Historical Divisions for WW2 Germany

In this guide I will try to historically portray the divisions used by the German Reich/Wehrmacht during World War 2. (This is not done, if you have any wishes & suggestions & criticism please comment them down below.)

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(Credits go to ElsassWolf, I compared my research to his templates so please make sure to like his guide too! https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3070978375)

Historical Accurate Truck defecit

It's 1939, and you're about to go to war in Poland, but you still have a truck deficit due to using historically accurate Divisions. What do you do?

If you have a truck deficit because of the horrendous amount of trucks the German Army / Wehrmacht / OKW used in its Divisions it's only normal that you go into a deficit. Now, it's not only normal but also historical, as the German army didn't only struggle with oil, no, they also struggled with building enough Trucks, half-tracks, etc., etc.,... . To solve this problem we or you can decide to replace some of the motorized Infantry (this goes for tanks, light, motorized, and regular infantry divisions) with cavalry (which is also what the germans did irl). However, keep in mind to always stay within the personnel limit.

Infanterie Division, 1. Version (1. Welle), 1934-1944

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 17.734
  
• AT: 75
  
• Artillery: 74
  
• AA: 12
  
• Trucks: 394 (Only counting Personnel Carriers)
  
• Horses: 1.743 (Only counting Riding Horses)

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 17.100
  
• AT: 72
  
• Artillery: 72
  
• AA: 20
  
• Trucks: 377 (Due to how trucks are counted/work in HoI4 this is the closest I can get to the actual number.)
  
• Horses: 2000 (1.000 Soldiers = ~1000 Horses)

Explanation:
With 17100 (17.734 historically) Soldiers, this Unit is a rather big one, it ranges from having an Anti-Tank battalion to even a Signal Company. Sure this is far from being considered meta, but for anyone who cherishes historical accuracy, this is the one to go for. Roughly 40 of these were made by the time Fall Weiss kicked off. [/u]

Infanterie Division, 2. Version (2. Welle), 1939-1944

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 15.273
  
• AT: 75
  
• Artillery: 71
  
• AA: 0
  
• Trucks: 393 (Only counting Personnel Carriers)
  
• Horses: 1.821 (Only counting Riding Horses)

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 15.000
  
• AT: 72
  
• Artillery: 72
  
• AA: 0
  
• Trucks: 100 (Due to how trucks are counted/work in HoI4 this is the closest I can get to the actual number.)
  
• Horses: 2000 (2.000 Soldiers = ~2.000 Horses)

Explanation:
Smaller Version of the 1 Welle Divisions, Make more of these since these are more affordable. Historically the Wehrmacht raised around 18 of these.

Infantry Divisions of the 3 and 4 (Austellungs-)Welle

The differences between the 1 and 3 & 2 and 4th (Austellungs-)Welle were so small that I have decided to just remove the third and fourth entirely. To stay historical and if you want to replicate those Aufstellungswellen or if you're lacking some equipment for example trucks but want to push out troops nonetheless, make the AT horse-drawn (aka just not motorized) or change some motorized infantry into cavalry which is also what the germans did in WW2.

Infanterie Division, 1944

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 12.772
  
• AT: 23
  
• Artillery: 66
  
• AA: 0
  
• Trucks: 370 (Only counting Personnel Carriers)
  
• Horses: 3.979(Only counting Riding Horses)

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 13.100
  
• AT: 24
  
• Artillery: 72
  
• AA: 0
  
• Trucks: 195 (Due to how trucks are counted/work in HoI4 this is the closest I can get to the actual number.)
  
• Horses: 3000 or 4000 (1.000 Soldiers = ~1000 Horses)

Explanation:
Artillery, a PaK, and some mud... what more could you want for a good summer in Mother Russia or Way Down in Italy on the boot in '44? Jokes aside, due to the ongoing losses in 1944, the OKW decided to considerably size the divisions down from roughly 17.000 to 12.700.

