Fire and movement!

[lockie]

Applying some real-world tank tactics in 'Steel Fury - Kharkov 1942'
http://combatace.com/topic/83356-fire-and-movement/

There is excellent review how to implement the elements of tactics into SF. It's a VERY interesting for everyones as veterans and beginners.
Great work!

[lockie]

For the training mission we can use as a base the polygon from:
- Dust in the wind
- Counterstrike
I've source code for both polygons.

[33lima]

Hi Lockie

here is a briefing for the sort of mission I had in mind, and some notes on  mission design (in blue). I can draw a diagram to make the layout easier to understand; it's hard to describe in words. 'Counterstrike' (with no snow) is probably better than desert. If you have the source code you can maybe remove villages if they are in the way; tell the villagers that the Deutsche Wehrmacht has requisitioned the area and they should write to Berlin about compensation.

This may be a lot to cram into one mission but I have kept it simple and think it might actually be fun to play, once or twice anyway.


Exercise Little Citadel
 
Training objective
To practice the trainee in platoon battle handling including tactical movement and the application of fire.
 
Method
This exercise will consist of an advance to contact, then a quick attack and finally, a hasty defence.

Battle Picture
You command a platoon of three Tiger tanks on the Eastern Front. Your company has been tasked with making a flank attack to support the advance of a Panzergrenadier regiment. The company commander has detailed your platoon to move out first and clear the company's line of advance to the Forming Up Place (FUP) from where the flank attack will be launched.
 
Weak enemy forces have been reported in this area, including one or more towed anti-tank guns. An under-strength tank company may still be nearby.
 
Look at the map. You are to move tactically, using bounding overwatch, from the area marked 'company positions', along the line of advance (blue arrow) to the area marked 'Forming Up Place' (blue oval).
 
Destroy any enemy forces you meet along the line of advance.
 
When you reach the FUP, go firm and secure it against possible enemy counterattacks.
 
Make sure that you start in 'Line' formation. Brief your crews and move out when ready!
 
 
[note - might be a good idea to say somewhere, like the mission intro screen - 'If you haven't already read the case study on tactical movement, now would be a good time, but be quick!' and provide a link to the tutorial at CombatAce]
 
 
Mission design notes
 
This needs a map on which you can draw a line of about 1200m, so that there are three main features along the line, in this order, starting where the player will start:
 
1. An area of open ground (no villages, woods or water obstacles, just some folds in the ground) extending along the player's axis of advance, which should be at least 1000m from start ('company positions') to finish ('Forming Up Place'). Note that the player must have enough space to practice fire and movement/bounding overwatch for at least 300m before reaching feature # 2 and seeing any enemy.
 
2. Next, about half way along the player's axis of advance, a reverse slope (or other form of dead ground) suitable for the first enemy - 3-6 dug-in A/T or 76mm field guns, with no crew and unable to fire back, to simulate firing range targets. They MUST be sited so that the player CANNOT spot them during the first, tactical movement phase of the exercise.  They must be sited in depth, with some guns further back - NOT just in a line facing the player. This is necessary to give the player the experience of fighting through an enemy position, like a pakfront. For greater realism some guns may also be sited in defilade (especially the guns 'in depth') but they should be on or very close to the axis of advance. We don't want to draw the player too far off course.
 
3. Finally, at least 300m more of open country, ending in a not-too-exposed area suitable for a tank company to form up for an attack eg a long dip or fold in the ground. Not too exposed. No dangerous blind spots (like woods) too close. About 300m away, directly in line with the axis of advance, there should be cover - village, woods, hill, fold in the ground - from which enemy tanks can appear, making a counterattack.
 
The idea is that the player is able to spend a reasonable amount of time - maybe 5 minutes - practicing bounding overwatch, before he or his platoon-mates can spot the A/T guns. When the A/T guns are spotted, he will be able to practice gunnery and fighting through a simulated pakfront, as a platoon.
 
After destroying the A/T guns the player will get practice in regaining control of his platoon. He will then get more practice in movement by bounding overwatch, to get to the FUP.
 
When he gets there, he will be have practice in getting his platoon into defensive positions, to meet any counterattack - this is the 'Re-organisation' phase of a typical battle drill. Then more practice in gunnery/application of fire.
 
