snake_eye

To undercovergeek Just, these few words, to tell you that your Railway station, besides being well done, is not at the right place. Look at the map of Jaws. The railway track merge with the road leading from the dead man corner to the center of Carentan. You have a well know picture showing the cafe standing at the railway crossing which was just before entering the station. BTW it was the farthest place where some leading FJ elements came to during their final counter attack. Prior to their retreat from Carentan. The cabbage patch doesn’t exist anymore now days. It stands on either side of the road in the industrial estate right after the traffic circle that can be seen on google. It is today very difficult to match the ’44 area with the 2012 one. Ok, you area able to figure out where it is, but if you walk there you will have difficulties since the road lay out has been changed. That doesn’t remove anything from your very well done map and that won’t change the fun of the battle you are planning doing on it.

Yes, you can do it that way. However, having read the official AAR made at the time, I have found that it was rather difficult to figure out how the battle went precisely during the causeway assault. It was something like a mad rush for the exit of the causeway. Things settled down a bit on the other side. The AAR was not to clear either on the German defence positions. The main position was recognized, but the MG’s one seemed to be all other the places, which was not the case. If you get access to these AAR and read numerous accounts made by 101 veterans from the 506 and 502 you will have a broad idea of what was going on. The same should be done for the German side.. That reminds me of the story of the dead man corner Stuart tank. Different accounts were written besides Burgett’s one. When I read his account, I have difficulties in figuring what happened and knowing the place doesn’t help me at all. There was an explanation a year or so ago that the M5 had been it by a panzerfaust. That arose from a veteran coming back to that place. We are far away from the 88 firing at the tank that Burgett mentioned in his Currahee book (excellent book anyway – the 2 others also). That book should help you getting the feeling and the mood of that causeway crossing and Ingouf battle For all these reasons if your OOB takes in account troops being depleted (Germans and US ) and not in numerous numbers, I think that you can bring us a pretty good scenario, that will be fought on a very well done map and none the less credible landscape. Cheers

To undercovergeek The 506 PIR was responsible for breaking through the causeway bridges (one was blown by the German retreating)., the 502 PIR being unable to carry on due to its numerous casualties. Once these objectives were overcome, they went toward the Ingouf farm and later to the hill 30 at Pommenaude to secure the high grounds. The causeway crossing might be very difficult to duplicate for the A.I. That is if the defending German forces are well located as they were at the time. You might have 70% casualties, before getting on the safer ground at the entrance of Carentan. More, at one time two Germans fighter bombers made a bombing run on the causeway in an attempt to blow the bridges (prior to the blowing of one of the bridge) and succeeded in inflicting huge casualties on the remaining troopers of one Company, releasing what at the time was similar to these days cluster bombs. I think that the fight against the Ingouf farm and the one for hill 30 and its later defence would be easier for the designer to be made. Cheers

To Erwin, CMSF Marines“A Helluva Road Opening” and CMSF Marines & Nato “ A Helluva road Opening 2” are presenting, as you wrote it, numerous movements possibilities. The ground features are permitting these and effectively someone can fight on the left, the center and or the right and even on all three axes if he wants it. That can not be done on the CMA “Road of All fears”. That does not mean, however that you have to fight a more or less textbook or tactical drill battle. You have to use these and adapt their knowledge to fight your way through the ambushes areas, the way it seems best for you. There are other different ways I have not talked about, since I don’t think that they are worth the result that could be expected due to the game limitation. For the time being I won’t do any change to the scenario, not figuring what could be done besides modifying the ground landscape and offering more space to move around. But, that was not what I wanted to occur when I started to design the scenario. I really think that you will be interested by one of the BN campaign battle I am testing at the moment, «take the high ground” I had a post about it. As a matter of fact there are some many attack options that, I am having difficulties finding a way to get to my objectives against the German A.I. . I do believe that you could try your hand on it, if that please you and let me know what you think of it. Wego if attacks are done on multiples areas has to be considered giving an advantage against RT. The testing is not that easy, since I have to guess what the casualties would be in the CORE units at the time of that battle. So all the previous units are present without any loses and or ammo depleted. Cheers

To undercovergeek, Your work on the map is really stunning. Driving on the road close to the Ingouf farm at least once in a month, I can tell you that you are as close to reality (back in '44) that the game graphic rendering permits. The only thing that puzzle me is the way you are going to handle the scenario of the attack across the narrow causeway leading from the dead man corner to the entrance of Carentan?. That is, if it is done in your scenario. The next assault of the Ingouf farm will be easier to manage considering the ground feature of the close area. Bravo!

