DANON'S THE TEAM

THE TEAM
LAFAYETTE GIRLS ACADEMY NATO LEAGUE TANKERY TEAM
> Hometown: Norfolk, Virginia
> Motto: “Dum vivimus, vivamus”
> March: Lafayette Girls Academy March

ALL ARMOUR VALUES ARE IN mm

OFFICERS
CO: Griselda Pool
PL 1: Elodie R. Zumwalt
PL 2: Iris Blackbourne

ORBAT
> TBD

THE CREWS
> Gris' Girls
    M4A3E8 "Janus" - 76mm M1A2
        Commander: Griselda Pool
        Gunner: Yuno Kawasaki
        Loader: Athena Kotsiopoulos (INACTIVE)
        Driver: Luisa Pena
        RO: Teresa “Tessa” Massey (INACTIVE)
    > SPECIFICATIONS
    - Hull Armour (UG/LG/S/R): 84@47°/128-71@0-56°/58@0°/58@0°
    - Turret Armour (M/F/S/R): 108@0°/84@40-45°/84@0-13°/84@0°
    - Top Speed (km/h): 42km/h
    > UPGRADES
    - M4A3E8 Retrofit
    - Appliqué Armour Kit (Medium)
    - M2 Browning AA Mount
    > STATISTICS
    - Kills: 16
    - Deaths: 5
    - MVPs: 0
    > COMMANDER/CREW DOSSIER/S
Griselda Pool (SO): Originally hyped up to follow in her sister’s footsteps as Lafayette Girls Academy’s next great tank commander, Griselda has had quite the fall from grace. A disastrous first year as a commander, combined with being the kill that lost LGA the ITL Semi-finals has tempered the once excitable and enthusiastic little sister into a much more prideful and mature girl. That has extended into her new battle tactics, which emphasizes close teamwork and cautionary movement over sweeping advances.

Yuno Kawasaki (SO): The gunner of Griselda’s crew, and a relatively competent gunner to boot. Despite her parents desiring her to take a scholarship to Kuromorimine or St. Gloriana Girls School, Yuno instead elected to attend Lafayette Girls Academy at personal expense for reasons known to few. A quiet girl by trade, but is eager to assist Griselda in all that she does.

Athena Kotsiopoulos (SO): Originally Griselda’s elite loader whom she recruited personally from middle school, Athena left the crew after the ITL Semi-finals.

Luisa Pena (SO): The driver of Griselda’s crew, and a very nervous and shaky one at that. Despite her skill at driving, Luisa is known to be a bit of a nervous wreck due to her overthinking a lot of things. As a result, she’s even less sociable than Yuno. Griselda however is a very calming presence for her, and the two of them greatly enjoy each other’s company.

Teresa “Tessa” Massey (SO): Originally the Radio Operator and Co-driver of the Sherman and Griselda’s classmate freshman year, Tessa left the crew after the ITL Semi-finals.

    - "They’ll look at me, ‘Hey, she’s Gertrude’s sister!’” Griselda sighs blissfully. “That’ll be the day.” - This line has become the saddest thing imaginable.


> El's Belles
    Cromwell III "Oliver" - OQF 6-Pounder Mk. V
        Commander: Elodie R. Zumwalt
        Gunner: Winona H. Griffiths
        Loader: Samantha “Stack” Bell Roberts
        Driver: Josephine deGrasse
        RO: Ingrid Berra
    > SPECIFICATIONS
    - Hull Armour (UP/LP/L+MG/US/LS/R): 84@0°/77@22°/45-50@74-68°/52+14@0°/5+49+14@0°/52-45@0-10°
    - Turret Armour (F/UF/S/R): 84+13@0°/40@85°/71+13@0°/64+13@0°
    - Top Speed (km/h): 64km/h
    > UPGRADES
    - Go to "THE TANK" pastebin
    > STATISTICS
    - Kills: 24
    - Deaths: 4
- MVPs: 3

