MG34 team vs Obersoldaten

I usually use the Fortifications doctrine while playing OKW.
What I haven't yet figured out is the real difference between the MG34 Gun Team and the Obersoldaten.

Which are better and why?

The obersoldaten are also double the cost.. and they both feature the same gun?

I usually use the Fortifications doctrine while playing OKW.
What I haven't yet figured out is the real difference between the MG34 Gun Team and the Obersoldaten.

Which are better and why?

The obersoldaten are also double the cost.. and they both feature the same gun?

Weapon values are not based off the actual weapon, its balanced by the unit using the weapon, so you can have a weapon thats strong on unit and weak on another:


Rear echelons, rangers, and paratroopers all use M1 carbines but the rear echelons version is way worse than the other M1 carbines.

Ostheer Pioneers have much weaker Mp40s than the Mp40 assault grenadiers use, etc.


The mg34 HEAVY MACHINE GUN is actually one of the worst damage dealers in the game, (it deals like 4 damage per hit while suppressing stuff which lowers incoming damage so that makes its damage even worse so its only good at supressing)

while the obersoldaten light MG34 is arguably the strongest small arm in the game and can only supress once the obersoldaten hit vet level 4.

They're very different weapons.

The HMG34 team has a heavy machine gun that has to be deployed. Its main role is to suppress squads, rather than do damage. That said, at vet 1 it gets incendiary rounds that can be activated for only 15 munitions. That ability will do excellent damage against infantry and light vehicles while it lasts. Use it whenever you can.

Obersoldaten can be upgraded to a LMG34, which is a light machine gun. It doesn't need to be set up, and can even be fired on the move. It is pretty much the best hand-held anti-infantry gun in the game. It does excellent damage at all ranges, although doesn't suppress until the squad gets to about vet 4.

HMG34 is a cheap heavy machine gun unit (which has a high target size for infantry like other weapon teams, meaning bullets are more likely to hit them) that requires setting up and suppresses infantry, but is only barely able to kill them, generally enforcing it have amble quantities of support nearby to take care of that for them. Get them to control enemy infantry's movements and slow blobs - be sure to make use of its low cost by getting more of other units around it to cover it (or just more HMG34s) and kill what it suppresses.

Obers are an expensive mobile infantry unit that are specialized in killing infantry at long-range. With their LMG34 upgrade and low target size (meaning bullets are less likely to hit them), they are nearly outmatched in that regard, but their expensive cost means it is important to keep them away from vehicles which they are nigh helpless against. Get them to kill infantry, especially from a defensive heavy cover position surrounding open ground to enforce approaches against them will be very costly. Their smoke grenade can also be quite useful against infantry blobs, slowing and damaging them to an extent any one grenade could not hope to (it won't kill any of them by itself however), that thing's not too far from basically being suppression in an area that costs munitions.

The two units work all right together, with HMG34s controlling an area while Obers' DPS are not something would-be flankers want shooting at them while they run over open ground to an HMG34 - few infantry units are likely to be able to slip a grenade toss into an HMG34 crew while Obers are shooting at them. Both will require AT support, however.

Ostheer Pioneers have much weaker Mp40s than the Mp40 assault grenadiers use, etc.

I'm pretty sure Pioneers' MP40s are basically just Kar98Ks at close-range at best (which is still a potential improvement over Combat Engineers that are basically Scripts but only 4 out of 6 of them), while AGs' do have more DPS at best (which is obviously still not enough...).

Okey, Thanks for clearing that up

Clear answers !

So to sum it up; obers are basically the Mobile elite infantry of the OKW which main role is to just wipe infantry while the MG team is static (needs to be set up) and mainly just supresses the enemy.

Haven't really used to obers that much since I thought they were basically the same as the MG team but more expensive

A good number of units have a rather arbitrary effectiveness (E.g. tank destroyer units are incapable of firing HE shells and be reasonably expected to harm infantry), this can be only discovered through use.

Should you be interested for more precise information on units, you can try these: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LOYMDi_XR7rILsk6HbAZqGihsk22t-45C_6NbQEP-m0/edit#gid=0 http://stat.coh2.hu/
(If you don't quite understand them, of course feel free to ask what about them you do not)