Amedeo

I've had this idea since CMCW came out. A campaign that takes place in the Agger Valley, i.e. North Rhine-Westphalia, east of Cologne instead of the Fulda Gap. The main roads and railway go through the valley, the hills around it are a mixture of woods and farmland with only smaller roads and settlements. This is the area I grew up in and CMCW reminded me of the young boy I was back in the 80s with his regiment's worth of plastic soldiers and tanks, imagining things while looking out of the window. Recent events in Ukraine made me reconsider whether it is really that much of a good idea to see your home town being devastated by war. Then again, part of why I play wargames nowadays is to get at least an idea of how people must have felt or must feel in a war. So how better to explore this than having a battlefield where I actually recognize the features from my childhood?

I'm not much into Cold War force compositions and I'm no expert on how such a campaign would have been organized in reality (i.e. what forces would have been employed where and how and such). So this is where I would like to ask for your input. What forces would have realistically taken part in such a campaign, how they would have been equiped, their structure, OOB, you name it.
The Backstory
It is september 1980. Similar to what almost happened with Able Archer a few years later, the KGB had identified Reforger 80 - Certain Rampart as a disguise to actually start a war. According to Soviet strategic planning this had to be prempted with an attack of their own. Soviet tanks had suddenly crossed the border just a week before Certain Rampart was to start. The first few days had gone badly for NATO forces that had been busy preparing for the exercise. But now, about a week into the war, much of the frontline has become static as both sides are nearing exhaustion.
North Rhine-Westphalia had seen the fiercest fighting in and around the Ruhrgebiet, the industrial heart of West Germany and also the largest urbanized area. The southern part had been relatively quiet as the region east of it, Sauerland/Siegerland/Rothaargebirge was difficult terrain with little infrastructure. It was here where the Soviets had gambled: They had thrown in their last fresh reserves, Category C formations, beefed up with some remnants of some Category A and B formations that had been pulled from the frontline for reconstruction. Still they must have had help from either local supporters, sleeper agents from the GDR or SOF that enabled such a quick advance after the break through. Every German Autobahn had been prepared for demolition and in case of a Soviet advance, bridges should have been blown, roads made impassable, etc. They weren't and in a mad dash Soviet forces had rushed down Autobahn 4 up to Engelskirchen where they were finally forced to go by normal roads. The western part of the Agger valley lay ahead. It was narrow and there was not much infrastructure outside of it. But a successful advance down the valley would bring the Red Army to the river Rhine, just oposite of the West German capital, Bonn and close to Cologne/Bonn Airport.
NATO was hard pressed at this point as most of the reserves had been commited already. It was decided to take parts of US 5th Infantry Division to plug the gap. The Reforger reinforcements had been delayed and parts of the equipment had fallen prey to Soviet missile strikes and interdiction. Somewhat understrength and under equipped a battalion TF was sent ahead to setup in the town of Overath.
The Current Situation
While the battalion is still setting up in Overath, the scout platoon and 2 platoons of B Company are racing towards Loope to delay the Soviet advance and give the rest of the battalion time to setup.
Several things I'd like to explore here.
Terrain that is different from Fulda Gap, dominated by hills around a long valley. Not AAA elite tank formations duking it out but understrength, second rate forces. Autumn weather, rain, mud and all that. So, what do you think, is the back story plausible? I hope that noone feels offended by me calling any US troops second rate, but in the sense I described above, what would a second rate force look like (also in CM terms). I don't know much about National Guard formations, I was thinking about 256th Infantry Brigade, for instance. Is it realistic to view them as possibly worse equipped than formations permanently in Europe and less trained/fit? I'd love to have West German reserve units (Heimatschutz or something) for this but I have to take what I can get. What should Soviet forces look like?
Locations
I'm not very skilled at map making or am too impatient (or both), so that so far kept me from actually starting with this. This is part of why I've been busy developing CMAutoEditor (well work is still in progress). Which automates much of the map making for me (but also puts some constraints on the map making, like only maps with axes parallel to the coordinate axes).
Sorry for advertising my own tool here, it's just to give you the context for how maps are done. I use laser scans for elevation data and OpenStreetMap as starting point form map making (meaning I delete buildings that weren't there 1980 and stuff like that).
My Loope map so far looks like this:

I have some of the eastern part of Overath. Do you have ideas for other locations or missions that would make sense?
 
 

BRDMs are excellent reconnaissance assets, but they're divisional assets, not battalion ones. Their job would usually have been to scout ahead of the main body, confirm the route is still valid, bridges are intact and unmined, and to find approximate enemy position - essentially they're there to let you know that there are enemy forces somewhere on the map before you start, so for a red player in a cm context their work has typically already been completed.
Recce then is done throughout, but typically initiated by a mechanised infantry platoon, sometimes reinforced with a single tank. These are not dedicated recce assets, these are just guys from the battalion who are taking point.
In the Soviet context, you start with a centralised, top down plan. The entire battalion will have a single task, with perhaps three objectives - an initial objective, a further objective, and a line of further advance. Thinking of things in this structure forces you to always think of "what's next?", you always have an idea what you're doing afterwards, which helps to avoid being paralyzed with choices. Importantly, it also helps gain and maintain tempo (used in the chess sense of the word, of being some moves ahead of your opponent).
The problem with this kind of top-down structure is that it can be a big gamble. If you roll the dice on a single COA, then you can win big or lose, either way pretty quickly.
One of the methods to round out this dice roll is to echelon - have successive elements, where each element can set the conditions for the following, and each following element can adapt to the preceeding. These aren't "reserves", these are committed troops who are working towards the same goal, just not all at once.
The role of Soviet recce is then to set the conditions for the following element.
At game start, the divisional recce has let you know there are enemy somewhere on the map. The battalion recce (CRP) then have the role of finding specific lines of resistance and enemy locations.
Their job is to scout aggressively, take key terrain and find enemy positions. This is not necessarily "recon by death",  but it's fast, and it's risky, and the entire crp dying isn't a major problem, if that uncovers key information.
Recce will be both mounted and dismounted. You do want to survive long enough to report back information, but the important thing is that it's fast.
A winning state here is spotting the enemy, regardless of your losses. A losing state is if the CRP is wiped out and no information is gained on enemy disposition. This is why recce screens are so important for blue, and why a tank may be part of the recce force, to overmatch blue recce elements.
The following element to the CRP should be a combined arms company. This will be tanks, mech inf and artillery. A mech inf version would be a tank platoon, infantry company and one artillery battery.
This is a strong, capable force, but it's not the main effort just yet. This forward security element (FSE) will have the job of setting the conditions for the follow-on force.
If the CRP has died leaving no information (read: you are losing), then the FSE needs to take over the recce job. The FSE typically follows the same route as the CRP, but not always. If the CRP vanished, then the FSE needs to transition into a cautious, probing attack to gain the same information, for the main body.
In an ideal situation, the CRP has found the enemy, possibly with their face, and the FSE then can set the conditions for the main body. This FSE ideally creates a base of fire to fix the enemy, restricting their movement and controlling their possible responses. You cannot do this effectively without sufficient information, so the CRP sets conditions for the FSE, which sets conditions for the main body.
All the while, the FSE is also gaining information, and this all feeds into where the main body goes in.
That decision will likely be pre-planned, and there will be multiple COAs defined. One could be to attack along the same axis as the FSE, one could be to flank elements that the FSE is engaged with, or to attack in a completely different sector, since the FSE will be fixing the enemy somewhere else. Again,  all of these decisions will be based on the recce picture built up by the lead elements, but the tension here is that this is all *fast* - it's important to keep moving, keep pushing, and keep steps ahead of the enemy at all times.
 