The final enemy should be nine T-34-76s which appear from cover, in three waves of three tanks, with at least 10 seconds between waves. They should appear at least 2 minutes after the player arrives in the FUP, to give him time to set up. They should come from the opposite direction to the axis of advance, so as to appear roughly in front of the player, not too far off to one side. They should move straight towards the player, in line abreast formation, to simulate a counterattack by moving tank targets on a field firing range. They must be unable to fire any weapons. They should become visible at reasonable range - say 300m. If not destroyed sooner, they should halt about 100m from the player.
 
For visual effect, the Directing Staff (DS) for the exercise - the ones who have briefed the player - could be given a suitable vehicle like an SdKfz 250 light half-track. This could be placed behind the player's start point, with a small group of officers or senior NCOs standing nearby - at a map table or an easel and watching the player's departure, would be ideal! Even better if, once the player has moved off, the officers/SNCOs mount up and drive along, staying behind the player's platoon, as if they were observing the exercise. If this is possible, it could be mentioned in the briefing that the DS will follow, to avoid confusing the player. None of this is necessary of course but would be a nice touch, if not too much work.
 
Text (maybe with audio) messages could be activated at suitable points, to help remind the player what is expected and provide a tip as to what he should do, like the DS might do on a real exercise. For example:
 
- at the start, something like 'OK, get into Line formation and off you go, using bounding overwatch!'
 
- when getting close to the point where the A/T guns will be spotted: 'Enemy defensive positions reported on your line of advance - look out, look out!'
 
- when all the A/T guns are destroyed: 'Now get a grip of your platoon again, and get moving to the objective, using bounding overwatch!'
 
- when the first Tiger arrives at the FUP: 'Right, now get your platoon into good fire positions, facing outwards along your axis of advance. And watch out for the Soviets!'
 
- when the last counterattacking tank has been destroyed or when/just before 'Mission complete' is displayed: 'OK, that's it! Unload and clear all weapons. Safety catches on, engines off! All crews, dismount and fall in by the platoon commander's tank, for debriefing!'
 
Other features like other vehicles, aircraft or artillery (or the rest of the Tiger company, sitting in the background) are just going to be distractions and should be avoided.
 
If this is successful then other training missions could be developed, like tank-infantry co-operation, where artillery and other troops can be included. Another possibility would be Panzergrenadier training missions, with the player commanding infantry carried in half-tracked SPWs.
 
It would be really nice to have complete careers for both a Tiger platoon commander and a Panzergrenadier platoon commander, mission sets starting off with your training in a single tank/SPW then platoon stuff, finally training in working with other the arms. Then you go to war in a series of missions which takes you through 1944 on the Eastern Front or whatever, following the real-life history of a specific Schwere Panzer Abteilung or a Panzergrenadier regiment working with the same Panzer (or Panzergrenadier) Division, fighting in the battles they fought. Less work if there are two versions of each operational mission  - one commanding the Tigers, the other commanding the Panzergrenadiers. But I don't want to get carried away!
 

[lockie]

Training objective
To practice the trainee in platoon battle handling including tactical movement and the application of fire.
 
Method
This exercise will consist of an advance to contact, then a quick attack and finally, a hasty defence.

Battle Picture
You command a platoon of three Tiger tanks on the Eastern Front. Your company has been tasked with making a flank attack to support the advance of a Panzergrenadier regiment. The company commander has detailed your platoon to move out first and clear the company's line of advance to the Forming Up Place (FUP) from where the flank attack will be launched.

I wish I could use the help from Kyth. He is much better in the mission scripting then me. I'm good at polygon creating.
 

Look at the map.

I think at this moment we need to talk through the Skype to define what should be done.

[33lima]

Let me have a look at the Counterstrike map in the ME first, since I can work out if what I imagine in my head now would fit in somewhere there. I managed to have a crude version of the first phase working by cloning the Tiger driving mission on its map. If there is a suitable route on the Counterstrike map as it is now, deleting all the troops that are in Counterstrike now, adding 3xTiger 1 instead, then putting some 'empty' Soviet AT guns at a suitable location about half-way along the route, might not be too hard for me...so I could leave you experts with the difficult bits Also I want to draw a diagram of the mission, and if we both have that it will be easier to understand my plan...and why it will not work

[lockie]

Let me have a look at the Counterstrike map in the ME first

I'd like to suggest u to look over the mission by Rends #5 Campaign `Barbarossa`. He kindly shared with me source files with polygon and I think this polygon and mission itself deserved to be interested.
In short, there are German infantry + AT guns and plus 3 PzIII, they have to repel the Soviet tank attack. There are forest, trenches, bushes and plain area.
I did a bit of adjustments to polygon and mission to simplify the mission requests and align the roads.
Here's pre-alpha:
http://www.4shared.com/rar/p64byJ3Sce/07_JulUpd_2014_03.html

[33lima]

OK downloading now!

