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AlexUK

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  1. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to SDG in I wish the AI would pick up SMGs : /   
    My personal experience is that SMGs greatly outperform rifles in almost any concievable scenario. 
    If you take a German squad, the main "damage dealers" are the two machine guns and the squad leader's MP40. The dudes with the bolt action rifles are just glorified ammo bearers and meat shields for the rest of the squad. 
    Funny thing is, that one would think that medium to long ranges, rifles outperform SMGs, while in close ranges (<50m) SMGs should dominate. In reality however (at least according to CM's reality) SMG squads are still extremely deadly within 200 meters (pixeltruppen are happily firing deadly burst), and a full smg squad can wipe the floor with dudes carrying only rifles.
    As I have said, this is my subjective take on the inner workings of the game after hundreds and hundreds of hours of gameplay. Rifles just dont cut it. They are (obviously) outmatched at close range, but they also suck at long range cause the shooter cant a hit damn thing. 500 meter effective range my ***..
    Btw, this is why I dont like the Brits. A single anemic machine gun, one sten gun and loads of useless dudes with Mk. IV rifles. 
     
  2. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to WimO in Partially buried buildings   
    You pay for a car. User made maps are a free gift. I agree with Warts if the maps under discussion are 'paid for' items. On the other hand, if something is a free gift, and I don't like it, then I'll  either fix it or pass it over without fussing.
    I'd like to appeal to all on this thread that we come to a peaceful ending, agreeing that there are differences of opinion which we can respect without the need to 'convince' eachother. Then we can lower the temperature and get back to more harmonious subjects.
  3. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to WimO in Partially buried buildings   
    I am going to step up with gratitude, in support of those who spend hours and hours of their lives to create large maps, or mods, or scenarios, or campaigns, for FREE for what appears to be a small community, few of whom ever say, "Thanks". I have created half a dozen large to huge historically authentic maps each of which took from 400-1200+ hours to create. I am fortunate (or maybe stupid?) to be able to spend 16 hours a day, 7 days a week on that obsession. There are always issues to debug as well as issues overlooked. Do all modular buildings have internal doors? Are all hedges and  walls reasonably permeable for playability? Are buildings submerging? etc. What about thousands upon thousands of flavor objects? Not everything is fixable and not everything is doable.
     
  4. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to Tux in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    I'm not going to stay involved in this particular discussion if it really has descended into an 'us vs. them' shouting contest (that's intended as a reassurance, not a threat) but, just in case there is still the germ of a useful conversation to be had, here's my two-penneth response to the below:
     
    Right, so I'm pretty sure this misrepresents how things happened: Never once did the Russians explicitly and reliably (i.e. Medvedev doesn't count) threaten to 'nuke us' if we provided a certain type of equipment.  They certainly regularly reiterated that they have a red line and would respond if it was crossed but it was always left up to 'us' whether to escalate by delivering a new type of weapon or not.  If we did so we would find out whether the red line had been crossed or not; simple as that.  If you think about it that is the only way it can be since nobody would never make public the precise location of their red line.  If they did that it would be a free pass for the enemy to immediately march right up and moon them over the top of it.
    So the point is we never knew precisely where the red line was and we still don't.  That means the above argument that 'none of the previous steps crossed the line therefore the next one won't' is logically incoherent.  In fact:
    1. If you assume that the red line hasn't moved since the start of the war, then each escalation we have made since then has gotten us closer to the red line.  That would suggest that each subsequent step is actually more likely to cross the red line.
    2. If you assume that the red line has moved (as a useful side effect of the 'slow-but-steady' approach the West has taken) then we hope we still have plenty of room to escalate further but still have to consider each move very carefully.  I will come back to this.
    3. If you don't believe there is a red line then you're welcome to make that case and prove the whole thing is a storm in a teacup.
    And to reiterate: we don't know which of the above is the case.
     
    I'm sure I speak for everybody on the thread when I say I couldn't agree more.
     