To Erwin, Don’t worry I am not thinking at all that you are doing some carping. On the contrary I think that your comments are and should be useful to players. The only thing I am not on the same wavelength as you are is about the 30 or so first minutes. A visual recon of the ground features at the set up do not show, but one way to get on the road running on the other side of the temporary causeway and or destroyed bridge. That is to cross these. The immediate question is the following. Are there enemies weapons sighted on that area? It is obvious that there are some. Resulting from that, there are 3 options left to the player. To have the BMP’s and or BTR’s cross with their mounted infantry, to have them cross without them and or have the infantry cross alone. These 3 options have to be done with suppressive fire pour on likely ambushes area (to force them to leave their hiding posture) and by direct fire on seen enemy force. The first thing that has to be done in that scenario, like it would be done in a real Operation is to move dismounted infantry toward the likely crossing area with caution. They offer a smaller target than a track. The enemies will try to react at their move. That way your BMP’s and BTR’s, being where they are, will offer a pretty good base of fire to suppress these positions. To move the infantry, have it cross and establish one or two base fire along the way, will take 30 minutes at the most. The MI 24 will be available at that time and the crossing of the tracks will be attempted as soon as the MI 24 will engage enemies within the area being designated by the forward squad officer, acting as a FO. So, you don’t have to sit for 30 minutes doing nothing. If you do, you won’t have a sufficient time left to carry on the order to get to the Kunar pass and that even with all the Air Assets. You are right to mention that if the first BMP in the convoy is moved few meters forward it will be shot at and probably destroyed. But once again, you are playing WEGO. Usually the first round miss the track, the second one hit it squarely. In REAL TIME, you can react at once and back up. You now know that someone doesn’t like you on the left part of the map and you will react accordingly. About the ambush: You are right once again to point out that the ambush starts right away. Well, if I had done it like it is done in a real operation, since the goal is to take the 3 trucks and they money, I would not have the Mujahideen’s fire at that moment. I would have left the convoy cross the temporary causeway and they would have been blocked just before entering the S bend prior to the Sherkhankhel causeway. Firing on the first elements and having eventually mines on the road to stop it. Fire is open also on the last elements at the same time and then along the convoy from the left hill (on the river other side) and from the right hills along the road. The ambushers would have opened their fire at very close or near range for all units being on the river side of the convoy and greater range from the other side of the river. The Russians have been caught few times that way. Obviously they changed their tactical convoy lay out. They usually had a small party with BTR’s and or BMP’s moving forward and establish a base fire along the way at a place where they were able to watch the convoy progression. Once the convoy had come level with them, another party, having remained with the convoy, was then moving forward to do the same and they would rejoin the end of the convoy when it will come level with them and so on. Doing it the first way in the scenario, delimitating ambush range for the A.I, will have allowed the first elements to cross and then the ambushers will have fired. That will have ended the mission if all vehicles have stayed together. On the contrary if they were only one element of the convoy, we will be now in a situation consisting at trying to move the other elements forward without being harmed. So we come back to a situation worst that the one we have at the beginning of the scenario, since we have sustained casualties from the ambush, and that these troops, BMP’s and or BTR’s would have been necessary to secure the travelled grounds. The best advice I could give is to play the scenario REAL TIME, since it is closer to the reactions someone could have in ambush. The player reactions will depend closely of his situation awareness. Someone staying cool and catching the important things that have to be applied at once will fare better than someone being stunned by the starting ambush and not doing anything to counter it. In WEGO the game makes you behave like if you are stunned and not doing anything. Even if it is for one minute it is too long. Trying it in REAL TIME will not make you see the things the same way. WEGO and REAL TIME are two different worlds for that sort of scenario. Cheers

