Juardis

I was in a PBEM QB with Havermeyer, he the Brits, me the Jerries. He was dropping mortar rounds all around my Panther G, but I was in the process of hunting forward, so he didn't do too well. Anyway, I wasn't really sure where it was, but I suspected a location. On the next turn I spy an infantry? team in the woods. So I click on it and there's an area target line emanating from it to the point that the mortar shells were landing. So, even though the game couldn't identify what kind of infantry unit it was, I surely had no problems . ------------------ Jeff Abbott

I really should just go to bed, but the more I cogitate on this post, the more pissed off I become. Jake, I suggest you do two things. Delete this message and change your handle if you desire to stay here.

tonight I had a Jumbo 76 targeting a Stug III from about 250m. About 500m away was a Panther A, just out of sight of my Jumbo. I had a 60mm mortar in the woods that could see the Panther, but he was targeting a HMG42 unit instead, knowing that his pitiful ordnance was wasted on a Panther. Anyway, as the turn unfolds, the Panther rolls forward until he has LOS on my Jumbo. My Jumbo is locked onto the Stug and he doesn't break lock. My mortar team is dropping shells on the HMG as fast as he can. The Panther starts firing into my Jumbo and fortunately for me he missed... three times. When my Jumbo finally kills the Stug, he turns on the Panther, hits it, and...the shell breaks up. Damn, frontal armor, gonna be a tough kill. Then I see smoke surrounding the Panther. WTF? Surely I didn't scare him into popping smoke (I don't remember if they have smoke or not). So I replay it and what happened was my mortar team stopped shelling the HMG unit long enough to unload all 4 smoke shells in front of the Panther. Smoke blocks the view of the Panther. My Jumbo lives. Now I know my cyber soldiers are hell bent on self-preservation, but the fact that he was looking out for his tank buddy was in-freaking-credible. My mortar teamed saved his ass. Outstanding! ------------------ Jeff Abbott

Well, it's been a while, but... I think the 2 are comparable when determining kill percentages for when infantry fires on infantry. I think CM does an outstanding job when it comes to tanks vs. tanks (what with the armor penetration math and all). I think SP is a bit more abstract and relies more on probabilities and hence does not do as good a job in this regards. And while I have yet to get an 88 in CM, I always had at least one and mostly 2 in SP. They could stop an attack all by themselves, and usually did. So maybe they're too powerful in SP? As for playing the CM demo, have you PBEM yet? ------------------ Jeff Abbott

que the borg....

At least I think it's new since I haven't seen it and I tend to read them all. http://www.sgo.cc/reviews/combat_mission/index.shtml ------------------ Jeff Abbott

Incoming! I just attempted to address "gamey". We'll see how it works. Also, I went to the FAQ page and it appears there's some problem with your scripting (look at question 4 and below). Other than that, outstanding job Colin. I really appreciate you taking the time. ------------------ Jeff Abbott

Ok, now we have a bunch of questions. Feel free to answer here. My suggestion is that those who posted the questions perhaps take the first stab to answer them. Then we take it from there? ------------------ Jeff Abbott

Talk to us Jason. Is the list you provided in my thread "A question of FAQs" the same list you alluded to here? My thought was to develop this FAQ in this forum with everyone contributing as they see fit. To that end, I added 4 (or 5 if you like hamsters ) items to the list you provided in my thread. If, however, you wish to compile this thing "off-line", then where/how do you propose we find out about what's been answered already and what needs answering? Yes, I will help as I said below and yes, I remember you saying you were working on one (which I guess makes me an nuveaux old-timer ). ------------------ Jeff Abbott

no one?

a. can downloadable scenarios be played with the demo? answer: no b. what version is the demo? answer: 1.02 c. can pre-made scenarios be used for quick battles? answer: depends. Quick battles are setup by the computer. If playing against the AI or PBEM, the answer is no. However, you can create a map, either from scratch or by using the same options used in a quick battle. You can then populate the map with bought units. You'll just have to rely upon your opponent to stick to the unit costs you agreed upon before hand. This way you can see the map before purchasing units. d. can fires spread? answer: no e. are there hamsters in the game? answer: no, those will come in CM2, particularly the battle for Stalingrad. Based on previous responses, I'm assuming someone else is working on a FAQ. Therefore, in case these aren't included (especially e), I'm putting them here. Will add more later when I think of them. Jeff