    Pointless and unhelpful strawman - literally nobody on the thread has said this.
    Right, so coming back to 2. from my list above, I think it's self-evident that the red line is mobile and that there is more than one way in which it can be moved:
    We ('the West') are obviously trying to move it 'backwards', away from us, to allow us more freedom to manoeuvre in the conventional domain but also because it is good for literally everybody's health.  Other things can also move the line backwards, such as political coercion by Russia's 'allies' or changes in Russian leadership. The line can also move 'forwards', making it easier to cross or even, in a worst-case scenario, tripping it immediately and without warning.  Things that might cause this include NATO declaring a Ukrainian no-fly zone and then starting to wipe out all Russian aircraft and anti-air systems within range of the border; a second serious threat presenting itself in a different thatre (e.g. the PLA marches into Siberia); or changes in Russian leadership. Why did I put "changes in Russian leadership" in bold, twice?  Because that's exactly what the West (including Ukraine, now) are ultimately aiming to achieve* and so you have to be really careful to make sure you get the right change or it can all go very, very wrong.
    All of which is to say (and god knows I wish it was simpler) that I don't think nuclear weapons are directly the issue at all, here.  They are a convenient shorthand for 'things going pretty badly' which is easy to explain to tabloid journalists but then leads us down pointless rabbit holes when it all gets taken too literally.  The West is 'boiling the frog' not because they think Vlad's hand might be hovering over the Big Red Button but because they want to try and make sure they get the right change in Russian leadership, which could hopefully result in long-term peace and start Russia on the long, difficult path to redemption.  If the West get it wrong, however, we could instead see the disintegration of Russia into a violent, multi-state sh*tstorm which has been discussed previously here and which might incidentally end up with red lines being plastered all over the place to possibly catastrophic effect.
    If you want evidence for this, did anyone else notice that during 'Prig's Putsch' both the Western world and Ukraine went deathly quiet?  Everyone stepped well back and Ukraine even very clearly declined the opportunity to launch an immediate, full-scale assault to try and take advantage of the sudden Russian instability.  That instability is the threat, not nukes.  We do need Russian leadership to be destabilised to the point that it falls but every effort is being made to ensure it falls the right damned way.
     
    Ok, I truly apologise for how long this post is but I think that's a reflection of how far astray we've gone with the 'nuke' discussion and every issue that is being argued around it.  Unfortunately I obviously don't have any actual answers to the problem to round it off with.  So I guess I'll leave it there and look forward to the next update from the front.
     
    *Yes, regain Ukrainian land and extract reparations, etc., etc. but we all know that unless Russian leadership is changed, a temporary ceasefire is the best that can be hoped for.
  5. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in CMRT FRANCE 1940 MOD   
    As usual, I have a few irons in the fire. I am really enjoying trying to create this scenario. I also want to model a 2 pounder one of these days...
     
  6. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to WimO in Operatio Tonga and "the ring contour"   
    In a number of books I kept reading about the need to extend the airborne perimeter further south east of the Orne with the British 12th Para Bn, to cover "the ring contour" and later to advance towards this position. However, ne'ery a map to be found where this might be. The modern topography has been significantly altered by roads and a highway 'cutting' through the terrain in the area in question. So I started with an assumption based on my earlier work with "Bloody Buron Overhaul". In that operation, the Canadians were to occupy the 80 meter circle contour south of Buron after securing the latter, only to discover that there was no such contour and that the terrain instead sloped gradually towards the south. This was an error on the 1:25,000 military maps in use at the time. Interestingly, on all such maps there is a disclaimer that the contour lines on the map might not be reliable! Indeed. Thereafter I was lucky to stumble across the 1:25000 map for Ouistreham online which showed a smallish heart-shaped 30 meter contour SW of Le Bas de Ranville, the south edge of the latter being the position taken up by the 12th Paras. So I went on the assumption that this might be the 'ring contour'. Today no such feature is discernable. Then, in an old (1976) publication, "Dropzone Normandy" by Napier Crookenden I stumbled across a small, line-drawn map which showed exactly that position marked as the ring contour. The print was less then one millimeter tall. Success!
    If you glide at ground level across my forthcoming map you will not discern a ring countour. Instead there is just a large area of sloping ground with lines of sight disturbed by tall crops and hedges. There is no sign, no circle drawn on the ground, no distinct bump that says, "Here it is. Here is the ring contour". I try to imagine what the young paras at the time must have seen and thought. Interesting.
     
  7. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to LongLeftFlank in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    Not really. Those of us unwilling to log in to the Twitter can't read threads or view author feeds. We just see the first tweet.
  8. Upvote
    AlexUK got a reaction from ibncalb in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    This I’m struggling with. How much is a storm shadow? How much is each Ka52 destroying in terms of equipment and lives? Or is it not a question of cost but availability of Storm Shadow?
     
    i don’t know why that video (and the one of the Ukrainians in the minefield - I have had nightmares about that one) has affected me so much. It is such a terrible waste of lives. Why hasn’t Russian civilian population started large scale protests - how many mothers without sons anymore? Just horrific. I can’t rationalise any of this. 
     
     
  9. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to Combatintman in Shock Force 2 Unofficial Screenshot And Video Thread   
    I'm going to have to make some more scenarios at this rate mate ... 😉
  10. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in CMFI BEF 1940 MOD NOW IN PROGRESS   
    GWEN is almost ready. I guess tomorrow morning I can wrap her up.

