Charles Foulkes

I just got to Gela in the Italian campaign "The Fleeting Moment", but even after turning off trees, shadows, and lowering my texture and model settings to "Fastest", the map runs very slowly on my laptop. Is there any other way to boost performance other than the in-game graphics settings?

Well I haven't met a battle I didn't like, and I've tried most of the available options for the Commonwealth side, although I haven't finished all of them. I worked my way up from smallest to largest - my preference is for the medium sized scenarios, the really big ones tend to get a bit overwhelming, for me and my laptop. EDIT: If you're looking for more specific suggetions, "In the Shadow of the Hill" is kind of like a second mini-campaign for the CW forces. I also enjoyed the two Buron battles and Authie ("To Surrender Invites Death"), I was immediately drawn to those so I could play with the Canucks. It brought a smile to my face to see my old professor Terry Copp cited as a source for some of those. Haha, thanks womble. It's true, Combat Mission really took a pin to my inflated wargamer ego - usually after playing the AI once, the only challenge to be had is against a human opponent, but that campaign really kicked my ass at first. The last time a game gave me so much trouble was with TacOps, back when it was available for free.

Thanks eltorrente. Yea, I was trying to get a bit too fancy with the third mission in the Italian campaign... didn't work out too well in the end, so I'm gonna give this another go. Luckily I couldn't ask for better wind conditions - gentle and parallel to my axis of advance, perfect for screening my forces. This time I'm going to try and rely more on my off-map artillery for smoke missions and use the tanks mainly for supression.

Thanks for the reply, womble! I am using 'pop smoke' when I can, but it's not really practicable in my current situation. I've moved a tank close to the enemy front lines, but I'm trying to blind their heavy weapons further back. I did not realize motivation played a role in how faithfully they execute orders - I will pay more attention to this in future. Now that I know the TacAI will override 'target smoke' commands, I'll be more careful in the future... I was playing a bit fast and loose with my Pz IVs at the end of a mission because I knew they wouldn't be sticking around for the rest of the campaign - I wouldn't have used this tactic otherwise.

I'm trying to get my tanks in close, blow some smoke in the enemy's eyes, and boogie outta there, but as soon as they spot any other targets, they get distracted and shoot at them first. I can't give them a short cover arc, because that cancels the 'target smoke' command. One solution would be to issue the order from further away so they won't get distracted, but that isn't always an option. So how can I get my tanks to 'target smoke' before doing anything else?

Well it's good to know The Scottish Corridor was designed to be a challenge - this was the first CM game I ever bought, jumped right into the campaign, and I thought I just sucked =P If your preference is for Germans or Commonwealth in campaign mode, Panzer Marsch is a good one to start with, and The Scottish Corridor is your only option for CW forces except for fan-made campaigns, and I haven't tried any of those yet, so I can't say. Don't let the difficulty of The Scottish Corridor scare you away, though - just don't be afraid of failure, usually you'll still get to advance in the campaign, and I believe many of the missions that inspired this campaign were historically failures anyway, so you're in good company =)

I know what you mean, Hector - Combat Mission has ruined me for anything less than the real McCoy. Now I can only roll my eyes obnoxiously when my friends rave about the latest Total War drivel =P

It would be, yes. I don't know what vineyards in Sicily were like in the 40s, but the ones I've seen in Ontario are pretty densely packed with lots of stakes and wires, they would be fairly difficult to cross quickly against the grain.

I haven't even played the Germans yet in CMBN or CMFI, haven't played the Americans much either, for that matter - I bought the CMBN/CF bundle specifically to play the Brits and Canucks, and got CMFI with the sole intention of playing the Italians while I wait for a Commonwealth module :cool: I'll get around to playing those crack SS eventually - they get themselves into sticky enough situations to present a challenge, toys and all, anyway - but I'm primarily interested in playing the 'clunkier' forces, and Italy fits the bill perfectly I never played any of the CMx1 games (been meaning to try them out though), but I'm very much looking forward to playing some Axis minors if/when you get around to the eastern front in CMx2!

I don't have much to say that hasn't already been said, but I'm having a blast with the Italians! And I have indeed learned to love the Brixia - its high rate of fire and accuracy is just about the only bright spot in the Italian TOE.

