Use for Air Portable Divisions

Use for Air Portable Divisions (Full Version)

All Forums >> [New Releases from Matrix Games] >> Gary Grigsby's War in the West

Message

Devonport -> Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 10:16:02 AM)
As the title says, what is the distinctive use of an air portable division that will allow it to do something different to either an airborne drop or air transport of a non-motorised unit?

carlkay58 -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 11:14:41 AM)
First off it has the same light TOE as an airborne division so it is 100% transportable by air, non-motorized units have to leave the portions of their TOE that are non-transportable behind and lose a large amount of their CV. Second, while it can't air drop like the airborne can what it does do well is get air transported into an airbase that was just captured this round by airborne troops. As they are flying from friendly airbase to friendly airbase they suffer very low losses and disruption so they have a good solid reinforcement right off the bat. They are great at reinforcing a major airbase that was just seized in an airdrop.

Seminole -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 12:21:08 PM)
quote: Second, while it can't air drop like the airborne can what it does do well is get air transported into an airbase that was just captured this round by airborne troops. Not just seized by airborne forces. I like to use paras to hold airbases in the wake of armored thrusts.

Devonport -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 12:24:52 PM)
Thanks carlkay58, now I just need to pluck up the courage to use airborne!

LiquidSky -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 3:04:28 PM)
Airborne are the key to success. Every invasion I do is protected by the paratroopers. They can paradrop adjacent to an invasion hex regardless of range or they can land up to 8 hexes away from a friendly hex. If they are divisions they won't be subject to drift, but if they are smaller, they can (and usually do!) drift into the sea/enemy and are destroyed. They leave interdiction values in and adjacent to the drop zone. Which adds to any you may have dropped during the air phase. This makes them hard for the Germans to attack (but not impossible if the terrain is clear). They can land on anything except mountain hexes. I like to drop them on cities or rough. If they land on/adjacent to a friendly airfield, they can use 2 trips which saves on transports. So drop the first one on an airfield, and then string them along if their are lots of airfields in the area.

Seminole -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 4:11:40 PM)
quote: If they are divisions they won't be subject to drift, but if they are smaller, they can (and usually do!) drift into the sea/enemy and are destroyed. Is this just an observation, or actually a rule? I couldn't find anything about it in the manual, but didn't know if it was in some patch addendum or something.

LiquidSky -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 5:22:07 PM)
I have done a lot of airborne missions. I have never seen a division drift. Ever. Recently I dropped 2 divisions in my first invasion of Italy (Toe area) and again in my second invasion (around Taranto) and again in my third (Near Pescara on the Eastern Coast) In all these cases (6 drops) not a single drift. In my previous game I dropped probably a dozen times...no drift. Never have I seen a division drift. On the other hand...I dropped a regiment to take the ferry crossing from Messina. It drifted and landed on the Ferry Hex (with a task group on it) and was destroyed...but did give me control of the ferry crossing. I dropped another one with one my invasion...and it drifted. I seem to have a 100% failure rate with regiments drifting. It feels like from the three or so games I have played as the allies, that the regiments drift about half the time. I did a practice game where I dropped all my divisions as regiments over Normandy, and I scattered all over the Bocage. If they happen to hit an airfield, then the other ones drop accurately adjacent to that airfield...and with half the transports, even if the hex is enemy controlled. Useful if you want to land in the Calais area with all its airfields. But I have never ever seen a division drift. And I must have done around a couple dozen in all my games total.

Joel Billings -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 6:38:55 PM)
Yes, pretty sure it's a rule that divisions won't scatter. This was intentional given the ground scale to make using smaller landings less powerful. The assumption is with a division enough of the unit will land in the hex to form critical mass. With brigades, the critical mass may not be obtained and thus should have much greater chances of things not working out as planned. Should be documented somewhere.

Q-Ball -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/8/2015 10:38:11 PM)
Even as Germany, I like to use the 91st Airlanding Div in Air portable mode. I use it on an invasion turn as a rapid reaction force. It can only deploy to an airfield, but I have found it deploys with minimal disruption, much less than if it marched there through interdiction

KWG -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/20/2015 3:06:19 PM)
The use of Airborne forces in defensive operations is overshadowed by its offensive use. In WiTE one could only drop Airborne forces on enemy controlled territory. I was thrilled to see that in WiTW you could drop Airborne forces on enemy or friendly held territory. This allows the Allies to spread its forces thin on advancing attacks and then reinforce with Airborne troops in safe drop zones. It's also a great way for the Germans to move fallschirmjäger quickly to strengthen defenses.

LiquidSky -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/20/2015 11:49:17 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: Q-Ball Even as Germany, I like to use the 91st Airlanding Div in Air portable mode. I use it on an invasion turn as a rapid reaction force. It can only deploy to an airfield, but I have found it deploys with minimal disruption, much less than if it marched there through interdiction Or adjacent to an airfield. And it can fly in 2 sorties thus halving the number of air transports you need.

Q-Ball -> RE: Use for Air Portable Divisions (9/21/2015 10:24:55 PM)
quote: ORIGINAL: LiquidSky quote: ORIGINAL: Q-Ball Even as Germany, I like to use the 91st Airlanding Div in Air portable mode. I use it on an invasion turn as a rapid reaction force. It can only deploy to an airfield, but I have found it deploys with minimal disruption, much less than if it marched there through interdiction Or adjacent to an airfield. And it can fly in 2 sorties thus halving the number of air transports you need. Yeah, good point. But main point: Use the 91st in a rapid reaction role. Once you get it there, and attach some SUs (also without worrying about interdiction), it's a decent unit

Page: [1]

Forum Software © ASPPlayground.NET Advanced Edition 2.4.5 ANSI

1