JulianJ

Sounds brill. I clicked and got "Film blocked by mosfilm" - which must be the geo blocker?

Yes, I can see how you might design a small SF scenario. My issue is that special ops forces often have different weapons to the regular forces. The SAS are a particular case, toting the M16/M203 instead of the regular British army rifle. The ill-fated Bravo Two Zero mission in Iraq of 8 men had 4 x 16/203s, and 4 x FN minimis (plus an M72 each). Which is a lot of firepower for two bricks of troops. I would disagree with the posters who said SF wouldn't be on the battlefield but off doing sneaky stuff elsewhere. It seems to me nowadays with lots of irregular combat that there are all sorts of operators, spooks and mercs ("contractors" or PMCs) mixed up with regular soldiers on many areas of battle - that certainly seems the case in both Syria and Ukraine from what I have read. I think this a gap and it would be nice to have some of these, in regular battles and QBs.

@Bootie I have attempted to put the files up on FGM but not succeeded which is odd. I'll have another go. If not I may need your assistance. @Erwin The mdr file is the CM Native file which controls all the model does, e.g 3d appearance, moving, shooting, where the doors and windows are in buildings. The bmp files are just the skin, flattened out into 2d. The .mdr has to go in the same folder as the .bmps and then in your Z folder. Thanks to the efforts of various modders we can alter these to a small extent. That's why I try not to tamper with them too much - as things tend to go terribly wrong. Hence I gave up on flattening the tyres in the mdr file, which ought to be reasonably simple in theory , but I feared I would mess it up. @MOS:96B2P re: vbieds - thanks for telling me that. I agree it would be better to disappear the vbied if poss or turn it to black. I may have a go but I cannot promise any results as I say above tampering with the mdrs often causes grief and frustration.

The vbied placeholder is there in CMBS. I believe it is to do with the MDR file, so cannot be removed. It doesn't bother me much. The weird spellings are there for a reason! Ever hear about not meddling with things you don't understand? Usually unleashes demons, or at the very least bad TV series upon the world! Seriously though - you have to replace the EXACT SAME NO OF CHARACTERS IN THE MDR FILE. So to have a new .bmp file it has to have the same no of characters and to ensure you know which vehicle it came from you replace it with a letter= vehicle 9 = i. It's in one of the guides to modding flavour objects and it works so I keep with the programme. The windows don't work either. I only change things that matter and leave everything else. I see now it causes confusion. If you want to go back to the normal tyres - can you work out how to do it now? You'll need to open the mdr file and change one letter only. There will be a pop quiz tomoz.... (actually, no there won't).

Apologies for the entire universe of computer suckiness. Infamy! Infamy! They've all got it in for me! 1. Here is the ground tile omitted from previous upload: https://www.mediafire.com/view/of1nki5koeyz803/ground_dirt_[wreckage].bmp/file It is called ground dirt [wreckage].bmp . 2. @MOS:96B2P Yes, there are 9 flavour object slots in each group. Get 'em while you can as they are filling up fast! Every new one comes up as a button automatically, so you know if it has worked before you go into the 3D representation because the button is there. 3. There are two tyres in there, one normal one left because I forgot about it. The flat tyre does not represent properly because that is down to the MDR file. So it wasn't worth doing more work on tyre damage. For some reason I can't get the files to upload to FGM. I will rectify that when I can.

Hi Erwin, Should work for both CMBS and CMSF2 (& SF1 I think). You can join mediafire for free. (I didn't know that you could only download 1 thing at a time if a non-member). I wanted to upload it to several locations so it won't get lost. All the components are in the folder, including a ground tile, with the mod tag [wreckage]- you can either replace any ordinary ground tile or create a map with wreckage as a mod tag and use the tile.

Having trouble adding it to Few Good Men mods section. Uploaded all the files but can't work out how to add them to the WP post.

Vehicle 9 Civilian Wrecked Car Flavour Object c/w ground tile Wrecked car flavour object [Based on Kieme's SF1 pale blue car] This is a destroyed car to put in your battlescenes. It is modded on the SF1 VBIED pale blue car. Put it in the Z folder It looks best with the ground tile Wreckage supplied with it. http://www.mediafire.com/view/3p5yyk20xu3dka3/Vehicle-9-Wreck-on-burnt-ground.jpg You can replace any ordinary ground tile. It has the mod tag [wreckage] applied. NOTE: flavour objects need consecutive numbers. You will need to put it in the next available vehicle flavour slot in your game and renumber the mdr file accordingly – e.g if you have three vehicles this will now be vehicle4.mdr Link again: http://www.mediafire.com/folder/vnvbrljke5n3s/vehicle9_car_wreck

I have to disagree - the advance of NATO right up to russian borders, in spite of diplomatic agreements not to move "One inch to the East", is clearly a threat. No sensible Russian leader could ignore it.

SF2 doesnt seem to have the special forces that would be operating in the area - the SAS and SBS, Delta force, Green Berets, Navy SEALS, SPETZNAZ, and local special forces, etc, I've probably omitted some. BF what are you going to do about that? I would pay for some dlc with these units.

@IvanovI think the mafia war scenario is more likely. Even if the Russian found them superfluous to requirements in Ukraine, there's plenty of jobs for them elsewhere - Group Wagner apparently wants mercs; buying someone off is a lot less troublesome - also hostilities may kick off again at any time. I don't think you want to get rid of effective fighters and demoralise their units? I did read somewhere (can't remember where) that the US gave the UKies everything to off Zaharenko and all they had to do was plant the bomb - the CIA took care of all the rest of the op. I guess I am straying into politics and best to stop now.

