Afterthoughts on the Mius Operation...

For a long time, now, I have been exercising my mind (racking my brains) upon the topic of how I am to organise my considerable WW2 collection of ... stuff. Actually, compared with at least two other collections in this town, it isn't all that huge. Not when a friend turned up one day to lay out on my lounge floor his whole regiment of T34 tanks - all 47 of them (not to mention his 20 other AFVs of varying sizes and weights); or that other club occasion when we could not pass up the presence of a temporary boxing ring left over from the previous night's entertainment and ropes and posts removed. A brief dash home fetched what armour we could, and there ensued a great battle between 100 Soviet tanks against 70 German. Almost the entire collection was Nick's; my contribution was 13 - my entire Red Army inventory of AFVs at the time - though I was put command of a further 16. Man that was fun!

But.. mine is not so very huge a collection, but still in want of proper organisation and housing.

My armies have grown since that day, my Red Army now able to field

- 14 x T34

- 5 x M4 Sherman (or 10 if I throw in my die cast tanks)

- 6 x IS2

- 6 x KV Is and IIs, OR  5 may be replaced by KV85s (have swappable turrets)

- 2 x T26

- 1 x T70

- 1 x SU85

- 3 x SU76

Now, highly taken with accessibility and appearance of the game designs of Bob Cordery (Portable Wargame, Hexblitz), Chris Kemp (Not Quite Mechanised) and Tim Gow (Megablitz and Little Cold Wars) - to which one might add a couple of articles by Martin Rapier - I have been wondering how to organise my stuff that I can put together a game without my usual safari among various boxes (and rooms) to hoik out what I want and need.

Overall picture of what my 6th Shock Army will look like.
Present are the Mechanised and Tank Corps; and one of
the four Rifle Divisions. Absent is the Cavalry and
three Rifle Divisions.

The 'formation in a box idea', though tempting, won't quite work with my stuff - not definitively, at any rate, a certain items will probably be 'shared' among game systems. Even the AFVs will be so tasked, with, for example, certain British and Red Army items being roped into a Little Cold Wars type of campaign between the 'Republic' of Tchagai, and the Nimruz S.S.R. - set in the 1950s and 1960s.

Yet I do want at least a settled ORBAT for all the kit, and the recent 'Unquiet Flows the Mius' game took me far along to road towards that goal. I have settled upon a 'Two Tiered' system: what I call a 'Div Level' list, and an 'Army Level' list. I'll start here with my late war Red Army Mechanised Corps.

Mechanised Corps (Div Level) 1944-45

Corps Commander      (1SP)
Corps HQ, Staffs and sigs:   (1 SP)
Supply Column:
  - 2 x Supply Truck with trailer  (6LOG)
  - 1 x Supply Truck or Bowser   (3POL) (Provisional)
Tank Brigade: 

  -  3 x Tank Battalions, each with 1 T34 @ 4SP - (12SP Md or HvAT) 

