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Heheh: a double diphthong post is never something to try to take back!

Just ordered it. Thanks.

Okay, I'm not really afraid. I just wanted to use a rare diphthong.

The date is a fourth linkable field. I'm afraid to click it due to a fear of the chronological maelstrom which may result.

The rep system is actually a way to induce positive forum participation. Once you get over 300 + votes, you can ctl-alt-double left click on the "+" and get hot-linked to the BFC webstore. (The double-click is a pain in the ass. You've got to time it just right, or it doesn't link.) Once in, it automatically shows you what you can get, for free, in exchange for some + votes. The CMBN big bundle goes for about 800, I think. It fluctuates, depending on the USD:+ exchange market. In this case, if John Kettler were to disenroll from the forum, he'd owe BFC some $ because of those negative reps. It's in the EULA. So, he's kind of committed to hanging about and hoping for a better turn of events. Unless someone wants to cash him out.

The more points you use, the better the force picker will do. The QB force selector uses complete TOE formations. It will not buy a company of tanks, strip out one platoon, thin out the other platoons by one tank each, and use the extra points to beef up the assault engineers. No. It will buy the enter company of tanks. (Or a platoon. Or two platoons.) There were some odd purchases by the picker which were bugs. Those are in the past...as far as is known. The more you give it, the more flexibility the solution will have and the better it'll be. In general, I pick the AI on defense and beef it up with a + %. The good news? If you don't like what you get, quit and try again.

US vs. Soviet Union air forces: I've played "Mig Alley". US wins. 'nuff said.

I blow up the buildings that have balconies. That way it keeps my men from using them and it kills the enemy who may have been in there.

The Italian Army of WWII never really interested me. In so many games, they are just a 1 point army in North Africa, a parenthetical 1 or 2 pointer in the boot of Italy, and are removed from play on a surrender die roll in '43. Then I played them in CMFI. The strength of this game system is that is shows how having outdated tactical organization and equipment results in poor battlefield performance. There was no lack of skill or bravery among the Italians. There was a lack of proper planning for a modern war. The large, WWI optimized, platoon has its place: in the trenches against infantry. But not in open order against armor and/or modern equipment. CMFI is one of my favorite modules.

If only it had a gun which was long enough... Edited to add: the pix do a nice job of showing the applique glacis armor.

Absolutely appreciate this!!!

Perfect. I misunderstood.

I haven't looked at anything other than what is posted, above. If you are counting "bodies per minute", then the reload rate from the ammo truck would make a difference, yes? Does an MG42 get a 200 round belt, fire it off, then get another? Does a US rifleman get an 8 round clip for his Garand? Do they have the same delay between reloads from the truck? Just a minor quibble. Or question. Gotta say I like the presentation. Plenty to chew upon. Thanks.

Churchills were famous for getting where other tanks couldn't. All those little bogies did help. MMP, etc. As well, if you're comparing Churchills to Shermans and how they survive Jagdtiger 128mm hits, well, they're both so over-matched it doesn't matter. The Panther's 75L70 gun cuts through them both like a hot knife through butter, especially at the ranges in game (and in combat). Where the Churchill beats the Sherman is survivability against other than 75L70. Against 75L48 and L43, it does better. 50mm? Far better.

Could be the deep-seated effects of enemy troops wearing their uniforms backwards. This makes it look like they're firing AT you when, in fact, they're firing at someone else. Frequently used by armies which found themselves surrounded. Not something the average buff knows about. Good catch.

One word: Ogre Ogre and its sequel, G.E.V., are tactical ground combat games set in the late 21st century. In 2085 A.D., armored warfare is faster and deadlier than ever. Hovercraft, tanks and infantry slug it out with tactical nukes. But the most feared weapon of all needs no human guidance. It's the giant cybernetic tank called the Ogre http://www.sjgames.com/ogre/ You can learn all about non-manned tanks, and how it is inevitable that they will turn on their human overlords. Unmanned tanks? No thanks.

This is interesting. I have no idea how many M60s are being operated, or by whom. Each operator would have to check their threat matrix to see if they need the upgrades...or if they should buy something new. The new 120mm in the M60? I wonder what that does to round count. If I had an M60, sure, I'd be interested. But that's me.

