Gregroywuzhere

Good point. Having never seen the bocage I just can't believe that engineers couldn't have used just plain HE to blast holes in them. I used a heavy air strike to attack a German fusilier platoon using the hedgerow as cover. The bomb crater did significant damage to the hedge and then I sent an M7 through it to gain the other field with infantry support. The crater did delay the vehicle as I knew it would but thankfully my heavy MG squed kept the Germans as bay before a panzerschreck could be brought up. This brought to mind a question as to why 9thAF did not just fly a few FB missions to blast the hedges for openings.

1.55342 mi or 2km I believe.

I will be curious to see if an on map 25lber section will be included in the TOE of Commonwealth units in the next module. The Brits didn't go anywhere without having the 25 close at hand. It was also a good AT gun when necessary and to me, the M2 is the American version of the 25. No GI would have left home without one.

MikeyD, I agree with your assesments. I've just been playing with situations trying to use M7's as an alternative to Rhinos in cutting swaths in the bocage. Unorthadox in the extreme but I just felt that if I could get an observer or an officer to one side of the hedge to call back to an M7 section to drop a few rounds of heavy on the Germans that the smoke and mayhem would assist in a penetration. For fun I'm also trying a mod that would pit a Marine battalion fightng the Germans in the bocage country. I really love having the option of using offshore naval fire to drop 14 inchers on the bocage. Results have been good so far.

You are very correct about that. I am much deeper into designing my own missions and scenarios that take into account many "what if" factors that may not have historically occured in the field. I am also more into designing battalion size battles rather than just small unit fights. I don't believe an M2 section or battery is too large a weapon system to deploy on a battalion size battlefield especially if you are going to use them to blunt an enemy counterthrust over open ground. Anti personnel munitions fired at close range from a 105 can wreak some severe wrath and I would just like to be able to do it and see it as it happens. Japanese banzia attacks in the pacific found this out quite often.

I brougth this up due to the fact that the German forces have available the 150mm and 75mm infantry support weapons that are capable of indirect fire through forward observation and to my knowledge the allies are deficient with this. Since the designers did not give us the option of having "on map" m2 howitzers, I have come across several instances where an M7 capbable of indirect fire would be more effective in eliminating targets than an 81mm mortar. M7's are very vulnerable to enemy infantry with AT weapons to be used in direct attack. Unlike the StuG's crew casualties on M7 can diable them with simpl MG fire. Then there is the time factor. For an FO to call in an M2 battery can take up to 3 minutes. If an FO or battalion CO or exec is within communication with an M7 section, he can immediately direct fire onto a target that is in his line of sight with exposing the vehicle to attack. Which is the same thing that he would do with a mortar but with much more punch. I would really like to see an on map M2 section added in one of the future modules in order to equal the Axis quick fire heavy weapons.

Why do M7 priests not show up as artillery for forward observers to call upon? The M7 mounts a 105mm howitzer which should be able to fire over the horizon like all M2 howitzers.

Amen, I'm tired of the Marines getting the short shrift in all these WWII endeavors. I would love to see a reall "Blood and Guts", Island hopping, flame throwing, sand eating Pacific theater game that a Devil Dog could really sink his teeth into and I mean from the Higgins boats to the fortified mountain artillery positions to jungle bunkers. Off map battleship support would look great also blasting craters deep enough to hold a whole platoon. Please Battlefront, give it some consideration.