Re: Helltank and Helltank Destroyer

Thomas Barclay wrote:
> 
> BTW - the problem with any large military vehicle (aircraft carrier,
> battleship, large tank) is that it can't mount enough defenses to
> stop an equal value in attacks from smaller armed opponents. It has a
> strategic purpose that the smaller vehicles can't fullfill (range,
> fuel, carrying capacity, etc.) so it has its place, but it certainly
> isn't the equal of the 'swarm' in individual combat.
************/

During several periods of history, that has not been true.  No gun a WWI
destoryer mounted could hurt a battleship seriously, and even the light
guns mounted by a battleship could damage the destroyer (while the
largest could sink or cripple one with a single shot).	Torpedoes were a
threat, but that's why battleships didn't travel alone.  The screening
ships meant the destoryers couldn't put their torpedoes on target, and
the battleship meant that light units couldn't defeat the screen.

That's why I was asking about GROUPS of super-heavy units, or even mixed
forces.  One of the ugliest things I ever saw in a game of G.E.V. was a
force that consisted of a PanEuropean Fencer (medium OGRE and long-range
missile platform extraordinaire, and a large escort of GEVS.  The GEVs
ranged out on all sides flushing hidden enemy units and forcing
artillery positions to unmask or be destroyed, and then the Fencer would
swat them.

Things were even worse in a game I watched where two Fencers were
actually operating in tandem with a mixture of Mark V Mark III OGRES,
with a light GEV screen.  The OGRES were able to support each other with
their heavy guns and keep one another from being mobbed, while the
Fencers in the center provided untouchable long-range support (similar
to a carrier group in current practice).

Admittedly, it was an immensely powerful force and represented a huge
committment of resources for a breakthrough on the enemy center.  On the
other hand, the defending force was ENORMOUS, but proved completely
unable to stop the attack.  Admittedly, some of the escort OGRES got
pretty chewed (several were immobilized completely), but none were
actually destroyed, while the defenders got mashed.  And if you're in a
campaign where repairing units is much easier than replacing them
(especially replacing entire formations) that could be an important
factor.

On the other hand, OGRE/G.E.V. was set up to allow super-tanks to
operate effectively.  I was curious to know whether anyone's tried this
with more realistic rule systems.