Slitherine

Interesting. How is the 3.7 cm pak still holding up? And which do you find harder -75% prestige or Manstein?

My initial reaction is that it looks like a lot of thought went into your changes to the equipment file. I'll give that a closer read when I have more time.

In general, I buffed the AI's units and slightly nerfed some of the the player's (German) favorite units, like Stukas. Some things are working great, like I see the AI's Char B1 tanks stall out during counterattacks due to a lack of fuel. Don't engage them headon with anything except a 88 gun, in general, it is best to kill them with air power or bypass them. The Somua S35 though are very deadly, especially now that its HA is 7, and it is fast and well-armored. The Hurricane and the D520 are now both deadly fighters, still not quite a match for the Bf-109E, but the player might end up taking significant damage here and there. Sometimes my fighters dip as low as 4-5 strength, and often I bring them to an airfield to reinforce them because of aerial dogfights as opposed to AA attacks.

I think Manstein is still slightly harder, but this way of playing can be more fun. I had an earlier run through of this with a different core where I was absolutely destroyed in DLC 40 because I kept trying to buy the best units, but I'd run out prestige mid-scenario and lose units because I couldn't reinforce them. I'm keeping a 500-1000 prestige buffer now to make sure that never happens again, and so far the scenarios are much, much easier. This requires having tanks like the PzIB and AT like the 3.7 cm PaK 36.

I need to get to DLC 41 and DLC 42 to really see if the changes are okay. Still have to make some changes for DLC 42.

As for the PaK 36, I think it does quite well, as you can see from the screenshots below.

After finishing the '41 DLC those are my core forces (46 in total):

7 Infantrie:
1 Wehrmacht (13 + 1Hero)
1 Fallschirmjäger (13 + 2H)
1 Gebirgsjäger (13 + 2H)
3 Pioniere (2*13 +2H/1H, 1*11)
1 Brückenpioniere (11)

16 Panzer:
5 Pz IVF (4x13 + 2*2H/2*1H, 1*12)
4 Pz IIIJ/1 (all SE - 13 + 1*2H/3*1H)
2 T34/40 (12/10)
2 T34/41 (11/10)
1 KV-1A (12)
2 KV-1B (12 + 1H, 1*11)

1 Recon:
1 SdKfz 232 8Rad (13 + 1H)

1 AT:
1 Marder IIA (12)

8 Artillery:
3 21cm Mrs 18 (13 + 3*1H)
1 StuG IIIB (12)
2 Sturmpanzer I (13 + 2*1H)
2 Wurfrahmen 40 (13 + 1H, 12 + 1H)

1 AAA/AT:
1 8,8cm Flak (13 + 1H)

12 Planes:
4 Bf 109F (3*13 + 3*1H, 1*11)
4 Ju 87D (13 + 3*2H/1*1H)
1 Bf 110D (13 + 1H)
3 Do 217E (13 + 1*1H)

Depending on the available upgrades I will most likely get rid of some of the captured Soviet tanks since I basically have way too much armor in this core due to the fairly large number of captured tanks from the last couple of '41 scenarios. Most likely the 2 T34/40 (still have the 2 T34/41s for their nice range of 6) and the and the KV-1A will have to go, but since I will most likely need more tanks in the long run anyway I will keep them and just not use them for now and upgrade them later on.

After repairs I have about 26k prestige left at the beginning of '42 but will need some of those for upgrades.

CharonJr

Almost at the end of DLC 40, my Core Structure is like this:

1st Corps " von Simon" TOE

1st Division
4th Infantry Brigade
4th Grenadier Regiment
9th Grenadier Regiment
5th Panzer Regiment
5th Panzer IIIH Battalion
8th Panzer IIIH Battalion
12th Panzer IVF Battalion
6th Artillery Battalion
6th 17 cm K 18 Battery
15th 17 cm K 18 Battery

2nd Division
16th Infantry Brigade
16th Grenadier Regiment
21st Grenadier Regiment
17th Panzer Regiment
17th Panzer IIIH Battalion
18th Panzer IIIH Battalion
19th Panzer IVF Battalion
20th Artillery Battalion
20th 17 cm K 18 Battery
23rd 17 cm K 18 Battery