> The Etiquette Club
Churchill IV "James" - OQF 6-Pounder Mk. V
Commander: Iris Blackbourne
Gunner: Azalea Brassington
Loader: Violet Ainsworth
Driver: Camellia Swindlehurst
RO: Rose Montgomery
> SPECIFICATIONS
- Hull Armour (UP/MG/LG/US/LS/R): 133-222@0°/68@65°/109@20°/101+13@0°/114+13@0°/81@0°
- Turret Armour (F/S/R): 151@0°/126@0°/106@0°
- Top Speed (km/h): 28km/h
> UPGRADES
- Appliqué Armour Kit (Heavy)
- Improved Suspension
- Spotlamp
- Tactical Log
- Automated Fire Extinguishers
- Snorkel Equipment
> STATISTICS
- Kills: 35
- Deaths: 4
- MVPs: 1
> COMMANDER/CREW DOSSIER/S
*Something suitably best for best girl and her crew.*

> The Junior Historian Society
Panzer III Ausf. J "Frederick" - 50mm KwK 38 L/42
Commander: "Suvorov"
Gunner(?): "Giap"
Loader(?): "Clausewitz"
Driver(?): "Patton"
RO: N/A
> SPECIFICATIONS
- Hull Armour (UP/MG/LG/S/R): 60@0°/35@85°/60@25-70°/40@0°/60@10-15°
- Turret Armour (M/F/S/R): 60@10-60°/60@10°/40@25°/40@15°
- Top Speed (km/h): 40km/h
> UPGRADES
- MG42 AA Mount
- Ausf. J Retrofit
- Appliqué Armour Kit (Light)
- Improved Suspension
- Tactical Log
- Automated Fire Extinguishers
- Snorkel Equipment
> STATISTICS
- Kills: 9
- Deaths: 6
- MVPs: 0
> COMMANDER/CREW DOSSIER/S
*Something about history*

> The Junior Polish Students Association
M26 Pershing "Sokol" - 90mm M3
Commander: Serafina Maczek
Gunner: ?
Loader: ?
Driver: ?
Co-driver: N/A
> SPECIFICATIONS
- Hull Armour (UG/LG/S/R): 112@25-43°/86@35-53°/61-86@0°/61@0°
- Turret Armour (M/F/S/R): 124+112@0-90°/112@60-6°/86@0-20°/86@0°
- Top Speed (On Road/Off Road): 40km/h / 8.45km/h
> UPGRADES
- Appliqué Armour Kit (Heavy)
- Improved Suspension
- Tactical Log
- Removed Engine Governors
- War Emergency Power
> STATISTICS
- Kills: 12
- Deaths: 7
- MVPs: 0
> COMMANDER/CREW DOSSIER/S
*Something in Polish*

> NAVAL STUDIES RESCUE!
IS-2m "David" - D-25T 122mm
Commander: Regina Taney
Gunner: ?
Loader: ?
Driver: ?
> SPECIFICATIONS
- Hull Armour (UP/LG/FC/S/R): 120@60°/100@30°/115-130@10-40°/100-90@0-15°/60@41-49°
- Turret Armour (F/S/R): 100@5-75°/100@5-20°/100@30°
- Top Speed (km/h): 40km/h
> UPGRADES
- Appliqué Armour Kit (Light)
- Improved Suspension
- Tactical Log
- Automated Fire Extinguisher
- DshkA AA Mount
> STATISTICS
- Kills: 8
- Deaths: 4
- MVPs: 0
> COMMANDER/CREW DOSSIER/S
*Something in ALL CAPS! NSR TO THE RESCUE!*

> The Automotive Fan Club
M18 Hellcat "Mifune" - 76mm M1A2
Commander: Dalia Earnhardt
Gunner: ?
Loader: ?
Driver: ?
Co-Driver: ?
> SPECIFICATIONS
- Hull Armour (F/S/R): 13@30-63°/13@0-10°/13@5-30°
- Turret Armour (F/S/R): 25@25°/13@20°/13@0°
- Top Speed (km/h): 80km/h
> UPGRADES
- Removed Engine Governors
- War Emergency Power
- Improved Suspension
> STATISTICS
- Kills: 2
- Deaths: 4
- MVPs: 0
> COMMANDER/CREW DOSSIER/S
*Something FAST*