  -  Motor Rifle Battalion:
           - 2 Rifle stands, 1 SMG stand, 1 82mm Mortar, 1 PTRS ATRifle, (5SP)
             1 medium truck or 2 light trucks:  (6T)
3 x Mechanised Brigades, each comprising:
           - 1 x Tank Regiment with 2 T34 @ 4SP - (8SP Md or HvAT)
           - 1 x BA64 (or other armoured car) 2SP Recon
           - 1 x AAMG quad 1SP 2AA
           - 1 x 45L66 AT gun (or 57mm for a Guards Corps) 2SP LtAT
           - 1 x PTRS stand 1SP CCAT
           - 1 x Field Artillery Regiment with 1x76L39 gun 3SP
           - 1 x Mortar Battalion with 1 x 82mm or 122mm mortar 3SP
           - 3 x Motor Rifle Battalions, each with
              - 3 rifle stands, 1 MMG stand, 1 Mortar stand, 1 PTRS stand
                 1 medium or 2 light trucks  6T   
Light Self Propelled Gun Regiment:
  - 1 x SU76 4SP LtHE, MdAT
Heavy Self Propelled Gun Regiment:
  - 1 x SU152 or SU122 or ISU152 4SP Md or HvHE
Tank Destroyer Regiment:
  - 1 x SU85 or SU100 4SP (Hv or EHv AT)
Mortar Regiment:
  - 1 FOO stand, motor vehicle 0SP, Recon/ Artillery Observer
  - 2 x 120mm Mortar @ 3 SP: 6SP (Represents 2 Mortar Battalions)
Anti-Aircraft Battery:
  - 1 x 37L70 AA gun, towing vehicle 2SP, 2AA
Anti-Tank Battalion:
  - 1 x 45L66 Anti-tank gun, towing vehicle, 3SP LtAT
Guards Mortar Battalion:
  - 1 x BM-13 MRL 2SP 4MdHE
Engineer Battalion:
  - 2 x Engineer SMG stands 2SP 2ENG
  - 1 x Medium engineer truck with trailer 2 LOG
Reconnaissance Battalion:
  - 1 x Armoured Car  1SP Recon
  - 1 x Scout Car Company:
    - 1 x M3A1 (White) scout car  (2T)
    - 1 x SMG SMG recon infantry stand 2SP Recon
Motorcycle Battalion:
  - 1 x Armoured Car 1SP Recon
  - 1 x Motorcycle SMG stand SP1  Recon
  - 2-3 selected, 1 only of each, from:
    - 1 x Scout Car Company, with:
       - 1 x M3A1 scout car (2T)
       - 1 x SMG recon stand (2SP Recon)
    - Halftrack Company, with:
       - 1 x halftrack (2T)
       - 1 x SMG recon stand (2 SP Recon)
    - 1 x Armoured car company  1 x BA32 or similar 2SP Recon
    - 1 x Tank Company: T34/76 tank 2SP MdAT
    - 1 x Artillery Battery: 1 x 76L39, tractor 1 SP LtHE
    - 1 x Anti-Tank Battery: 1 x 45L46 AT gun 1SP LtAT
    - 1 x Anti-Aircraft MG Battery: 1 x AAMG 1SP LtAA

Notes:
1.  Strength points (SP) based on numbers only, not troop quality.  Although the systems in use have the virtue of simplicity, I've never felt fully comfortable with combining quantity and quality in the same SP system.  One tank represents 1 Battalion or half a regiment; each SP represents  5 tanks, roughly.

2.  Though the 2 tanks comprising the Mech Bde tank regiments count as separate 'units', they may never be separated by more than 1 grid area.

3.  I've labelled the weight of anti tank according to 5 categories;
CC (close combat, viz AT Rifles and bazooka-type weapons), Light, Medium, Heavy and Extra Heavy.  For the moment I haven't settled upon a definition.  Apart from the question of gun ranges, there remains that of effectiveness.
3A.  I have left open the question of AFV protection (armour) for the time being.
3B.  I'm thinking of modifying combat outcomes by adding to the SP factors for firepower, protection (self and external), type shooting, type of target, experience/ quality.

4.  The idea I have in mind do complicate the game, but I am hoping not unduly, and not such as to detract from the action.

5.  A lot of the 'extra bits and pieces will get subsumed in the Army Level ORBAT:

The Mechanised Corps (sorry about the picture quality)

Mechanised Corps (Army Level) 1944-45

Corps Commander 1SP
HQ: staff, sigs etc, truck. 1SP
Supply Columns: 4 POL and 4 LOG (Provisional)
Tank Brigade:
  - 1 x T34, 1 x SMG:  5SP MdAT
    (Represents 3 tank battalions of about 20 tanks each, plus motor rifle battalion)
Mechanised Brigade:
  -  Tank Regiment: 1 x T34: 3SP Md (T34/76) or Hv (T35/85) AT
  -  Brigade Infantry:
     - 3 x Rifle, 1xMMG, 1 x Mortar, 1 x PTRS 6SP
  (Represents 1 tank regiment of about 45 tanks plus 3 motor rifle battalions).
Mechanised Brigade:
  -  Tank Regiment: 1 x T34: 3SP Md or HvAT
  -  Brigade Infantry:
     - 3 x Rifle, 1xMMG, 1 x Mortar, 1 x PTRS 6SP
Mechanised Brigade:
  -  Tank Regiment: 1 x T34: 3SP Md or HvAT
  -  Brigade Infantry:
     - 3 x Rifle, 1xMMG, 1 x Mortar, 1 x PTRS 6SP
Mortar Regiment:
 - 1 x 122mm Mortar 2SP MdHE
Recon/motorcycle Battalions
 - 1 x Armoured Car 1SP Recon
 - 1 x SMG stand and M3A1 Scout Car 1SP Recon
 - 1 x motorcycle SMG stand  1SP Recon - provisional on availability of motorcycles.

