Broadsword56

Emergency rounds fall soonest but are not spotted, so they're wildly inaccurate unless you get lucky. I think they also burn through ammo pretty fast if that's a consideration.

I agree, but nothing is stopping us from implementing a "Leader Character" element ourselves with a bit of bookkeeping, since we already know all the leader names and can edit them to put them in any battle or unit. I'm already doing that with my Operation Epsom op-tac campaign and the system of leader characters/leader points/medals etc., that the Panzer Grenadier boardgame uses in that campaign Each battalion level battle can have up to 3 leaders who are Leader Characters. Specifically -- here are the initial rough conversion rules I made for translating CMBN events into point-awarding/point-losing events for leader characters: ----- 20.32 Conversion of LC counter ratings to CMBN LEADER’s MORALE in PG = LEADER’S MOTIVATION in CMBN (Morale cannot fall below 7) PG Morale 7 = CMBN motivation NORMAL PG Morale 8 = CMBN motivation HIGH PG Morale 9 = CMBN motivation EXTREME PG Morale 10 = CMBN motivation FANATIC LEADER’S COMBAT + TROOP MORALE MODIFIER in PG = LEADERSHIP in CMBN LEADERSHIP CONVERSION CHART PG Total CMBN Leadership Rating: (Combat + Morale Modifiers) (When deployed to battle) 0 0 1 Plus 1 2 Plus 1 3 Plus 2 4 Plus 2 EXPERIENCE Since LCs all start the campaign as lieutenants, the idea is that they’re officers with outstanding leadership potential who are just starting their combat careers. EXPERIENCE PROGRESS CHART Status of the LC CMBN Experience Rating (Based on events) (When deployed to battle) Initial CMBN battle Green Entering 2nd CMBN battle Regular Entering 3rd CMBN battle Veteran Had net Leadership Points gain in 3rd battle Crack Had net Leadership Points gain in 4th battle Elite As the chart shows, LC’s who fight and survive gain experience automatically with their first three battles, progressing from Green to Regular to Veteran. LC’s remain at Veteran indefinitely until they earn Crack or Elite status, by having net gains in Leadership Points. FITNESS A LC’s fitness rating in CMBN is governed by any of these conditions applying when a battle occurs: 1. The condition of his counter going into battle (Disrupted = Weakened, Demoralized = Unfit) 2. The readiness status of his deployed battalion (Activated = Fit, Unactivated = Weakened) Exception: LC’s with the “Fitness” miscellaneous skill are exempt from these conditions and always Fit. MISCELLANEOUS SKILLS When a LC is created, roll D10 for a possible miscellaneous skill: MISCELLANEOUS SKILL TABLE (Roll 1 Ten-sided die) Die Roll: Skill: 0 to 6 No Skill 7 Fitness Skill 8 Survival Skill 9 Nine Lives Miscellaneous Skill Definitions: Fitness skill: Always enters CMBN battles in Fit condition. Survival Skill: If KIA, WIA or captured in CMBN, roll outside the game after the battle under PG campaign rule 20.53 and 25.1 to determine the LC’s actual fate (light wound, serious wound, dead/captured). A survival skill gives the leader a -1 dieroll modifier on the Wounds, Capture, and Death table. Note: LCs without this skill who get KIA or captured in CMBN suffer that result. If WIA in a CMBN battle, a LC without the Survival skill gets a dieroll after the battle ends on the Wounds, Capture, and Death table, but without the helpful -1 modifier. Nine Lives skill: If a newly created LC gets this skill, roll immediately on the PG table under rule 20.53 to find the dieroll modifier to use in possible casualty situations. If the LC is If KIA, WIA or captured in CMBN, roll outside the game after the battle under PG campaign rule 20.53 to determine whether he’s really a casualty. 21.0 Leadership Points In the operational boardgame, follow the PG campaign rule 21.0 for LCs to gain/lose leadership points (LPs) and for tracking leadership points in the course of play. Many, if not most of these points will require the LC to expose himself to a certain amount of danger to exercise personal leadership. The “fog of war” in CMBN will make it challenging to see when these LP-worthy events happen, but c’est la guerre -- in real life, many acts of valor went unrecorded and unrecognized, too. When a Leader Character enters a CMBN battle, keep track of the LC’s actions and note gained or lost LPs on his personnel record as follows: Pin Rally (+1 LP) – Each time a unit under the LC’s command and in C2 (visual or voice only) recovers from PINNED status. Rally Subordinate Unit Morale (+2 LP) – Each time a unit under the LC’s command and in C2 (visual or voice only) recovers from PANIC or SHAKEN to a level other than BROKEN (i.e., RATTLED, NERVOUS, CAUTIOUS, OK). Rally Subordinate Leaders (+2 LP) – Each time a leader immediately subordinate to the LC and in C2 (voice, visual or radio) improves morale from PANIC or SHAKEN to a state other than BROKEN (i.e., RATTLED, NERVOUS, CAUTIOUS, OK). Direct Fire (+1 LP) Each time a unit under the LC’s immediate command and in C2 (voice or visual only) causes an enemy unit to ROUT. (+2 LP) Each time a unit under the LC’s immediate command and in C2 (voice or visual only) causes casualties to an enemy unit. Award this for each occurrence, not for each casualty. Indirect Fire (+1 LP) – Each time a LC spots for an indirect fire mission that causes the enemy unit to displace or take casualties. Anti-tank Fire (+1 LP) -- Each time a unit under the LC’s immediate command and in C2 (voice or visual only) scores an AT hit (not small arms) on an enemy vehicle (except for trucks and prime movers). Assault These points are awarded/deducted in both attack and defense: Assault causing a PIN or ROUT (+1 LP) – Each time a unit under the LC’s immediate command and in C2 (voice or visual only) causes a targeted enemy unit within 30 meters to PIN or ROUT. Assault causing casualties (+2 LP) -- Each time a unit under the LC’s immediate command and in C2 (voice or visual only) causes a targeted enemy unit within 30 meters to suffer causalties (award this once for each occurrence, not for each casualty). Leader PINNED (-1 LPs) – If the LC himself gets PINNED, deduct 1 LP. Leader Character PANIC (-4 LPs) – Each time a Leader enters a PANIC morale state, deduct 4 LPs. Leader Character BROKEN – After the battle, apply PG Campaign Rule 25.2 (Compound Demoralization and Desertion) to determine the LC’s fate (imprisonment or execution, or reprimand) and apply those effects. Subordinate Leader or unit PANIC (-1 LP) Subordinate Leader or unit ROUT or SURRENDER (-2 LP) 22.0 Improving Attributes Follow the PG Rule 22.1 for using LPs to improve a Leader Character’s Morale, Combat Modifier, and Morale Modifier. Disregard the Rule 22.2 about buying new skills, since those are not used. Note the limitation that a LC cannot improve one of his attributes by more than 1 rating point at the end of a battle. 23.0 Earning Medals Follow the PG rules for earning medals and promotion bonuses. Be sure to track the net LP gain from one battle to the next, because that’s used to assess performance in these areas.

