Bone_Vulture

Fine, I thought it was a finer word for "gun barrel". Either way....

That image made my eyeballs scream in agony. :mad:

Talk'scheap, perhaps I'll be a bit more specific: always take under consideration the /L number after the caliber. It tells the length multiplier of the gun's combustion chamber in relation to the caliber. The higher this number is, the better. Know that the multipliers of guns of vastly different caliber are incomparable by the length ratio. Well, obviously there's a bundle of other factors that effect the round's penetration stats, like round type (AP, APC, APCBC, etc..), extra / no explosive charge (latter is called a shot), and so on. Uhhh... The penetration charts are available for both CMBB and CMAK guns in Excel format. Link, somebody?

Krautman, please report to the firing squad. Tell them you just posted the least funny thread of 2005 (yet). They'll understand.

Well, if you squint really hard... Bah, knowing the equipment of the western Allies is not my forté. I'm more of a CMBB person.

Consider yourself enlightened. :cool:

Although the compression is horrid, I think it reads "Sherman III" on the bottom. [EDIT] Or is there only one crew member? How should I know? :confused:

Columbus, if bad humor was a crime, you'd be a lifer.

Ok, I'll give some advice on these scenarios to serve as example. Very few German armored cars can withstand Soviet AT rifle shots to the front, and even less to the flanks. The usefulness of the early Soviet vehicles is rather limited, due to their poor armaments. The late war armored cars are fast, small and maneuverable though; can serve as lures to unveil enemy armor. Don't overestimate the T-34. Before the late models that have radios and possibly cupolas, the tank is slow to respond to changes in orders, and is also rather blind. Use your MG's to force the T-34's to button up, and go for flank shots if you're attacking. In defense, try to ambush the Soviets from an angle at close range: the turret armor of the T-34 is rarely enough. And when dealing with your own T-34 against a Tiger.. Well.. You have to be sneaky. If the terrain is soggy, try to badger the Tiger into brash maneuvers: the changes are good that it'll bog down. Also, the Tiger has a poor turret turn rate. If you assault the Tiger from multiple angles. you should be able to get one of your tanks to the flank of the big cat. Don't try this unless your tanks are packing some tungsten rounds though; the standard Soviet 76,2mm AP round rarely penetrates the Tiger's hide from any angle.

I meant plain, non-mechanized 37mm field flaks. I'd use 'em to cover the flanks and risky keyhole positions.

Like I said, it all depends on the exact armor models in question, date, and battlefield parameters.

The point is that a gun can be either "knocked out" or "abandoned". In the first case, it's obvious that trying to reman the gun is a wasted effort. But if the gun crew just gets some heebie-jeebies from a near mortar impact and the gun is left intact while they run away, why shouldn't they be able to operate the gun again later?

If you're playing as the Germans, I'd recommend trying to keep your tanks back as infantry support, and try to ambush enemy tanks with the grenade bundles and magnetic mines that your own infantry squads usually have. Although I know that this isn't an easy task unless the terrain is littered with buildings or dense forest. If you're packing heavy off-board artillery, you could try to score some lucky hits on stationary´vehicles; it's possible that you'll force 'em to throw a tread at least. Could you give a more specific example of your own armor and the tanks you're currently facing? The effective tactics vary dramatically depending on the equipment and date. Weather conditions and the time of day also have a major impact.

Nay, Paul. The current engine doesn't support the re-crewing of the guns. What I don't understand is how some people would consider this improvement to be "gamey".

Obviously I meant a hedgehog formation. Considering the Hellcat's far superior mobility, I believe that the Panthers will get flanked far worse if they attempt mobile defense. I suggest the Germans trade the halftracks for 37mm flaks. Those will annihilate the kitties.

Unless the Panthers get a hold of high ground of some type and gather in a tight formation, they won't stand a chance.

I generally do not recommend the use of heavy field guns against tanks: these guns generally have poorer accuracy, and are big, fat stationary targets once exposed. Of course, it all depends on the type of scenario. Attacking or defending? Lots of armor or not?

Nay, indirect fire is not possible. Sadly, the exact blast and penetration values for this particular howitzer elude me, but I'd say they're best used against structures or dug-in infantry. Be wary of enemy mortars, though.

