zinzan

You're right, my mistake.
 
The waypoint of the order also indicates a location to be hull down to. However, using the target command does seem to be even easier.
Target briefly works exactly the same as target. I think I confused the early explanation of how the order works, with a vague recollection of my own testing.
 
Open mouth, insert foot.

Good advice for sure.
Hummm, some incorrect info there or perhaps just unclear.
Using the target command will *not* cause the unit to fire at the end. I have not tried target briefly since testing so I forgot if it behaves differently.
To have success with the hull down command you need to keep a few things in mind.
1 - Use the hull down move order with a target command to indicate where you want to be hull down too. No *not* use the other method - see point 2.
2 - place the hull down way point to a location you would be ok with your vehicle moving to - just in case. If you make a boo boo or miss read the terrain. (see point 3) your vehicle may reach the end of the hull down command. Make sure if that happens it will not be a total disaster.
3 - Make sure the way point before the hull down command has no visability to the location you want to be hull down too.
4 - check your exposure to other locations. It sucks to get a perfect hull down position only to realize that you are totally exposed from another angle. Guess where Murphy's law says the enemy will be then.
When I faithfully follow those points I end up with a vehicle in a good position more than 9 times out of 10.
 
Yep, I am very happy with this new command.

Thank you for the detailed maps and strategic overviews, Bil. I absolutely marvel at your graphic skills and presentation but it’s your most recent post explaining your intentions that grounded me clearly as to what is going on and where. 

Hope you don't mind, I quoted you on my Blog page for this AAR.   

Wow. An IDF officer I got to know was very insistent on the principle: "Anti-infantry armour and anti-armour infantry." You have provided his school solution here, Bil!
Also, your riveting AAR has turned me into a refreshing monkey for a bit. 🙈🙉🙊

Hopefully my post above answered some of your questions.
As for combating Javelin teams.. not a lot you can do except deny the enemy the use of key terrain with smoke, artillery, direct fire, or better by capturing it and closing with them.  You have to get within about 150 meters of an enemy Javelin team before you are inside their minimum range... that can be a very hard thing to do.

We are 16 minutes into a two hour scenario... so.. quite a while.  It will never go that long though.

Bil, excellent AAR as always
You are the best source that BF has as to how to promote and showcase these games.
I always enjoy that fact that you put out there a clear description as to what you are tactically thinking and trying to accomplish.
And your tactical skills seem to reward you better in the modern battlefield over the WWII one.  
You generally get no second chances or much luck on the modern battlefield. Death is easy and quick and each decision is rewarded with that or success in a very few moments.
thanks for your efforts as always
I will go back to the shadows now

MINUTE 15
Okay this was a VERY busy turn… and sorry once again for the amount of media.  I hope it isn’t too hard on your internet connection. 
I ordered my Abrams to immediately start to reverse while it was reloading.  I did not want it to get into a gun duel if it wasn’t ready… when the gunner yelled “SABOT UP!” and while still moving in reverse the tank fired and killed the Leopard... killed him dead and was never spotted in return.  I had also ordered one of the LAVs nearby to pop smoke in front of the M1 to cover it… turns out that wasn’t needed.

T90 #2 fired and killed the Warrior near the Water Tower... so hey, yeah, the Syrians are capable of killing stuff. 

One British dismounted team is in the field between the now dead Warrior IFV and the T-90s… that means the second Warrior arrived at its unloading point unseen, but now I know about where it is.

1st Mech Infantry Platoon’s HQ team dismounted and armed with a Javelin, crawled into position hoping to get a spot on the Challenger that my Abrams hit last turn… towards the end of the turn he took aim and let the Javelin loose... it flew true and killed the enemy tank with a top hit.

Up near Hill 41.1 another team armed with a Javelin spotted a Scimitar and quickly destroyed it.  By the way, it takes about 20 seconds to reload the launcher and be ready for another shot.  Both of these teams will be reloaded and ready for action early next turn.

It didn’t go all my way though… the BMP-3 platoon moved forward, remember I was hoping to spot the Warrior platoon which should be to their front (and probably very close)… well, they moved forward just fine, then quickly lost two of the three BMPs, the first to an unknown shooter... I believe to one of the Warriors I was looking for...
…the second fell to the remaining Leopard tank.

