Jadayne

Well I've played for 3 whole days now and can't get enough! One thing I've noticed, though (much to my chagrin) is that often (but not always) the FOW at the beginning of the game is on NONE instead of FULL -exactly the opposite of what I'd expect in a wargame. The end result being several ruined scenarios after carefully positioning each and every unit during the setup phase -only to have the entire opposing OOB revealed to me during the first turn. Of course, I should've paid attention when I chose the scenario, but I (and probably some other newbies out there) just assume the FOW will be set to the most realistic setting. Maybe BTS should think of making the default for all scenarios FULL fog of war instead of NONE -in the next patch perhaps?

hey, while we're on the subject of pirating (again), I should tell you in Bulgaria, for instance, pirating is semi-legal. That is, legitimate companies exist (some whith state funding) that do nothing but pirate. They have all of the hardware available -burners, printers, etc., and can make reasonably good quality, heck -perfect copies of any music or software you can imagine. They then ship them to other Eastern European countries. The pirates are sold door-to-door, Avon style, to companies and individuals here in Prague. A bulgarian literally knocks on your office door with a backpack full of cd's. What's more, they're usually here LONG before the title's actually released in this neck of the woods. All pirate CD's here -music, software, SonyPlaystation, cost about 6$. These pirate's aren't buggy. They're not virus infected. If you don't take the moral high ground on the pirating issue, then there's really no reason you wouldn't buy one. Face it, unless the hardware or software we presently use is SERIOUSLY tweaked, then it's never gonna stop. Might as well take as much good out of the situation as possible.

not yet, but strangely enough, I had to wait about an hour at the post office as everyone seemed to be very busy at their computers. Also, the postmaster asked me to check the manual about mortar LOS and rates of fire when I went to pick up my package. BTW, does CM normally come wrapped in torn (czech) newspaper wrapped with ducktape? As for the real pirates, they'll eventually get it anyway -as they did in china ("bad news for BTS") most likely bundled with 50 other games. The bright side is that someone might see the game on a pirate cd who otherwise wouldn't have ever heard of the game and buy it because his pirate is defective or he needs the manual to get the full effect of the game. this kind of thing does happen, ya know. At the risk of opening myself up to severe criticism for not turning him in to the proper authorities at once, i'll tell you that that's how a friend of mine got into the whole "Civilization" series. He got the origional on a pirate bundled with 25 other games. He played civ, but could never get really good at it without the instructions. Eventually he bought it because when it was finally made available here and has since bought Civ 2, and Civ Call to power. I don't know whatever happened to the Pirate CD. If nothing else, I think CM is the same kind of game. Piraters may actually be doing BTS a (slight)favor by getting the game made available to people in countries that may never have heard of it. They try it, think it's cool but can't really get into it. Then, when they see it somewhere (internet), they remember it and buy it. I know that that is really playing devil's advocate, but I'm just looking at the brightside of an otherwise bleak subject.

CM arrived in Prague this morning, a mere 17 days after I ordered, and with no duty to pay. I'm gonna have to rethink all my criticisms of post-communist beurocracy. Anyway, i'm gonna hunker in the bunker for a few days to feel out the game, then I'll see the rest of you on the field of battle. (this means I'm gonna have to come up with a cool signature for my posts)

wait a minute here. I post a reply where I call the tactics of ww1 ridiculous and no one begs to differ? No one steps up to spank me and call me an ignorant "twitch" fanatic. No one pokes me with sharp pencils and berates me for making such a blanket, obviously completely uninformed statement calling into question the tactics used during the (other) single greatest military cataclism in this century. Isn't anyone gonna quote Clausewitz or Sun Tzu and tell me to go play Tomb Raider? Isn't anyong gonna link me to "Jimbo's WW1 tactics homepage"? Isn't anyone gonna pepper me with angry smilies and challenge me to a home grown CM scenario loosely based on Verdunne? Are you guys going soft on me? Wait, does anyone here even know anything about WW1?

yeah, if you want to talk about seemingly ridiculous tactics, look at WW1. did you know, for instance, that the Poles still had a regimant of lancers? lasted about 1 battle. little wonder there aren't many games available about that conflict -it would be almost impossible to play

your wife plays? she got a sister?

g,morning. you know, the worst part about living in Eastern Europe is waiting for all you guys to wake up to answer any posts I write in the morning (it's 5pm here now). Anyway, we'll never know for sure whether it was improved accuracy or higher rates of fire that was the death of line tactics, because they were both developed at the same time. It was most likely both. All ideas discussed are true to some extent. At the beginning of the civil war, the rifle was not developed enough to change the way battles had been fought for the last hundred years. And, by the end of the war, when the rifle, the repeating carbine, and the gatling gun had been tested on the field, generals knew that a MAJOR change was necessary if armies were going to be effective in the future. Thus the horrendous casualties and the seeming stupidity of soldiers standing in lines in the movies. by the way, as far as assassinating leaders: the winners write the history books, and if the history books say the assassination was justified, then it was. If the history books say it was terrorism, then it was. Until someone else writes the book, that is. Hehe.

isn't "straggling" somewhat represented already in casualties. Not all casualties are KIA. Most are just incapacitated in some way so they can no longer fight. I would consider units that flee the field to be very incapacitated. (PC note - "moralely challenged") In this case the units aren't deducted while running, but while under fire, but the effect is the same.

