Battle of Dukla Pass #1 - 1. Československý Armádní Sbor

Hello commanders,

Hot on the heels of last week’s Steel Division 2: Battle of Dukla Pass Recap, we are back with the very first division preview of our next expansion. Nice!

In today’s DevBlog, we’ll put the spotlight on the Allied 1. Československý Armádní Sbor or 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps.

Let’s go!

[h2]1. Československý Armádní Sbor’s History[/h2]

The 1. Československý Armádní Sbor was a Soviet-controlled fighting force of the Czechoslovakian Army in exile. It was also known as the Svoboda's Army after its wartime commander, Ludvík Svoboda. The Corps started as a mere battalion, the 1st Czechoslovak Independent Field Battalion, which had the honors of being the premier foreign unit to fight alongside the Red Army. Formed by Czechoslovakian refugees living in the Soviet Union, Slovak POWs and defectors, and Soviet citizens of Czech origins, the formation saw first light in 1942.



There was a political push-and-pull between this unit - and its officers - and the Czechoslovakian government in exile based in London. The communists wanted combat straight away, while the Western Allied leaders wished for the battalion to be retained during the liberation of Czechoslovakia. Ultimately, the formation went to war pretty quick, seeing first blood during the Battle for Kharkiv in 1943. An infantry-heavy unit, it was mauled by German armored formations and consequently pulled off the line and refitted as the 1st Czechoslovak Independent Brigade.

As more and more Soviet territory was liberated, the ranks of the brigade grew tremendously. By 1944, the number of new recruits allowed a (small) army corps to be created. As such, it entered the fight to liberate its home territories in the Battle for Dukla Pass. While combat was hard and ultimately proved unsuccessful in freeing all of Czechoslovakia, the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps did see the end of World War II liberating Prague. Disbanded quickly after the war, the corps’ forces became the foundation for the post-war communist-ruled 1st Czechoslovak Army.



[h2]1. Československý Armádní Sbor’s Detailed[/h2]

Featuring three brigades (not divisions as comparable in other corps), the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps was small compared to other Red Army formations. The Corps did have some unique features:

• The 1st Brigade was composed of battle-hardened veterans.
  
• Out of the three infantry brigades, one - the 2nd Brigade - was actually a paratrooper unit.
  
• Unique for a Soviet infantry corps, but the Czechoslovakians had access to their own fighter regiment.
  
• And its infantry was lavishly equipped with PPS 43 instead of the older PPSh 41.

Moreso than other Soviet rifle corps, the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps had its own roster of specialized units permanently attached to the formation.

• the 1st Czechoslovakian Independent Tank Brigade, the size of a small regiment in our timeframe.
  
• Each brigade featured its own artillery battalions, giving it light but ample fire support.
  
• And lastly, it had its own Czechoslovakian penal company.

It should be noted that all of the paratroopers and associated units will only be available in Combat Phases A and B. These were, historically, withdrawn from combat during the battles for Dukla Pass and instead airlifted into the insurrectionist pocket, where they will appear again fighting for the Slovak National Uprising division (also featured in our expansion).

[h2]1. Československý Armádní Sbor’s in Steel Division 2[/h2]

How will the 1. Československý Armádní Sbor look like in Steel Division 2: Battle of Dukla Pass? New units are both italic and bolded. The following is still work-in-progress and subject to change!



RECON

• An average category for the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps with no organic recon units, and scouts being detached from regular infantry battalions.
  
• The 1st and 3rd Brigade's scouts are represented by:
  
  • CARRIER DUŠKA, their main tracked light recon unit.
    
  • The new PRŮZKUMNÍCI, being 2-man recon teams.
    
  • And the new MOT. PRŮZKUMNÍCI larger 6-man recon team with PPS 43, Bazooka and smoke grenades, coming in softskin trucks or CARRIER.
• The 2nd (Paratrooper) Brigade had a dedicated recon company at brigade level, which included:
  
  • Recon T-38M2 light amphibious tanks.
    
  • The new PARA. ODSTŘELOVAČ which are 2-man sniper team with PPS 43 and SVT-40 PU.
    
  • The PARA. PRŮZKUMNÍCI being heavy 9-man recon team with PPS 43 and DT machine gunes, plus smoke grenades.

INF

• A very good category for this battlegroup. The regular 1st and 3rd Brigade infantry include all new units:
  
  • The STŘELCI rifles squads come in regular, SVT, PTR, and command variants.
    
  • SAPÉŘI combat engineers can deploy in regular and command versions.
    
  • SAMOPALNÍCI are similar to the Soviet Avtomatchiki squads, in regular and command variants, armed with a mix of PPSh41 and PPS 43. A few Soviet MOT. AVTOMATCHIKI (fielding one DP-28) are also present from Combat Phase B, as the attached 12-ya Gv. Tank. Brigada's infantry. The former Czechoslovakian units come in softskin trucks, and the later Soviet ones are in half-tracks.
    
  • TANKOVI STŘELCI are similar to the Soviet Tankodesantniki, featured in both regular and command variants, with access to half-tracks as transports.
• The paratroopers from the 2nd Brigade are locked in Phases A and B, and all come with the Raider trait. These will be represented as:
  
  • PARAŠUTISTÉ coming in regular, DT, engineer, and command variants.
  
