LongLeftFlank

Very nice post, Falaise.
There have been many times where a historical battle came to life for me while playing Combat Mission.  I would be starting out a battle and suddenly realize that I'd read about that very encounter in a book.  The mapmakers really immerse you in the physical location as well.  It is, in many ways, an amazing experience more than a game. 
Heinrich505

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2017/sep/09/the-war-zone-drawings-of-ghaith-abdul-ahad
"Most buildings in the old city have two levels of basements, so even bombing a house once did not end Isis resistance – [Iraqi forces] would have to bomb it twice, or three times. So actually when you go to the old city in Mosul you don’t see streets any more. You can’t distinguish where the buildings stood and where the street was. I’ve never seen anything like it."

Yeah really. If this is limited to just BF replies then they might as well lock up the thread and start a new one when they have news. Some people just go through life with a chip on their shoulder.  Anything that generates additional excitement for the products BF has commented on here is a win as far as I see it.  Looking forward to what you do next with CMSF2 @Sgt.Squarehead  Mosul was fantastic, with all the new options the next will be even more so. 

Of course the 2008 'retro' TO&E remains near ideal for those of us gaming out (glacially) OIF 1 and 2 (Iraq 2003-2009) and the corresponding period in Afghanistan.
Slightly different topic, Mike Mooney writes a thoughtful piece for SWJ on application of Clausewitz to the destruction of ISIS.
http://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/clausewitz
I am not totally on board with applying schwerpunkt to destruction of a guerrilla movement, so this piece reads more like a 'what not to do' for them than a real 'how to' for a regular army. But worth a read nonetheless, like most of Col. Mooney's stuff

Thing is though guys, it WILL feel like a completely new game once people start messing with it.....You better hunt down & kill those ISIS/Taliban etc. fast or they WILL be gone, through a new Exit Zone.  Messing around in that zone may now Trigger an IED Triggerman to move into line of sight of an unrevealed IED.  There are so many new things that can be done with this engine and the old game's massive TOE list.  With a few tweaks to the old TOE (that's all that are needed) and the potential could be increased yet again.
So while I'd love to see the game expanded, I'm more than excited at what's already on offer (and what just might realistically be on the cards). 

Ha love that movie!

Appreciate the clarification Luke, trust your feelings 😉
Sarge, the death star effect is my name for the unfortunate combo of game mechanics that allows direct fire weapons even of light caliber to rapidly spot, zero and shoot 'fortified' defenders all dead in their holes and even bunkers at range, again and again, consistently, even when they are hidden or cowering.
RL firepower (at least in pre-PGM days) simply doesn't have that kind of prompt total lethality against dug-in defenders or else WWI would have taken a very different course. The 4.0 "run away! run away!" bailout bug compounds the problem.
 

Appreciate the clarification Luke, trust your feelings 😉
Sarge, the death star effect is my name for the unfortunate combo of game mechanics that allows direct fire weapons even of light caliber to rapidly spot, zero and shoot 'fortified' defenders all dead in their holes and even bunkers at range, again and again, consistently, even when they are hidden or cowering.
RL firepower (at least in pre-PGM days) simply doesn't have that kind of prompt total lethality against dug-in defenders or else WWI would have taken a very different course. The 4.0 "run away! run away!" bailout bug compounds the problem.
 

Ok, longer reply: I appreciate the work that goes into creating a mod like that, but without proper 3D models for Japanese troops, weapons, Marine Corp forces, and other items like TOE and Japanese voice acting, it just doesn't do it for me. Same goes for under-the-hood weapon modeling - ballistics, ammo loads, total absence of bayonets, etc. In sum, there would be too much suspension of disbelief for me to enjoy it.But hey, if you like it, have at it. I was just voicing why the mod doesn't do anything for me. 

Ok, you have a right to your view but I don't get the disdain.
As a CM playtester, do you have some under the hood info we don't about how nationalities are treated in game which would make 'real' Japanese infantry behave totally differently from modded 1944 British infantry? I'm pretty sure Steve has said repeatedly that they don't "übermensch" anyone, or the reverse. At squad level, the weapon sets are broadly comparable provided you avoid the Sten-intensive sections and assume the Japanese type 99 service rifle. Nambu and Bren have little to differentiate them. Light mortars, same. You run into more trouble with ordnance weapons, sure, but there are workarounds.
And it's not like there are piles of scenarios out there featuring British troops with Fanatic morale. But whatever... 