I just went back and reread the thread. 6-8 year old girls, mostly -the "My little pony" crowd

why would i have to be in sacremento?

The difference in the games comes from the gameplay. For some reason, I got a better sense of the maneuvering in Gettysburg than I did from Antietem. I've only played the demos of both games (I live in Eastern Europe and can't find the games here anywhere), but maybe my enjoyment of Gettysburg comes from my better knowledge of the ins and outs of that battle than Antietem. The fact is, I know the games are abstract. I know that they leave out mountains of detail. But they are fun and easy to play and if you're looking for a good chess game -which in the end all wargames are -you might enjoy giving these a try.

wait a minute steve, while I haven't played TS's games, I gather from Durruti's post that it's just another move your army, click "done" and the AI moves it's army. Pillar was looking for how maneuvering works on an 18th or 19th century battlefield. "Gettysburg" and (although less fun) "Anteitam" are the only two games I know of that give you an almost real time feel for how you move those kinds of formations on the field. If I'm wrong, then I stand corrected, but anyway, I like them. Pillar, when you're done debating american foreign and domestic policy, you might want to check them out. The demo is downloadable at the firaxis site. (oh crap, a shameless plug)

damn, got here too late. Anyway, Listen to what Ahbrams wannabe says. It's 100% spot on. Put two gurilla fighters behind rocks facing each other with muzzle loading muskets and they'll miss each other for centuries. the only way to assure some degree of accuracy is to fire a massed volley at the enemy. You can't do that if everyone is spread out over the landscape, taking cover behind rocks and trees. What's more, when the enemy does eventually charge, your COC is useless and your forces panic. Better to take the casualties on the field -and give them back. The better trained army eventually prevails. P.S. look for Sid Meiers "GettysBurg" from Firaxis for a more entertaining look at how 18-19 century maneuvers work.

here are a few questions after playing the demo extensively for the past week (waiting for a copy) 1. what's with the nuclear-type blast when a building is reduced to rubble? Do units within that blast take damage or just the ones in the building itself? Did buildings actually explode like that or just crumble after repeated shell hits? 2. Can prisoners escape if they are not guarded? I've seen a few threads regarding prisoners being left under guard by tank crews or whoever was around. The first time I played I didn't expect to be able to take prisoners. I marched them to the rear (unguarded) and left them there. Was that a mistake. They were all there when the game ended. Are captives better for your score than corpses? (really dumb question) what is hull down? I'm sure all these questions are answered in the manual, but it's a slow day at work, so I thought I'd write the forum instead.

was it in the beginning or towards the end of the game? I've noticed that sometimes, when the AI is low on ammo or "effective" units, it will start moving HQs and spotters up to the front.

Jeeeeeeeeez, Flipping through these threads- I don't know if this is more like some freaky religious cult or wargamer support group. It's gonna get kind of boring around here once everyone actually has the game. Then we'll be reduced to talking about boring stuff like playing CM. Anyway, in spite of the fact that no one seemed to know how long the shipping takes, I threw caution to the wind and ordered this afternoon. I suppose I can have it forwarded if I'm not here. So, you may hear me bitching for a few weeks depending on how long it takes. Once I get it, is there a good forum around here to find PBEM opponents?

wow, I just got done flipping through threads that have anything to do with piracy on this site, or criticism of BTS, or bitching about the lateness of the game. quite a passionate (rabid?) bunch I seem to have hooked up with here. I'll definately watch my step before saying anything that goes against the party line (like the above sentence) I've definately noticed that there is a difference in tone between the "haves" and "have nots" on this forum. I'm placing my order today and I hope to be converted before long.;}

Ok, Ok. I WAS only kidding. If I wasn't planning on buying the game from BTS legitimately, I wouldn't be here posting. Sorry to the BTS guys if my joke was taken seriously, but the wide availability of pirates (and instant delivery time) is kind of a running joke here in this part of the world. There are more important markets for companies like Microsoft, after all. I still need to know the expected ETA of the product if it is ordered now, however, because I don't know how long I'll be at my present address. Anyone have a clue? p.s. You'd be surprised at the software they pirate here -for about 2 dollars a copy, not 10. again, sorry if i offended anyone

Ok, Ok. I WAS only kidding. If I wasn't planning on buying the game from BTS legitimately, I wouldn't be here posting. Sorry to the BTS guys if my joke was taken seriously, but the wide availability of pirates (and instant delivery time) is kind of a running joke here in this part of the world. There are more important markets for companies like Microsoft, after all. I still need to know the expected ETA of the product if it is ordered now, however, because I don't know how long I'll be at my present address. Anyone have a clue? p.s. You'd be surprised at the software they pirate here -for about 2 dollars a copy, not 10. again, sorry if i offended anyone

Hey, I live in Prague, Czech Republic. Based on what I'm hearing from everyone else who's waiting (in Canada even), should I bother ordering this game or just wait until the Russians pirate it? How long will it realistically take to ship here?