verulam

have you met an Indian before? They are like miniature Einsteins.

In a nutshell,
 
Modern infantry are far more lethal than their WW2 counterparts - in all aspects.  A modern infantry squad will have high rate of fire assault rifles with impressive ranges, usually one or more LMG gunners and the standard rifleman usually will have a grenade launcher on the assault rifle.  Depending on the nationality, there will be a designated marksman with a weapon to engage targets out to 800 metres.  Depending on nationality, there may be a dedicated AT gunner or some other specialist weapon (like for the US Army, the XM-25 anti defilade rifle).  Anyone in the squad can carry disposable AT weapons, so depending on scenario and availability of AT weapons, each soldier can carry one.
 
Disposable AT weapons are serious threats to all armor.  Some tanks like Abrams/T-90 may be able to weather a few light AT weapon but for the most part, unless the vehicle has got a Active Protection System or Explosive Reactive Armor, a hit from even a light AT weapon is going to wreck the vehicle crew's day.  Now remember, a modern 8 man squad may be carrying up to 8 LAW, so modern vehicles need to be very wary and alert to enemy infantry.
 
Anti Tanks weapons a step up for LAWs are even more capable - they have longer ranges, are guided (meaning very high hit probabilities) and are even more capable against heavy armor.  They are also very portable so anticipate their presence in numbers on the battlefield.   Systems like Javelin are game changes - they are top attack and autonomous guided system, meaning the gunner can fire the missile and immediately bolt for cover with the missile steering itself and top attacking the target to avoid ERA and APS defensive systems.
 
One shot kills are common on the modern battlefield.  Gone are the days of WW2 tanks duels where it may take a half dozen shots to seal the fate of a tank depending on the tank matchup and range.  Modern tanks can put a round in the pickle barrel at ranges of 3000-4000 metres and do it all day long, which means engagement ranges are typically far longer than usual engagement ranges in WW2.
 
Modern sensors and optics means expect to be seen clear across the map, day or night.  Thermal imaging means even infantry across the map will be spotted with frustrating regularity unless kept to low ground or heavy cover.
 
WW2 hardpoints like bunkers and the like do not offer the protection against weapons.  Modern armies have specialized weapons or ammunition (like thermobaric warheads) designed to kill infantry in bunkers and buildings so depending on the situation and scenario, bunkering up is to trap yourself in a death trap.  Like wise, modern artillery systems and certain weapon systems (anti cover weapons systems like programmable airburst rounds) make short work of infantry in trenches or behind walls.
 
Modern armies have high mobility and can rapidly move and reorient on the battlefield.  A modern infantry squad usually roars into battle in an armored carrier with enough firepower to pound to scrap a WW2 rifle company without breaking a sweat and with the speed to leave your typical WW2 halftrack in the dust.  That means, unopposed, the enemy can be nearly anywhere on the typical scenario map in a few minutes, complicating tactics and defenses.  Guderian would have given up a Panzer regiment for the capabilities and lethality of a single modern US Abrams tank company if it was available in WW2.
 
In general, try not be to seen.  To be spotted and engaged first by the enemy means most likely the start of a bad day and the loss of an asset, be it either infantry or armored vehicles.  Try to spot and engage first is the rule of the day.
 
Hope this helps give you a feeling for the differences between WW2 and modern warfare.

Oh boy, yeah both sides have plenty of new toys that make the LAW look like a pea shooter. Lets go through the list (Mainly because I have far too much time on my hands).
 
AT-4- Basically the replacement for the LAW its a single fire hand-held anti tank/emplacement rocket launcher, US squads are equipped generously with the AT-4. This baby can be fired from up to 300 meters away, after that its accuracy is diminished severely, however distance does not decrease penetration power, it is fully capable of penetrating up to 450mm of armor. Unfortunately it will probably have trouble with more advanced Russian tanks like the T-90 that sport Kontakt-5 ERA armor, firing from the side or rear though it is probably a guaranteed penetration and kill. The AT-4CS which is modeled in game can also be fired safely from inside buildings, without risk of injury from back-blast.
 
AT-4 in action-
 
Javelin Missile Launcher- The Javelin is one of the US strongest hand-held anti tank launcher systems in the world (Probably the best in the world honestly, no bias here I promise ), its effective range is about 2500m but it requires at least 75 to arm and acquire the target, it is also fire and forget. The Javelin consists of two parts, the CLU (Command launch unit) and the tube itself that carries the missile (Which is disposable), the javelin can be reused as long as i has a CLU unit, and missiles of course. When a Javelin is fired there is no warning, it is all done through passive IR tracking on the CLU, an interesting characteristic to the javelin is that once it is fired, it will climb high up into the sky above the target and attack the top of the tank, this means that there really is no way to defeat a javelin missile in that launch mode, it is to high for an APS (Active protection system) system to defeat and top armor isn't very thick on any Russian tank. A javelin can also fire horizontally, but this means it is at the mercy of an APS like arena which can knock it out of the sky. Make sure to grab Javelins out of the back of Bradleys, they are invaluable, and tip the scales immensely in US favor against armor. Oh yeah and don't miss they cost about 80K a pop!
 
