M Hofbauer

M., thanks for your offer, I appreciate it. I am fully aware of that distinction between rank and administrative position, I think this has become clear because it is at the base of our Hauptfeldwebel/Spiess - issue. Thanks for the alternative word "appointment" for that "administrative position", though! Let me point out to you, too, only as an information which you possibly might know very well already, too, that Hauptfeldwebel would not necessarily have to be an Oberfeldwebel (which you are correct it usually was). I had documented various examples where Feldwebel were assigned the Hauptfeldwebel slot - I later gave up documenting further examples of this happening after I realized that this was rather common during the war. Don't remember any occurences of Unterfeldwebel being Hauptfeldwebel (a nice literal oxymoron btw) but it seems not entirely out of question to me. [edited to re-phrase for more clarity] [This message has been edited by M Hofbauer (edited 02-12-2001).]

M., yes, I have worked with the Men At Arms series and it's book on the SS in question and I can confrirm from memory that it contained numerous errors. Personally, I doubt that the SS Stabsscharführer used the double braid, I seem to remember otherwise but this is from memory. Unfortunately, I am not in posession of that book anymore, and I don't have any other books with large numbers of pictures on the SS either, since I am not especially a "fan" of that topic, so I merely collected what info I needed (=ranks) and that was that. Maybe RMC is able to shed some light on the questions that remain in this thread, which are 1) did the SS - Spiess (conmpany sergeant) = Stabsscharführer wear the same double braids as the equivalent Wehrmacht Hauptfeldwebel (should be easy to confirm, all we need is a picture showing an SS soldier with said double braids OR a picture of an SS Stabsscharführer (respective chevron) w/o the double braids) 2)did the SS indeed drop the "Herr" address as is supposedly related by the Handbook on German Military Forces [edited to re-phrase for more clarity] [This message has been edited by M Hofbauer (edited 02-12-2001).]

Btw, M. "Mike" Dorosh, since I was gonna look up your question about this Meldetasche thing, it would be helpful if you could relate who/what gave you that idea, IOW, what is your source for the fact that there was some sort of Meldetasche that was unique to the Hauptfeldwebel? (I hope we both agree that the term "Meldetasche" itself isn't very helpful since it is too generic and hence applies too generally to any sort of such container/briefcase - right?)

It's a metaphor/proverb that is - to my understanding - rather popular among your US-american neighbours. I am surprised to see that you do not know it?? Anyways, I was under the mistaken suppression thjat you were US-american. yes. Grasshopper, it seems you are confusing this with the Wehrmacht Hauptfeldwebel. Now - _you_ were the one to ask for the SS equivalent to the Wehrmacht Spiess, and now you are confusing the two? Tsk, tsk, tsk :0) M. Dorosh, all joking/jabbing aside, yes, the SS company sergeant guy had a chevron, while the Wehrmacht guy for the same function had double rows on the cuffs for identification of function. I remember this Stabsscharführer issue well because it gave me a considerable headache a year or so ago when I researched this thing for the rank page project. I stumbled over this mysterious Stabsscharführer rank again every once in a while, and I was dumbfounded as it didn't fit into my rank atbles and equivalents etc. I had from everywhere else. A couple of people, foremost Vadim Kolosov, helped me clear this up, when it became obvious what the Stabsscharführer was. The chevron is rather thick and steep. Roughly comparable to the Gefreiter (Sturmmann) chevron, but with no dark background and much thicker and steeper. I do not know. I'm prety confident though that - unlike the double row of braids - the Meldetasche was not constitutive as a designation for the Hauptfeldwebel, nor mandatory, only decaratory at best whenever/if it was present. M.Dorosh, you yourself admitted that your Scharführer is wrong as a direct equivalent to the Wehrmacht/Heer Unteroffizier. I never said anything else either, especially not that no one in infantry platoons ever carried that rank. yours sincerely, M.Hofbauer

The PSW Sd.Kfz. 231/1 and the Sd.Kfz. 250/9 should be able to engage aircraft with their 2cm. AD was their official secondary employment. The Luchs (Pz.Kpfwg. IIL) should not be able to engage aircraft any more than any other tank should be able to (with their main gun), which in CM terms means it should not be able to do so. PERIOD.

