exSpecForSgt

ROFLMAO!! =YES=!! =Thank= -you-, Dandelion!! It is nonsense like this (Germans = 'evil' Hun(?!), etc) that makes me sigh and shake my head at people {okay, okay, specifically the ones saying things like this}. Now, maybe I'm being too harsh, because entirely too many people just don't bother reading History any more, but I would have expected people on =THIS= forum to -at- =least= be more read up on History than your average CP. Yes, the 'Hun' comment was probably just made as a 'toss-off', a jest. Still, it allowed me to toss in zwei pfennig on something that bothers me, so I took the 'shot'. ("something" = the appalling lack of breadth of education in Americans today) To those who feel they need it, my apologies for laughing at .. whomever fits those shoes. One must admit, however, =especially= considering the international membership on these forums, that the comment wasn't very .. 'sensitive', shall we say. (P.S.- "CP" = Couch Potato)

This is a very interesting topic, but my reply is probably be a bit "different"... As part of my training (yes, it was a loooong time ago), I got to fire most of the firearms mentioned so far. I then had the dubious 'pleasure' of using a few "in the field". {Okay, okay, so it wasn't in the =field=, it was in the -jungle-! So, sue me. } Pistol: my favorite is the old reliable, .45-auto. Yes, it kicks like a mule, but when you hit someone - and it matters not -where- you hit him - he's knocked on his butt. Then, if still necessary, you can put another round in him as he's trying to get up. A close second, but only because of ease of use, =not= because of KD Factor, is the Walther P-38. Yes, I'm partial to (so-called) 'automatics' - revolvers just don't do a thing for me. Rifle: the M-1 Garand!! Damn sweet, and "M-1 thumb" is only a problem for those who don't know what they're doing. It's also solid enough that you can actually -use- a bayonet with it, if you need to. Bolt-action rifles are okay, but, IMNSHO, only practical for snipers .. and then, of course, you want the best you can find. SMGs: I -personally- preferred the Thompson, because it used the .45 ACP round. Yes, the effective-range tended to be rather short-ish, but if you're concerned about longer ranges, you shouldn't be looking at an SMG in the first place. A close second, naturally, was the various German MPs, because they're really nice & efficient, but they only use the 9mm round, so... [shrug] (I didn't think much of the various Russian SMGs. Yeah, they're great for mass-production and for issuing to troops with minimal training, but otherwise... [blech]) MGs: this leaves me not really with a "favorite", because the question -to- =me= is "favorite -for- -what- =purpose=?" If you're asking about something 'organic' for the platoon, I'll point out that the Germans had a =very= nice one, which worked great on a bi-pod. So nice, in fact, that the US Army essentially copied it when they made the M-60 "Pig". For mounting on a vehicle and for just plain kicking-a$$, the .50 is the only way to go! Of course, if you have to hump it by foot - Forget It!! It's too heavy and the ammo supply is too little. Well, I guess I've rambled on too long, so I'll shut up, now. Take care, all, and have fun.

I've only seen a few AARs in regards to CM 'games' and, quite frankly, they've been as boring as the RL ones I've had to read (and deliver... but that's a different topic we won't go into now, okay? ). =THIS= one, OTOH, was actually quite enjoyable .. even if "one of the writers" <koff, koff - no mention of which one> was -sooooo- full of 'beans' I almost couldn't take him seriously -at- =all=!! Well, not with the 'seriousness' he was due, that is. Hmmm, no, I guess that isn't quite correct. I =really= appreciated -both- players for sharing everything with us, and, yes, I respect them both for having the courage to do so -and- for the abilities they showed on the battlefield. So I guess my comment has more to do with their style of writing, which shows their ability to =role-play= as well as play the game, which is something that counts quite high in my book. (...LOOOOONG story... ) Therefore, gentlemen, thank you =VERY= much for sharing your 'encounter' with us -and- for the elan you showed in your writing. I hope you (and others) will do so again in the future. P.S.-- =very= serious question here: does anyone out there make maps, et al, for others? I also use CM to help me with certain writing projects I have .. but I can't get the editor/map-maker thingee to work to save my .. butt. Thanks in advance and sorry to waste everyone else's time.

LoS was a 'given' in my original question.

