Royal Artillery Regiment

Hello again and Welcome. A lot of people have been talking about the British faction and the interesting doctrines they come with. Many say that these doctrines are unpowered and unplayable by the community. One specific doctrine that people tend to dicuss a lot about is the Royal Artillery Regiment. So I took upon the challenge to look at and analyze this specific doctrine; to see if the Royal Artillery Regiment had any tricks up their sleeves to give the Germans a bloody nose. With experimentation of different tactics and playing multiple online games since the arrival of the new British faction I have finally decided to make a detailed guide about the Royal Artillery Regiment. I hope many of you will read this guide and perhaps learn something new about the doctrine that you didn't know of before and apply the knowledge to better yourself as the British.

General Overview

In my experience of playing as Royal Artillery Regiment I have found this doctrine to be a very Balanced doctrine as you can play in a variety of different ways. With this doctrine you can take any of the three stances or all three at the same time, either being

Offensive - calling upon the ability of artillery strikes from your own base to hammer at the enemies defensive positions and taking the fight to them.

Defensive - can deploy the useful valentine command tank to recon and scout out the enemies advancements and predict their troop movements to set up a proper defensive measures to counter them. And call about the Perimeter Overwatch ability to rightfully defend your hard-earned territory.

Supportive - call down flares along the frontline to allow you or your teammates to see what your opponents are doing, and plan accordingly. Or deploy the Sexton Medium Self-Propelled artillery unit that can either bombard enemy defenses or hit attacking enemy forces to stop them in their tracks.















This doctrine focuses its efforts mainly on artillery power and the ability to recon or seek out enemy positions upon the battlefield. It is a very flexible doctrine that can encompass multiple roles for different tactical situations. Again, this flexibility makes the doctrine a balanced entity.

Early Warning Flares

60 ammunition


The first ability coming around at 3 Command Points is the Early Warning Flares. This is one of the most commonly used abilties of the Royal Artillery Regiment, as it is very handy and useful to deploy. With periodically deployed flares you can always ensure that you can keep a close eye on your opponents activites and see what they are cooking up for you. When called in these flares will deploy themselves all along your frontline, specifically your terrority that is bordered right next to the enemies. Sometimes though the flares will deploy over hostile capping points as well that is 'near' the frontline. The flares can be used in an offensive manner as well, such as scouting to the prelude of a major Allied assault, or just seeing where the enemy is at so you can bombard them with your own artillery units or call-ins.


Flares will deploy at the respectful marker lines of your terrority and the enemies. Due note though that if you use flares the enemy will also be able to see them as well. And they will know that your up to no good.

Tips and Tricks of Early Warniing Flares

• Be sure to deploy the flares once in awhile to get an idea of what the enemy has, and what they could be planning.
  
  
• Use the flares as a means of finding potential artillery targets to hammer away at.

• Remember to not just use the flares for yourself but also for your teammates as well, the flares will deploy all across the map, and it could possibly save a friend from disaster if they know whats coming to them.

Concentration Barrage

100 Ammunition

Being employed at four command points the Concentration Barrage will be perhaps your most commonly used ability throughout the game. Though compared to other barrages this one is quite different from the others. The barrage ability actually comes from your own base directly, because when the British tech-up everytime they receive a passive 25 pounder artillery battery that comes with the new building. When using this ability upon a desired target a red flare marker will be shown and your base artillery will hammer at that position. Though there is a mixed advantage and disadvantage when using this ability. The Concentrartion Barrage can be a bit misleading in its name, as the scatter targeting from the 25 artillery batteries is absolutely terrible! The disadvantage is that most rounds will not hit dead center, in fact they will vary and hit competely different areas. The ability should be used specifically against defensive targets that are static such as OKW HQs, Mortar teams, MG teams, Bunkers, Paks and other more...stationary targets. The advantage to using this ability this that its barrage area is rather very large and difficult to avoid if you are the enemy. In-addition the randomness of the barrage will make it completely unpredictable and impossible to dodge, it really just comes down to luck if your hit or not. In essence the ability should be used as more of an area denial weapon, as the random scatter will threaten enemy troops, and when the shells do hit they actually really do good damage. Your actually better off going on the offensive and then calling down the concentration barrage as an initiation on the area that you are fighting over. Try to keep the enemy in that area during your fight. "Why" because (Idk if relic did this on purpose or not but) if your infantry section is hit directly by you own 25 pounder round, it will actaully do VERY little to no damage to them; as if they have some kind of friendly-artillery resistance.