I did a search, did not find this book listed in all the various book threads. I don't really want to start up another book thread, but I'd like to know if anyone has the following and if so, what they think of it. World War II in Europe: An Encyclopedia (Garland Reference Library of the Humanities, Vol 1254) It's a 2 volume set, 1550 pages, priced at 195 USD at Amazon. It covers everything in Europe plus most of Africa and Middle East. I can't tell if it includes Russia or not though (I'd guess not). It covers battles (with maps), units, weapons, strategies/tactics/concepts (including doctrines), leaders, and social/political events. The review I read at Amazon sounded promising, but I'd like some more opinions from some of you CM grogs. Thanks, Jeff and yes, I'm aware of the 25$ Encyclopedia of Weapons in World War II. (so if that's a better buy, I could save myself 170$).

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by aka_tom_w: Is it gamey to split squads in the initial set up so you can dig twice as many fox holes so you have some to retreat back into. [This message has been edited by aka_tom_w (edited 08-14-2000).]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> MOST definitely gamey, I will never play you again . Ok, I've never played you once, but if I did I'd call you a gamey bastahd. Ok, maybe not gamey, but bloody clever. That's a beautiful situation you described. You're only concern should be if the enemy sets up where they can see you rejoin your squads. ------------------ Jeff Abbott

yes, I use the mods (sound mods too) yes, just drop in the bmp or wav directories yes, they're worth it

And how would you define "big stuff". Is that the penultimate munitions, or just the ultimate munitions? Seriously, I define big stuff as anything that can knock out armor. In that regards, an 81mm mortar can knock out my Stug IV. On board mortars are fine because every round is one shell, there is no spotting round. However, 105mm, 120mm, 155mm, etc. Those can destroy a small building or armored vehicle or immobilize an armored vehicle with one shell. Also, there is limited number of that caliber. 15 or so for 105's, 6-10 for 155's, etc. If you're spread out all over the map, then a spotting round is less likely to hit anything. However, for close in city fighting (for example, a Second Job by WBW), a spotting round is likely to hit something important, if only a building that you were counting on. I hear what you guys are saying, one shell per round is meaningless, but if you have a 40 turn game and only 6 ammo points, that one shell per turn translates into 40 shells per game vs. the normal 24 shells or so (6 ammo points time 4 shells per ammo point). It is also effective when used as deception. But if used in this manner, something has to give. Either count each shell as an ammo point and deduct for each spotting round or change the spotting round to be smoke or something. For example, say the 14inch FO has 3 ammo points and each ammo point counts as 3 shells, that's a total of 9 shells. Change the ammo points to 9. That way, a spotting round counts as one and each shell fired as part of the barrage counts as one. ------------------ Jeff Abbott

I think the Korean War would also benefit greatly from the CM engine. I have yet to play a Korean War game (historically accurate) that has captured my interest. I think BTS could do an outstanding job with that war. The weapons are upgraded late-war WW2 weapons and, after CM2 is made, should mostly be available already. I know there are Korean War weaps not available in WW2, but a large number were. ------------------ Jeff Abbott

IIRC, someone in here is working on one. But if not, I would take a first stab at one. Realizing that I'm certainly not the best person to be doing this, what I thought I'd do is start one in this forum with as much as I can reasonably speak to in the first post. Then let others add to/correct what's there. After 25 posts or so I could collate all the responses, delete the original thread and start a new clean thread with the original responses organized better. 1. Is it a waste of my time (i.e., is something coming out from someone else soon)? 2. Would you guys find this of benefit (I would)? 3. Would BTS mind? ------------------ Jeff Abbott

the link is also in my post of "CM2, 3, and 4, oh my!" As to SSPL's original assertion, I agree. It's a fantastic article. ------------------ Jeff Abbott