Infanterie Division, 1945

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 11.909
  
• AT: 21 (11 being PaK's aka Anti-tank weapons and 10 being Stug's)
  
• Artillery: 72
  
• AA: 9
  
• Trucks: 185 (Trucks)
  
• Horses: 0

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 11.900
  
• AT: 24
  
• Artillery: 72
  
• AA: 20
  
• Trucks: 205
  
• Horses: 0

Explanation:
Are you gonna fare better than Steiner with these divisions? On a serious note, the ongoing losses of 1944-1945 forced the OKW to size their divisions down again by a 1000 soldiers.

Infanterie Division (Motorisiert), 1939-1940

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 16.445
  
• AT: 72 (Motorized)
  
• Artillery: 72 (58 Field Howitzers + 24 Infantry Guns) (For the sake of this being a motorized Division I've decided to make the artillery motorized even though in the organization for a German motorized Inf div. 1939 being specified as being regular artillery (aka not motorized aka horse-drawn which you can't really portray in HoI4) but having a motorized Observation Battalion)
  
• AA: 12
  
• Armored Cars: 30
  
• Trucks: 989 (Only counting Personnel Carriers aka trucks, half tracks, etc., etc., ...)

Proposed Template:

• Manpower 16.100
  
• AT: 72 (Motorized)
  
• Artillery: 72
  
• AA: 20
  
• Armored Cars: 24
  
• Trucks: 552 (Due to how trucks are counted/work in HoI4 this is the closest I can get to the actual number.)

Explanation:
Not much to say or explain about these guys, fast, and reliable, but dont get 'em encircled. Mainly used to encircle enemy divisions, goes best with the 'schwerpunkt' doctrine.

Kavallerie Division, 1939-1940

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 6.684
  
• AT: 21
  
• Artillery: 24
  
• AA: 12
  
• Horses: 4.552 (Riding + Heavy & Light drought Horses)

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 6.700
  
• AT: 24
  
• Artillery: 24
  
• AA: 20
  
• Horses: 5000 (1.000 Soldiers = ~1000 Horses)

Explanation:
A slower and weaker version of the motorized division. Nothing more, nothing less. Still nonetheless useful, so make 1 or 2.

Leichte Division, 1939

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 9395
  
• AT: 51
  
• Artillery: 34
  
• AA: 12
  
• Armored Cars: 70
  
• Trucks: 523
  
• Tanks: 86 (Regular Tanks + Command, signal and MG-equipped Tanks)

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 9900
  
• AT: 60
  
• Artillery: 36
  
• AA: 20
  
• Armored Cars: 60
  
• Trucks: 256
  
• Tanks: 84

Explanation:
Due to the changing of tactics from horses to panzers & motorized Infantry and to fill the tactical gap between tanks & cavalry, the OKW thought it'd be a good idea to mix these (horses, tanks and mot. Infantry).
After showing its 'power' in the polish campaign they were converted to regular (light) tank divisions.

Panzer Division, 1939-1940

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 11.792
  
• AT: 48 (Motorized!)
  
• Artillery: 32 (Motorized!)
  
• AA: 12
  
• Armored Cars: 90
  
• Trucks: 561
  
• Tanks: 331 (Regular Tanks, Primarily Panzer 1 & 2's and Panzer 3 & IV's BUT this number also includes command and signal tanks!)

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 11.400
  
• AT: 36 (Motorized!)
  
• Artillery: 36 (Motorized!)
  
• AA: 20
  
• Armored Cars: 84
  
• Trucks: 256 (Due to how trucks are counted/work in HoI4 this is the closest I can get to the actual number.)
  
