his AFVs.

You will have some infantry messed up both in infantry firefights with his and by his

AFVs. Just withdraw and rally them - there is no hurry and you have a lot more. You

do not need to keep all your infantry engaged all of the time. They don't have the

ammo for it anyway. When they doget messed up, you have to give them time to

regroup. Use company HQs to put shattered platoons back together, rally

left-behinds, etc. Be willing to "fight ugly" with the leftovers, supporting fresher

platoons.

Two things to watch are (1) heavy caliber off map artillery and (2) direct fire HE from

vehicles while in buildings. Do not sit still for either with your infantry. The first is

announced by spotting rounds, the second you can see the shooter at least after his

first minute engaged. Run to the rear to get out of the beaten zone. Some men may

panic and get chopped up - can't be helped. But you can keep your losses to squads

rather than platoons on such occasions. And he will run out of off-board ammo and

on-board HE shooters before you run out of men if you can limit losses like that.

His infantry will seem strongest at the begining. They will start running out of ammo

sometime in the course of the battle. Your infantry doesn't shoot when it only sees

armor, or is out of action, or taking turns, or in another area. His faces infantry almost

continually from contact on. His ammo will be sucked dry. Overwhelm his infantry in

the second half of the game by advances to 30-80 meters. Not close combat (he

doesn't need ammo for that) or range (you will run out before you kill him at long

range).

One other thing to understand is that in a truly large fight, you have an enourmous

amount of infantry to command. Don't move too fast. It takes longer than moving a

few vehicles around, and the overall battle develops slower. Don't worry about

objectives until the last third of the game - just take important terrain (in terms of

cover, LOS etc, not flags) and above all find and kill the enemy.

Don't get too thin side to side. Remember that you will want to wrap around things on

contact, so the eventual lines will all be longer than straight-ruled lines across the

map. Use depth (2 waves) and tightness-spread (tight as long as still "on-line",

spreading as the lines "twist" and lengthen) to concentrate. Obviously you must also

conform to local terrain.

By the second half of the game, you want your edge in remaining good order squad

infantry to be large enough that you can just pick heavily covered areas and infest

any you please with more infantry than your opponent can dig out. Walk infested

areas around or onto flags. Continue the "pick off" game against his AFVs with your

own TDs. But he should have to come to you. You needn't chase him, once you can

put infantry on all the objectives.