When you have one or more regiments selected, you see a red bar over their banners in the information panel. This is their Combat Efficiency, a general measure of how effective they will be in combat. If the bars are full, they are 100% effective; if they are half full, they are 50% effective. If you change their formation and give them an order, you see the bar slowly begin to change until its Combat Efficiency reaches the level associated with the new formation (see below). The bar changes slowly, not instantaneously. You must take the speed of this change into account when deciding when to launch an attack.



Assault Formation

Combat Efficiency +0

Speed: -25%

Behavior: Aggressive



Aggressive Formation

Combat Efficiency -25%

Speed: +0

Behavior: Aggressive



Column Formation

Combat Efficiency -50%

Speed: +25%

Behavior: Passive





Source: Axis and Allies RTS Official Manual