Difficulty grasping tactics, please help

[Dietrich]

what about the vehicles that use non IR blocking smoke that have IR optics? I'm sure whenever i've had a vehicle pop smoke it basically blinds itself.

Could it have been (in at least some of those cases) that the vehicle popped smoke in response to taking a hit which damaged or knocked out its IR optics? I ask because several times an MBT of mine has popped smoke, and when I try to assign it a target and I see that its LOS/LOF is blocked by the smoke, I check the damage panel and see that the IR optics were knocked out or severely damaged.

[Jonny(FGM)]

I never really thought about that, i think i need to run some tests.

[Jonny(FGM)]

Tests needed to be run so tests were run : )

First up the warrior

LOS not through the smoke

LOS through the smoke

The same happens with the Bradley and Abrahms

Continued on next post due to image restrictions, heil!

[Jonny(FGM)]

only the sryker's smoke blocks it's own LOS

We can see we get a grey line through the smoke, i thought this was for inf squads where not all members of the squad had LOS to the target, obviously it means general reduced LOS too.

[Ryujin]

most western AFVs have thermal optics, and you'll set it under that "component status tab or whatever it's called (with the green cross and stuff showing the status of all the different parts). You'll see IR optics in there.

Vehicles with IR optics can see through non-IR blocking smoke (white and black smoke). You get a grey line (only gunner, sometimes commander can see through) when you target something on the other side of smoke. Tan/brownish smoke is IR blocking, you see this mostly on the strykers.

So you can use this to your advantage as BLUFOR, by using large amounts of smoke, yet being able to shoot through it while the syrians will be blind, except for the latest and greatest equipment in their inventory.

[theFightingSeabee]

Yskonyn, I think just about everything you've read here is right, but there are situations in which you'll need to break from conventional thought and take a risk. Sometimes risky moves can turn the tide of a battle in your direction very quickly. I try to play as if I were commanding real dudes whose Moms I would have to write letters to if they died.

In your situation, if you have to take a house that's got enemy overwatch from two sides, you should be worrying more about the enemy than the house. Your maneuvers should be aimed at taking out the enemies on overwatch of your objective. Once they are either actively engaged with superior firepower or just destroyed, you can mosey right on in to the objective at your leisure. Only time limits will make you have to rush the place. Use any time you have to pour lead on them, only taking the objective before time runs out. Just a few minutes can help a lot. Engage any confirmed (sometimes suspected) overwatch positions immediately. Use artillery, air power, etc, if you have it. If you have none of the good stuff and can't get any armored vehicles into position to fire upon the enemy positions, then you're screwed. That's when it becomes a gunfight. At that point, if you want it bad enough, you're really going to have to just fight it out.

There are also times where it's better to rush in with an armored vehicle. A common tactic might be to rush an empty vehicle up where he can pop smoke. Then rush the vehicle full of troops up and have it pop smoke. Then dismount the troops and rush the vehicles back to safety. I would only recommend this if you are able to minimize the enemy fire on you. An example would be crossing a street covered by an MG. A vehicle travelling quickly across the street would leave the enemy with less time to engage. Not to mention the survivability against MG fire is significantly increased with a little steel plating between you and the enemy. A squad of infantry would cross much slower and expose themselves to fire for a greater period of time.

Basically, use your arsenal before using your lives. Don't ever get guys killed because you want to save ammo unless fulfilling that parameter is the only way to win (:[). Either way, it sounds like you've got the right mindset of evaluating the situation and trying to come up with the best solution. The more you do that, the more lessons you will learn and the wiser you will become.

[Yskonyn]

Thank you all, this has become a very good thread with great advise.

I'll keep this thread for asking more questions when they arise.

[Erwin]

The thing to remember is that CMSF is a game, and unrealistic/non real life tactics can win. You are playing against the game system. There is no "one tactic fits all situations" solution. You have to assess each situation re its own unique challenges. And that comes from experience playing the game.

For example, in another thread elsewhere some folks were commenting how hard the British campaign "Warriors in the Sand" is. I am finding it too easy - losing less than 10 inf in each the 4 battles I fought so far - I think because I often use the unrealistic tactic of grouping armor tightly together and advancing as a bunch. The second any enemy fires, there is a huge and deadly response. Is that realistic? No. But, it worked in CM1 and it works in CMSF (most of the time).

[souldierz]

Thank you all for contributing. It's somewhat more clear now.

