The Art of the Tank Flank

 

Anyone familiar with tank combat of any sort, will recognize flanking as one of the most effective strategies. 

Not only do tanks have weaker armor on the sides on the rear, the fact that their attention is already focused on a different direction means you get to fire first and get the drop on them. 

Executing a perfect flank in Foxhole is easier said than done however. A smart enemy will constantly be on the move, and knowing exactly where the target is and where they will be is the most toughest part to a successful ambush.

Here are some examples to demonstrate a successful outmaneuvering of your armored foe. The first is a simple one tank ambush using all the knowledge to your advantage. The second incorporates the same strategy but scaled up with a convoy of 4 tanks. The principles are the same for group and individual, as long as you can ensure a rapid response as a cohesive unit. 

Callahan's Gate - The Single Tank Flank

The key to success in this encounter is having map intel from hundreds of meters away. Even with binoculars, it is not immediately clear how the larger scope of the battlefield is playing out in one glance. Hence, the radio is your most valuable tool as a commander of a tank or an armor group.While the enemy has no way of knowing that you are in the area, you have all the knowledge you need: where the enemy is, how many there are, which way it is facing, and it's direction of motion. In this case, the green triangle (with a dot in it to indicate human crew), was seen moving in and out of watchtower radius in a very predictable manner. All I had to do was to get in a good spot to get the drop on the enemy until it appeared on the map again, and go full steam ahead from an angle it would not expect.

This runs counter to most tanker's instinct to just show up on the front and push with infantry. Brute forcing is not a bad strategy when you have superior assets, but if you want to become a force multiplier, it helps to be patient and predict the enemy movements. Just half an hour later, after we moved to a different region, another Spatha came to the exact same location, and we headed back to kill it using the same tactic. The simplest strategy is sometimes the most effective. 

Full Recording:

 

 

The Foundry: 4-Tank Armor Group Pincer Movement

When the battlefield becomes very large, it's even more important to view things from a macroscopic perspective. If you just take a minute and watch the map, you will be able to see a constant pattern. Usually, the enemy tanks will push up through no man's land, slug it out with friendly tanks, and then retreat to repair. 

In this scenario, instead of joining your own tanks with the friendly random tanks, which adds to the congestion and removes the element of surprise, it can be wise to park your tanks off to the side where you're in the best position to strike a fatal blow from the flank when the enemy moves again in the predictable manner. 

Full Recording:

Lo and behold, using this tactic we were able to kill multiple enemy tanks with no casualties of our own. However this changed the landscape of the battle in this area for the next few hours, as tank groups from both sides began to manuver much more rapidly and unpredictably to prepare for and seize such opportunities in the future. In the end, this is true tank combat. Succeed or fail, you will gain experience and become a better strategician after every encounter. Good luck and godspeed Foxholers!

-Mountedantman