Fire and advance

[Ebusitanus]

You can study this tech for your infantry and even activate it when researched. But I have no idea what good is there supposed to come from it. When activated my inf lines start to move on their own, throwing off good firing angles and loosing the firing sequence. How is this advancement supposed to be used?

[Pink Beard]

I think it's very usefull for when you have socket bayonets and want to do melee fights!
With Fire and advance you can shoot the crap out of them before slicing them to pieces

[Stalins Ghost]

It's tricky to use, certainly. But I have found it's useful when you use tighter formations (as opposed to drawn out lines.) Firstly, it doesn't take them as long to spread out into position. Secondly, it offers a fairly continuous stream of fire. Thirdly, casualties seem to be reduced.

All in all, it's good for getting methodically into melee.

[Monglor]

You can study this tech for your infantry and even activate it when researched. But I have no idea what good is there supposed to come from it. When activated my inf lines start to move on their own, throwing off good firing angles and loosing the firing sequence. How is this advancement supposed to be used?

Honestly I've never been able to have much success with it. I actually prefer to have my guys advance at a walk, then finally sprint into gun range and start shooting and just keep shooting til the other guys are dead.

Some things I have noted with fire and advance though are:

1. It doesn't work well if you've got a bunch of units, they trip over each other.

2. It seems to work best if you have deeper units, four or five ranks deep means you can almost maintain continual fire.

3. Against good troops with fire by rank in three ranks you're going to get shot all to hell.

4. It does slightly reduce artillery casualties.

Honestly though apart from a few goes with it when it was new and I wanted to try it I don't use fire and advance at all. If I'm in gun range I much prefer my troops to be shooting lots or charging, but definitely one or the other not half and half.

I think though that if I use the DarthMod, which I shall probably after I finish my current campaign, the longer musket range and larger units might well make this a much more useful skill.

[HomelessDepot]

It doesn't really have a purpose atm... unless CA or some of our more talented modders make range affect accuracy to a much higher degree (already in some mods) - then advancing under fire might make sense in some tactical situations, whereas right now you might as well just stand still and shoot back.

-HD

[Monglor]

It doesn't really have a purpose atm... unless CA or some of our more talented modders make range affect accuracy to a much higher degree (already in some mods) - then advancing under fire might make sense in some tactical situations, whereas right now you might as well just stand still and shoot back.

-HD

I think range does affect accuracy, but the weapons ranges are very short in the stock game, so at 80 yards which is the stock line infantry range the shots are brutally effective. I believe the DarthMod increases the range and by doing so decreases the lethality of an extreme range volley.

[Gora sahib]

As I replied in your other thread on this topic:

As it stands Fire&Advance has limited use in campaign mode and nearly zero use in multiplayer. The most effective use Ive found for F&A is if you can position a unit to enfilade (flank fire) on an enemy line, you can then fire and advance down their line. I think this way you can help break units because you are not only advancing along their flank, but you are also firing.

The down side to F&A, as its currently in game, is the awkward skirmish formation that your unit adopts - it takes too long to get in and out of this formation and makes you vulnerable to melee. If your unit would retain its 'tight' formation and would just enter into F&A (which is more historically accurate) it would be a far more valuable tactic.

[Stalins Ghost]

As I replied in your other thread on this topic:

As it stands Fire&Advance has limited use in campaign mode and nearly zero use in multiplayer. The most effective use Ive found for F&A is if you can position a unit to enfilade (flank fire) on an enemy line, you can then fire and advance down their line. I think this way you can help break units because you are not only advancing along their flank, but you are also firing.

The down side to F&A, as its currently in game, is the awkward skirmish formation that your unit adopts - it takes too long to get in and out of this formation and makes you vulnerable to melee. If your unit would retain its 'tight' formation and would just enter into F&A (which is more historically accurate) it would be a far more valuable tactic.

Agreed on the last point. I've found uses for it, but it would be infinitely more useful if it was more cohesive.

[MrOsterman]

The down side to F&A, as its currently in game, is the awkward skirmish formation that your unit adopts - it takes too long to get in and out of this formation and makes you vulnerable to melee. If your unit would retain its 'tight' formation and would just enter into F&A (which is more historically accurate) it would be a far more valuable tactic.

The British Army of the day stood roughly one foot appart at the shoulder. To do a fire and advance you need at least 3 if not 5 feet between the files in order to have room to advance to the front and fire. The time for the unit to move from formation to the other would make sense.

What they need to do is to create a way to go into the fire and advance formation, but then to do the usual firing drills in that "Open Order" formation. Then if you want to activate FnA it's just a single click and off you go. Of course the downside to open order would be things like reduced morale, or maybe lowered mellee defense or something.

Personally I'd love to see THAT as a mod.

Mr. O

[Gora sahib]

1~3 feet - or more accurately, arms length apart, is more than adequate for fire and advance drill. 5 feet would work I guess for a special chubby beerhall Bavarian regiment.

But arms length apart is not the skirmish formation that is used in game for A&F. Point is, A&F in game is too awkward and troublesome to use (either in single or multiplayer). To be more useful the formation needs to be tighter and the troops must form up and begin F&A faster.

[Willowmound]

I haven't even figured out how to make my guys do this move. Do you engage the F&A icon and then target (right-click) an enemy unit? Or do you just tell them to move, and they will shoot if something comes in range?

Every time I try using it, urgent events force me to re-issue orders. I've never seen it work.

[Bob the Insane]

Do you engage the F&A icon and then target (right-click) an enemy unit?

This is absolutely correct...

[Willowmound]

Thanks, that's what I thought.

How far does it advance?

[Pontifex Maximus]

Moved to strategy. PM me with questions.

[nodey]

Completely useless tech.

[Kazang]

Completely useless tech.

Yeah im gonna go with it being useless, by the time they have spread out and started to get into the new formation, then the delay before they start doing anything...... well you may as well have had them just keep firing or gone straight for the bayonet charge after the initial volley.

Mostly i just run them up pretty close, volley, and get grenades chucked over the line, then bayonet charge to rout them.

Fire and advance just takes too long and doesn't seem to have any tangible benefit.

[Ares1000]

I wouldent call it useless if your useing Darthmod or just closer formation wich is more historical accurate, men stood shoulder to shoulder to present as much firepower as possible, then the fire and advance is more useful as your men spread out and take less casulties.

One tech i would have liked to see in the game is the Iron ramrod, invented and used by the Prussians, it's platoon fireing except they advanced while doing it.

[Heinz Guderian]

Doesnt work for me when i click it. I did notice that my unit kept on firing at the enemy when they routed even though they were almost triple the range of the unit. May have been a one off though.

[eatme]

Completely useless tech.

Nah it's not but it has limited usability. Meaning that it won't go vs some kinds of units like with other infantry that has superior gunfire. But in general it makes for a good advancing vs other line infantry.

[smithers]

Fire and Advance worked pretty well for Michael Caine and Stanley Baker.
As did Fire by Rank and giving 'em a taste of cold steel

As Lance Corporal Jones often said, "They don't like it up 'em sir!"