And elevation was never the laborious part of CMBN mapping anyway, if you just "dot" your contour lines and use a reasonable contour interval (I use 5m but YMMV). Even a very large map can go pretty quickly this way. Once we're in Holland, of course, it will be even less of an issue -- except for locking in the tiles you need to get raised roads, drainage ditches, etc., looking right.

I'd also really, really like to know all the soldier's names -- although I understand this has been requested before and BFC explained why the CMx2 engine/UI can't do it.

BFC can give the official/technical explanation, but I think most of us understand it to mean: The ability to import a source image (a bmp file, which could be your aerial photo, historical map, Google Earth screenshot, or whatever you like) and "overlay" it onto the map editor so you all you have to do is just trace your map. Result: A new game map made in a fraction of the time, perfectly scaled and accurate.

The Italians may have had miserable logistics, but ISTR they had field rations that were the envy of all armies in WWII -- pasta, wine, etc.

I'd recommend downloading Undercovergeek's Carentan scenario/map, loading it into the editor, and then studying the tiles and elevations to see how that map does flooded areas so effectively.

@noob: Wow -- you're going to convert the OOB for the entire Sicily campaign for every unit on both sides? Looks like a big job. Thanks and looking forward to seeing that. Just curious -- why would you want to remove the ability of the game to resolve combats universally? I guess if you wanted to use CMFI for every single combat that would make sense, but many battles at an op level might be perfunctory or boring as CM game experiences. To me, the benefit of the op game would be letting it resolve all those minor engagements, and to take over the larger events so that whatever battalion battles I chose to play in CMFI would happen within that larger context.

"Fire GOOD."

I think I saw there will be German Renault tanks in 2.0, so that will make an authentic La Fiere scenario OOB even more possible eventually.