To Erwin, I clearly understand your will to apply the tactical schemes you might think fit for that CMA convoy counter ambush scenario. You are surely aware, that the ground features in that scenario are such that I don’t see any other tactical drill that could be applied without sustaining heavy casualties. That is, accordingly, within the available time frame of the air and mortar assets. To have all convoy where it is at the start or elements of it coming at a different time won’t change a lot the scenario. The road where the convoy has to move through is like a funnel squeezed between the river and the hills on either sides, offering good LOS and hide out for ambushes. That is why, I wrote that the high ground – Qala E Shahi - has a strategic (tactical if you prefer) importance. Who controls it, controls the road, the bridges cross over and the Sherkhankhel causeway leading to the Kunar pass. There is no other way to look at it. That is, with what you are given in the scenario. What seems to you a battle drill is just the only template to get through that first river crossing more or less unscathed. However, it is you the player and only you, who will move correctly and determine the right field of fire. It is you who will call, from a suitable location,the air assets and the mortars. It is you who will reach the Sherkhankhel causeway and cross it As you see, you have many things to do, even if it follows roughly the tactical advice been given. You still have to do them at the right time, the right way, have the FOW (fog of war) on your side and just that stroke of luck that makes such a difference when it comes at the good time. However, your proposal to have the recon first, then the main body and or part of it coming in when the threat is reduced and or neutralized could be done in a new “Road of all fears 2” like I did it taking in account your remarks for the “A Helluva Road Opening 2 “ scenario For the time being, I am finalizing the “take the high ground“B-N campaign fought on the US side. In it you will have plenty of tactical choices, some I have surely not even thought of during my assaulting testing. It takes a lot of testing against the German A.I. So I don’t have that much time left for CMA. About, the recon forces vehicles. Usually a lighter and faster wheeled armored vehicle is used, but in that scenario it will be damaged right away. A BMP will fare better. Speed is not the primary concern, firepower is.

To Erwin, You got a point that is if you look at the scenario on a player side unwilling to applying normal procedures. These take time. In all military operations, you have a time schedule you have to get along with, if you don’t want to run into problems. I understand that you don’t like to stay put for half an hour while waiting for a CAS from an MI 24 schedule around that time. You told me you were playing Wego. Wego is giving a different feeling and situation awareness than Real Time (which I am playing). Since, you can not change things during the one minute turn over, all that as been set before you push the red button, will be played for the best or the worst. More you won’t be able to change an action whatsoever if something not seen earlier is suddenly, putting a wisely thought move down the basket. I must however recall you what I wrote earlier in the post. I dismount the Recon elements and have them cross the destroyed bridge, while all the tracks, the AA platform and mortars are putting down suppressive fire on the Qala E Shahi hill uncovered and or likely thought ambushes positions.. Around the same time I have the grenades launchers teams move to that bridge in order to set a fire base toward that hill and the grounds toward the Sherkhankhel causeway. Thereafter, the recon elements with a leader a leader acting as an FO will move toward the high ground to be able to direct fire for the MI 24 when it becomes available. I won’t have them engaged into a firefight as must as I can. That move takes me around 20 to 30 minutes, just the time to get the MI 24 attack helicopter. From their vintage point of view the recon team is now at an orchestra seat and they can play the MI 24 partition to the best. It will be better next with the fighter bombers. If by chance I think that the Qala E Shahi hill is safe, I even succeeded in few of the numerous battle I fought during the testing in bringing the 2 BMP’s across and on top of it without being engaged too dangerously. I am not saying that it is easy! For the rest, you have to be aware that we are fighting a scenario of the 80’s. the Russians could not provide CAS (close air support) during the entire time span of an operation. Even now days, you might have a chopper going down the road in the morning just prior to the opening, you might have one nearby (involved in another duty) and another one on call within a quarter to half an hour time. It is about the same for the airplanes. They can be flying a circus pattern and be called within 10 minutes. But what all these assets will do if you don’t know where to drop ordnances and or strafe. Not good things since the Mujahideen’s are not foolish enough to stay in view of these assets. You can only fire in an area if something has started to fire on you. You know it is somewhere in that area and the CAS will try to make them run for they live and or lose it. Besides all these considerations the ROE are very strict. Normally, in such a scenario, what could have happen would have been to bring at night (not so easy at the time) on a know LZ on top of a hill a small team. Their task would have been to survey the area that would be covered by the convoy and call CAS when necessary. In that instance the high ground retains its strategic importance. That is why the Qala E Shahi is so important in the scenario. You can not have a Montgomery battle plan being set for a convoy. It will cost a lot of money in ammo being spend, in planes and airplanes mechanical overhaul. So I usual the infantry, even if they are carried to the battle in tracks has to do it. It might cost some lives, but they are not accounted the same way as all the materials being used. That is why you might find yourself lying in a ditch besides your track for one hour and more, while you waited for a CAS to clear an enemy position blocking your tracks advance. So, at least in the scenario you don’t have to wait, if some of your pixels troops are mauled down, you can try it again another time.