That is a ridiculously invalid comparison. You cannot equate the wide, half-deserted stretches of the russian land / eastern front to the dense environment of Normandy/FRance to Germany. To make a comparison based on "KIA per sq.km territory gain" between the "performance" of the western allies (US/UK/FF) and the Russians is hilarious.

this is normal (in game terms). Main-gun damaged and immobilized tanks are abandoned between battles. I know how you feel about it - I had a frustrating experience in the VB - operation where two of my Tigers had main gun damages but still would have been very useful (and extremely needed) as mobile machine gun bunkers... sincerely, M.Hofbauer

That is incorrect. Spotting is calculated for each unit on it's own, there is no CC-like beehive telepathic mentality in CM.

M.Dorosh, sorry but I'm sure your grandma didn't like you cause each time you visited her you told her how she could suck eggs much beter if she did it your wayIOW, you hit upon the right person for your kind of concerns :0) But on to your questions: Generally, only Feldwebel and above were called Unteroffizier mit Portepee (notice capitzal P as it is a noun), meaning that Unteroffizier and Unterfeldwebel were Unteroffiziere ohne Portepee. Fähnriche, equating to Unterfeldwebel rank, accordingly were Unteroffiziere ohne Portepee, the exception being those Fähnriche employed in the military justice branch. Oberfähnriche were technically Unteroffiziere mit Portepee, but practically they were treated like officers, indicated by their officer uniform style, their wear of dagger etc. The Portepee itself was the sword knot affixed to the sabre, or, when no sabre was worn, to the side arm (bayonet). The original meaning of the Portepee as a sword knot however is misleading however since even Unteroffiziere ohne Portepee carried sabres, hence the original distinction it marked was lost. you gotta be more specific, you can't expect me to rummage through the whole thing. Besides, as a side note, you are aware that the Handbook on German Military forces contains several glaring errors and shouldn't be considered the Book of Wisdom, are you not? if you add an "s", then we agree on the Unterscharführer. However, you are wrong in assuming that a squad leader necessarily would be an Unterscharführer, or vice versa. Squad leader - "Gruppenführer" as a designation of function is theoretically independant of rank; conceded though that the Unteroffizier would be a typical squad leader rank. if you are claiming that there is an error in CM because there is no Unteroffizier in the SS and you want to replace it with Scharführer then that strikes me as a simple mistake you did; when claiming errors in CM you should at least practice the due diligence to ask for the right correction, not some "pulling out of the air" alternative that is just as wrong. took you long enough to look thatone up btw ) SS-Stabsscharführer (not to be confused with the Sturmscharführer *rank* - although both often coincided in one person); designated by a lace chevron stitched onto the lower right sleeve. yours sincerely, M.Hofbauer p.s.: what is it with this fixiation on those ss ranks anyhow? regular army ranks are much more interesting, more logic and structure. all those americans (I don't mean you, M. Dorosh) are running around citing all sort of ss ranks when they wouldn't even know the US Army's ww2 rank system...

1. Man, don't even think of asking that question here. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. You should be more specific about what you mean with jerky else you risk being roasted alive because people might think you are suggesting things like dynamic lighting or somefink. 2. group-select the units you want to order by drawing a square over them; now you can give them a single order for all (e.g., MOVE) 3. both 4. the + and - keys will cycle through units.

all batle accounts are falsified, kills are inflated, as are enemy numbers ("Viel Feind viel Ehr' " - "much enemy = much honor"), and own heroism. granted. however, the russians have a special record in the overdoing the BS news and reports section. the latest I heard from them was that the (ridiculously low) use of DU in Kosovo was worse in terms of radiation than Chernobyl...