3rd SE Division
2nd SE Infantry Brigade
2nd SE Grenadier Regiment
3rd SE Grenadier Regiment
35th SE Panzer Regiment
35th SE Panzer IIIH Battalion
36th SE Panzer IIIH Battalion
25th Artillery Battalion
25th 17 cm K 18 Battery
26th 17 cm K 18 Battery

4th Infantry Division
24th Infantry Brigade
24th Grenadier Regiment
31st Grenadier Regiment
28th Artillery Battalion
28th 17 cm K 18 Battery
29th 17 cm K 18 Battery

Corps Support Units
Engineers
10th Brückenpioniere Battalion
22nd Airborne Brigade
22nd Fallschirmjäger Regiment
30th Fallschirmjäger Regiment

Luftflotte 2
7th Fighter Wing
7th Bf 109F Squadron
27th Bf 109F Squadron
40th Bf 109F Squadron
41st Bf 109F Squadron
1st Tactical Bomber Wing
1st Ju 87R Squadron
11th Ju 87R Squadron
13th Ju 87R Squadron
14th Ju 87R Squadron
42nd Strategic Bomber Wing
42nd Do 217E Squadron
43rd Do 217E Squadron

I'm not using Pionieres because after the Artillery and/or the Strategic Bombers do their jobs, entrechment levels should be manageable by Grenadiers, if not zero.
And Grenadiers have better initiative than Pioneers.
Furthermore eventually it'll be cheaper to upgrade to 43 Grenadiers from Grenadiers than from Pionieres.

No Recon, I use Fighters for that role.
No AD or AA, I rely on my Fighters for that also.
No AT, Panzers backed up by Artillery are good defense against other Tanks.

My core 41 at the start of Belgrade (playing as general):

1st Panzer Division:
1 Pz IIIH
1 Pz IVE
1 Pionier/SPW
1 Pz Grenadier/SPW
1 Sturmpanzer
1 Sdkfz 232

2nd Panzergrenadier Division:
1 Grenadier/SPW
1 Grenadier/SPW (SE)
1 Pz IIIG (SE)
1 Pz I Jagd
1 15,5 art/SPW
1 Psw 222

3rd Panzer Division:
1 Pz IIIH (SE)
1 Pz IVE
1 Pionier/SPW
1 Pz Grenadier/SPW (SE)
1 15,5 art/SPW
1 Sdkfz 232

Korpstruppen:
1 Gebirgsjäger on foot
2 88 Flak/SPW
1 Nebelwerfer/SPW
1 Bridge engineer/SPW
1 Char B1 (not deployed)
1 Fallschirmsjäger (not deployed)

Luftwaffe:
2 Me109E
1 Me109F
1 Me110
1 Ju87 B
1 Ju87 R
1 Ju88

Finished GC41.

My core looks now like this:

7 INF:
1 Para
6 Pio

18 Tanks:
4 PzIVD (1SE)
3 PzIIIH (3SE)
2 CharB1
2 Matilda II
2 T-34/40
2 T-34/41
1 KV-1A
2 KV-1B
From the captured tanks I just keep one of each as souvenirs/no or very rare deployment, from the KV-1s I leave the KV-1A as souvenir.

1 TD
1 Marder IIA


1 Recon
1 SdKfz 232

1 AA
1 88Flak36

7 Art
3 17cmK18 towed
2 StugIIIB
2 Wurfrahmen40

5 Fighter
5 Bf 109F

1 Fighterbomber
1 Bf 110D

3 CAS
3 Ju87D

2 StratB
2 Do217E


Way too many tanks, but I only bought 2 tanks in total, the rest are captured and SE (and 1 old captured french tank converted to PzIV)
I consider another arty and even another inf, but even now I have to leave lots of tanks and aircraft and so on in the garage, even not counting the "souvenirs".

my core force (42 Stalingrad)

9 INF
2 pioners
2 grens
1 fallsch
1 gebirs
3 se grens

16 PZR
2 kv 1b(r)
2 stug IIIF
1 pzr IIIN
1 se pzr IIIN
1 se pzr IVG
9 pzr IVG

6 ART
2 21 cm mrs 18
1 sturmpanzer I
3 wurfrahmen 40

10 AIR
4 fw 190 a
4 stuka ju 87 d
2 he 177 a

At the end of 1942 my force is virtually the same size as it was at the middle of 1941, just upgraded somewhat.