Yes, the grenade launcher are not the best against a single isolated target. It works better against a squad size target, providing it is not lying near a hill crest. If it is the grenades will fall behind doing no harm to the squad. Enjoy the fight

Hi George, Carbide Carbide redux brought me back to the 80 shots I have made during the original scenario battle. The ground is very well depicted and tactically speaking is full of possibility for either side. What to say about the German A.I I fought against. Nothing, but praise. Once again, you did use some clever emplacement to surprise me. Knowing you, I knew something was there. I think of the PZ IV’s and the Stug III. But the only way to be sure was to go for them. At the end I got a draw and the losses were balances for the men, the tanks and the AVL. I did not go farther than the east and central bridges objectives being taken. Playing as usual RT, I was handicapped playing at the same time the forces committed to the West bridge objective. For that reason they were not brought farther than the first bend along the road leading to the bridge. That was not a good thing to do, since the left forces and the ones on the right were fighting without being able to give each other, mutual covering fire and or suppressive fire. Looking at the German forces at the end of the game I was surprised once more not thinking at all that I would have found them where they were. I liked it a lot and that was the same for Huzzar redux. Beautiful map, good setting, credible OOB and clever A.I plans. Waiting for the next one George. “Amicalement” Greg

To Erwin: You were right to insist. I got the answer, when I read in your post "retry the first turn". You are playing Wego and I play Real Time. One minute time makes a huge difference. I tested it in Wego,,the trucks and the AA platform moved back, but no shambles. What prevented it partially, was the fact that I had laid fields of fire nearly for all, that is for the BTR's, BMP's and AA platform. To play RL prevents the trucks to back up simply because you can bear fire on locations being uncovered at will and instantly. In fact I have seen on Wego four of them being uncovered, but as you know you can only watch the fight. Your idea to dismount the trucks drivers is probably the best answer that could be thought about for the time being. If one considers Wego, the trucks could be brought later with a small escort to the point where they are found at the beginning, assuming that at that time the hill facing the river has been cleared of all the enemies. If we consider the scenario, the elements must remain together in order to bring mutual fire protection. That should be the same in RL. We have to consider that in that scenario, the convoy moving up to the river and bridge crossing has been halted there. From that point, they are in Indian country. The trucks therefore are better there for the moment that if they move forward. The crossing site clearing is about to start. Wego first turn end