Javelin Missile in action-
 
TOW 2-B Anti tank missile- The infamous TOW ATGM missile is usually mounted on APC's such as the Bradley, but can also be mounted on a tripod for infantry use, the TOW is wire guided and its launcher contains its own thermal imaging system for target aquisition. What is special about the TOW-2B (Emphasis on the B is that it is also a top attack munition much like the javelin, only the TOW-2B detonates above the target horizontally and fires an penetrator straight into the top, the TOW is vulnerable to APS though so be careful!
 
TOW-2B in action- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUMxZ34Ptco
 
These are the main "hand-held" anti tank weapons that the US uses...with weapons like the Javelin its almost like were cheating isn't it?

We'll see.  In the next write up you will discover that Steel has blundered upon an element of completely undetected Russian mech INF backed up by their BMP's in the next gully forward.  The results are not pretty.  They are the ones templated for sweeping the south side of 347, so now it may be awhile before those particular Russians receive their just desserts.  

CPT Eric Farmer felt his gut turn to stone.  His company team, the Blackknights, had just linked up with the remnants of the Speed and Power Scout PLT, and Farmer could see Outlaw 16’s blasted and scorched track in the woodline ahead of him.  He couldn’t see the bumper number at this range, but it was the only Bradley supposed to be in front of him, and his gunner confirmed the bumper number through his sight.  Farmer and LT Upham were close – he had been Farmer’s 2nd Platoon Leader for over a year, before being handpicked by LTC Falkner to take over the scouts.  Farmer was proud of Upham’s competent leadership and quiet competence, and wondered whether he had survived.  It only increased his fury as he watched the spectacle unfolding in front of him.
 

 
His mech-heavy company team had popped up from an overgrown sunken cart-track, run up the back of a slight hill and popped out onto a small open hillock looking straight towards Krichek.  They had seen some signs of the many smoke pillars climbing into the sky, but had missed entirely the fact that they were suddenly in direct contact with the Russians literally as they were deploying from column into tactical formation.  Still bunched though, there fire was doubly lethal.  The first Farmer – in the middle front – knew of it, was both his 1st and 3rd Platoon leaders screaming “Contact, Front, Out!” nearly simultaneously over the net, and then the sudden flurry of firing.  He was up on the hill himself and quickly shifted his gunner onto the BMPs in the nearest field, but by the time they had set it up, both were already flaming.  He ordered a quick burst at some fleeing infantry, but they were still catching it from the tankers’ fifty cals, and he instead concentrated on the company-level fight, calling on all his PLTs to dismount even sections and bound forward odd.  Then he got his FST on the net and worked a fire mission on the most prominent structure he could readily see – a farm complex at about 1400m.  Maybe a bit close, but Eric figured on taking a few minutes here to ensure he wasn’t waltzing into anything and had firmly established ownership of this approach to Kricheck before he advanced further. 
 

 
Elsewhere on the battlefield...
 

 

 

 
But...
 

Or something far prettier.

Mayhem
 
http://youtu.be/vTUkgFPs3Zo
 
B company, the mech-heavy team in the north rolls over the rise and is suddenly in direct contact with BMP-3s to their east and southeast.  Some Bradleys stop, drop ramps and dismount their squads as a hedge against losing both assets to sudden fire, and to get the Javelins into the fight if necessary.  The tanks make short work of a pair of Krizentemas to the northeast, then turn their sights on the BMP-3s trying desperately to back away in the field to the southeast.  Between the Bradley's multiple TOW-IIBs and the tank fire, the Russian vehicles are overwhelmed.  We are on our way to establishing unchallenged fire superiority across the north side of Hill 347.  
 
More on the story soon...  

U S A
U S A
U S A

Survivability depends from round enerhy. If is just enough to penetrate armor - it is different case than export Iraq T-72s.

Let me second Ian. Your move was the right one. Assaulting the town would have taken more than 15 mins, you'd probably have a more degraded force due to losses and still would the fricking Host of the Valar be coming right on your backside.

And if you were clearly winning right now we would be calling you a genius right now.  Heck we know you are but we'd be calling you that now.  I think your initial aggressive move was the right one based on the info you had at the time.  Fortune favours the bold.

