MG42 just useless ?

Hey guys,

My strategy in 1v1 is based on one or two MG42 that covers my cutoff.
But since a few days it is just useless and doesnt pin or button any units...

Even with bulletins for reload, increase rate of fire and so on it still seems to be useless and since then i start to loose games...

Anyone has the same feeling / Any ideas how to push the MG or what to do about it ?

Thanks,

Huchtot

From my limited experience MG's are now quite easy to deal with when left alone like in your scenario. They however provide fairly good support if kept close to other squads.

Try to adapt your gameplay and micro your mg a bit more; that way I believe you'll find the unit being far from useless.

looks like your strategy in 1v1 shouldn't be based on one or two MG42 that cover your cutoff

You are right tuvok, but it usually gave me the time to react. I used the MG as a blocker. Maybe i just play bad today. Never lost more than 2, now 5 in a row. I will work on it and let you know later

MG's aren't useless, they just need supported. When they were OP you could just leave them sitting somewhere to completely deny an area without considerable forces to drive them off. It seems like you are still trying to use them like when they were OP but you can't do that. They need a bit more line of sight now to be effective.

Move them with your infantry and have them set up behind a couple of gren squads to SUPPORT them when you are pushing, or set them somewhere with a long LOS to help deny an area defensively. If you want to try to deny an area you'll need a bunker with the mg upgrade. Those are harder to take down but they only have a window when they are particularly effective.

In a 1v1 I would not build more than a single bunker. They can be good but locking up a bunch of resources in static structures that become easy to take out late game is asking to lose.

Use MG42s:
A) Primarily in open areas
B) In a backline position to slow enemy infsntry advance there
C) Always in conjunction with another unit for:
-spotting
-to secure another support weapons flank
-with infantry in a slow advancing progression

Never alone, except for capping a remote open objective.

The effort to bring it to good use is just too high compared to spending those 240mp on another grensquad.

The effort to bring it to good use is just to high compared to spending those 240mp on another grensquad.

I agree, but I persist in attempts to use 2xGren + MG task force ingame.
Slow advancing, but I live in the hope it can be made to work with enough patience and careful positioning.

seems to be that the bulletins lower the suppression O.o

i will test it tomorrow and let you now the outcome.

The amount of babysitting the mg42 requires right makes it useless. You can say you want to advance slow and steady Nullist but that makes you very vulnerable to harass capping by the soviets. your better of spamming grens early game.

The mg42 is not useless.

It is however currently not well suited for its purpose.
The mg42 is a defensive unit: Very long setup time but a large cone of fire.


However at medium to long ranges it's currently unable to defend/cover a cutoff.
It is able to suppress a unit within the capping circle but will more often then not be unable to pin the unit in time to prevent a decap.
Bear in mind: At medium to long range - not point blank.

Even if there is a unit spotting for the mg42 it can be bum rushed from the front with a single conscript squad using molotovs (terrain permitting even without the use of orahh).


It's not useless but it's current performance is indeed subpar.

Something needs to be changed for the MG, it needed to be nerfed when teams could spam four of them and hold the map with zero effort but in its current state it underperforms even with two grens supporting it

The mg42 is not useless.

It is however currently not well suited for its purpose.
The mg42 is a defensive unit: Very long setup time but a large cone of fire.


However at medium to long ranges it's currently unable to defend/cover a cutoff.
It is able to suppress a unit within the capping circle but will more often then not be unable to pin the unit in time to prevent a decap.
Bear in mind: At medium to long range - not point blank.

Even if there is a unit spotting for the mg42 it can be bum rushed from the front with a single conscript squad using molotovs (terrain permitting even without the use of orahh).


It's not useless but it's current performance is indeed subpar.

My thoughts exactly.

I agree with Madok,
the MG42 is far from useless but short of enemy infantry just walking directly at it, the MG42 has serious trouble countering the unit it's suppose to be a hard counter for. And that is definitely the sign of a needed change.

100% agree with madok.

Disagree. Especially in corners, houses or positions with little distance, this unit is Gold!

I still see plenty of mg42s being made (and I build them myself indeed), and I still see the mg42 suppressing units on the first burst plenty of times, and I still see conscripts not being able to oorah+molotov an unsupported mg42 plenty of times, it's not a black/white picture.
btw mg42s have always been meant to be supported, even when they were OP (for fending off flamer M3s).
I don't think it's needed but if anything, nerf the Maxim, the mg42 is fine and its nerf is what made the game finally fun for me.

I never understood the complaints about the MG42. I see it as different, but less micro heavy than the the maxim.

Overall, I like using a pair of snipers, 1 scout car plus MG42s to capture the front line. I use the Mg42s to bring them under fire, then I micro the scout car to do damage quickly and buy time for my snipers to join the fight.

I usually end up with the MG42s doing a reasonable amount of kills, with the snipers and the scout car combined doing twice as much.


I lose a lot of MG42/maxim crews but that's the nature of the unit. I lose them, and then reman/heal them.

MG42's are very good. I always incorporate at least 1 in my 1v1s and 2 in my 2v2s. Like coh2player, I don't understand the complaints about them.

... and I still see conscripts not being able to oorah+molotov an unsupported mg42 plenty of times, it's not a black/white picture.

It's currently a risky proposition for an mg42 to continue firing at a charging conscript squad. If they do mange to suppress the squad at a reasonable distance then all is well.

The mg42 stops a frontal assault at a defensive unit.

If it doesn't work the result may very well be a fiery death thanks to the crit mechanics. At the very least a successful molotov will force a retreat and a big chunk of lost health.




Generally I've found it easy to charge a conscripts squad at and mg42 and molotov it. The 'trick' is to avoid red cover and use yellow cover on approach (if possible). I've found it unusual if I do not manage to molotov an mg42 - not the other way around.

The only difficulty (for me) is to react fast enough if I do not know if a mg42 is in the field or where it's currently and a squad is suddenly fired uppon. Once I know it's there molotoving it and forcing a retreat is not a problem and has to be part of any assault plan.

So it complicates things and the unit is far from useless but I prefer another gren squad early and mid game.
Plus it just feels kinda wrong if a standard infantry unit can frontally negate this iconic defensive unit.