c3k

LOL... I used to really be bothered by typos like that...until I proofread one of my write-ups (three times), and still missed that I'd written "through" where "threw" was what was needed. The article had one (or two?) wrong word(s) and it was only a homonym. Far better, and much more minor, than a misplaced apostrophe or double word or gibberish. I still liked the questions, the answers, and the screenshots were sharp and detailed. Ken LOL... I used to really be bothered by typos like that...until I proofread one of my righ-tups (tree times), and still miss that Id written "through" where "threw" was what was needed. The article had won (or too?) wrong word(s) and it was only a homo-nym. Far better, and much much minor, then a missplaced apostrophe or duble word or jibberish. I still liked the questions the answer and the screenshots were sharp and detailed Ken

Nice interview and great screenshots. Seriously, nicely done. Ken

Marketing? Hot elf chicks. 'Nuff said.

I've got some spare parts. James Cobb...list your specs and we'll see what we can do. (Yes, a "pity party" for the computer game reviewer. Your screenshots mean you (veritably) asked for it!)

A lot depends on your screen resolution. If you're ~1080p, then a GTX970 is pretty good. However, as noted, a lot of graphical goodness is about to come on the market in the next half year. The new architectures mean old stuff should be cheaper, or you can get more powerful cards for what you'd pay today. Also, look at the DX12 reviews coming along. (You need Win10 for DX12. CM does NOT utilize any DX api's, so this would not pertain to any combat mission game.) AMD seems to have an advantage over Nvidia in the 2 "true" DX12 games released. I say "true" and "seems". There's a LOT of room for interpretation and spin. This is all pretty new stuff. However, if it's true, then you may want to think about what other games you play and whether nvidia or amd suit your needs better than the other. But, for just CM, I'd pick nvidia. For now.

Okay, trees being mentioned as OFF: covered by another comment. Horribly simplified graphics and close LOD settings: also covered by another poster. What's not covered? Simple. We need to begin a kickstarter campaign for you to juice up your review computer! Egads, man! If you're going to do computer game reviews (which you do quite well), you need a COMPUTER which will also kick butt!! Seriously, did you run jumpers from your wrist watch to your screen to for those shots? C'mon BFC'ers, who wants to pledge some support to help James Cobb get a rig which will let CM shine in his reviews? Cash or parts...we can build it! What have we got lying around? Ken

Nice! I am wondering if you gave your men a pre-battle speech?

Lots of cool "behind the curtain" info being discussed, e.g., the retarget and how the TacAI "remembers" the last target, amongst others. Makes it seem that that this is a pretty detailed sim. Oh, wait: it is.

It sounds like a "retarget" occurs if the target ducks out of LOS. It seems that "retarget" means there are the usual range estimation errors, etc., induced. As opposed to firing at the same target and correcting each shot as needed until a more accurate solution is found. IF (big "if") that supposition is correct, then the guy ducking down behind the wall introduces a new "retarget" algorithm each time. That could be what Steve is trying to get at. My .02. Interesting discussion on many levels. Ken

Umm...at 200m, how long did it take for the infantry to spot that the TC had unbuttoned? Curious... A 6" to 8" diameter target at 200m should be hard to spot. Or, did I just add some fuel to a fire? Regardless, it's good to start getting some baselines.

Absolutely. Simian Murder Apes with DU talons? Love it. But, still, those damn RWS boxes on Abrams just plain hurt. Any CO worth his salt would order his men to hacksaw them off before the Green Men point and laugh. Or the SMA throw banana peels. One or the other...

Good observation. You may have something...

Hey, that RWS on the M1's doesn't look big enough. Isn't there some more sheet-metal they could weld on somewhere up there? Sheeeesh. "Elegant engineering" at its finest... "Mac, it's a friggin' tank. Just bolt on some more boxes."

