Hi everybody.
Here you will find my ideas for the Ostheer.
I like that I read in your Soviet Union guide also I decided to present my vision with a similar form.
It was very hard to create new unique army and specially a soviets nemesis. I think I have found a good concept.
I spend several hours to find all details and I deleted many many ideas and units for keeping forces balance (Elefant + Jagdtiger ? Good bye Jadtiger).
I like the result. I think I have a very unique and fun concept.
Like I said on this forum Red Army must build Observation Post (necessary for a 3 vs 3 with all races). Also Ostheer build OP.
I hope that you will be interrested... I think you are finishing Red Army also I hope there is enought time to propose new concepts like mine.
I know your team is complete but if you need something.... I have lot of ideas like you will can see, I can translate in french (I read english easily but I write bad english), I can create icons, make cofee, or test beta version.OSTHEER GUIDE
BASIC INFORMATION
Before fighting, you need to know how we will win against Communists!
Fresh RecruitEach minutes, a Fresh Recruit go to your Headquarters from behind frontlines. When you have four of them in your HQ you can deploy them as a new Heeresgruppe Grenadier Squad for free but you can’t deploy it if your army is over-populated. You don’t receive other men if you have the maximum Fresh Recruit number on your HQ. At tier 2 or 3, you can wait for having five or six member before deploy it, but of course, you must always buy their weapon upgrades and abilities researches.
Fear
The Eastern Front is Hell and your fresh meats know it. Also, if your basic unit (Heeresgruppe Grenadier) loose one unit, the squad have a chance to retreat automatically. This percentage is automatically reduced at tier 2 and disappears at tier 3.TenacityAll your infantry squad fight harder when loosing half of their member.
No research in buildings, only unitsExcept veterans and tiers researches, there is no research in your buildings. In the Eastern Front you don’t have time to develop new technologies. They will come directly from Germany. Instead of global researches, there are personal researches on your unit menu. In fact you must pay a little cost (manpower and fuel) for each unit (to pay convoys) before using abilities (free or with ammunition cost). You also have upgrades which cost ammunition, like other factions. Tiers researches are cheap because valid only in the building where you find it and because they require a number of Observation Post and Light Bunker.
Knowledge of the battlefieldVeterancy in the Ostheer Army is applied for all your units. There are only three expansive researches on your headquarters, one per tier. The bonus is a little more important than equivalent other army bonus when your units are in a linked territory, and less efficient in neutral, enemies and unlinked territories.
Cooldowns ReducerOstheer units are not very expansive, in particular infantry units. But they have a bad reinforcement cooldown. This one can be reduced with each Observation Post you build.
BUILDINGS, UNITS AND UPGRADES
The Ostheer army has a new unique tech-tree. There are two unit production building: The Heeresgruppe Barracks and the Ostheer Armoured Center. You must have the first building before construct the second. The barracks contains all infantry units, a car and a truck. The armoured center contains all offensive vehicles. In each production building you can activate a cheap icon to change tier and access to new units. To activate this icon you must have a certain number of Observation Post and Light Bunker. If you loose these buildings you don’t loose the benefice of the last tier. But if you loose and/or create a new production building you need to activate tier for this one and you need to have the required number of Observation Post and Light Bunker to do this. Be careful to your buildings, it’s not real bunkers but wood structures. No time to construct a stronger building in this front line.
HeadquartersThis main building permits to deploy your Engineers and receives Fresh Recruits.
Reich Engineer
Engineer can capture points and build the two production building and defensive structure (Light Bunker, Observation Post, barbed Wire, Sand bags, Tank Traps, Mines). They use MP40, can cut barbed wire and repair.
Upgrade 1: Flamethrowers
Research 1 (tiers 2): Shovels
Ability 1: Bury. With their shovels, the squad can bury itself on the ground. Buried, grenadiers can’t do anything but they are invisible. Infantry and vehicles can pass above without wounding them.
Fresh Recruits (Heeresgruppe Grenadier)
Your HQ receives one Fresh Recruit per minute. You can see their number on the Fresh Recruits icon. When you have four, five or six Fresh Recruits, you can deploy it for free as a Heeresgruppe Grenadier Squad.
Knowledge of Ground, Mastery of Ground, Like Home
It’s the three veterancy researches. Knowledge of Ground appears at the beginning. Mastery of Ground requires Knowledge of Ground and tier 2. Like Home requires Mastery of Ground and tier 3.
Heeresgruppe BarracksThis is the production building dedicated to the infantry and the transport of troops.
Advanced Squad
When you have 2 Observation Posts and/or Light Bunkers, you can activate this icon to access to tier 2 infantry units.
