Doug Williams

Since you decided to post this information in this open forum, I have a question. Who assaulted you? Wife? Boyfriend? I am asking this with no intent to disparage your lifestyle choices. When one chooses to make their personal life public, one accepts the inevitable questions.

It takes a bit of getting used to, but isn't that bad once you do. Say you want a platoon of infantry with one sherman attached. Buy an infantry batallion, delete everything but one company, then delete all the platoons but the one you want. You don't even have to keep the company HQ. Now select the platoon you kept, select single vehicles (instead of formations) and Armor on the left menu, and buy the sherman you want. It will be under the command of that platoon HQ. After you use it a while, it becomes easier. If you allow the AI to select it's own forces in a Tiny or Small QB, expect to see some strange results, especially if you tell it Mixed forces. I've taken to selecting the forces for the AI in smaller QBs. Of course, PBEM is where the game really shines, IMO.

This thread has gone off the deep end. OP pointed out a flaw in the way the game works. A BFC employee saw and acknowledged it. Most of the rest is just mildly entertaining forum pecking order jockeying.

The 2.0 "patch" is basically the same thing that many other software companies call DLC or downloadable content (basically extra content beyond the base game), and charge money for. BFC has provided us with a path to keep CMBN (and CMFI) current with the other CM games that are going to be released over the next couple of years, and have asked us to pay a modest sum to offset their costs. So what you need to do is patch to 1.11 and then make a decision whether you want to stop there or pay $10 to download the 2.00 patch. The 2.01 patch is free. Unless $10 is a big deal to you, and if it is I respectully submit you focus more on generating income than playing games, I highly recommend the 2.0 upgrade and then the free 2.01 patch.

Thanks for posting this, VAB. Glad Phil saw it also.

Best tactical game(s) ever? SSI's "gold box" series (Pool of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds, Secret of the Silver Blades, Pools of Darkness), hands down. Oh! Best WW2 tactical games? Why, the CM series of course.

I very much doubt it.

No idea what RO or RO2 are, but talk of "clans" reminds me of my old Everquest guild(s). Good times, and old memories, but long gone for me now. No time for such foolishness these days. Mano-a-mano turn based, or go home.

If you haven't played CM against a human opponent, you haven't really played CM.

Crabs in a bucket....

Michael who?

I agree with what womble said about vehicle crews manning the halftrack machine guns. As for a club, well the only one I am in is this one: http://www.webandofbrothers.de/ Great bunch of guys. We aren't what you could call an ultra competitive "ladder" type club, but you will have no problem finding opponents for casual games and there is almost always at least one CM2 tournament going on. A number of members only play CM1, some play both CM1&2, and some (like myself) only play CM2. We are not a "wargaming" club, but a WW2 Combat Mission club , although there is an "Other Games" section of the forum for hooking up with people for other games besides CM. A few of our members play the modern era CM games also, but the club does not keep track of those games in any way. The joining process is a bit lengthy. Basically you have to have a sponser, and play and finish a game with him before you become a member. This is to help keep out the players that don't finish games. Like I said, we aren't a super competitive bunch, though you will find some very good players. If your tastes are more for a very competitive "ladder" type club, I believe there are other clubs that might fit the bill.

I believe, in an earlier thread, I predicted this particular game would not finish. To answer your question, no, I would not consider your force selection "gamey". Advice: join a club. When you pick up opponents in this forum, it's like picking up a girl at a bar....she might not look so good in the morning. ;-) The club I'm in has rules about finishing games. The rule is, you finish your games or you are out of the club. "Finishing" means finishing all the turns, negotiating a cease fire, or surrendering, for casual games. For tournaments, you finish all the turns, no cease fire or surrenders.

Several things were done better in CM1 than in CM2, IMO, such as Command Lines, Moveable Waypoints (though we have those now), and the random map generator for QBs. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going back to CM1.

Ah, I sometimes forget people even play RT, since I never do.

Perhaps in the mission briefing? "This scenario is best played H2H or as Axis against the AI", or somesuch.

General question (not about the alleged "bug"): Why would machine gun fire from inside a concrete bunker be less effective than the same machine gun fired from a prone position on the ground? I've fired a machine gun (M60) a few times from a prone position on a target range, but I've never fired one from inside a bunker.

Pre-made QB force selections would be a feature that I would not see myself using very often. If I want to pick my forces, I play QBs. If I want my forces selected for me, I play Scenarios. Sometimes, just for the hell of it, I'll play a PBEM QB with computer picks forces for both sides. I personally would not want to see BFC spend man-hours implementing this feature.

I routinely delete XOs when I'm purchasing units in quick battles. I would rather use those points for a sniper team or somefink.

I agree. I selected both boxes when I installed the patch and can select everything.

Well, to be honest, I do play against the AI fairly often, mostly because the AI is always available and ready for a game. PBEM is where the rubber meets the road, however. Feel free to contact me on the WeBoB forums (Captain Awesome there) whenever you want a PBEM game, and I will be honored to play you.

Daddy-O, as you have now discovered, 30 minutes just isn't enough time on larger maps. If the map is "medium" size, do a 45 or 60 minute game. If larger than that, go longer. 30 minute games, IMO, should be reserved for Small or Tiny maps. Secondly, as thejetset pointed out, it was rather "gamey" of your opponent to bombard your (the attacker) setup zone. Find a better opponent in the future. Joining a gaming club is a good way. Thirdly, I do use "Move" quite a bit, but only when there is plenty of time, and my troops are out of harm's way. If there is a chance of them getting shot at, "Quick" (with resting) is better. Fourthly (and last), this is WW2. If you are on the attack and your troops have a lot of ground to cover, buy them some transportation. Just remember to keep it out of the way of AT guns (easier said than done).

Bull****. Finish your turns, Cease Fire, or Surrender. When you start playing a PBEM with an opponent, you enter into a contract to bring the game to some sort of conclusion.

There is really no excuse for it, other than immaturity. If you are getting beaten so badly that you no longer want to send turns, ask your opponent to agree to a Cease Fire. If he refuses, then Surrender, and send the last turn to him. This is my rule-of-thumb for casual games. Sorry for the thread derail, and hope the game goes well, JP & Pz.

Good point, WynnterGreen, and I agree. Like I said earlier, I'm easygoing as far as what my opponent wants, as long as we both have foreknowledge of the "house rules" (or lack thereof).