Woohoo! I had hoped Italy would be next, but I dared not dream it would be so soon! I suppose we'll have to wait for an expansion to play the Brits and Canucks, though... Definitely pre-ordering as soon as I have the cash (goddamn car repairs sucked me dry!)

Thanks Sublime! I'd almost forgotten about Close Combat - I played that back in the day, too. When I feel prepared for PBEM, I will be sure to drop you a line. I know what you mean re: single-player vs. another human opponent - there is no comparison. In most operational wargames I can outwit the AI on my second try once I've learned the UI, but Combat Mission has so far presented me with more of a challenge, as I am a relatively inexperienced tactician =)

Haha, I wondered... I thought it was some kind of dig against allied tanks being cobbled together from bicycles or something. =P

Thanks guys! @theFightingSeabee: I prefer real-time for the same reasons. Sometimes it feels a bit like cheating being able to re-issue orders on the fly, but I suppose it's a fairly even trade-off considering the situational awareness benefits of the replay function. Thanks for the tips - I like being sneaky. I will try ganging up on individual squads - I think my suppressing fire has been dispersed too widely and I've been asking too much of my infantry in flanking close assaults - tactics which are likely better suited to the German side. @Doug Williams: I don't know if my age has anything to do with it (I'm 28), but I generally prefer turn-based over real-time myself, so it came as some surprise - I had originally intended to play WEGO, but I found I was too afraid of making mistakes and having to watch disastrous replays =P (although I could see that being a lot of fun, too). However, I imagine I would prefer WEGO for larger scenarios with lots of units. As for predictions, I'd say you're probably right. I'd love to see an eastern front setting for CMx2, but the Italian Campaign would top my wish list for future games, assuming I could eventually play the Canadians.

Thanks Sergei! I'll try the demos you mentioned, particularly CMBB as I'm very interested in the eastern front. I've tried Steel Panthers a few years back but never got into that series - I'll have to give it another go, haven't played Panzer Command but I'll check that out too. IIRC TacOps used to be available for free but the latest version seems to be for commercial release only - I enjoyed that game so maybe I'll pick that up one of these days, too. I'll bite the bullet and play some missions in WEGO - I'd probably learn a lot more that way anyhow. I suppose I expected too much from my dinky mortars, but they certainly are nice to have for temporary suppression, as you said, and their smoke shells are indeed very useful for screening advances and getting out of tricky situations. My infantry tactics could use some work - I have a pretty good grasp of fire-and-manoeuvre, but I've a bad habit of using up my artillery munitions early on, leaving my infantry in the lurch when it comes down to the final assault phase. I also tend to keep my tanks in reserve until the last minute because I hate risking them in support roles unless I have very good recon on enemy positions. As you may have gathered, I'm a very cautious and methodical player, which seems fitting for the British forces, I guess it's just a matter of putting all the puzzle pieces together at the right time and place.

Hey everyone, I'm new to the forums and the CM series, so I thought I'd introduce myself. My forum alias was a Canadian General, but my real name is Max. I recently bought the CMBN+CW bundle, and it's been a long time since I paid more than $30 or so for a game, but I am 110% satisfied with my purchase - this game is fantastic, I'm having a blast playing the Commonwealth Forces! First question: I mostly play operational wargames, but of the tactical-level games I've played, this one is probably the best - however, as a relative newcomer to the genre, I am open to rebuttals on that point! I am curious about the CMx1 series - are they worth trying or should I stick with the next generation? Second question: I get the impression that this game is meant to be played in WEGO turn-based mode, but I've mostly been playing in real-time, which has its advantages and disadvantages. However, I plan on starting some turn-based PBEM games as soon as the AI ceases to present a challenge, and I worry that I will pick up some bad habits if I continue playing real-time. Any thoughts on this? Third question: anyone have any tips on using British/Canadian forces effectively? It seems I am not aggressive enough on the offensive - I am so concerned with force preservation in the Scottish Corridor campaign that I frequently run out of time before securing my objectives. I'm particularly confused as to how to use my organic 2" mortars effectively - can they be used for indirect fire missions by FOs and HQs or can you only issue direct LOS targets to the mortars themselves? I haven't seen any options for the former, and they seem inaccurate in the latter role at long range, and too vulnerable to return fire at shorter ranges. Thanks in advance for any and all replies, and happy Easter!