In an ideal situation then:
Lead platoon finds enemy positions through any method they can.
Lead company then fixes these positions.
Main body then uses this recce and fixing to win the battle.
 
CMCW is most interesting in 1979/1980, since the later stuff ends up looking more like CMSF.
Thermals and any of the later kit make this a little harder, but they do not change the fundamental scheme or what the battalion has to do.
Relying on equipment to spot for you is nice, but ultimately dismounts with binoculars in good concealment are always going to be an invaluable asset, regardless of your time period or level of equipment.

You are of course assuming the US or anybody truly understands modern warfare at this point.  I think Ukraine understands it better than any nation on earth and there are even things they are stumped by.
If you look at the performance of the RA across all three phases of this war I do not see a bunch of pretenders flailing - I think the steady diet of tactical vignettes is skewing the viewpoint on this thread.  I do see the RA attempting to fight according to the logic of their capabilities; the problem is their capabilities.  For example:
- Phase I - they had a lot more armour and air power as well as sea control as well as the element of multiple avenues of approach.  They went in looking a lot like the US did in Grenada with respect to a disconnected but attempt at a joint fight.  They were using position advantage and the speed /shock to try and overwhelm Ukrainian resistance before it could form up.  They were not counting on the UA having access to Western ISR and an ability to hit their entire operational system - in fact no one was. They were instead expecting a front-edge fight which they had advantage upon.  They then tried attritional warfare but were severely overstretched and did what made sense and narrow axis of offence to the south.
Phase 2 - given that the pretty much destroyed their leading edge in phase I and armour was not (and still is not) working like it should.  They had to switch again to a heavily attritional systematic grinding offensive around Severodonetsk using freakishly high density of artillery with infantry follow up.  This bought them some ground - again they are focusing on ground and not UA capability, which is old thinking - as they tried to smash their way to something they could call a victory.  By end Jul it was clear that they were running out of gas and due to the introduction of HIMARs in combination with Western backed C4ISR they could not sustain the offensive anymore.
Phase 3 - The RA has clearly gone on the defensive, they have mobilized for defence and are aligning their defensive objectives to the capabilities they have left.  Hell they are even conducting what looks like a withdrawal operation in Kherson right now.
None of that was conducted with a qualitatively good military - you get what you pay for - but it was/is not illogical.  The fact that the RA has lasted until now demonstrates that they can and have adapted. They just cannot do it apace with the UA. I propose that their major issue is not that “they suck”, although they definitely have quality issues, it is instead that the military they brought was prepared to fight the wrong war.  Again roll back the clock to 1991 on both sides and relook at how things could have gone, and the RA starts to make more sense.  They still did not have enough infantry and their logistics was not great but their advantages of mass would have likely worked much better.  They were in short fighting in the wrong war.  The final nail in the cargo cult theory is that if the RA was in fact simply pretending then the UA in their current condition should be at the pre-2014 border by now.  No, the RA is conducting a defensive operation, pretty messy and ugly but the cargo cult as described could not start landing planes if they suddenly showed up, the Russians still are.

Last few mucking about 🙂

Spent a bit of time day dream a BAOR expansion over the weekend - used a mix of assets from CMSF, CMA and CMBN. Sadly no idea how to take it further as a playable faction mod.

A core tactical failure point - of course the Russians made massive gains in phase I initially

Some of those advances are over 200kms long.  The UA and Ukrainian resistance did not defeat that by nibbling away at the front end in ambushes, they hit the entire columns in depth, right back to SLOC entry points when they hit those ships at the pier on the Azov.  That entire Northern front did not collapse because of ATGMs alone.  They definitely stalled them, but so did running out of gas, which eventually killed them: the lesson being that if you want to stop an enemy with overwhelming material superiority hit them along the entire length when you have the ISR to do so. 
I disagree that this was entirely self-inflicted by the Russians and I am not sure more infantry, afvs, tanks or arty would have made a difference.  They may have gotten to Kyiv and maybe even made it to the siege stage but their over  stretched LOCs were highly exposed and more importantly entirely visible to western ISR.  It wasn't ATGMs, it was UA deep strike, done by many means, that crippled that, but the whole thing does not work unless they can see exactly where the Russian are, and are not.  
My point is not that they were not stopped by Ukrainian resistance, it is where and how that resistance was delivered.  I don't care how much extra F ech capability one brings along - super tanks with super APS, it is not going to matter if your opponent can see and hit the logistical lines those big sexy beasts need to stop becoming a paperweight in about 3 days...and in this Russia totally failed. 
The biggest failures of Russian planning and execution (in my opinion) were:
- Complete failure to establish operational pre-conditions - make UA C4ISR go dark, cut off avenues of support from the west and establish air superiority early and keep it.
- Complete failure of joint targeting integration - that many missiles should have crippled the UA but they seems all over the map (literally)
- Complete failure to match force-space-time to a coherent plan, and having zero contingency if Plan A failed
- Complete and utter loss of the strategic narrative.
- Complete failure to align military and political strategy.
 

Agreed.

Nice find!
 

It would also be great to see the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions then add some M-551 Sheridan's to the mix and now you have a Force Multiplier, and then add some Soviet Su-57 and Su-85's, a few Bmd's. Dang just the Airborne Units could be a module all by itself.

Nice find!
 

I just noticed this detail in the shop posters in Rumpenheim Rumpus. 

H

I guess I'm not really expecting the Chieftain to perform phenomenally better than the M60 in the timeframe of CMCW. I believe it's still using the same L15APDS ammunition in 1979-1982 that it had in 1965 (I don't think the L23 APFSDS comes out until 1985), so despite having a bigger gun I don't think it will prove any better at killing T-64s than the M60 (I think the L15 should perform better than the M728, but not quite as well as the M735). Its Stillbrew armor package won't come out until 1986, well after the timeframe of CMCW. I have, on rare occasions, seen rounds bounce off of the needle nosed turret of the M60 (exception, not the rule). Perhaps a higher proportion of rounds will bounce off of the thicker armor and steeper angles of the Chieftain's turret, but given that it's still just homogenous steel against late 70s/ early 80s ammunition I expect the overwhelming majority of rounds will still get through. 
I expect if CMCW had been set in the late 60s/ early 70s the Chieftain would be significantly more survivable with significantly more firepower than the M60 (or if it had been set in the late 80s for that matter, when the Chieftain had newer ammunition and Stillbrew armor). But in the game's current setting I expect the main practical difference to be that it will have somewhat worse mobility.
The Leopard 1 should be the exact opposite. I still don't expect it to be any more survivable (in fact, if it was rare for the M60 to bounce a shot, the Leo 1 should never bounce a shot) or be any better at killing T-64s, but it should be a bit faster. In any case, I can hardly wait to see both the Chieftain and the Leopard 1 in action. While this might not be the most flattering time period for the Chieftain, it is still an interesting vehicle.
I'm not sure if the Marder will quite be a match for the BMP-2 (should be better than the BMP-1), but will definitely stand more of a chance than the M113. Does anyone happen to know what the British mech-infantry are riding around in from 1979-1982? I'm pretty sure the Warrior hasn't entered service yet.

