Andreas

Same here - the AGP 32MB card is sweet, and by sweet I mean totally awesome. When I first had a close look at the game after installation, I wanted to kick someone in the head, that's how great it is. If I were to buy one of these new machines, I would still install this card. I currently run a G4/400 AGP.

Look, I am not saying it is perfectly modelled. I am just saying that a statement that it is not modelled at all is, AFAIK, not correct. Been a while since that was discussed though, so my memory maybe playing tricks on me. Another related matter that makes me believe it is modelled is the ease with which heavy guns are spotted, compared to light guns. Edit: good to see I am right BTW - another way to look at it is that the relatively long LOS distances are caused by starshells etc. The Soviets comment a lot on how the Germans loved these things, and liked to turn night into day with them, to prevent e.g. 'linguistic' work by Soviet recce. If you want to have pitch-black, you probably have to choose overcast night fog, or something. [ July 02, 2003, 10:54 AM: Message edited by: Andreas ]

I am reasonably certain that statement by you is not correct. Visual contacts should show up as 'sound contacts'. Maybe BFC can confirm that.

The scenario I recently published, 'The dirt road', I labelled as semi-historical. The map is made up to deliver an interesting game. The forces are not based on any single incident. So one could argue it should be 'fictional'. Yet the scenario depicts an action that was quite common in the summer days of 1941. A specific tactical challenge for the German player that was often mentioned in passing in unit histories. A realistic force mix on both sides. Because of that, I feel justified in calling it semi-historical. That to me simply means this could have been "Anyday, Anywhere, July 1941". These small actions are not recorded in the easily available literature, although one may find them in KTBs, if one goes to look those up at the archives. But they did happen, and just because it does not have a sexy formation or Ubertanks in it should not mean it is not scenario material, or any less realistic than a battle based on one of e.g. Generaloberst Rauss' accounts.

Thanks a lot to both of you. Had forgotten about Glantz' treatment of this. I am more interested in the German side though. Unfortunately Brody happened a few days after what I am interested in, but that was a helpful pointer!

Not quite sure what you want, but if it is a sIG33 SP that looks like one, I believe you are out of luck. The polygon model can not be changed through modding.

Oh come on!

There is evidence (comment from a company commander in 6.PD during Winter Tempest battles December 1942) that mixing on company level occured once the 75L4x versions of the Panzer IV were introduced. But even then I would think that whereever possible, the smallest unit broken out would be the platoon, and no mixing within that. ISTR that 12.PD detached a platoon of 75L4x Panzer IVs to 1.PD during the battles SE of Belyi in December 1942. Before that, I do not think there is much of a point of doing it, and IIRC the breakdowns for Kampfgruppen given e.g. in Glantz 'Early period of war' deal with company-sized attachments, and not below. ISTR that German doctrine frowned upon using anything smaller than the company to cross-attach. Of course, in a tight spot that goes right out of the window, but I think if BFC were to start having any organisation that could be, the platoon purchase list would be about as long as Heidi Klum's legs, and not anywhere near as shapely.

Err, that may have been the case in the actual fighting, once losses had been incurred, but on paper it was a neat organisation, with no mixing within platoons, or even companies, at that stage. There would always be two light (Panzer II/III/38t/35t) to one medium company (Panzer IV) in an Abteilung, with Panzer II later providing the recce platoons. So this situation is very different from e.g. the Firefly situation in the Commonwealth forces, where the mix of 1 (later 2) in 4 was on the paper OOB, and only rarely deviated from (8th Armoured Brigade did deviate), AIUI.

lol! Who knew a German could be so droll? </font>

I could live with it being done away with completely. Matter of fact, later in the war, in Commonwealth service in at least one division in Normandy all the Sherman AA MGs found their way into the half-tracks, and there is a large amount of pictorial evidence of Commonwealth Shermans with no AA MG at all. Earlier on, when air superiority was a bit more divided (probably talking Italy up to the battle of Rome) it is a bit of a different story, but I still doubt they would use them very much (at all?) against infantry, until someone shows me some evidence.

