CHAPTER 652: CHAPTER 652: MULTIPLE BREAKTHROUGHS, ONE PRIMARY FOCUS

Brusilov slightly shook his head, a hint of embarrassment in his tone: "I don’t think this is an advantage, Vice Admiral. We do have a lot of troops, but their combat effectiveness leaves much to be desired."

There’s a saying "Better few but better," and the Russian Army is "many but not good," which is a major taboo in military tactics.

However, sometimes "many but not good" also has its advantages, depending on how it is used and expanded.

Shire placed the document in his hand on the table: "If this is the German’s defense line, our goal is clear—to break through the enemy’s defenses and quickly penetrate to the rear to attack their vulnerable supply lines."

Brusilov agreed with this. He had studied Shire’s interpenetration tactics and knew that the essence was to use maneuverable units for penetration.

But the next second, he realized something was wrong: "That’s why I need armored units, Vice Admiral. Yet you believe our situation is not suitable for using armored units."

"I didn’t say to use armored units," Shire replied.

"Then what could it be?"

"Cavalry!"

"Cavalry?" Brusilov exclaimed, looking at Shire in astonishment, "No, that’s impossible, Vice Admiral. The cavalry would suffer heavy casualties under the enemy’s machine guns."

Incredible, Shire actually proposed to use cavalry for penetration?

Wasn’t this the tactic he had rejected?

And the huge casualties when using cavalry at the River Somme...

Shire gently shook his head.

It might be valid elsewhere, but after the advent of machine guns, cavalry should have been eliminated, and tanks completely replaced cavalry.

However, in Russia’s unique climate and terrain, it was not the case.

Even in World War II, the Soviet Army still maintained cavalry divisions, which played a significant role on the battlefield.

"Cavalry might be more useful than tanks in snow and muddy terrain, General," Shire said firmly. "I heard you have horse-drawn sleds, so why not mount Maxim Machine Guns on the sleds?"

Brusilov was stunned for a moment, and after a long pause, he muttered, "Yes, sleds! Why not mount Maxim on sleds? Good question!"

Shire picked up some paper and pen, drawing while analyzing: "The sled can’t be too high, as it would make it unstable and prone to tipping over. Therefore, the height of the machine gun should not exceed that of the horse, which means the gun’s muzzle cannot face forward."

Shire drew a rear-facing gun muzzle on the paper and continued:

"But we can point the muzzle backward, enabling shooting while moving. Of course, this requires some training."

"In other seasons, I mean when there’s no snow, we can convert it to a wagon."

(The above image shows a simple setup combining a wagon and a Maxim Machine Gun, commonly known as Tachanka, an important weapon widely used by the Soviet and Russian armies.)

Brusilov stared at Shire’s drawing, dumbfounded. It took him a while to react and nod in approval:

"This seems better than imagined, Vice Admiral."

"It might be just what we need because it doesn’t require much funding."

"I mean, it only needs a wagon and a machine gun, which we can easily equip in large numbers in a short time."

Shire handed the sketched blueprint to Brusilov, reminding him:

"It shouldn’t charge the enemy, General."

"Its muzzle is at the back, and the front are vulnerable horses."

"You should suddenly turn around beyond the enemy’s rifle range and sweep the enemy with machine gun fire!"

The Maxim Machine Gun has a longer range than a rifle, and combined with its high rate of fire, it could achieve remarkable results in encounters and positional warfare.

"Of course." Brusilov nodded heavily.

"The most crucial thing is maneuver warfare," Shire added. "You can assume that such a wagon encounters an enemy infantry company or even more on open ground."

Brusilov was stunned, wondering what a wagon with three people and a machine gun could do? Apart from fleeing?

Suddenly, he understood.

The wagon could maintain its distance from the enemy, always maneuvering within the range of the Maxim Machine Gun but outside the enemy’s rifle range. Eventually, the wagon might even exhaust the entire infantry company.

"Unbelievable." Brusilov stared at Shire: "It seems almost designed for us, though not perfect; it’s the most suitable!"

Shire’s gaze turned back to the German "defense line": "With such equipment, combined with elite cavalry and infantry, we can quickly break through enemy defenses and attack from the rear, just like my penetration tactics."

But Brusilov had concerns. He hesitated and said:

"I’ve done this, Vice Admiral."

"Perhaps because the Germans had previous experience of being successfully penetrated by you, they have now set up mobile units on the second line."

"Once my troops break through at one spot, their mobile units will immediately rush over and fill that gap."

This was one of the disadvantages of a cavalry breakthrough.

An armored unit’s breakthrough characteristic is the speed; the enemy’s maneuverable units cannot stop in time. Even if they do arrive, they cannot withstand the armored unit’s strong combat power and will be quickly defeated.

However, cavalry lacks the combat power and defense of armored units, making them easily stalled by mobile units. The result is that the enemy continues to increase, and the cavalry is eventually sealed off and unable to penetrate.

But Shire had, of course, thought of this. He calmly said: "That’s why I said to use the ’numerical advantage.’

Brusilov looked puzzled. How does this relate to numerical strength?

Shire pointed his pen at the edge of the document representing the German defense line: "You have a numerical advantage, General. Using this, you can simultaneously concentrate large forces in several directions to break through different positions of the enemy’s defense line. For example, here, here, and here..."

Brusilov was solemn.

The Russian Army’s logistical support and combat effectiveness could likely only support one breakthrough point.

But the next second, his eyes lit up: "Vice Admiral, do you mean that all other breakthroughs are false, and only one is real?"

Shire secretly praised him, worthy of being Brusilov, who quickly understood.

However, it was not surprising, as this was the tactic Brusilov had pioneered during World War I: "multi-point breakthrough, single-point focus."

This tactic was very suitable for maneuverable units with insufficient combat power.

Multi-point simultaneous breakthrough aims to confuse the Germans so that their second-line mobile units are uncertain where to reinforce.

The single-point focus is to suddenly exert effort and penetrate after the German second-line mobile units are drawn elsewhere and stalled.

By then, the Germans would lack second-line mobile units or sufficient mobile forces to block it.

Finally, Shire added: "I think you can launch the attack in June because at that time..."

Brusilov interjected, excitement and joy filling his tone: "By then, the ice and snow will have melted, turning everywhere into swamps with many mosquitoes. Such climate and environment would be unsuitable for the Germans to fight, nor for their maneuverable units."