Hi Erwin, I do believe you, but I did not think that you were looking at the left cliffs for a possible base of fire being there. You are right, since I have made the scenario I do react more or less with the knowledge of what I have done for the Mujahideens A.I. But, I do react also accordingly to what I have to go through in order to bring these trucks safely across to the Kundar pass. That is why I am moving forward doing a Recon by Fire on likely ambushes areas. In RL, that would not be necessarily allowed, the ROE being very strict. If some player wants to play it that way, he has to move a scout team very cautiously forward in order to uncover any hiding AT teams that could be spotted at a far distance and or troops that could engage the team at a shorter distance. From that moment, mortars and air assets if available can be called. Meanwhile dismounted troops offering smaller targets can move, try to outflank the enemy and or set a base fire, allowing other squads to do it, by fire and movement. The tracks should be used has a static base fire as long as the AT have not been suppressed, that is if they are not in a lethal emplacement. If they are, they will have no other choice that to move to a safer location, with all the danger that such a move might bring. In the game scenario, the ambush has not yet started, but it is going to get going any time. For the rest, that hill, across the river, we are talking about seems anyway an almost obligatory objective. Take the high ground and you command a view on the bridges, the village and the Kunar pass. From there you have a very good view on the way you will have to travel through. More, from the hill top, you can, as I wrote earlier have a spotter calling the air assets and or mortars down on seen troops. Because of that importance, that hill should be manned by the enemy and have most likely HMG and AT assets on it or near it zeroing unto the bridge and its approaches. That is what I would think if I was there. The enemy knows it, so that should not be its only ambush site. Is it its bigger one? that you will have to discover along the way. Glad, you like it. Let me know the ending. Cheers

To Erwin : If someone does not want to be told about “the trick”, there was the spoilers mention as a caution. However, I don’t think that knowing where the enemy might be hidden will change anything. If you do apply sound tactical drill, you will get through the coming ordeal not so badly. But if you don’t apply it rightly, then you will be in trouble. That seems to begin with the trucks for you. If you don’t have suppression fire on that hill on the other side of the river, you are asking for trouble. You have to recon by fire on likely ambushes spots, you have sufficient ammo for doing so. I must tell you that even knowing what I could expect from the design of the scenario and of the A.I, I got in trouble, more than one time. But at no times the trucks were a problem, since I let them where they were at the beginning and moved them forward only when the crossing had been done safely and that the hill and road along the river had been secured. You have to be aware, that the A.I will not respond every time the same way and that has nothing to do with the plan. It just seems that the algorithms analyse the moves you are making and if you do it in the LOS of an enemy, depending on the suppression fire you are putting on it or not, it takes the chance to shoot at your pixels troops. I confess that they do it rightfully, but fighting them was not a piece of cake for the Russians at the time either. The only problem, if that can be called that way, I had, was with the AA truck. It is a prize target and you have to take care of that baby in the first minutes of the fight to prevent its crew to be wounded and neutralized. Nurse it well and it will bring havoc on that hill. Fire, fire and keep firing. Help the AA truck with the BTR’s and BMP’s suppressive fire. Keeping the enemies heads down allows you to fire the AA guns without being shot at, the way it happens when you don’t pour any suppressive fire on the other bank and hill.

The briefing has been redone from the first released one by SLR. Very frankly his, is better than mine. That is, why credit is given to him along the designer in the operational screen. To Erwin: For the trucks, I never had any back up problems with them during the testing, while they stayed at their initial location. Moving them elsewhere, would not have been clever and would result in having them destroyed right from the beginning. Besides, tracks backing in all direction would have not been a nice thing to look at. Care with the set up location was taken to prevent that. However, if you wish to move the trucks and the tracks within the set up limits, be advice that if you move them farther away than their starting location you will more probably get within an enemy LOS So there won’t be any change made in the actual set up. ****SPOILERS**** If you don’t move the trucks, they won’t be in the enemy LOS. So they won’t back up under fire. However, the AA truck backs up once it is engaged. Stop it and have it return fire. To avoid that, have it, with the 2 BMP’s and the BTR’s engage the hill and its immediate areas as soon as you begin the battle. Then correct their fire zone accordingly to the enemy units being uncovered. The AA truck is particularly good to suppress the hill summit fire. Use your mortars as well while waiting for the first MI 24 in the next 30 minutes. Do not try to have a track crossing and or getting close to the destroyed and or the temporary causeway. Dismount the troops and have them cross at the destroyed bridge. They can set a base fire from there. Clearing the hill will be the next task. Once that has been done, you can have the tracks cross the river and proceed to your objectives with caution and air assets clearing the way for you. From that taken hill, you can call with a leader your MI 24 and M17’s against uncovered and or probable ambush sites. ****SPOILERS**** Cheers