Damn… I should have sent a dismounted team over the ridge to find those IFVs.  The BMP-3s never spotted a thing… yikes.  I am worried about those Warriors and I need to find them ASAP.

Still two enemy tanks, one light tank, and an IFV knocked out for the loss of two BMP-3s... I’ll take that exchange ratio every time.

I also received my final reinforcements.  I will post about them in another installment.

I am gonna assume someone has been having a very nice time in Amsterdam for the past couple weeks.

As noted before Steve has said he will not do this.  As I recall one example he used is suppose you and I are going to play a PBEM.  How do I know you have not edited the ToE?  That was just one example of how this becomes impractical pretty quickly from their view.  CM is not the game you are trying to turn it into.  As with all of us who have wish lists (me included), you have to compromise them based on what CM really is not what you or I wish it was.

It was brutal.. took forever to prep those graphics too.   
Yes the Challenger has a rifled gun, nasty bugger.
From this point on the action will start to ramp up dramatically... it is a dangerous battleground for sure.

MINUTE 12
Apologies ahead of time for the media heavy content in this post...
Another Warrior IFV platoon appears to be moving toward Point 32.9… M1 #1 moved into position in the early stages of this turn and almost immediately spotted one of them moving up to the Ruined Farm (Baneman does like that position), with one round it was sent to Valhalla…

10 seconds later it killed a second Warrior also near the Ruined Farm.  Think he has learned the lesson to stay away from that farm yet?

Immediately after killing the second Warrior IFV, M1 #1 spotted a Challenger!  Alas... before he could reload and reorient, the Challenger killed the Abrams with a one round turret front penetration… wow…

After looking at it from the Challenger’s perspective, I don’t think M1 #1 was hulldown to it… not sure if that would have even made a difference though.  To kill an Abrams from the front is impressive gun performance.
M1 #2 spotted one of the Warrior IFVs headed toward Farm 002 and got off one round, which hit the weapon mount with no ill effects that I could see, but that must be a gun kill.  The IFV trundled on toward Farm 002.

At the end of the turn the other Challenger was seen moving around the southern end of the large stone walled field in KT1.  M1 #2 will attempt to get a spot next turn and see if we can’t even the score.  I do like that he has split up his Challenger tanks so each is now operating independently.

Baneman has at least one dismounted infantry AT team (German) far forward near the wall… he is obviously attempting to get close enough to engage my LAVs with an AT weapon.  I need to check on the range for that weapon.  I suspect it looks meaner than it is.  LAV #4 spotted and fired on this team which went to ground.

The Bradley platoon started to arrive this turn, the dismounts will organize a Javelin armed AT team which will proceed to the ridge while the remaining infantry will remount next turn.

At least two Warrior IFVs moved beyond Point 32.9 appearing to be heading toward the position that is held by the BMP-3 Platoon.  I think he has two Warrior platoons in this area, one near the Ruined Farm (two vehicles spotted, both destroyed), and the other moving past Point 32.9 (three vehicles spotted).
Overview of enemy movements this turn:

Battle Position 1 (BP1):

It is not a "bug" it is attention to how the AI may react in a given set of circumstances.  They can't program a "correct" response for everything the game may have as a result.

Politics... 

They use the awesome power of Gameyness !

First off they are speaking Arabic which none of the rest of the force understands so it is a lot of animated gestures, expressions like “boom” and some things that don’t translate but look vaguely offensive. In other words they end up taking pics on their mobile and texting them. 😎

Well done AAR

MINUTE 5
Team 2’s ATGM that was in flight last turn missed high again… I think all the incoming fire threw off their aim so they missed both of those shots and in my opinion that is a realistic result.  Baneman opened up on them with several Scimitars this turn, however the team was able to pull back over the ridge no worse for wear.  The AT-7 is still partially deployed, an advantage of moving just one action spot, resetting will take far less time.  They do have three missiles left... next time I use them I need to find a better, more keyholed position, preferably away from the prying eyes of those damned Fenneks.
One lucky SOB (composite image to show the missile's path):

The BMP 2 is now re-manned and I will be moving them toward a firing position next turn to attempt to engage a Scimitar further in depth.