XXXth PzCorps
8th Panzer Div
- 2 x PzIVG
- 1 x Wehr 39 w HT
- 1 x 10.5cm leFH w HT
17th PzGr Div
- 1 x PzIVG
- 2 x Wehr 39 w HT
- 1 x 10.5cm leFH w HT
Corps Troops
- 1 x SdKFz 231
- 1 x Marder
- 1 x Sturmpanzer
- 1 x 88mm Flak

XXIVth PzCorps
27th Panzer Div
- 2 x PzIVG
- 1 x Wehr 39 w HT
- 1 x 10.5cm leFH w HT
2nd PzGr Div
- 1 x PzIVG
- 2 x SE Wehr 39 w HT
- 1 x 10.5cm leFH w HT
Corps Troops
- 1 x SdKFz 231
- 1 x Marder
- 1 x 15.0cm sFH w HT
- 1 x 88mm Flak

Independant Units
86th FJ Div
- 3 x FJ w 250HTs
- 1 x SE Pz IIIN
- 1 x 10.5cm leFH w 250HT
16th Sturm Div
- 1 x Pionier w HT
- 2 x Grnadier w HT
- 1 x SE PzIIIN
- 1 x StuGIII
- 1 x StuH42


1 x SE Tiger
1 x 21cm w HT
1 x Wurf40

Luftwaffe
6 x Fw190a
3 x Ju87d
3 x Me110f
1 x Ju88.

I'm not a big fan of the SE unit randomness - I have 2 tanks which I didn't need, and 2 infantry which don't match. The only reason I keep them, aside from the fact their cammo looks neat, is they come with the free core slot. I would have preffered just being given those core slots to buy what I actually want. If you have to have SE units in the game I would make them purchaseable in the mid to late war but with 2-3 stars experience already and a much higher cost - to reflect high command giving you veteran troops out of it's reserve instead of fresh recruits direct from basic training.

at the end of 1942 my force is:

12 x Panzer IVG
2x SE Panzer IVG
2 x KV1-C

8 x Wurfrahmen

6 x FW109A
2 x ME109G
6 x JU87D
1 x HE177A

3 x Pioneers
2x SE HW (was 4x but I lost 2 )

boredatwork wrote:
1 x SE Tiger

wut? Where did you get your paws on this little kitty?

Edit: also, is it just me or are nobody using ATGs and/or Self propelled ATGs?

Akaoz wrote:

boredatwork wrote:
1 x SE Tiger

wut? Where did you get your paws on this little kitty?

Edit: also, is it just me or are nobody using ATGs and/or Self propelled ATGs?

Tiger comes out with like 5 turns left in the last 42 battle. So you can upgrade a SE Tank then if you wanted to. I thought about doing it doing the battle, but then guessed it might be cheaper to wait till 43. At worst be same price to upgrade then I hope. If I recall the price tag was 703??

63 Core units at the end of DLC '42 (FM):

10 Infantrie
4 Fallschirmjäger - 1**** + 2H, 3* - those were really helpfull during the city scenarios
1 Gebirgsjäger**** + 2H
4 Pioniere - 2**** + 2H, 1**** + 1H, 1*** + 1H
1 Brückenpioniere*

24 Panzer - no longer a Panzerkorps, more like a Panzerarmee
4 Pz IIIN - 1 SE**** + 2H, 1 SE*** + 1H, 1**** + 3H, 1**** + 2H
6 Pz IVG - 3 SE**** + 2H, 2**** + 2H, 1*** + 1H
2 T34/40 - 1** + 1H - not used anymore
4 T34/41 - 1** + 1H, 2** - rarely see action unless I need their MPs
1 KV-1A** - not used anymore
3 KV-1B - 1*** + 2H, 1*** + 1H
2 KV-1C - 1**, 1*
2 M4 Sherman - not used

2 Aufklärer (recon)
2 SdKfz 233 8Rad - 1**** + 1H

2 Panzerjäger (AT)
1 Marder IIH*** + 2H
1 StuG IIIF/8**

11 Artillerie
3 21cm Mrs - 1**** + 2H, 2**** + 1H
6 Wurfrahmen - 3**** + 2H, 1*** + 1H, 2** - fell in love with them in Stalingrad
1 StuH 42**** + 1H
1 SU-122***

1 Flak
1 8,8cm Flak 36**** + 2H

13 Planes
4 FW 190A - 3**** + 1H, 1*** + 1H
5 Ju 87D - 3**** + 3H, 1**** + 2H, 1***
1 Bf 110G**** + 2H
3 He 177A**** + 1H

I am sitting at 41.4k prestige, but have not upgraded any units during the last scenario - so lots of '43 upgrades in addition to Tigers to pay for.

