Sirocco

How many accounts do you have from tankers who didn't get a firing slit penetration..? I wonder why that might be... I used pillboxes myself for the first time recently. The change from the original VoT demo was huge. Easy to hit, even with the first shot in trees, and far to easy to achieve a firing slit penetration. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

And the CMBO engine isn't "inaccurate and misleading"? I think you'll find it handles most things in an abstract manner. With more computing power the CM series will become ever more powerful, with a more accurate representation of the battlefield, and that will include a more accurate visual representation, which some may describe as "eye candy". And I wouldn't expect BTS to include such things unless the code was stable. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

That would depend on whether or not you could follow the flight path, and whether the impact point was in your line of sight. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

If BTS can find a way to do it in CM2 - and I woudn't expect it - they'll do it. Whether or not it has a practical purpose it will simply look cool. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

The fact that a game as poor as 101 can be a success shows that there is a good market out there. Nice presentation at the start, poor game system and almost non-existant AI. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

But gyro-stablisers were normally turned off by crews - accurate firing was only possible from the halt. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

Thank you for a thought provoking article. I'd recommend it to anyone who'd like to improve their defensive tactics. I'm looking forward to seeing more in the future. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>So I guess that means irrespective of the other effects the globale morale of the side with CAS should rise and that of the opponent fall.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> "We had hardly started when they were overhead...Dirt, stones, and disintegrated trees, wrapped in clouds of black smoke, went flying past our vision slits...As if chased by the devil we raced across trenches and over craters, 60 tons of tank bobbing about like a rowing boat in a storm." - Caen, Anvil of Victory, p.244 When looked at from that perspective, I think "shocked" status for the crew would most often be the appropriate result of CAS. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>I'm pretty sure they do.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> But, in addition to actually being in scattered trees, do they receive a bonus for actually starting in them? I can't remember seeing any mention of that anywhere. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by 109 Gustav: Nebelwerfer 150mm are great for this. They're dirt cheap, and their accuracy doesn't suffer that much from blind firing.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> With that kind of "accuracy" I think you actually benefit from blind firing! The last time I used 'werfers - even with spotted firing - I think they did more damage to my own forces than to the enemy. I don't think you can declare a part of the map "off-limits" to artillery fire. There are plenty of examples of startlines coming under direct and indirect fire, and plenty of examples of attacks being broken up even before they get started. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent [This message has been edited by Sirocco (edited 01-20-2001).]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Bimmer: I am of the mind that air support is now entirely too effective and does not mimic the historical capabilities of CAS very well. Interdiction is beyond the scope of the game. Unfortunately, there are some who do not understand the differences between the two.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> I couldn't agree more. I don't know how BTS intend to implement aircraft in CM2, or whether they intend to include them at all, but it's an area that needs some fundemental research if they are to be included. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by CavScout: I think it is tough to compare CAS of today versus that of WWII.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> It seems the point I was making was lost. I was using a rather general comparison to show that fighter-bombers don't dominate against tanks as some here seem to believe. And BTW, I would expect the modern optics, better weaponry and countermeasures available to pilots today compensate for the increase in speed and AA. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Banshee: You have a fundamental lack of understanding of war and airpower.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Banshee, you made exactly the point I was making. Airpower isolates battlefields. It denies an opponent supplies. Tanks are useless without fuel, ammunition and spares. It has always been the case that airpower did that, rather than destroying tanks outright, per se. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Dittohead: I think 4 sacrificial Virgins dressed in white would be appropriate.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> We all have that on our personal wish lists... ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Ksak: Pioneers, engineers, sappers are very useful in city fighting. Wait for the Stalingrad knife fights in CM2 and you'll learn to love 'em.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Absolutely. Use your longer ranged infantry weapons to suppress enemy infantry and close assault with "heavy" squads like pioneers or SMG squads. Know your weapons. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by tailz: I'm not denying that it was an aquired skill, but a skill that (obviously) the allied pilots had. (and the Luftwaffe certainly had a mastery of it during the initial years)<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Well, if airpower in WW2 was so accurate, why, in 1991, when Iraqi armour was out in the desert, did we need a ground war..? ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by GriffinCheng+: IIRC, the sequent goes like this: <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> The more you read about Market Garden, the more a work of fiction it seems to be! ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by tailz: Goodwood's bombardment is not an example of CAS...And the odds of a fighterbomber getting a 'hit' would be quite good I would assume... it was their job, practiced day after day... ask any German tanker that was the victim of a Tiffy run<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> The point I was making was that tanks generally require a direct hit to knock them out while thin-skinned vehicles can be knocked out with near misses. And the chances of getting a direct hit would be good..? War isn't a videogame. Put yourself in the seat of a WW2 fighter-bomber, dropping down at speed from altitude, aiming at a tiny target on the ground, in cover, possibly moving, with ground fire coming up at you. Now what do you think your chances are of hitting that..? ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

While I was thinking about how close air support is modelled in CM, I wondered whether vehicles receive a "camouflage bonus" when they start out in scattered trees. I think that would simulate crews using foliage to conceal them. When the vehicle moves, engages a target or is engaged, then that bonus is removed. That bonus would only apply in spring or summer, of course. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

"It is also worth mentioning that the commander of the 3rd Company of the 503rd Tiger Battalion... described... how one of his 57 ton tanks was literally turned upside down by the force of the explosions, and how one of his men was drive insane and two more committed suicide during the attack. Four of his Tigers were destroyed and the rest had to be dug out of the earth and debris which covered them." - Steel Inferno, Michael Reynolds, p.174-175 This was part of a preparatory raid for Operation Goodwood by 1,500 British and American heavy bombers. The important thing to note is not how many Tigers were knocked out, but how many were buried by the severity of the bombing, were then dug out and were subsequently serviceable. I can only presume the knocked out Tigers were victims of direct hits. But what are the chances of a fighter-bomber getting a direct hit..? I have to assume that most bomb or rocket attacks were either complete or near misses. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Big Time Software: If I am not mistaken the USAAF provided most of the CAS missions in the war, especially in Normandy.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> I have the impression, from several books I've read on Normandy, that the opposite was true, but I might be wrong. I can certainly remember a friendly-fire incident the US 29th Inf Div suffered, I think, on the 7th or 8th of June as it advanced towards Isigny by RAF Typhoons, and if the USAAF had been the dominant partner I would have assumed they would have been over the US front line. Would someone like to clarify this point..? ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent [This message has been edited by Sirocco (edited 01-11-2001).]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Big Time Software: in 5 years of combat Rommel was taken out of action by what... MGs from a plane<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> But how close was he to the front line..? From everything I've read CAS was actually more effective on lines of supply than the front line, though I'm sure it had a great impact there, perhaps not in actually destorying things, just in terrorising crews to the extent they were no longer quite as effective. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by wwb_99: I have not tried area-firing into smoke, as I would think that the fire does not carry through the smoke to whatever the hell my opponent is masking on the other side. Is this a false assumption?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> The outgoing fire will continue on it's way until it hits something solid. ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent

Good to see a Canadian scenario, especially one based on Carpiquet. Does it extend to to cover the airfield and the bunkers, too..?

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Kanonier Reichmann: Another case of the benevolent treatment of other countries troops by the then British "Empire".<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> ------------------ "He belongs to a race which has coloured the map red, and all he wants are the green fields of England..." - Joe Illingworth, Yorkshire Post War Correspondent