Piumarcobaleno

Hi Kuni! Well, I've developed a new addiction, Warhammer Fantasy they call it, so i'm a bit more on the 'miniature painting' side of life than on the 'europe conquering' one

The old guard is just waiting the order to march.

Tnx for the comments! These are the things that make me load the Sc forums every time i come back home!

Last night I played a game against a fairly new player, this is the outcome. Turn 2: Operated units from polish front crush the belgian fortifications, low countries falls. Polish air operated near paris, to force-intercept german air. Turn 6: Poland finally falls, it survived with the battered polish air hidden in france and a 5-strenght army in the middle of the polish wilderness --> result, russian readiness 41%!! Germany, now in a difficult position on the french-belgian border, seems to be ready to rock. Turn 8: Terror in Belgium, 1 german army destroyed each turn, german air in troubles against 2 uk carriers, 3 uk airfleets, 1 french airfleet and 1 uk bomber. German navy desperate assault, 1 carrier sank, at the cost of a sub, 3 damage on 1 cruiser and 8 to another. Atlantic subs luckily escape sticking to the northern end of the map, and make it to the baltic sea. Spring 1940 Germany down to 3 armies, 1 tank at strenght 3, 1 at strenght 7, 3 half strenght corps on the russian border and 3 corps patrolling defensive positions on the french border. Italy enters the war, encountering 2 uk corps patrolling the french-italian alps. Time to get the kill!! 2 subs at full strenght, now resupplied, guided by the 8-cruiser strike again the british-french navy: 1 carrier down to 1 point, 40 german air factors storming over french troops: 1 army killed, good combat rolls (lost 0-2 on each interception, hopefully dealt more). Tanks in the breach, this is the last hope to take France before Fall 1940. Summer 1940 French on the run! As the French army crumbles under the hits of the german air (now that the allied one has a hard time resupplying, since that carrier had to cost a lot to rebuild) and land forces, Italian troops reach the outskirts of Paris, soon followed by german panzers and armies. Fall 1940 When Paris falls, UK troops have just embarked from marseilles, trying to reach the safety of Giblatar. Italian navy is waiting for them, and at the cost of a damaged (down to 3) battleship and a sub, sinks 1 cruiser and 1 corp, and batters 1 cruiser down to strenght 4. Here the Caio Duilio: Italian Headquarters decides to buy a bomber unit, to better defend the mediterranean sea from the uk fleet (obviously split in 2), while Gen. Rommel is sitting on the shores of Netherlands, wondering why the high command sent him there. Uk med navy attacks: 3 battleships and a cruiser began sailing towards italian coast.. There a bomber, placed in the right spot, foils their evil plan! Full strenght italian navy, with full supply, goes on the offensive: 2 battleships sank, at minimal losses. This will result being the last allied offensive in the war. 5 german airfleets, reinforced with the french plunder (1 was bought), fly over england, bombing london, and engaging a furious air duel with the undermanned RAF. A carrier shows up near England, probably the med one. Luckily no tech for the british people, as they fought too hard during the french campaign to be able to buy chits. 2 corps are sent on transports along the coast of england, one near manchester, the other near london, as a major force of 4 armies (1 italian at half strenght... sigh... i had to win then, or die trying) reach the southern coast, across the Channel. Uk air and fleets still have what it takes: 1 italian corp destroyed as it landed near manchester, 1 german army sank at sea and 1 down to strenght 1 (a valuable army exp.2). It's obviously an all out, as german air and land troops race to london and manchester... In manchester a str. 3 bomber survives, while the corp in london, down to str. 2, gets killed by the german str.1 army in a desperate attack! But no troops to move in, and another corp is raised in london with all the remaining british resources.Spain decides it's time to enter the war Next turn, another german airbombing on london, while 2 corps are diverted north towards manchester. . There they take down the pesky bomber, taking the city. London remains, as in thrill german units attack the city.. 2, 3, 4 hits... soon the corp is gone, and a victorious rommel lands north, and marches with his HQ into the city! To no avail USA politicians try to raise popular support for the war: once Dwarven Clowns dressed as british royal guards mock up the last mementoes of the empire that always had sun on it, no one wishes to confront the german and italian powers. The war is over, as Axis powers rule Europe indistubed.

Pfui! This thread makes me happy, thinking on the 'second language' issues

You can check some oldies (Third Reich, High Command and many others) at www.the-underdogs.org , be warned that many of them can not work on a recent machine, if u aren't skilled with dos setting on a windows system.

