sburke

A bit off topic but that link in your sig is wild. Geez I think I'll stick with the excitement of building my own patio.

To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women is that modded?

Well chalk this one up to the designer trying to create something different. Personally as painful as it got, I do like it. Would I like a lot of them? Not particularly, but I enjoy the attempt at creativity to present a situation that could easily have occurred. It was unfortunately not all that rare for US forces to initiate an attack with poor intelligence and not enough preparation. For those trying to do campaigns using other computer or boardgames it is actually very possible for them to run into quite a few like this. Whether they choose to play those out within CMBN is another question. I think the real issue with this campaign wasn't that it was poorly designed (I actually think the design was very creative and interesting) but rather the designer didn't put a huge warning label on it saying - if you don't like rude surprises do NOT play this campaign. Expect some more pain when LLF puts out that Carillion Nose campaign. The casualty rate was extraordinary.

A TRP is just a pre registered artillery point. Depending on the actual circumstances if historical or the fictional scenario you are trying to create would determine how realistic or not it is to have them. the more fluid the situation, the less liklihood there would be to have them. For example if the meeting engagement is instigated by one side having achieved a pre planned breakthrough advancing on a specific objective, it could be that nearby crossroads, hills, forests etc would be part of a previously planned artillery plot to isolate the objective from being reinforced. As such it would make sense that one side might have them and the other not. As it would now be in the rear area of the defender (that both sides would be advancing into a no man's land would not have been the norm), the liklihood could be that the "defender" supporting artillery units were drawn from outside the area and have no plotted artillery locations at all. Again it all depends I think on what the situation is you assume the meeting engagement represents. might want to review this thread http://www.battlefront.com/community/showthread.php?t=99988

oh, so it's YOUR fault. For what it is worth, I have not had the setup areas issue and my main gripe on the maps is simply that I got spoiled by some. I don't consider that a bad thing. I don't mean to smear your efforts at all. I suspect you guys spent much more of your time trying to get functional AI plans and for those who play against the AI, that is critical. I believe Steve had stated previously that most folks who purchase CM play that way. As someone newly drawn to the dark side of PBEM however I am one of those who is more drawn to hth play and as such the AI plans are less important now. As you noted the map world of CMx2 is so much better and that feeds on itself. Play on a few really good maps and you now expect every map to have that level of detail and care. Heck I can still recall looking inside the structure in the Villa in Bois de Baugin and seeing farm supplies INSIDE the barn. Trying to spend that kind of detail on 150+ maps in the short time frame available wasn't a realistic expectation. I view this as simar to the scenarios. The game comes with some, the community will add. It is what gives the game so much longevity. So anyway, thanks for the maps you have provided and don't feel slighted if the bar keeps getting set a little higher. It's the nature of the beast.

+1 on dropbox, used that for my Huzzar PBEM previously.

C'mon guys no need to get personal on this. It is a good discussion on the various things we have to adapt to and some shortcomings in the process. Trying to make it work better for all of us as well as having the user community contribute to more and better maps can only make us all happier. As a previous user of the old CMx1 QB system I disagree with GAJs assessment. Maybe you didn't have to worry about preview, but the maps were from my point of view pretty lame. Even the maps I have had issue with in CMBN (QB 80 comes to mind) are still better and they come with AI plans. However I have gotten spoiled by what is capable with the map editor and with some of the maps in the scenarios. We are already seeing QB map contributions and that process will only continue and accelerate as folks get more used to their creation. To say they are completely unusable is overly dramatic. I am in the midst of a QB PBEM right now and the only complaint my opponent and I have is the map we chose is not as good as we think the editor is capable of. We did not preview, our mistake. I am in the process now of reviewing maps that I think would meet the level of expectation that other scenarios have given us and compile a list that we can choose from going forward. Simple answer to our problem. Considering the time I put into this game already compiling a list of preferred maps seems to be a rather small inconvenience to be assured I know the maps I choose from add rather than detract from the experience. The titles while perhaps helpful can't possibly convey enough information for my own subjective desires.

So who's signature line does that go into?

The QB system itself is not bad considering what is trying to be done with it as opposed to what was in CMx1. The issue of the maps, their naming structure and organization is something that could use some help. My impression was the QB number was the actual map and the name noted what AI plans were built for them. However then I saw this combo. Meet Med Town QB-156 Meet Small Hills (bocage) QB-156 (this one incidentally is the map used for the first battle of courage and fortitude minus the trees that were on the American right. There are several others where the same QB has different descriptions, sometimes distinctly different. As to the quantity or quality I have not gone through map by map yet but it doesn't really matter. The player community can contribute additional material and hopefully we will soon have more really good maps than we could possibly need.

About as good a summarization as I've heard.

I think you will find actually a lot of folks agree with you in this regarding map design. Good map design would probably eliminate your frustration. Broadsword and I are in a PBEm map that suffers from the Green Wall effect. It's more like fighting in some rich Lords estate maze rather than the Normandy Countryside. Hopefully as more people put their efforts to building maps the issues of terrain representation will become something to look back on and joke about. Map work is time consuming however and for the quantity we have been given, it isn't so bad. I look forward however to the point where the best of them become just average.

