Reanimator

I was wondering something today. I know the soviets made the 45mm anti tank gun in HUGE numbers and scattered them all over the place but it seems I hardly ever see them in cmrt scenarios. I know they are in Woboblin Bridgehead (perhaps my favorite stock scenario) but I think I've mostly seen 76mm guns. I can perhaps see this because the lethality of the 76mm is much greater and is generally more help to the soviet force but with the lack of squad based AT I would figure that there would be more 45mm guns add in scenarios since they are about the closest thing the soviets had. Is it generally because of doctrine? I am unclear on how they were generally used, I know they had them in your bog standard rifle division, were there units broken up a bit and brought forward to aid infantry in their attack? Or were they generally concentrated, perhaps even with the other guns of the corps, in defensive positions and therefore not generally available in an attack? When I have used them I have been pleasantly surprised by their speed. They seem to modeled as light weapons and can move around on map about as well as a machine gun.

I just wish I had it for scouting and for fighting in villages. Run into a couple situations where there were far too many men in a single shack. They would have split off men for these things in real life anyway, I cannot see why they couldn't have just gone the way they did with the Russians.

I thought this was going to be added for the Italians, was I mistaken?

I just see it as a temporary solution until BF decide to actually spend some time on the QB portion of the game. Look at the old cm games. When you picked a QB and put it on map generator and random forces, you pretty much knew what you were going to get. The AI, regardless of what it had would line up across the map so even if it was easy it was still a game. With the current system unless I know what to expect from the map plan I cannot even pick a force that I'm sure will even show up anywhere near where I'll send my troops. I understand MarkEzra is the man and I appreciate all his hard work. But I just feel that "standardized to a large degree" is just not good enough. Give us a framework that we can use on every map of a type and suddenly everything opens up. I teach a lot of new guys this game and most of the time I find them intimidated by scenarios. If I could say "just run a few quick battles and do x y and z" to get them comfortable with the GUI and the way the tacAI responds it would be extremely helpful. Plus I would enjoy the hell out of it too.

So can we accurately know what will go in each group, as in if there are 3 groups then if we pick 3 battalions in the QB unit selection screen we will end up with the first batt in the first group and so on? If so then it seems to me the obvious solution would be to standardize the QB map pool into something like 2 groups in tiny/small where 1 group is static and 1 is mobile, 3 in medium 2 static 1 mobile, 5 in large/huge where 3 are static and 2 mobile. Obviously this is just the first idea that popped into my head, but with such a system a player would be able to use a random map and be assured when he picks the AIs forces those troops can be put into the plan where they will assuredly be used. It just seems like if we CAN do QBs where we can reproduce a result in the AI always being able to use its forces to full effect then we ought to do so and in such a way that it can easily be explained to new players easily.

I definitely agree they have gotten better, it is why I said I am glad for their hard work in the matter. I appreciate them taking the time to flesh out this part of the game. I have moved to do exactly as you do, smaller battles and pick the enemy force myself. Though in the latter I have seen some improvement as well, perhaps it is just due to the TOE but I have run into fewer instances of ridiculous force compositions. So now like you I generally do medium battles with an AI mix that I pick myself. It just seems like the obvious thing to do would be to have the ai either in or or in los of the objective. That way even if there is an 88 spawned it can have a chance of being part of the battle and in this way you could ensure that whatever force happened along it would at least be visible for your average game. Then after you work on the QB system and refine get fancy. A lot of maps I can see that whoever designed it wanted the AI to hide for a bit and then jump out, which is a great idea when it works, but it doesn't really seem to work enough times for it to justify it due to the random nature of placing static (or near static) guns, etc. in random groups. I think if they could add a function to the editor where a type of unit such as infantry, gun, tank, could be assigned a group this would be a great thing. Or, even if that is not possible, perhaps define a group by speed? Then it seems you could reliably set up AI ambushes.

I appreciate the hard work you do with the quick battles because they are generally what I play as well. But I have to say my experience seems different from post people here. I generally get maybe 1 good battle out of 5. Now I don't know if it is maybe I don't wait long enough in them to see the AI do something or I have the wrong settings (usually an attack in a medium/large map) but most of the time I'll get an AI force that is scattered around the map in places that are not in los of the objective or approaches to it. I will easily take the objective and then just quit. Too often I have not even seen the enemy and had to actually try and hunt it down on the map to see any action at all. Poking around the QB maps in the editor I notice there are a lot of plans that are on the "not used" setting but have actual orders. Are these going to be used in the future when you guys get some more time or are they just sorta failed ideas?

At the time did they usually not have windows on the side of the building for some reason? It seems like a lot of the maps have villages made up of houses with only windows on the front and back and am wondering if that was normal to the time period/region or just a result of the type of models available. I know there wouldn't be a lot of side windows in cities with row houses, but in the smaller villages?

I will say it makes QB VERY fun.

Are they supposed to be 14 points for a battery?

I mostly play quick battles either vs humans or the ai and I really have loved all the work since cmbn. Really looking forward to the new one.

As your docket is already full I hope you don't mind if I also try and get an opponent with your thread, my info is the same. EST, either side, good for a turn a day, dropbox. PM if interested.

This has been a problem with my game as well. I am using community qb maps, and when I try to play as bluefor there are no enemies on the map no matter the size or other settings. When I play as redfor everything works fine. Its very odd.

I wish to get in on the tourney if there is room as well.

I have used fraps myself for this very thing. Its not the most elegant solution, the avi's are uncompressed and huge, and you have to string them together yourself, but it does work.