• Tanks: 340

Explanation:
This is your go-to, for any push. Keep in mind if you're going historical dont try to get too many of these, I normally have around 5-7 (which is also very historical) around the time when I invade Poland. (Panzer ((Tank)) Divisions were not changed for the Invasion of France and were only changed after said Invasion and were then converted in late 1940, early 1941 to a newer Panzer Division 'model')

It is very important to note that the german panzer division altered greatly, here is a good explanation from a wehrmacht enthusiast who, I personally think, painted it greatly (for context, this is translated from german into english and is a answer to my question 'of what did a panzer division consist through out the war years'): "You have basically asked a very simple and typical question, but it is not that easy to answer.
The background to this is the extremely rapid rearmament of the Wehrmacht in the 1930s, which meant that the 5 Panzer divisions that existed at the start of the war were roughly similar in composition (... on papar), but also very different in many details. (... in real life)"

E.g.:
Soll-stärke of a Panzer Division in 1939

1. Pz.Div.:
Pz.Rgt. 1 : 39 Pz. I, 60 Pz. II, 20 Pz. III, 28 Pz. IV, 6 Befehls-Pz.
Pz.Rgt. 2 : 54 Pz. I, 62 Pz. II, 6 Pz. III, 28 Pz. IV, 6 Befehls-Pz.
4. Pz.Div.:
Pz.Rgt. 35 : 99 Pz. I, 64 Pz. II, 0 Pz. III, 6 Pz. IV, 8 Befehls-Pz.
Pz.Rgt. 36 : 84 Pz. I, 66 Pz. II, 0 Pz. III, 6 Pz. IV, 8 Befehls-Pz.
5. Pz.Div.:
Pz.Rgt. 15 : 72 Pz. I, 81 Pz. II, 3 Pz. III, 8 Pz. IV, 11 Befehls-Pz.
Pz.Rgt. 31 : 80 Pz. I, 63 Pz. II, 0 Pz. III, 6 Pz. IV, 11 Befehls-Pz.

Soll-Stärke (roughly translates to how the division should look aka how it looks on paper):
2 Medium Tank Companies + 4 Light tank Companies

Schwere Panzer-Abteilung, 1944-1945

Historical Data:

• Total Personnel: 650
  
• AT: 0
  
• Artillery: 12
  
• AA: 12

Proposed Template:

• Total Personnel: 3.100 (Can't get closer to the number due to the actual Heavy Panzer Battalion being a battalion (obviously) which isn't portrayable in HoI4)
  
• AT: 0
  
• Artillery: 12
  
• AA: 20

Explanation:
Slow, Unreliable, Low org,... This division really makes you question yourself why the Germans made heavy tanks at all.

[HelpImSleepy]

+ i dont focus on divisional organization (thats why the divisions look so weird), aka portraying a division with symbols but moreover with stats, aka if a division organization says that a infantry division should for example have 3 regiments who make in a whole 20.000 soldiers, im more going to focus on that number of soldiers instead of actually having 3 infantry regiments, this is because having the actual numbers of soldiers, cav, AT, Artillery, etc. etc. portrays the divisions much more accurately. Because, yes you can make a historical german infantry division with 3 infantry regiments and 3 art regiments (which yes that works, but it doesnt portray the actual division in hoi4), but that just makes up 12.000 men and thus not accurately portraying for example the 1. Welle Infantry Division with 17.000 men.

[HelpImSleepy]

@griffmeister I decided to delete your comments considering that your opinion is really not correct. The horses are in the division to show of logistics... There is no other way to portray divisional logistics in hoi4...? And the guide you provided is very old and poorly researched. the division in said guide are, like you said about my guide, not accurate.

[HelpImSleepy]

tysm

[Baton]

Cool stuff. Hope you will find time and desire to make same stuff for different countries

[HelpImSleepy]

ty

[ToInstinctive]

Never really thought of a historical divisions playthrough, great idea!

[HelpImSleepy]

No problem, and I have to say a historical playthrough is very fun!

[Pick]

100% gotta try a Historical Division playthrough for Germany now! Good Job!

[HelpImSleepy]

I really appreciate that man, means a lot to me !

[jadookabhai]

this is way too good lol
good job