Elite Squad
When you have 5 Observation Posts and/or Light Bunkers, you can activate this icon to access to tier 3 infantry units. It’s requires Advanced Squad research.
Kubelwagen
This car can’t fight but can detect hidden units like snipers and can carry your officer. In the car, an Officer can use his abilities but can’t shoot.
Heeresgruppe Grenadier
Your main infantry unit. They are four men using kar 98 rifles. You can buy MP40 sub machineguns. At tier 2 you can add a fifth member, and a sixth soldier at tier 3. The soldier number of your squad, when you have just bought it, is always four (except in HQ).
Upgrade 1: MP40
Research 1 : Grenades
Research 2 (tiers 2): Shovels
Ability 1 : Throw grenade
Ability 2 : Bury. With their shovels, the squad can bury itself on the ground. Buried, grenadiers can’t do anything but they are invisible. Infantry and vehicles can pass above without wounding them.
Mortar Squad
A tier 2 unit of three men using MP40 and a mortar.
Research 1 : Incendiary mortar
Abilities 1 : Use incendiary mortar instead usual mortar.
Tank Destroyer Squad
A tier 2 unit of three men using two Gewehr 43 and one Panzerschreck.
Research 1: Anti-tank Grenades
Ability 1: Throw anti-tank grenade. At tier 3, they throw two anti-tank grenades.
Transport Truck (Opel Blitz - Kfz 79)
A tier 2 truck without weapon. Two capacities: you can carry two squads with it and you can reinforce unit around it.
Upgrade 1: Medical Truck. Regenerate infantry life around it. You can’t choose the other update and you loose Transport Truck capacities.
Upgrade 2 (tiers 3): Truck of Engineering. Repair vehicle around it. You can’t choose the other update and you loose Transport Truck capacities.
Fanatic Squad
A tier 3 unit of four men using STG44 assault rifles. They are never affected by suppression shoot.
Research 1: Grenades
Research 2: Satchel Charge
Research 3: Intensive Training
Ability 1: Throw grenade
Ability 2: Use satchel charge
Ability 3: Run (require Intensive Training)
Sniper Officer
A tier 3 unit. Sniper officer can motivate troops, have a semi-automatic G43 rifle with ZF4 scope but don’t have camouflage like other snipers.
Ability 1: Motivate. Give a bonus of speed and health to one infantry squad.
Spy
A tier 4 unit. You can buy a spy after deploying Sniper Officer and Panzer IV and while having 6 Observation Posts and/or Light Bunkers. The spy is not in your building. After click to the spy icon (after cooldown), you must select a visible enemy infantry unit. It became your spy until he dies. You can’t control him but you see that he see, and enemy player can’t know that. You can have three spies at once.
Ostheer Armoured CenterThis is the production building dedicated to half-tracks and tanks.
Medium Tank
When you have 2 Observation Posts and/or Light Bunkers, you can activate this icon to access to tier 2 tank units.
Heavy Tank
When you have 5 Observation Posts and/or Light Bunkers, you can activate this icon to access to tier 3 tank units. It’s requires Medium Tank research.
Sdkfz 233 Stummel
A half-track with 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24 short gun. No fuel needed to deploy it. When destroyed, a survivor goes to your HQ as a Fresh Recruit.
Panzerkampfwagen II
A fast and small assault tank.
Upgrade 1: Binoculars. Permit to see far on the fog war.
Wespe
A tier 2 vehicle. Howitzer medium tank.
Research 1: Camouflage
Ability 1: Camouflage. Wespe is invisible until it makes fire or an enemy unit approaches just at side.
Marder II
A tier 2 tank destroyer vehicle. Medium tank.
Research 1: Perforating Shell.
Ability 1: Use a perforating shell for increase damage against tank.
Ability 2: Tread breaker
Panzerkampfwagen III
A tier 2 medium assault tank.
Upgrade 1: 50 mm KwK38 L/42 gun. Replace 37 mm KwK36 L/45 gun but loose one coaxial machine-gun.
Research 1: Cover Operations.
Ability 1: Covering. Give a defensive bonus to one heavy tank during many seconds.
Sturmgeschutz III
A tier 3 Howitzer vehicle. Heavy tank. Good range.
Panzer IV
A tier 3 heavy assault tank. Efficient against infantry and medium tank.
Panzer Division
A tier 4 “unit”. You can activate this “unit” after deploying Sniper Officer and Panzer IV and while having 7 Observation Posts and/or Light Bunkers. Each five minutes, you can deploy panzers which come from behind frontlines for a very little manpower cost. It can be a Panzer IV (40% of chance) or two Panzer III (60% of chance). You can’t deploy it if your army is over-populated.
