N '44; Breakout without trucks

[Dog Soldier]

By Motorized infantry, I refer to truck transported, not halftrack mounted infantry. Trucks were vulnerable and often used for more than just moving infantry. Trucks would drop infantry off before reaching the front in most cases, often shuttling off to perform other missions.

I see your point. However the original game system was not intended for long time periods where the composition of the units would change.
I suppose a withdrawal/reinforcement S/O could be made in a long 750 turn CG to replace certain foot infantry units with motorized infantry. However, this would lead to gamey use of burning out such units by an Allied player knowing these units will return magically with greater strength than when they are withdrawn.

Setting these units as motorized from when they appear in Normandy would also lead to gamey use of them during a time period in the campaign when they simply did not have such mobility.
Setting the units to motorized in the pdf but 'on foot' would require an agreement between players to not send them to the HQ to return their vehicles until a certain turn. To simulate a truck pool would require nothing more than using the 'on foot' option then send the units to their HQ to regain transport. Then back to 'on foot' status, so on and so forth.
To resist the temptation to keep all such units mobile all the time would be up to the Allied player.

I just do not see a mechanism in the game engine that would achieve what you want to simulate without a certain level of trust the Allied player would not abuse the 'on foot' work around.

Operation Cobra (crossing the highway connecting Lessay, Periers and St Lo) to drive on Avranches had the infantry marching for the most part. I recently read a book this summer on Cobra and the breakout. I do not recall there being an emphasis on a truly 'motorized' infantry division on the Allied side.
The US 4th Armor Division was the spear tip which kept up the momentum of the drive bypassing centers of resistance. This drive (and the air support for it) kept the Germans from returning the front to a static nature. Infantry divisions from 8th, 7th and 19th Corps reduced the bypassed German pockets following the armored division. The infantry mostly 7th Corps) also played a key role in protecting 4th Armor's flank from the German VII Army & II Para Corps counter attacks on July 28 -30. No great operational need for trucks to accomplish this task.

In game terms the distances are not so great as to require motorizing the infantry, IMHO. Roughly, Lessay is 60 km from Avranches and St Lo is fifty km. Cobra ran from July 24 - 31, again roughly 80 turns. Averaging less than a hex per turn over 80 turns seems very possible without needing motorized trucks. I am just saying...

For the later breakout from Normandy to the Seine (moves into Brittany capturing Brest, Lorient and Nantes) the 6th and 4th Armored divisions did all the movement. They had motorized infantry as part of each division. 20th Corps marched across the 'neck' of Brittany. This is a much shorter distance. The armored divisions dropped off temporarily some of their infantry component to seal the Germans in Brest, Lorient & St Nazaire until the infantry divisions arrived to reduce these pockets. The Germans moved into these pockets because they lacked the mobility to fight the two armor divisions in the open.
I know the breakout is beyond the scope of the N44 game. I use it here to show there was no need for full motorized infantry divisions on the operational level that the PzC game covers.

A more tactical game system would indeed need to consider the proper use of trucks. (Think CS.) Easier said than done.

Dog Soldier