GAME MANUAL - Steam

HEARTS OF IRON DARKEST HOURsimultaneously committing toomany divisions to a battle.Advanced CommandOrganisation - HQ andLeadershipThe most common error a newplayer will make is to fail topay close enough attention tohis leadership.There is a false sense ofpower that assembling a hugemass of troops will engender;after all, there’s a schoolyardbully mentality that comesalong with putting 50 or 60divisions in a large stack. As aresult, you must alwaysremember that the penaltiesfor exceeding leadershipcapabilities will make anyexcesses almost meaningless.In fact, the likelihood of losinga battle increases dramaticallywhen you are significantlyoverstacked, because thoseexcess units will eliminate thecommander’s skill andpossible trait bonuses and willcontribute virtually nothing toyour offence. They are alsovery likely to sustain seriouscasualty and organisationlosses, causing them to breakand take the rest of the armywith them. If you absolutelyhave to bring large numbersof troops to bear against anopponent then your best andperhaps only chance at victoryis to ensure that you have anHQ division nearby to doubleyour command capabilities,bolster your supply, andpossibly produce a combatevent that could turn the tide.The other thing that playersoften overlook or fail tocapitalise on is the traits of thevarious field officers. You mayeasily find that a small numberof divisions commanded by a“lowly” lieutenant general withthe Commando trait can pushback an enemy in a situationwhere a succession of FieldMarshals with 12 divisionseach might easily fail. Look atthe context of the battles inwhich you expect to engageand try to ensure that youhave the right officers on handto fight them. Don’t forget yourChief of the Army’s traitseither, since he may give anoverall benefit that can beemployed if you structure yourforces to take advantage of it.Broad Front DefensiveCounter-Attack InitiativesWhen fighting along a broaddefensive front with manyinterlinking provinces, it sometimespays to disrupt anenemy’s attack by launchingattacks of your own againsthis advancing or supportingtroops. While those aren’tbattles you’ll necessarily win,the flanking effects andadditional strength and organisationdamage you inflictmight be enough to disrupt theenemy’s troops and blunt themain thrust of his advance.Remember that, in such asituation, he will not have thebenefit of using fortificationsagainst you, nor will he havean entrenchment bonus.You should carefully considerholding forces in reservebehind your front lines. Notonly does this keep themfresh and ready to step up tohelp meet a concerted attack,but it can also be used as aluring tactic if the enemy isunaware of their presence.Presenting an apparent weakspot in your front line mayinduce your enemy to take achance and attack you in whatmight otherwise be a poorchoice of battlegrounds. Oncehe commits, take advantage ofthe support defence order toquickly move your main forcesinto position and inflict nastycasualty levels. Once youhave won the battle - which isvery likely - you can thenpress the advantage byfollowing up with an attack ofyour own against his nowweakenedforces. In manycases, this is your only goodchance to punch a holethrough a strong enemy front.Needless to say, this is yetanother situation wherehaving an HQ division nearbycan have an enormous effect.Envelopment, Encirclement,and SupplyAnother all-too-common errormade by new players is toforget the nasty effects ofenvelopment. There will betimes when it would be moreprudent to withdraw from asituation than to allow yourenemy to assault you frommultiple angles of attack. Ifyou’re very lucky, you mighteven be able to turn a wellconsideredretreat into asituation where you may turnthe tables and envelope yourenemy’s over-eager advance.Troops can’t fight if theirstomachs are empty and theyhave no more rounds ofammunition in their machineguns and rifles. Even thelargest tank doesn’t presentmuch of a threat if it lacks thefuel to manoeuvre or powerthe rotation of its turret.Ensuring a steady, uninterruptedflow of supplies to yourtroops is absolutely vital, justas finding methods to cut yourenemy’s supply chains caninflict a more devastating blowthan any frontal assault couldaccomplish.I’ve already stressed this pointat least once, but I’ll repeat ithere: do not allow yourself torun out of or become cut offfrom supply. It is the singlemost damaging thing that canhappen to your troops.Without supply, your forces’organisation will plummet andtheir strength will decline. Thatimpenetrable defensive lineof fortresses and men thatyou’ve assembled will rapidlycrumble, and after a couplemonths of patiently waitingfor starvation to set in, yourenemy will slice through yourtroops like a searing-hot knifecutting through butter…and ofcourse that is exactly thesituation you should belooking to exploit, particularly ifyou’re playing Germany in1939 and are faced with themassive French fortificationsof the Maginot Line.126