Erwin

It's ironic that of course as the game evolves the scenarios are getting larger (am very happy about that)... But, I do sympathize with you RT weirdos... And welcome to the Dark Side Ranger33...

One thing I notice from WW2 pics (of combat troops) is that it is very rare/very hard to see ANY patches denoting rank or anything else. While I love the mods with helmet icons and collar tabs etc. (and am happy to use em) I get the sense that in RL the experienced combat troops made sure none of that was visible, and they were as anonymous as possible.

Sorry, but my Japanese is very bad. Where can one download the tool? (I did not see a d/l link at the youtube site.)

Excellent. Was wondering when we'd get a new sound mod. I always check the MG42 first. I have so many sound mods now, I'll have to start mixing and matching...

Between Sublime's and winkelried's approaches are the two extremes of what could be done in that scenario. Presumably, wink. you rescued the KT and then backed off everything else other than the KT and PzV's... Smart strategy, but a bit gamey and you kinda miss the fun of the battle imo. Have also found that it's frequently the case that an early Ceasefire in a CM2 game vs the AI (so all campaign scenarios) results in a victory. That's a problem with the new system - it often results in extreme or weird results. Sublime tried to "follow orders" as they would probably be intended in RL and ended up losing most of his command. But, the campaign designer gives one everything back in the next mission - which is also a bit naff... I tried to take a middle ground approach between the two (and I successfully loaded up and evacuated the ATG). Lost only one PzIV and a few inf to get a draw (altho' nearly all the armor were pretty beat up). But, I felt that my efforts to keep units alive didn't bring satisfaction when I realized that all was replaced in the next mission - brand spanking new - so it really didn't matter. I don't think it's a good idea for designers to simply replace everything in a subsequent campaign mission. A 30%-50% replacement of men, equipment and ammo is adequate, so that economy of force and ammo consumption is an issue for the player.

And it's really neat when you see them used for the 1st time!

That was very helpful, as I have little idea what the Jerries are saying. Is this something one can activate (and how)?

The uniforms were so mixed/bolluxed up at Normandy, it's hard to say there are "inaccuracies". It's not like there was an actual uniform "uniform" from the pics we see... I still use the 12th SS uniforms with great affection... However, the new helmet mods are better.

thank you...

"...laying down hundreds of oil drums end-to-end would be a nightmare." Yes, but for the realism you are aiming for...

What's the <sigh> about. It was a simple question. Re the defense panel, what is the panel which shows the vehicle's defense against various types of shells called? "Defense Panel" could mean either. I like the round icons for that panel, whatever it is called.

vs AI or H2H?

Lovely. Thanks...

Wonder if it's possible to design a scenario in which one's armor needs to exit the map within (say) 30 minutes after start of the attack to gain any points (or you lose points if you do not). Meanwhile, ATG's arrive as reinforcements 20 minutes into the scenario in order to defend vs a counterattack.

So, what DO the "dot" bmp's do? The graphics look identical to the def bmp's. And no, I mean the damage "suffered" icons that change color when a vehicle experiences damage to its systems. I think the default are square and brighter. But, I can't figure out which ones to take out - or are they the exact same graphics that are also used for the defense panel and therefore the "defense panel" and "damage suffered" graphics must be the same??

One very common explanation is that the gun/tank/HMG/whatever couldn't see/target the building but a few of the crew could, so they fired (instead of auto-moving the gun to an appropriate firing position which would be the ideal). It's one of the CM1 things I miss: "If you can see it, you can shoot at it."

Absolutely... the effect is the thing, and most of us play wargames to get the same entertainment experience as going to the movies... except in the game YOU are the star!

Yeah, it is so strange that one can't delete saved games from within the game.

Obviously I agree with that. However, it's not always easy to find such sweet spots that enemy armor will actually traverse. Too many times, I have plunked an ATG down and it's useless for the rest of the game. But, if one waits for an enemy attack to be underway, it's often too late to transport to a position and deploy. (Maybe the maps are still mostly too small for such maneuver.) And then there is the issue of how to use em on the offense. If you move em to a place they can see an armor target, it will certainly see and target the gun first. Inf guns a are a bit easier as they can be out of small arms range and bombard a position (again assuming a large enuff map with long enuff LOS). Also, do you plan for the AT gun to survive, if it has to be loaded on a transport and taken away? Am curious if Sublime's gun was successfully evacuated off the map per orders/Victory Conditions. My sense is that if one is designing an attack scenario/mission, the scenario designer may as well dispense with any ATG's as the best thing is to not use em at all. In an inf or mech unit the ATG is useful to defend against counterattacks. So, yes, more useful in defense, or if the scenario includes an enemy counterattack. Seems odd to combine ATG's with armor formations.

I noticed that under DEFENSE PANEL there are five "def xxx.bmp's", and under MISCELLANEOUS there are five "dot x.bmp's" that look identical. What do they do? Also, in the onscreen UI, I preferred the larger square "damage" icons (that change color when a unit takes damage) to the round ones. How can I get those/what are they called?

Wow. Amazing what you guys can do with graphics.

In that mission I deployed the ATG on the extreme left flank where it could see and cover the most ground from an attacker's flank. Natch not a single enemy tank (or any enemy units) came that way. The reason I didn't deploy on the right as you did was that I couldn't see how to evacuate it to one of the German exit zones from there. Takes too long to load up and then it's fairly dense woods to get to the closest German exit area. I was more concerned about evacuating my units safely. It did seem that the main Allied attack was on the German right flank. Did your gun survive? BTW: I enjoyed the initial race to save the Tiger. I got it with the loss of one crew, but that thing stopped anything coming down the road it was on. I agree that 100% replacement for the next mission seemed a bit weird. There should be some resupply and replacement to make a campaign enjoyable, but I would have put it at around 25% replacement/resupply.

Yup, it seems to be so... I ran mortars and inf out in a field at various ranges to where I knew they would be in direct LOS of enemy tanks (assuming they could see each other). The mortars could fire where the tanks were even tho they couldn't see em, and no return fire. It's a neat magic trick, since there was also no C2 to anyone who could actually see the tank. C2: Hours of confused irritated fun!

Thanks Marco... BTW: I have been using a mix of your, JuJu's and Mords UI mods, as I prefer your weapons with the calibre and range etc. Any chance you can do a mod for the arty call buttons based on your weapons mods? I don't find the default greyed out button to be a problem. But, I would prefer your xnt looking air and gun symbols when those support items are available. Would be much appreciated.

Thanks... When I look at the old WW2 pics it seems rare to see any decals, patches, ranks etc on combat troops' (their helmets or uniforms)... only on soldiers on rear area guard duty. Wonder if modders have gone overboard in putting decals and patches on everything. (Especially when they are so bright like for the Canadians etc.)