Since i don't actually speak spanish, and i based my translation on the similarities between italian and that language, i think i fared in an acceptable way

Terif, i found one occasion that saw u saying '100%' in SC forum history! Enjoy!

Codename Condor said encripted: "Esta claro que sencillamente no aceptaste una op. Sealion fallida/retrasada, yo he tenido montones de ellas, es frustante ver aparecer corps de la nada cuando crees que UK esta desprotegida. Calculaste mal, actuaste mal, es lo que digo. Debido a cosas que no tienen que ver con tu partida la gente se volvio loca por aqui con rumores y demas, diciendo acusaciones que tu habias dicho, pero tu no estabas aqui para aclararlas. Ni defensor de la verdad ni leches solo digo lo que pienso." Since i don't believe it's fair to speak in a matter many can't understand in a public forum, here's a short translation: It's clear that u have not accepted a failed\prolonged op. SeaLion, it's frustrating to see UK corps pop up out of nowhere when u believe UK is undefended. U misjudged, u fared bad, that's what I say. Now people here speak about accusations that u have done, and u are not here to explain them. I'm no truth-defender, i just say what i think.

If you speak of realism, well... Russian HQ, seeing how bad german troops fare against polish forces (3 months into their attack, and poland still fights on) [6 or 7 game turns], decides to get their promised partition of Poland, PLUS something from germany itself. Stalin, reassured of the german weakness, clearly displayed in a so bad conducted Fall Weiss, orders his army to prepare for war (accepting a swift peace treaty from Finland and shifting his attention west).

I don't know if you have experience with Pacific General, but there airfleets were split into 3: Strat. Bombers (low ground attack, caused $ loss bombing certain cities\targets, regardless of troops in that place, that got bombed anyway, low air combat but high air defence), Tac. Bombers (good ground attack, low air combat) and Fighters (low ground attack, best air combat). Anyway i wouldn't relate ground attack effectiveness only to bomb payload; it's like saying that a big cannon is a better artillery piece than a smaller one. Every piece has his use, and if strategic bombers were used to bomb cities and tac bombers to attack troops, probably it's because of operative difficulties. Maybe a heavy bomber, so slow and cumbersome, could have many problems dealing with ground fire, and have some difficulties hitting anything different from fixed targets.. Early tank designs (1920-30 ca.) called for multi-turreted tanks, with a great firepower increase, and even WW1 tanks had 1 cannon and up to 8 heavy MG, but eventually tanks armed with 1 main gun and 1 or 2 MGs became the standard during and after WW2. I doubt that actual SC Strat Bombers should have any increased effect: they are great at naval and resources bombing, they reduce entrenchement by 2, and with an escort they can effectively help in pushing enemy HQs farther from the front. Sure, airfleets are a bit overpowered with the coupling of anti-air and anti-ground capabilities, but, all in all, i find SC is almost balanced as it is. We'll wait and see what Hubert is cooking in SC2, i suppose..

Here, 3 pics for eyes pleasure! By the way, during my search i stumbled upon this wonderful site: it has many insights in tank technology and production of many many nations up to 1946, and a lot of pictures of armored vehicles from tankettes to Tigers. Here's the address! http://mailer.fsu.edu/~akirk/tanks/

Thanks for the advices, JerseyJohn, and for the encouraging words on my work! Let's see to improve that with some image..

Well, two world war and no wins sure, but take a look at population\land of the contenders.. they anyway did unbelievable things..