Just finished reading an AAR from Charles himself regarding the making of CM1. An absolute must read and thanks to Havermeyer for pointing it out to me. Here's the last paragraph from the following link: http://www.zdnet.com/gamespot/features/pc/postgame_wrapup/index.html "Plan ahead. Gamers always want to know what we're working on next, so I'll tell you. Combat Mission 2 will take us to the Russian front, from 1941 to 1945. Combat Mission 3 will focus on battles in North Africa and the Mediterranean, and Combat Mission 4 take place during the Blitzkrieg years of the early war, from 1939 to 1940. We may go beyond that, but we have no firm plans yet." ------------------ Jeff Abbott

That was good. Got anymore?

Yo Pvt. Welcome to our collective. Let me be the first to point out the search hyperlink, it's right below the post reply hyperlink. I only point this out because you'll get that reply a lot (as in, that was discussed already, use the search). It's good advice, you just get tired of hearing it . CM2 will be East Front. The specifics are unknown considering they're (BTS) still working on CM1. Don't get caught up too much in the eye candy, even though most of it is quite good. The true brilliance lies underneath the hood. As for the how the SS troops are depicted, I don't know. I have yet to play a scenario with them. Thanks for the book info. I'm compiling a list from this forum (yes, you guessed, there was a topic just yesterday on books) and others. I hadn't seen those mentioned though. Welcome again edited to say: drat, pathfinder beat me to it ------------------ Jeff Abbott [This message has been edited by Juardis (edited 08-11-2000).]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Neutral Party: However, I can't think of how such a tactic could be hardcoded out as you would then lose the ability to adjust fire. Eeh it's a dilemma Gromit! Joe<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Joe, or anybody else for that matter, for whose purpose is that spotting round? I mean, you the human behind the keyboard set the target point. Your FO is the one who calls it in to the boys in the rear. It's the FO's responsibility to adjust the fire to hit the target once the target's been selected, is it not? So the fact that you don't like what you targeted is different than the fact that the FO doesn't like where it landed. The spotting round is for him, not for you the human behind the keyboard. If however, you need to change the target, that's understandable too. So long as no spotting round has landed you should be able to move it without using up an ammo point. Otherwise, move it and lose it. I think it gamey and the spotting rounds should be included in the first barrage. If a human does that with me (drop spotting rounds all day long), I would never play that human again. I wouldn't hold a grudge or get my panties in a wad though, I just wouldn't play him again. JMO. edited for Babra: Jeff is getting angry (think Seinfield and George Costanza here ). ------------------ Jeff Abbott [This message has been edited by Juardis (edited 08-11-2000).]

Wow, I hope my PBEM opponent doesn't read this before he plots his next move. Havermeyer, if that arty doesn't start falling where that spotting round landed I'll taunt you a 2nd time . Anyway, the solution, other than agreeing not to do it because I agree that is the penultimate gamey tactic, is for BTS to code a spotting round as part of one firing round. That is, you must go through with your barrage or risk losing one of your ammo points whenever a spotting round lands. JMO ------------------ Jeff Abbott

OK so let's say we're racing against time. You have to relieve x battalion at y location in z hours or they will die and the war will be lengthened by a few months. The only way to get to y is to take a road, or a this building, or a bridge. You're already behind schedule. Do you a) stop, have a spot of tea and wait for reinforcements? or send in anything and everything you got to take said objective? Yes, I laid down cover fire with my MMGs for the infantry assault as well. I hesitate to say more, but if I must * * * * SPOILERS * * * BELOW * * * * The scenario is Nijmegen. The building I need to take is a VL on my side of the river Waal. If I do not take this building, I do not capture Nijmegen bridge and Arnhem has no hope of getting reinforcements. You, as CIC, have to decide whether preserving some tank crews is worth the lives of 100's of men further up the road. In real life I would sacrifice those tank crews. That is not gamey, it is reality.

yes, the game is back in stock. Do a search for "stock" and you should come across a post made by BTS within the past week or so. And AFAIK, user made scenarios do not work with the demo. ------------------ Jeff Abbott