total production of 8cm GrW34 in 1944: 26,341 total production of 7.5cm le.IG 18 in 1944: 2,309 note: 1944 saw the introduction of the new IG 37. Starting in March 1944, the total production for that year was 2,279 as you can see, the you give is ratio is roughly right, but the conclusion drawn from it is wrong. In fact, the ratio of IG : GrW had always been roughly around 1:10, so this does in no way support your conclusion that GrW production increased to replace the IG. In fact, the IG was still considered such a vital element of the Infantry units that 1944 saw the introduction of two NEW models of IG, the IG 37, a combined, low-velocity IG and hollow-charge AT gun, and the IG 42. Both soldiered on until the end of the war. The le.IG 18, too, was produced right until the end of the war. Also, if you compare the ratio above with the ratio of ammunition production and expenditure (1944: 8cm GrW 34: 24.183 Mio rounds; leIG 18 and IG 37: 10.817 Mio rounds) then these figures suggest the exact opposite, that the actual use of the IG was higher as that of the GrW, since the ammo expenditure ratio of 1:2 to 1:3 is _much_ lower than the ratio above, right into 1945 (Jan./Feb. 1945: 8cmGrW 34: 4.847 Mio rounds; leIG 18 and IG 37: 1.749 Mio) I have to concede though that the german army at that time suffered from a chronic shortage of mortar ammo, so the use might have been somewhat higher had more ammo been available; however, we are looking at the actual use, not the intended use, of the two weapon systems. As to the horses:trucks ratio, Truck losses were *roughly* 35,000 in 1941, 70,000 in 1942, 130,00 in 1943 and 100,000 in 1944, combining for a rough total of 365,000 (I'm too lazy to add up the actual numbers). The total loss of horses during the timespan was over 1.5 Million (1,558,508). Personally, I don't think the inclusion of horses in CM2 warrants the enormous effort neccessary to do it. Horses need to be animated somewhat if they are to look *anything* but ****e, and I guess that is manpower-intensive. That time is beter spent doing other weapon systems, commands or refining the AI, IMHO. yours sincerely, M.Hofbauer

If anything, it would have to be changed to "Unterscharführer". "Scharführer" equates to an Unterfeldwebel. Btw, Unteroffizier, besides being a rank, is also a generic term meaning "NCO". In this regard (like, "Unteroffizierskasino") it apples to any NCO-rank from Unteroffizier to Stabsfeldwebel. Alas, I think your idea is not implementable for the simple fact that the voice file is shared by both force types. I suggest you stick with Scipio's idea of substituting it with something neutral if it really bothers you. Btw I think your no-Herr theory is wrong ("Herr" is a regular (+ neutral) form of addressing someone, even if it is followed by the name or rank, and if you simply omit it, it sounds awkward - try it for yourself: "Möchten Sie noch eine Tasse Kaffee, .... Sturmbannführer?" ). Where did you get it from?

sorry to hear that Stoffel, hope you're doing fine. There'll be brighter days ahead...whjy don't you tzake a hot tea/coffee and make yourself comfortable in front of the PC with a game of CM :0)

if this is so, then that's unfortunate indeed (haven't ttried the patch yet). I thought "unrestricted" really meant "unrestricted", but in fact it _is_ *restricted* to unrestricted points. I agree you should be able to mix troops of varying quality; might not be too common with allied troops, but considering the hodgepodge chaos that 1945 germany was it was the rule not the exception that such mixes of elite and conscript forces occurred.

Bates, I know that, but that would require the purchase of either item. I am not willing to spend that money for what little use it would be to me. Besides, I would still have the chokepoint of DLing on the modem. Finally, it wouldn't seem right to me. You don't steal something that's lying somewhere just because nobody sees you. As for DLing for "preview" purposes, that's ok, of course, nothing wrong about it. Comparable to listening to the sound on radio etc., you don't have to buy something before seeing (hearing) it, so as long as you use it to aid you in the decision processs and delete it afterwards I'm fully in support of it. Stoffel, easy, chill out. "And who are you Hofbauer to make fun of people?" Well, there wouldn't be much point in making fun of things, or animals, right? see that little smiley there? it means, hey, dude, check the first post in this thread - can happen to anyone. "A wise man knows to laugh about himself"

I don't think so. Hulldown is a I/O, black-white thing. IOW, either it's hull-down, or it's not.

what is all this BS about? 1. of course a tank can take multiple penetrations before being destroyed. 2. The sneak thing. Maximus and others already explained it in depth but you fail to understand it seems. You were *sneaking*, and *not fired upon*. If you're supposed to "sneak" = make as litle commotion whatsoever it doesn't seem prudent to be shooting around like 4th of July does it?? If you want them to shoot unengaged, use MOVE. RTFM. 3. The SdKfz prime movers (Sd.Kfz. 6, 7, 9, 10, 11) were NOT armored. Tris, w h a t is your point? [This message has been edited by M Hofbauer (edited 02-10-2001).]

