RockinHarry

I´m still making experiments with flag placement, in particular stacking large flags to indicate to the AI: "Come here quicker and in a more direct way!" Seems to work well in assault battle, but maybe it´s just my perceiption!? :confused: Need more testing. What I miss in CM is a "god mode" where you can observe the AI playing (itself), like in the Steel Panthers games. Maybe there´s some hidden command line thingy that the BFC guys use to test their stuff, dunno. I would not be surprised. Also different mission types on the otherwise exact same scenario produces also different AI behavior. (yeah...I know it´s no news to the scenario making grogs out there...I´m just thinking loud! )F.e making a ME engagement game into an Assault game in the battle parameters screen. Also making units viable for leaving the map edge produces different AI behavior and timing. This combined with victory flags and placements delivers a huge amount of testing conditions. :eek:

Well..it´s probably beyond what flamingknives initially asked for, but I prefer to know "Before" the battle and "Before" purchasing any units, what the battle field looks like. Few armies (if at all) went out without any sort of map (germans prefered 1:100000 for marching and smaller scales 1:50000 and lower when it comes to prepare attacks or defenses). Off course not in every case there were maps available and it differes between nationalities and the point in chain of command; means divional commanders had them probably more often available than Btl. or Cpy commanders. I consider the complete absensce of maps in briefing screens and "Before" purchasing/setting up units in CM a big "faux pas"! Many other wargames have this feature available (Steel Panthers:WaW, Panzer Elite to name few..) and BFC should listen up for their CMII! Ok..beside that CM is a great game which I´m toatally addicted to, like everybody else here. Back to topic. Beeing (skilled) scenario designer and with having had some contribution to commercial wargame products, I´m faced with the same problems as CM scenario makers and I once tried the above idea in a Steel Panthers scenario. I guess this one is not new amongst CM scenario makers: I made a screenshot of the whole scenario/battle map (sometimes required to make multiple shots when a large map did not fit on the computer screen) and loaded it into a Paint/Graphics application, in this case PS Pro. Then I used the screenshot as template for a way simplified NEW version for the same map, which only shows those details that usually can be seen on sketches made from real maps. That includes the most important details like roads, patches of woods, built up areas, heigth lines and all that stuff, but left out some "details" like swampy ground, fields, few minor roads. As the scenario was of the ASSAULT type, which "usually" means halfway good pre-battle recconnaissance, I also included "some" known enemy battle positions (that also can be vacant! during scenario) on the map and referred to them in the briefing. Also the most important features were named (hills, villages, ect.) At last I included some arrows indicating general attack directions of the units involved in the scenario (optional). The map draft then was put into a Word DOC format file with the rest of the briefing. This is usually the point. In order to make use of the "briefing" file you need to run a second application in the background which either can be Word (or Word pad) or the commonly used Acrobat Reader. I had some hundred downloads on this particular scenario, but beside reports from a handful of "official" tester volunteers, I had NO feedback at all from players, so I don´t quite know how useful or likable the external briefings are. I guess scenario makers have usual more fun making the stuff, than people using (or reporting on) it. But as any scenario can always be played without the external stuff, it doesn´t matter much. Few month ago I was able to purchase a couple of contemporary german FM and TM´s and found the "recommended" german orders format described in good detail, dealing with infantry bataillon and its sub units. Also there are many examples which all are supplemented with some scetch map. The FMs stress non-mechanical style, "brief" orders, containing all what is necessary in a "clear" language. Translated from "Taktik im Rahmen des verstärkten Infanterie-Bataillons. Verbesserte Auflage 4/5, Druck 1940/41" (tactics within the frame of a reinforced infantry bataillon...issue 1940/41^) page59. ... As a rough estimate of how a (battle-) order is to be structured, it´s worth knowing: Enemy Forces (as reported from chain up and own comprehension); Information on neighboring or miscellanous friendly troops; Intention of the leader (the commander giving the order); Reconnaissance; Tasks for the various parts of the Btl. and possible subordinate or attached units; Orders for Tr.V.Pl. (Truppenverbandsplatz=First aid post), Gef.Tr. (Gefechtstross=combat train) ect. (as necessary); Determinations on the place of the leader/commander and about lines of communication; "The clearness of the factual layout, under summing up of the to be correlated, is what counts most. It (the clearness) eases the receiver of the order the comprehension considerably." ... (sorry for the bad translation!) There´s 12 pages dealing with orders at all, but I´m way to lazy to tranlate them. There´s also couple of pages with interesting examples and scetchy maps. However,...a good briefing for a Combat Mission scenario lies somewhere between what´s roughly described above and the VPOO posted by Hans, with consideration to the game limits and game style. As said, my example deals with orders within a german infantry Btl. units chain of command, while the VPOO further above most likely is post WW2 and better suited for larger formations, but beside that the general layout looks almost the same to me (no wonder). Personally I think that (deliberate) assault briefings should contain much more info on the enemy positions and units than f.e meeting engagements or probe style battles. Many games lack in this regard (intel on enemy units ect.) and the only game that comes to my mind with inbuild intel, is HPS "Tigers on the Prowl" (and successors). At least some units and field fortifications are shown on the map (randomly) in assault style battles IIRC. A CM scenario maker can add map text to indicate "known" enemy units/positions or field fortifications, although in the game they need to be re-sighted and -ID´d again. At least this IMO is more realistic (in assault battles) than just giving vague info in the briefing. Off course it sometimes is sufficient to tell the player a certain village or hill is occupied by the enemy, but more detail usually can only be given by use of a map. At least in CM it´s possible to switch on/off map text with SHIFT-L, when the map is filled up with too many text. Games like SPWAW lack this feature unfortunately. A bit off topic... Although one could say that a typical CM scenario is too short to include new intel given during game play by units/HQs outside the players forces (Air recon, POW interroagation ect.), it also can be implemented with help of external applications. I think I even read it already somewhere in the CM boards. As CM unit leaders can be renamed, you can use the available 15 characters for other purposes, like ZIP file codes. Have a low point sniper/scout unit (with no ammo) coming in as reinforcement at a certain game turn and have the leader named as a ZIP file code. Example: Sgt. "CaseBlue", where "CaseBlue" is the code that you need to use to decode a ZIP file (shipped with the scenario file by the scenario maker btw.). This ZIP then contains a Word/Plain text or Acrobat file that gives you new intel of any sort. Example: "Corps Air reconnaissance reports armored columns moving from...to...". Or: "Interrogation of POW results in identifying of the crack "100th division" facing us..." ect. Off course you can do this sort of stuff in a CM operation, without the need to task switch out of CM and open Word/Winzip ect., but if you want it to make single scenarios more interesting... Used it in some SPWAW scenario couple years ago, but again..didn´t receive any feedback on it. Oh well..