That is a fair point Dan. Keep in mind that I did not have a good idea about what was in front of me when I made that move so wanted to ensure I could easily over power him. And I expected tanks in the Ukrainian company... I think the prebattle brief kind of misled me there.

I also expected 1st MRC to be the company with the initial fight as with that equipment disparity it's where I would have put most of the Ukrainian MRC.

Yes it's easy in hindsight to say what should have been done, but in the heat of the moment you have make a decision and deal with the consequences. Like I am doing now.

Bil,
 
I wasn't sure in what formation or configuration the Americans would arrive in, but this one looks like fully deployed in battle array. Combat power writ large. On the positive side, it gives your remaining airpower lots of targets!
 
antaress73,
 
Methinks you misunderstand the nature of warfare. Numerical force superiority certainly helps, as does high tech (when it's working) but is no guarantor of success. The NTC is one of the major reasons the Army cleaned Saddam's clock, and the lessons learned there by the rotating units at the hands of OPFOR were brutal and taken to heart, as seen in the linked CGSC study of lessons learned at NTC. With perhaps the odd exception here and there, the key to American combat effectiveness lies in rigorous ongoing training using everything from a battle plan scratched in the sand with a stick to full-on engagements with MILES gear and live fire training on a simply enviable scale. But ultimately, it comes down to the men (and in some branches women) who must fight the fight. It is upon their professionalism, motivation and sheer aggressiveness, determination and willingness to do what it takes that determines who wins and who loses. It isn't, as they say, the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog.
 
Give me such people in inferior equipment over conscripts and some contract soldiers in better tanks but lacking, say, battle commanders able or allowed to show real initiative, worked up from the bottom professional noncoms (not someone who spent six months in a sergeant academy) and the military and  technical skills to maximize combat effectiveness, not to mention keep their fancy toys running properly, and the nominally outclassed and outgunned will mop the floor with them. History is replete with examples of smaller, sometimes tiny (see particularly BG Claire Chennault's comment on that at first link) military forces clobbering the opposition. Flying Tigers. Alexander the Great at Gaugamela. Napoleon at Jena-Auerstedt. Here's a fascinating list of ten more.
 
Rinaldi,
 
Insane, but in a good way! Big Monty Python fan.
 
Regards,
 
John Kettler

“Damn, this fricking jamming! – Outlaw 16, this is Power 6, over…”  LTC Shawn Falkner swore again in frustration over the whine of the M1A2SEPv3’s hydraulics, as he tried to reach his scout platoon leader on the Battalion Command Net.  The tank was sweeping forward, rolling smoothly over the broken terrain, its turbine engine whining and the rubber-shod steel tracks clattering on the occasional stone. 
“Three, this is Six, I’ve got nothing.  I can see the smoke plumes just like you can.  I assume they are in trouble, but unless the whole section was wiped out we should be able to reach somebody!”
MAJ Abrams in the Bradley to Falkner’s left responded tersely. 
“Roger.  I’ve got a smoke column to my front.  ****, it’s a HMMWV…”
Falkner keyed his mike: “Staff Victors, break for cover!” warning the lighter HMMWVs accompanying his command group to seek safety.
“Identify Tank!” his gunner suddenly screamed, followed an instant later by the loader: “Up!” indicating he had armed the 120mm cannon and was clear of the path of the recoil. 
“Jesus, Fire!”  the Colonel responded, and the smoothbore cannon roared, an instant before the speeding M1 dropped down a small rise.  Falkner just had a glimpse of the T-90 spitted on the sabot tracer, then a bright flash and suddenly spotted target dropped out of sight. 
“Infantry left,” the loader sang out, and Falkner grabbed the joystick for the roof mounted CROWs .50 cal, arming it, swinging it left and laying down a  stuttering lethal fire on the Russian mechanized troops.  The stabilized CROWs was deadly accurate at this short range.  As the Battalion Commander, he had more important things to do, but with communications so limited he had only managed a brief radio call with his company commanders 10 minutes earlier.  Suddenly a crystal clear call came over his headset, “Power Six, Blackknight Six, contact BMPs front, out!” 
Hot damn, at least I can hear CPT Farmer, he thought.  He’s in contact too.  Like an echo, the gunner sang out, “Contact, BMP, front!”
“Gunner, AMP, PC, point,” Falker ordered, directing a new ammunition.  It took a moment as the loader switched out the sabot he had automatically slammed into the breach after the first tank.  “Up!”
“Fire.”
“On the way!” 
A tremendous concussion rocked the tank the instant they fired.  Falkner thought for an instant they had been hit.  Normally, the 120mm cannon’s sound is greatly muffled inside the turret by the loud environment itself, along with the sheer  mass of the tank.  The ‘Cha-changk!’ of the breech cycling and dropping the spent aft-cap from the frangible shell casing to the turret floor is actually louder than the sound of the shot.  But not this time. 
“Crap! That thing frickin’ predetonated!  What…”
“Tree!” the gunner said. 
“I think we fragged the FSO!”  Falkner looked in horror at the up-armored HMMWV which had been leading their little gaggle.  He saw one of the armored windows was gone – blown inwards by the shock of the detonating round. 
“Up!”  the loader’s cry jerked him back to the fight, as the young PFC slammed another AMP into the cannon, and shoved himself into the corner of the turret, away from the heavy breech’s recoil. 
“Re-lase, to make sure, and check the GAS.” Falkner said into his mike, directing the gunner to double check the range and to ensure a clear gun-target path through the gunner’s auxiliary sight.  The GAS is essentially a rifle-scope, a simple telescopic sight fixed to the side of the cannon.  Since the main sights on the Abrams are offset above and to the right of the cannon, the GAS is used if there is any doubt to ensure the cannon is clear of obstructions (like the lips of berms or walls) and to check for a clear gun-target line.
“I got him,” the gunner responded.
“Do it.”
“On the way.”
“Cha-changk!”
 
