AlexUK

Regarding the Russian army being perceived as a paper tiger.
It appears more obvious every day that the Russian army was overrated and people underestimated the extent of the cronyism, corruption and its low level of readiness (among other things).
And I don't want to downplay the difficulties the Russians are encountering here, some of them are looking quite serious even potentially crippling and the litmus test of the war is exposing weaknesses in the Russian army that were not necessarily obvious before. But I feel it is becoming maybe too much of a meme and an hyperbole at times.
This is of course fuelled by a justified indignation and understandable but reducing this war to a meme instead of looking at it in a dispassionate clear-headed way is a pitfall that might make it hard to assess the situation and the outcome properly.
I'd like to point out for the record that I think Putin made a big mistake here, that I don't see how he can win strategically and that I root for the Ukrainians. If we could get rid of another dictator and stop this resurgence of authoritarian regimes across the world, I for one would be delighted.
One thing is clear from this though : the Russians are losing the information warfare side of the conflict quite badly. And this is fairly surprising to me. Not so much the heart-warming global public outcry and backlash Putin is facing, but the quasi absence of a Russian response to steer the narrative. Or if there is one it is inaudible.
But what I find a lot less surprising personally is how chaotic and messy this war is and how many mistakes we see from the Russians.
I wonder if this prevalent attitude and perception are not caused by two factors:  aren't people using the American military as a yardstick and haven't they forgotten what a peer or near-peer conflict looks like?
We, as wargamers, should know that modern warfare is brutal, messy, lots of things go wrong etc. This isn't the war on terror. Having the battlefield littered with destroyed or abandoned military equipment perhaps shouldn't be so surprising.
Finally the Russians were never going to measure up to the level of proficiency of the US army. They were never going to conduct a clean, bloodless precision war. Maybe Putin deluded himself thinking it was possible. But this has never been the Russian way. Brute force rather than finesse is more in line with the traditional Russian approach. And I aware that the Soviets were able to carry out maskirovka and elaborate offensives in the past but what would be unacceptable losses for a western military is probably just "you don't make an omelette without breaking eggs" for the Russian mindset.
Cliff Notes :
The Russian army was overrated but this is a near-peer conflict.
 

CMBS has repeatedly made me think I am the worst company commander on earth. It turns out i am not even competitively bad. 

I also would like to know exactly what happened at the Hostomel airport and wonder if someone has established a clear timeline of the events. Maybe Hayduk knows.
The Russian launched an air assault with Mi-8 helicopters, then the Ukrainians claimed they retook it with a counter attack, but the next day the Russians were saying they were still in control of it so it is hard to tell. And the air transport plane(s) that were shot down, was it a second wave to reinforce the first VDV troops there? And in the end were they relieved by ground troops?
Seeing as Bucha is just south of the airport, it is clear that there must have been some serious fighting there for sure.

Was that before or after Zelensky banned males of military age from leaving?
https://www.risingbd.com/english/international/news/85373
My honest thought is Oh God, no. I'll be the unpopular one here. The best thing Ukrainians can do for themselves at this point, frankly, is to sue for peace.
Those who are thinking about guerilla warfare, you need to ask yourself whether you are thinking harder about Saving Ukrainians or just Pinching the Russians as hard as possible.
TBF, the closest analogue I can think of is 1979, when the Chinese took a swipe at Vietnam. Did China become a pariah state?

And yet we, the West, are to blame. Divided and weak as we are, only interested in bigger economies and woke nonsense, while Putin prepared his moves, not even hiding it, but in plain sight. And it doesn't stop here. Mark my words, it's just the beginning. 

Stay safe @Haiduk
This is awful.  My heart is with you and your countrymen.
🇺🇦
Thank you for giving us your assessments and updates.  It's truly appreciated.

We've all been there. One thing people need to remember is to never judge a whole people based off their country's leadership. 

I am ashamed of my government. 

It is so ironic to me that simultaneously Charles is BOTH the bottle and the bottleneck.
I salute this new CMBN battle pack. Why not? As a small time creator of CM content I have true respect for Ithikial and I absolutely know he will harness great energy and enthusiasm to make a fine product for the Utah Beach areas on D-Day and a few days beyond.
But I see the posts here and a few ask about new content for Sherman DD's and landing craft, gear for the assault vests on soldiers like we see in Saving Private Ryan. So much possibilities. 
But without Charles?  <air sucks through teeth...>
I think the system to make the installation program package is apparently done WITHOUT Charles. Maybe Charles showed somebody how to do it and for simple "new things" it is done with out Charles. If it is just adding scenarios and a campaign or 2? Charles not needed. 
I think BFC could make a hundred battlepacks. Put everybody to work in the scenario writer "stable" and the beta testers  <I guess> AND if they wanted, Charles not needed. But since everybody can already download free scenarios and campaigns...then it is a marketing decision. Maybe somehow with steam and slitherine or whatever, NOW is the right time for new "easier to produce" content. Show the new wave of non-traditional customers that BFC makes new stuff? Maybe we will see this type of content pushed out for purchase. Charles not needed.
The CMBN vehicle pack? I think Charles was needed for that. Heck yes. NEW Sherman DD's or landing craft? I think Charles ALSO needed. But Charles is NOT AVAILABLE. 
I think there are a thousand 3D models out there sitting unused, maybe unpurchased, most probably unpurchased. Gliders, assault vest gear, special German concrete bunkers...Charles is not available to do the code work to roll them into the CM program. That is the bottleneck.
In conclusion, I am always very glad Charles was/is the bottle. And I am glad and would buy him a beer to say thanks for allowing me a small entrance into the game to do mods. WITHOUT THAT? Oh god, I shudder to think how I would feel... 
 
