Snake Eyes

You should keep in mind that the graphic display of the game is only a representation of what is going on in the game engine. The display only approximates what the engine is doing. So, while your little pixel soldiers are heaving heavy objects great distances the game engine is calculating the probability of a successful close assault. The graphic has nothing to do with the success of the attack.

Running at 1280x1024 @85hz P4 1.4GHz 512MB PC800 RDRAM NVidia GeForce4 Ti4600 128MB NEC FE991SB 19"

Tiger I crews were very well trained and highly motivated, especially early on. The crews went through rigorous training and testing. If they did not meet expectations they were washed out.

The lessons learned at Stalingrad and the deficiencies identified there brought forth the Brummbär with its 15cm gun. However, 15cm was not powerful enough to defeat all fortifications. On 5 August 1943 it was suggested to Adolf Hitler that a new naval weapon be mated to a tank chassis which would provide the needed firepower to put the Germans on top. And it was this suggestion which gave birth to the Sturmtiger. So, as you see, its genesis is Stalingrad.

Here's some information I pulled off the web about a year ago that may be of interest to the ballistic grogs. The weapon fired two kinds of shells (which were more rockets than conventional projectiles). The high explosive shell was cataloged as 38cm 4581 while the hollow-charge shell was the 38cm 4592. Both projectiles had a maximum range of 5,700 meters. The 4592 round was specifically developed to destroy reinforced concrete fortifications but it is not known if this shell was actually deployed and thus the default is the 4581 shell being used in action. With that said, consider all the information on the ballistics and projectile dimensions to be for the 4581 round. The shell was a long affair, coming in two parts. The first part was the seamless, longitudinally welded cartridge and ballistic cap. This segment was 500mm long. The second part was the combustion chamber, which was 470mm long. The chamber was filled with about 40kg of diglycol powder, in a rod form. Both segments were linked by a unthreaded tension ring. The warhead was loaded with 135kg of TNT. The mechanical igniter was manually screwed into the front of the shell. All told, the complete round weighed in at 345kg. [ January 30, 2003, 02:18 PM: Message edited by: Snake Eyes ]

I chose the wording with purpose. The ST does nothing slightly.

I would also add: 6. Button up if you expect to be fired on by an ST. If a round hits anywhere near an exposed TC he will be severely killed.

Thanks Neuer for the informative post. Can you provide a source for this info? I would like to add it to my Sturmtiger infobase.

BFC had done some work on the ST during CMBO development. However, due to its rarity (18 vehicles) it was given a low priorty. When development time ran out it was dropped from the release of CMBO. BFC then took pity on whiners like me and threw us this bone in CMBB, even though it belongs on the Western Front.

Almost a true statement. At least one ST prototype was used against the uprising in Warsaw in August, 1944. That ST was then returned to Germany. Following this incident Sturmtigers were issued to only three companies, the 1000, 1001, and the 1002 Sturmmorser Companies and used against the Western Allies.

Your point is well made, although somewhat overstated. The ST is not a good choice for a QB due to the rarity factor. However, its a great weapon for a 'what if' scenario, allowing players to deal with a very unique weapon system. That's the beauty of games like CM; you can explore like crazy.

I'm sure you are correct in your assumption that the three minute reload time is for playability. However, when reload times for other weapon systems more accurately reflect reality, the ST times skew its power off the scale. In order to compensate, somewhat, for this issue, I reduce the load-out for ST's to less than half. This forces the player to use the ST more conservatively.

She is just gorgeous. Those incredible curves drive me crazy. That's one hot babe! ...and the girl wasn't too bad, either.

True enough, but Charles has been much too generous to the ST. It appears that in CM the reload time is around three minutes. Actually it took about three times that. As a consequence a couple of ST's, with some support, can blow away a battalion of Soviet infantry and a company of tanks. BFC is generally right on target when it comes to accurate modeling of units in CM. Unfortunately the ST's main drawback has not been modeled correctly. This failure makes the ST much too powerful. Lest I give the wrong impression, let me clarify my position on the ST. I was a leading advocate on the ST's inclusion in CMBB and I am grateful for the opportunity to finally command these monsters. However, I hope that BFC will adjust the reload time in a future patch so that both their good and bad points can be exploited.

I'm not sure what an 'Allied Storm Assault' is but obviously it isn't working. A change in your tactics is long overdue. This game is not broken, but it is very unforgiving of those that do not follow sound tactical doctrine. Forget Hollywood and try a new and ingenious method that takes advantage of your unit’s strengths and the enemy’s weaknesses. If these strengths and weaknesses are not apparent to you, then I suggest you read some books on the tactical history WWII. If this advise seems a bit daunting then try stopping by the Combat Mission – Tips and Tricks Forum for some help. Good luck.

Stick with it. Once your Tiger reaches 12th level you'll be able to use the laser cannon.

"Taken by surprise, the Americans failed to destroy the bridge structure, and a Panther made a dash about 0800 which carried it onto the north bank. More tanks followed." Gamey Germans!! For more detail on this Battle of the Bulge incident I refer you to this site.

IIRC, it carried two cranes, one external and one internal. The external crane was used for bringing the rockets onboard. The internal crane was mounted on the ceiling and used a trolly for moving the rounds to the breach. It was NOT loaded from the front. It typically took 8-10 minutes to load. In CMBB it takes only 3-4 turns and this should be corrected for balance.

...and George Patton was the commander of this fake army.

Actually this wasn't a test, it was a scenario that I created some time ago and PBEM'd several times. IIRC typical range varied from 200-500 and penetrations were made on all Panther aspects. Some T rounds did ricochet, but most hits penetrated. Some time after these games I made a test of tungsten loaded Shermans vs KT's at about 1000m. Needless to say, the Allies ended up with a lot of scrap metal. [ June 13, 2002, 03:54 PM: Message edited by: Snake Eyes ]

I think that depends upon crew experience. Shermans and TD's did take on Panthers and win. I wanted to see just how effective the much maligned Sherman could be if equipped soley with tungsten; a what if scenario. An ME, each side having a company of infantry, HT's, AC's, and a platoon of tanks (four Panthers vs five Shermans). After several replays the results showed that given the improved penetration of the tungsten round, Shermans could easily take on the Panthers. What mattered most was who got off the first shot.

The TacAI use of tungsten has always been a sore subject with me and a lot of others. It was improved somewhat, but crews still don't react reasonably, IMHO. However, Allied crews don't have a problem with popping smoke when they see the big cats.

Congats! Killing three King Tigers is always a great accomplishment. But to do so with no losses is exceptional!

Didn't BTS say that they would release the demo at the same time or after CMBB is released? I think there's still hope.

Have you ever considered forming a small battery with onboard mortars and using an HQ spotter similarly to a FO?