Ok, you have a right to your view but I don't get the disdain.
As a CM playtester, do you have some under the hood info we don't about how nationalities are treated in game which would make 'real' Japanese infantry behave totally differently from modded 1944 British infantry? I'm pretty sure Steve has said repeatedly that they don't "übermensch" anyone, or the reverse. At squad level, the weapon sets are broadly comparable provided you avoid the Sten-intensive sections and assume the Japanese type 99 service rifle. Nambu and Bren have little to differentiate them. Light mortars, same. You run into more trouble with ordnance weapons, sure, but there are workarounds.
And it's not like there are piles of scenarios out there featuring British troops with Fanatic morale. But whatever... 

The main realism hassle for me in Makin was the incredible ease with which entrenchments and bunkers are spotted and brought under fire, especially by BU tanks, even when well camouflaged in deep jungle and not themselves firing. It's something that really has to get fixed before you can do any kind of positional warfare, regardless of theatre. That same Deathstar effect also brought my Dien Bien Phu experiment to a dead stop.

The main realism hassle for me in Makin was the incredible ease with which entrenchments and bunkers are spotted and brought under fire, especially by BU tanks, even when well camouflaged in deep jungle and not themselves firing. It's something that really has to get fixed before you can do any kind of positional warfare, regardless of theatre. That same Deathstar effect also brought my Dien Bien Phu experiment to a dead stop.

Ok, you have a right to your view but I don't get the disdain.
As a CM playtester, do you have some under the hood info we don't about how nationalities are treated in game which would make 'real' Japanese infantry behave totally differently from modded 1944 British infantry? I'm pretty sure Steve has said repeatedly that they don't "übermensch" anyone, or the reverse. At squad level, the weapon sets are broadly comparable provided you avoid the Sten-intensive sections and assume the Japanese type 99 service rifle. Nambu and Bren have little to differentiate them. Light mortars, same. You run into more trouble with ordnance weapons, sure, but there are workarounds.
And it's not like there are piles of scenarios out there featuring British troops with Fanatic morale. But whatever... 

Cheers, mate. Yes, back in 2012 I did a CMBN scenario based on the 27th Division's landing on Makin Atoll (contemporaneous with bloody Tarawa), since it was very well documented and a reasonable scale of action, plus there were no flamethrowers available (as was the case with CMBN version 1).
Once you reach high water the atoll is pooltable flat other than manmade taro pits, so to prevent ridiculous amounts of keyholing through the overgrown palm plantations I used randomly scattered Low Bocage tiles. It worked out quite well and was a challenging fight. Rapid exhaustion of Green troops means that the US commander needs to advance in 'waves' (as historically) rather than just many-on-fewing the massively outnumbered and outgunned Japanese out of their holes. Hand grenades are a massive killer; also the lack of bazookas and FTs to bust bunkers forces you to rely on armour support in spite of the bogging risks.
So I can't offer the Sergeant Sledge Marine bloodbaths you probably crave, but it can scratch the itch.
Fanatical (modded) British forces stand in quite nicely for SNLF rikusentai. Alas, the mods (wireframes, faces, voices) were done in engine version 1 and were never updated for the new naming convention.
Not much new to add on the hoary topic of 'does the CM2 engine work for Pacific?' but the bipolar AI infantry movement consisting of either 'slow painful crawl' or 'run straight at 'em howling' actually reflects Japanese tactical practice tolerably well....

Cheers, mate. Yes, back in 2012 I did a CMBN scenario based on the 27th Division's landing on Makin Atoll (contemporaneous with bloody Tarawa), since it was very well documented and a reasonable scale of action, plus there were no flamethrowers available (as was the case with CMBN version 1).
Once you reach high water the atoll is pooltable flat other than manmade taro pits, so to prevent ridiculous amounts of keyholing through the overgrown palm plantations I used randomly scattered Low Bocage tiles. It worked out quite well and was a challenging fight. Rapid exhaustion of Green troops means that the US commander needs to advance in 'waves' (as historically) rather than just many-on-fewing the massively outnumbered and outgunned Japanese out of their holes. Hand grenades are a massive killer; also the lack of bazookas and FTs to bust bunkers forces you to rely on armour support in spite of the bogging risks.
So I can't offer the Sergeant Sledge Marine bloodbaths you probably crave, but it can scratch the itch.
Fanatical (modded) British forces stand in quite nicely for SNLF rikusentai. Alas, the mods (wireframes, faces, voices) were done in engine version 1 and were never updated for the new naming convention.
Not much new to add on the hoary topic of 'does the CM2 engine work for Pacific?' but the bipolar AI infantry movement consisting of either 'slow painful crawl' or 'run straight at 'em howling' actually reflects Japanese tactical practice tolerably well....