Now that I realize CMBN will eventually upgrade to 2.0 features as well, I may just skip CMFI and Sicily and wait for CMBN 2.0 -- haven't decided yet. As far as mapping and scenarios go...this is another big reason to use StoneAge's HTML Mapping Tool from now on, if you want your CMBN maps made in this version to be easily replicated in CMBN 2.0. That's because you won't be able to import today's CMBN maps into the 2.0 editor. But you can get around that if you used the HTML tool, because your saved csv section files will tell the new 2.0 editor exactly where to click. So your old maps can be automatically duplicated for 2.0 that way without having to import them.

A thread to kick around meta-gaming options for the upcoming CMFI. I looked over the various existing boardgames on Sicily and/or Italy and I wasn't overly impressed. Either the games didn't appeal to me, or the scale was wrong for CMFI. But... I see there's a very highly regarded "Sicily '43" module for the John Tiller PC series, Panzer Campaigns: http://members.shaw.ca/gcsaunders/sicily.html So, Noob's system for using that series with CMBN might be the best way to go, IMHO.

LLF's post on gullies prompts me to ask about good sources for Sicily topos, aerials and period large scale maps. We won't have that French 1947 photo archive to rely on anymore...

I seem to recall that someone was posting WIP shots of a great looking La Fiere map that was nearly completed -- don't know if that one was ever released (?)

It's not that I want to port maps from CMBN to CMFI, or vice versa --- I just want to be able to use that amazing new map editor (with the overlay and fence/bocage/wall line drawing capability) to make new CMBN maps. But it sounds like I can't do that (?) Or that I'd have to wait until CMBN is upgraded to the 2.0 level too (?)

@Cyrano: PM me with what your interest is, and what specifics you'd like to see/learn more about, and then I could see about collecting some stuff about that in its own new thread. I have done posts about parts of it at various times and various places over the past several months.

OK, now I'm officially confused... 1. "CMBN maps won't be importable." -- So I take that to mean I can't open up the new CMFI game and import an existing CMBN map. Right? 2. But could I make a NEW map in the fancy new CMFI editor and then play it in CMBN? Or are maps made in the new CMFI editor playable only in CMFI and beyond? 3. Or will the eventual release of a CMBN upgrade to the 2.0 level then make it possible to make CMBN maps in its new editor with the new features, and then play them in CMBN with version 2.0? What happens to the older existing CMBN maps/scenarios/bts files then? Would they still be playable in 2.0 or only if one kept the old version of CMBN on the hard drive to play them on?

I might have to take a "summer mapping holiday" now that I see what's coming with the CM 2.0 upgrades to the map editor. Why invest all that time and all that clicking now, when by August we'll have overlays and the ability to place fence/wall/bocage as lines instead of tile by tile? The time factor will be massively reduced, and accurate historical maps/terrain will be a breeze. [The only exception will be maps for the the ongoing Saint-Lo op-tac campaign that I've been running for the past 9 months or so. It's nearing the climax and conclusion anyway, so I have another good map or two left in me for that if another battle presents itself in July.] Maybe this summer will be the time to enjoy some of the best "canned" battles and user-made ones HTH. I still haven't even played a single CW module battle yet.

You can still place your map area on the shared site when there are other maps that overlap the same area. It's still worth posting it, because it gives players a choice which map they want to try, and you can put the DL link for it right in the message box to make it easy to find.

And please post your map locations to the new Google Maps CMBN map sharing site: https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=213046468374458899658.0004c2f2cbb3b4c5d62f4&msa=0

Any change to system requirements with the upgrades -- or more specifically with CMFI?

And with the CW units now and CMFI terrain, seems no reason you couldn't make battles for Kiwis in Crete ( a modder paints the buildings white) or Poles in Cassino...

Seems to me that CMFI gives you just about everything you'd need for Tunisia, although you might have to be careful with the buildings to get villages looking right. If someone modded, say, a cactus bush and you used some of LLF's Pacific palm trees...you're there.

Those Yank paratroops didn't have any backpacks on. Is that a model change? Seems to me I always see more gear on the GIs we have now. But, now that my anticipatory senses are tingling, maybe I'm just imagining new things and reading too much into those screenshots.

BFC, is there a way you could sticky this map sharing link or put it someplace where users will see it and it won't get lost over time? The site only has value if people really keep using it and post map references to it. (I've posted all my published maps to it now.)