I do think that CMCW is not a good first CM title. It's excellent, but it's aimed a little higher than some of the others, and things like the NTC reflect that.

The real-world NTC is an environment where you're supposed to fail, essentially - it's a very powerful training tool, but it's brutal and intended to be.

The CMCW NTC campaign is very, very good at showing you what you're up against - the BMP-1 in CMSF is a joke, and in CMCW it's a serious threat. You can't park US tanks on a ridgeline and destroy everything like you can in CMSF or to a lesser extent CMBS. You have to read the terrain and pick your battles, lean on combined arms and use every aspect of your force.

It's a serious challenge, and in particular it'll punish bad habits learnt in the other CM titles. The M1A2 is such a large advantage in CMSF and CMBS that you can get away without using your armour correctly - it offers a *large* safety net, and will cover a lot of your shortcomings. This is objectively not true for the M60A1, and that's one of the major lessons which the NTC is trying to teach.



 

I hate it how much work it requires to make it happen in CM and still the results are somewhat uncertain.
Also unfortunately the observation position is practically impossible to do. (meaning only the optics or commanders head with binoculars is up, this is used to pre-aim the gun and only commence the rest of the drill when everything is ready) I supplement this in CM by placing infantry scout the on the ridge within hearing distance of the tank(s).
Also in US footage of berm drill I rarely see swapping of the positions, in Finnish army you are only allowed to shoot once from one berm before you have to switch to another one. At least 2-3 berms per tank. Same as infantry, never peek twice in a row from the same spot.

Boeing Yard, Fort Irwin, California
CPT Wren could feel a very strong headache coming on. It wasn’t the unbearable, searingly-dry heat, (well, it was the heat in part) so much as it was the logistical nightmare his company, and his Battalion Taskforce writ-large, had been dumped into. They had just arrived at the Boeing yard, serving as an initial assembly and equipment collection point for their rotation at the National Training Centre. The officers and senior NCOs were in absolute, collective shock at what greeted them. They had left most of their equipment behind at Ft. Stewart, with the promise that they would be provided with well-maintained, pre-positioned gear on arrival at Ft. Irwin.
The sight of the Battalion XO standing amidst the metaphorical wreckage, hands on hips, with an evil countenance on his face revealed how stretched the truth of that promise had been. If looks could kill, the MAJ would’ve struck down every civilian contractor in the yard by now. The displeasure radiating out of the Battalion XO was echoed by the companies’ XOs. Wren’s second in command, 1 LT Booth, looked like he was contemplating homicide whilst talking with the civilian contractors mounting MILEs gear to the Company’s M150 tank destroyers.
They had left behind relatively cutting-edge equipment, which they had left in top shape, back at their home posting. What greeted them were older models of M60 tanks and TOW launchers, lacking the excellent thermal sights they had come to rely on. The TF’s sister battalion that had just come back from rotation had never warned them about this. They had been put through the wringer and had warned his unit that the infamous OPFOR didn’t play by the rules.
Looking over at the rundown, dated equipment in poor repair, Wren couldn't help but feel that this was part of an elaborate plot to put them off balance before the rotation even began...
Chapter 1.1: The Hasty Attack
 
Near Brown Pass, National Training Centre, Fort Irwin.
The operations group had gathered around a sand table, essentially a scaled-down presentation of local terrain, to plan how they would kick off the mock war for the barren, craggy desert. Wren could feel the sun beating down on his exposed neck as he looked down. He had wisely kept his steel helmet off for the briefing, preferring a patrol cap. It offered some slight relief to the sensation that he was in an oven, and that he particularly was being burned in the pan.
The immediate mission was straightforward, in principle. Brigade had informed them that the lead elements of an enemy Motor Rifle Regiment (MRR) had entered the area of operations and was suspected to be heading towards one of several passages through the corridor. The enemy’s general intent was not difficult to divine: secure one of these features and allow the regiment to debouch onto the desert and deploy for an attack. The TF was to establish contact with the enemy’s forward elements, fix them and, if possible, destroy them. Follow up operations would then commence against the main body of the MRR.  
These first fights would devolve to the companies. The NTC was intended to train the army to fight a step down, that is, a company was expected to go toe-to-toe with an OPFOR battalion, and a battalion with a regiment. It was a tough ask. It put a lot of pressure on guys like Wren, but it also forged these junior leaders into the backbone of America’s army.
The NTC’s entire concept was one big, tough, ask. It had thus far put units, sometimes inadequately trained, always under-equipped, against a dedicated opposing force, or OPFOR. The US Army had played around with the idea of an opposing force before. What had resulted was a hokey B-movie routine simply called the “Aggressors.” They had no foundation in reality, no equipment that bore any relation to something in service, and failed completely to reflect any one of the many likely enemies the United States would face. The Aggressors, like the men who were tasked to portray them, had nothing worth fighting for. Units that rotated in to display them liked getting killed early and often, so they could get a hot meal at the mock casualty clearing stations. It was schlock, and the army had known it.
Fort Irwin, it’s dedicated OPFOR, and the MILEs system (think one giant game of angry laser tag) had changed all that.

This OPFOR had one task: play the Soviets better than the Soviets themselves, and brutalize their enemy whilst doing so. The fact the OPFOR was also expected to meet training standards as a US unit made it a nightmare opponent: a ruthlessly competent enemy that knew your playbook back-to-front.  The first bunch of battalions that had rotated through the NTC had come away shocked, and not infrequently in tatters. Wren’s TF had the advantage of learning from these initial rotations. Two TFs from sister brigades in their division had already gotten their NTC-issued hidings and had diligently and openly disseminated their experiences. They were, theoretically, the best prepared unit yet to come prepared for the fight.
This was their first opportunity to prove that. The Battalion S-2, a highly competent officer with a Master’s in psychology, had put his money down on the idea that the enemy’s lead elements would head for Brown pass. Wren’s area of responsibility. Considering this, the TF Commander had indicated he was willing to throw significant weight behind his company team. Combat aviation, and armour retained under task force control for support of his team, if need be. There were two courses of action: let the lead MRB come through the pass and hit them hard in the bottleneck or push through and find them in the open. The resources his CO was willing to allocate would change depending on the decision, but he trusted his CPT enough to reach one on his own and held his peace as to which he would have preferred.
Wren thought for a moment…Allowing the enemy to come through the pass was the “textbook” solution. It was canalizing terrain and would allow him to get the most out of his company team. It would be a mainly defensive operation, greatly aiding his chances of avoiding heavy losses. Thing is, textbook was obvious. The textbook made for poor reading in this situation, thought Wren. The first option ceded initiative to an OPFOR he knew was lean and mean on the offensive, especially one going to plan. He interrupted his thoughts with a question:
“Are you able to allocate me any of the scouts?” he asked his CO.
“No can do. We need them to tie into the armour battalion TF operating in the Southern Corridor, they can’t put dismounts in those hills as readily as we can.”
If he fought in Brown Pass himself, he would need to seriously contest the high valley mesas, or else the OPFOR would get observers up there and make any type of hasty defence untenable due to artillery fire. He wanted scouts for that, rather than have to put too much load on dismounted foot patrols taken from his platoon. The CO’s answer settled the dilemma. Wren reached over and pushed the little blue block representing his company team through the pass on the sand table.