Keep 'em coming! I love the effects you're putting into the pictures.

The cool thing, if it's anything like my military experience, after you've dug all that, run the comm links, camo'ed it up, put the overhead cover on, then you're up and moving again the next day.

Buy canned food. Lots of it.

If the US Dollar is 4.2x your local currency, I'd suggest buying CMBN since it has 4.2x the content of all the other titles. Or, just buy whichever one most interests you...knowing full well that you'll end up buying them all.

Here's my commentary... Panthers were a problem. For everyone. Great flotation, excellent gunnery platform and optics and a killer gun. It seems like the point of this comment is that anti-tank guns should have a better chance against Panthers and, supposedly, other tanks. The comment seems to think that a fast setup time is the tactical key to anti-tank gun effectiveness. If your anti-tank gun is being setup in view of the enemy tank, you're doing it wrong. They will die. As they should. It doesn't matter if they go in circles. No limbered anti-tank gun being moved across the ground in view of an enemy tank should survive. If they were a threat, then nations would build fleets of mobile anti-tank guns. Wait: they did. They're called "tanks". Next... Ahh...setup time based on film. Well, a lot of German WWII footage was filled by PK units. "Propaganda Kompanie" is not really something I'd place my tactical faith upon. Does it look cool to see the guys fly off a kubelwagen and snappily spin the towed 3.7cm gun around, push it past the cobblestones, and crouch behind it with a shell in hand? Great. Now, dig a fighting hole for it. Measure the ranges to fixed objects and create a range card. Dig shelters for the men. Stockpile ammo. Lay wire. Camouflage the entire thing. Not good. Doing a hasty setup? Again, there's more to it than just spinning a shooting. Unnoticed? Well, that depends on LOS. CM1 did not use individual units. It was a fudge. More... A couple things. CM2 allows slight asymmetry in LOS. If a unit has trees nearby, those closest to the unit are ignored. This simulates the tank moving slightly to get a better LOS. The player cannot do this (nudge a tank 30cm to the left). So, the immediate trees don't exist for outgoing fire. They do exist for incoming. Now, seeing through 2km of woods? I've seen some oddities, but nothing like this. I think I have some experience with this game. For certain long-range LOS, the oddity is explained by the "fudge". The game allows a chance of seeing through foliage. This simulates some of the shifting and movement of leaves. Otherwise, we'd have to model each leaf. That would not work. Sigh. Another.... I have not seen this. Did it happen to you? If so, does it happen ALL THE TIME? I have lost track of the number of pixeltruppen who I have sent to their deaths when entering a dwelling in which there were hidden enemy. (To be honest, my pixeltruppen's little lives are of such small consequence, I never count the fallen. Only the brave.) City fights are brutal. If you've really repeated this 20 times, send me the savegame. I'll look at it. City fights are brutally bloody and, properly done, go through mountains of ammunition. The LOS and communications are done very well in CM2. Did you find a loophole? I don't know. Pix and/or savegame would tell. Hidden units stay hidden...if their morale stays up. If the enemy is shooting at their location, it may affect their morale and cause movement. No game is perfect. But, I have yet to see any game come close to the level of CM2. Can it be improved? Sure. I can't wait for engine 5. I just don't see anything in the questions/commentary you posted as being an issue. I haven't experienced them the way you've posted.

How did I not see this 3 weeks ago? I'll download this when I'm done traveling. Thank you for what I'm sure is another outstanding campaign!

Yeah. I mean, after playing CMBS, how can I play CMBN? You want me to downgrade my Abrams to Shermans? /s The engine 4 is vastly superior to 1. This is a huge shift. If the CMSF milieu is not your thing, then don’t buy. If you do buy, you’ll enjoy another CM experience. Edited to add: Merry Christmas!

Mine showed up (stateside) in the mail about 3 days ago. In a show of great internal fortitude, it is still in its shipping cardboard. I slipped it under the tree and I'll just say it was a gift from Santa. Stunned it arrived so soon, what with the re-print/returned shipment issue. Now, I'll need to get rid of all those pesky family members and relatives once I open it. Can't be interrupted, can I?