Bulletpoint

Another option is to make the troops Regular level, but with negative motivation. I find that better reflects troops that are able to spot reasonably well and fire with reasonable accuracy, but who also have a (very natural) fear of getting shot. And who need leadership (platoon leaders close by) if they are to hold the line.

I picked up the word watching the good old Beeb: http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20161130-why-the-stone-age-could-be-when-brits-first-brewed-beer

The British in this game are like playing an extra hard game mode, as everything they have just seems rubbish compared to the gear of other armies. Instead of a 60mm mortar, they get a 50mm mortar. Instead of 36 mortar bombs, they get... 12. But I believe the real kicker in this campaign is that the British lads are generally of low troop quality, and faced with many veteran and crack level Germans. Think of it as an extra challenge. It's not an easy campaign, but it's well worth playing.

So what we see as lack of AI in the game is actually a very sophisticated and historically correct rendition of actual German incompetence

Not sure if the Panther spotting has been improved for CMFB, since I haven't bought it, but speaking from CMBN experience, I haven't noticed the Panther spotting any better than any other tank. If anything, it seems to spot a bit worse than a Sherman. I've seen several situations where a Panther just wouldn't spot a very obvious target. Based on that video, maybe that's quite realistic.

I think I just misread your post then. Thanks for clarifying.

I didn't think so either, but I thought I was wrong when I read this:

I believe it is already all or nothing - the game traces a line from your firing unit to the centre of the square you want to target. If the LOS from the centre of the square your unit is in to the centre of the target squaret is blocked, even just by a little, that means you can't area target any of those 64 m2 in that square. At least that's how I believe it works. But individual soldiers can apparently target each other with more precision, if they actively spot their target. I think this can only happen if they have a contact marker in the target square.

Impressive write-up. You seem to have a strong fascination of death.

Seems like a bug or design flaw. If you can do an effective ambush from behind a low wall, surely you can do the same from behind tall bocage, which offers better cover and concealment.

Thanks for testing it out. Quite interesting how troops hiding in the bottom of foxholes are able to spot the enemy entering the target arc, but troops hiding behind a low wall or hedgerow are completely blind and the enemy can walk right up to them...

Yeah I can't think clearly without my daily dose of smoked crunchy goodness. But I was actually just trying to give an example that we shouldn't take things too literally in the game always. I'm perfectly fine with that, but I can see how some new players might get confused at times.

I don't think so, since when you order engineers to blast an obstacle, their status will cycle between "spotting" and "hiding", when really it should say "blasting" to represent what's going on.

It was just my try at a humorous take on it I appreciated your replies to my questions.

I think one of the most interesting things about this video is that it shows the Germans as they saw themselves. Or as they thought they should appear. The contrast to archetypical Hollywood Germans is enormous.

@MOS:96B2P I stand corrected. Thanks for clarifying this. I've never been able to make (hide+arc) ambush work, since the places where it's good to hide always have some obstacle that prevents spotting. (hedgerow, low wall, inside a building etc). But I suppose it could work from forest terrain... When ordering AI groups to "ambush" in the editor, they actually just set a circular target arc, with no hide command.

All this reminds me of the last time I went down to my local burger joint. I ordered a bacon/cheese burger and it arrived smelling damn good. Then after I took the first bite, suddenly the waitress came down to the table with a fork and fished out the bacon, then put it on another customer's plate ! Highly surprised, I asked why she took away my bacon, and she said there had been a mistake in the kitchen; they would have to fry up some more bacon for me. But they didn't know how long it would take. Maybe a year. Maybe two years. So, can I talk to the cook, I asked. No, said the waitress, but the cook sometimes spies on customers through that tiny peephole over there, eavesdropping on them, and if he feels like it, he may eventually decide to fry up some more bacon, she said. But there's only one cook working here, and lots of customers, so it might take some time. Well, why don't you go out and ask him then, after all you're working here? No, she said, I'm not really working here, I just volunteer in my spare time. At this point, the guy who got my bacon chipped in: Well, they will just have to cook some more bacon I guess, but I personally don't see the problem. I bought the full meal version, and it comes with coke and fries and also bacon. If you buy some fries they will give you the bacon. It's just 10 bucks extra.

Am I wrong to assume that when selecting "mixed forces", the M8 HMC should appear both in the mechanized formations and in the light tank battalion?

Actually they still peek up occasionally. But their actual spotting ability is next to zero.

That's how it seems to me. Those vehicles were mistakenly moved to the vehicle pack when it was released. I don't think BFC did this on purpose, but since they haven't fixed their mistake, the end result is that I bought a game that had these vehicles, and now they are gone. So, BFC, if you are not giving the vehicles back, could I have a discount please?

Yes, but they only hide after a bomb hits close to them, and then it's probably too late for some of the team. Also, they very quickly pop up again if they are not on hide orders, ready to catch the next bomb.

Same graphics engine. To my eye, old CMBN looks better than new CMFB, because I don't think they really nailed the winter environment well. But you could just download both demos and take a look for yourself.

I think you're on to something good, but if you try to show too much at the same time, the player won't see the detail. So I suggest you just go with the helmet and maybe the weapon. Helmets were pretty iconic in WW2; easy to see the difference between a US, British, and German helmet.

I believe the real difference is that the AI will never put its troops on hide orders. To get the benefit of the trench or foxholes the troops really need to be actively ducking down. This is also the reason slow-firing mortars (target light) will be more effective than quick-firing. Because the enemy will play whack-a-mole and get hit by every bomb while sitting upright. But of course it also takes longer time to slow-bomb a target.

In one of the Scottish Corridor missions (night music?) I had my guys hide in foxholes just before they were hit by a Nebelwerfer barrage. They got through it alright - a few casualties but very little compared to the size of those rockets. So I'd say definitely hide in foxholes if you think a barrage is incoming.