"Best Book on WWII Tactics?" Topic

Which book would you recommend to a newbie gamer who wanted to learn more about WWII tactics?

Infantry Training Manuals from the period.

Also any of Paul Fussel's books.You'll come away with a good feel for what worked in those manuals and what didn't. Also "Closing with the Enemy" is a real eye opener.

The manuals are weak reeds. Great for drill and housekeeping details, but often wildly out of sync with what was happening in the field, largely due to being written by officers who hadn't any up-to-date field experience in modern war. For example, the tactical section of the original Plattsburgh Manual, the ubiquitous US training aid was authored by a man who did actually have recent experience, but only in chasing Villistas – other than that, he'd never been under fire. Not much good for facing the Hun on the Western Front. This WAS corrected in later editions.

Osprey do a useful collection of WW2 Tactical guides in their Elite series which would be a good place to start for a newbie.

Stephen Bull's "Second World War Infantry Tactics" is another good primer.

Tactics, as in minor tactics of sections, platoons and companies?

As above, the relevant manuals, despite rmakers reservations.

The German, Russian and British manuals give both an admirable grounding in basic principles, as well as clearly differentiating differences in national doctrine. All are available as repros.

Some of the more obscure ones, such as the 1942 'Battle School' are also available as repros.

At a higher level, the German 'Truppenfuhrung' and the British 'The Infantry Division in Battle' cover infantry operations at a divisional level.

The manuals are weak reeds. Great for drill and housekeeping details, but often wildly out of sync with what was happening in the field, largely due to being written by officers who hadn't any up-to-date field experience in modern war.

No, not in the British experience. The manuals written in 1943 were expressly written by selected junior officers who had distinguished themselves in the otherwise dismal 1940 campaign, or the Western Desert, and were written to overthrow the old 1919 manuals with the latest battlefield techniques learnt from the Germans the hard way, with an added dash of leadership and battlefield psychology. They still have a very up to date feel…

For a newbie gamer, check your library system for this:
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and this one too:
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Try this one too:
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Lots of training films on YouTube:
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What Navy 417 said. Part Viii of the 1944 infantry training manual (fieldcraft, battle drill, section and platoon tactics) is an excellent place to start.

Osprey has a few titles that are good at the basics. I also found the back section of the original Squad Leader rulebook to be very helpful for basic tactics, board game or miniatures.

Mike

The Nafziger collections have a bunch of nice books on tactics as well as a lot of TO & E info. The Bayonet Strength site has lots of useful info as well.

I have an Osprey hardcover on wwII infantry tactics. It is one of their compilations of their softcover series, I think.

"Why the Allies Won" comes to mind.

Not sure it's great for newbies, bu5t Richard Winters book does at times give insight into how a natural good tactician deploys troops and weapons

Rommel… you magnificent bastard, I read your book!

What is the general verdict on Rommel's book? I read it but found it hard to believe it was not written by his PR firm.

bruce gudmundsson on infantry on armor and on artillery

For a newbie I would choose stephen bulls SECOND WORLD WAR INFANTRY TACTICS: The European Theatre

or the nafziger collection