I couldn't figure out if it was just because of the tree between them or if the GI hesitated to reload, but it was a costly error. Probst drops prone and pulls still another handgrenaten. At this point the rest of his team is down, but Probst isn't giving in. I'm bettin this GI wished he had just let it go and retreated down the hill. That thing looks like even if it doesn't explode it is gonna smack him right between the eyes. Ducking? Why bother? This is gonna hurt. Maybe the guy is tossing himself on the grenade to save his fellow pixeltruppen. The rest of the team has had enough. 3 men down to a berserker with a submachine gun and a satchelful of grenades, this isn't what they signed up for. 60 seconds of sheer mayhem, all I did was tell these guys to hold the foxhole line. To Charles, Steve, Phil and the rest of the BFC team as well as all the beta testers - This is simply awesome. I have gotten so much more than my money's worth and have only scratched the surface. Truly amazing, thanks folks. To my opponent in this game I have to admit to taking very little credit for how this fight on the hill has gone. Blame BFC :-P Also a special thanks to all the modders, I am sure some of you can see your work here. To Mord- the immersive voices are truly outstanding.

Thought all that was impressive? Our hero has barely gotten started! Probst then opens up with his MP 40 as another group of GIs approach the foxhole line. The GIS are bunching up and it is clear he faces a full half squad. One GI down Two GIs down and Probst doesn't even hesitate, he is on his feet again displacing along the tree line. One pissed off GI attempts to hit him as he moves off through the woods. Like the guy with a rifle grenade loaded? ...in the woods!

This is where this game gets oh so cool. BFC whatever anyone feels about the game needing to be tweaked, you definitely have the base engine down and should rightly feel proud. I have watched this scene a dozen times already and just can't get over how impressive everything is when it comes together. Back to our heroes tale, Probst displaces forward on the line racing some oncoming GIs to get into a favorable ambush position (this is all the AI, I gave no such orders.) Probst races into position along a tree line. Finding an ideal position he turns to face the path his enemy is approaching from. Amazingly he then crouches down and calmly pulls another handgrenaten And tosses it at his BAR wielding opponent who was unaware the enemy had flanked him.

The following are 17 images from a single turn of a WEGO pbem of Bois de Baugin. I can't say enough how much I appreciate the care and effort put into this scenario and it's map. JonS this is truly a masterpiece. This is my second battle in a PBEM with two different opponents. I have tried to come up with an alternate battle plan after having put so much of my previous one down in an AAR keeping in mind I could rely on my opponent (who previously trounced me in Huzzar) devising a very good attack plan. Even the best of plans however can founder on a tenacious defense. I can only hope the rest of my force will put up the same level of resistance as Herr Probst. We start with the Americans having launched their probing attack on hill 144. The initial assault degenerated into a close quarters grenade tossing match. The Americans hit the far left flank of the hill defense (to Probst's left.) As the scene opens Probst has turned to face the enemy breaking into the fox hole line on his flank, grenaten in hand. His contribution is late as the Americans are already beginning to break, but it hurries them along on their way.

Your English is better than some native speakers I know. +1 on visiting. Spent my honeymoon in and around Antibes, then up to Avignon, have also done a couple trips to Paris and day trips to Normandy. Gotta say between food and historical sites you folks are spoiled.

Thanks George, may have to give this a go again as soon as I finish my current PBEM.

The only issue with this is the sheer inconsistency. Are they so high you have to rip your way through, or can you dive over them or perhaps simply just step over them? Question I would have is he actually describing hedgerows here or has it come down to every dang bush being called a hedgerow at a certain point?

Hold on, I need a few more bong hits to grok that.

Oh gawd, you didn't send him to The Cesspool did you?

It's a Union gig, they aren't allowed to help. I think they're teamsters.

As the defender you already know the objectives and that an attack is coming. Isn't that knowledge somewhat unrealistic if you didn't know that from preregistration of artillery? The whole configuration of any scenario precludes the fog of war that in real life would have been there and it goes both ways. (Assuming we are not discussing a meeting engagement here). Just out of curiosity and trying to understand where you are headed with this. Assuming you did note the fall of harassment fire, correctly concluded it was preregistration fire and that it portended a potential coming attack. What counter measures are you thinking you would implement? For the sake of argument let's use Bois de Baugin as an example. In the scenario itself you are already given units to reinforce the original 6th company. You know the crossroads is an objective and you know the dominant terrain features. That is about all that could have been expected.

Doesn't much matter if you have plenty of artillery to use harassing fire as your registration process and plenty of aircraft to report fall of shot. The position of the defender isn't what is important, it is the attack plan and how the supporting fires are integrated. So for example I know I am going in a particular direction and any attempt by the defender to maneuver reserves is going to take X route. It is perfectly logical to pre register to interdict that route and isolate the battlefield. The point of the TRP isn't that it targets your existing locations, it targets your LIKELY locations or supports an attack plan.

I would agree except in our current battle just because it is me getting plastered. The only possible alteration I would think to have for this is in a hasty attack versus prepared assault. In a hasty attack perhaps a more limited quantity of TRPs, however in a prepared assault all combatants practiced a well orchestrated preparatory bombardment. Am on the recieving end of quite a deluge of firepower right now and I don't feel it is at all unrealistic or gamey, painful perhaps but well within the realm of WW2 combat experience.

yeah but with all our experience...wait what was I going to say? Old farts..with muscles? Man those must have been some funky beans. 52 At least as well as I can remember. I just want the Eastern front before I have to wear depends.