Sergei

Tiny: August Storm Going to Town Opportunity Knocks Small: Ambush Phase Line Green Hold the Line Objective Delta Platoon House Alexandra

All recon vehicles are challenging to use in Combat Mission because they are intended for operational or grand tactical level reconnaissance, ie. to report to brigade HQ if there's enemy forces in an area the size of a CM map and if they are moving, blocking roads or such. After that they're just poorly armed and armoured vehicles with slightly better sensors than usual and should be used accordingly, ie. with special care.

All recon vehicles are challenging to use in Combat Mission because they are intended for operational or grand tactical level reconnaissance, ie. to report to brigade HQ if there's enemy forces in an area the size of a CM map and if they are moving, blocking roads or such. After that they're just poorly armed and armoured vehicles with slightly better sensors than usual and should be used accordingly, ie. with special care.

I don't see any new developments there. Lukashenko has always being an opportunist balancing between east and west, depending on which one gives better benefits. Don't think for a second that he'd burn any bridges toward Russia.

I find that logic a little twisted - in a fictional conflict there presumably isn't any real chronological continuity beyond the basic background story's timeline and all dates are more or less just something out of the dark imagination of the designer in contrast to historical games. Eg. CMBN scenarios when played in order tell a story of an allied force landing in Normandy, getting bogged in the bocage, then slowly pushing through and finally attempting a breakthrough in Holland. There aren't even entry dates for new equipment and formations like there is in WW2 titles. Hell, CMBS backstory doesn't even make assumptions of who is the winner, the campaigns are open ended in this regard

It should be if it's penetrating, but they are small and hard to see. Also sometimes they hit in places where the hit decal is hard to notice or gets partially or totally covered by another polygon.

Note that you don't always have the same units from the core force from battle to battle. Eg. 1st mission might have units from A Company, 2nd mission units from B Company, and then 3rd mission could have a mix of A and B companies. Read the campaign briefings, they will usually tell what's to follow.

Check your air support menu to see if your aircraft got damaged. Bombers are way outside the scope for CAS and you wouldn't see something like B-52 in this type of conflict in any case - a Stratofortress would be way too easy target for a BUK. You might as well ask for cruise missiles, the thing is they don't have a place in a tactical environment. If you want them factored into a scenario then the mission should start after the strategic strike.

The smoke launchers on Soviet era vehicles (eg. BTR-80, BMP-2) generally have a long distance. They are meant to provide cover when crossing open fields and such ('offensive smoke'). Newer Russian and Ukrainian AFVs carry the short range 180º arc immediate deploy smoke ('defensive smoke') that US forces also use. Personally I find the black 'offensive smokes' very useful when I have them, even though their pattern tends to be erratic. But if the winds are right they can provide a quick cover for your movements. Learn how and when to use them, they may surprise your opponent!

Little birds chirp that there's a mod around for that, but I don't see the repository having a CMBS section open yet...

The game doesn't care what the conditions are in the quick battle, so a unit with superior thermal sights will cost more no matter what time it is. On the other hand, those superior thermals rock at day time too. Likewise a BMP's price is not affected by whether the map has any rivers to cross.

QB costs are a tough pickle with modern force multipliers. Thermal sights, for example: used well such troops can run circles around an enemy. On the other hand, a mortar round will take them out just as well.

Russian IFV/APCs have a better buoyancy, for one. Most of their vehicles also have airburst defilade fire capability.

That's not a question. I suppose what you refer to is about providing engine upgrades to previous titles. Which has nothing to do with new games.

Err... I shall just say that this train of thought is misguided anyway I believe the reason is simply a matter of time it'd take to code and animate. In CMx1 you could tow and also push AA guns about except for the heavy 85-90mm guns due to weight, and even those you could tow if you had prime movers capable of pulling them. But it was crude. My suspicion is that moveable AA guns will creep into the game at some point - CMBN didn't originally have any AA guns, then some were added for a ground role only, then they got the AA capability.

There is, you just need to dig deeper. If you are an Anglophone then of course it's easier to find finely detailed information about eg. the Bulge, but if you know some German or Russian then it isn't so hard. It also helps if you have an unlimited budget to acquire obscure foreign books, or if you have the time and patience to haul for accounts through interweb sites like http://iremember.ru/en/but you can't just say that there is no source material. Having said that, there will always be infinitely more material available about something like Normandy '44 than eg. the Battle for Crete because it's a more popular subject to wargamers. And since Normandy is popular, there is more research done on it. It's a vicious cycle!

BFC's bug tracker is not public, but you can still post your findings here in the forums. Testers and developers read them and will get to you if necessary.

Quite.

The gun itself is cheaper, and easier to maintain, than a tank, for sure. OTOH it requires a larger crew and an artillery tractor, and most of its work can be done by ATGMs far cheaper and way more mobile. ATG still has some benefits over ATGM: undisruptable, higher ROF, not affected by APS and usefulness for indirect support.

Are you sure it's not just maskirovka on his part?

Is that a wombat mating call?

Does it work that way? I recall from CMSF that stowed ammo was transferred to ready racks between missions in a campaign (if the unit was not otherwise restocked) but I could very well be mistaken.

No need to, I'm just enjoying the spectacle

Sounds like you had a fun time!!!

I like this no-nonsense, informational approach! Welcome! So, as you know, we have this mandatory funny anecdote requirement for all newcomers... P.S. Did you play CM Afghanistan and if so, what did you think of it?