http://youtu.be/6UHECovVSkA
 
Not done with the turn yet, but figured I owed you all a taste.  Power 6 rolls onto the map this turn.  The Russians are caught too far forward and too exposed.  More to follow, as the Battalion breaks out into the open and loses the hindrance of the jamming that has plagued them during their approach to the battlefield.  Apologize for trimming the trees in the vid, but it was the only way to glimpse the action.  The thermals see right through them, but we don't have a 'thermal image' option in CM yet.        

SPC O’Brian was good and ready. They had to reposition twice, but now he saw it clearly on the distant southern hill.  Through the thermal on his Command Launch Unit, he distinctly saw the outline of a T-90, the latest Russian tank.  He was pretty sure he saw others on the ridge behind hit, but could not see enough of them to be certain, but the vehicle closest was hull up and unmistakable. 
“Alright, Metcalf, we good?”
“Bit test was good.  We’re armed and ready,” he responded.
“Well then, here goes nothing.  Firing!”
With a dull pop, the missile left the tube, then seeming to sag in the air as its rocket motor ignited, it nosed up and flew up and away. 
“C’mon, we’re gone.”  Even before the missile had closed half the distance to the distant tank, O’Brian and Metcalf were sprinting from the launch point.  They ran a good 75 meters, then flung themselves down, snapping the empty canister from the CLU, and snapping a new heavy one in its place.  A distant ‘Boom!’ announced the arrival of their missile, but neither knew for sure how they had done.  They knew the Javelin was deadly, and trusted that they had spiked their target.  The carefully began to creep up to set up another shot.
 
http://youtu.be/YNN-FiTmyqE
 
SPC O’Brian and PVT Metcalf engage a T-90 of the Southern MRC.  They really wanted to engage the Tunguska, but could not get line of sight.  Expect this engagement, coming immediately prior to arrival of Speed and Power Main Body, should throw a nice wrench in the Russian plan.  End of video (note, I learned how to ‘pause’ though I still don’t have a video editor <sigh!>) is Brytva 21 showing what to do when your infantry target runs into a shack.  Will be curious after the match to see if this engagement caused any casualties…  or if there were any survivors!  A few end-of-turn snaps to wrap up.
 

 

 

 
At this point I am officially caught up, and am sending the main-body turn back to Bil in about an hour.  Thanks for bearing with me.

With a roar, the twin 30mm cannon spit huge bursts of lethal high-explosive shells up the street, slashing after the running infantry.  The enemy had ducked behind a hedge at the last instant, but the gunner walked the rounds along the area he thought they had gone to.  It looked as though they had run into a small shack.  Well, he would just…..
“Brytva elements, this is Orel Base, air alert, sector 7A, bearing 258 closing.  Illuminate!  Weapons free!” 
The commander instantly terminated the ground engagement, responding by training to the anti-air drill.  The search radar went from standby to narrow-beam search in less than a second, and an instant later the radar operator sang out that he had a target.  The gunner announced a lock and the whole crew heard the warble of the lock signal. The commander ordered “launch,” and the missile was away, all within mere seconds of the alert.  The 9M311 missile sped up and away, guided towards the target by commands from the launcher, which had to sustain the radar lock throughout the engagement.  This it did, and the unknown Russian aircraft jinked, but the missile’s laser-armed proximity fuze functioned.  The crew knew their missile had detonated, but none were certain they had scored a kill as they had all seen the smoke trail from their sister Strela launch from within Krichek at nearly the same instant.  But all saw the splash as the enemy aircraft hit the ground.
“Now where,” thought the commander of Brytva 21, “did those pesky infantrymen go?”
 
http://youtu.be/eFdA78fMz3A
 
As KPT Kovtun’s command BTR moves by ferrying an infantry squad to the north side of town, Brytva 22M, the surviving Strela launcher in the middle of town engages unknown Russian aircraft with two missile volley.   Note the splash of the downed aircraft beyond Starov village at the end of the clip.
 