 
 

Separatists in eastern Ukraine.

You took a one line statement from an entire video that mentioned no FDC and ran with it. That statement is not wrong, however, I explained why it needs some further explanation and context and should not just be taken as an absolute statement. There is no need at all for your snide and snarky comment. In fact, it's pretty damned rude and obnoxious.
There IS firing data to be calculated. It's done by the mortar platoon. They act as their own FDC.
Now you can believe that or not. I really don't care. I think I've made it quite clear in the past that *I* used to do this for a living. And if you wanted to you could even look up the field manual for the US mortar platoon (which covers 60mm, 81mm, 120mm) and you could read it for yourself all about how a mortar platoon is layed, how firing data is calculated, how it is applied to the mortars, instead of taking anyone's word for it, like mine, or the West Point guy who has 6 years active duty as a Combat Engineer officer and is teaching an intro class mentioning fire support. Combat Engineers are fantastic, but I'd submit his actual fire support experience is second hand. 
As for me - 10 years as a Field Artillery officer, including FIST Chief (which would include my mortar experience and contact), Battery Fire Direction Officer, Battalion Fire Support Officer, Field Artillery Battalion Asst. S-3 (Battalion Fire Direction Officer), and Brigade Fire Support Officer.  
I rest my case.
Dave
 

Awesome story. This is what I love about Combat Mission as well. One of the most epic moments was during the final mission of the NTC campaign in Cold War.
My company combat team was situated behind a slight rise with dense, hilly terrain to the left and open ground on the right. I needed to hold off the enemy for a period of time then extract to my left. An entire BMP battalion split raced across both fronts as my tanks and TOW launchers valiantly stemmed the tide. As I got the green light to retreat the BMP's on my right hooked around my defenses and on my left three BMP's made it past my defenses and cut off my retreat. It was at that moment I heard the sound of an enemy helicopter (my vulcan was out of ammo). My tanks leap frogged, one defending the other as they retreated while my infantry were strafed running to the safety of the M113's. Desperation began to set in as my vehicles piled up behind the small hill the BMP's/infantry were defending.
I gathered a scratch team of infantry from various squads and a tank to take the hill. There was no time for caution, a mortar carrier had just been taken out and the BMP's on the right were just around the corner. My boys charged over the hill like maniacs. The Russians seemed to be taken by surprise but they quickly returned fire and casualties were heavy on both sides. It looked to be a futile effort as the BMP's guns opened up but at that moment the lone M-60 crested the hill and engaged the BMP's. He took out two before the final one got a solid hit and knocked out the tank. It was all worth it as reinforcements arrived and the convoy made it's move to the extraction point all the while harried by the helicopter. 
I don't think you get stories like this from any other game.
 

Completely missed seeing this, but am grateful not just for Michael's years of contributing to the Forums, but because two visits back to brother George and family in the Tacoma, Washington area, he and I got to meet him and visit briefly. We had tea and, as the Brits would say, biscuits in the common area, because his room was messed up from some repairs, if memory serves. May or may not have a pic of him from our visit. If I do, shall post it. He was charmed that I brought him a jar of genuine English lemon curd, which I thought someone who loved his tea would appreciate. 

Regards,

John Kettler

Well, the Soviets have not been shy to invest in money when they think it's worth it - missile-armed tanks, gas turbine tanks, night vision, titanium hulled subs, all of which would demand the best available at the time. I think one of the big reasons is that ... the early thermal imagers just aren't that good, due to their very low number of elements.
This is what a M1 might look like through an optical sight with vertical FOV of 35 milliradians (~2 degrees) at 1000m:

Here's what it might look like in thermal. It's hot, so it's white, but we are now in grayscale:
A "Generation 0" sight (such as 1PN59) is said to use only 50 elements, so the vertical resolution is 50 pixels:

↑Despite the picture being maximally simplified and the tank is white to simulate how a tank pops out from its environs due to heat, does that even still look like a tank? It might be a good toy for specially trained recce troops, perhaps by making the straw even narrower. As a tank sight ... needs work.