Is there some particular reason rounds will land all over the place before, or =if=, they finally land on the intended target? Yes, yes, I know all about calling in artillery support to a rough guess-timate of the target's location - =one= round at a time, thank you very much! - and then 'adjusting' it in. I also know that the number of rounds needed to bring fire in on a target varies according to the training and experience of the FO. My 'problem', I guess, is that there are times when it seems my FOs can't hit the broad-side of a barn from the inside with a shotgun! The computer generated FDC =can't= be =that= bad, can it?! I mean, hell, even =I= can do better than some of these 'guys'! So, what's going on - really?! Oh, and how, if at all, can I 'correct' this 'problem'? [ May 09, 2003, 11:59 PM: Message edited by: exSpecForSgt ]

Even though I've been playing CMxx for quite a while, there are a number of things I just can not for the life of me figure out. I'm hoping someone here can answer my questions and/or answer in a manner I can understand (and accept...). Let's start with RoT ("Rounds on Target" - a specific part of a 'Fire Request'). But first, a slight degression. If I start a scenario with something like "FO, 105mm, 20 rounds", what =EXACTLY= does that mean? Does it mean I have one tube assigned to me, with 20 rounds (total) available? Or is it an entire battery (6 tubes/arty pieces) with 20 rounds between them? Or an entire battery with 20 rounds per piece? Or just what?! Obviously there is a =big=, and =very= important, difference in how this is answered. In any case, I have my FO target something and, suddenly, before I can do anything, all my rounds are expended and the damn target is still there, or, even worse, it's knocked out and rounds are still falling!! How?! Why?! What the heck is going on?! Now, maybe I just don't (=really=) understand how this game works, but I thought it was supposed to be the most realistic thing on the market. Now, I =know= what is entailed in a 'Fire Request' -- I've made a few of them in RL -- and I know that part of it is for how many rounds you want fired at this particular time. This is especially important if you only have a limited number of rounds available for your entire 'action'... So why does CMxx blow everything at once?! How can I 'correct' this? Hmmm, presuming this -can- be 'corrected', that it's not just another glitch in the program.

I find this a very "interesting" topic, having some small experience with it. I've played CM quite a bit and can't really comment on how "accurate/realistic" the results are. (Sometimes it seems to be more and sometimes less. <shrug>) In RL, however, you need to understand what exploding shells 'do'. Yes, of course, they throw sharp bits of metal all over the place ... -but- =how=?! If the round hits the ground, it goes off so-called "instantly"; i.e.-it goes off right away...but the shell is still dropping, burrowing into the ground while the fuze burns off. So, you get a crater of x-size in the dirt, a '-cone-' of shrapnel, and an expanding ring of blast (=not= to be discounted as 'only hot air'!). If you hit the deck, you're relatively 'safe' as long as the shell doesn't drop right on you. Crawl just as fast as you can towards 'hard cover'. -Do- =not= rise up even as high as 'hands & knees' because that will put you within range of one of those 'cones'. Then again, if you're unlucky enought to be "infantry in the open", hey, you're scr#wed anyway! Oh, and forget completely about guess-timating the 'size' of the in-coming! If you're "veteran", you -might- have a small chance of doing it while under fire ... but even then you're going to be spending more time melding into the dirt than calmly analysing the caliber of the stuff falling on you! Trust me on this one!! If you're in the woods, et al, well, yeah, you have a bunch of cover to try to hide behind/under, and that -is- worth something. OTOH, sharp pieces of wood traveling at high speeds will mess you up just as badly as sharp pieces of metal. Hmmm, so I guess that in some ways, getting shelled while in the woods is worse than being in the open ... but that =really= isn't saying much!! You know, this is beginning to bring back 'bad memories', so I think I'll stop here and go have lunch, or something. Take care, all, and remember: there is a -very- good reason artillery is called the King of the Battlefield.......

Yes, this is my first post (I've been having trouble for quite some time with my computer), but I'd like to throw in zwei pfennig even if everyone else is 'finished' with this topic. A 'caviat', however. I'm a veteran [uS Army, 1963-66] and come at this game probably from a completely different angle than most posters I've read over the past few months. Now, keeping that in mind..... Yes, I consider "pre-emptive attacks" of the sort originally asked in this topic - =especially= in CM - to be "gamey". As -a- -strictly- =personal= -opinion-, I have no use whatsoever with an opponent who "games" CM. Like I said, I come at CM from a different angle -- I look at the miniature 'men' on the screen and I 'see' real, live, human people down there. Yeah, yeah, I know - "it's only a -game-", and it is. At the same time, though, I don't "detatch" so much that I can 'throw mens' lives away like a drunken Texan at a craps table'. Yes, it's 'only' a game, but it represents/deals with war, which deals in life-and-death. Therefore, -to- =me=, if someone is only interested in "gaming the rules", I have no use for them and wish they would go get into a nice friendly 'game' of 'let's-pretend-we're-in-court'. That having been said, yes, dropping a few rounds to keep the enemy off balance is quite often done ... -but- =not= when you "know" it's the 'beginning of a scenario'. In combat, you =never= know when the buggers are getting ready to do something to you, not -even- with excellent combat intelligence. Trust me, it's a true-ism, even if it's not listed in "Murphy's Rules of Combat". BTW, what is the "etiquette" in these forums for introductions? Is it done? Not done? Nobody really cares? What?