To recreate an historical battle the way it happened is rather difficult. You can model the ground the way it was, you can have an OOB the way it was, but you can not set the individual input that at the time gave a victory and or a defeat. Tactically speaking some battles were won despites a poor tactical deployment,, only because the men who fought it did overwhelming efforts against an enemy, well deployed but lacking the will to win. These restrictions do not prevent a designer to do something close to what happen, but in the game a good dice being thrown, at the right time, might change completely the out coming of the battle. Some were won in the past by a stroke of luck coming at the right time. That is why historians like very much to go over battles, bringing new facts that should have changed from their point of view these battles. That is somehow, what we are doing when playing an historical scenario. I think that we should firstly enjoy the game and be less strict about the details of that historical battle as long as the scenario is credible and come close to what it was. To Undercovergeek Nice map, good work and it looks credible.

Well, I have to give you a simple explanation before you get to the moon and back! It has already been done, so don’t strain yourself doing it In the screen shot example, I edited you can see the US, AXIS and H2H listed. In regard to them there are two possible symbols allowed and therefore possible. One is the mark symbol besides the US and the H2H and the other the interdiction symbol for the AXIS. What does it means: The mark means that it is possible to play the game on the shown side as a player The interdiction means that you can not play it on the shown side and or H2H on either sides as a player. Therefore if you play the US side (in the example shown)as mentioned that means that the AXIS side is computer playing with or no A.I plans made (depending on the designer choice) Therefore if you chose to play H2H (in the example shown) you can do so and play it either side. There should be a briefing for either sides made by the designer However, if you chose to, play the AXIS side (in the example shown) besides the fact that an interdiction sign is shown. You can do so, but you have to be aware that no briefing and A.I plans have been made for it. Cheers

Thanks, I shall have a look at the contradictors. It is always interesting to learn about different points of view. However, besides the fact that Lt Cooper has a high opinion of himself and that can be felt in is writing, what he points out is well known. As a matter of fact when I was a kid, being fund of tanks and in particular of the Sherman, my father told me about it things that I did not accept at the time. I should have listen to him, since he was an officer in the Engineer and in a small unit gathering Intelligence about enemy technical proficiency. They were called to see materials ranging from the smallest to the bigger one if they were found on the front area. They would examine, take notes and report to higher up about their finding. When I was twenty, studying about tanks employments and looking at their engineering, I had again talks with my father on rather more precise details. That time I was able to understand what he meant earlier in my teens. I must say that when I read Cooper’s book, at some moment I had the feeling to go over what my father told me at the time. Besides, that point, I must say that I agree with him from the knowledge I have from my long time studying. I won’t go into all details of the Sherman versus its opponents, but I can write these facts : If you have a tank with a well powered engine, except when it idles a long time, backfiring with the obligation to change the spark plugs or clean them constantly, which is having a weight ground pressure ratio superior from its opponents, 7pounds per square inch against almost half of that value (causing mobility problems in muddy ground and snow) with later added armor plates increasing its weight and therefore its mobility aptitude you have a problem. When the 75mm gun and later the 76 mm do not have the velocity of the enemy guns you have another problem. Yet, the gyrostabilizer was a pretty good point. When the height of the tank, makes it difficult to get low on ground defilade you have another one. When the angle of the front armor doesn’t get near the angle degree recommended for getting most likely a ricochet, you are looking for a highly probable armor piercing shell penetration (some 88 mm went through the tank from the front glacis till the rear end and out !) The electric or hydraulic power traversing of the gun was a good point. The tracks had less wear than their German counterpart and that was also a good thing for the maintenance teams. From all that it came out that the tank employment cross country on wet grounds was difficult and ending in a short term with an immobilization after having bogged it. The Germans tanks looking only at that did better, since they had larger tracks and Christie suspension making the ride better. The M24 Chaffee and the M26 Pershing reverted to the Christy suspension (found on the T-34 as well) since it was finally realized and accepted that the volute suspension VVSS of the Sherman and the later HVSS did not give that many advantages.

