SBX63: ISU Heavy SP Battery

While the Soviets called their heavy guns self-propelled artillery, the Germans called them assault guns. In reality, the Soviets used them in the fire support and tank-hunter role. The heavy guns of the ISU-152 could be found supporting assaulting infantry with direct fire. Their ability to instantly destroy bunkers, buildings, and defensive positions provided excellent infantry support.

The ISU-122 more often supported advancing Soviet tank battalions by providing overwatching fire. They would generally take up a position on the flanks of the tank formations and use their large guns to target enemy anti-tank guns, tank-hunters, and panzers.

Providing artillery support to the rapidly advancing armour and mechanised formations proved difficult. Stavka found that the 122mm and 152mm self-propelled guns of the ISU-122 and ISU-152 could do the job quite easily using direct fire. This immediate support over open sights could be delivered whether the assault was in cities, crossing rivers, or facing entrenched troops in their fortifications.

On the eve of an attack, Soviet scouts crept out into no-man’s land to map the German front line in detail, marking where anti-tank guns and machine-gun nests were situated. They then rushed their detailed maps to the assault gun regiments, who would then assign targets to specific companies for the next day. When the offensive began, Soviet assault guns compared the maps with the horizon, identifying key landmarks and targets and then blasted the enemy guns with intense barrages.

Once the enemy guns were silenced, they moved on to their next target, following the infantry as they advanced. Whenever the infantry reported enemy anti-tank guns and machine-gun emplacements, the assault guns would help deal with the problem, blasting the enemy out of their holes before moving on again always pressing forward.

Though still somewhat cumbersome and slow, the mobile heavy self-propelled guns were infinitely more flexible than trying to bring up the massive Soviet artillery formations. The heavy guns, consolidated in independent Heavy Self propelled Artillery Regiments, provided the necessary heavy fire support to the mobilised forces leading assaults. 

The troops greatly appreciated the heavy assault guns, describing them as "Nekrasivo, no spasibo!" ("Not pretty, but thanks!")

THIS PRODUCT CONTAINS:

• 5x ISU-122 (122mm) or ISU-152 (152mm) Assault Guns
• 1x Decal Sheet

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These miniatures are supplied unassembled and unpainted