In Krichek, Starshiy Bondarenko was exhausted.  He and his team had run up the street, going building to building, lugging the heavy Corsar ATGM all the way.  While a fairly light weapon given its capability, light is a relative term and they had run fast.  KPT Kovtun had directed them to reposition to face the threat of a Russian BMP coming across the river – they were amphibious, and could swim from a suitable bank, making the crossing in moments.  Bondarenko and the team climbed up to the second floor and began setting up, but instantly Sasha cried out. 
“Infantry coming!” punctuated by several short bursts as he cut loose with his AK-74. 
“Sasha, stop!  You’ll give away our position!  We have to wait for the BMP!”  too late he warned, as the very BMP itself, slid up from behind a fold in the ground actually in front of the infantry Sasha had engaged.  A large Russian shell, a stray perhaps, from the ongoing bombardment, slammed into the ground directly in front of the vehicle.  As the smoke cleared, the BMP gunner immediately pressed his triggers, slamming 30mm shells into the building where they sheltered.  Sasha fell with a cry, and an instant later Bondarenko mashed the firing stud on the Corsar and felt the tremendous whoosh and slap as the missile screamed from the launcher.  The range was just beyond arming range for the missile, and it detonated hard on the BMP, instantly setting off secondary explosions that consumed the Russian track.  Bondarenko knelt and cradled his arm as he realized it was torn by shrapnel.  But he realized it wasn’t bad, and quickly raised his head for another look at the blazing BMP.  In that instant the BMP’s platoon mate on the far bank loosed a quick burst that caught the young gunner square, shrapnel tearing into his chest, neck and shoulder.  Only his body armor saved him from instant death, and his life would now hang on the skills of the medics in town and the speed of their rescue by US forces. 
 
http://youtu.be/yc9RMo87KSQ

That's why I'm going to use Aris's terrain mod from RT

Michael Emrys,
 
Absent terminal guidance, and there is such a thing as a JDAM with laser terminal guidance, allowing it to hit a moving target, a GPS guided munition goes to a specified coordinate set. The munition cares not how that information is supplied to it, only that it receives that information timely. Here's what happens when, for whatever reason, the munition gets the wrong data.
 
Excalibur is much better for killing static targets, such as deployed artillery, bunkers, CPs and such than it is for killing mobile targets. Let's say a drone gets into the target area and isn't blown out of the sky. The drone shows where the target is relative to it, can measure the range precisely with its LRF, and the position of the drone itself is accurately known via GPS. Or the drone can simply send back what it sees, and recourse may then be had to computerized maps, allowing target location w/o emitting. From one of these methods (maybe others, such as HUMINT), if everything's working properly, the information on the target's location is passed back up the chain and this, in turn, is sent to the artillery battery, where the shell has the coordinates programmed in.
 
If firing against a static target,  proper coordinates = death from above, but engaging a target moving about the battlefield is much trickier. This is an integrated system with built-in GPS and laser rangefinder/designator specifically for FOs and JTACs (Joint Terminal Attack Controller)s. Since the HAMMER knows where it is, it then becomes trivial to determine where anything within visual range is. The reality, though, is this: If the target moves much, the Excalibur is screwed. Several times. The baseline shell is a penetrating unitary munition, so pretty much needs a direct hit. Depending on degree of projectile burial before detonation, there will be some frag hazard radius which wouldn't be good for personnel or vulnerable equipment. In vs armor firing tests of regular 155 mm HE that I've seen, a large frag penetrated the turret side of an M60 tank, hardly a trivial outcome. There are GPS guided Excalibur projectiles w/terminal laser guidance and a smart round in development, but neither is in any kind of production, so may reasonably not be expected for 2017. Nor is any operational, planned or developmental version of Excalibur reprogrammable in flight. Thus, you need a dedicated SPH. preferably close to the target, with everyone primed and ready to go and preferably some means of fixing the target in position (downed bridge, roadblock, fallen tree, mines, etc.). Excalibur is a much better weapon against a defender than it is vs a fast moving attacker. Excalibur can easily get into zones otherwise masked from standard artillery fire (not so much from the 75 degree elevation capable M109 series,~  halfway through mortar elevation coverage) because it can alter its trajectory to get there, rather than being merely a ballistic body once fired.
 
