Liveload

Hi All! Hope you had a great weekend. Time for a quick update. Our first 4k x 4k master map of Al Arbaeen and Al Zaka is coming along nicely so I thought I'd post a couple of in-progress shots: Al Arbaeen area: Al Zaka area: Kafr Nabudah is also a 4k master map and is currently in progress along with Hobait, Jibeen, and Al Mughayr...many more to come as we progress. To save you time in hunting around the thread, here's list of published scenarios thus far in the form of Dropbox links: Tal Malah - Blue Defend Qasabiyeh - Blue Defend Qasabiyeh - Blue Attack Kabani - Meeting Engagement Attera - Blue Attack Al Hamamiyat - Blue Attack Respectfully, LL

If you are modeling anything but an invasion of Syria in 2008, don't pick anything under Veteran for the SAA. Most of their surviving air and armor units can be considered crack units at this point. They don't break like the regulars and below under fire. As to why they fight...if another country(s) invaded your neighborhood tonight, what would you do? Who would you be fighting for? From their perspective, if you want to hear a Syrian's point of view check out the interview with Grand Mufti Hassoun. He is speaking very deliberately in easy to understand and translate Arabic, so the subtitles are accurate. He'll get excited from time to time and his Syrian dialect will show through for a moment, but then he composes himself and continues. Point is, if you want to see from their perspective, his is one that is common enough to be taken as a hard indicator of the societal zeitgeist.

Hi All, Sorry about the radio silence. We have been busy working on our next phase of the project, which is a campaign covering the Spring/Summer offensive of 2019 from early May thru current. Right now we are testing new scenario concepts and creating maps. All of your favorite characters will be making a return. Abu Bob, Abu Steve, Abu Allmani, the GoPro Units...and a few new ones that you'll hopefully enjoy even more. I know you're asking, "but how are they making a return if I killed them in the last scenario?!?!". Ask yourself how many times a terrorist has been declared dead only to turn up at a later date alive and well... We'll post some screens as we get closer to completion.

Nice work man. I used to build models and dioramas decades ago. There's a lot of talented modellers our there. Some of the stuff by MiG Jimenez is freaking amazing. I think he has his own product line now out of Spain. However, nowadays for the price of one decent kit, I purchased CM:BS. A much better value, imo. I used to have a stack of Fruilmodel tracks for tons of tanks from a 38(t) on up. Those things cost as much as a kit now. I was surprised at how much costs have increased for modellers. Both Iran and Iraq together operated just about everything that would have been used had the "cold war" gone hot just short of Nuclear Armageddon. There's a lot that's been written about that war in the years since. Iran's ill fated offensive with Chieftain tanks vs T-62 in the mud would be a great example of just the kind of cold war engagements I've seen the demand for from time to time on the forums. There is a market for hard hitting war games steeped in reality that cover that conflict for sure, especially the CM series. There's a Ukrainian developer that's touched on some of that stuff, but it's not in the same league as CM...not even close, imo. Apples to oranges really, but it's all that's there so far that covers that conflict. Iranian Frogmen in Basra 86 and T-62 vs M-60, etc. I forget the name of the games. Operation Star or some such...regardless, my point it that there's a market for it for sure and the way CM covers conflicts is uniquely superior to anything else out there that I know of.

Nic pic. When it comes to a new game in the modern era, I'd like to see the Iran - Iraq war modeled. All of the "cold war" toys and then some. The operations around Basra alone would make for a complete game. What I was hinting at would be just allowing people who own both games to combine the assets of each game into one common pool that can be used to create scenarios, QB's etc, not necessarily a whole new game.

Related to this thread, but not worthy of it's own; I thought it would be really cool if we could combine both Black Sea and Shock Force 2 someday. There's so much that could be done scenario and mod wise if that were possible. Just being able to pull from all those terrain elements and objects alone would be amazing, not to mention all the equipment...

Hello All! Hope you're having a great weekend thus far. Today we are adding Al Hamamiyat to the key battles of the Spring/Summer Offensive of 2019 that we've covered thus far. A huge heap of praise goes to Aurelius for helping make this one happen! Here's the dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ynsfkys3cvupgfb/Al Hamamiyat.btt?dl=0 The map is 3km x 2km. It is a Blue Attack Scenario that is best played as Blue. There is a simple Blue AI plan for those that wish to create a QB map from it. The scenario has the player taking over command of local SAA forces at close to dusk on July 11, 2019. Hope everyone's weekend just got a tiny bit sweeter. Respectfully, LL

My wife regularly reminds me that Huxley and Orwell are spinning in the grave and then she begins muttering about science and information nazis and wanders away...