Got it figured out... In "Celer et Audax", the one man Drivers belong to the halftracks. The drivers' crew number title matches up with the appropriate halftrack. (Yes, you need to add the Platoon HQ halftrack back into the battle.) The one crew which is two men belong to the Bren MMG carrier. (Any driver can drive a Bren. That can lead to mismatching drivers and vehicles.) The one-man "Crew" next to the Platoon HQ is the driver for the Stuart Kangaroo. Any passenger unit loaded into the Kangaroo will prioritize the bow machinegun as the first seat. As stated upstream, yes, it would be nice to have a "match the crew to their vehicle" function in the game. Or, a different icon showing loading as a passenger or as a crewman. Maybe a steering wheel instead of the "I'm loading" down-arrow. Ken

Valid points...for Celer et Audax. I've revived the Platoon HQ Halftrack. As far as figuring out which crew goes where, well, it isn't explicitly laid out (this has been a requested improvement for several years), but in this battle it's pretty easy. Driver 1 goes into Halftrack 1; etc. The only confusing part is for the Bren Carrier and the Stuart Recce. In that case, there are two "Crew" units with no number. However, one crew is a single man, the other is a two man unit. By process of elimination, the one man guy goes in the Bren Carrier. That leaves the two man Crew to go in the Stuart Recce. Yeah, it'd be REALLY nice to have a line or flashing icon so we could figure out which crew goes with which vehicle. (BTW, this came up ~3 years ago (or more?) when I was testing depleted tank crews. I'd take 100 tanks, dismount the crews, run them through a sniper alley, then put them back in their tanks to see how the tanks would operate with specific crew member loadings. (I was looking into spotting times.) Try sorting 100 crews into 100 tanks after they've dismounted and been shot up. Yeah.) Edited to append this: having loaded the two man crew into the Kangeroo, I've found that they REFUSE to drive it. The "driver" becomes "commander", and sits in the middle. The other chap mans the mg. Off to test...

It'd be so much cooler to just CHANGE the dates and locations so that the Opfor will be confused. Just me thinking...

This was an unexpectedly quick release. Ken

Great starting point. (Seriously. I =hate= how forums can make it seem that sarcasm is intended when it isn't, and vice versa.) Go back to no mods and see if your problem troops look correct with stock textures. Then, as kohlenklau suggested, add ONE mod to the problem troop category and let's see if it "takes".

A doff o' me cap to Baneman for his victory! A few notes: compare my units' situational awareness with his. Throughout the battle, he seemed to see my guys first and better. That is NOT sour grapes!!! It was something I noticed in play (my guys were getting hit with accurate fire and could not even get a "?" from the source of the fire). His screenshots bear that out. Obviously, command and control links, unit experience, etc., play a role. Notice how critical it is to SEE the other guy. So, he was better at that aspect than I was. If I had used ANY recce, perhaps I would've spotted some men. But that's far too boring when compared with a flag rush. I -was- able to get more of my men into the graveyard, so I've got that going for me. I would say that German recce units pack more punch that US units...buy my guys showed more elan. This was an outrageously fun battle with a courteous, gentlemanly, gamey bastige of an opponent. Get him on your playcard. Ken out.

...as always! But, please, let's make sure that sburke doesn't hear about it this time! I've only just got my intern back into her normal routine. It was more fun to play than I expressed. Thanks for the kind words. Ken

Thanks for the kind words. This was only 17?? turns long. Every turn had a lot going on.

^^^ Absolutely. It's just that _I_ do not.

The tally... (For some reason, my usual image posting isn't working, hence the direct links. Hope they work. As well, I'm using a different size monitor, so the screenshots may appear different than earlier ones.) That was a fun battle. It showed how devastating the German auto weapons could be. It also showed how a rushed, botched, incompetent attack can get nearly everyone killed. There was a lot of good mayhem. The last turns' mad dash was done because my men demanded it. I allowed it. Perhaps I should not hold the reins so loosely... I hope you guys enjoyed seeing this (as stop-and-go as it ended up being) as much as I had fun playing it. Give Ian a PM and get him on your pbem list. Try the demo... Ken out.

Some other scenes which played out...

While that was going on, a small scene played out inside the chapel near the church... Hah! Banemen NEVER suspected!! I win! I win! I win again! More...