Ok, let's continue. I'll shead some quick advice. 6) Generally, you should obviously keep the most pricey units always under maximal protection, and only set them at risk if the time is against you. A tank on your side can turn the tide of the battle, but a tank lost might lead to immediate tactical defeat, and also an outcome of defeat when the finals scores are calculated. I've explained recon: the whole point if this maneuvering is to only expose your cheapest units, to draw out the hiding enemies that might harm your more expensive units. Be prepared to counter the anti-recon tactics: field mortars, snipers and light field guns can maneuver to suppress the enemy forces that are trying to stall your recon effort. 7) German & Soviet artillery behave in stark contrast to each other: due to the low organization distance, German artillery is usually fast to respond, and if the spotter has LOS, the bombs should drop usually in around three minutes. The drawback is that these artillery formations generally have less ammo than their Soviet counterparts, and are more expensive. Now, Soviet off-board artillery is plentisome and cheap; the price for this is tha high organization level for anything heavier than mortar batteries, usually corps or army level. This means that in order to rain the heavy shells, you have to set pre-planned bombardments, or use TRPs when defending. If the map is large in size or offers little cover, purchasing a spotter team that has a radio might be a wise maneuver. They move faster, and can board vehicles, unlike the ordinary spotters, that haul invisible cable in their wake. 8) Whatever feels best: Haveing a broad approach of infantry will allow you to scan the the entire battelfield's length for weaknesses in enemy defenses, that can be exploited by faster units. The drawback is generally higher casualties, and the difficulty to amass your slower troops for the final push, once you've withing a shooting distance of the victory flags. On the other hand, an extremely concentrated spearhead will likely drive you through any defenses, but will leave you vulnerable to enemy flank attacks. Minefields and bombardments called by the defender will also cause higher casualties with this kind of approach. Ideally, you should be able to figure which tactic is better with the intel you've gathered with your initial recon run. 9) Run/fast command lets your troops maneuver quickly across clear, dry terrain. Trying to run in forest will wear down your troops quickly. The ordinary move/walk command is good for steady approach before reaching enemy defenses: your troops will remain fresh, but they are extremely vulnerable to ambushes if they trigger one while walking. Advance is like "move under fire". Causes light fatigue, but your troops are less vulnerable to enemy fire, and make steady progress. Assault is the most straining movement type. Your troops will storm forewards with guns blazing towards their waypoint. Try not to set asault commands farther than 30 meters away, even for fresh troops. 10) I think the advice above should enough for a while.

ROFL for you too. Ok, I was just heading to the gym, so I try to give a few brief answers, and continue later. 1) Try these attributes: '43 summer, central region, Heer vs. Soviet infantry. Combined arms force mix. Variable unit rarity, no casualties or ammo loss. 800 point attack. Town / farmland terrain, clear / cloudy, moderate / dense woods and hilliness. This type of setup should be most balanced for both sides. 2) I suggest that you take max points without restrictions like rarity or purchase cap, and buy one vehicle of each type to get a hang of their armaments and armor. I don't know how versed you are with WWII history, but any prior knowledge will help, especially simple trivia about the most well known tanks and guns. 3) Try running half squads before your main force: always "test the water" with minimal resources. The idea of scouting is to reveal major enemy ambushes so that your main force will get to advance unscathed. The problems are that scouting takes time; it takes learning to become a speedy reconnaissance player. Also be prepared that a more experienced player may have anti-recon units: lone MG's or armored cars, whose primary function is to pin down your scouts without revealing the major ambushing force. 4) Infantry is the backbone of scouting, can't manage without 'em. Scout vehicles are good for light fire support and for luring enemy AT assets out of hiding. Again, beware of anti-recon forces: A wise Soviet player always packs along several AT rifles, that'll again ruin your scout vehicles, without exposing the hiding defenders. 5) Field mortars require either LOS to the target, or an ad hoc spotter. In either case, you will likely have to move them. Depending on the weather, you may want to purchase halftracks to allow faster deployment. Now, the ad hoc spotter that I mentioned works like this. An HQ unit that you have - a squad leader for instance - has LOS to an enemy MG. If the leader stays unpinned and is not hiding, a mortar that it is within command control of the HQ can fire on the MG, even if it lacks the LOS. You will see the "FIRE" text when you aim the mortar on the target. Be aware that the mortar will keep dishing fire to the spot until you order it to stop, even if the MG has been destroyed. ... I'll let the other semi-grogs take turns answering the rest. I'll check back later.

There are many dimensions to attacking. I usually play quick battles, so I'll give advice from that perspective. 1) Be aware of the weather conditions and time of day. Rainy or cloudy weather usually means moist ground, which is trouble for tanks, especially for the German Stugs and heavy tanks. Also, fog and night time can both severely limit your line of sight - this will render long range artillery useless, unless you use pre-planned bombardments. 2) When purchasing stuff, keep in mind what sort of offensive maneuver is in question. Probe means no fortifications on the enemy. Attack means some, and during assault, nearly all of the enemy's defense is formed of fortifications. There are several units that are nearly always indispensable for the attacker. Here are some of my shopping list priorities: Medium field mortars, roughly 1 per 400 points spent. These 81/82mm mortars are your best friend, when you need to demolish an entrenched antitank gun. A pioneer platoon, in over 1000 point matches. The only unit that can demolish minefields other than the daisy chain ones. The satchel charges the pioneers pck make them also very frightening foes against dug-in infantry and enemy armor: when fighting soft targets, try aiming in the middle of the opponents, close enough to your team that you see the "using explosives" message. This way, the pioneer platoon will wallop the satchel charge there on the following turn. You'll love it. It'll hit like a 152mm artillery shell. Light scouting vehicles. Seek halftracks and armored cars that have good off-road capabilities. The purpose of these vehicles is to act as primary source of fire support for your troops, and try to lure out enemy AT guns, so that they can't ambush your core armor. ... There were some pointers. Anything specifically bothering you during attacks, Para?

Eugh - just... Could some moderators please just have a final say in this, whatever it is? I'm getting a headache from this charade.

That's because the untersigs require less resolution, less processor time and less bandwidth than the master sigs.

Not anymore we're not. It's time to find the final solution to the signature problem. :eek:

Uh, MAUS_TD.... Neither the eastern or western Allied forces would've not needed to try to destroy the Maus. It would've destroyed itself, being virtually unsalvageable with the slightest breakdown. Also, I doubt it would've survived a heavy dive bomber load.