It would actually have been a still from a youtube video, although from your perspective I'm not sure that matters. A few more tweaks and test runs and Al Hamamiyat will be ready to go very soon. Here's some screenshots of one of today's test runs (timer has been extended since then ). https://imgur.com/kfQko3x https://imgur.com/6uxgKkv https://imgur.com/iPYxjEI Thanks for all the support guys! Respectfully, LL

Hello All! Al Hamamiyat is getting close to completion. For those of you who have been keeping up with events, this scene should look familiar. Respectfully, LL

Hello all, Just some random thoughts after downloading 2.02. I wonder if it would be possible to add 7.62x54r to the ammo supply in Syrian Zil and Ural trucks. It would also be very helpful if 5.45x39 was available in BMP 1 & 2 and/or night vision available to 7.62x39 wielding troops, e.g. Tiger Force. Mounted troops with PKM still start with about 100 rounds of 7.62x54r, the rest is in their mounts. I wonder if it would be possible to use the acquire command during scenario design. That would help a lot. Thank you all very much for such a powerful game/tool/hobby... Respectfully, LL

Much appreciated! Indeed, the elevations are quite a challenge. One thing that helped a bit was lighting. Changing the time of day can dramatically affect what is visible and reveal terrain elements that need attention. In the real mountains, daylight is short, while twilight is long and some places go almost all day without sun.

Thank you all so very much for the positive feedback. It really encourages me. I am currently working on a 3km x 2km map of Al Hamamiyat that is about 50% done. It's like Tal Malah on steroids. The town itself is right near Qasabiyeh, so I'm making another pass at that map to correct some of the elevations to be closer to the real area. It doesn't seem to affect the way the map plays, but it's a point of accuracy for me.

File has been updated to correct the tactical map. Respectfully, LL

Thanks for catching that! I will correct that and update the download file and post here. The dropbox link won't change. Respectfully, LL

Hello All, Hope everyone is having a great day. Without further adieu, here is the Blue Attack scenario and my newest map, Attera: https://www.dropbox.com/s/wb4y9c0cupkssip/attera - blue attack.btt?dl=0 There are many elevation changes on order of several hundred meters, a main highway meandering through, lots of dirt roads, and a couple hiking trails. Pack light, dress in layers, and bring plenty of water. Once the sun is up, the men will need it. Major credit on this scenario and design goes to Aurelius. He has been invaluable during the process of creating and tuning this scenario. There are three Red AI plans that are equally weighted. The map itself can be made available by itself if anyone wants it, let me know. Respectfully, LL

Good Choice. I had my doubts at first as to which one to get. I watched some reports from Syria as I usually do one day and then it hit me just what a powerful game this is. I still want to get the UK expansion (especially if BFC adds Syrian toys to the pack ) and Black Sea eventually. If there isn't one already, I think a Volgograd scenario would be fun to consider.

Hah! I typically like to get to the mountains early in the morning just before dawn, so I was taking those screenshots as if I was taking a trip there. Here's one from after breakfast: https://imgur.com/sGWooip The map is 2672 x 1936 meters.

Here's one more from one of the many dirt roads and trails: https://imgur.com/wTOmBAa

The mountains in summertime are a special place. Since I can't do our usual camping and outdoorsy stuff this year, I thought I'd go to the mountains anyway... Here's a couple of screenshots of my current map project: https://imgur.com/YXzrgyW https://imgur.com/snlhqF8 The town is Attera, near the Turkish border. It's approaching completion.

Hello all, Here's the Meeting Engagement scenario based upon my newest map. The town is Kabani, located on the border of Latakia and Hama Provinces. It's a small agricultural community that's recently been the site of some fighting between HTS et al, and the SAA. The Salafists stalled the SAA drive into Latakia province at the beginning of the month in this town. The map is 1760 x 1520. It should be playable from both sides, but Blue seems to be the greater challenge. Here's the dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/k1j80k7qsy3iadi/Kabani - Meeting Engagement.btt?dl=0 If Aurelius finds a way to break it; I'll update the file, and this thread, so the dropbox link will stay the same. *Note: The Tal Malah map at the very top of the thread is the old 1.0 version. The file, because of how it was posted, cannot be updated and I can't edit the post. The most updated version of Tal Malah is in this thread as a dropbox link and also here. Respectfully, LL

Very nice. I downloaded all the maps to play with. Respectfully, LL

Thank you, sir! I appreciate the ditch-lock tip. I work on building facades and connectivity once the terrain elements are fully laid down, so that part hasn't been done yet. I agree with the 100% accuracy part. There's some areas which simple cannot be replicated easily, such as large boulders sitting in middle of nowhere and other ice age remnant type terrain. Respectfully, LL

Many thanks gentlemen. I really appreciate you guys. Here's a few shots from my current project, Kabani, which is approaching terrain completion. It's a tiny town in the hills on the border of Latakia and Hama provinces. It's 1760 x 1520. It should be ready to test in the coming days. https://imgur.com/PimMtiy https://imgur.com/BrPUla2 https://imgur.com/UGNKc2y https://imgur.com/E2eCCs1 https://imgur.com/pozNkJX Respectfully, LL

Before the town of Qasabiyeh could be defended against daesh attack, it had to be liberated from their grasp. As promised, here's the Blue Attack scenario based on my Qasabiyeh map: https://www.dropbox.com/s/t50foc5ol1ervci/Qasabiyah - Blue Attack.btt?dl=0 Respectfully, LL