Tzar007
Posts: 772
Joined: 2/7/2004
From: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Status: offline
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From MarkShot:
This post is in response to Phil. Phil asked in our French support thread for a discussion how to employ frontage|depth in the game. I'll answer here and JeF can do the translation over there for me.
As with many features of the game, my use is fairly basic. But I'll stress a point which I made previously ... good application of the basics will get you a victory nine times out of ten.
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{If there are any errors here, I am sure Dave will jump in and correct them.}
An important point to realize is (which I didn't when I started playing RDOA) frontage|depth only applies to groups of multiple units and not to a single unit. I believe, this is also true of formations. So, if you give a single unit a frontage|depth setting it has no impact. On the other hand, if you have multiple units, then it will affect how the AI positions each unit. (Note, that facing works for single units.) {Hmm, I am not 100% sure of this, since I do note that box size drawn in HTTR for a single unit does appear to change. Dave?}
Given what I said above this increases the utility value of frontage|depth in HTTR versus RDOA, since the Estabs now consistently go down to company level as opposed to the just battalian level. Also, the ability to give individual orders to a company allows a greater degree of flexibility when some micro-managing is desired.
Also, I believe there were some fixes/enhancements made to how HTTR handles (frontage|depth)+formations. However, I don't recall what they were. {Dave?}
* Defense *
The AI will provide a default frontage|depth which is appropriate to the force at hand. Here are the times when I will manually adjust it:
(1) I am trying to occupy a wooded or urban area. The area is smaller than what would be the default footprint of the force, but I don't want the force to place units out in the open. So, I adjust the footprint to fit the area available. (Within reason, of course. You are not going to try to pack a battalian into a single house!)
(2) You have an objective with a large perimeter radius. You can adjust the frontage|depth to cover required area. This is useful when the perimeter is only slightly larger than the standard 1km-1.5km diameter objectives. If it is much larger or the enclosed area is wooded or urban, then you a probably better off establishing a number [D]efend tasks with multiple forces. (The latter would be superior both in terms of achieving the required footprint and creating a more effective defense.)
(3) I commonly use line formations when building a defense of multiple positions (usual done when you suspect attack/approach from particular directions and are trying to exploit terrain features). I will tend to adjust the frontage|depth for the line to conform to the terrain feature (woods, urban, etc ...) that I am trying to take advantage of. You'll also be adjusting the facing.
(4) Keep in mind that thin forces give you better spotting/interdiction/harassment ability versus denser forces which give you better firepower/mutual support/stopping ability. As such adjusting frontage|depth is often done with the construction of layered defenses. (see earlier in this thread a fairly extensive example of constructing a layered defense) The initial line which is intended as a screen for the purpose of making first contact with the enemy is usually set up with a wide frontage. You don't want stopping power. You mainly want to make contact by having spotting ability to cover as much area as you can a good distance from the main line of resistance. Correspondingly, the main line of resistance is intended to stop the enemy. As such, you will adjust frontage|depth to use a more dense footprint to increase fire power.
* Attack *
The AI will provide a default frontage|depth which is appropriate to the force at hand. Here are the times when I will manually adjust it:
(1) Often you may be trying to attack through a narrow corridor of trees or an open field. You will want to keep infantry forces in cover and armor in the open if possible. You can use the frontage|depth to adjust the shape of the force to try to prevent the attack from spilling over into inappropriate terrain.
(2) On the attack, you are often making a bold thrust to try to break the enemy defense. You can, of course, increase the ferocity of your attack by adjusting AGGRO parameters, etc... You can also reduce frontage|depth to increase the fire power. This can help you punch through an enemy line. Once you have broken through, the total enemy defense is more likely to crumble. Depending on the scope of the battle, you may also further exploit the hole.
(3) Sometimes your attack has been more or less successful, but you still have isolated enemy units stubbornly refusing to yield. Their presence within the perimeter of an objective can cause you to forfeit its point. You can often launch a follow on attack with a force having a large frontage mainly intended to mop up any isolated enemy units which are still resisting.
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Well, I hope these thoughts prove useful to you.
{JeF, s'il te plait traduir a Phil dans notre thread Francaise. Merci.}
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RE: Tips thread - 
. Bravo you know at the "perfection" the game , you are a very good teacher of the game! can i use all you say with Airborne Assault? i have not yet in france the new game. Continue to help the student we are in the game! Thinks . 
Thinks to MarkShot for his help. if possible jef can explain a little bit in french it will be pleasant to me to understand more. 
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