Cheers, mate. Yes, back in 2012 I did a CMBN scenario based on the 27th Division's landing on Makin Atoll (contemporaneous with bloody Tarawa), since it was very well documented and a reasonable scale of action, plus there were no flamethrowers available (as was the case with CMBN version 1).
Once you reach high water the atoll is pooltable flat other than manmade taro pits, so to prevent ridiculous amounts of keyholing through the overgrown palm plantations I used randomly scattered Low Bocage tiles. It worked out quite well and was a challenging fight. Rapid exhaustion of Green troops means that the US commander needs to advance in 'waves' (as historically) rather than just many-on-fewing the massively outnumbered and outgunned Japanese out of their holes. Hand grenades are a massive killer; also the lack of bazookas and FTs to bust bunkers forces you to rely on armour support in spite of the bogging risks.
So I can't offer the Sergeant Sledge Marine bloodbaths you probably crave, but it can scratch the itch.
Fanatical (modded) British forces stand in quite nicely for SNLF rikusentai. Alas, the mods (wireframes, faces, voices) were done in engine version 1 and were never updated for the new naming convention.
Not much new to add on the hoary topic of 'does the CM2 engine work for Pacific?' but the bipolar AI infantry movement consisting of either 'slow painful crawl' or 'run straight at 'em howling' actually reflects Japanese tactical practice tolerably well....

Cheers, mate. Yes, back in 2012 I did a CMBN scenario based on the 27th Division's landing on Makin Atoll (contemporaneous with bloody Tarawa), since it was very well documented and a reasonable scale of action, plus there were no flamethrowers available (as was the case with CMBN version 1).
Once you reach high water the atoll is pooltable flat other than manmade taro pits, so to prevent ridiculous amounts of keyholing through the overgrown palm plantations I used randomly scattered Low Bocage tiles. It worked out quite well and was a challenging fight. Rapid exhaustion of Green troops means that the US commander needs to advance in 'waves' (as historically) rather than just many-on-fewing the massively outnumbered and outgunned Japanese out of their holes. Hand grenades are a massive killer; also the lack of bazookas and FTs to bust bunkers forces you to rely on armour support in spite of the bogging risks.
So I can't offer the Sergeant Sledge Marine bloodbaths you probably crave, but it can scratch the itch.
Fanatical (modded) British forces stand in quite nicely for SNLF rikusentai. Alas, the mods (wireframes, faces, voices) were done in engine version 1 and were never updated for the new naming convention.
Not much new to add on the hoary topic of 'does the CM2 engine work for Pacific?' but the bipolar AI infantry movement consisting of either 'slow painful crawl' or 'run straight at 'em howling' actually reflects Japanese tactical practice tolerably well....

Recent discussions have made my mind up for me, I will be turning out Part 2 (Al Hutumah) as another CM:SF stand alone scenario in due course.....Once the opportunity presents itself, I'll remake the lot as a campaign for CM:SF II.....I reckon it will be interesting to see how capable the newer AI engine is on a map this complex, looking forward to the new title immensely. 

Where's the covfefe shop?

Looks like @Sgt.Squarehead got his wish for the old school 'chunky' building rubble. Cheers, BFC. 👌

Glad to see you're feeling better. You looked like death warmed over for a bit.

Twas the night before CM-mas and all through the bunker
not a 'truppen was stirring they were all down and hunkered
The frags were all hung by the rifles with care
In hopes that Santa Steve soon would be there
The 'truppen a snoring and dreaming away
of the hookers they'd met, on leave last May
When out in the minefield there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bunk, my skivvies all tattered.
Away to the gun sites I flew like a plane,
pulled back the bolt and steadied my aim.
When from mod weary eyes I spied from afar,
Some northern Maine dude with a brain in a jar,
Santa Steve! I shouted with excitement and glee
but in response, just some bitching about TO&E
On Stragglers, on Sicherungs, Luftwaffe and Herr
on Jagers and Gebirs, and others more rare
He droned on and on as the brain kept a coding
and I knew deep inside this was no normal foreboding
For once in a while a reference to Syria
and with that little gem I was sent to hysteria
For amidst all that heavy WWII talking
Toward Shock Force 2 I knew he was walking
Patiently on the desert I'd waited
and soon it'd be real and my lust would be sated
Back to the sand! Nato, Uncons and pals
but with 4.0 flare and friggin' hit decals!
My head filled with war and the toys that it brings
I was hoping I'd see it before G**D*** spring!
Then brain in arm, he turned toward the west
to continue ever onward the Combat Mission quest
Teeth clenched and jaw set against the snowy wind
he trudge into the night, a phantom again
And as he passed by the bunker and out of our zone
I chewed on the annual Christmas bone.
 
Merry Christmas, fellas!

Mord.
 
 

.... The Postwar Years

.... The Postwar Years