Would a good simple rule of thumb be to keep the IFV's on overwatch, concealed -or partially at least- in hull down positions and serving as a fire base, while I then use the infantry squad to engage the enemy while they are under supression from the IFV's?

Is there a chance of friendly casualties if I get close to the enemy while my IFV's are still supressing?

What would the scenario be if there's a second line of enemy units behind the objective of the assault? Would you just need more bases of fire to shut them all up before assaulting with the infantry squads?

Normally you won't have spotted all enemy units, so when do you know you're not being overloy cautious OR sending them into the meat grinder?

Another question that popped up: I have a mortar squad sitting at the base of a small hill. On top there is another unit. The icons indicate they are both equipped with radios.

The unit on top of the hill spots enemy position right in front of the small hill at around 500m. Why can't the mortar squad fire? Shouldn't they be able to fire from the directions of the spotting squad on top of the hill, cause of the radio contact?

Good post's with great advise in this thread.

Yes there is a chance of friendly casualties if your vehicles are firing on the door your men are going to charge through.With good timing, you can lift the vehicle fire off the targeted house and then quickly rush your troops in to take advantage of the enemy being pinned down, shocked and confused.When enemy are completely suppressed they have very little battlefield awareness and reaction time,and your men will clean them out without loss when they catch them in the building in this state of mind.

This is one big battle puzzle we play and requires us at times to try and think 10 steps ahead if possible,you simply cannot just walk into and take your objective with ease all the time,just like in chess you cannot jump right to the King and take him out.There will be enemy at the objective,enemy covering and backing up those enemy at the objective,enemy backing up and covering the enemy who are backing up and covering the objective,and also enemy will use and cover key terrain to deny you use of them, and so on and so on.Depending on the circumstances,all these outside threats should be dealt with before the dedicated assault,unravel the defense first so you gain territorial advantage,and then when you have secured its surrounding area,concentrate and secure the objective after when all threats that cover the objective are gone.If the objective is a house, take a page from the SWAT guy's or a page from laying Siege to a castle.Destroy the outside forces around the objective to take control of the AO,surround the objective,gain and hold the best ground in the AO to get fields of fire that can see in and around the objective,and lock it down tight with many guns and eyes pointed to it.If any enemy dares to shoot from it they will have lots of incoming fire from several angles by your forces.Sometimes you got to move the forces secretly into position and then when you have many men hidden in areas around the Objective able to get a field of fire,you can tell them to stop hiding and face the enemy all at once with maximum fire power at one time.

If the only way is forward and you cannot go around and flank or control the surrounding terrain without getting your objective first,put a hell of a lot of bullets and firepower at your foes area,the stronger the weapon the better.It will break down walls,it will create panic and make men flee,or it will force the enemy to abandon his position because they are receiving to much incoming.Sometimes you don't need to do fancy maneuvering, you just need to pour on the fire from where you are and let the enemy cook

On another note,One good strategy I have learned that helped me well with planning the execution of a mission,is to task each Platoon to take their own separate objectives.

[Yskonyn]

Thanks, but the problem is often more detailed than that.

I do grasp the strategic tactics related to the scale of the total operation. In other words; I can spot advantages in terrain, assess defense options, etc.

It's the nitty gritty actions by platoons and squads and the HOW to execute those actions so you operate conform your 'global' strategic ideas that I find hard.

[Erwin]

Maybe try to break up the battlefield into separate mini-battles and create temporary task forces to accomplish each goal. After a while you get an instinct on how to have each mini-task force or unit able to support each other in certain locations.

Some of the best advice I received when I started playing CM was that as soon as you spot an enemy unit, maneuver to bring overwhelming force against it and kill it asap. Then "rinse and repeat". ie: Don't try to accomplish too many things at the same time.

CMSF is much more tricky and "sensitive" than CM1 in that it is very unforgiving of errors. CMSF requires very patient and methodical play - rather boring for most folks. That's why this is a tiny niche market heh...

[Yskonyn]

Well nothing wrong with patient and methodical play. Right up my alley. I'd say I might be too patient cause of fear to loose any pixeltruppen.

[Erwin]

Avoiding casualties is probably the best way to assess one's success at playing CMSF.

With CM1, one really didn't worry as much about em.

If you are serious about improving play I recommend that you pick a smallish scenario that you like, and play it vs the AI several times and as both sides. That way you'll get a "feeling" for what each side experiences, and their different capabilities.