[Txema]

Hi 33lima and Lockie,

I would LOVE to play realistic training missions like those in Steel Fury. It would be a dream come true for me !!!

Please, go for them !!!


Txema

[lockie]

I would LOVE to play realistic training missions like those in Steel Fury. It would be a dream come true for me !!!

Hi, Txema
There is one moment, - without Frinik`s mission describing this won`t be interesting. All my best missions were always with Frinik briefing. I may say that thanks to him txt the use of the mission immersion are always keep er up to top the time!
Well, actually many users may say - what is the hack abt briefing or combat orders???
U just need to go and shoot!
The hell yeah, but without an EXCELLENT scenario - mission does nothing.

[33lima]

I would LOVE to play realistic training missions like those in Steel Fury. It would be a dream come true for me !!!

Hi, Txema
There is one moment, - without Frinik`s mission describing this won`t be interesting. All my best missions were always with Frinik briefing. I may say that thanks to him txt the use of the mission immersion are always keep er up to top the time!
Well, actually many users may say - what is the hack abt briefing or combat orders???
U just need to go and shoot!
The hell yeah, but without an EXCELLENT scenario - mission does nothing.

Hi Locke
as I think you know by now, I take the reverse view.

Nothing is totally essential. Both a dramatic back-story/pep talk and a decent military 'briefing' (orders, really) are nice-to-have. But given a choice, it has to be a porper 'briefing'. Proper orders are

 (i) more necessary and useful than a pep talk, for explaining to the player the plan for the mission, exactly as in real life*; and

(ii) more realistic and thus more immersive, helping to create the impression that you are part of a military unit undertaking a military operation (which you will understand better, because the boss has just explained it to everyone, as he does in real life).

Realistic tanks are great but if the mission and the 'briefing' are not, then there's something missing. And why? Why be unrealistic, when you can be realistic?

My briefing above for this mission is realistic and thus useful, helping the player both get into character and understand what he is expected to do. It is just the sort of briefing you should get, before you start a training exercise. I was only a 'part-time' Army Officer but having participated in, designed and run my share in real life - tho not in tanks!!! - I know this to be so.

Real combat missions can benefit from a narrative introduction before the proper orders but I don't think training missions needs a 'pep talk' from the CO, to make it more interesting for the player.

* for example, see point 2 in this, which is the source of the German 'handbook' excerpts quoted at the start of many stock SF missions)
http://www.feldgrau.com/pnzfwd.html

[lockie]

as I think you know by now, I take the reverse view.

OK, I confess. I was father of defeat

[33lima]

as I think you know by now, I take the reverse view.

OK, I confess. I was father of defeat

You should have blamed Hauptmann Schulze, while you had the chance 

[33lima]

OK making plans is fun (and the easy bit, especially as I have little-to-no idea how to do any of this). But here is a first-cut plan for tank and infantry training syllabusses...syllabi...whatever the plural is, you know what I mean.

I haven't looked at other maps yet but a special one for a field training area would be ideal. I have zero experience in designing training areas but an attempt at the desirable characteristics for a 'Sennelager' map are below. There could be a variant with a village for FIBUA training but a clear open area (with plenty of tank-tracks and the like) would be
great. I've never been to 'Senne' but from pics, it looks not unlike the typical SF '42 map, with less signs of habitation.

As for the training programmes, I have no idea what SF '42's panzergrenadiers can do (apart from die fast) so little or none of the panzergrenadier exercises listed below may be possible.

The Tiger programme would be where to start. I know we already have driving and gunnery training missions but a new set, with the same tank, integrated into a Tiger platoon commander 'training career' would be best (and could be followed by some historical campaign missions, after you reach the front.

Maybe Frinik could write a pep talk for the first mission intro screen, where the CO is congratulating the player on his posting to learn to lead a Tiger platoon, the best of the best. Or maybe there's a separate campaign mission intro screen that could be used for that. We could even cast Hauptmann Schulze in that role, at an earlier stage in his career, long before 'The Panther's Last Roar Incident'. 