The bogging problem encountered with tanks and armored cars, usually ends up with an immobilization. I have read with a lot of attention the previous posts and it seems that I have not found the 2 things that I usually do when crossing a ford and or being cross country. The first thing is that I play RT. That makes quite a difference since once you see a tank and or armoured car bogging, you can stop it. Then you can try to reverse it and or going right and or left at slow speed. Going again forward is not such a good idea. Avoid doing it. The second thing I cross a ford with slow speed and travel cross country with the move order. I avoid fast and even slow, since I get some bogging. I won’t say that the second thing I am doing is the absolute answer to all the bogging that can happen. But I am sure from experience that to play RT permits you 75 % of the time to stop the bogging processes while it is still time to prevent an immobilization. Naturally if you see it too late, you won’t be able to do anything. For having a very good knowledge of American tanks and Germans ones I encourage you to read an excellent book written by a WWII 3rd Armored Division Ordnance Lt. He made all the campaign from Normandy to Germany. His work consisted in doing reports on losses from battles and or mechanical failures for the division tanks. Dealing mainly with the M4’s but also with even for the 10 or so M26 Pershing being delivered for battle testing in Germany to the Division. Being a young engineer, in the Army since 1939, he had a very good technical insight on tanks design and mechanical features. From his point of view the M4 made from the M2 from the needs of Artillery and Infantry high ranking officers, battling each others for having what they thought was best for them, was obsolete at the beginning of the war. He was told at the Aberdeen proving ground, like others that it was the best one existing. They found the contrary on the battlefield. You will get all the answers about bogging, tracks wears, engine troubles, guns power, armor and so on. A sure thing from that reading the German tanks were far superior to the M 4 Sherman the earlier and later one. But the recovery, repair and replacement of the US tanks was far better than what the Germans could do at the time. DEATH TRAPS – The survival of an American Armored Division in WWII – By Belton Y. COOPER; foreword by Stephen E. AMBROSE Ballantine books – Presidio Press.

I don't know if it is the same I am thinking of, but mine despite sending a long string of grenades in its area kept low and came firing back later when I thought I had gotten him, once for all. I had it wrong ! :mad:

* That means that the Germans have an AI plan (and you can play single-player as US) and also H2H either side to Medex : You got it right

to Erwin : Things rarity makes them enjoyable when they are found :cool:

To SLR : Happy New Year to you. If you hear odds noises, they won't be coming from your laptop, but from recoiless rifle brewing your BTR's Have fun playing it. To Erwin : I have bad news for you, I am making as you must already know a campaign for B-N "Take the high Ground". The good news are that it is an American one playing against the Germans A.I. You should reverse to CMSF and even CM-A from time to time. The basic tactics are not applied the same way dependind on the weapons being used, that prevents one to be bored doing always the same kind of battles. Then reverting to B-N you find it even better than earlier. That goes also for CMSF and CM-A when you go back to them. I apply that to myself and it happens that playing even one of my scenario I find it pleasant having forgotten the dirty tricks I have done for it. When I am fed up with these I play ARMA, ARMA2 and even the Talonsoft series. It is too bad that CMBO, CMBB and CMAK do not visually look good on my computer XP Pro ( LCD screen) and or laptop with Vista (think about buying the Vista patch) Cheers

To Phil Standbridge Yes, the A.I is really now at its best and you just demonstrated it to us,in your well written AAR spoiler. Thanks To Frankster65 I don't play Wego most of the time being too impatient to see the action going on like at a movie. But I am losing some action gems, that I don't see if I am not locked on the area it takes place. Too bad we can't have, for technical actual limitation, a replay

That is not a bad idea Sergei, however I think that the way the game should be played should be rather shown in the 170 X 170 description image. See the 2 following examples. The little brain storming all of us have been doing made me think of it, besides it is easy to include if the Designer wants to do it. I think that it will please Mad Mike That way, someone looking in the battle screen will see that image and if the side he wants to play is checked or not. The same is being done with the H2H. With one glance you know what to expect. It is better than to read a text, which as I have found out, with some scenario testers, is not always read sufficiently. They were as a matter of fact asking for things that were already written. However, I agree that the important thing my not be read right away depending the way it has been written.. As the Chinese say “a drawing is worth than a hundreds explanations” if I quote it right. Battle load game view : 170 X 170 description image Cheers