Mission 13 - Halbe | The Campaign Mode Company of Heroes 2 Guide
Last update: 11 May 2016
Main Objectives:
1. Secure the road to Halbe
2. Surround the city
3. Stop the Germans from fleeing
Bonus Objectives:
1. Do not let any of the Germans escape the encirclement
2. Complete the surrounding maneuver without enlisting any new units
3. Finish the encirclement of the Germans before they find out
1. Right after this mission starts, you will be attacked by several German squads. Although they will pose no challenge, you should not underestimate them if you want to complete the bonus objective (2). After you eliminate them, lay the mortar fire onto the area in front of you. There is a PaK-43, among others, which needs to be neutralized if you want to receive armored reinforcements.
As of now, there is no need to hurry so, if you want to decimate the enemy, do it with the mortar. If, however, you do not want to wait, you can speed t he process up by sending the M5 with flamethrowers into the battlefield. Instead of approaching directly along the road, dispatch it through the woods and attack from the left. Focus on the cannons and the infantry with AT cannons. Do not venture too far to the North, as of now, you should focus on the front line units. As soon as you eliminate the PaK, you will receive a T-34, which you can also dispatch into the battlefield.
After you eliminate the first units, do not seize control over this territory. There still are a few tanks to the North, which you should deal with first. Man the Paks left by the Germans and turn them to face North (the above screenshot).
Dispatch now one of the squads to the North to draw the tanks' attention and get back. You will receive two additional tanks, including the heavy IS-2. Use both of them, and the trophy weapons, against the enemy tanks.
After you eliminate the tanks, this will be the only moment when you can still catch some breath. Search through the entire available region and collect every weapon left by the Germans. By seizing weapons, you divide your squads into two so, use the M5 to enlist new soldiers and supplement all squads (this will not count against the bonus objective 2). Repair all your tanks and only when everybody is completely ready, seize the nearby key point.
2. Now you need to surround the nearby city to close the encirclement. The game suggest dividing the army and sending them to the left and to the right. Still, if you are going to complete the bonus objectives 2 and 3, then sending them all in the same direction is probably a better solution. Start by going to the left and push forward with the entire army. There will be a lot of enemy soldiers hiding in the woods so, every time before you walk into the woods, lay mortar fire on it, especially if you can see enemy barricades on the map. First send the M5 in, as a form of reconnaissance to eliminate all heavy equipment, which you should seize, immediately afterwards, with your infantry, and supplement their numbers with conscripts from the truck. Also, both of the airborne abilities will come in handy.
Once you reach the first point, leave the mortar, the HMG, the AT cannon, one of the tanks and one or two infantry squads, facing the city. Backtrack with the rest to the South, to the starting point. Make sure that you do not approach Halbe too much. Take exactly the same route that you took at the beginning.
In here, the situation will be similar. Take out the heavy equipment teams with your M5, and the vehicles with the tanks. Seize every piece of equipment left behind and supplant the squads to their maximum number.
Seize the last point just like before and deploy your equipment facing the city. Use your engineers now to repair the tanks and the truck quickly. After you seize this point, the encirclement will be done.
3. the Germans will start desperate attempts to escape at both sides. With your units properly deployed, however, you should not find it problematic to stop them from that. No German may escape if you want to complete the bonus objective (1). Use your aircraft, you can now use conscription and create new squads. Use them, predominantly, to supplement heavy equipment teams. Do not forget to repair your tanks and grenades or the Molotov's cocktails at the infantry's disposal. After several minutes, the mission will draw to an end.