Red marker will be the general target zone of the call-in. The rounds will scatter about and could potential hit an unluckly infantry target. And the barrage will only fire 3 rounds from a single 25 pounder.


A good thing to do is to actually wait until you have unlocked both building teirs for the British as to make sure you have two 25 pounders that can be used for the Concentration Barrage ability, simply put it, the more guns and rounds you fire the higher the chances you are to hit something.

Tips and Tricks of Concentration Barrage

• Use the weapon as an area denial tactic, to force of the enemy off a specific point, such as threatening an MG team to relocate or to prevent a certain area from being captured.
  
  
• If the enemy sees the red marker flare and refuses to move try and go on the offensive to pressure them and anchor on that point within the artillery target zone. Even if its a direct hit from the 25 pounder on your own troops they will take very little damage, the same CANNOT be said for the Axis troops.
  
  
• If the enemy has a static HQ such as a medical HQ or a bunker then just use the ability on it. The randomness of the barrage can pay off sometimes, and in-addition you do not need to see the position, you can freely deploy the Barrage in the fog of war.
  
  
• Wait untill you have unlocked all the building teirs for the British as to maximize the effectiveness of the ability with multiple 25 pounders.
  
  
• The Concentration Barrage can be called upon at any position in the map, there is no range limit to the 25 pounders. The only exception is that you cannot call the ability on the primary Axis base.
  
  
• With Concentration Barrage, you don't really need to upgrade any of your Infantry Sections with artillery marking flares as this ability already does it for you. So you can invest your ammo into other resources for your infantry.

Observation Valentine Command Tank

300 Manpower


80 Fuel


Being deployed at six Command Points the Valentine Command Tank is perhaps one of the most useful units to call in for the Royal Artillery Regiment. Many people underestimate the usefulness of this little tank. One would have to compare the Valentine to something like a Puma mixed with a Stuart tank. This mid-game light tank is decent at taking out isolated infantry units and other light vehicles it encounters. Its main gun isn't that good, but armor is another story, as this small tank can surprisingly take a lot of hits for its size. The Valentine can successfully engage targets that are smaller and weaker then the standard Panzer 4, anything bigger then that and the Valentine won't stand a chance. But the Valentine isn't just for mid-game purposes only, it can be pretty useful even in the late-game phase. As the Valentine has a unique ability that no other Allied faction has. And that is the the tank itself has an Observation mode it can deploy to spy on the enemy. This is an outstanding ability because not only can you keep a constant eye on the enemy through the fog of war, but you can also coordinate artillery barrages on specific areas that have a lot of Axis troop movements.


The Valentine Command Tank is a very fast hitting vehicle so it is best to use this tank in hit and runs against infantry units that are alone and capping on the sides of the map.



Be sure not to neglect the observational capabilities of the Valentine tank. Being able to see what your enemy is doing and counter-acting them is key to winning the battlefield. Inaddition your teammates will also be able to see the enemy in the fog of war.

Tips and Tricks of the Observation Valentine Command Tank

• Use the mid-game light tank to hunt down isolated infantry or light vehicle units.
  
  
• Be sure to deploy the Observation mode of the tank in order to keep tabs on your enemy.
  
  
• The IR Observation mode of the tank will also be seen by your teammates so deploy the tank in different parts of the map so they can also keep an eye on the enemy as well.
  
  
• With the superior scouting from the Valentine tank use the ability to get a fix on the enemy and have coordinated artillery fire on their positions.
  
  
• If you get your Valentine to the first veterancy it will unlock the ability of the Valentine to call in a coordinated Sexton artillery barrage. The Sextons will be able to fire anywhere on the map.