> The Delinquents
Tiger II (P) "Cub" - 88mm KwK 43 L/71
Commander: Serina Hildebrand
Gunner: Kyoko
Loader: Ash
Driver: Francine
RO: Karina
> SPECIFICATIONS
- Hull Armour (UG/LG/S/R): 150@50°/100@50°/5+80@0-25°/80@30°
- Turret Armour (M/F/UF/S/R): 300-120+100@0-70°/100@17-57°/40@78°/80@29°/80@30°
- Top Speed (km/h): 40km/h
> UPGRADES

> STATISTICS
- Kills: 1
- Deaths: 2
- MVPs: 0
> COMMANDER/CREW DOSSIER/S
*Something rough around the edges*

> The Automotive Club
Panzer IV H - 75mm KwK 40 L/48
Commander: Benny Rodriguez
Gunner: Kiki Morales
Loader: Ari Pestano
Driver: Cookie Rojas
RO: Ariel Chapman
> SPECIFICATIONS
- Hull Armour (UP/LP/MG/LG/S/R): 85@10°/85@14°/20@72°/30@64°/5+30@0°/20@8-11°
- Turret Armour (F/UF/S/R): 50@10°/20@85°/9+30@26°/9+30@15°
- Top Speed (km/h): 42km/h
> UPGRADES

> STATISTICS
- Kills: 0
- Deaths: 0
- MVPs: 0
> COMMANDER CREW DOSSIER/S
*Something souped up*

*HERE ENDS THE OBJECTIVE/STATISTICS FOCUSED PART OF THIS DOCUMENT, THE REST IS JUST PERSONAL OPINION STUFF ABOUT FUTURE PLANS AND SOME BASIC TACTICAL FRAMEWORKS*
*IF YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT THAT KIND OF SHIT, FEEL FREE TO STOP READING HERE, HONESTLY THIS IS MAINLY FOR MY OWN USE ANYWAY*

BIG TEAM UPGRADE PRIORITIES (PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AT THE MOMENT)
*These are just ideas I have regarding major upgrade/retrofit/modification projects for ourselves and the team. Basically none of them are officially available, at least not yet, but I've done my research and they should all be plausible/reasonable/NATO legal.*
>> NOT AN UPGRADE BUT SORT OF RELATED: FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENED TO THE REST OF GRISGRIS' CREW AND GET THEM BACK/REPLACE THEM
There's no way Griselda always crewed a Sherman with 2 others only. I imagine the other 1 or 2 girls left after she threw last years' ITL game against Kursk, we should dig into this if/when we can. If she's always just had a crew of 3, convince her to recruit at least one more girl.
> 1. Cromwell rebuild/overhaul to VIIw/Ew hull:
This will likely be expensive and will definitely take a full week of even Oleg's downright sorcerous mechanic work. This will entail unbolting all the armour from of Oliver's chassis removing all the internals and replacing the riveted frames of both the turret and hull with welded ones, then reattaching all the armour and putting all the internals, suspension, engine etc. back into the new frame. With this frame upgrade (and the weight it saves) will come the various upgrades to bring the III up to spec as a VIIw (though keeping the 6 pounder, which hopefully NATO will allow as it requires no modification of the turret to do so) including wider tracks and correspondingly improved suspension, some minor maintenance and QoL improvements for the engine deck and oh yeah, an extra 25.4mm of appliqué armour on the upper and lower plates and an extra 38.1mm of turret front appliqué armour with no hit to performance, so we could stack it on our current stuff without a care in the world. Which would give us 110mm on the front of the hull and 134mm on the front of our turret. It will also give our turret a proper, all round cupola as opposed to the hatch and periscopes of the III, drastically improving our situational awareness.
> 2. Panzer III J to L
Much better armour (spaced too) and a better gun, without much hit to performance, this is a solid pick for one of our most dependable crews.
> 3. Tiger II  turret upgrade (to Henschel model):
The Porsche turret's neat looking but that shot trap will come back to bite us at some point I imagine, we should consider helping them fund it.
> 4. Polshing to Super Polshing:
An even more terrifying gun and a scary amount of appliqué armour make this a solid upgrade for our most headstrong crew, and might finally allow them to harness SOME of that aggression into something helpful to the team. Plus they might find it harder to rush ahead and get killed if they're too slow to do it.
> 5. Churchill IV to Churchill IX(LT)
This is a retrofit to the Churchill IV to bring it into parity with the VII, and while none were actually produced (we think?) because it wasn't worth the effort, there's nothing stopping us from breaking new ground. Would likely take the same amount of the time, and a similarly large amount of dosh to upgrade as the above Ew hull retrofit for Oliver, but would result in a James even more durable than our current one, with (including appliqué kit) 182mm of frontal armour on both turret and hull along with almost all-around improvements to protection.
> 6. Meteor Engine tune-up
Tune/Modify the Meteor up to Mk. 3 standards, which was the version used in late production (V onwards I think) Cromwells and all Comets. It produces about 600bhp up from the Mk1's 550-570ish (can't find solid sources on which exactly). Not a huge deal but makes us able to really haul ass and maintain our top speed even loaded down with all the mods, appliqué armour and other stuff bolted onto Oliver.
> 7. M18 Hellcat 90mm Upgrade
As loathe as I am to suggest this, it's really the only major upgrade to the M18 I can think of, not that it especially needs it. Will probably be superseded in priority by upgrades to other tanks as we obtain them. Like turning the Strv m/42 into something half decent (if we don't just sell it).
> 8. Buy a Challenger and/or another Cromwell (maybe a CS for HEAT shenanigans)
Possibly a Comet if we can afford one. The Challenger's a pretty good pick for a support tank though, it's about as fast as us and has access to a similar appliqué package (an extra inch all over the front of turret and hull as factory standard on the second half of the production run) and while it's substantially less manoeuvrable than a Cromwell (especially its god awful turret traverse), the large turret and double loaders make it basically the fastest firing 17 pounder platform bar perhaps its debatably legal successor the Avenger. Another Cromwell or a Comet would just be good to have along as a fellow Cruiser, seeing as there's exceedingly few non-British tanks that can even keep pace with a Cromwell at full speed, especially not mediums.