He could see in his mind, the actual terrain leaping up around him. Wren had always had an eye for terrain, and he knew he could make the most of it here. The “open” ground north of Brown Pass was anything but. It was a series of plateaus, a giant natural staircase, that provided good cover to all but the tallest of vehicles and would allow a commander (on either side) to switch from a long-range engagement to a close-in one at a moment’s notice. The exit of the pass also had a craggy pair of mountains, impassable to vehicles, but perfect for dismounts. Pushing through would make that terrain all his. He intended to use it to its fullest effect.

Preparing for tomorrow’s operations meant it was going to be a long night. Wren, his hard-pressed XO and the platoon leaders had a lot of work to do to make the plan a reality. Wren also had to find the TACP, frustratingly absent at the briefing, and try to integrate the combat aviation into the plan, as he wouldn’t be able to have it “on call” and flexible once the rounds were flying back and forth.
***
16th October, 0900 Hours

They were through Brown Pass, without any enemy air interdiction. At least, 1st Platoon was through. So narrow was the defile, so real the threat of OPFOR air attack, that the Company team was deliberately strung out. This meant that, for 2LT Bunting’s forward group, if there was a fight, it would be his alone for some measure of time. His job was to fix the enemy for the rest of the Company team to manoeuvre aggressively. It was an important, high-risk task and a sign of the trust Wren put in his senior platoon leader. With Bunting’s platoon was the two M150 TOW vehicles, on loan from 1LT Benner’s platoon. The group was moving in staggered column, along a sandy trail, towards a low ridge that denoted the northern mouth of Brown Pass.
Bunting, riding in the lead M113 with a Dragon team and the assigned forward observer, looked over his shoulder. A pair of Cobras was providing intimate support and were hovering just behind Hill 165.5. Suddenly, one of the Cobras raised itself up a bit more and fired off a TOW missile with a hiss and a pop. Contact?

Contact! Urging his track forward, his driver cautiously nosed the M113 in fits and starts up the ridge. Calling a halt, he could see high, hanging dust clouds in the vicinity of PL “Yazoo”, one of several reporting lines to help the TOC track the advance of both B Company and the OPFOR. It quickly became apparent that multiple enemy BMPs were moving fast towards the mouth of the pass. More than he could handle in an open fight. Bunting reacted fast, and with clear-headedness. They had expected this. The Cobras were making the enemy squirm and push with haste, that could play to his advantage. The little bowl his group was in was excellent defensive terrain from which he could pin the enemy. Signalling over the platoon radio, as well as with his hands from the cargo hatch, he ordered his squad tracks into an umbrella-shaped defence.

The flying column cover being provided by the Cobras was showing its worth. Behind excellent positions, the Cobras took turns launching TOWs, which raced at knee-height over the desert to slam into BMPs’ flanks. Wren, hearing Bunting’s contact report, got the word back to TOC quickly. The planned F-16 strike went in 5 minutes after the initial contact report, and they laid their clusters in, presumably with devastating effect.


The OPFOR recon leader stayed calm. He must have known his best bet now was to get forward and to grab the enemy by the belt. The BMPs surged forward. They would be in Bunting’s perimeter within minutes if the Americans didn’t react strongly.

The TOWs weighed in, however, at Bunting’s command. They fired from excellent hull down positions along the low ridge he established his fighting position from. To Bunting’s chagrin, their first few shots are wildly off target. The TOW crews were inexperienced and clearly a bit awe-struck at the sight of a company of BMPs ruthlessly pushing through air attack. It takes two engagements to finally find their nerve – and their targets. A BMP burns.

Then the enemy weighs in with their own fire support. A thunderous crush of artillery impacts just to the left of Bunting’s track. He buttons up to avoid the angry, buzzing shards of shrapnel. The OPFOR artillery is off target but still denies a large part of this excellent battle position to him. More alarmingly, it kicks up the high, hanging dust Bunting has already learned defines the NTC’s desert terrain. Soon his attached TOWs are telling them they can no longer actively engage threats through the dust. ****, this is going to get close and messy, thinks Bunting.
“Earl, get that ramp down and get your ass out with the Dragon, get up there!” he screams to the mounted Dragon team, ducking back down into the cargo compartment.  “Evans, get posted somewhere on this ridge and the Chucks going!” he continues, calmer now, to the attached FO.

The BMPs were only 600 meters or so away now. The vagaries of the terrain were making themselves felt. BMPs were flitting in and out of sight, and the TOWs continued to have trouble engaging, only managing to pick off the occasional BMP.
SPC Earl, the platoon’s Dragon gunner, calmly sets up on a bit of the ridge, determined to cover the short front of the Platoon’s BP. He ignores the artillery, as best he can, and adopts the awkward cross-legged firing position, waiting for the first enemy to pop up over the plateau. A pair of BMPs shortly obliges him, even halting momentarily, to his delight. One is shortly burning. The TOWs catch a lucky break soon afterwards and tally two more BMPs.

In a furious five minutes, Bunting’s small force and air cover appeared to have mauled an enemy company. There was no time to rest on their laurels, however. Another platoon of BMPs, seeing the carnage to their front, smartly pull to their left, disgorging dismounts and creating smoke, and then surge past Bunting’s right flank, towards Point 199.1. Through gaps in the smoke, Bunting is able to track the line of enemy dismounts, and he spots in the distance even more BMPs – the enemy’s main security element?
The Cobras have ceased fire, displacing so as to avoid enemy anti-air fire. A wise move, to be sure, but a poorly timed one from Bunting’s perspective. He has no way of raising them quickly again, lacking a direct communications line to them. It was entirely his fight now.  
Movement is key to any defence, but especially a hasty one. The TOWs were ordered to displace to cover the burgeoning threat on the right flank, but this takes them dangerously close to the enemy artillery fire. The TOW crews find themselves constantly ducking back down to avoid shrapnel.

Nevertheless, they can re-engage, picking off a few of the flankers. 

Then, out of the smoke - and through its own artillery - surges a single enemy BMP. Bunting, too focused on the immediate fight, had never strictly given orders to his squads to dismount in the reverse slope. Luckily, his experienced NCOs read in between the lines and dismounted on their own initiative and had liberally handed-out LAWs to their men whilst doing so. The BMP is engaged effectively by these disposable rockets and is swiftly knocked out.

 
***
This is a beefy chapter, and I don't want to bore you to death...bite sized chunks. To be continued (as for the Normandy DAR, the backlog of photos do was larger than thought, apologies). 

Continued...
Wren had been monitoring the fight, listening to Bunting control the point element. Things appeared to be going well, but he could tell the pressure was on. Each report from his senior platoon leader was rising an octave, a sign he knew well from countless exercises was a sign of stress. He urged the main body of his force on, because it was clear that contrary to fixing the enemy, Bunting appeared to be getting pinned himself. By 0908 hours, Wren and the balance of the company team arrived in the hasty fighting position. The cross-attached armour platoon under 1LT Harmon pushes forward, taking hull down positions all along the ridge.