Even for just the Tiger training, so many missions may look like a paper project destined to stay that way. But the driving, gunnery and TC'ing missions are really easy (as missions go). The first tricky one is #4 which is the one described above and even that, is not TOO complicated - there is only one mission that is as complicated as a normal SF mission and that is the 'Final Exercise', #6. So I don't think the Tiger training programme is madly ambitious, at all...except for me.

If we wanted to go completely mad, the Final Exercise could be a 36 hour job played out over three missions - a daylight mission, another one as a night phase, then a final daylight mission, the next day. Players could be told that they must not shave or wash after they start and after the night phase, must sleep in their car overnight, fully clothed and without removing their boots. And pee into cardboard tubes emptied out the window, without getting out, until daylight

Here we go.


Map - 'Sennelager' - requirements - open, rolling countryside; a few low hills; sparse stands of trees/bushes; some hedgerows; no cultivated ground; traversed by well-rutted tracks, including one doing a  circuit; some tank scrapes; no habitation; no fixed obstacles; no water obstacles. On each map edge, one or two intermittent strips of either woodland or buildings, suitable, where an exercise calls for it, for positioning fixed tgts (can be engaged at the end of a move) and for screening moving tgts (which can move into view and simulate an attack or provide crossing targets). Near one corner of the map, some trenches, suitable for a platoon with 'two up', facing into the centre of the map and with one of the strips of woods nearby (as a hide for the platoon's SPWs)  and including a dug-in position suitable for an A/T gun and to the rear, a scrape suitable for a kanonenwagen.
 
The tank platoon leader course (Tiger I)
 
Exercise 1 - Driving
Training objective - to practice the trainee in driving, navigation and adopting defensive positions
 
Exercise 2 - Gunnery
Training objective - to practice the trainee in selecting ammunition, estimating ranges and engaging targets
 
Exercise 3 - Tank Commander
Training objective - to practice the trainee in commanding the Tiger tank in action

Exercise 4 - Platoon battle handling
Training objective - to practice the trainee in platoon battle handling, including tactical movement and the application of fire

Exercise 5 - Night operations
Training objective - to practice the trainee in tank combat in darkness
 
Exercise 6 - Final exercise - tank-infantry co-operation
Training objective - to practice the trainee in handling the tank platoon in all-arms combat
(possible 3-mission 36-hour exercise with night phase)


The panzergrenadier platoon leader course (SdKfz 251 Schutzenpanzerwagen)
 
Exercise 1 - Dismounted section battle handling
Training objective - to practice the trainee in section attacks using fire & manouevre

Exercise 2 - Mounted section battle handling
Training objective - to practice the trainee in mounted and dismounted attacks with the SPW

Exercise 3 - Platoon heavy weapons (Kanonenwagen)
Training objective - to practice the trainee in handling the SdKfz251/9 or 10 in combat

Exercise 4 - Mounted platoon battle handling
Training objective - to practice the trainee in offensive platoon operations with SPWs

Exercise 5 - Night operations
Training objective - to practice the trainee in dismounted night operations with SPWs
 
Exercise 6 - The platoon in defence
Training objective - to practice the trainee in fighting from static defences in co-operation with A/T guns

Exercise 7 - Final exercise - tank-infantry co-operation
Training objective - to practice the trainee in handling the panzergrenadier platoon in all-arms combat
(possible 3-mission 36-hour exercise with night phase)

[frinik]

Wow 33lima this is a very. Exhaustive and thorough plan ;)I'd love to conrtribute but. I just moved to a new country 2 days ago and  I don't have the internet at home. I am using my office provided smart phone which has interner0access to read the forum.

[33lima]

OK thanks Frinik if this is going to go anywhere, I'll need all the help I can get, and then some. Good luck with the change of scenery/country!

[lockie]

here is a first-cut plan for tank and infantry training

Nice plan! Everything is possible, but I've two requests:
1. U've to promise me that Hauptmann Schulze will be promoted to Major!
2. I need a scheme/picture of the polygon to make it.
BTW
Here's default polygon(with source files) from the game. I made on the base of it the mission "Fire ground".

[33lima]

here is a first-cut plan for tank and infantry training

Nice plan! Everything is possible, but I've two requests:
1. U've to promise me that Hauptmann Schulze will be promoted to Major!
2. I need a scheme/picture of the polygon to make it.
BTW
Here's default polygon(with source files) from the game. I made on the base of it the mission "Fire ground".

Thanks Lockie it's a deal! But according to this new piece of character history, Herr Major Schulze must have been a naughty boy, to end up as a captain in 1945 - maybe you'll have to promote him, perhaps even to Oberst, in Panther's Last Roar!

