BletchleyGeek

My bad, I should have written "Iberian Peninsula". After ten years away maybe I am becoming something of an interpolation between nationalities.

Interesting that you left entirely out the South Western bit of Europe (better food, inflation more or less under control, etc.)... I guess that is the legacy of three hundred years of on-off warfare with France and Spain...

Interesting that you left entirely out the South Western bit of Europe (better food, inflation more or less under control, etc.)... I guess that is the legacy of three hundred years of on-off warfare with France and Spain...

After some threshhold the qauantity transforms to quality. Our soldiers describes Wagners attacks like zerg-rash. These are not "human waves" in usual sence. They attacks with small assault groups from different directions, infiltrate, wear UKR uniform and they do this continuously. You just have foled attack of one group, but since some time already another come from other direction.
In whole Wagners, tactic is standart. First attacking groups are convicts. Their task to reveal our positions and fire positions. Then arty fire, airstrikes. Then next wave of attack, but convicts+"core". Next again arty+avia. Repeat untill. At the end phase Wagners ususally unleash own best fighters to finally elimenate resistance or to force our troops to retreat. Also I already wrote that Wagners widely use drones for battlefield control, when detachment commander sit in own blindage and formally plays in CM with live soldiers, using special software. UKR troops mostly use frones in that cases only for visaul spotting and targeting. Except this own role play high professional and motivation level of commanders on all levels - if to say about "core". Convicted personnel (but loke and all other) has main motivation - do not be shot or sledghammered for retreating without order.
Other strong side of Wagners - since autumn they received many newest equipment, including drones with thermal sights, thermal optics for rifles, etc, so many their advances happaned in the night

You know, in UKR society already also thoughts is heard (but too weak in present time) to enlist convicts to similar purposes. Main argument - why we have to lose in close fights our best guys (some volunteers claim that losses ratio in Bakhmut area since December became approx 1:1) if we can go by Russian way - utilize criminals and get twice benefit - to achieve some military goals and clear society from useless elements, which mostly anyway will return to own criminal style of life after liberation. 
I can say that since the war began UKR used this way in limited volume - Zelenskiy has amnestied convicted former soldiers, who wanted to "redeem by blood" own crimes. Part of them were included to "Kraken" special purpose unit. And even more - in "Kraken" now exists special assault platoons formed from soldiers of different units, who were blamed in deserting, disobedience, looting and other crimes. And as you can see under strong and capable command, they achieves success with "Kraken" and have opportunity to redeem own misdemeanors. Though, unlike in Wagner, number of such personnel in "Kraken" is minor.   

Interesting that you left entirely out the South Western bit of Europe (better food, inflation more or less under control, etc.)... I guess that is the legacy of three hundred years of on-off warfare with France and Spain...

Every country needs a sufficient self defense. Show me a country that doesn't put it's own interest forward. Anyway I don't know but from some of your posts I get a hint of hostility about 'west Europe' and 'east Europe'. 
If we start about political elites creating a rift in Europe before the war, well I could point to some countries in the East as well. Including your own. But imo the war has caused some paradigmas to shift, mainly the view on Russia. 
It's time for Europe / EU to stop bickering about perceived past grievances and look ahead. Get over Germany would be my advise. If we keep pointing the finger at eachother 'look he was wrong, I'm merely saying so not pointing the finger' how are you expecting any successful cooperation?

Totally okay and no need to apologise. If anything, what we need is to look at what things bring European countries together and don't involve football, singing or just mere free flow of money.

I am halfway through the latest video of Andrew Perpetua and Constantine (two Twitter personalities I have been following for a while) in which they do a "battlefield walk" around Bakhmut
 
I found quite enlightening to see what is the lay of the land in the area of those two pincers that the Russian Army is developing north and south of Bakhmut. 

Yes, Perpetua is really good. I need to send him a few coins.  And speaking of acid commentary....
...But wait, did Strelkov also pronounce the early 'culmination' of the '2023 Gerasimov Offensive'?

