sburke

Would be nice as they have a drop down selection for ok, immobile and destroyed. The immobile one could have a busted tack and the destroyed be. . . well, destroyed. What would add icing on the cake is for it to be visible to both sides. The fow icons kind of take away from them now.

cool! Thanks, I'll try loading them up later today.

in 5 years you may not have a disk drive anymore... that could impact that plan...

Heh having a drop down is the easy part. Getting all the back end that applies to that drop down is a whole other issue. Bf is the arbiter of whether they think this would be possible and so far their answer is an unequivocal "absolutely not".

Ha, I finally went one worse. I have a "Combat Mission" folder on my desktop. It has shortcuts for all the CM games as well as to the game folders, dropbox, fraps, my fraps screenshot folder and HTHH. All the essentials for my CM gaming life. Now all it needs is a shortcut for a program to get me a beer. I think there was one out called wife 2.0. http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Wife_1.0

Unfortunately I hadn't been introduced to the idea of modding different terrain types to disguise them. MikeyD and RockinHarry would open my eyes on that. I have a larger version of that same map that I will apply some of the lessons though I don't expect I would do that until the 3.0 upgrade for CMFI is available. Here is a sample of what I should have been doing. The area where the buildings would have stood are boulder tiles, impassable to vehicles. The street itself is mud. They are both replaced with RockinHarry's rubble tile. I did try replacing the heavy woods tile, however it still shows brush through the rubble. (hint to MikeyD, RockinHarry or any other intrepid modders out there. A heavy woods tile would be a better candidate for a rubbled, impassable to armor, concealment bonus terrain). I was hoping for something that would add concealment for troops hunkered down in it. The net effect is armor can negotiate the street at the risk of bogging, but can not drive through the building remains (potential for cellars collapsing etc) At the moment no and honestly I am not sure we will ever see that. Part of the deal with creating this terrain is you aren't faced with the limitations of a building rubble tile. That was where for me anyway the idea originated. Before we could position AT teams in buildings I tried to approach the challenge of Infantry capabilities by altering the terrain. That premise is till the primary reason for doing this, the look is an added benefit. You can emplace anything you want, AT guns, mines, Vehicles, bunkers, ammo piles etc. The effect is also enhanced with elevation changes. I just don't see BF having buildings collapse that would then change the terrain tile and the elevation not just to the building tile, but surrounding tiles as well.

Did you happen to buy CMFI? You'll find it does the same thing. It's a windows thing. BF had to start that with the CMFI release.