I'll get to work on a diagram of 'Sennelager'. Are SF maps 2,000m x 2,000m or did I imagine that?

[33lima]

here is a first-cut plan for tank and infantry training

Nice plan! Everything is possible, but I've two requests:
1. U've to promise me that Hauptmann Schulze will be promoted to Major!
2. I need a scheme/picture of the polygon to make it.
BTW
Here's default polygon(with source files) from the game. I made on the base of it the mission "Fire ground".

Hi Lockie

no file attached?

Here's a first effort at a plan for 'Sennelager'. Measured the driver training map I used in my test and it's just over 20x250m squares so I've done this on a 5,000m x 5,000m square, with 1,000m grid intervals.

[lockie]

no file attached?

Here we're:
http://www.4shared.com/rar/so5Q5B70ba/0_test.html

Here's a first effort at a plan for 'Sennelager'. Measured the driver training map I used in my test and it's just over 20x250m squares so I've done this on a 5,000m x 5,000m square, with 1,000m grid intervals.

This is good scheme. Everything is clear for me. Though, I think a 100m for the upper point is too much. Let it be 50m.
I'll try to make this polygon soon.

Are SF maps 2,000m x 2,000m?

Yes.

[33lima]

Thanks, got it now.

Yes a lower max height would be good, we want low hills, good enough for a tank to be invisible on the reverse slope but not much higher. In between, ground not too flat, lots of little dips and folds in the ground so there are plenty of good fire positions, whichever way the player drives.

Some details which may help...

About the 'section defensive positions', can each section (squad) have its own trench (or trenches, small is better if practicable), grouped as shown in the diagram - 'two up' = two sections side by side, facing the enemy (centre of map) and one section behind, 'in depth'.  Also a trench in the middle for 'platoon HQ' = the player's command section, which I forgot to mark but can be in the middle. The position for an AT gun should be left or right of the platoon area. We also need a tank scrape to one side, which the platoon's Kannonenwagen can drive into or be pre-positioned in. Both the A/T gun position and the Kannonenwagen's tank scrape should provide a field of fire across the front of the platoon area. They need to be very close to the platoon area - for mutual support the infantry need to be able to fire across the fronts of the A/T gun and the Kannonenwagen, too.

Can we have four or five tank scrapes at Grid 380 175? Sorry that the small ticks are 12 per square not 10, I used a model railway track planning program to create the grid and it is in feet and inches! The tank scrapes should face a bearing of about 6000 mils, roughly towards the buildings, top centre. These are for gunnery practice, to give a good field of fire out towards tank targets, which for the gunnery practice mission can be placed on the forward slope around Grid 300 400, or can drive from the buildings so as to appear over the crest and drive towards the player or to one side (so the player can get practice against static targets, moving targets and crossing targets).

It would be good to have some tank scrapes along the perimeter track, left or right, not more than 25m from the perimeter track. Using the clock code, starting on the circuit at about 10 o'clock, no more after about 3 o'clock. The purpose of these would be to provide the player with at least a few obvious covered positions, for the driver training mission. What I want to happen - simple time triggers may be best, or maybe when the player reaches one of these scrapes - is that after the player, starting bottom left, has driven along the track for a while, he will start getting messages which say 'Contact front!' (or left or right). He will be told in the briefing that he will practice Contact Drills and on command should turn in the direction indicated, and drive fast for a short distance, halting in the best cover he can find within a few seconds, still facing that way. Maybe 15 seconds later, he gets another message, 'All clear! Driver, return to your route and carry on!'. The player drives on for another minute or two, then it happens again. A bit of practice in Contact Drill is useful, and it means the driver training mission is not just...well, driving.

It would also be good to have short stretches of rutted tracks here and there in different places, to make it look like the whole area has been well travelled by tracked vehicles. And anything else you can think of, to make it look like a proper tank training ground, so long as it will not get in the way.

I remembered reading that it was 2000m a side but loading the driver training mission, I counted about 20 grid squares which the manual says are at 250m intervals, which is where I got the incorrect figure of 5000m from. So my grid squares are at odd intervals of about 400m. Oh well, hopefully everything will still fit. The diagonal track would be the line of advance for the platoon mission, starting bottom left, and even at the reduced scale I think there is still enough room to practice a little fire and movement, before you drive over the crest and bump into the A/T guns on the reverse slope.