Profile of Siphon X.

For the fun of it:

Faction stats for all 191 games:

#        GER SOV OKW USF UKF
Picked   126 100  65  80  11
Won       52  55  24  56   4
Won%      41  55  37  70  36
Std. dev   6   7   7   6   9

This is what you get when omitting all games with either Jesulin or DevM (160 left):

#        GER SOV OKW USF UKF
Picked   106  89  54  60  11
Won       44  51  21  40   4
Won%      42  57  39  67  36
Std. dev   7   4   4   7   9

So the difference isn't exactly huge...

Switching the color to red as per your request. I tried to watch the replay, and indeed, something about the rules changed so the replay doesn't play out like it did originally.

I'm neither a strategist nor very experienced in 2s, but to give you at least some feedback from analyzing the replay:

Ok, the opponent of your mate goes into heavy Maxim spam (6) plus 2 Mortars and then proceeds to T4. Your direct opponent goes Penals x4 into Guards x2. The first serious vehicles appear at 11 minutes (T-70) and 12:39 (T34-85).

So, basically you had tons of support weapons and very light AT against you.

Your OKW mate builds a Kübel, 3x VG and a Rak, BG-HQ, Schwerer (at around 13 min) and then Obers x2. First vehicles is a JP4 at 19 minutes.

You build MG-42 (x2), Grens x2, Mortar, 222 and a Flame track, Pak and your first medium, a StuG at 18 minutes.

I guess the main issue is that your mate had nothing to counter anything. His VGs (and later Obers) were easily countered by the Maxims (and it doesn't help that he seems to have been using them in a single blob), their indirect fire wasn't great but strong enough to counter your single mortar.

Mech-Regiment followed by Luchs and/or Stuka while you go for medium armor probably would have worked out much better. Not going that route, at least buying SOMETHING on his side would have helped (he must have been floating tons of manpower).

Seems like you tried to fill the light vehicle role with the 222 and the flametrack, which is understandable, but both are pretty flimsy (also given that the soviets layed a lot of mines and you had no sweepers on your side). Did the flametrack pay off? I'd guess it mostly delayed your T3, didn't it?

So, very late you got out your mediums with the StuG-III (2x) and the JP4, ok, now you have tank destroyers. However, there weren't that many T34-85 out by then (they actually build more Kats). And even if you are successful in taking out the T-70 and the T34-85s, you still wouldn't have anything to deal with the support weapons. You then went T4 and Panther, which still wouldn't have helped. So what was the plan there? Just bank on close the pocket?

In terms of commanders: I figure mechanized assault would have helped you a lot, with the StuG-E and the barrage taking on the support weapons. Yeah, encirclement can work on this map, but in your situation it didn't do anything for you, right?

Never heard about the "HP" being relevant, but that it is related to the value of the unit that is damaged/killed (although there is a correlation, of course, between the value of a unit and it's health)...

Additionally, some officers receive vet when units around them receive vet.

The amount of EXP you need to get to a new vet level depends on the value of the unit. So a cheap unit vets up faster than expensive one if it manages to do the same amount of damage. That said, vet requirements for some units was modified because it was found that with the standard rules they would gain vet too fast or not fast enough.

No-tech call-in spam + light-meta rush are heavily intertwined and are a race to the bottom, basically.

If you don't do both you will be at a severe disadvantage to somebody that abuses both.

If the opponent's full-meta playstyle is making teching prohibitive for you, of course you need to buy into a call-in commander. That's why we keep seeing the same 3 Ostheer doctrines day-in day-out.

I'd be happy if it would be three... I'm currently looking into the meta for the WPC and for both axis factions it's not really diverse in terms of which doctrines are used.

And I totally agree on call-in being connected to LVs to some extend.

That said, I personally would like to see not teching and waiting for call-ins being a viable strategy, depending on the circumstances. And I think for the Tiger itself and the IS-2 this is working out ok: If you don't tech to T3 you have to survive rather long on T2 units before calling in a single heavy, which is a serious drawback.

Problem that I see with Mechanized Assault (and to some extend Mobile Defense) is that both contain call-ins that can be used as make-shift replacements for T3 units. Ok, the StuG-E is a really poor-mans version of T3, but it is powerful enough so you can hang in there to get the Tiger.

Would Mobile Assault be as popular without the StuG? Or would we see the StuG again if it would be shifted e.g. into German Infantry?

where can we check the games?

The replays are here in the replay section. Links are in this thread.

The twitch casts are on Relics twitch channel.

tightrope casted the first two games, you can find those on youtube.