LAV-25 4 moved into a keyhole position and at the end of the turn spotted, fired at and penetrated the Scimitar near the ruined farm (Weapon Mount penetration).  I don’t think it is knocked out yet, so next turn I will be pouring it on.  The Fennek right next to it spotted my hulldown LAV almost immediately and fired a salvo of grenades, but they went long.  Damn that thing has amazing optics.  Drives home that I need to take them out as quickly as I can.  The Scimitars in comparison do not seem to spot my units very well at all. 

At the end of the turn the LAV-AT attached to Team 2 got a firm spot on the Fennek near the ruined farm.  It was taking aim as the turn ended.  I doubt they will miss like the AT-7 team did, fingers crossed.  Killing the Fenneks is now a priority task.

The dismounted recon platoon is closing in on OBJ GARNET.  They are looking for a covered route to move towards the enemy positions.

At Farm 002 the Fennek that dismounted last turn remounts.  That vehicle is useless without its crew and loses all the advantages its optics give him, guess he realized that.
In DUMAYR, Baneman continues to throw his teams forward.  I am going to abandon my positions near the Monastery and move my fighters to South DUMAYR and let them join the fight for that objective. 
The Monastery and Village Charlie are not as important as DUMAYR and I’d like to concentrate against the unit he has engaged there and eliminate it.  With a little luck he could find himself squeezed between my two irregular forces.  Team 1’s BMP-2 will be providing some support fire into the enemy held buildings across from my teams in an attempt to reduce some of the pressure. 

In other news, my Advance Guard arrived in the AO.  I am actually wishing I had another five minutes for the recon battle... it is just now starting to develop and get interesting.  With my Advance Guard will also come his… and he can deploy his forward far faster than I, so could, in theory achieve fire superiority before I can get into position.  KT-2 does provide the highest ground in the AO so that is an advantage for me... but it will be tricky bringing my combat power to bear without exposing them.  I also expect a linear artillery barrage on KT2 in the near future... maybe before the main body arrives so I need to prepare for that as well.

Advance Guard
I have five turns before the main body arrives so I would like to commit the Advance Guard to action as soon as possible.  My intent is to attrit the enemy recon force and the enemy Advance Guard to such a degree that when the main bodies arrive I will have a leg up.  I feel like the battle in EA1 is the key to this battle.  Whoever wins that fight will have freedom of maneuver.

I will try to target my mortars on KT1 if possible.
The T-90SA platoon will be quickly moving over the bridge to support the LAVs that are engaging the enemy recon elements and to be in a central position in order to react to where they are needed.

The BMP-3 platoon will disembark their infantry and then the vehicles will move en-masse to the north edge of the KT2 ridgeline.  I want them to engage the enemy with their ATGMs, if possible one part of the enemy force at a time.  I would love to eventually get them down to the plain between KT1 and KT2 to take the fight to the enemy but that might have to wait for the main body to arrive.

The dismounted infantry platoon will move down the gully and move toward the river.  Once close they will await orders.  My intent with them is to drive as deep as possible under cover toward the river, and cross it if possible to support the irregulars in DUMAYR.  It will take a few turns for them to get moving as they need to disembark, split, remount one of the teams to allow the BMP-3s to operate at full efficiency, and only then can they head out.
Can't wait to play with these guys:

Once the BMP-3s arrive at the ridgeline I will pull the LAV-ATs from the teams they are supporting and attach them to the BMP-3s.  The Syrian Recon Platoon dismounted elements will remain where they are for now and continue their dismounted recon and harassment role.  The BMP-2 #2 will be moving to join its brother so they can cooperate as a team, mainly against the enemy DUMAYR irregular fighters. 
Next turn I will include a SITMAP to show all friendly and enemy unit positions (known and suspected).