Artillery, Self-propelled guns, Anti-tank, Tank destroyer, Anti-Aircraft and Engineers are treated as Army Troops.

Notes:
1.  Here, each tank represents a battalion or regiment.  Each SP represents about 15 tanks, but the Tank Brigades get 1 extra SP for the additional SMG stands. The Tank Brigades act as a single integrated whole.
2.  The Mechanised tank and rifle elements are not so integrated, the tank and rifle elements being able to operate separately.  However, I am likely to place a restriction upon their separation.

Mech Corps with Strength Points allocated.

The whole inventory is to be organised as 6th Shock Army (fictitious) which comprises:
8th Tank Corps
5th Mechanised Corps
4th Cavalry Division (under strength)
88th, 259th, 301st, 316th Rifle Divisions
Army Troops:
     275th Howitzer Regiment
     332nd Howitzer Regiment
     1163rd Gun Artillery Regiment
     508th Tank Destroyer Regiment
     765th Tank Destroyer Regiment
     22nd Guards Mortar Regiment
     1069th Anti-Aircraft Regiment
     259th/828th Engineer Battalions.
Attached (this is a non-historical formation after all) will be:
    44th Heavy Tank Regiment, with KV85 (briefly) and then IS2.
     200th Heavy SP Artillery Regiment with ISU152

The following pix are of my proposed Rifle Division and Tank Corps.

Rifle Division:

3 rifle regiments each with 6 stands, 1 horse or tractor-drawn field artillery, 1 horse or tractor-drawn anti-tank gun, LOG elements (wagon, pack animals or lorries). Divisional command, signals etc.

Rifle Division with horse drawn heavy weapons and
logistics elements

Rifle division with SPs allocated

Tank Corps:

3 Tank Brigades each with 1 tank and and 1 integral element of tank desantski SMG infantry;
1 Mortar regiment, 1 recon/motorcycle composite unit, POL and LOG elements, command, sigs etc.

Tank Corps.  The SMG elements are integral to the Tank
Brigades, and tanks count as their transport.

Tank Brigade with SPs allocated.  This really is a terrible picture,
but I hope the idea is clear.

The varying base sizes of the infantry have no significance apart from a long, long history of not being able to make my mind up what size the stands should be. As much as I admired the Command Decision game system, I always had a problem with the base sizes as far too small, especially if you wanted properly to accommodate MMGs, mortars and anti-tank rifle teams.

To be continued.




   

Getting the hang of it.

Objective:  Operation Saturn on 3rd Romanian Army Front;
November, 1942.  'Jacko' has the eight infantry and 1 armoured
Division, but has just begun assembling his cavalry.

Over the last three weeks, Jacko (real name, Paul) and I have been meeting once a week to get on with painting, basing, modelling our WW2 armies.  I am building up my Russians; Jacko has been putting together a Romanian army.  Or should I say 'Army' - specifically the Third.

In this connection we have been investigating the 'Not Quite Mechanised' system (?) pioneered by Chris Kemp.  I down loaded and printed a copy of his rules  umpire's guidelines some time ago, but last night we thought to have a go at some of its mechanics.

Some weeks ago we tried a Soviet battalion storming a dug in Romanian one.  The Russians inflicted one hit in the first round of the firefight - and received nine in return (two of the defenders' hit dice were sixes).  We figured that was a handy repulse resulting in the complete destruction of the Soviet battalion.

Well, last night, it was not easy going.  To begin with, we (I) wanted to test out the combat mechanics to get a feel for how the action went.  So, we set up a set piece attack.  Now, as we are aiming towards Army level action, we have followed Mr Kemp's alternate system in which the NQM units count as Divisions, rather than battalions.

Soviet Army Corps with tanks and heavy mortars in support
attacks a single Romanian battalion with medium mortars in support.
Sorry about the mediocre photography.  