If someone owns a history or somesuch of 8.PD, can you please email me? I need some info on the action of 8.PD in combat during the first attacks of the L'vov Sandomierz Operation in July 1944. I have a Soviet map that places 8.PD at the entrance to what would become the Koltov corridor into which 3rd Guards Tank Army was inserted later. I would be interested in AARs, and any other info that maybe available. Thanks a lot in advance.

Thanks a lot Keith, much appreciated.

I think it depends which country you are looking at. British late-war tank squadrons had an organic ARV with a crew of fitters. For the Soviets and Germans I am not sure, but I know that the Soviet tank driver was doubling as a mechanic.

So it was you, just being concerned about me being lonely? Is having a stalker final proof that you have reached the heights of your profession?

The beauty about the internet is that even total morons are allowed to use it. Gives rise to a bitter laugh every so often. Some twit who was too cowardly to even sign his real name decided to put a bunch of spoilers in the scenario review of 'The dirt road' (partially wrong), so best don't read the reviews if you have not played it yet. He gave it a 2.5, which encouraged the next person to give it a straight 10. Either of these scores is underserved, IMO. Should be 15. I asked the Admiral to edit out the spoilers, and leave the review as a monument to idiocy. As if one needed reminders.

French surrender parade at Lille. After four days of resistance, the 1st Army in the city had to surrender only because they had run out of ammunition.

I do think Juin may have been better at politics, but you are right of course. So Juin and Anders probably the only competent Allied commanders in the battle for Rome. Later one may want to add Truscott.

Here is the biography on the commander of the CEF in Italy, Gen. Alphonse Juin. Almost certainly the most (if not only) competent senior commander on the Allied side. BTW, if you read it, the French defenders of Lille in 1940 were granted a parade under arms before disarming when they surrendered by the Germans, to honour their steadfast defense.

Hehe. Now, any more tired old jokes about the French attitude to war should maybe be on hold until the jesters have acquainted themselves with the comparative performance of US troops and the CEF in the Cassino battles in Italy. A constant complaint by the French was e.g. that the US tankers were too timid and unreliable. I suggest John Ellis' "Cassino - the hollow victory". And here are a few lines from Prof. Richard Holmes' writeup on the battle on the BBC History Website : (nb - these 'North-African troops' had a high proportion of white and metropolitan French soldiers, so they are not all Colonial cannon-fodder or Goumiers. In particular the leaders were overwhelmingly French. Contrast this with the dismal performance of the US leadership in the campaign, especially failure to exploit after the Anzio landing, Clark's mistake to go after Rome, and the hatchet job made of the Rapido crossing. [ June 27, 2003, 06:20 AM: Message edited by: Andreas ]

Nah, just me in a mean-spirited mood. Replay value is close to 8 on the depot, that is probably one of the best for one of my scenarios

Nobody is limiting anything, except those people who don't like others' opinions posted here. People were asked what their opinions are, and people have responded with their opinions. English must be very difficult to understand if that simple point is beyond the grasp of some posters here. If you want the mod, go find someone to do it, install it, be happy, it is your game, your life. I still stand by my initial reaction.

It would be crap.

Actually, I always thought the British Army beat it to that claim by being fully mechanised in 1939. Except for the Camel Corps of course! Then again, this website indicates that everything in Cheshire happens later - but at least someone is grinning there. http://www.cheshireyeomanry.org.uk/syria.htm

According to von Senger und Etterlin 'Die deutschen Geschuetze', this maybe the 7,5cm Feldkanone 7M85. This was probably an attempt to emulate the very successful Soviet ZIS-3 gun, in developing a gun equally capably as field gun, as it would be in the AT role. It was the barrel, and other elements of the 7,5cm PAK 40 mated with the carriage of the 10,5cm lFH 18/40, giving it the ability to fire in high angle, reaching out to 10,275m. It was however not seen as a successful blend, probably in the same way as a camel is not generally seen as a successful blend of a horse and a water carriage. It did weigh in at 328kg more than then PAK for example. My suspicion is also that the HE round would be extremely weak, the round weighing just 5.74kg.