Light BunkerWe don’t have the time to build our bunkers with communists at our door. So use these planks of wood…
Upgrade 1: Light Bunker became a Machinegun Position (MG42). You can’t choose the other update.
Upgrade 2 (tiers 2): Light Bunker became Medical Cant. You can pay ammunition to heal infantry around this building. You can’t choose the other update.
Light Bunker, Machinegun Position, and medical Cant are used to determine your tier.
Observation postYou need Observation Post to protect resources points, determine tiers, and reduce cooldowns.
EDIT : Preceding icons are not serious. It is just used to illustrate my text.ARMY GROUP NORTH
The Heeresgruppe Nord is able to deploy an expert infantry coming from Finland for the combat of the large snow-covered countries, and deadly air forces.
Ground DominationInvisible attack
During 30 seconds, if an enemy vehicle passes to the top of your buried troops, it is destroyed or immobilised by a sticking bomb placed under its frame.
Finnish Elite Troops
You can call a special troop of three men. Two of them have a Gewehr 43 rifle, and the last is a sniper using G43 rifle with ZF4 scope. This squad can use grenades (require Grenades research) and run (require Intensive Training research).
Flak40 128mm
Engineer can now build the best German AA/AT.
Sky DominationAir interception
During one minute, if an enemy plane appear (recon, fighter, bomber, sailplane…), it is automatically destroyed by one of your Messerschmitt.
Elite Paratroopers
You can deploy three parachutists (Heeresgruppe Fallshimjager) on the battlefield. They have Camouflage ability (require Camouflage research) and can throw grenades (require Grenades research). They use FG42 assault rifles.
Blind Bombardment
You can call a Heinkel He 111 bomber which can drop bomb. If one of your infantry is destroy by this bomb, you receive a new Fresh Recruit in your HQ for each infantry unit lost in the explosion (If you loose a squad of three men, you receive three recruits).
ARMY GROUP SOUTH
The Heeresgruppe Süd uses artillery to destroy cities and urban troops for capturing what remains.
Infantry DominationRumanian Troops
A cheap squad of eight men using kar 98 rifles. They can run (require Intensive Training research) but have no upgrade and can’t use enemy’s weapons.
Heeresgruppe Equipment
Heeresgruppe Grenadiers win two new upgrades. The first is a MG42 light machinegun (tiers 2), and the other is Panzerschreck (tiers 3). The ammunition cost for MP40 upgrade is dividing by two. They can buy the three upgrades (In tiers 3 you can have: 4 MP40, 1 MG42, 1 Panzerschreck)!
Bouncing Betty
Engineers can now burry Mine-S (Schrapnellmine). It’s a vicious weapon against infantry. It can wound or kill out of tens of soldiers in a ray of 100m with its projectiles.
Artillery DominationNeed for reinforcement
You always receive a new Fresh Recruit in your HQ for each complete infantry squad lost (If you loose a squad of three men, you receive only one recruit). That’s a little compensation after enemy artillery strike…
Sturmpanzer IV Brummbär
You can deploy a Sturmpanzer IV Brummbär on battlefield, a short range but powerful howitzer. Heavy tank.
Hidden Artillery
Officers can call an artillery strike which comes behind front lines.
ARMY GROUP CENTRE
The Heeresgruppe Mitte can use several tanks.
Road DominationMechanical improvements
Kubelwagen, Opel Blitz, Stummel, Panzer II, and Wespe move a little faster.
Jagdpanzer IV
An impressive tank destroyer vehicle. Heavy tank.
Convoy Interception
Each enemies loose 30 (or less) fuel resources. You win 50 fuel points (expansive ammunition cost).
Armoured DominationArmoured Skirts
Sturmgeschütz III, Panzer IV, and Jadpanzer IV can be upgraded with armoured skirts.
Sabotage before retreat
Crew can leave a tank and retreat in your HQ. After many seconds it explodes. Crew members are Fresh Recruits. You can create your Grenadier with them. The number of members depends of the tank (equal to the required tier).
Jagdpanzer Ferdinand “Elefant”
A huge and dangerous tank destroyer vehicle. A 88mm gun on a Tiger I frame. You can deploy only one Elefant per game.
EDIT : I created these icons for fun but very quickly by cut and paste pictures found on web (except for two icons). I'm not very satisfied but it nice to have some pictures on a big text like this. In gift, this is the background i used. I like this colors because white and blue are the opposite of your red and black icons for Soviet union. Light blue and white symbolise snow.