Erwin

Nice to have some new scenarios. Thanks. Any chance of another Campaign?

Yes, Alan is correct. ALL 7.62 etc. ammo is indicated in the 2nd bar. This is particularly noticeable when you play the Reds (or Soviets in CMA) as the 7.62x39 as well as the 7.62x54 go in the 2nd bar and it's confusing to know if there is an abstraction at work and in fact ANY 7.62 ammo is used by all rifles and MG's taking "7.62mm" and you really don't have to worry about the x39 and x54 variants (or whether it's rifle or MG ammo). AFAIK this is yet another example of a rather vital bit of info that is NOT in the manual. I suspect that it's a bit of a trick played on us to disguise the fact that the CM2 system is less of an accurate simulation than a (very good) game full of abstractions.

Hope this helps: AMMO TYPES EXPLAINED #11 [-] General Posts: 7978 (16-09-10 08:05:20) ReplyQuoteEditMore My Recent Posts From BFC forums: Ammo and corresponding weapons data Pistol rounds Used in SMGs and handguns, not acquirable. Makorov PM is 9x18mm, M9 is 9x19mm, PPSH submachinegun is 7.62x25mm. Intermediate rifle rounds Intermediate rifle rounds are smaller/cut down rounds for assault rifles. They offer light weight, lighter weapons, and often lower recoil when compared to full size rifle rounds. Effective range is generally 500m or less and penetrating power is low. 5.56x45mm Standard NATO round for assault rifles. In CMSF 5.56 is abstracted as belted and magazines, so can be used as magazines for rifles and 200 round belts for the M249/Minimi. Used by: -M4/M16A4/C7/C8/M16A1 -L85A2/L86A2/L22A2 -G36 -MG4 -M249/L110/C9/MINIMI 7.62x39mm Older Russian assault rifle round. Abstracted as magazines and belts. Listed as just “7.62mm” in Syrian vehicles. Used by: -AKM/AKMS/RPK(-47)/Type 56 -RPD 5.45x39mm Newer Russian assault rifle round. Magazines only. Used by: -AK-74/AKS-74/AKS-74U/RPK-74 Rifle rounds Full size rifle rounds. In many armies these are found primarily in medium machineguns and Designated Marksman's Rifles (DMRs) and sniper rifles. Effective range can often be around 1,000m. 7.62x51mm Standard NATO round. Can only be aquried as belted ammo for machineguns*, you cannot aquire more ammo for rifles. Listed as just “7.62” in BLUFOR/NATO vehicles. Used by: -M110/Mk11 -M40A3 -M240/MAG/C6/L7A2 * -MG3* -L96 -C3A1 -AR-10 -FAL -G3 7.62x54R Standard Russian rifle round. R stands for “rimmed”. Cannot be acquired in CMSF, however can be found in vehicles in CMA as belted ammo only*. Used by: -SVD -PK* -SGM* -RP-46 Special rifle rounds, not acquirable: .300 WM .300 Winchester Magnum, “sniping” round 1300-1500m effective range based on round used. -G22 .303 old British round. -Bren -SMLE Mk. III .338 LM Lapua Magnum, “sniping” round. 1,800m effective range. -L115A1 -C14 -AWSM-F (Note this latter ammo cannot be replenished in the game.)

Sorry about that. (I kinda assumed this was a work in progress.)

I tried a few turns of this scenario Zeb, and it is an interesting situation. What bothered me right at the start was the arty attack on the A/B as set-ups are fixed. Given that this isn't a sudden ambush but something that happened some time ago, you should allow the A/B at least to have a zone of set-up. I hope you'll do a fix and then I will try it again.

Holy cow... How much will VAT be then??? Over 20%??!! My only comment I learned when I bought my new machine is that you may get more bang for the buck by getting a (small) SSD for exclusive use by the OS rather than spending many hundreds of dollars on a slightly faster processor etc. But, am not a techie, so...

I'm sure tech support can help. Quite a few of us have had the same problem with Win7. Have you checked your security level? Eg: Make sure you "Run as Admin." If you have ZoneAlarm you need to disable the "Toolbar" part. etc.

There are 5 columns for types of munitions. In the original CMSF manual I don't see an explanation of what types of munitions are repped by each column. It's important as after using up ammo on missions one needs to know what types are left. (Dangerous to order LIGHT when all that is left is HEAVY etc.) Anyone know? Thanx...

LOL. Brilliant description of "Pentagon mission creep!"

Market Garden is another obvious one as both sides get to attack and defend - that is part of what makes a great game/campaign. Really looking forward to Ardennes. I'm sure it will be a good first module, but I am am a bit blah about Normandy. (I'm from the generation that had to be paid to play Allies.)

I think it all depends on whether you like "wrist twitch" games (as that is the predominant game form these days). I love the thoughtfulness of WEGO - working out reasonable tactics that my pixeltruppen have to follow for a minute at least - rather than assuming I can always pause and correct every second. I just don't like that sort of video game. The downside is that yes, WEGO games do take a lot longer. But, the planning is what makes it fun. So, far I still love watching the graphics repeatedly too.

Thank you.

