Best Infantry Intelligence Bulletins (USSR, USF)

Which intelligence bulletins offer the greatest combat bonuses to:

Soviet Union
1. PTRS-41 Conscripts (three PTRS anti-tank rifles + three normal Mosin-Nagant rifles) for attacking armored targets
2. PPSh-41 Conscripts (three PPSh-41 submachine guns + three normal Mosin-Nagant rifles) for attacking infantry
3. Normal Conscripts (six normal Mosin-Nagant rifles) for attacking infantry

Bulletins:
a. Recruit Training: Infantry (Conscripts and Grenadiers have 3% increased accuracy)
b. Officer Training: Infantry (Conscripts and Grenadiers reload 3% faster)
c. Veteran Training: Infantry (Conscript and Grenadier rifles cooldown 2% faster between shots and reload 2% faster)
d. Oorah! (Conscript rifles cooldown 5% faster between shots)

United States
1. Riflemen with anti-infantry weapons (M1918 Browning Automatic Rifles and/or M1919 light machine guns) for attacking infantry
2. Riflemen with M9 Bazookas for attacking armored targets

Bulletins:
a. Recruit Training: Infantry (Riflemen and Volksgrenadiers have 3% increased accuracy)
b. Officer Training: Infantry (Riflemen and Volksgrenadiers reload 3% faster)
c. Veteran Training: Infantry (Riflemen and Volksgrenadiers rifles cooldown 2% faster between shots and reload 2% faster)

I'm just curious what the best ones are because I sometimes don't always use all infantry-based bulletins, so knowing the best ones would help give my infantry a better chance against Axis infantry.

For USF it's better to use the one that increases veterancy XP gain rather than officer training. For conscripts use Oorah instead of officer training.

Accuracy >>>>>> Cooldown >> Reload

Reload and cooldown may swap positions if reload actually affects way more things than just a single reload modifier.

Swapping the reload bulletin for an increased xp gain might be worth considering.

Since you can no longer stack bulletins, what you have right now is fine. I think all infantry bulletins translated to just a ±5% dps increase.

Personally I think you should always go accuracy +3% for mainline infantry. For USF I always use Vet+ for Rifle and the +10% training and reinforce speed from AA campaign . USF is so Rifle centric it only makes sense to me. For Soviet your 2nd and 3rd bulletin can be up to taste but I like accuracy ones and ones for units you tend to build more than 1 of or build every match

IIRC, accuracy become worse when fighting unit in cover, as the increased amount is diminished greatly.
However, cooldown and reload amount is not affected by cover.

At first thought, people would choose cooldown. After all, a rifle would shoot multiple shots and reload once.
Nope! You forget that cooldown is only a part between two shots, there is also wind up and wind down time, which is thought to be obscured from process.

So the actually best bulletin is reload.

IIRC, accuracy become worse when fighting unit in cover, as the increased amount is diminished greatly.
However, cooldown and reload amount is not affected by cover.

At first thought, people would choose cooldown. After all, a rifle would shoot multiple shots and reload once.
Nope! You forget that cooldown is only a part between two shots, there is also wind up and wind down time, which is thought to be obscured from process.

So the actually best bulletin is reload.

That depends on how often the weapon reloads. For instance for sniper with a 10 bullets magazine reload has a lesser affect than cooldown, for hand held rocket with 1 shot cooldown has no effect.

Are the 2-3% reload/cooldown/acc/pen/armor even remotely worth it?
At first glance I'd much rather choose bulletins like the 10% veterancy bonus ones or faster barrage reload etc because those seem to yield much more significant results.

IIRC, accuracy become worse when fighting unit in cover, as the increased amount is diminished greatly.
However, cooldown and reload amount is not affected by cover.

At first thought, people would choose cooldown. After all, a rifle would shoot multiple shots and reload once.
Nope! You forget that cooldown is only a part between two shots, there is also wind up and wind down time, which is thought to be obscured from process.

So the actually best bulletin is reload.

Due to how the DPS formula works, an increase on accuracy translates directly on an increase on DPS. So if you increase acc by 3%, DPS increase by 3%. That's not the case with cooldown and reload, which represent a way lower increase in DPS for value.

Accuracy doesn't get worse when fighting units in cover. It's the opposite. There's a few units in the game, on which once they hit their offensive veterancy bonuses, that they might have "overkill" accuracy values against units which are on either no cover or red cover. specially if those units doesn't benefit from any defensive vet bonuses.

Did the math.

Notes:
-I expect the Reload bulletins affecting Reload duration and not Reload frequency.
-I made the calculations based on the Gren Kar at mid range. Cooldown modifiers are better at longer range than at close range

+3 Accuracy: increases damage by 3%
5% cooldown: increases damage by 1.21%
3% Reload: ... by 0.27%
2% Reload + 2% Cooldown: ... by 0.66%

Basically using all 3 bulletins gives you a 5% increase damage.

Also, as Viper says, reload is more important for single shot weapons such as Zooks.

Are the 2-3% reload/cooldown/acc/pen/armor even remotely worth it?
At first glance I'd much rather choose bulletins like the 10% veterancy bonus ones or faster barrage reload etc because those seem to yield much more significant results.