Last night i played a game against a canadian player nicknamed 'Jul', here's a small after action report. Sept. 1939 Methodical attack of German forces against Poland: on turn 1 the two polish armies got surrounded and slaughtered, on turn 2 the polish corps rallied around Warsaw got nailed, and on turn 3 the Polish Flag waved no more. Meanwhile the german navy conducted a suprise shore bombing against the neutral Denmark, whose small resources stimulated the Fuerer. Fishers of the baltic reported of a German submarine sailing toward Norway. In the Atlantic, by the end of Sept., the german raiding subs were no more. One was caught near Canadian shores, raiding merchant shipping, by a mixed french-english naval task force of cruisers, while another fell in the hands of more powerful UK battleships and carriers ca. 300 km. north of Irish beaches. As the germans prepared to invade the low countries, UK naval HQ decided to try a Baltic move while german airfleets would have been necessary to bomb Bruxelles. A task force of 2 carriers and a battleship (to be later reinforced by two battleships just freed from sub hunting in the atlantic) sailed towards Oslo. Unfortunately erroneous intelligence led to an assault against the task force; UK naval HQ refused to flee the battle, and committed more forces: after German air involvement in the action, UK\French naval forces sank the remainings of the german navy, and retreated for MUCH needed repairs. Winter '39 - Summer '40 German troops, after having stormed the Ardennes, broke the french lines with Luftwaffe heavy support. Weygand, commander in chief of French operations, retreated the defence line to Paris, and recalled most colonial corps to the mainland, having given enough time to UK mediterranean fleet to sail past Giblatar. As the germans regrouped before the final drive to Paris, 3 French armies, led by Weygand HQ were able to reach the safety of the english ports before Paris fell. The heroical stand of the last French corps entrenched in Paris will be always remembered, as no French soldier surrendered to the enemy: 'Free or Dead' has been the password. Fall-Winter 1940 With Italian entry in the war, German assets had been shifted to the mediterranean sea: Wehrmacht detachements, along with italian armies, stormed greek beaches, assaulting Athens from the sea. Reports spoke of frightening Panzer divisions coming out of the sea; intelligence reports of a Panzer III mod that makes the tank waterproof, and capable of going up to 15 m under the level of the water. Back to England, Naval HQ reports of an increased German naval activity, and sends a task force towards Norway, sure of catching German troops ready to land still in their transports. Unfortunately a bad timing is chosen, as no German ships are sailing in the norwegian channel; most unfortunately a large concentration of German planes was preparing for a huge bombing on Oslo, and the british task force is heavily attacked, reporting the loss of a Battleship, and several hits to the escort Carrier. UK fleets faint a withdraw, luring german transports near Norway where, protected by a screen of U-boats, they begin their attack on Norway. German troops land, and, with the help of the powerful Luftwaffe, Norway seems doomed: their garrison in Oslo is destroyed, even if no german troop is able to occupy the city yet. 1941: The year that changed history While more fearful elements of the English government are struck in fear, seeing the power of the german air force, and the great resources of their industry, desired a retreat of the UK naval forces from the risky action, again the PM, Winston Churchill, astonished his audience: "One year ago I had only one thing to say: we shall fight them. And now, the same words come to my mind: we shall fight them on the waves of the Atlantic, on the fjords of Norway, on the gentle waters of the Mediterranean Sea; our struggle shall be carried on by our brave soldiers, and in the air no more a German pilot would fly, feeling safe from our Royal Air Force. We shall defend our island, as well as every nation shall accept us as friends: we shall not leave Norway alone in this God's given task." Superior UK battleships sweep the waves from german u-boats, and Carriers wreak havoc upon german HQs and troop at sea; meanwhile, UK fighter pilots intercept every german air mission, forcing the german HQ to retire his luftflotten from Danish soil. Free french and canadian soldiers hit the shores behind german lines in norway, cornering the enemy in the northernmost part of the coutry, chasing them as a cat plays with the mouse. UK special forces take the port of Kiel, while Greek heroes stand like Leonida's spartan army, delaying the axis conquest of their soil for months. Italian subs and battleships got bombed by UK air forces while sailing near Alexandria and Malta, and Yugoslavian people rally under the Allied banner, joining the struggle against the Greatest Evil Ever. UK lead researchers work day and night, knowing no rest, to deliver their nation the much needed technology upgrades. British troops leave Kiel, having completed their task: german troops and air forces are stretched all around europe, while Stalin prepares for war; UK controls firmly norway, and Italian navy can't do anything else than sitting in their ports. Internal pressure is too much, and the Fuerer is killed in a suicide attack of a former SS officer, and struggles between internal Nazi and Military factions forces the Third Reich to crumble under allied blows. Peace is sued, and Europe takes its time to rebuild its cities... This was a heavy tech-affected game: jet was at 0 for both germany and UK until the battle for Norway. UK (me) got lvl 1 long range and jet on the same turn my carriers bombed german transports, while germany got the lvl 1 jet one or two turns later; in 5 more turns i got level 2 jets. This helped a lot UK efforts, and then URSS readiness jumped on by 10\turn, so Axis player decided to bail out instead of a painful defence against soon-in-war Russian forces. (This is just to tell that SC community is ALIVE, maybe a bit less LOUD!) [ October 03, 2003, 03:50 AM: Message edited by: Piumarcobaleno ]