The moment had come to take the fight forward. Wren required only a couple of minutes to appraise himself of the situation, his track nudging itself in next to Bunting’s. Whilst the company leader was briefed by his point platoon leader, the company mortars set up a hasty firing position. They were soon firing a repeat mission at the OPFOR dismounts, who were still working their way around the right flank of the Company’s position. 

The situation was still very confused, but Wren was able to come up with a straightforward scheme of maneuver based on what appeared apparent:   He knew there was remnants of a BMP platoon to the right flank, practically on PL Toto. 2nd Platoon would sweep and clear them off the heights with priority of company mortars. Tank platoon (-) to punch straight towards PL Yazoo. TOWs and the rest of the tank platoon to support by fire. Air power, if he could raise it again in time, would support. 1st Platoon to remount, rearm, and follow and support (2). 
It was a good plan, all things considered, but it was based on shaky info in a highly fluid situation. Wren was still giving his tasking orders when 1LT Harmon broke in with a contact report. A single T-72 had just been knocked out by his unit at close range, and there was an unspecified amount of BMPs making smoke and driving (once more) towards the high ground on the right flank.

FO teams that climbed the craggy cliffs on the left flank firmed up these reports in due course. The OPFOR appeared to be going all in on the Company’s right flank, and Wren duly modified Harmon’s mission to sweep to the northwest, rather than directly north, to account for this.

Wren keyed his microphone, and issued his FRAGO:
“All callsigns this is Bravo 26. Orders: Situation. One times Mike Romeo Charlie approaching north, vicinity phase line TOTO. Mission. Destroy. Groupings and tasks. Bravo 22, move northwest, orient north, assault one times Bravo Mike Papa platoon.  Bravo Tango, you are the main effort. Move towards phase line YAZOO, orient northwest. Provide one times support tango each to Bravo 24 and Bravo 22.  Bravo 21 and this call sign, to follow and support Bravo Tango. Bravo 24, continue with current task. Acknowledge and questions, over?”
A satisfying chorus rolled in over the company net from his platoon leaders, all repeating some variation of acknowledgement and indication of no questions.
Supporting by fire, the TOWs open the engagement, reaching out to touch the enemy as they began to expose themselves in their approach.


The OPFOR increasingly show signs of being disoriented, caught off guard. What had been a single-minded effort to seize key terrain was becoming a fight for survival. The worm was turning, with initiative firmly passing to Wren’s company team. Roaring forward in column behind a wedge of three M60s, Wren was greeted by the satisfying sight of his joint fires coming to bear. His hurried call for further gunship support had been answered, and he could see TOW and rocket fire creating havoc, black spires of smoke testament to their effect. Then, a few hundred meters to his front, he could see Harmon’s M60s fire a volley. The RTO’s radio crackles, and the young PFC awkwardly hands the receiver to him in the cramped cargo space:
“Bravo 26 this is Bravo Tango. Am engaging three times B-M-P, repeat I am engaging three times BMP, you may want to hold your callsign back sir, out.”

Somewhere off to their right, 2LT Renfro’s reinforced platoon was snaking forward in column, forming the right arm of a pincer. Renfro did his best to ensure his group kept, as far as the terrain allowed, the main effort in sight. He knew Wren intended this attack to be mutually supporting.
“Bravo Tango send to Bravo 26.”
“This is 26. Send.”
“Have engaged and destroyed three times BMP. Am resuming advance. Out”
The enemy’s second echelon had been caught in the open and devastated by the balance of the tank platoon. What the slow-moving sweep does not kill, the overwatching TOWs and trailing tank does. Caught off guard, the BMPs attempt to make smoke and reverse into some approximation of a hull down position. Their dismounts likewise attempt to find cover, but most are chopped up badly by the M113s. It is a testament to the professionalism of the OPFOR that, despite the unfolding disaster, they are still able to put down heavy, often accurate, return fire. One tank is penetrated and suffers crew casualties, and Harmon’s tank has its main gun damaged in the exchange. The BMPs die hard, but die they do.


Harmon’s Platoon NCO, who had been in the trail tank with the TOWs, now moves forward to take over for his leader, whose disabled tank falls back. With most of the BMPs destroyed, the fight returns to the infantry, and surviving OPFOR dismounts fight tenaciously from every scrap of cover and concealment the terrain can provide. Renfro’s unit mops up the shattered BMP platoon, .50 calibers thumping as the infantry bound forward.

One of 2nd Platoon’s Dragon teams identifies two BMPs in ambush near the main effort’s position, and duly report and engage them. The wisdom of ensuring the platoons remained in mutually supporting distance is made clear by this incident.

By 0918 hours, Wren’s command group and most of 1st Platoon had outflanked OPFOR dismounts by climbing Hill 165.5 and had begun to pour fire down their flank. Despite the dominating position, the American infantry take accurate, shockingly accurate, return fire. Three casualties are suffered in the exchange, but the result is preordained. Bunting, with the other half of the platoon, bounds forwards. With grenade and bayonet, the OPFOR dismounts are either killed, wounded, or captured. It is an ugly, intimate firefight – not what the casual observer would expect in desert terrain.

By 0926 hours, the fight is over. Individual survivors are picked off, caught in a crossfire between the vehicles of 1st and 2nd Platoon’s as they attempt to escape the close assault. Word filters down from brigade, to TOC, from TOC to Wren: ceasefire, assume a hasty defense and stand by for further orders.
 
***
The lead OPFOR battalion commander was perturbed. This was not the type of aggressive response he expected.  He was not an overly prideful man, he knew a battle lost when he saw one, but he was also not accustomed to defeat. Not on his home turf. He could turn the enemy’s success into defeat, the enemy Battalion was pushing through separate passes, outside of mutual support, and the company-sized force that had just savaged his combat reconnaissance patrol and forward security element was now out on a limb, outside of the mutual support of its sister companies.
He knew he needed to redouble his efforts and try to catch the enemy while they were either rearming or attempting to pursue his lead force. The surviving forward officer reported his men were going firm, as was expected of him, to try and fix the enemy for as long as possible.
“Adjutant, get me Regiment. Request release of the armour reserve.”
They would be ready by this afternoon. It should be soon enough.

The SG-43 Goryunov is a terrific machine-gun if used properly. If you don't do anything it will fire, and the enemy is suppressed subsequently you lose your LOS and the MG stops firing. @Hapless has a video how to address this problem. It is why Camera Position 1 is important. You need to view your intended victim to change your direct fire mission to an area firing mission. Fritz will stay on the bottom of his Schützenloch (foxhole) and stays there till he notices a grenade landing between his legs. PS Use "Fire Briefly" you don't want to fire till he runs out. Keep it up till the assault party is inside range.  