↑This, with 100 lines, is about the level of a 1st generation tank sight. Agava-1 is said to be 100 lines. Leopard 2's first sight, EMES 15, would also be about this level (at 120 elements). Definitely getting better, but if it is say at 2000m, or the tank is hull down so its bottom is blocked, or you are thinking your target are much smaller and cooler infantrymen, or we degrade its contrast ratio by putting a real background behind it, put coverings on it to reduce its heat transmission ... etc, do you want to pay a substantial amount and look through 35 mrad straws for this?

↑Agava-2, at 256 elements. Ah, definitely becoming useful here. That's when the Soviets decided they finally had a viable tank sight ... but then the Soviet Union broke up.
That may well be the main differential point between NATO and the Soviets - whether to accept a resolution less than the 144p which is the crappiest resolution on Youtube or wait for 240p. I think NATO can accept the lower resolution because they are thinking they need to attack hot, mobile Soviet tanks and are willing to shoot at blobs that are only a bit better than a dot. The Soviets wanted something that can help them hunt down hull down tanks, small TOW jeeps and infantry.

Working titles:
Space Lobsters: The M.A.R.S. Clause/Claws
Space Lobsters: Red Steam
Space Lobsters: Remember the Maine!
Space Lobsters: Boil...and Trouble

Combat Mission forum house rules: don’t feed the dbsapp
In regards to T-62’s, my experience is that spotting at close range feels very random. I’ve had a few instances where an M60 is 20meters away but no spot even when opened up. Farther than 200 meters and the spotting when opened up feels very natural and sometimes they spot faster than M60’s. I don’t think it ruins the Russians but it is worth looking into.
I want to see a rematch between Rice and Hapless and settle the score. 
 
a PBEM with Domfluff would be fun too. He seems to be the big proponent of Soviet doctrine. Does it actually hold up in multiplayer?
 

M1A2 Abrams and Javelins in Black Sea are disruptive technologies, and trying to work out what to do against them is one of the core problems you need to solve - there really aren't any reliably good answers.

The T-90AM and AT-14 can both penetrate an Abrams frontally... but probably won't. Both of them will happily go through the sides, and both are significantly cheaper - you will usually have more of them.

This means that the basic, generic idea has to be to coordinate an attack simultaneously from at least two different directions, ideally with at least 90 degrees displacement between them. If this was two T-90 platoons, then each would attack on-line, and at the same time, and would need their flanks screened, presumably by infantry.

To make this work requires excellent reconnaissance (drones do a lot of work here), excellent counter-reconnaissance (this is well developed by the Russians in general, but even just thinking in terms of drones - the Russian anti-air is superb, and can easily blind the US from the air), and great coordination (this one is on you).

I must have missed them. All I got was quite a lot of disappointing news.
No M1 native development (so this will presumably mean more features not being available for Macs going forward. PBEM +++, and now tournaments (I assume).
No real mention of new Combat Mission engine being developed.
CM Afghanistan not really going anywhere.
Early War and North Africa referred to as being popular with fans, but no real news of development on that front.
There was a commitment to Combat Mission for the long term, which was good.
Or have I missed a lot of it?

I must have missed them. All I got was quite a lot of disappointing news.
No M1 native development (so this will presumably mean more features not being available for Macs going forward. PBEM +++, and now tournaments (I assume).
No real mention of new Combat Mission engine being developed.
CM Afghanistan not really going anywhere.
Early War and North Africa referred to as being popular with fans, but no real news of development on that front.
There was a commitment to Combat Mission for the long term, which was good.
Or have I missed a lot of it?

It was a very good interview... for some additional background into how Combat Mission Cold War was born, Warren @The_Capt, @IICptMillerII, and I gave an interview to wargamer.fr shortly after the game was released on Battlefront. 
You can read that interview here:  https://www.wargamer.fr/combat-mission-cold-war-un-bouillant-trio-pour-une-guerre-froide/
Bil

Exiting bunkers invulnerability too. Very frustrating. 
 
Out on a limb scenario, CMBN, for example. No bazookas so have to close assault. 

I just hope that game engine 5 improves optimization for more modern machines. It's understandable that optimization doesn't always keep up if you have a small team, but lag does hamper my enjoyment quite a bit. 😥

Panic!
The truck driver is reacting to his perception of the battlefield not yours! 
He doesn't know what you do.
If you want to know what he knows, play in Iron Mode and click on him during the replay phase.....You'll discover that his view of the battlefield is rather more blinkered than the one you normally see. 
I suspect that you'll find that some time immediately prior to the truck starting to act silly from your perspective, a very prominent red contact icon became the primary & pressing concern from his perspective.