  11. Like
    AlexUK got a reaction from Richi in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    Horrific. Seems like a slaughter. 

    Satellite imagery to find the helicopter bases, storm shadow the individual helicopters while they are on the ground? 
     
  12. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in CMFI BEF 1940 MOD NOW IN PROGRESS   
    I spent the morning dressing up Gwendolynn. 😮
    She still needs a few items of make-up before she can go out.

    There are 3 universal carriers in CMFI.
    Plain, Bren and Vickers. All use the same universal-carrier-hull.bmp
    I edited the mdr file to slightly change the texture filename for Plain and Vickers to universal-carriep-hull.bmp and universal-carriev-hull.bmp.
    This way I can have the 3 distinct vehicles. I hope EDIT: Yes! It works.
     
     
  13. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to Seedorf81 in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    All the kill-mame-death-destruction video's haunt me. And not just from this war.
    (Overly-Sensitive kinda guy, probably.)
    But the Ukrainians in the minefield-video struck me most because of the unbelievable courage those guys showed. Courage in a trench or fierce firefight can be an instinctive thing, because there is hardly time to really think about what is happening, until it's over.
    But these guys in that minefield knew what was around them. And the ones that survived the first explosions, plus the ones that later arrived in the other Bradley, knew very well how utterly dangerous it was to try and get the wounded out.
    But they went. And when those guys blew up in front of their eyes, the next guys never gave up and stepped on that mine-infested soil. WHILE THEY KNEW!!!
    I wonder if I have ever seen more courageous people in this whole ****ty war.
  14. Like
    AlexUK got a reaction from Seedorf81 in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    This I’m struggling with. How much is a storm shadow? How much is each Ka52 destroying in terms of equipment and lives? Or is it not a question of cost but availability of Storm Shadow?
     
    i don’t know why that video (and the one of the Ukrainians in the minefield - I have had nightmares about that one) has affected me so much. It is such a terrible waste of lives. Why hasn’t Russian civilian population started large scale protests - how many mothers without sons anymore? Just horrific. I can’t rationalise any of this. 
     
     
  15. Like
    AlexUK got a reaction from Jr Buck Private in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    This I’m struggling with. How much is a storm shadow? How much is each Ka52 destroying in terms of equipment and lives? Or is it not a question of cost but availability of Storm Shadow?
     
    i don’t know why that video (and the one of the Ukrainians in the minefield - I have had nightmares about that one) has affected me so much. It is such a terrible waste of lives. Why hasn’t Russian civilian population started large scale protests - how many mothers without sons anymore? Just horrific. I can’t rationalise any of this. 
     
     
  16. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in HOW TO MAKE A BIG MOD (TEST DUMMY LOG)   
    Hi Tim. How goes it in Blighty? I am putting energy into the BEF1940 mod. If your PBEM plate clears up in a few weeks I would like to do one of those DARs and showcase the new mod in the forums...
  17. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in CMAK France 1940/Sealion mods   
    It was very interesting to read this thread as it reminds me of what I often try to do.
    I look at myself and see myself, using a half-*** Hollywood analogy, as a producer, director and actor for CM content creation.
    producer: I gather up existing mods and use them in new projects. scrounger city!
    director: I work with other modders to get stuff made for the new project. many good friends made along the way. 
    actor: I DO make my own new mods for the new project. My lame efforts are the rotted cherry on top! hahaha
    Usually I TRY to give credit but often miss ALL names. The older ghost content. For example, I recently sent a text to EZ for "permission" but had no reply.
    I don't have any lawyers on the payroll because there is no damn payroll. 
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    CMFI FRANCE 1940 is alive and well.
     
     
  18. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in CMFI CMAK2 AFRIKA MODS EXPLOSION   
    PM sent as friendly offer to provide help if you need/want and hopefully I have the answer.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    EDITORIAL RANT:
    BFC could make easy money with a new AFRIKA title.
    They could borrow their ignorant "go backwards" system from CMRT.
    The base game code of CMFI would be copied and pasted and edited into a new title that straddles November 1942 to May 1943.
    CMOT? Combat Mission Operation Torch? I dunno.
    The desert files from CMSF2 could be ported over. Tunisian stuff would most likely be doable under that umbrella.
    Lots of the same flavor objects already sitting on the shelf as old content.
    A bunch of CMAK scenarios could be reworked. 16 is the magic number Steve always asks for I think. 2 campaigns: 1 US and 1 German.
    How many new vehicles are needed to be modelled? I don't know. Not that many would be my guess.
    Charles works 60 hours a week Steve said when I asked if Charles was just part-time.
    That was 6 months ago maybe?
    That is 26 weeks ago.
    1560 man-hours ago? 
    COME ON POWERBALL!!!
     