 

Suggested tactic for Soviet infantry for the attack. Mount your infantry but split them before mounting. It takes a little practice but I soon got used to it. The T34/76 has only two men in the turret. If the commander gets killed you lose the gunner. Better have a scout on the engine deck. They won't combine on the tank if you give the tank a pause order followed by a move command. The infantry unit you wish to dismount should mount the tank first. Once he is mounted you give him a dismount move, He won't dismount because the tank has a move order which is paused. Now you can mount the two men scout team. Soviets need armor for the attack without it they don't pass on their contacts. Mounted infantry have acces to the tank radio. 

I have been slowly playing through Cold War's campaigns and standalone scenarios and have been completely blown away with the fidelity of the singleplayer experience. The AI plans have almost universally been some of the best I've seen in any title. It's been immersive. As I often do when I play, I started snapping pictures and making small gifs. When I arrived to scenario 3 in the US Campaign I thought "I should start making an AAR." So, I paused, went back to play the NTC campaign, a few of my favourite scenarios from the Soviet perspective, and started writing. 
I've learned two things: I can't write to save my life, and I really enjoyed it regardless. I already have 6 AARs completed of my experiences and will share them with you all, if only to distract. They strike a more narrative tone, but I have done my best to explain the tactics and decisions. I will label the scenario/mission at the start of every AAR. Without further ado...
 
Prologue:
Kiev Military District, Ukraine SSR.
It was a clear, late spring day somewhere south of Kiev. The open pastureland was starting to show the signs of recovery following the harsh winter. Grass grew tall and the sea of mud was firming up into dry terrain. To any casual observer it would seem a scene of idyllic pastoral calm.

It is a façade. The calm is shattered in an instant, and a brutish ballet begins.

A thunderous barrage deforms and rapes the landscape. It builds to a howling, shrieking crescendo. A cacophony of mortars, howitzers and “Grad” rockets form the orchestra. The impacts smother two wooded hills with a mix of high explosive, smoke, and chemical irritants similar to CS gas. It was all the fury and violence of war, at its apparent worst.
This was not war, however. Merely a facsimile of it. An exercise. To the stern-faced evaluators observing from several kilometres away, and the attached state TV camera crews, it was real enough. Real enough for citizens of the Soviet Union who would watch these scenes play out on their TVs, real enough for Western defence analysts who would pore over every frame of the video, and real enough indeed for young conscripts sat waiting in their tanks and personnel carriers a few kilometres away, in readiness behind a low ridge.

Belly crawling forward among tree, bush and scrub on this same ridge, were more of these young Soviet conscripts. These men were equipped with heavy weapons:  machine guns, recoilless rifles, grenade launchers and potent anti-tank missiles. They would soon make their presence felt, reaching out into the roaring inferno across the open field, destroying any target they could see which remained unharmed from the bombardment. Their missiles began reaching out, flying towards real and simulated targets. TV cameras panned, keeping up with the missiles, visible as green dots against the background.


The evaluators would duly note “hits” recorded by these weapons and, using an intricate set of rules and modifiers, adjust the amount of fire (and therefore casualties) the unit would be deemed to receive when they began their attack. The prospects were good: everything appeared to be within nominal parameters for this drill. The artillery was on target, the missile fire accurate.
As the artillery fire began to abate, the MRB commander – a tough, professional soldier who had been through several prestigious state academies and had seen service in Afghanistan – knew the time was right to begin his attack. Ensconced within his personnel carrier, his voice simultaneously filled the headset of every vehicle commander of this force: begin, armour forward, came the command.
A company of T-64s, a marvel of Soviet technology and a demonstration of its single-minded design philosophy, rumbled up the ridge they had sheltered behind. Taking effective hull down positions, their imposing 125mm cannons crashed out in volleys, striking targets on the forward edge of the forested hills.

The fire is deemed highly effective, scoring several “kills” of enemy vehicles.  With this report crackling through his headset from the tank company commander, the MRB leader issues the next orders, this time via pre-assigned codeword. Repeating himself so there could be no confusion, he tersely speaks: Hornet, hornet, hornet. The unit roars forward as one.
Again, the tanks lead, pushing up and over the ridge at top speed. They fire, with much less accuracy now, on the move, too fast for even the gyro stabilizers to compensate. It is no matter, movement now is key, rather than fire. 

As they pass the exposed area, their rate of advance slows again. Their fire becomes highly effective once more, volleys crashing out across the valley. The observers would note “losses”, of course, losses would always result as an attack neared an objective. They were well within normal parameters, however. What was expected, acceptable, in the science of the attack.

Then come the personnel carriers, surging over the ridge. They move with alacrity behind the armour, in two extended lines.

With pinpoint timing, the artillery fire redoubles on the wooded hills, once again smothering the MRB’s objectives. Any surviving enemy who would chance a shot at these vulnerable vehicles would undoubtedly be discouraged by the howling high explosives.

Again, losses are incurred by the observer/evaluators. Not enough, however. Again, everything is within acceptable parameters.
The MRB closes with shocking speed, crossing several hundred meters in only a few minutes. The momentum and impetus is irresistible. Most of the tanks halt 500 meters away from the wooded tree line, redoubling their fire into and around it. A handful of T-64s move forward with the personnel carriers to provide intimate support. They close the distance aggressively, moving through the final rounds of their own artillery. This particularly impresses the camera crews, still diligently recording, delighted at the realism of the exercise.


The vehicles rumble into the woods, their heavy machineguns thumping away at silhouette targets meant to simulate enemy infantry in their foxholes. Then, the orders come: “Dismount! Forward!” Soviet infantry scramble out of rear hatches and side doors, over engine decks, and into action. Units move in an extended line, firing bursts from their assault rifles. Occasionally, a squad halts at the knee, spraying down foxholes with automatic fire and rocket propelled grenades. They press forward, moving with astonishing speed, newer conscripts desperately sucking for air as they gallop forward.

Leaning out of the hatch of his command vehicle, the MRB commander witnesses his forward companies safely debussing on the objectives. Smoke, as planned, begins to land at the edges of the hills, isolating them from one another. Exultant, for he knows his unit is performing excellently, he urges forward the remainder of his force. Not onto these terrain objectives, these are not of the greatest importance, but beyond them. Breakthrough.
The tanks form into two columns and  roar through the hole ripped in the enemy’s defence, and the MRB commander pushes his command group, air defence vehicles and his third company through in the vacuum they create. They fire as they move, riflemen spraying the smoke-shrouded treeline from open cargo hatches on the rear of the personnel carriers.


***
“15 minutes.”
“What was that, comrade Colonel?” the TV producer asks, overhearing the supervising Colonel despite the dull thuds and crunches in the distance.
“15 minutes. That’s the average time it usually takes to complete this drill.” He explains.
“Is that good?”
The Colonel laughs, “Yes, 15 minutes is quite acceptable… this commander has done it in 12.”
The dismounted infantry may take hours, in reality, to comb through the wooded hills and defeat the surviving enemy infantry. That they would suffer heavily whilst doing so was not in dispute, nor was it of any particular importance. Even the uninitiated TV crewmen could deduce that. The real takeaway, the true objective, was that most of a tank company and an entirely unscathed set of motor riflemen were through the enemy’s defensive position. Havoc would ensue, and the destruction of the notional enemy unit was almost presaged. What the Colonel observing knew, and that the TV crewmen did not, was that inexorably, inevitably, behind this breakthrough would come a tank battalion, then another regiment, and then entire brigades. Victory would follow. It was as simple as that.
Notes/Thoughts
So, the scenario played here was "Soviet Tactical Doctrine 1 (MRB)" by Miller. I wanted to play because I thought it would make a great little compare and contrast piece to how the US would have to do things, especially in the NTC campaign. It's also just a solid concept for a mission, and a trend that I hope continues. For the absence of doubt, I played it straight, precisely as the briefing guides you to do. 
I also think there's some subtle criticism to be made, through the scenario, of how we know the Soviets trained in reality. Big, choreographed exercises. Useful for producing units that knew a series of SOPs and battle-drill evolutions, perhaps not as useful for producing units that know how to keep pushing through when BTRs and BMPs are exploding. They weren't organic like say, I feel the NTC was. Keep that in your minds for now. 