However, the first pass assumed the standard NQM scales.  A Russian Rifle Brigade of 3 battalions attacked a single Romanian battalion dug in .  The Russian Divisions were supported at Corps level by a couple of units of heavy mortars (120mm); the Romanians by a single unit of mediums (8cm). We assumed for the purpose of this exercise that (a) all the preliminary approach marches and reconnaissance had been carried out, and (b) the Soviet prepared mortar bombardment would go for the one approach move, and one move of firefight, and then stop.  The Romanian mortar would begin at the same time as the Russian, and throughout the firefight.  Maybe counter-battery by the Russians would have been legitimate, but after a brief discussion, let that pass by.

'Ourrah!  Ourrah pobieda!'
For a view from the other side of the fence, see
here.

We certainly did a few things wrong, judging by a reread of page 5!  The Soviets never did succeed in pressing home the attack to a close assault!  They equalled the Romanian shooting in both rounds, and ended up taking twelve hits all up, whilst the Romanians were destroyed.  We knew something wasn't quite right.  But I find that it the way to get the hang of a rule set.  Suck it and see.  Then read over at leisure to see what you did wrong.

Soviet Rifle Divisions have taken losses serious enough to
disorganize them and stop them pressing home their attack.  The
armour, nothing loth, surges on.

Finally we tried an 'Army Level' game.  The battalions became Divisions.  The Soviets also got a Tank Brigade.  The Orbats were;

Red Army Corps (all Regular)

1 Tank Brigade (1xT34 CF3)
3 Rifle Divisions each with:
       [3 rifle bases (F3), 1 command/SMG base (CF1), 1 MMG base (S1), 1 PTRD base (S1)]
2 Mortar Regiments in direct support each with:

Having successfully driven in to the Rumanian position,
the Soviet armour is summarily thrown back out again. 

       1x120mm mortar (S3) (there ought to have been at least one FOO as well)

 Romanians (Regular)

1 Rifle Division with:

       3 rifle bases (F3), 1 command rifle base (CF1), 2 support bases (1xMMG 1x ATR = S2).

1 Mortar regiment in direct support (S3).

The Romanians have seen off two Rifle Divisions and a Tank
Brigade.  Maybe the 3rd Soviet Rifle Division can
carry the position.

Now, given the scale of the game, I assumed (rightly or wrongly) that the ground scale is correspondingly reduced, from 40cm to the kilometer to 4 cm to the kilometre.  I suggested that the firefight 'zone' be placed at 3cm - overscale, to be sure, but with a clear separation between forces. The time scale would be correspondingly changed as well, leaving the 'on table' movement rates the same. 

The Soviets went in with a leading wave of two Rifle Divisions, 1st Div on the right, 2nd Div on the left, and the Tank Brigade in the centre.  Second Division at once took 3 hits from the Romanian supporting mortars (ouch) as they entered the 'firefight' range.  I assigned the hits to 2 'F' bases and 1 'S' base

The repulsed units fall back to reorganize.  Each of the three
units loses a base or strength point.  If you prefer:
the infantry have been reduced to about 80% strength;
the tanks to less than 70%

Now, here is where we made certain assumptions that appear to be wrong.  Having taken 50% hits, 2nd Div became disorganized, and probably ought at once to have bugged out.  I supposed that, though it could not press home an attack, it could at least carry on a firefight in support of the remaining units. On top of that it seems a morale check might have been in order. In the firefight zone, all Russian units fired.  We weren't sure whether the tank represented just one 'CU - combat unit' for the vehicle, or 3 - one for each strength point (SP).  That question cropped up in the close assault phase as well.  I supposed that as a 'base' represented a single SP on an infantry stand, then 1 SP represented a base.  But we had been rolling a single die for each of the SP3 mortars.  Which was it to be?

Well, the first round of the firefight did not go well for the Russians.  First Division took 3 hits incoming, disorganizing that unit, but the Tank brigade remained unscathed.  But the Romanians were taking some knocks as well.  In the next round of firefight, the Russians did a little better, but only the tank could close assault.

During the firefight phases, the Russians inflict 4 hits - enough
to destroy the defenders outright.  But their losses are enough
also to disorganize the Russians.