Regards,
 
John Kettler 

FWIW, Bil sent me back the turn in which my US reinforcements arrive last night.  I will take some time catching my turns up before returning it to him so that we can try to release the 'mayhem turns' fairly simultaneously.   I really owe "The Teacher" one on this though, as my reinforcements arrive on-map undeployed, in beautiful Red Square'esque Parade Formation, hubcap to hubcap.  Should be interesting to see if I can get them uncoiled without major losses.  Looks like a mech-heavy team in the North and a tank heavy one in the south, along with BN CDR, XO/S3, rest of the scouts, 2 ravens, 1 Gray Eagle, Mortar PLT, 2 firing PLTs of Paladins, an Apache and a couple Jets.  Will be interested to see if Bil gets reinforcements as well.  Could make TG 22 highly vulnerable, if they have entrance locations like mine.  If he does not get substantially more stuff, I am feeling pretty confidant.  I have 3 PLTs of Abrams on map now, and stand to get a fourth if needed.  Seems almost like overkill, but I don't want to be over arrogant about it.  Current decisions facing Power 6:
 
- His tank is the single most exposed of the entire force.  Pop smoke now as initial action or wait for the APS to launch upon getting lased?  Back up to map edge, or bound forward fast for covered position (and potentially eat a T90 round or two enroute)?
- Burn an arty fire mission on southern MRC?  Starting mortars on hill 347 is a no-brainer, although the stuff on that hill may not last long enough for them to hit.  FA on the south will  take 5 or 6 minutes by which time Bil will likely have adjusted, but if I go slow/deliberate it could still fall on some of his stuff.
- Launch a raven now, or wait to see if I can zap both Tunguskas first?  I am pretty sure the one on Hill 347 is too far forward to live long, but the one in the south could back out, haul ass into the hinterlands and take substantial hunting to find and extinguish.
- Suppress Southern MRC, maneuver north and over hill 347 to swing everyone across the northern fields, and seize the river crossings?  Or seize 347 from the North, base of fire oriented SSE and bound the tank heavy team through the close terrain to overwhelm the enemy in the south?  I am leaning towards the former, as I don't relish the fight through the heavy draws in the south, but might go that way if I think crossing the northern fields would be too costly.  In either case, I am placing tank and Jav fires all over the north/south side of 347 w/in 3 turns.
- How much of the Infantry to dismount immediately against the possibility of Brads eating tank fire?  Don't want to lose any more Javs than I have to, though I have a LOT of them.  They actually represent a bit more lethality than the Brads they are riding in.  (Micro-spoiler:  SPC O'Brian is going to NAIL a T-90 soon!)
- Do I need any immediate screening smoke anywhere to cover initial moves?
 
Note that his decisions combine personal interaction with the battlefield with decisions affecting his entire force.  This is typical of a front-line tactical commander, and something fascinating that CM is able to present in perspective.  Looking forward to this, and I'll post out of content discussion of the decisions ongoing as I get the story caught up over the next few days. 

To give scope, I am four turns behind on posts, and believe that my reinforcements likely arrive next turn.  So, on the fifth or so post following this one we should see some real mayhem.  Bil appears to be moving slowly post-Xmas, so I will try to get caught up.  May make another post tonight/tomorrow, if I don't go fishing.  ;-)  Per previous request I am limiting my pix to 1024 wide.  If you folks want them bigger - 1200 or 1600 - let me know.  Might stretch some monitors, but I know I don't see the details on my (fairly good) monitor at 1024.  

As the Russian forces relentlessly move forward over Hill 347, they keep the remnants of the Ukrainian 3d Company in a deadly crossfire.  Overwhelming firepower, accurate gunnery and the amazing spotting advantage of their more modern vehicles complete the destruction of their Ukrainian enemies.  The southern Mechanized Rifle Company (MRC) keeps up a devastating long range suppressive fire on the orchard, pinning LT Upham and SSG Svendson’ Javelin Team.  To the south side of the hill, a Russian T-90 dispatches the last 3d Company command BMP-2 with a casual point-blank shot, as one of his southern MRC comrades does the same to the final 1st PLT BMP-2, completing the destruction of the company.  The only surviving combat effective Soldiers are the 1st Platoon Leader and his dismounted squads, now preparing for a desperate last stand in the Starov Village. 
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJHvg64eaGY
 