Hi there, did a search on the forum, but nothing useful came up. I´m particularly interested in how to set up a good AI (..and less in H2H/PBEM), so any good tips are welcome and hope you´re willing to share! Found out a couple of useful things myself already, like how to set up terrain to "guide" the AI or how to get it use its artillery assets. Hope any coming info will not any sort of "spoil" the enyoyment of people how preferably play the AI (and user made scenarios in particular) :confused: Harry

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Hm..so there´s no further scenarios/ops made dealing with the mentioned battles!? :confused: Ok...Doroshs Ortona operation should provide me enough fun ...for a while. :cool: Harry

Bump. Just played couple of turns into Dorosh´s Ortona operation first battle. My canucks are getting trashed badly from german paras. A 1st turn artillery barrage (don´t know whether Gerry or Canada is the sender) anihilated most of one of the infantry platoons already. :mad: Aargh. Supporting Shermans are all at the wrong places initially. Tried to shift them where needed and instantly lost one by hidden AT gun and one turn later another one by a Bazooka boy. I really got a "rough" start with this one. :eek:

Hi there I´m looking for scens/operations dealing with the Centuripe and Ortona battles. So far I have found a single Ortona operation at the scenario site. Any more out there? thanks in advance

Steel Panthers WaW (playin,scen design and modding), Panzer Elite (playing and modding) and if time allows Alpha Centauri, Fallout, Jagged Alliance and that stuff. _________ Harry

A very biiiiig thanks from "old" europe! :cool: ___________ Harry

thank you very much! Just what I was looking for! :cool: __________ Harry

Hi! I´d like to know if russians had some similar war tune like german "Panzer Lied" (Tank song) in their armored forces. If possible could you provide an internet link for free MP3 version please? ________ Harry

thanks all! I´m now doing a new keyword search in SD with "Nogai Steppe" and "Bussard" and see if these scens come up. ___________ Harry

Has anybody yet made a scenario dealing with this battle? http://www.panzerace.net/main/ostf4142.asp I´ve already searched the sceanrio depot and B&T. thanks __________ Harry

..and once more again: easy T-34 front turret penetration by german peashooters needs to be fixed! No fix, no 25MB download! check the "rounded" modifier please (german CDV version)! _________ Harry

I hope this bug will become fixed as this is the only one that will make me downloading the 25MB 1.01 patch! Not regarding history books, I´ve never seen such easy frontal turret penetration kills in any other game! I´m playing Panzer Elite, SPWAW and more. None of these had that vulnerable front turrets for T-34 tanks. I tested T-34-40, and both T-34-41 models and all were easily penetrated at the front turret by 50L42 and 75L24 guns easily at ranges upto 700 meters! :mad: The T-34 showed that turret armor + "rounded" modifier and I think the "rounded" thing contains the bug! The game mechanism seem to ignore "rounded" and just uses the basic front turret armor for penetration calculations. _________ Harry

I also run CMBB fairly smooth on my P2-300, 3DFX Voodoo 3 2000 (16 MB), 128MB Ram, 40GB Hard Disk system. Larger maps slows down the game considerable, but it´s still playable. I had more of an issue with the AI thinking about its moves in very large scenarios. At times the AI needs 20-30 minutes thinking /resolving a game turn before results could be watched in the replay. :eek: Slow graphics was rather a minor issue in this regard! ________ Harry

..yes..the CDV release of CMBO made me buying it! Otherwise I most likely would have resisted to buy it as internet order. __________ Harry