Tank terror having been shrugged off successfully (I think we ignored it for the purposes of this 'play test') the Romanians were pushed back by the Soviet armour, but remained in the fight.  One problem we encountered at this point was what constitutes a 'win' for the attackers. Possibly now was a good time for the Romanians to take a morale roll (maybe they did at that, I don't positively recall, now).  Be that as it may, the battle continued.  Again I gave the tank 3 dice for its 3 strength points, and the Romanians had enough still in hand for their two dice.  And I rolled diddly squat, and he rolled 2 hits.

Back went the armour, and the rest of the first wave, to reorganize and generally feel sorry for themselves.  In went the reserve Division, the 3rd.  Well, that didn't go so well, neither.  The delay between the repulse of the first wave and the advance of the second gave time (we supposed) for the Romanians to spend a move themselves reorganizing.  The 'black' pins we substituted simply by removing stands.  Having taken some knocks in the earlier fighting, the Romanians had just 2 stands remaining.  

Ample, of course.  The Soviets were fortunate in entering the firefight zone with just the one hit, but they never got any further.  They might have progressed, for they won the firefight, inflicting 4 hits against 3.  The Romanian defence was thus eliminated (but for the mortar regiment some kilometers to the rear.  But the three hits were enough to disorganise the Russians.  Could they occupy the position now bereft of defenders?  

End of the battle: mutual exhaustion.  The Romanians
have been worn down to nothing; the last Soviet
Division in a state of disorganization.

Considering the odds, and the defenders were only dug in, not fortified, they inflicted almost as many hits upon the Russians as they took themselves.  But there seems to be no 'reorganization for a destroyed unit, and the Russians ended up losing a base from each of the 1st and 2nd Divisions, and two from the third.  The two  hits (red counters) on the Tank Brigade became one (blue counter) representing its reduction to 2 strength points.  

Several questions were raised by this simple 'play test'.
1.  Do morale tests take place only in the context of close assaults?
1A.  Are morale tests applicable in fire fights?
2.  Can attacking units continue a firefight whilst disorganized, or must they at once retire to reorganize?
2A. Must attacking units break off a firefight once disorganized? (Note: it is clear they must break off a close assault).
3.  What constitutes 'contact (with the enemy)'?  I have assumed it to be 'within infantry firefight range', but can think of a whole swodge of other possibilities ranging from reaching harassing fire range to close assault.
         
What I am proposing to do it formalise Chris Kemp's 'guidelines' into something a little easier to use without unpire mediation.  That is why, in terms of the 'standard' NQM system, I have translated nominal distances and speeds into table-top terms.  For instance, taking the ground scale at 1:2500, that means 40cm represents a kilometre, and I have taken 1 turn to represent 1 hour.  Using my own conversion method (described in this blog some years ago), 1 kph is (approximately) represented by a 50mm game move.

I've done the same by tabulating weapons ranges as follows:

Weapons	MaximumEffective Range	MaximumHarassing Range
Infantry small arms	300m -> 120mm	1 km -> 400mm
Infantry anti-tank	200m -> 80mm	N/A
Light anti-tank guns	500m -> 200mm	1 km -> 400mm
Medium anti-tank guns	1000m -> 400mm	2 km -> 800mm
Heavy any-tank guns	2000m -> 800mm	3 km -> 1200mm (1.2m)
Up to 47mm tank guns	300m -> 120mm	600m -> 240mm
48-76.2mm tank guns	500m -> 200mm	1 km -> 400mm
3-inch mortar	1.5 km -> 600mm	N/A
80-82 mm mortar	3 km -> 1200mm	N/A
120mm mortar	5 km -> 2000mm	N/A
Infantry guns (75-76.2 mm)		N/A
Field artillery		N/A
Light (105mm- 120mm} artillery	15km -> 6000mm	N/A
Medium (150+mm) artillery	18km -> 7200mm	N/A
Heavy (200+mm) artillery	20km -> 8000mm	N/A