PdPK Borys Levchenko was bleeding.  He felt along his lower back, and brought his hand back to see the blood.  His RTO pulled out another dressing and lifted his tunic to apply it as the senior officer knelt behind a tree. 
“Sir.”  SGT Lerner approached quickly through the trees, crouching low.  He dropped to a knee next to the haggard Ukrainian.
“Sorry Sir.  Our intel had no idea the Russians would attack into us like this.  I’m not sure if they updated or not – I’m out of comms now.  The Russians must be jamming us.  I’d like to tell you they’ll be here soon, but I just don’t know.”
“Yes, we both should have known better, eh?”  Borys replied. 
“Now we have no troops left, but we have stung a Russian or two, and we know exactly where they are.  Can you not get the information to your forces?  If you can kill these devils with your precision weapons my men will not have died for nothing!” 
Lerner took off his sunglasses and looked straight into the older man’s eyes.
“Believe me Sir, I am trying, and so are the scouts up north.  I see about a company down there to the south, and estimate another company coming over 347.  They must have left something back to keep Krichek bottled up.  I’ve seen two Russian Tunguska, one to the south, and one right over there on 347.  If we want air support to help, those have to go down.”
Borys raised a pained eyebrow: “What exactly do you expect us to bring them down with?” 
“Not sure Sir.  Try to keep everyone that’s left down and keep eyes on them.  If we can hang on until Battalion gets here we can send them our feed and get this thing turned around.” 
“This is our homeland.”  Borys replied, “we aren’t going anywhere, alive or dead. Now keep moving your team back, and stay dispersed.  The airbursts are hell.”   
 

 
As this conversation passed in the treeline near Starov, the lone Ukrainian team at the government grain storage site prepared themselves.  The four men could hear Russian motors whining, and the unmistakable squeeking clatter of steel-shod tracks.  Situated in the second story of the building, their orders were to observe and report, unless the facility came under direct attack.  In that case they were expected to defend it – to the best of their ability.  As a Russian T-90 suddenly loomed out of the forest, the squad leader directed his teammate to hit it with the older rocket first.  He was unsure if it would even fire, but wanted to see if he could take out one with this expendable munition to save his RPG rounds for the second tank moving to its flank.  The young man’s aim with the old folding rocket was admirable, as it flew straight and true, but it detonated against a reactive armor tile specifically designed for this very task.  The explosive charge sandwiched between two metal plates exploded when the tip of the shaped charge jet touched it, blasting the outer plate into the path of the forming jet, and causing it to spend its energy cutting the plate laterally, rather than penetrating straight into the tank’s armor.  The tank rolled forward oblivious, but the team held its collective breath as they watched its path.  They had been supplied with all the anti-tank mines the home guard unit had to spare – six mines.  They had placed them in a 2 x 3 grid along the road to the south, and they recognized that through some miracle, despite all the other terrain available, the tank was headed directly for them.  The first Russian tank fired its cannon, and the team leader knew the air defense team hidden in the woods was having a bad day.  Then suddenly, the second tank rolled directly over one of the mines actually lying in the road.  The detonation of the AT mine was stunning at such close range, but the team leader had scant time to cheer.  His RPG gunner lined up on the other tank and unleashed a rocket.  Unfortunately, these men had none of the newer PG-7VR tandem warheads which were designed to defeat reactive armor, and this round like the one before it, exploded harmlessly, spending its energy on an ERA tile. 
“Hurry – reload!” the team leader cried, as the tank suddenly pivoted towards their building.  The gunner complied, moving swiftly through his drill, snapping in the rocket, cocking it, lining up again on the target a scant 30 meters away and slamming another rocket towards it, hoping for a luckier hit.  But he didn’t even get a hit.  The ARENA APS radar was now looking directly at the team, and it tracked the rocket’s flight almost from the instant of launch.  Though close in shots like this are challenging for APS, the slight up angle gave the radar just the edge it needed to get a countermeasure cassette into the air and detonate it just above the winging rocket.  The gunner, grabbed for another reload, but the team leader just hung his head and covered his eyes as the tank cannon rose towards their position. 
 
http://youtu.be/iEWxIl8NALc
 
Congrats to Bil for finding the lonely minefield.  I think I only got 6 or 8 for the whole thing, and this is one of just two I placed outside of Krichek.  Him finding this one was a friendly miracle in a sea of badness.  'If you build it he will come..."
 