LOL sorry no one is allowed to do that. You have to defend your position with increasingly cantankerous and snooty comments with less and less substance. I think folks could actually find material to go either way, but I think we'd all agree - city fighting is the infantry's domain. If you can spare a few tanks to provide supporting fires great, but tanks aren't going in there without a lot of infantry to back them up. Though it has gotten better, CM can't fully do justice to the weaknesses of armor in this environment. I was reading one report on Stalingrad where the Germans would rollout their armor at Pavlov's house and the Russians would just go up on the roof and rain ATR rounds down on them. The tanks were unable to elevate to return fire. In Cassino the tanks couldn't negotiate the streets. In Aachen, well the example of the one incident belies how difficult the US army found it to deploy armor. Needing most of its manpower to stave off German counterattacks and secure the area around Aachen, the 1st Infantry Division was able to earmark only a single regiment for the job of taking the city. The task fell to the 26th Infantry Regiment, which had only two of its three battalions on hand. Armed with machine guns and flamethrowers, the 2nd and 3rd Infantry Battalions would at first be aided only by a few tanks and a single 155-millimeter (6.1 in) howitzer. The city was defended by roughly 5,000 German troops, including converted navy, air force and city police personnel. For the most part, these soldiers were inexperienced and untrained, and were only supported by a handful of tanks and assault guns. However, Aachen's defenders could make use of the maze of streets which occupied its historical center. The 26th Infantry's initial attack on 13 October provided important insight on the nature of the fighting; American infantry had been ambushed by German defenders using sewers and cellars, forcing the advancing American infantry to clear each opening before continuing down streets, while Sherman tanks found it impossible to maneuver to suppress enemy fire. German civilians were cleared as the 26th Infantry advanced; no Germans were allowed to remain in the American's rear. Success in Aachen was measured by the number of houses captured, as the advance proved to be sluggish; in order to cope with the thick walls of the older buildings in the city, the 26th Infantry Regiment used howitzers at point blank range to destroy German fortifications. The howitzer created passageways that allowed infantrymen to advance from building to building without having to enter the city's streets, where they could be pinned down by enemy fire. Sherman tanks were ambushed, as they entered intersections, by concealed German anti-tank guns. Soon thereafter, American tanks and other armored vehicles would advance cautiously, often shooting buildings ahead of the accompanying infantry to clear them of possible defenders. Pinned on the surface by Allied aircraft, German infantrymen would use sewers to deploy behind American formations to attack them from the rear. German resistance was fierce, as they launched small counterattacks and used armor to halt American movements. On 18 October, the 3rd Battalion of the 26th Infantry Regiment prepared to assault the Hotel Quellenhof, which was one of the last areas of resistance in the city. American tanks and other guns were firing on the hotel, which was the city's defense headquarters, at point blank range. That night, 300 soldiers of the 1st SS Battalion were able to reinforce the hotel and defeat several attacks on the building. A furious German counterattack managed to overrun a number of American infantry positions outside of the hotel, and temporarily released pressure on the Quellenhof before being beaten off by concerted American mortar fire. Two events then aided the final advance. First, to lessen frontline infantry casualties, it was decided to barrage remaining German strongpoints with 155-millimeter (6.1 in) guns. Secondly, to assist the 1st Infantry Division, a battalion of the 110th Infantry Regiment, US 28th Infantry Division, had been moved up from the V Corps sector on 18 October to close a gap between forward 26th Infantry Regiment elements within the city. The defensive mission of this new battalion was changed on 19–20 October to closely support the urban assault, participating as the depleted regiment's missing third battalion. On 21 October, soldiers of the 26th Infantry Regiment, supported by the reinforced battalion of the 110th Infantry Regiment finally conquered central Aachen; that day also marked the surrender of the last German garrison, in the Hotel Quellenhof, ending the battle for the city.

LOL what are you trying to do, emulate a CM battle when the HQ staff is smashed? I often have to do complete reloads for stuff, I like having copies within reach and if something happens to one, I don't have to wait for it to download again.

LOL and I am doing my best to hide that info. http://www.battlefront.com/community/showthread.php?t=114946&page=4

Devious, very devious I am going to have to practice that.

Artillery - understood. My point was in agreement. You make the town look however beat up you want but avoid the artillery collapsing of buildings as the battle is too close now for it's use. Movement - it can, it's really up to the map designer. For example, I use that same terrain mod for red rock, boulder and Mud terrain types. I can now create rubble piles that do nothing, potentially cause bogging or completely block vehicular movement and visually there is no indication they are different. You could tell if it blocks by using the cursor during the orders phase, but you wouldn't know if there is a chance of bogging. The mud tiles or swamp could also slow infantry movement similar to a loose rubble pile where you'd have to move with care. In addition you can create the appearance of a rubbled building and emplace an AT gun there. I experimented with some stuff with the Venafro scenario in Gustav, but a lot of folks have come up with ideas since then that make that strictly a first generation attempt. Nice Pete!! I keep meaning to mess with that, just haven't had the time.

rotflmao. But I set that (insert Tiger, AT Gun, FO etc here) in that position because he had great LOS and now my defense is a shambles!!!! Personally I think it'd be pretty cool, but yeah I can see the s**t storm brewing.

