Hello.
Comparing units taken separatly is cherrypicking.
To truly compare two units based on cost/efficiency you have to take EVERY costs you had to pay to get your unit.
If you take in account the teching cost, you may have the surprise to have something similar. I mean :
British T1T2T3 + hammer tech = more or less 660 MP + 195 fuel OK
OST T1T2T3T4 + T4building = more or less 660MP + 205 fuel OK
Quite similar isn't it?
Not really.
In a NormalGame™, an OST player cant afford to skip every tier until the fourth, even a single tier missing can be desastrous.
So in order to have the true cost to have a Panther, you need to add the costs of tier buildings, which add something like 480 MP and 105 fuel.
Indeed a panther is individually cheaper than a Comet, but you made a longer way to get one.
Of cource this last calcul is imprecise because it means that you never build any other units. The true cost imply that you divide your teching costs by the number of units you made into each tier.
I wont drown you into calculs, lets just say that the cost/efficiency of both are fair trade™.
Kozo.
No they are not. When pop cap is reached ,the game becomes a series of clashes between maxed out armies in which fuel often becomes insignificant. It is just fair to assume that units with the same task, similiar cost and same pop cap should perform the same on both sides.
Let's get into your calculuses: In case of a 1v1 with both factions rushing for Panther/Comet but still using the basics of coverage against possible new units (tanks, weapon upgrades), it will look like this (only fuel cost):
UKF: -20 + 30 + 15 + 35 + 115 + 50 + 185 = 410
Ost: -20 + 10 + 40 + 20 + 45 + 45 + 75 + 175 = 390
In terms of manpower (higher manpower start of Ostheer and higher manpower cost for UKF units neglected):
UKF: 180 + 150 + 100 + 280 + 200 + 500 = 1410
Ost: 80 + 100 + 200 + 100 + 100 + 260 + 490 = 1330
OKW on the other hand only needs 365 fuel and 1090 mp (or was it 1190?).
"But the Comet has free blitz and phosphor" - Indeed it has, and the Panther has better armor, better veterancy, a far better gun, better AI, unlockable Blitz and doctrinal smoke and binos.
"But you have to look at the overall faction performance" Indeed, I did - along with T4 comes the Brokenwerfer. Grenadiers can upgrade on the field, Ostheer can actually move mortars. Doctrines in general provide more diverse gameplay and offer very powerful cost effective options (fuel drop, stuka bomb, CAS, binos, smoke, call in units, real heavy tanks). The MG can actually suppress and engage light vehicles with vet1. Their light vehicles are useful to certain degree. Handheld rocket launchers which can even hit, vehicle snare ... and the list goes on...