Wow.
63 Core units at the end of DLC '42 and 41k prestige !
U should definitely play on a higher level (just like the told me) !!

I play at FM here and since I played the original campaign on Colonel level I am not even able to touch the higher levels .

But I cheated my way through the basic campaign on FM yesterday, so I can give the unlocked levels a shot now.

/bump

Edit: Screw the text crap. This is what I went into Barbarossa with.
First playthrough of the main campaign, Oberst(Colonel) difficulty.



Empty units are planned units.
I might also end up with 5 Stukas and 3 large bombers.
I'm also thinking about transforming the Gebirgsjäger into a 2nd Fallschirmjäger unit. Much more useful somehow.

Sorry for the German text, but I guess you WW2 nuts are up to the task

PS: I know this is for DLC cores, but I plan on creating something similar in my first DLC run unless I run into huge problems during the main campaign, so...

Ok, here is my core at Kharkov 42

1st Panzer Division:
1 Pz IIIJ/1
1 Pz IVF2 *)
1 Pionier/SPW
1 Pz Grenadier/SPW
1 15,5/SPW
1 Sdkfz 232
1 Flakvierling-truck

2nd Panzergrenadier Division:
1 Jäger/SPW
1 Grenadier/SPW
1 Grenadier/SPW (SE)
1 Pz IVF2 (SE)
1 StuG III
1 15,5 art/SPW
1 Sdkfz 232

3rd Panzer Division:
1 Pz IIIJ/1 (SE)
1 Pz IVF2
1 Pionier/SPW
1 Pz Grenadier/SPW (SE)
1 15,5 art/SPW
1 Sdkfz 232
1 Flakvierling-truck

Fallschirmsjäger Brigade:
2 Fallschirmjäger

Korpstruppen:

Artillerie:
1 K17 art/spw
1 21 mrs/spw

Schw Flak Abteilung:
2 88 Flak/SPW **)

Schw Pz Abteilung:
1 KV-I (this one will be upgraded to Tiger I)

Korps Werferabteilung:
2 Wurfrahmen

Other:
1 Bridge engineer
1 Gebirgsjäger on foot
1 T-34

Luftwaffe:
4 Me109G
1 Me110
2 Ju87D
1 Do 215

*) This guy has two heroes with a total +4 attack, and often kills whole units of conscripts and BT-7.s with one clean shot
**) One of them has +1 move, lovely unit when the KV:s counter attack

KeldorKatarn wrote:Sorry for the German text, but I guess you WW2 nuts are up to the task

Sure we are

Playing DLC42, FM, Stalingrad Docks.

From memory:
Infantry - 7
- 6 Pioniere (250)
- 1 SE Grenadier (250)
Artillery - 10
- 2 10.5 leFH18 (250)
- 3 17 K18 (250)
- 1 Nblwf 42 (250)
- 3 StuH 42
Armour - 10
- 6 Pz IVG
- 3 SE Pz IVG
- 1 KV-1B
Recon - 1
- 1 SdKfz 232
AA - 1
- 1 8.8 FlaK (250)
Fighters - 6
Still undecided on how many of the current 6 Me109G will upgrade to FW190A.
Tac. Bombers - 4
- 4 Ju87D
Strat. Bombers - 2
- 2 He177

charonjr wrote:You guys are still using 15cm artillery rather than the heavier versions due to the better rate of fire I assume. Is there really a noticable difference (never did the math to compare them)?

viewtopic.php?t=26663
After those tests I upgraded all my 21cm to 17cm, I switched some 17cm to 10.5cm and a +1range unit to Nblwf. The extra ammo of the 10.5 is really nice in these city scenarios and the saved prestige in reinforcements and overstrengths will be needed for 190As and Tigers.