Yes, this is a sort of "Hybrid War Game" (joke) - the real situation and info in the book (for example) allows us to use that information in the fictional CMBS scenario, and add to the "naturalism" of the game. In my view producing a more satisfying result. The TOEs mean you can actually name units that exist in reality in your fictional games and create skins of units - there are photos of AFVs with obviously home-made stencilled unit insignia, which will inspire someone here I am sure.

UPDATE: Modding Flavour object and buildings using @sbobovyc's tools. This has been an immensely frustrating experience, partly due to Blender being appallingly hard to use - I think it was devised by the Gestapo to break people without leaving visible marks - "Oh no, I'll tell you everything I know. Just don't make me use the Blender interface again!" My goal is to create new flavour objects and buildings to improve the immersion. Lots of modern games have completely naturalistic environments, yet CM has fallen behind with its generic boxy type modular buildings. What I've learnt You can import existing MDRs and modify them. You can't scale them - dunno why. This means it is pretty pointless - I've managed to create a crate with a different texture, but you can do that a lot easier by simply painting on the existing BMP with photoshop. This is my wrecked car flavour object (based on Kieme's work) - basically done in photoshop - now I have added a wreckage ground tile under it, it looks really good. I have been unable to create a new object and export it as an MDR - that includes the "basic cube" that loads in Blender. I textured it and added a .bmp material and just got an error message (which I would like to post here - but BLENDER FAIL - you can't save these things. I wish whoever created it was subjected to Vogon Poetry then flung out of an airlock). By using another 3D app called Rocket 3F I have created objects (the creator made usability a major goal - he'd never get a job with Blender, that's for sure.). Imported them into Blender, as .obj file then attempted to export them as MDRs, but there it all falls down, and I am now stuck. If anybody has any advice or could check my blender files for mistakes I'd be very appreciative. BTW, did I mention that Blender sucks? *I haven't released the car, because I wanted to deflate or remove the tyres, because them being intact looks wrong, but I would need to do that with Blender/Sbob's app and I feel that I would just get another error message.

I got it yesterday. I think it has a lot of good information for CMBS games and mods/reskins, and TOEs for the various factions, even though the author acknowledges that they may not be entirely accurate given the situation. I was intrigued by the "Hooligan Battalion" (do they wear Millwall shirts? ) but there was no further info in the text. I have actually read some of Mark Galeotti's books before - the one on the Vory (Russian criminals) was very interesting. I looked at his biography of Putin in the library and put it down as the sound of axes grinding got too much. Politics Alert!!!!! I am very doubtful of some of the information. Galeotti works for Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) - a big hitting but very conventional think tank. His views are Western-centric and anti Putin. So the political analysis IMO in the above book is often wrong. I'll only give one example as I know we try to avoid politics here: I don't believe for a moment that the Russians assassinated their own warlords. Makes no sense. Who but the Ukrainians would have the motive to do so? Overall though - definitely a book that I would recommend to the CMBS gamers here, and anyone interested in Russian forces.

Carries quite a lot of men.

Oh dear, that sounds terrible. You need to look after your health and concentrate on making a good recovery. Games and gamers will still be here when you are better. Best wishes for a swift return to health.

Alf Tupper, of course. I will have to make some sensible suggestions now. Niklas Zetterling writes good books. Normandy 1944 is very good on Ger perspective and TOEs, and Milton Schulman (the post war theatre critic) interrogated top captured German Military and many years later published a book of this...The German View? This was while their memories were fresh and not trying to hide their past so more valuable than dodgy memoirs.

OT, sorry but there's a very funny book about wargaming geeks (like, er me...) called Achtung Schweinhund! Like the author I was brought up on thick-ear war comics like Victor and Commando. There was even an athlete fuelled by Fish and Chips. He probably had a coronary in his twenties.

Counselling is available: Dial 0800 FokkeredUpGamer. If it's any consolation to you, the local council lent us a shed to store gardening equipment a while back. The only three of us left in the group are geeky hoarders - one day the council is going to inherit dozens of 20+ year old games, a floor-to-ceiling stack of obscure art magazines, and a dismantled kitchen!

Thanks for the fb. V. helpful. I was thinking about a "burnt wreckage" ground tile to go under it. If I make one can I just stick it in the Z folder and it will supercede a basic one if it has the same name? @sburkeI was planning to port it for SF2. You want it for SF1? Can do if you give me a brief rundown of what to do - I don't own the game so won't be able to work it out. You'll have to test it.

I have created a wrecked car from Kieme's light blue civvy vehicle as a flavour object. I added an extra alpha channel because I thought this would mean I could remove one of the doors, but instead all the doors, boot and bonnet are gone. I like this look as it does appear completely wrecked. But it does show the strange object (VBIED?) on the back seat clearly. The question is - do you like this look or should I got back to the original with all the bits intact. Vehicle 9 Wrecked Car

Bizarre one - I set up a QB, me as the syrians and the AI as uncons. I played a few of turns, then had to stop - I saved it. When I came back later the save is greyed out and says I need the Marines Module to play this game (there are no Marines involved). I have the base game + Brits. ?

Yes, I know that colour film doesn't entirely represent the colours existent when shot, and ages as well. Nevertheless, it is a vivid view of WW2 which is worth seeing, glad you liked it.

Part of my job is to do with archive footage. In anticipation of the commemoration of D-Day I rediscovered Hollywood director George Steven's colour home movies of his war. He volunteered at 37 and was put in charge of a combat film unit, filming of course in B/W but he took his 16mm camera along and had access to rare stocks of colour film. These home movies were only discovered by his son in storage after his death. It's an eye-opener, and useful for modelling and gaming.

Funnily enough, the only Bradley knocked out by artillery was hit by an ordinary 122mm round (not PGM) during a barrage. 12 PGMs were no more use than harsh language. I do think BF should look at this issue. As Michael points out this is an across the game issue, not one with a particular side or weapon.