  The 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps’s penal company provides the 20-strong TRESTNÍ STŘELCI squads.

TANK

• The Corps’ own tank “brigade” was quite limited at the start of the Dukla Pass offensive. The formation later received reinforcements from the Soviet 12-ya Gv. Tank. Brigada.
  
  • Czechoslovakian armor includes the following, often in only limited numbers:
    
    • T-38M2 amphibious command light tanks from the paratrooper brigade.
      
    • T-70 light tanks.
      
    • T-34/76 obr.43 in regular and command versions.
      
    • A handful of T-34/85 obr.44.
  • Soviet tanks, available from Combat Phase B:
    
    • T-34/76 obr.42 in regular and command variants.
      
    • T-34/85 obr.43.
    • And a few (new in this role) IS-1 (as a regular tank, not command) plus IS-2 obr.44 heavy tanks.

SUPP

• A pretty good category for the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps.
  
• Fire support units include the following:
  
  • SG-43, PARA. MAXIM and PARA. DUŠKA machine guns.
    
  • PARA. OB-25 76,2mm infantry guns and RM-35 50mm light mortars.
• Commander units are:
  
  • Czechoslovakian DESANT. KOMBAT paratroopers.
    
  • Czechoslovakian WLA KOMBAT.
    
  • Soviet T-34/76 KOMBAT from Phase B.
• Supply is being provided by the ever-reliable lend-lease STUDEBAKER.

AT

• The anti-tank tab is pretty good but chiefly features lighter options:
  
• Infantry anti-tank squads include:
  
  • The new AMPULOMET unit. The original Czechoslovakian infantry in Red Army service was initially given older weapons. These were never fully replaced in the brigades when they expanded to a Corps size, meaning they can still be found with their rank and file. This particular weapon is basically a tube launching a green sphere filled with phosphorus (an intriguing concept, clearly obsolete when it was designed in 1941 and especially so against armor by 1944). However, it remains an effective long-range flamethrower-type weapon useful against infantry and light vehicles.
    
  • The ubiquitous PTRS-41 anti-tank rifle.
    
  • The new PARA. LOVCI TANKŮ which are 7-man tank hunter squads with PPS 43, three PTRD, plus smoke and AT grenades.
• Towed anti-tank guns include the M-42 45mm (both in infantry and paratrooper flavors), ZIS-2 57mm, and the ZIS-3 76,2mm.
  
• Lastly, the Czechoslovakian tank brigade could also count on a handful of SU-85 tank destroyers.

AA

• Prettty dismal, with the battlegroup having no organic AA battalion. It can only count on a few smaller anti-air defense units attached to the brigades.
  
• The sole self-propelled anti-air weapon is the good ’ol GAZ-AAA MAKSIM M4.
  
• Some of the heavier AA guns available are 61-K 37mm guns, historically often crewed by female gunners and with a gunshield.
  
• Being under Soviet command, the Corps benefited from their AA defenses. This means we have attached one card of ZEN. ART. obr.39 85mm.

ART

• Artillery is well represented with the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps, though it might lack some of the heavier calibers.
  
• The usual BM-37 82mm and PM-38 120mm mortars.
  
• The mainstay of the Czechoslovakian artillery, numerous and organic to each brigade, was the M-30 122mm howitzer. Gunners also get access to a few heavier ML-20 152mm pieces.
  
• An early war gun that found its way into the Czechoslovakian arsenal of 1944 was the M-60 107mm field gun. Although light, it had a much longer range than the M-30. It could also be used as a (very good) anti-tank gun, with much better performance than the ZiS-3.

AIR

• Average, with the Corps’ own air regiment flying the La-5FN in fighter and fighter-bomber roles. However, this formation was removed before the Battle of Dukla Pass and sent to help the Slovak National Uprising alongside the paratroopers.
  
• The Soviet Air Forces will help out to provide the rest of the air cover. These come in the form of Pe-3R recon planes, IL-2M with HE rockets, and the IL-2M3, B-25J-30 MITCHELL, and Pe-2-83 bombers in various bomb and cluster loadouts.

The 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps is a well-rounded battlegroup with a good infantry and tank synergy, but with its most glaring disadvantage being the lack of anti-air defenses.

[h2]Battle of Dukla Pass Expansion[/h2]
What can you expect from the Steel Division 2: Battle of Dukla Pass?

• The expansion features 1 massive Army General campaign centered on the Battle of Dukla Pass.
  
• Plus 6 new Divisions, playable in both single-player and multiplayer. These include the Allied 1. Československý Armádní Sbor, Slovak National Uprising, and Soviet 242-ya Gornostrelkovaya, while the Axis deploy the 208. Infanterie-Division, Hungarian 13. Gyaloghadosztály, and 18. SS-Fr.-Panzergrenadier "Horst Wessel".

[h2]See you on the battlefield[/h2]
That’s all. We’ll be back soon with more Battle of Dukla Pass previews.

Make sure to join the Steel Division 2 community on our Steam forums. The latest Steel Division 2 news can also be encountered on our Instagram.

Looking for an online game? Visit the Discord server or Reddit page and get involved with the lively Steel Division 2 community!

See you on the battlefield, commander!