On the north side of Hill 347 LT Upham knew he was in deep.  “C’mon driver keep us coming back.”  Their Bradley reversed behind the building smoke screen.
“Keep scanning,” Upham told his gunner, although they were unlikely to see through the dense smoke that kept them alive.  As they backed into the gulley and swung south to find a better firing spot, the Russian MRC commander to the south gave a curt firing order.  The orchard that sheltered them exploded into smoke and buzzed with whirring fragments, as first the tanks and BMPs, and then the air defense Tunguska laid down a withering searching fire.  SSG Svendson and his team were caught as they moved forward, diving to the ground and hugging mother earth, they prayed for the fire to cease, while expecting a fatal blast at any second. 
“23 you okay?”  SSG Svendson could not even hear his LT’s radio call over the world exploding around him, and did not respond. 
“Driver, pull us back up.  Let’s see if we can find one.”  The Bradley rolled back up out of the gully, to find its own smoke still screening hit, having drifted south on the mild breeze.
“Okay, give it a second.” 
Neither LT Upham nor SSG Svendson heard the Russian platoon now angling towards their left and closing the distance at a sprint. 
 
Alone in the gully at the foot of 347, PFC Haskel hesitated.  The smoke launched by the dying 3rd Platoon BMP to his rear gave him some cover, and he was loath to go running panicked down the gully, just to get cut down by an overwatching vehicle on the hill above.  He needed to get back up and check on SSG Venar, and maybe pull him down to cover.  Suddenly Haskel heard an engine growling closer – he unslung the AT-4 from his back and flipped the small firing lever to arm it.  The AT-4 is a US Army initiative built to replace the aging M-72 LAW.  Unlike most other Armies, the US forces felt the need to put anti-armor munitions in the hands of soldiers across the battlefield outweighed the requirement for a more capable munition that would require training and a crew of 2 or more.  The M-72 initially fulfilled this need, as it provided a fairly light, easy to use single-shot rocket which was capable of defeating most tanks… of the 1970s.   The AT-4 replaced it in the late 80s, essentially a single shot variant of the Swedish Carl Gustaf 84mm rocket launcher.  Though even simpler to operate than the LAW, and more accurate with dramatically improved penetration, the AT-4 is much heavier and does not fold up, so it is bulk and difficult to carry.  Not popular with troops, it is nevertheless a capable weapon and Haskel figured he was owed some payback.  The T-90 clattered into view above Haskels hide in the gully, never seeing him and angling off to the north.  The PFC waited a second to be sure, aiming low to try and come in under the ERA, and then squeezed hard on the firing lever.   The rocket zipped out of the gully, never more than a foot from the ground, totally evading the ARENA’s radar view and detonated against the rear hull.  The powerful unitary warhead easily penetrated the thinner rear hull armor, but with no apparent effect on the roaring tank.  The engine never missed a beat, and the tank rolled away to the north to play havoc with the PFC’s Platoon Leader. 
“Well,” thought Haskel, “maybe it did some damage.”  Then he looked up the gully slope to where his SSG lay and steeled himself to go forward to check rather than back the way he so wanted to go.
 

 
“Vovk, this is Brytva 21.  We are taking fire, and have pulled back.  I think 21 Mike is down.  Something exploded over there.  They are hunting us.  We must move.”
KPT Kovtun acknowledged – he did not want to lose the Tunguska after it had done so much, but its armor was like paper to a main battle tank’s. 
“Brytva 21 – yes, pull back.  Move to the bridge.  The Americans say it is clear.  Their missile team is moving up and can cover you.  Don’t shoot them, whatever you do!” 
“Yes, this is Brytva 21, moving.”  The excitable commander of TG21 knew he had been lucky to back up just as the Russian tank to the south fired.  He would shift north and wait for another opportunity.  He didn’t know that only the actions of the team at the grain storage facility had saved him from the same fate as his Strela wingman, now burning from the destructive fires of the two hunting T90s.
 

 

Let me know when the Kindle edition is available. Best seller!

Thank you, I am honored to be the subject of your first post.  I hope to hear more from you in the future.

First post here.
 
Been playing since CMBN and I just wanted to say thank you Bil for your excellent posts as I have been following for quite some time without joining the forums.
 
Quite excited for this next installment and even more excited for what BF will be able to accomplish with their next game engine in the future! 

LOL.  Well, I cannot address Harry Potter invisibility cloaks.  I'd say that either that is what the Soldier in your video has, or else the vid is simply doctored.  Scene is obviously an older, early war one, as the US response makes no allowance for secondary devices.  I know of no working, practical 'invisibility cloaks' that are effective against naked eye.  However, there are several fairly easy passive ways to offset thermal detection.  Much more feasible for men, rather than vehicles, although modern design does take thermal signature reduction into account.  Simple 'reverse polarity' tape that we use for target ranges affords fairly good outline disruption if cut into strips.  Doesn't mask ambient heat that soaks around it, but effective at moderate to longer ranges.  I quite literally assumed that our sniper teams (who have thermals of their own) are cognizant of this and have created suits that allow them to remain hidden.  However, such things are not in the game.  Maybe in a module.  I think there should be some sort of icon or UI indicator for thermal equipped units in game as well, but again, maybe in the module.