POTENTIAL TRAINING PROGRAMS
*As much as I love CGDCT, if we want to win, we gotta step up our training game. Plus what's cuter than Cute Girls Doing Cute Training Montages?*
> 1. STACK'S STACKED SHELL STACKERS CLUB
Stack already does her loading practice daily anyway prior to school/work hours, so what we do is open that practice up for all loaders (or any other team members who just want to work on their fitness). Stack can lead them in exercises, teach them proper form and technique, give them pointers on how to load their tanks particular shells and the like. In return for their hard work and early wake up, anyone that turns up gets a free breakfast at wherever the majority decides to go that day (we can give Stack a stipend to cover this). Also, once a week do range practice with their gunners (see 6.).
> 2. INITIAL T
We have a tank racing track now, let's use it. We can reserve an afternoon or something outside of practice each week to take all the drivers out to the track and just push their vehicles to the limits. Drifting, off road work, drag races or just trying to beat their PBs, it's more to get the drivers as comfortable in their tanks as possible, learning their limits, strengths and weaknesses than actually race. We could also probably just get them free access whenever they'd like to the track, provided it's not otherwise in use, so if a driver or crew just wants to shred tarmac for a while on their own time, they're free to. The main issue here is that unlike the Loaders, as we've no Elite Drivers yet it's hard to know who should lead these exercises. Maybe Jose? I feel that the Automotive Fan Club would be great with a bit more experience under their belt but for the moment they're just too green.
> 3. CRUISIN' FOR AN EDUCATION!
a) William Adams Naval Academy are basically the premier users of Cruiser tanks, at least in the ITL. Griselda may have faced them during last season and might be able to give us an in, and if not Gertrude beat them in her first match of the Tournament back in the day and even had a slumber party with their ITL team captain so we might be able to get an in through that. Now, what I'm getting at with this is that these girls are arguably the best in the world when it comes to Cruiser tanks and I think even just sitting down for tea with Victoria, Gwynedd or the like (Though they might've graduated by now) and talking shop would give us some great insight into getting the most out of Oliver. Of course they do have their own team competing in NATO but they're in the Eastern League and we could perhaps even organise a friendly match midweek instead of a practice, which they might be open to as they seem to be getting dunked on pretty badly at the moment. On the one hand, this is kind of socially proactive for Elodie, but on the other she's a total nerd and this is just another way to study.
b) Alternatively, maybe we could get Rosehip to give us a short seminar on FAST.
> 4. ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS
Once every week, probably in the evening all the tank commanders gather to analyse and critique a tank engagement as picked and researched by Suvorov and her girls. It could be a massive armoured operation like the strategic use of tanks in Operation Barbarossa, a Battle like Kursk or El-Alamein 2: Electric Bernardaloo, just a single engagement between two platoons of tanks etc. The point is getting our commanders thinking about the capabilities of different tanks, discussing, learning and developing tactics and starting to learn the essence of command. Additionally, texts will be assigned every few weeks for the commanders, or at very least the officers, to read, stuff like Guderian's "Atchung - Panzer!", Dmitry Loza's memoirs, or modern stuff from Tankery aces and the like. After everyone's finished them we can discuss and as we go through more, start to compare them to previous ones, analyse them and all that shit.
> 5. IRIS' UPPER LIP STIFFENING CLASS
When we can, get Iris to bring each the team (one crew at a time) through a crash course of etiquette, manners and decorum. It might not seem like much but this could go some way to improving the discipline of our crews and help keep them unflappable even in the face of a chaotic battlefield.
> 6. BOOMSTICK BUDDIES
Similar to the drivers practising on the track, reserve an afternoon where gunners and loaders can hit the range and just fire off shells to their hearts content. Then, in the same vein as loaders, every other day after school/work, have an open invitation to gunners to come and do shot calcs, silhouette recognition, rangefinding exercises and other relevant book learning so they can polish their skills. Those that show get free dinner (another stipend can be assigned for this), the main problem is that like with the Drivers, we don't have anyone to really lead them in these exercises as we've no Elite gunners yet. My current suggestion would probably be whoever Iris' gunner is.
> 7. SISTERLY AFFECTIONS
Organise an exhibition match between the ITL and NATO teams at LGA.

