Doug Williams

@Steve I read that whole 38 studios article. Very sad. Curt clearly had no idea how to run a company.

I just checked and it looks like MMP is still in business and still selling ASL products. Not sure what Curt's relationship with them is now.

If this is your primary concern then I have some good news: You're wrong! Shatter gap is barely even in the game from what I can tell.
 
M4A3 Sherman 76 vs Tiger I late @ 500m (sample size 325)
Full penetration: 11%
Partial Penetrations: 63%
Spalling: 22%
No Effect: 4%
 
Pz IV ausf H vs Tiger I late @ 750m (sample size 328)
Full penetration: 16%
Partial penetration: 57%
Spalling: 23%
No effect: 3%
 
Only hits on the driver plate were counted (the "Superstructure Front Hull" in-game). The Tigers were angled about 10° away from the shooters in order to match Rexfords shatter gap criteria.
 
This is a very good apples to apples comparison. The Sherman's penetration at 500 meters is identical to the Pz IV's penetration at 750 meters (116mm). They also use the same shell type (APCBC with HE burster) and have virtually the same diameter.
 
If you look at the percentage of hits that were penetrations of some type between the two guns they are identical (73.5% and 73.8%). Spalling and no effect ratios are also identical. The only significant difference is that a larger percentage of Pz IV penetrations are full rather than partial, but the difference is small, 5% of total hits.
 
So contrary to claims that shatter gap modeling in the game is "severe" or "extreme" it appears to be very subdued, to the point of near-irrelevance unless there are other conditions under which it is more pronounced.
 
https://www.dropbox.com/s/0k16bdi28leb03k/Pz%20IV%20750m%20shatter%20001.bts?dl=0
 
https://www.dropbox.com/s/wjndw7soxkdzd6f/Sherman76%20500m%20shatter.bts?dl=0

The original schok-ta-tola minus the swastika can be had from various specialty German food distributors here in the US in the red tin. I ordered some not too long ago.
 
Los

'Who's the fella who owns this sh*thole?'
 
The denouement of Unforgiven, the greatest western ever made. And the 1992 Oscar winner. Dark and profound. Richard Harris delivers a bravura performance in a subsidiary role.
 

I dont have any favorite scenes, but i have some favorite music:
 

 

 
As a western fan you will certainly recognize it.

Bagger 288 eating a smaller bagger:
 

A few numbers regarding Bagger 288:
 
Weight: 12.804 tons or 12,8 kilotons (That' s about 7 times heavier than Hitlers Landkreuzer P1500 )
Length: 246 meters
Height: 106 meters
Width: 46 meters
 
Building it cost 100.000.000 $ and took five years. It can move 76.000 cubic meters of soil every day.

Mine: Tuco

Beware ! Beware !
 
Doug is a gamey-force-picking edge-hugging bastage
 
...
...just like the rest of us
 
Looking forward to the AAR.

I think there might a generational thing to this as well. BattleFront seem to develop their games in the traditional top-down way, where the designers work on something in a closed off garage, while we wait patiently to see what they will bring out next. Then they hope that we will buy it. And probably we will. So far, their business model seems to have worked for them.
 
But in many companies, modern game development has changed. Lots of small developers now involve the community while they build the game, taking in their feedback, having active dialogue with them, even staging polls to ask what the fans feel is the most important things to improve/add. While BF does do a bit of this, there does seem to be a difference. Younger gamers, used to be seen as equals, might come across very spoiled in the traditional point of view.
 
I'm not telling BF what to do, I just think it's interesting. And I'm not proposing that developers should just follow every whim of their fans either.

You are going to wind up like the rest of us eventually, addicted and possessing all. Chart yourself a path to follow, and eventually own them all. You will be assimilated, resistance is futile.

Forget it. Judging by what i have read from you in other threads, i think that your intent is most likely to look up the hardware i bought and then tell me that i either bought it for a bad price or that it' s not good or whatever. And even if you wouldnt find anything, you would probably just make something up. I wont support you trying to piss me off.
 
And even if the next thing you tell me is that i misjudge you, that' s your problem, i neither trust you nor do i like you, bad luck.

Well it is the anniversary of D Day so today is just as good for it.

Colour me speechless. (She's that good.)

Thanks for the reports Doug, and yes some luck but also you made the right calls with positions of the Panthers, you recognised the threat and moved in time to counter what Bil was attempting.

The M10 duel was a 50/50 die roll I guess?

You are right it was all about the tanks and without that edge your infantry would have had a tough time, saw one of your HMG teams on your right got mortared to death, Bil certainly had the edge with those.

BTW, I just got back from meeting Bil FtF and brought him a consolation drink as I happen to be in Richmond this weekend and he kindly agreed to meet me. We had a good chat about the game and it was really nice to thank him in person for all the previous AARs he has done for this great community of players.

Thank you to both of you for the entertainment.

Cheers H

A quick and dirty post battle analysis... Doug gave me three maps to choose from and I chose this one.. one of the others was the same map I played the FJ v Red Devils BETA AAR on and I didn't like the looks of the third for some reason that I don't remember  
 
I then chose the US as I expected a close in battle and the US would have the advantage in that sort of fight.. of course it never devolved into a close in fight so my expectation was faulty.
 
The map which I thought favored me in fact heavily favored Doug.. he could move straight through covered terrain to both center objectives, while I had to move down one narrow covered defile and then had to maneuver to the flanks.. it simply took too long for me to move into position, by the time I started to get into position with the mass of my combat power he was already in position on both center objectives... the terrain also played havoc with my tank movement.  I never felt comfortable with the terrain and actually should have insisted on an infantry only fight on this map... that would have been more interesting and a better show for the AAR.
 
Doug played his side to perfection and he successfully countered every move I made.. I think the time it took for me to move my forces really telegraphed my intentions.  Good job Doug you played one hell of a battle. 

Good show Doug! Thanks for the fun follow along.

Thank you for doing me the honor of an AAR battle, Bil. I've learned a great deal from you over the years. Can't believe I finally got up the nerve to challenge you.

Good game. I got lucky.

Thanks for all you have done, and continue to do, for the Combat Mission community.

Interesting thread, men. Some very good comments/observations here. Thanks for caring about the battle. AARs are fun, but a lot of work. This was my first one......which makes me wonder just what kind of idiot picks a fight with Bil Hardenberger for his first AAR?
 
 
Re: flipping sides/mirror match.....   I think I've just about had enough of this map. Better quit while I'm ahead.

Thank you for doing me the honor of an AAR battle, Bil. I've learned a great deal from you over the years. Can't believe I finally got up the nerve to challenge you.

Good game. I got lucky.

Thanks for all you have done, and continue to do, for the Combat Mission community.

I would say the game is nearly done?

Well played. I think it was a tough map and with the well placed Panther's Bil had a couple of chances but they did not pay off for him.

The duel with the M10 and Panther if it had gone the other way would have changed the game. (Statement of the obvious).

You roll the dice and sometimes lady luck does not shine on you.

Good game, Doug. I think I was far more anxious than you, and I'm just a spectator!

I think you can offer him a cease fire soon, The third Sherman appears to be likely toast also.
 
I would think he would realize he will not dislodge you if he has no real assets to do it soon.
 
What else does he have to take on your panzers.
 
This is were Bil would tell us all, exactly what was left because he has calculated all the purchase points and has kept every sound marker and spotted troop documented.
 
 
 
The scouts were a brave lot, cold blooded killers. Did not scare them at all. Just another day at the office for the one standing up.  Bullets flying all around him, but he calmly reloads his weapon