Best Items for Generals

Forgot the names of the items, but generally you want to give your best aura cavalry gen(murat or Blucher) either the best attack or best defense item and an ambulance (change depending on the situation). As for infantry, they are pretty frail, although you can get away by giving Karl or Massena your ferguson rifle and tent/ambulance depending on his hp in battle(you can swap anyway, except for challenges)while giving your other infantry gens hp items. Your artillery should be given pure damage, and swap a healing item when they're low health.

Basically: 

Cavalry: If aura gen like Murat or blucher, hp item in hard campaigns or missions

               If not, attack items
Infantry: Hp items, attack items for Massena or Karl
Artillery: Pure damage, switch to healing items when dying

The idea for why cavalry is split to aura(those with the cavalry commander) and non aura is because those with the cavalry commander skill needs to survive longer, so they need the hp item, while your other cavalry gen can go balls deep with you cavalry commander gen, although if your cavalry commander gen is dying, but is surrounded by dying enemy units, then swap your hp items to attack items. 



Overall tho, i'd say just swap items in battle if you playing conquest or campaigns, since you can actually swap them. For challenges, give your artillery gens 1 medkit each, or 2 medkits for one artillery gen, and an attack item and medkit for your other artillery gen. I have some tips on items in my thread here : european-war-4.boards.net/thread/10776/speedrunners-guide-ew6