     
     
  19. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to Heirloom_Tomato in Combat Mission is so addictive!   
    This but more. I was playing a massive PBEM many years ago and noticed I had a whole platoon routed and couldn't figure out why. I loaded up the last few turns and watched just that platoon until I could see what happened. 
    I had smashed one of my opponents units and then sent in a whole platoon to go clear them out. Rookie mistake but I sent them all to move at once figuring they would cover each as they ran, no need to area fire to keep the fleeing enemy fleeing. As my platoon was filtering into his postions, the squads got a bit bunched up. One enemy stopped fleeing turned and fired a single shot. It hit one of my guys who was about to throw a grenade. He falls, the grenade bounces into the pile of friendlies. It goes off and down go a bunch of my men, including two others who were also just about to throw grenades. As they fall, their grenades also land at the feet of their comrades and a bunch more guys drop. One single bullet and he took out half a platoon.
    I watched that single turn so many times because I just could not believe what I was seeing. Had we been playing real-time I would have missed it but instead I was able to go back a few turns and see what I had missed. WEGO only ever since.
  20. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to MarkEzra in Combat Mission is so addictive!   
    Yep... the fall of 1999 and the fabulous three stooges! Never looked back. Truly addictive and there is no cure but more CM!
     
    Just looked up my first post: 
    "One or two moves a day...more on the weekends and I try to keep four games going at a time....I have suffered only minor withdrawl symptoms at that rate.
      All Hail Marx & Lennon
    Forum Member #347"
  21. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to WimO in The Obsessive Cartographer - Another Map in the Works?   
    In response to Ithiial_AU: I give him a church whose clock tower is uniquely separate.
     

  22. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to WimO in The Obsessive Cartographer - Another Map in the Works?   
    After declaring my retirement from making any more maps and scenarios for CMBN, I decided to put my feet up and start playing through a few scenarios and campaigns. I chose three that were thematically related and started to play. All three were supposedly historical or based on historical events. I found that I disliked all three due to the significant degree to which they deviated from fact both in mapping and OOBs. One was understandable because it was based on an ASL  scenario which was a derivative of the historical event. I decided to tinker with the small ASL version to bring it more in line with known historical facts but one thing led to another and now ... surprise ... I have another map in the works. Another of my huge 3248 m x 2128 m 'historicals'.  It would be more correct to say 'my interpretation' of the resources available to me constrained by the Scenario Editor's Lego-like construction set.
    It is about 65% complete at this time. Another month of full-time work should finish it. I will give an occasional hint here at what is coming. If over the next little while you happend to guess what area I am mapping, I will  send you a screenie of the work in progress.
    Hint #1: It is an overly huge map for what was initially an otherwise tiny event.
    And PEB14 - you can't add your guess 'cuz you already know the answer. 😉
     
    .
  23. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to panzermartin in How Hot is Ukraine Gonna Get?   
    I think drone swarms can prolong a war or guerilla infinitely. A few organized people will be able to hold a whole division this way. Imagine the US occupation in Iraq facing swarms of guerilla drones. I hope the anti drone technology advances soon enough though... I don't really like this nerdy way of warfare. Especially for the poor infantry that dies with no chance to fight back. A 13yr old kid from his basement, can take out a platoon of experienced battle hardened veterans. If there is a chance to become a veteran in 2023 battlefield that is... 
    In general our world is becoming progressively nerdy. From war to movies, to AI art and music. There will be less warriors, true spiritual people, artists, musicians in the next generation, and in general less people that inspire other people. Only algorithm servants. Progress? Maybe. A more coherent collective humanity for the loss of individual quality. 
    Ok sorry for the phllilosophical off topic. 
     
  24. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in HOW TO MAKE A BIG MOD (TEST DUMMY LOG)   
    FRANCE 1940! Where am I with this? I have gone off on vacation for quite a while.
    In the background, I am working with @JM Stuff on a Belgian sub-mod with the famed Chasseurs Ardennais. A pack of maybe 5 small scenarios during the first days of the campaign 10 May 1940 near Bodange. JM loses his cherry on his first ever map and first ever scenario. We must cheer him on! This will not be ready until later this fall I predict.
    I have a few tasks to fix things on the Char B1 bis and the Panzer I and Panzer II. 
    The Gold Pack needs a fair bit of work. None of the scenarios are ready.
    Anybody want to write a France 1940 scenario?

  25. Upvote
    AlexUK reacted to kohlenklau in British Army bayonet mod for lee-enfield mk4   
    It seems a little too short.
    Luckily, I saw an online article for special pills GUARANTEED to make it longer.
    After I get them I will offer the British spike bayonet to CMMODS.
     
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