Lol, my Oostindische blood brother, another man born a century too late, liked to say, archly: L'Afrique commence à la Loire.

yeah, I knew it´s "early access" and at ~25$ I couldn´t resist (again). lol 😆
yeah, it bits of suck without infantry and supporting weapons, but my curiosity won again. lol 😅
Yep, that´s among things that so far hindering me from purchase. Too little content, but I keep it on my list.
Just checked couple cardboxes containing all my games since the 1980ies (Atari 800XL, C64, PC)
Those that have some relation to 1st person view tank play in one way or another are:
1. Steel Thunder, 1989
2. Sands of Fire (360), 1989
3. M1 Tank Platoon 1+2,1989, 1998
4. Pacific Islands, 1992
5. Armored Fist, 1994
6. 1944 Across the Rhine, 1995
7. M4 Tank Simulator, 1996 (PC)
8. Panzer Commander, 1998
9. iPanzer '44, 1998
10. Panzer Elite, 1999
11. Steel Fury Kaharkov 1942, 2007 (currently in my Steam)
12. Panzer Killer, 2007
13. Red Orchestra 1+2, 2006, 2011 (currently in my Steam)
14. T34 vs Tiger, 2008
15. Steel Armor: Blaze of War, 2011
16. ARMA 1,2,3 (3 currently in my Steam)
17. Iron Front Lib 44, 2012 (as ARMA 3 Mod in Steam)
18. Gunner, HEAT, PC!, 2022 (now in my Steam)
(I neither like true arcade nor online play, thus I never tried or purchased any that stuff)
The hunt for THAT 3D Tank Sim still continues (WW2 or modern)..... lol😅🍻
 

That was what knocked Tank Crew dead in the water for me (and I bought into Tank Crew very, very early and I was happy to keep an open mind). GHPC at least have been showing infantry operating TOWs and stuff, not sure if they have those already integrated into the game.

That was what knocked Tank Crew dead in the water for me (and I bought into Tank Crew very, very early and I was happy to keep an open mind). GHPC at least have been showing infantry operating TOWs and stuff, not sure if they have those already integrated into the game.

Bakhmut's defense left flank looks like it is a goner
Helios also refers obliquely to some chatter about friction between the Ukr levels of command (which seems to have gone on for a while). Maybe our Ukrainian speakers can write an explainer about what's behind these stories re: lack of unity of command?
 
 

Nice thought but still too much Russian artillery, and probably whatever passes for CAS, would make any such backhand blow Pyrrhic. And the UA can't afford Pyrrhic at the moment.

I kinda suspect that's at least part of why paras and commandos and rangers got the rep they did - I mean, aside from the deliberate PR campaign to elevate them, the strict selection criteria, and extensive and relevant training. Basically, they were combat n00bs so still full of piss and vinegar, and because they (usually, and by design) only spent short stretches in combat they didn't runs out of either.
There's a story from Market Garden which kind of sums that up. The Irish Guards (armoured battalion from Guards Armd Div) link up with the Paras, somewhere near Oosterbeek. One of the Paras, being pulled out of the line and sent back to England, calls out to a passing tank "Where were you! We've been waiting for four days!" The laconic reply was "Four days? Interesting. We've been fighting for four months. So far. Have fun back in England."

The 'only' thing UKR needs to do is convince the average soldier that 'further resistance is futile'. While some/a bunch  local tactical victories are indeed probably not enough, another wave of the Russian rear HQs/ammo dumps blowing up followed by another large strategic setback is a different casus. Everyone has his limits. 
A massive multi axis assault is not necessarily a requirement for braking the will of average RA soldier.
Anyway time will tell and there's no guarantees. 

Several days ago one soldier has written in twitter that soldiers have to demand from own battalion HQ to supply companies with 60 mm mortars. Because in dense infantry fights its turned out very useful and damgerous weapon. This post summoned many feedback from other soldiers, which were either agree with that or told that 60 mm is a good thing, but it's few skilled crews to use its properly - ther were many accidents of friendly fire with these mortars. 
Here is one of such posts from soldier of 93rd brigade:
Translation:
So it happened that only on last period of our previous rotation in Bakmut 60 mm mortar was appeared and used in our unit. In particular, our aerial-recon unit tried to ajust it fire, when it was needed. Based on results, I also consider that such stuff should be in big numbers on frontline. Heavy infantry clashes are exhausting our potential in part of infantry. And there is no any secret here. Clashes are losses always. Moskovites actively use mortar crews and SPG-9 and this cause problems for our defense. While we expect tanks, IFVs and howitzers, we need to resque those, who hold frontline with own bossoms. And mortars with AGSs can do that. Mimimum one hit with 60 mm mortar helped to stop one of numerous assults of position of our infantry to the south from Bakhmut.  
I can repeat, that AFU has a lack not only howitzers, but also mortars of all calibers. In the autumn Taras Chmut, head of Back-and-Alive charity foundation told that we have defficite in about 300-400 mortars only 120 mm caliber and this is not counting 82 and 60 mm. You can see on numerous videos huge zoo of mortars in our service, sometime from very exotic countries and even from our formal foes, like Iran (probably 82 mm Iranian mortars for Houthi, captured in some way). 60 mm mortars inintially was defined for SOF and TDF units, but soon many other light and not only light infantry evaluated opportunities of these small toys. Alas, load of work for arty and mortars so big, that they are taking out of service not only because enemy fire, but because of huge rate of barrel exhausting. 