Sexton Self-Propelled Artillery

375 Manpower


90 Fuel


At nine Command Points you unlock the prime unit of the Royal Artillery Regiment the Sexton Medium Self-Propelled Artillery. The artillery unit is weaker compared to its much stronger cousin the Priest, but regardless the Sexton can get the job done even though its bombardment range is rather limited. The damage output from this unit is just as good as the Priest or any other heavier artillery unit. The only problem with the Sexton is its range, so there are times when bombardment of far away targets require the Sexton to get dangerously close to the frontlines. But the real advantage of this unit is that it is relatively cheap to call in and that the recharge ability of the artillery is rather fast. Main targets of course for the Sexton should be weapon support crews such as paks or field guns, mortars etc etc and bunkers and HQs. Heavier and larger Axis tanks such as Jadgtigers or King Tigers etc are also valid targets to hit because they are slow to get out of the intended target zone.

The Sexton though not as powerful as the American Priest it is still just as good and can successfully destroy enemy defensive positions. Again, the real advantage of the Sexton is that for an artillery unit that fires 105mm rounds it is pretty damn cheap to get, and you can really just "arty spam" if you wanted to with this vehicle.

Tips and Tricks of the Sexton Self-Propelled Artillery

• Just like any artillery unit go for weapon support crews and heavy vehicles to maximize damage output and gain veterancy.
  
  
• Be careful when using the Sexton to bombard enemy positions, because of its limited range in attacking the enemy you have to make sure it doesn't drive up to the frontlines.
  
  
• The cheapness of the unit allows the purchase of multiple Sextons so it is in your best interest to get around 2 of these units or more if you so wish.
  
  
• The armor of the Sexton is very weak which makes it at risk for counter-bombardment by the enemy, so be sure to relocate it back deeply into your lines to prevent it from being destroyed after you have delievered your artillery strike.

Perimeter Overwatch

225 Ammunition


The Perimeter Overwatch ability is pretty much something similar to the Germans Sector Artillery. This is a strictly defensive ability, the purpose of it is simple, you call upon protective artillery for 225 ammunition for an extended period of time to automatically target enemy units that are within your own territory. The artillery rounds from the call-in will actually come from your own bases dual 25 pounders (if you teched up to that point), pretty much you will be only using this ability in the late-game phase. Unlike the Concentration Barrage from which you unlock eariler, the Perimeter Overwatch ability tends to be a lot more accurate against enemy units that are in your lines. Its not like the Concentration Barrage where its used for just area denial and random scattering, but instead more precise and meant to specifically hit and destroy infantry or vehicles that are foolish enough to stay in your territory. Due note though that when call upon for the ability on the minimap your freindly lines will appear orange, indicating to you and your opponents that the ability is active.

Note: Perimeter Overwatch does not work for neutral territory only in your own.

Tips and Tricks of Perimeter Overwatch.

• Sometimes when fighting on the frontlines, you can drag your enemies towards you and have them enter your territory and then order-in the Overwatch to shell them.
  
  
• If you are fighting on multiple fronts and are losing capping points its best to call in it, as the Overwatch will fire all across the map so long as you still own the specific territory.

Conclusion

This ends my review of the Royal Artillery Regiment, I hope to see more uses of this doctrine by the community and more use of the Recon/Artillery capabilities of the Valentine and Sexton which can be a really good combo. In addition to using flare to spy on the enemy for yourself and your team; and also call in Overwatch to hold the frontline across the entire battlefield. Thank you for your team in reading this guide and I hope you have a wonderful day.


Credited Source for Picture Icons: http://www.coh2.org/guides/39865/the-british-forces-commanders

[MathiasCZR01]

Yeah usually you'll want to go with anvil tactics for this doctrine, but its optional you can go hammer if you want to. Thats one of the reasons I tend to just stick to the details of the doctrine itself because when comes to your basic units and upgrades there are just so many different combinations you can do to achieve victory that's almost impossible to all touch upon.