Hi everyone, I've released my second video about the Rumpenheim Rumpus scenario. Can the Soviets be beat? Come and find out 😉.
 

Well gentleman it's finally over. 
This campaign started in February (mainly because I'm a slow player) and I had thoughts of giving up but something about this campaign kept me coming back.
Missions in review:
1. Really fun mission that teaches you frontal assaults DO NOT work. The lone M60 on the hill will take out your tanks one by one until he runs out of ammo. If you sneak your anti tank teams on the hill to the right they can take them out. Also, Soviet artillery is accurate enough to take out tanks when you get a good spot with your observer
2. One of the toughest missions. The tanks on the hill will decimate your units if you don't bring the fight to them. I ended up making a bee line with my BMP's up the hill and used infantry to scare off the M60's. The rest was peace of cake since the path to the town from the hill is mostly covered and it's lightly defended
3. I'm so conflicted about this one. On the one hand, I don't think it's possible to win it blind. Your air support MUST hit the hill with multiple Bradley's AND your mortars must take out at least one Bradley. Even if you do everything right there will be at least two Bradley's taking out your units without you getting a spot. I save scummed until I didn't lose my FO. There isn't a way to win without all your FO's intact.
After that first part I had a lot of fun. You're in close range territory, just how the Soviets like it and speed is of the essence. the first company was utterly annihilated trying to take out the infantry and Bradley's on the left hill but they were successful which made room for the remaining companies. This mission made me understand Soviet tactics on a deeper level.
4. Really enjoyed this one. It was nice finally using the ATGM teams and machine guns as they were intended. I love how the Yanks just materialize far closer than you expect. Very spooky.
5. This was a nice pallet cleanser and very easy. It was so easy I was worried the game bugged out on me. I just called every piece of artillery on the town and swung both companies to the rear of the map, avoiding mines and the majority of their defenses. 
6. This is where I got burnt out. I tried this mission multiple ways but out of all the missions it really emphasizes the greatest weakness of the Soviets. They really don't have a counter to the hidden tank with a long range vantage point (and thermals). 
Calling in artillery is time consuming and getting a good spot can be difficult The yanks will always get the first spot smoke doesn't work and anything but pinpoint artillery doesn't work ATGM's are 50/50 and if they don't hit their first shot the tank kill them first The Soviets rely on using cover to get in close and whichever direction you choose there is at least one M60 with a great sightline waiting. I'll probably come back and crack the code eventually but I think it's time to move on to the next campaign.
I took the overpass, ceasefired and got a campaign major victory.
Overall I really enjoyed this campaign. The Soviets are such a unique faction and Cold War is such a unique game in the series. I want to play Red Thunder to have the masses of tanks but it's too slow. I want to play Black Sea for the cool toys but I'm scared to lose a single unit. Cold War hits that balance just right. Thank you to everyone who worked on this game.
 

The latest - and last - update of spotting ability, with German tank destroyers and assault guns added. No big surprises there.

It is the last update because my old computer started complaining loudly about the ordeal I've been putting it through. I still want to squeeze a few more miles out of my old friend, so I promised him no more CM testing.

The following is taken from a write up I am currently working on for my blog. I figured I would post "episodes" here for some interaction before consolidating it all into one post for the blog. It comes from a playtest I did recently on a community made scenario. The small fight that occurred in the beginning of the battle was too good not to share, and is also a great opportunity to talk a bit about the Soviet Forward Security Element (FSE). I also wanted to provide everyone with a change of pace. The Black Sea forum is soaking up most of the attention around here these days, and I figured a break from that might be appreciated. So without further ado:
Visualized in Combat Mission: Killing an FSE
A Tactical Vignette

The Soviet Forward Security Element (FSE) is one of the most common task organized formations encountered by NATO forces. For the Soviets it is an important tool that helps fix an enemy defender in place and shape the battlefield to allow for a successful attack. For NATO it is the first significant Soviet tactical combat formation encountered and a harbinger for a larger dedicated attack by a motor rifle battalion (MRB). The stakes presented to both sides by the FSE are high for both sides. Initial success in a tactical engagement largely comes down to the success or failure of the FSE.
This vignette features some excellent US Army vehicle reskins, done by S-Tank on the CM Discord. He recolored and upscaled the resolution on every US vehicle in the game, and they look fantastic. They can be downloaded here, or for those of you in the CM Discord, a download link and preview image can be found the mod repository text channel.
Forward Security Element
The Forward Security Element (FSE) is a Soviet task organized formation that is approximately Company sized. It is also known as the Advance Party or Vanguard. It generally consists of a company of motor rifle troops (mounted in either BTRs or BMPs) and a platoon of tanks. The tank platoon is often made up of four tanks instead of the better known three tank platoon organization the Soviets use, because in motor rifle regiments the tank units tended to be plussed up. There is usually at least a battery of field artillery on call for the FSE to call upon and may also have mortar sections/batteries in support as well. The FSE is a fluid formation that can have additional attachments delegated to it, such as engineering units/equipment, air defense artillery, forward observers, and reconnaissance units. Generally speaking, the Soviet FSE is similar in composition to a US Company Team.

(This image doesn't agree with the forum software, so I recommend viewing it in full size in another tab. Apologies for that, a graphic artist I am not)
The primary role of the FSE is to make contact with the enemy and either destroy it if it is of a smaller size than the FSE or fix it in place to give the rest of the battalion time to deploy and attack through the enemy.
To better understand the role of the FSE, one must understand how it fits into the larger Soviet warfighting machine. In simple terms, Soviet tactical formations are like a conveyor belt. Way out in front are the regimental reconnaissance assets, but their primary role is not combat. They are there to make sure what is on the map exists in reality and other non-combat related tasks. The smallest formation is the Combat Reconnaissance Patrol (CRP) which job is to find the enemy. A tripwire if you will. The CRP is followed by the FSE, whose job is to put pressure on the enemy by engaging and destroying him or at least fixing him in place with direct fires. The FSE is followed by the MRB (also known as the Advance Guard) which has the weight in numbers and support to conduct a deliberate attack and keep momentum going. Following the MRB is the rest of the Motor Rifle Regiment (MRR), and behind one MRR is another MRR, etc.
Apologies for the resolution on this, it is a scanned and stitched together image:

There are a lot of good resources out there to learn more about the FSE and how it fits into the Soviet way of war on the tactical level. This video does a nice job of breaking it all down, as does this simple yet informative writeup. Other resources worth checking out are TRADOC Pamphlet 350-16 Heavy Opposing Force, and the Cold War Gamer’s excellent blog. Just a heads up, many of the links on the Cold War Gamer’s blog are no longer active, and I think the owner is no longer keeping up with his blog.
A German Town—A Fighting Withdrawal
For this vignette I am going to be focusing in on a small combat action that occurs during a larger scenario. To help understand why the combat action plays out, I will provide some context.
This fight was the result of me play testing a scenario made by Cousin Hubert (Bartimeus on the CM forums). This scenario is the first of a series he is working on at the time of this writing for a mini campaign. Hubert makes fantastic maps, scenarios, and campaigns, all because he wants to add to the CM community and provide us with quality content. His map making skills alone make him a massive benefit to the community. Anyone familiar with how tedious and frustrating the CM map editor can be will have an even greater appreciation for his work. His AI plans are also very well done too.
He is the creator of two campaigns for Shock Force 2, which can be downloaded here and here. He has also produced some fantastic large maps for Cold War, which can be found here. We are very fortunate to have amazing contributors such as Hubert!
Situation
On the 8th of April the Soviet Union launched a surprise attack on West Germany. Caught by surprise, NATO’s front line has collapsed, and friendly forces are now in full retreat. Communications with higher headquarters is severely deteriorated by enemy jamming and artillery fire, but they were able to inform us that a Soviet formation is headed our way and to pull out when able.
Mission
Fox Company must hold the town until intelligence and logistics personnel have finished loading M35 trucks with gear and sensitive equipment. These trucks are located at the fire station and industrial park and should be loaded and ready to go in approximately 40-50 minutes. Then the entire force must be withdrawn from the battlefield. Fox Company must withdraw as much of its combat power as possible and remain combat effective, as it will likely have to fight its way back to friendly lines. There are two egress routes on either side of the river to the rear of the town.

Enemy
An entire Soviet motor rifle battalion and all its supporting assets can be expected to attack us.
Troops
I am in command of a heavy combined arms company team, Fox Company. It consists of two tank platoons equipped with M60A2 Starships (the second platoon of tanks is due to arrive in approximately 5 minutes), and two mechanized infantry platoons mounted in M113A1s. In addition, I have a few support assets on hand, such as a self-propelled mortar platoon (three M125 mortar carriers, which provides all of my indirect fire support for this fight), two heavy machine gun teams (dismounted .50 caliber machine guns), two M150 ATGM carriers, three M48 Chaparral SAM tracks, and 8 M35 supply trucks. The company headquarters (CPT Duvauchel) along with the company FSO is present.
Terrain
A small town on a riverbank rests at the southern border of the map. There is single road bridge in the town that crosses the river, though there is also a railroad bridge and a dam that cross the river as well. North of the town are some plowed fields, a farm, a small inn, and light forests. A single MSR runs from North to South into the town down the middle of the map, and a railroad parallels the MSR on the West side of the map. The terrain elevation undulates slightly with approximately +/- 20m of change.
The weather is less than ideal. It is misty out, which reduces visibility. It is early morning and thus low light, further hindering visibility. The ground is damp, which increases the chance of vehicles bogging and becoming immobilized. There is a medium strength breeze blowing from the North.
Of note for this vignette, there is a small raised and wooded area just North of the town along the Western map edge. It is a forward position with good concealment and good sightlines (given the conditions) overlooking the terrain the Soviets are likely to attack across to get to the town. To its immediate South is a gentle decline that provides a covered route for friendly forces to fall back into the town. It is the ideal location to get early warning on Soviet movements and to conduct a delaying action. This is where our combat action will take place.



The Plan
The larger plan is to use the tanks and infantry to defend the town long enough for the M35s to be fully loaded, then to have everyone collapse back to the rear and take the Southern most exit point and leave the field. The infantry are dug into the buildings, tanks and M150s are in keyhole positions, and the mortars and Chaparrals are in the rear, standing by.
2nd platoon led by 2LT Tassin is occupying the forward position. Their task is simple: disrupt the enemy and fall back. The Soviets must conduct a movement to contact. They know we are in the town, but they do not know the specific layout of our defense. The opening phase of this battle will have the Soviets attempting to shape the battlefield in their favor. This simply means they want to discover where my defenses are while also establishing advantageous positions for themselves that support the attack going in. By disrupting the Soviets ability to shape the battlefield in their favor, I make my overall defense easier and I buy precious time for the supply trucks to load up and get out.
To accomplish this, 2nd platoon will occupy the forward position and lay low. This will allow them to ambush the Soviets if the Soviets bypass the forward position (Engagement Area Primary) or deny the Soviets the forward position while attritting the enemy at the same time (Engagement Area Secondary). If either of these engagements are successful it will hurt the Soviets early, giving me a crucial advantage and a nice time cushion.

The men of 2nd platoon are dug in. They have foxholes (as well as a handful of dummy positions) just inside the tree line along the Southeastern edge of the woods. They are equipped with the infamous (for its questionable reliability) Dragon ATGM, the venerable M72A3 LAW (Light Anti-Tank Weapon) M60 GPMGs, M16s and hand grenades. The platoons 4 M113s are waiting along the Southern tree line, ready to mount up the infantry for a mad dash back to friendly lines after engaging the enemy.
2nd platoons’ initial positions:

The men of 2nd platoon occupying their fighting positions. The men are keeping low (‘Hiding’ in CM parlance) to keep from being seen:

Instead of being dug in near the tree line facing North, 3rd squad is further back in the woods. They have taken up position in a ditch along a dirt road and are covering an opening in the forest. If the Soviets decide to attack these woods and take the position (which I anticipate) this small opening is an ideal killing ground:

The M113’s, ready to mount up and haul ass:

One engagement. Let the Soviets stumble into our positions, knock off as many as we can in the initial engagement, then break contact and fall back.
Up next is the fight itself!

Doctrinally, when they do dismount, the Soviet infantry do it 300m away from the enemy position (just outside short ranged AT fire such as the RPG or LAW, as well as effective small arms range).

If there's heavy AT defences (and Dragon counts as that), then the dismount range is 1000m (so outside medium AT range - Dragon or AT-7).

In practice, I think both are actually fairly suspect. Dismounting at 1000m is a good way for your infantry to be neutered to no great effect, and any momentum you have to be nullified. Even 300m is a bit hopeful, I think, and I think it's a good idea to exit as close as you can get away with, when you do so at all.

Dismounting shouldn't ever really be plan A, but it can be a useful plan B, and it's important to know how to get the most out of the platoon.

As ever with the Soviets, the mechanised platoon shouldn't be acting alone. They should be preceded by armour, and that armour should be preceded by artillery. The attack has to be an an all-arms affair if it's to have any chance of success.

Oh, and the extra stuff, just to get this down:

BMP smoke fires forwards, about 100m-120m. This can be fired from a reverse slope to the forward area, and the intention is to give you a screen to manoeuvre behind, or to isolate something from supporting elements in depth.



One technique for maximising infantry fires whilst advancing is to use Assault, but to use the command correctly, with multiple waypoints and Target commands at each point:



The effect of this is that the non-moving element will be firing continuously, and the squad will continue advancing whilst still putting out as much fire as possible.