jwxspoon

Admiral, Top 20 over 3 sounds great! I have no problem about the battle parameters. I do notice that when inputing a new cmbb scenario I cannot choose "Soviet" as an allied force. jw

Just talking with Harv about his experiences with the "Hornet's Nest" senario. - - - - - - SPOILERS!!!! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Harv is at T20 already and has KO'd over 10 russian tanks with the loss of a single Hornet. Needless to say, he has this one won, simply by proper use of Shoot n Scoot and a bit of luck. jw [ October 02, 2002, 10:02 AM: Message edited by: jwxspoon ]

Hey Admiral, Just a quick note to let you know how much I appreciate the work you have put into this fantastic resource! jw

The most effective ranges for these weapons I have seen is 35 meters or less. jw

That is a good point. I felt that FOTM had enough landmarks listed, but many of my other scenarios have been light on the landmarks. I will endeavor to be better at it in the future. jw

Jaegermeister is one of my favorite scenarios I have ever played. Cracking the Egg is also very similar. jw

Hey Mike, Re HORNET's NEST = = SPOILER BELOW!!! = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = IIRC, in the actual engagement that this scenario is based on Ernst's platoon of Hornets KO'd at least 8 of the attacking soviet tanks, losing one of their number as a total loss and having another damaged. The support from the Hornets allowed the infantry to hold and repel the attack. The Russians were quite unhappy to encounter this new tank destroyer. In playtesting we saw wins on both sides for this one, but a shoot and scoot tactic was definitely necessary for the Hornets. Leaving them hull down seemed to attract targeting lines left and right. We added the second platoon of Hornets and they seemed to arrive and turn the tide just at the right time. Good luck! Jeff

Hi gentlemen, I have enjoyed and appreciated the AAR's on this scenario! One thing I have seen is that almost every game seemed to have its own set of high and low points. For every one guy that hated the scenario and found it ridiculously unbalanced because he couldn't take Lucio, there was another that took Lucio in 10 turns and came away raving about the scenario (and for each set of AAR's, replace Lucio with another 'major' problem or victory). The bottom line for me is that is was a hard, anguished, bloody fight for almost all participants that I have read, albeit some were bloodier than others. What I wanted to do here was create something as completely different from the regular CMBO scenario as possible, and to put both players in a difficult tactical situation; something they were not used to. I appreciate you all for stepping up and giving it your all! jw

I am convinced that wwb probably drinks a lot more and is much less stable mentally than the real Wild Bill Wilder, who seems a mild mannered and quite reasonable man. jw

I would use move to contact and then advance the last 50 meters or so. But keep in mind your crew served weapons (HMG) will be easy to spot if they are moving with the infantry and might blow your surprise. jw [ September 26, 2002, 11:32 AM: Message edited by: jwxspoon ]

Wow! I like! jw

hehe - Who said that? Actually, the main reason for my post was the ADVANCE issue. jw

Hey Gents. Just wanted to mention this, I have played several of you guys that just got the game. One common thing I am noticing is that almost all of them used the "ADVANCE" command to move their infantry forward. Soon, (2-3 turns) their men were exhausted and the players were frustrated. If contact has not been made yet, you should use the MOVE command or the MOVE TO CONTACT. Note that the MOVE TO CONTACT will stop all members of the same platoon as soon as contact has been made, so don't use that exclusively or you will find odd members of platoons stuck in the middle of roads or other open areas. Once contact is made I try to let at least one squad lay a base of fire to allow the rest of the platoon to get under cover. Taking fire is a good time to use the ADVANCE command because your men will be moving forward in little rushes, etc (standard infantry IMT). Keep in mind this will tire your men greatly. Be wary of the SNEAK command because your men will literally be low crawling like snakes. When ready to attack the strongpoint use the ASSAULT command. Your men will rush forward, firing as they go, and assault the objective. You probably don't want to use this for more than a 30 meter assault or so. Be careful to keep your men under command and to keep your platoon leader back far enough that your squads do the bulk of the fighting. Hope this helps! jw

I have fired the MG42, and spoke to Matt about the sound. When I fired, it was on a range in Europe, with earth berms on either side. Matt recorded actual MG42 firing for the sound, if I recall correctly. jw

and it is evil! Pure evil! jw

Old Hickory is a fun scenario. Scott did a great job! jw

Well, not really, but I do live in Myrtle Beach. jw

only a minor bump.

That's right guys, there are new scenarios and an EXCELLENT operation at Wild Bill's Boots & Tracks Scenario Design Team! Come and get em. See sig below for links. jw

Wittmann is also featured in the new B&T Scenario "Early Wittmann", available for download now at Boots & Tracks (see sig below). jw

ahh, but my understanding came from playing the game for several months. My mistake though, I just looked in the scenario editor, and the F is listed with the 75L24 and then the F2 is listed with the L43. jw

Also to Berli's list above I would add: 1. Cracking the Egg. 2. Jaegermeister. 3. Approach to Sevastapol 4. Marxdorf And anything from Boots & Tracks! jw

My understanding was that the F1 also had the long barreled 75

OK, 1. Engagement Ranges: MUCH more realistic than in CMBO. This in my opinion is my favorite new feature of this game! I find the average engagement raanges for me have almost doubled in CMBB. This allows me to buy a platoon of Marders or Nashorns and use them as I am supposed to in order to dominate the battlefield at long range, 1000-2000 meters. 2. HMG fire: I have heard some worried muttering that the HMG's may be too powerful and overmodeled, etc. etc. I disagree. The HMG's are now a very powerful support weapon. They cannot be used on the attack because they require time to setup. They are slow to move, quick to tire while moving, and very vulnerable while moving because they cannot shoot back. HOWEVER, anchor your defense with a couple of well placed HMG's and your opponent will need arty, armor, or HMG's of his own to root you out without taking prohibitive casualties. WHAT! YOU MEAN A PLAYER MUST UNDERSTAND AND USE COMBINED ARMS TACTICS??!! Holy skill development, Batman! 3. Close assaulting armor: muhahahahahahaha. I love close assaulting a tank that has strayed too close to one of my lurking Tank Hunter teams or squads in ambush. I can remember the feeling and frustration of being Allies in CMBO and being helpless once my PIAT's or Bazookas were dead. Not so any more! jw

The thing to remember here is that the variable turn ending is an OPTION. The scenario designer can opt for the more conventional ending or can use the variable. Personally, after having played dozens of games of CMBB, I prefer the variable ending. To me it introduces a random ending that ensures that a last turn flag rush will, in all probability, simply extend the game for long enough that the real side controlling the flags will win. jw