Best Combat Width

[Skraoo]

I wanted to see the popular opinion about the best universal Combat Width.

[vermontyay]

20 Width for Infantry, 40 Width for Tanks.

For Infantry just watch any video made by Bitt3rSteal and Tommykay. Just put another infantry then shovels, artillery and anti-air

[Skraoo]

I am aware of the old meta and both those youtubers/streamers, I have over 1000 hours but I am wondering what the new meta of combat width is.

[Viceroy Günther von Lichler]

I just look at the width of the type of terrain i want the division to fight in and try to get as close as possible to that. Plains for tanks, mountains for mountaineers, etc.
I don't shackle myself to "meta" and play games the way youtubers tell me to play them.

[Skraoo]

I get that I don't play meta that often either but I'm looking for a somewhat universal Combat Width meaning it can fit into most terrain types.

[Dumpster]

21 but 42 is ideal.

https://www.reddit.com/r/hoi4/comments/rjwo2u/the_best_combat_widths_are_10_15_18_27_and_4145/

[mlmcdougal]

Originally posted by Skraoo:

I get that I don't play meta that often either but I'm looking for a somewhat universal Combat Width meaning it can fit into most terrain types.

You're not going to find a SINGLE universal combat width anymore due to the complexity that varying combat widths for different terrains have thrown into the game. The best you can hope for is a "range" of combat widths that work for the more predominant terrains in specific theaters you will be operating in.

[OntologicalWeevil]

i think it's 24ish and 44

[Enby Femboy Thighs]

Originally posted by CremeCrimson:

i think it's 24ish and 44

wasn't it 25/45

[Skraoo]

Originally posted by Bear:

21 but 42 is ideal.

https://www.reddit.com/r/hoi4/comments/rjwo2u/the_best_combat_widths_are_10_15_18_27_and_4145/

Thanks for the link although the link actually says the recommended combat widths

[mlmcdougal]

Originally posted by Skraoo:

Originally posted by Bear:

21 but 42 is ideal.

https://www.reddit.com/r/hoi4/comments/rjwo2u/the_best_combat_widths_are_10_15_18_27_and_4145/

Thanks for the link although the link actually says the recommended combat widths

The original author of this "thesis" went back and amended his charts and formulas somewhat. Doesn't change much but to show 41w is NOT very good and if you dig deeper into the amended formulae it's particularly bad in an attack from 2 provinces into plains/desert. So it's actually recommended 42-45 NOT 41-45 as the original link implies.

[Danando]

theres no best combat width, cuz it all depends on the terrain your fighting in, NEXT!

[TasteDasRainbow]

I tend to focus more on equipment ratio compositions than the width itself now, as coordination factors will hopefully make the width concentrated damage factor less relevant

[Danando]

go communist, infinite manpower with corps upgrade, then get the Doctrine to allow more lines in widths , and GG

[mk11]

There is no best combat width. The later on the better co-ordination is so larger divisions perform better than earlier.

42 may have better average stats but it also has more extremes than smaller divisions.

Generally, I think 21, 22 width divisions or the like provide good flexibility while performing reasonably. Then for specific situations micro in divisions with a better size. Since I micro my tanks I like the tank division as something that performs well and which can fill up combat width with a different sized infantry division. E.g. 30 width tank and 22 width motorised. Attacking in plains from one direction use 3 tanks; 2 directions 3 tanks, 2 motorised; 3 directions 6 tanks.

[zz_tophat]

There is no best anymore, in fact the divisions that are best at *most* terrains are not the best for pretty much any *single* terrain. You basically want the best for the theatre you are fighting in, or one that if not overstacked, will *fit* in most terrain. This is why 21/42 is good.

Two 42 width division attacking in much of china = ok, because much of the terrain there is a max of 75 but a single 42 width attacking will function just fine. If you want to attack with two divsions the optimal width to maximize their combat stats should be 37(.5). should you build 37 widths? (with a 38 you have a small penalty that is barely noticeable so that works too) No? Yes? Maybe.

There are a bunch of combat factors effected by exceeding combat width and not all stats are, like armor, armor is armor, width or no width.

Soft attack, can be stacked very high on a division that say taking a 20% penalty to it due to exceeding width would not effect your infantry division... with the 8 artillery in it simply because the amount of soft attack overcomes that width penalty. (Please don't build this division)

Breakthrough is impacted by width penalties but again, you build tank divisions with enough, the penalty doesn't impact them enough for it to be lowered to a point that the divsion is taking extra damage due to over stacked attacking.

But these are examples of extremes, your tank divisions will have 500 breakthrough, not 1200 and in general if you have to ask what is the best width, you are not making hyper stat optimized divisions.

So what the best division width is: depends on where you are fighting, what your template is, can said template overcome the width penalty to exceed width and most importantly... can you afford to build said template in any meaningful numbers.

That last one is... actually the most important.


...in other words, everyone is asking the wrong question.

The real question is "what is the most *cost* effective division width and template?" and... I don't know. If it's not apparent, I have spent a lot of time and done a fair bit of math and I don't know... because I haven't figured out how to find out.

SO.

21/42. Best in most of Europe, ok in other places /thread