Accuracy for infantry squads is always good, because that increases their damage output. It's also worth to mention that a unit which you are supposed to build several units or use through the whole game, benefits from having bulletins way more than a single or few units which might be use sparely.

Vet bonuses are nice, but when you manage to hit vet 3/5 they stop benefiting you.

Barrage bonuses are only good as long as you can use them on cooldown and that's generally not a good way of using your indirect fire (you'll take some time to find a good target).

With the removal of duplicate bulletins, most of niche bulletins lost value. Which is fine cause some combinations where broken and forced you to "farm RNG bulletins drops" in order to get 3 of them. 33% increase vet gain, triple increase RoF on MGs (this increased suppression and damage), 3x barrage cd (i think you got something like 20s off from Stuka), etc.

Accuracy for infantry squads is always good, because that increases their damage output. It's also worth to mention that a unit which you are supposed to build several units or use through the whole game, benefits from having bulletins way more than a single or few units which might be use sparely.

Sure, but I just can't imagine a 3% reload bonus is going to make any significant difference in engagements at all. If someone has the numbers to prove that it actually does I'll be happy to change my mind.

Think like which one would be used more consistently. IE Accuracy is used every shot so its the best, then cooldown between every shot and therefore the 2nd best. Reload is only used after the model runs out of ammo and therefore is the worst of the 3. For ost and sov the 5% cooldown is the 2nd best after accuracy bonuses.

Although for USF the experience gain is super strong along with backbone of the army as both are unique but allow riflemen to vet and get back on the field much faster.

Back when bulletins stacked the top USF build was 3 vet stacks or 3 Grenade range. Back then you could Hail Mary grenades from so far away.

With the removal of duplicate bulletins, most of niche bulletins lost value. Which is fine cause some combinations where broken and forced you to "farm RNG bulletins drops" in order to get 3 of them. 33% increase vet gain, triple increase RoF on MGs (this increased suppression and damage), 3x barrage cd (i think you got something like 20s off from Stuka), etc.

So does Veteran Training: Infantry (Conscript and Grenadier rifles cooldown 2% faster between shots and reload 2% faster) and Oorah! (Conscript rifles cooldown 5% faster between shots) not make the cooldown 7% faster or is that just two identical intelligence bulletins (like having two Oorah! bulletins equipped for 14% faster cooldown)?

So does Veteran Training: Infantry (Conscript and Grenadier rifles cooldown 2% faster between shots and reload 2% faster) and Oorah! (Conscript rifles cooldown 5% faster between shots) not make the cooldown 7% faster or is that just two identical intelligence bulletins (like having two Oorah! bulletins equipped for 14% faster cooldown)?

Cooldown is only part of the time difference between shots. You need to add aiming, changing targets and so on. So the increase in dps is smaller than the number sugests.

What is also sometimes important, all the bonuses in coh2 are multiplicative. If you want to stack them, you need to multiply them. So for example stacked 5% bonus is 1.05 x 1.05 = 1.1025, not 1.1. Similarly a stacked 5% reduction is 0.95 x 0.95 = 0.9025, not 0.9.

Of course, you can't stack identical bulletins any more.

If you good at math you would know that 95% of bullitens are fetish.

If some one disagree provide exact stat before and after bullitens applyed

If you good at math you would know that 95% of bullitens are fetish.

If some one disagree provide exact stat before and after bullitens applyed

Range, accurancy and veterancy bulletins are somewhat useful. The others just look cool and confuse your opponent.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the bulletin that lets riflemen and the LT throw grenades farther. It seems to make a pretty decent difference and lets you throw grenades quite far, which is pretty useful IMO.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the bulletin that lets riflemen and the LT throw grenades farther. It seems to make a pretty decent difference and lets you throw grenades quite far, which is pretty useful IMO.

Yeah, that is mostly what I ment by range bulletin

Yeah, that is mostly what I ment by range bulletin

Ah gotcha.

For people wondering how raw DPS is calculated:

DPS being calculated as: Damage x Accuracy x (Shots per burst x Shots fired before reload / Total time to shoot including reload)

Total time to shoot including reload = ((Shoot burst duration + Fire aim time + Wind up + Wind down)*Shoots fire before reload) + (Cooldown duration * Reload frequency) + (Reload duration)

You can "clearly" see how either increasing damage or accuracy means a direct increase on DPS while improving other factors have less weight on the equation.

Sure, but I just can't imagine a 3% reload bonus is going to make any significant difference in engagements at all. If someone has the numbers to prove that it actually does I'll be happy to change my mind.

Combination of all DPS increase bulletins for main line infantry, translate roughly in 5% DPS as i said before. Whether that's significant enough or not i'll leave it open. I'll just say a 5% increase is significant enough to not be despreciable nor imba (based on other games).

I don't know nor remember how bulletins apply to pick up weapons. In case bulletins do applie, having all reload bulletins for USF, would make the zook fire 0.28s faster (base 5.75).

If you good at math you would know that 95% of bullitens are fetish.

If some one disagree provide exact stat before and after bullitens applyed

IIRC MG bulletins made them suppress with 1 less burst depending on range/cover/weapon. One of the reasons it was hard to balance maxims with or without bulletins.