The tell on these "exposes" by Hersh is that he always has just one source who covers about 6 sentences in the article propped up by pages of background, supposition and endless adjectives like 'vast', 'elites', 'deep' etc. Fanboi fic for the Taibbi crowd.

Good detailed post there.  A couple things to add:
I would argue from personal experience that “fighting spirit” and “experience” are inversely proportional.  A lot of times inexperienced troops are all pee and vinegar, ready to win the war single handed.  While the troops who been in it for awhile are basically trying to do their job and survive.  This could be where some of the OP narrative is coming from.
Collective or corporate knowledge is a thing.  Every unit/sub-unit has a body of experience and knowledge that kind of floats overtop of it like a cloud.  People come in and out but that experience and knowledge survives - it normally get labelled as “how we do things here”.  In combat this is no different with the exception of complete wipe-out.  Even if a unit gets 50% attrition, the surviving half will pass the knowledge onto the replacements.  The longer a unit as a collective is in combat the better it learns and gains experience - “we used to do that but it is now a bad idea”.
Leadership both formal and informal gets rolled into this soup, so you can see how it is a pretty complex arena.  In the end units that can keep attrition to manageable rates seem to have a better chance of survival.  This is one of the debates against whole unit rotations as a lot of corporate knowledge is lost.  We hybridize it by doing unit rotations but formation offsets and all sorts of tricks but I don’t think anyone has a perfect solution.

Well, some parts of the Russian Army may be starting to get some of their ideas right
 

When will be the release? 
The ideal date will be the 22.06.2023. But I won't promise too much....for sure, release will be 2023 ! 
What's the current progress?
The biggest campaign "Tiger Trail" is in its final testing stage as a Betaversion. It will be ready for 22nd June release. 
The "Five Bridges" Campaign has seen most of the map making, which is (with my experience) the most time consuming aspect - testing will start in March.
The "Into Hell" Campaign the same.
The "Partisans" Land Campaign (the smallest of all) is in the middle of map making and will be ready for testing in April.
So - to quote the guys from Battlefront 😉 "it will be ready when it's ready."
Will there be any single Missions?
Currently, I have plans for 3 single Missions but I doubt to have the time to put effort in these ones. So, let's see....
Is there a possibility to increase the number of campaigns or single missions for that BattlePack?
Of course. As the headline says, this is a project made by fan(s) of CM and everybody who wants to participate is very welcome. Honestly I have to say that I have written a mail to Battlefront and offered them this stuff (without financial interests) in order to get designs, briefings etc. more professional but they ignored myself 😜
So, if anybody is motivated to create stuff, doesn't matter if one small single mission or a whole campaign, then this would be very appreciated 👍 The only condition is:
the stuff must match the BattlePacks main theme "Summer of Destruction June to July 1944, ArmyGroup Central". 
Will there be any Master Maps?
Currently, the pack will include 12 Master maps but this number may change until release.
 

One thing which imo could be improved is clarity of expectations. For example regarding the CMSF2 patch, was there a chance that some bugs which have been with us for quite a while (Syrian ammo, GILL, Syrian radio issues) would be fixed? Perhaps in reality nobody knew for certain until the patch was released.
However any patch for CMSF2 comes out, (some) people will have expectations/hopes that it will include their favorite fix. 
Personally from RL experiences I've learned to manage my expectations in such a way that I'm not easily disappointed. So unless I read a commitment that a patch(or whatever potential expectation building concept) will receive certain content, I don't have expectations to see certain content. I still have hopes though, also for some CMSF2 improvements/fixes/bugs. 😇
How to communicate clarity / manage expectations is another question. One could be: 'CMSF2 is, apart from engine improvements and major/critical issues, most probably EOL and won't see future patches'. 
Now I don't know if that's true even, more of an example which could perhaps prevent people building unwarranted expectations. Plus nobody would probably complain if a patch does come out even though it was communicated it wouldn't.