Thanks Ken, coming from you that means something.
Well, there will be a hint in my next post.. whether it will succeed or not remains to be seen.  I will say that I am not too worried about this front yet... if I were to lose my entire UNCON force I would be alright with that as long as I could take apart his armored assets.. then I can deal with cleaning the rats out of Dumayr in my own time. 

I don't usually quote an entire post, especially one as large as this, but an exception is certainly warranted.
@Bil Hardenberger, you have surpassed your usual high high standards with this one! Embedded gifs (or whatever magickry you used) highlighting the action? Outstanding.
Great overview, perspectives, command analysis, etc.
Now, I have to give Baneman some credit: expending his uncons to make you expend your ammo is a BRILLIANT tactic. Do your Uncons have grenades? Knives? Nearby rocks? 
In a serious vein, if your Uncon defensive position is running low on ammo, what is your plan for them?

MINUTE 4
Team 2’s AT team finished setting up its AT-7, aimed at the Scimitar near the ruined farm and let fly… the missile just skimmed the turret but hit the ground well beyond…

…immediately the accompanying Fennek spotted the team and fired a few volleys of grenades at this team.  None hit, but the grenades were churning up the ground as they moved closer and closer toward the end of the turn. 

The AT team fired a second missile that is still in the air at the end of the first turn.  I will be pulling them out of the line next turn... hopefully they get out okay… if not, that’s okay too as long as he loses the Scimitar.  I’m on the edge of my seat…

Neither of my vehicles in this team got a spot this turn... I will be pulling the BMP out of the line next turn in order to re-mount one of the scout teams as noted last turn.  The LAV-AT will stay where it is for now, I expect Baneman will move a vehicle or two next turn near the ruined farm, and that might help the LAV-AT spot one or both of them.
Team 1’s BMP did pull off the line this turn, and will now wait for the Recon Platoon leader team to remount next turn.

The Fennek at Farm 2 dismounted this turn and entered the buildings.  It does not look like he wants to push beyond the farm at this point... he is happy to sit in place and provide support fire with the Scimitar towards my UNCONs near the Monastery.

Two of the four LAVs in my reaction force will be moving forward into keyhole positions next turn, hoping to get a spot or two on a Scimitar or Fennek.  This movement is in preparation for my Advance Guard which is just one minute out. 

The dismounts from this platoon are starting to move out on a route reconnaissance toward OBJ GARNET.  The other two LAVs are being held back in reserve.

In DUMAYR, Baneman is pushing his irregulars hard toward mine and it continues to cost him.  My teams are going to get critical on ammo very soon though, so he might be able to get an advantage.  I am switching my teams in this area to control their own fire.  I should have noticed the small amount of ammo they carried from the start.  I’ll try to provide them some support by fire from my positions near KT2, but to be honest, the action in DUMAYR is a side-show right now and I am not intent on pushing forward at all there.
My final Technical did extricate itself, so that will help some and it is moving to the sound of guns in DUMAYR-North.

PIR:  Will the enemy militia/fighters attempt to seize DUMAYR?  His assault is picking up steam, but it has cost him a lot of casualties to this point. I estimate he has lost 9 or 10 fighters (maybe one or two more) to 3 of my own. PIR:  Where are the enemy Technicals?  I finally get some contacts on his technicals, they are presently located near the built up area at the western most bridge.

The guys I ordered to crawl out of the "hot" houses take more casualties while crawling - in the end, only 1 makes it out of each house. Sad.  

 
Remaining orders primarily boil down to a lot of Target Light on the infantry AT position.

Right Flank :
The uncon fight is furious, but sadly, Bil has fire superiority against my guys in the 2 houses.
At first we hold our own, causing 2 casualties to 1 of our own.

But then he scores a devastating hit with an RPG round...

And that takes the wind out of their sails...

I order the remaining men to Withdraw (crawling)

And try to move the rest of the force to get LoS to just the ditch and the one building to reduce Bil's force's fire superiority

Turn 3:
Overview pic showing the situation in the non-Uncon area - I moved the Scimitar that was near Obj Gold further to the centre, elsewhere most of my movements have completed.

He keeps the buildings between him and the bad stuff up on the 2 hills, but should be able to see and hopefully interdict any movement towards the Uncon area.