First let's skip the authenticity and strategic/operational level discussion. CM is a tactical game. Emphasis on both. Some of us just like to fight out battles in urban terrain. Did they happen? Absolutely. Were they all on the scale of Stalingrad, absolutely not. But I don't think anyone is talking about that... yet. Aachen actually did see house to house fighting. As well there were probably hundreds of small fights for various villages and towns that would qualify for a company scale engagement and plenty that could entail something larger (Cassino anyone?) ScoutPL - I absolutely agree that buildings in CM do present some difficulty. They collapse too cleanly into a flat structure of exactly the same footprint and they still have pathing and placement issues despite being a rubble pile. However I think the potential is there. Maps just needed to be created specifically for this type of fighting. Forget the artillery. You really want to try to call in arty fire and tell the battery- "I think I am on Villa de Rosa street, but hell there is just a pile of rubble here so I really don't know"? Also knowing where friendlies are is many times over more difficult. So if you premise the fight as being w/o arty and you work on a map specifically for this type of fighting, you can actually create some nice stuff. RockinHarry's mod does a great job of changing the terrain tiles. You can use the same bmp to cover multiple terrain types so you can't visually tell if that was a boulder, mud or rocky red tile. Bogging that tank in a rubble tile now becomes a significant possibility. Streets can be blocked by rubble piles. Sections of wall left standing can be added. This little bit took me 5 minutes to put together. We actually have a pretty good tool kit all things considered. Is it perfect, nope. However I am not willing to write off the ability of CM to create a pretty vivid urban landscape for a battleground and am itching for CM to hit 1942 on the east front. I expect by then BF will have given serious consideration to some of the unique factors of this type battle and we will be a bit further ahead in the engine development. As to bulldozers, I wouldn't expect to see that anytime soon if at all. I don't know of a single instance of a bulldozer in WW2 participating in an urban battle. They'd come in after to clear the streets for the logistical element.

Questionable. I think the first response would be duck and cover and hope the shrapnel goes over you. Being prone or kneeling to fire is going to increase your chances of getting hit. By the way Wodin, that might be a nice clip to see. I always get a kick out of seeing those arching through the air... especially if it is my guys throwing them. On the receiving end it is always an "oh s**t" moment.

Your English is fine. Unfortunately BF has stated pretty consistently they will be separate games. Plans are always subject to change, but that has been the direction so far. The same for Western front late 1944--1945. That will be a new game and not an additional module for CMBN.

I think my box may end up being storage for a USB stick and have ALL my CM software.

This is all your fault. This is what we get for leaving the door to the cesspool open. I keep saying we need to seal that door.

I think you may have pissed someone off inferring he is represented by the French Now back to wiping the coffee I just snorted all over my keyboard. Man I really need to get a liquid proof model one these days. mjkerner I think the thumbs down post was appropriate. Stuff like this should come with a warning label.

Broadsword has one running using Panzer Command that looks promising. http://www.battlefront.com/community/showthread.php?t=114452

I'm playing Sacrifice for a New Religion for the second time (first time against the AI). I have 4 MGs blasting away at the steeple trying to suppress the FO in there. God damn a**hole keeps dropping mortars rounds on me and probably laughing his ass off. Man I need a tank.

thunderbird

He is a scout, not a long range recon dude. His job is to go check out that house and see if anyone is there, not look into that valley and see if you see any fortifications. If (when) he gets shot, you really want to lose your binoculars?

Also don't forget they do have the ability to step in and support a platoon in the event the platoon HQ is lost. They just have to be in audible range, That means you are either using that platoon in reserve or your company HQ is getting close to the firing line. The company HQ primary function is to coordinate the assets to allow the platoon elements to fight the battle. Use them to call in arty support from a nice safe distance so your platoon HQs units can stay in proximity to their squads to keep them in the fight. Putting your company HQs together is just asking to have an arty strike decapitate two companies. Let them coordinate through BN like they are supposed to.

too early for beer, but coffee is almost as good. Okay it seems we are correct, the buttons reflect the overall C2 condition of the parent unit, the icons indicate the actual command status of the unit in question. The squad is in audible range of it's platoon HQ, but cannot see them (terrain is woods, it is also set up turn. I think once I'd actually proceeded with the turn they would also get visual contact.) Here is a squad with C2. All buttons indicate the parent organizations are good. This is it's platoon HQ with a radio link to company Here is the 3rd squad of the same platoon in a building complex with the BN HQ It has an audible link to BN, but no link to it's platoon. The buttons indicate that it has no C2 to it's HQ, but it's platoon and Company HQ are good. This is a squad adjacent to another Platoon HQ. It has no C2 to it's own platoon and the other platoon HQ is unable to provide a command link. It is not a higher level in this unit's chain of command. Note it's buttons indicate the same overall status as the unit adjacent to BN HQ, but this unit has no audible or visual C2 indicator.