The gap I have left to be filled by heavier anti-tank weapons - differentiating between short, medium, long and extra long 75/76/77mm guns: the long 85/88/90mm guns and extra-long 88: and the 100mm, 122mm and 128mm tank guns.  I have also added rows for infantry guns and field artillery. Though I am conscious that infantry guns were battalion inventories as a rule, heavier infantry guns (15cm) were more regimental, but in small numbers.  To represent the 6x15cm infantry guns of the 352nd Division (two per rifle battalion) at Normandy, for example, you would have to treat them as a Divisional asset (S1).  I'd consider doing the same with the infantry guns (total 14 for the Division, so S1 again - or group all the infantry guns into S2).  That would leave the battalions with something like this: 3 rifle bases (F1), 1 MMG base (S1), 1 mortar base (S1) and 1 panzerfaust base (F1). I'm not sure which of the latter 3 ought to incorporate the command base.

What about the ranges for these weapons in the 'Army level' game?  Chris Kemp calls this a scaling 'by three' but it's really a scaling by nine, or ten, where 1 battalion under 'standard' NQM becomes a Division of nine battalions (say) under the Army level game.  In the above article, the ground scale was reduced by a factor of ten, which meat a reduction in time scale by a factor of 3.  Of course a 12mm range for small arms (We are using your old school plastic kit armies, here) is much too finicky, so I have suggested a 3cm 'fire-fight range' or 'zone'  to the front at least of a given unit, and possibly all round.  I'll have a look at how the other weapons work with this Army level ground scale. We may have to look at 'scale by three' after all!

Quite a bit of work in progress here - much to think about.  Meanwhile, the other day I got a call from Tony concerning a 75th anniversary El Alamein war game.  What have I in my 8th Army inventory? Not a huge amount, as it happens... just bits and pieces.  I do have 8 Airfix Vickers MMGs though .

Where to go from here?

The battlefield, looking east along to autobahn towards Kustrin.
Just off the table to the left is the river Oder.

I've been thinking a lot lately about my WW2 inventories, and what to do with them all.  Although I have a fondness for Command Decision, especially in its second incarnation, there are too few accessible like-minded gamers in this town.  The other drawback is that you really want a biggish table to play the game.

A small town that is the immediate objective of the German
right hand column.

This set-up has been cluttering up my back room for over a month now - I've visited my daughter and son-in-law in Brisbane, Australia, since laying out this table.  This is not good.  I haven't begun to play the game on it.  The intention was by way of an experiment: re-scaling the ground from 1:1800 (1 inch to 50 yards) to 1cm to 50 yards, a scale of 1:4500.  Seems an unlikely conversion, but may be worth a try.  But I also need to find my rule sets and  ORBATS, and to download and print the CD3 stat sheets before beginning the action.

The main German objective: this large town.  Possibly it
is Kustrin.

The scenario laid out here is based by a dim memory of something from the computer game Steel Panthers: World At War.  Set very late in the War, March 1945 - in fact there ought to be patches of snow here and there about - this is a German counter-attack to recapture the sizeable town and railway station in the northeastern corner of the board.  The defenders comprise a Soviet Rifle Brigade, hastily dug in and  reinforced with small groups of T34/76 tanks.  However,apart from the organic field artillery and mortar battalions they are supported by powerful heavy artillery and rocket batteries off table, with pre-programmed fire missions.

The Soviet rear areas, just west of Kustrin.

The Germans are to make a three-pronged attack with armour and infantry - panzer-grenadiers - with some artillery support, mostly again off table.   On both flanks, the armour comprises a mixed company of Tiger II and Panthers; in the centre Jagdpanther and Jagdpanzer IV with a StuGIV  to arrive from off-table.   The whole rather polyglot battlegroup is supported by Quad 20mm AA, towed anti-tank guns and assorted oddments.   The centre column is led by armoured reconnaissance.

Looking along the line of the stream and the Soviet
defences.  The rather orphaned infantry gun wants a base
and a crew.

The pictures you see here depict the battlefield, with the Russian Rifle Brigade in situ, awaiting the worst.  The Germans are just crossing their start lines.

Russian infantry, armour and anti-tank
covering the autobahn.

But I am seriously looking in future to going the Not Quite Mechanised or possibly the Megablitz route.  Back in January I picked up some second-hand equipment - mostly German - and, after a rethink, grabbed a job lot of plastic Russian infantry.  I don't know the makers (observant readers might be able to tell me) but they are very nice figures.  Whoever had them before me picked out a few bits and pieces, and I got the rest.

