How do you maintain cohesion while attacking?

[Thermopylae]

I'll be the first to admit i'm no wiz with offensive small unit tactics. Maybe its because I play something like a civil ar general. That is to say, see te enemy, pound the enemy with big guns (tanks, arty, etc) And then the infantry, having exchanged a few round with enemy, charge into hand to hand where I eseenatially trade one for one basis...Repeat until My attrited force is in whatever cover I've taken, and I call off attack, or enemy line breaks and i mop up. Either way the casualties are extremely high on both sides. (even if I've been stopped, the enmy usually loses at least half his force).

Now I think that perhaps my attacks wouldn't degenerate into the ramshackle.."wow a fresh squad, lets see where they can go, CHARGE!!!" if some hwo I could manage to keep my elements together. But the second they hit resistance, my platoons start breaking up as one by one they sieze their objectives, go for cover or flee, either way they spend a men like ammo...(actually cover is a little more conservative) After two or three turns of fighting, the entire force is brokenup into individual squads, with little chance of reforming. what I mean to say is there a way of maintaining cohesion in an attack after the fighting starts.

P.S. My Mgs are too slow to ever get to the front in time... They usually arrive a few turn later, pummeling positions at long range that frankly, would have been much more useful suppressed four turns back. Now, maybe the ocnentarted fire of every weapon team will make a charge with a depleted squad possible...

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"...and he was told that the persians were so great in numbers that their arrows would block the sun, to which Leonidas replied 'all the better, for we shall be able to fight in the shade'"

[L.Tankersley]

With great difficulty.

...on a more constructive note, it sounds to me like you're rushing things a bit too much. When you say

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>My Mgs are too slow to ever get to the front in time... They usually arrive a few turn later...<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

this is a warning flag to me. If your support weapons are not in place to support your attack, it is not time to attack yet! Similarly, you say your platoons start breaking up when you hit resistance. If you move slower and by bounds (alternate moving different platoons forward in stages) it's easier to keep them together, and squads are less prone to wandering off away from the group.

Of course, it's easier to say all this than to do it, but give it a try and see how it goes. In most scenarios there is a lot of time available, you don't need to win the battle in the first ten turns.

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Leland J. Tankersley

[ScoutPL]

I've got an Infantry in the Offense tutorial going up on Slapdragons website in a day or two that should be a big help to you!

[Guest Michael emrys]

In advancing my infantry, I move from cover to cover with some kind of overwatch fire. Whenever possible, I pummel the enemy with some kind of long range fire (preferably HE, but whatever is at hand) to attrite him and erode his morale and to prepare for the final attack. Then I send in troops to clear the objective, preferably a complete platoon, but again, whatever is available. Taking a little time to get everything organized is good, but against a human opponent that gives him more time to react too (sometimes even the AI will do that!), so it's a good idea to think 3-5 turns ahead and have everything in hand. But sometimes you just have to go with what you have, take your lumps, and make the best of it.

Michael

[This message has been edited by Michael emrys (edited 10-06-2000).]

[HolzemFrumFloppen]

RE: (from ScoutPL_

"ScoutPL I've got an Infantry in the Offense tutorial going up on Slapdragons website in a day or two that should be a big help to you! "

Where is Slapdragon's site? I'd love to get this tutorial! Let us know when it's up!

Regards,

Holzem

[109 Gustav]

I usually try to have a three-unit strategy, consisting of two inf platoons and a fire support team consisting of a few heavy weapons such as mgs and mortars leapfrogging each other. My assault goes like this:

turn 1. Toon 2 and the fire support provide covering fire while toon 1 races forward for cover.

turn 2. toon 1 and the fire support team provide covering fire for toon 2, who bypasses toon 1's position, heading for cover even further forward.

Turn 3. the fire support team advances to toon 1's position.

Turn 4. Toon 1 then advances, bypassing toon 2, heading for cover even farther forward. Repeat as many times as necessary.

Try to have heavy firepower, like a tank or arty overwatching the assault to take on tough positions. Go slow, supress all the fire you can, and use all the cover along the way.

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Well my skiff's a twenty dollar boat, And I hope to God she stays afloat.

But if somehow my skiff goes down, I'll freeze to death before I drown.

And pray my body will be found, Alaska salmon fishing, boys, Alaska salmon fishing.

-Commercial fishing in Kodiak, Alaska

[This message has been edited by 109 Gustav (edited 10-10-2000).]

[Popper]

The answer to this is to leapfrog your advances. As long as you can keep the enemy engaged, it will allow you to get more forces employed. Do not human wave unless the objective is takeable within 100 yards. Even then, the tactic should be employed sparingly.

I find that HT's are indispensible when trying to advance quickly. They offer an inexpensive, yet highly effective mobile suppression force. They won't do a lot of killing on their own, but they keep the enemy firebase pinned down long enough to advance your infantry without getting the big smackdown.

Keep them far back enough that they won't get molested by 'schrecks and keep an eye out for other antitank assets. Don't, however, be so conservative with them that they aren't employed. A Yankee HT has a 50 and a 30. Not using that to put a major hurting on a bunch of snivelling heinies is a sin punishable by an industrial sized can o' wuppass. 3 or 4 of them can most effectively suppress an entire platoon of infantry indefinitely.

All you have to do then is park your firebase within knife range of your enemy and let the pineapples do the rest.

Hope this helps.

[Razoo]

Moving your squads one by one helps keep your forces togther. I always keep my squads close togther and in the same area of cover as the rest of their platoon. ex: a large house or a patch of trees. Also I try to keep my individual platoons a good distance away from others so its not one big mess.

As for raiding enemy positions, if I have tanks and artillary i'll just pound the hell out of the enemy squads for a few rounds while keeping some of my infantry in the opposite treeline spraying suppresion fire. I also slowly move my tanks close and closer until their just inside panzershreck/bazooka range. The main gun will chew up infantry and any anti-tank guys that pop up I focus on with all my infantry in the opposite treeline. After a while of this they should be all panicking and have heavy losses. Only then will I move my men in where they usually go within grenade range and finish them off fast. Using this tactic I take very little casualtys. Sometimes I barely even use my infantry, they just hold what the tanks and arty clear out.

This is best used when you have a large, open clearing.

P.S. The stuart is saweeeeett at taking out infantry.