German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Gary Grigsby’s War in the East: The German-Soviet War 1941-1945 is a turn-based World War II strategy game stretching across the entire Eastern Front. Gamers can engage in an epic campaign, including division-sized battles with realistic and historical terrain, weather, orders of battle, logistics and combat results.

The critically and fan-acclaimed Eastern Front mega-game Gary Grigsby’s War in the East just got bigger and better with Gary Grigsby’s War in the East: Don to the Danube! This expansion to the award-winning War in the East comes with a wide array of later war scenarios ranging from short but intense 6 turn bouts like the Battle for Kharkov (1942) to immense 37-turn engagements taking place across multiple nations like Drama on the Danube (Summer 1944 – Spring 1945).

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rainman2015
Posts: 229
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2015 1:52 am

German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Post by rainman2015 »

I am a newbie, and am playing my first campaign game as the Axis.

Was reading this old thread (great thread) on how to best distribute support units as the Axis, and have a question about combat engineers.

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Why is everyone recommending putting precious combat engineer support units into their panzer divisions directly or into the Panzer Corps? Don't you want to use kind of 'shock infantry corps' to take out the forts and urban defended areas so that you keep the panzers from being halved and ground up in the forts/urban areas?

Why put combat engineers into your panzer corps/divisions?

Thanks
Randy
:)
swkuh
Posts: 1034
Joined: Sun Oct 04, 2009 9:10 pm

RE: German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Post by swkuh »

I keep 1 battalion in every corps, so far as possible. They're always useful. If you can plan where your assault on fortified positions will take place, then you can position them appropriately. But, events may overtake your plans. Best be ready wherever, whenever. Not sure that bunches of them pay off any more than a few in critical place.
rainman2015
Posts: 229
Joined: Thu Feb 12, 2015 1:52 am

RE: German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Post by rainman2015 »

OK. Couple things though.

If you are assaulting a fort level of say 2, my understanding is that TWO combat engineers reduce the fort effectiveness for that battle to 0. Is that true? So, if you were assaulting say Leningrad or Sevastopol, then you would want to attack with 2+ combat engineers (depending on the ft level) in all your attacks, right?

Also, not seeing a real advantage to putting more than one combat engineer per corp ever with a panzer corp, since i am avoiding ever assaulting anything higher than a 1 level fortification with my panzer forces.

Thanks
Randy
:)

Gabriel B.
Posts: 501
Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2013 9:44 am

RE: German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Post by Gabriel B. »

Regarding infantry corps .

The starting lineup has in each army at least one corp that is packed heavily with suport units including engineers (take for instance VIII of 9th army ) , that corp is supposed to lead the atack in the army sector. While the others are usualy devoid
of any suport units whatsoever, their task is just to move troops foward and add weight to the atack, if the lead corps infantry is not enough.

That is the ofensive setup , however by fall of 1941 you might want to distribute that corps SU among the neigbouring corps .
swkuh
Posts: 1034
Joined: Sun Oct 04, 2009 9:10 pm

RE: German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Post by swkuh »

Aha! thanks Gabriel B. for suggesting a better approach than mine, i.e., "lead corps" vice "move 'em along." Had wondered why initial set ups were so weighted. Never thought there'd be a reason.

Hmmm... means I'd need to plan initial charge more carefully, keep the loaded corps up front. Still, think I'd like balance once first rush, first moves are complete.
Mehring
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RE: German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Post by Mehring »

I haven't a clue whether the initial deployment has any historical rationale but given the tight limits on SU commitment I think it's a priority for most players, to redistribute SUs ASAP so all corps have sufficient support.
“Old age is the most unexpected of all things that can happen to a man.”
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Gabriel B.
Posts: 501
Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2013 9:44 am

RE: German Combat Engineers in Panzer Divs/Corps?

Post by Gabriel B. »

The asigment of suport units asigned to corps is historical, however some corps are not asigned properly.

V, VI, XXIII, L, XLII , LIII from memory.
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