And yes, as Mord said, I also LOVE watching the playbacks - often from the troops' ground level POV. What was the point of working on all the great graphics otherwise?

An SSD may speed up your computer more than some other more expensive items. This is a part of a recent discussion re SSD's at BoB: "I feel that the SSD prices have come down far enough to treat my PC (and myself ) to one. The most promising one seems to be the "Intel X25-M G2 Postville 80GB" which costs slightly less than 200 Euro. 80 GB seems enough for the OS and the main programs - the data will stay on the normal HD. Now I would have to install this SSD into my PC myself and install Windows XP on it. Unless I can use an image of my current HD installation. I have experience with that particular drive. It was a snap to install and configure and is lightning fast bringing windows up. I put a pair into a machine destined to be a video work station and was surprised to find that after the Windows spashscreen windows was up and fully painted and ready for work as fast as the monitor could click into it's working resolution. I installed on Windows 7 and there was very little tweaking involved. I understand that with XP there may be a little more involved. There are some good guides available on ocz by googleing "installing windows xp on ssd." THose are tweaks to change the way prefetch and datacache work. One thing that works way too well not to do is set up your system to use AHCI. That and the Intel TRIM drivers will allow the drive to work as fast as it can shove data into the bus (and kind of work more like SATA or SCSI than IDE). To do that you need to turn AHCI on on your motherboard AND install the AHCI drivers (most likely in your chipset, RAID or drive controller drivers for your motherboard) while installing XP (as it's not native to XP.... just like using SATA drives during the XP pre SP1 days). If you have a floppy or USB drive it's easy enough to put the drivers on one and F6 during the XP install and add those drivers. If not you could always set up a slipstream disk and install that way."

My impression from other posts here is that RL is "easier" as one can pause anytime one hears or sees something "interesting" happen and make instant adjustments. Some of these folks also like playing Iron Man which makes C&C more complex. However, I don't think real time is practicable in large scenarios as too much is happening and if you miss something, you cannot replay. You can of course pause every few seconds to check everything, but to me that sort of micromanagement verges on the insane heh. While I enjoy CMSF first as a game rather than a simulation, I prefer WEGO vs the AI as I think it's a just a tad more realistic to have to live with the consequences of ones orders for one minute. (In RL that would probably be longer.) I enjoy the challenge of thinking in one minute increments and in creating orders that, as much as possible, take into account "interesting events" during that minute that my pixeltruppen will have to live with till I can regain command.

Consider getting an SSD for exclusive use by your OS.

The German Blitzkrieg system still works and is practiced today by US forces pretty much the same in concept. The problem is that the German's "system" requires air superiority and an enemy that hasn't got what it takes (equipment, C&C, training etc) to counter it. The Soviets learned to fight using their own strengths (just like Al Q and the Taliban are doing today). The Germans were set up economically for very short swift wars and were unable to adapt or counter fast enough when the situation changed.

Who cares about the first CM:N module? Most of us are salivating for the eastern front module! When is the ETA for that? lol...

For those lucky enuff to have cable/satellite in the US we're in the 5th(?) year of a super series called SUPERNATURAL (really great imo) which uses all these disasters as the backdrop for its heroes' fight vs demons trying to bring about The Apocalypse. It all makes sense!

"The campaigns seem to be getting harder with each new module, I'm finding some of the NATO missions a frustrating chore rather than enjoyable gaming." I think that comes from the designers gaining experience in designing scenarios. But, I also think this is more "realistic" than the ridiculous US walkovers we experienced in the original CMSF game. There are two communities here: "Those who see/want CM2 to be a realistic simulation"; and "Those who see CM2 as a superior entertainment game." The former should be happy with the challenges. The latter (which includes me) share in your frustration when playing an entertainment game that feels like work. Personally, I think the best approach is to set yourself your own win parameters, and try and attain that and not worry too much about what the system thinks. In Campaigns I have found that one can muddle thru by NOT trying to attain all objectives, but by suffering minimal (if any) casualties, while inflicting a lot.

Ok, thanks for the info. It's always nice to know one is running everything optimally. Re your resolution comments re CMSF, will that be the same for CM:N?

Also consider the advantages of an SSD drive. Putting the OS on an SSD seems to increase performace remarkably.

