Question: Scouts and stealth

[georgesedlak]

Are scouts any more stealthy than another 4 man size "0" unit. I like to use ATR units as scouts, sometimes they get lucky and nail a half track or armored car, but are they as stealthy as a regular scout unit?

[Mobhack]

As has so often been answered on these forums - no.

Scouts have no magic stealth abilities other than their small size and no X-ray vision spotting (unless granted night vision gear like thermal imagers).

Some scout formations may have a small experience boost, however. But that is marginal. The unit class itself has no inbuilt special abilities. If you made a scout element size 1, it would be just the same as any other small infantry team. Size 0 is special, and so is charged for in the points calculator.

Try using the forum's search function on "scout" and then perhaps some other keywords to refine that and you should find previous discussions on the type. The MBT forum may also have relevant posts too.

Andy

[Dion]

I think scouts are pretty weak. It's best if they just ... scout, observe and report. Not retreating unless they get attacked. If used correctly your other troops should become twice as good. I'm not talking about their attributes but command/control.

[Akmatov]

Scouts have no magic stealth abilities other than their small size and no X-ray vision spotting

Just came across this while browsing. I actually think scouts should have a modest increase in both stealth and spotting.

I believe scouts, specialist scouts not just a random infantry squad tasked with scouting, generally receive some specialist training in scouting beyond that given to line infantry. In the US Army, at least, scouts and infantry are separate, obviously closely related, specialties. Therefore I would think it reasonable for them to have a modest stealth bonus over the 'third infantry squad from the left' who gets tasked to move forward and see who shoots them.

I suspect that scouts might be more likely to have binoculars than the 'third infantry squad from the left', hence a modest increase in spotting would seem reasonable. More questionable would be if scout training makes them better at actually seeing what they are looking at. However, I have seen presumably fairly well trained line infantry completely miss things that more elite troops notice immediately. Of course, this situational awareness is something that improves for those who survive to become more veteran, but then not all troops are such veterans so some modest differentiation would seem reasonable.

Don't expect any changes, just been thinking about this and chose to share.

[Imp]

They do have a modest bonus plus 3 experince & I disagree that they should get more for the reason that most scouts in game situations are more a half squad designated to do recon. Correct me if I am wrong but true Recon units tend to be a good distance ahead of the main force finding & reporting on the enemy, more modern the game generally the deeper they are.
Therefore most in game scouts might well represent a bit of extra training or an experinced squad tasked to the job because of there experience,

[Akmatov]

Ah, didn't realize there was already a modest bonus. I assume you are speaking of troops appearing in a Unit Class such as Unit Class 58-Scouts, example spob16-Germany unit 513 Spaehtruppen.

If we are speaking of line troops tasked with a scouting mission, I would not suggest that the nature of their mission should affect their skill. Might significantly affect their pucker factor, but not their stealth.

So it would seem all is well and I have learned something. Glad I pursued it.

[Imp]

Indeed & in MBT for some nations & eras you can select from diffrent types some of which carry far better vision aids than your average grunt.