I never used Napster, since it's too much of a hassle to me and my cable-modem having to DL all that stuff, then convert it and burn onto CD or record it to tape via the stereo. What little music I'm listening to will be classical music on the radio or buying select CDs from the bargain bin and voilá I'm a happy CM gamer with music background ) I find all those software pirates and napster users pretty disgusting. They're like parasites to the rest of society. And who is the judge on whether the people you steal from are "innovative"? you? That's like someone saying: "In only kill people who deserve to be killed." you aren't quite the early bird stoffel, are you? :0) see the initial post of this thread. Bertelsmann is a big trust roughly comparable to a crossover between CNN/Turner and Barnes&Noble. They were big in books (offering the only major book-club in germany), and media, and recently (last couple of years) turned their attention to the internet and made some other major aquisitions (Lycos etc.) besides napster. No, charging a fee doesn't matter about whether or not it is illegal, it would only raise the stakes (eventually their fine). When Bertelsmann took over napster, it was because they are planning to turn one of their major parasite problems (Bertelsmann is big in the music CD business too) into a cashcow of theirs by legalizing it and making people pay for DLs. Stupid move IMO, the pirates will simply migrate elsewhere. Tiger: very clever, you are to be commended to smuggle such a discussion in here under the cloak of a CM - thread-title =-) [This message has been edited by M Hofbauer (edited 02-10-2001).]

Pro-QB Bias? Pro-Logic Bias? Pro-Fixing Bias?

* 20mm gun in Lynx cannot fire on aircraft. * Fixed a bug that made the TacAI hesitant to give targeting orders to the rearward-firing Archer. Pro-Allied Bias? [This message has been edited by M Hofbauer (edited 02-09-2001).]

Silencer: I noticed that the 20mm gun in the German halftrack could also target an airplane. Could the barrel be elevated enough in the half-open turret? yes. The standard 2cm/coax recon open turret setup (can't remember the designation) used for the PSW 222, 234/1 and elsewhere including the HT version you mention (250/9 IIRC) specifically provided for aiming at aircraft with the 2cm used in that turret's mount. Maximus: Tom, scenarios have always been forward compatible. IIRC among other things there was a sniper / Flamethrower ammo problem in one upgrade, or remember the american halftrack ammo problem?

1. Early Firefly Blast Rating Before September 1944, the Firefly is limited to AP rounds (including tungsten), it has no HE rounds. However, when you check the vehicle details, it will say "blast rating = 40"; surely this is for the HE ammo. Since the Firefly doesn't have any HE rounds (at that time), only AP, and consequently uses these against infantry (preferrably mortars, HMGs etc.), I would like to see the blast rating for the AP round displayed, not for the nonexistant HE round. 2. Only two types of ammo shown in AP chart of vehicle info Another problem concerns the AP range-penetration table supplied in the vehicle data: the penetration performance for various ranges and angles is given for two ammo types (AP and HE, or HE and hollow, or AP and tungsten). problem with the 5cm PaK (and some other guns, but to a lesser degree): the AP data is shown for AP and tungsten. However, most times the gun will have no tungsten rounds, only AP and HE. In a longer shootout he AP can be gone and the gun forced to use HE ammo vs light armor. The table gives no remote hint about the armor penetration of the gun when using the plentiful HE ammo. yours sincerely, M.Hofbauer

hmmm. I never played one myself, but I made a h2h operation, "Advance North", and I was wondering if it works well. It is envisioned as a sorta seesaw battle over an area with room for maneuver. Unfortunately, I cannot play it myself, it's obviously too easy vs the AI since it is more or less balanced, and I can't play it vs a human opponent since I know all the forces etc., but I would gladly send it to two people wanting to try it vs each other. Email me if interested. [This message has been edited by M Hofbauer (edited 02-07-2001).]

"I thought I had come across an unusual bug, and decided to run a few fire tests to check it out, rather than rant away like some demented fool." Berkut, don't take Jasper and my post as directed against you, they were just cheap jokes about the fact that this tungsten use/nonuse is a running gag/bug all the time, and personally I think it will never get fixed completely ) so, again, your post is totally ok (your, and especially vanir's research into this, ARE very important), the comments were in jest. I am eagerly awaiting someone official step in here and comment...after all, 1.2 will be the final patch so there's still hope that this might get fixed.