Add caption

From them I was able to assemble 5 groups of 6 stands each comprising 3 'rifle' bases (one with LMG), 1 MMG base, 1 Mortar base and 1 Antitank Rifle (PTRS) base.  It seemed to me these groups would make fine battalions in the Not Quite Mechanised (NQM) style.  The complete sprues would have given me a sixth such group, but the absent support weapons can be supplies easily enough from my existing inventory.  You will observe that I haven't been over-consistent with the base sizes.  At that they will not fit on the 'standard' NQM 'stands' as I infer them. I'll probably go for stands 10cm wide by 5cm deep (ground 'footprint' 250m x 125m.  The temptation is to make them 12cm by 6cm, to match the 'real estate' of a battalion in defence, as per spec.  There remained some command and comms figures, and more SMG armed fellows that seemed to suggest SMG-armed fighting bases for Rifle Brigade SMG platoons/companies, or tank 'desantski'.

Grouped plastic infantry - see text.  The flagged command
stand is metal, the flag home made from paper.  The flag
was machine generated - I had to design the hammer and sickle
motif pixel by pixel.

Chris Kemp's own NQM ORBAT for Soviet Rifle divisions call for slightly smaller battalion groups, with 3 'fighting' rifle bases and 2 'support' bases, one of which is a command base. I think that my own battalion group 'fits' a rifle or mechanised brigade's battalions as well. I am very tempted to add a seventh 'base' as a separate 'command' ('C' with 1 strength point or possibly 0 SP) or maybe 'command/SMG platoon' (CF1).

A NQM  Rifle Battalion?  Figures undercoated black
and dry-brushed white over the top.  Up coming painting
project.

My tentative Orbat for a Rifle or mechanised Brigade looks something like this:

Brigade Command*: 
  Commander, car/jeep or GAZ,
  Signals stand with appropriate comms vehicle
3 Rifle Battalions each with:
  1 command + support bases: 1 50mm or 82mm Mortar + 1 MMG + 1 PTRS/PTRD (SP=3)
  3 fighting bases (armed with rifles, SMG and LMG) (SP=3).
  Total battalion SP=6
1 Artillery Battalion:
  0-1 FO; 1x76.2 field artillery (SP=2, or SP=3 for Guards Brigade)
1 Mortar battalion:
  0-1 FO: 1x120mm or 82mm mortar (SP=2, or SP=3 for Guards)
1 Organic Anti-tank Guns
  1x37mm, 45L46, 45L66 or 57mm AT (SP=2, or SP=3 for Guards)
1 'Motorcycle/Recon' Battalion**
  1x recon Motorcycle (SP=2), 1x recon jeep with (opt) AAMG (SP=2), 1x armoured car (SP=2)
1 Tank Regiment (Mechanised Brigade only)***
  1xT34 or Sherman tank (SP=3); 1x command T34 or Sherman (SP=2)

* As I have more in the way of command and comms figures than vehicles for them, I'm as likely to filed them as personnel stands rather than vehicle stands, or, probably, both.

** The Motorcycle unit seems to have been a mixed bag, so much so that one can't really speak in terms of a 'typical' such unit.  Some even had tanks.  However, my own seems to be a reasonable example.  I suggest that one might whack in whatever takes your fancy up to a maximum SP of 6.  So the 76th M/C Battalion of 4th Guards Tank Corps might be depicted like this: 1 x m/c (SP=1), 1 x BA32 (SP=1), 1 x M3 halftrack (SP=1), 1 x light tank (SP=1), 1 x Anti-tank Gun (SP=1), 1 x Field gun (SP=1).  A rather special unit!

***In NQM terms the first tank would count as 'F3' the second as 'CS2', for the rest, I have left off the fighting, support and command designations for the time being.  I have not yet determined what the logistics (LOG) elements should be.

And NQM battalion in road column, marching past a
potential LOG element.

But in the picture above, I have offered some indication that infantry units might well include a pack horse stand with, say two horses, or a wagon or cart drawn by a single horse.

All of this is so far quite tentative, and something to think about in the cold winter months...