Useful Arty Summary from The Blitz (POS) #3 [-] General Handy "arty spotter quiz": For each situation, answer: A - Rounds will fall on target B - Rounds will fall off target C - Rounds stop falling D - None of the above 1. Arty spotter moves while the countdown is ticking, but stays in LOS of target. 2. Spotter moves out of LOS of the target while the countdown is ticking. 3. Spotter moves out of LOS of the target while rounds are falling. 4. Spotter goes to 'pinned' morale status while rounds are falling. 5. Spotter dies while rounds are falling. 6. Spotter is given a target out of LOS, but moves into LOS during the countdown. 7. Spotter retreats off map during countdown. 8. Spotter retreats off map while rounds are falling. 9. Spotter is given a preplanned target, retreats off map during countdown. 10. Spotter boards a vehicle during countdown. 11. Spotter with a preplanned target dies during countdown. Answers: 1. Arty spotter moves while the countdown is ticking, but stays in LOS of target. A - move your spotter around at will, as long as he stays in LOS of the target. 2. Spotter moves out of LOS of the target while the countdown is ticking. A or B - as McIvan and Ratzki pointed out, a lot hinges on the spotting round - as long as he's in LOS until the spotting round falls, the spotter can subsequently move out of sight. 3. Spotter moves out of LOS of the target while rounds are falling. A - run anywhere you want, once rounds are dropping. As before, once a spotting round drops, you're in good shape. A barrage falling on target will never start falling off target no matter what you do. 4. Spotter goes to 'pinned' morale status while rounds are falling. C - once a spotter is pinned or worse, his barrage stops, whether it's in the countdown or rounds are falling. It acts as if the target order was cancelled. 5. Spotter dies while rounds are falling. C - when the spotter eats it, the rounds stop. 6. Spotter is given a target out of LOS, but moves into LOS during the countdown. A or B - again, McIvan nailed it. As long as he gets into LOS in time for the spotting round, it'll fall on target. This one was news to me - you can target a spotter up from anywhere, as long as you can run him into line of sight by the 60/30s mark. 7. Spotter retreats off map during countdown. A or C - if he leaves the map before the spotting round, nothing happens and his arty is lost. If he leaves the map after the spotting round, the whole module will fall on target. 8. Spotter retreats off map while rounds are falling. A - same deal - the whole module continues to fall 9. Spotter is given a preplanned target, retreats off map during countdown. A - pretty much nothing will stop a preplanned barrage. 10. Spotter boards a vehicle during countdown. D - It stops the countdown in place, or if rounds are already falling, they stop falling while the spotter is in the vehicle. As soon as the spotter exits, the countdown resumes where it left off or rounds continue to fall. This is also true for preplanned strikes. Definitely open to some gamey uses/abuses. 11. Spotter with a preplanned target dies during countdown. A - as #9, pretty much nothing stops a preplanned barrage. Except loading them into a truck... NOTE: No arty fires more than two spotting rounds, and only the first one means anything. The second spotting round is pure eye candy stuff. In the case of 105mm, the first spotting round fires at 60 seconds on the countdown (right after the countdown begins). If you do not see the spotter's ammo count reduced by one at this point, spotter LOS is obstructed and the strike is blind. Cancel the strike promptly. With mortars you're watching for the ammo count to drop by one at the 30 second mark. If the FIRST spotting round goes out, your strike will be accurate no matter where the round lands. You can even move the spotter out of LOS in the next orders phase. The strike will continue to be on-target. His job is done unless you want to adjust the strike. Also note: In CMBB, if a spotter gets killed outright (ie, dies immediately without going first to pinned or worse), the barrage will continue until out of ammo. The same does not seem to hold true for CMAK. My Recent Posts E: Terrain Cover Values Note that units engaged at exposure levels above 44% will try to crawl to better cover. Summer..............Exposure. Exposure. Exposure Terrain............................. in wire.... w/ foxhole Paved Road.......... 100% 98% N/A Bridge.................. 100% N/A N/A Ice...................... 98% N/A N/A Wall (on top)........ 95% N/A N/A Dirt Road...............90% 98% 44% Hedge (on top)..... 75% N/A N/A Wood Fence (top). 75% N/A N/A Open Ground........ 75% 98% 44% Soft Ground......... 75% 98% 44% Steppe................ 65% 98% 43% Marsh.................. 65% N/A N/A Hedge (behind)..... 60% 60% 42% Wood Fnce behind. 60% 60% 42% Wheatfield........... 60% 98% 44% Brush.................. 53% 98% 44% Cemetery............. 50% 98% 44% Rocky.................. 50% 98% 50% _______________________________________ Crater.................. 44% 44% N/A Scattered Trees..... 33% 75% 24% Wall (behind)......... 30% 30% 30% Rough................... 28% N/A N/A Rubble.................. 24% N/A N/A Light Building..........20% N/A N/A Woods.................. 18% 75% 15% Tall Pines .............. 18% 75% 15% Factory................. 16% N/A N/A Heavy Building........ 12% N/A N/A Trench................... 9% N/A N/A Wall Hiding behind.... 0% 0% 0%

I get the impression there may be a misunderstanding re the difference between onmap and offmap guns. Advantages of TRP's: 1) All onmap guns, including tank guns, AT and Inf guns etc that have LOS to the TRP will get an accuracy bonus when firing at a target within a TRP's "range" SO LONG AS THE GUN HAS NOT MOVED SINCE SETUP. 2) FO's (which is the ONLY unit that can bring down offmap arty) can target any friendly TRP with offmap arty - even if the FO is OUT OF LOS of the TRP. 3) Offmap arty will arrive FASTER when targeted on a TRP. You can also switch arty from one TRP to another faster. 4) On map mortars THAT HAVE NOT MOVED SINCE SET-UP can fire at any friendly TRP within range. Neither the mortars nor any HQ that commands them need have LOS to the TRP.

Thanks for telling me the max resolution for CM1. Is there a similar max res for CM2? So, the CM1 game will look "correct" at 1600x1200 (assuming a 3x4 monitor?)? Any idea what would the "right" res be for a widescreen monitor?