FORMATIONS & BASIC TACTICS
*You can straight up ignore this, it's basically entirely for my own benefit*
> TANK SQUARE (Requires 4+ Tanks)
The participating tanks form a square (or cross, more correctly) facing their strongest armour outwards and protecting their rears. Works best against light tank swarms as it utterly shuts down any attempt to flank the formation. Terrible idea against enemies that prefer to engage at long range or with heavier tanks though, as it makes for a huge target and prevents effective concentration of fire along a single vector. ALREADY FIELD TESTED AND PROVEN EFFECTIVE WHEN PROPERLY USED
> PARTHIAN SHOT
A tank, or preferably a group of tanks upon encountering the enemy, feigns a retreat into nearby low ground, an alleyway or another appropriate area where the enemy is encouraged or forced to pursue from a single direction (preferably the former as the latter can make the trap more obvious to an astute commander). Once this cover is reached, the retreat is halted and the tank or group of tanks take up firing positions against the enemy's likely route of advance. When the enemy enters this killing field, likely thinking they are in pursuit of an enemy in panicked flight, they instead encounter a devastating impromptu ambush. ALREADY FIELD TESTED AND PROVEN EFFECTIVE WHEN PROPERLY USED
> THREE ROUNDS RAPID (Alt.: GIGA! APDS! BREAK!)
Prepare an ambush position ahead of an enemy Heavy Tank advance, once contact is made wait until the enemy closes to within 500m (ensuring ~180mm penetration) before performing the following actions:
> LOCKDOWN: -10 CP
> APDS Shot (5/5)
> APDS Shot (4/5)
> APDS Shot (3/5)
> Deploy Smoke (3/3)
Then disengage while the smoke gives you time to get mobile again. Can be altered for use at night by reducing the engagement range to 200-300m (keep the engine off until just before engaging) and pre-empting the shots themselves by deploying illumination flares. This particular tactic should be devastating against heavy tank formations, capable of defeating outright Sherman Jumbos, Tigers and IS/IS-2s from the front almost regardless of where the shots hit.
P.S From what I can determine out of towed 6 pounder AT gun fire rates and considerations for the nature of loading and firing in a tank like the Cromwell, pushing our crew to the limit (ie LOCKDOWN) we could squeeze out a shot every 3 or 4 seconds, provided we have an exceptional loader who has help and no distractions. That means we could potentially kill three tanks with this tactic in 6-8 seconds. HAS NOT YET BEEN FIELD TESTED