Airburst shells are pretty damn good against infantry and supports weapons and even blinding tanks. But against buildings and HQs and bunkers its a bit lackluster, I'd rather just use Sextons for taking out buildings.

[Aurora borealis]

Two things you should add to this guide:

Unlocking Airburst shells (they make the concentrated barrage way better at dealing with basically everything) they hit within the Circle and are really good against OKW buildings combined with sexton.

This basically the reason I use this commander, I don't use any barrages until i've unlocked Airburst Shells (even with the Platoon command post unlocked without AIrburst shells the ability is nowhere near as good as it can be).

Using artillery flares:

I tend to unlock medical supplies for troops, but artillery flares aren't completely useless. They cost less than half the price of using the commander ability concentrated barrage and it's good to get an AT Sniper to use them if not infantry.

[T-70 X-Wing]

in a manner of speaking all factions has the friendly explosvie resistance
for instance when i play as USF and my captain loses its thompson and picks the bazzoka up i used to grenade that model to give back his thompson because he was useless without the thompson now i cant i have to sacriface the entire unit just for regaining that anti infantry up close :( thx a lot relic

[TomZeBomb]

Airburst shell ftw

[MathiasCZR01]

Yeah the Sexton in my experience is "OK" but not that great. Their damage is really good just as much as a Priest if it gets a direct hit, but then again its scattering effect is very poor, so it comes down to blind luck if the Sexton will pay off or not. But it is "Technically" better to have the Sexton artillery piece then nothing at all, the only other artillery unit the British have is the mortar pit, and because the mortar pit is immobile it can be easily destroyed where as the Sexton can run away if it is threatened. I've had the Sexton in the past win games, particularly games where its a very long and drawn out match that turn out into slug-fests where both teams have a lot of defensive lines and are just bashing each other finding ways to break the stalemate.

[Nero5th]

It's more a support commander, because if you are playing him alone, you're going to have a bad time. For me, Sixton are really, really BAD arty, they miss too much times for units in movment, even for OKW base they are pretty useless, you need like 3 sixton to make them useful mixing with valentine. PLUS you need one star to use the most usefull ability for calling all arty strike but AGAIN its sux because you need to be close AND if you're immediatly run away after using arty support, the skill is canceled wtf...

[barlvesim]

BF IS EVEN HARD ,NO BLANANCE TO GF

[Jordan the Magic Manboy]

The abilities aren't that bad, especially the flares one, but perimeter overwatch is too damn overpriced for what the howitzers dish out. Concentration Barrage isn't that bad, but for 100 muni it's just, again, a bit steep for what it does. Especially when you only have one of your howitzer bases out, it's just lackluster.

[Jordan the Magic Manboy]

Sexton I'd still argue is still near useless. The fact that you need to buy any more than two of these for them to be effective is just a crock of shit, and whenever somebody says "Buy four/six of these and you'll be fine", I want to punch a god damn wall. The damage it deals it complete garbage, I guess it's a little more accurate than the Priest but holy hell the Priests accuracy wasn't that bad in the first place! I'd also argue that the damage output of the Sexton is not as good as the Priests at all, it definitely feels worse. Add on the worse range and you've just got a poor SPG. On that note, Vet 3 M7 Priest is so god damn amazing. Makes the Sexton way more lelwurthy.

[Jordan the Magic Manboy]

And looking at the Valentine ingame (The Mk. IX), it should very well be able to take on a Pz. IV better than it currently does and win in a close-quarters fight against the StuG. This is not the case at all. Same gun as the Cromwell but does even less damage, bounces far more often, complete garbage armour (in reality, it had about 15mm less armour than the Cromwell), and utter trash health. I'm not saying buff all of this and make it a combat tank, but you have to at least throw it a bone! Yeah, I get it, it's mostly for scouting purposes with its IR capabilities, but it just doesn't feel like it justifies the cost or performance of the TANK <<<(TANK, GET IT? BECAUSE IT SURE DOESN'T FEEL LIKE ONE! MORE LIKE A NERFED IR HALFTRACK WITH VERY LITTLE MORE DEFENSIVE CAPABILITIES)