Megalon Jones

Wow John. That was an insane marathon of high quality information. What a fantastic read. 
(Between both AARs)

What I know for sure is that it was an SPI  game and that founder Jim Dunnigan wrote that pithy rejoinder. Believe the game may've been WURZBURG, for I distinctly recall there was a flap after the city fathers discovered their beloved city was going to be bought in. Certainly, the response from Dunnigan to the depictic a tac nuke question was emphatic and definitely thought-provoking, but not as much as the revaltion of a REAL Soviet war plan after the Berlin Wall came down which revealed they would use 200 tac nukes to reach the Channel in TWO weeks. A terrifying read! International Defense Review once published a German military analysis of what a single aptly named MIRVED SS-18/SATAN ICBM could do to Germany. Bye bye Deutschland!

https://xenagoguevicene.wordpress.com/2018/09/16/wwiii-plan-soviet-army-planned-to-use-200-tactical-nukes-to-capture-western-europe-in-2-weeks-with-invasion-by-conventional-forces-by-zachary-keck-national-interest-16-sept-2018/

Regards,

John Kettler

So the issue of my mortar M113 being unable to bombard a hill covered with trees directly in its LOS wont get fixed? Only the military gets that fix? Alright, better be in CMx3 then...

I recall a poster a few year ago relating a story about his urban warfare training. Something along the lines of the instructor saying 'You're now going to learn how to enter a building through a window. NEVER do this in combat.' If I recall the conversation correctly there was some concern about accidentally shooting yourself or a comrade while scrambling through the window, not to mention the risk of being shot by someone in the building while you're halfway through the window.
If you look close in CMSF2 you'll see a number of natural impediments to entering through a window. 
 

While researching for the game it was discovered that M113A3 is forbidden to swim rivers except in wartime. The A3 version was heavier than the (in-game) A2 so there was less margin for error. Prep for swimming, I recall, included balancing-out the fuel tanks and properly distributing the stowage. You wouldn't want a vehicle significantly heavier on the right side than on the left.

If you're talking about something like this pic, it's the snorkel and an unditching log.

The way units act during HUNT may have changed during the many updates and patches.  However, when CM2 first came out it seemed that HUNT was "Moving carefully, looking for the enemy, halt when fired upon, (or fire is nearby), or if an enemy is spotted".
That careful nature of the HUNT movement (vs the MOVE command) explains why HUNTis so slow and exhausting. 
In terms of the game, I find it most practical to use QUICK for 10-12 meters, then place a waypoInt with a few seconds PAUSE then a short HUNT, then QUICK.  A HIDE command can also help the scout stay alive.  On some maps if time is an issue and one needs to move hastily with no time to HUNT carefully, one may have to dispense with HUNT, and simply move a two-man team in busts of 10-20 meters plus a waypoint with a 5 second PAUSE and a HIDE command.  
 

BAOR gets me Chieftains with the 120mm rifled gun, West Germany gets me Leopard 1s and Marders. 
 
Either way I’d buy both. 
 
H

Due to the FRG and many NATO minors sharing the Leopard I, it might be better to bundle them all together (like SF2’s NATO module) alongside the NVA.
Here’s my guess….
1.  CW:  North German Plains.  BAOR and Poland plus Soviet Airborne.
2.  CW:  (Insert nifty title).  West German’s plus Netherland vs NVA.
3.  CW:  Arctic Front.  USMC, UK Para vs Soviet Marines and the Leningrad Military District.
 

Interesting article.
I think its better put as ineffective against armies that are capable of dealing with it via equipment and training.
Everything else stated is somewhat questionable.

I don't have a new command suggestion to add, but FOLLOW does sound like a really good idea. It isn't strictly speaking essential, since it can be mimicked by tedious repetition. But it would be a massive quality of life improvement to, for example, give a complicated series of commands to only one vehicle, and then simply give all the other vehicles in a column the FOLLOW command targeting the first vehicle, or the vehicle in front of themselves.

In the spirit of improvement of the Combat Mission games. I thought I would ask a question similar, but narrower in scope, as the general "Engine Improvements" thread.
What new commands would you like to see added or added back to Combat Mission and why.  Also include a brief description of what the command would do.  If you see problems with a suggested command or improvements to it, feel free to add some constructive criticism. If you don't understand an aspect of the new suggested command please ask the author to explain what that aspect.
So I will start. Here is an example of the format:
COMMAND: Description & Details. Conditionals.
----------
FOLLOW: The unit is commanded to FOLLOW the selected unit at a speed that will catch it up to the unit and then maintain a reasonable distance from it so that the following unit does not have to constantly use the PAUSE command.  If the following unit is shot at, it will (stop or continue?) following.  Not sure which action would be best.  Maybe the algorithm could check the HIDE status to determine what action to take under fire. If HIDE is on then the unit seeks cover under fire.  If HIDE is off the unit continues to FOLLOW the selected unit.  If the followed unit stops the following unit stops and if the followed unit is knocked out, the following unit seeks cover.

The author's methodology is suspect.  You can only arrive at that particular conclusion if you conveniently ignore Iraq, Rhodesia, the use of defoliants in Vietnam, the use of CB weapons in China during WW2 et al.  He's right in that NBC would make an unholy mess of the battlefield, but ignores the fact that these decisions are made by national leadership who have incentives differing from the military.

Shhhh...I'll let you in on a secret. I just took a screenshot of the map from my Kindle version and just colored it in. 🤫
🤣

Hi everyone.....thought I'd do an update. I am working on a campaign. The first three scenarios ("First Battle", "If You're Gonna Come...", and "Counter Attack at Objective LOG") are complete and I think they do a good job of giving a "Team Yankee" feel. Currently working on the map for scenario four, "The Defense of Hill 214".
 
One thing about the book is that Team Yankee is almost always in an advantageous position OR has better equipment. That is certainly true for the first two scenarios. The run through the town is a case in point...the Soviets by that time are totally depleted, their tanks have been destroyed, and the motor rifle battalion they are facing is from the reserve so they have BTR's instead of BMP's. Team Yankee in the book ALWAYS has luck on its side. 
 

Stemming the Tide
 

That's one of mine @Megalon Jones ... and it is Sichenhausen not Sichausen said something like this sickenhowzen.  Have a like for the great video and always interesting to see how someone else tackles the mission.

Things go boom
 
 

Witnessed!
 
H

You did a good job representing the scene from the novel.  Granted, it's been 35 years since I read it.  I would love to see more from you.  BTW, you might be the first to have a scenario outside the initial release.

T-34 turned into Leopard 1, used as an OPFOR by Polish army during Cold War. In the background another T-34 turned Chieftain.

I subscribed just for the Featured Attraction and Previews! 
 
H

It's literally 100F outside as I type this.  Send buckets of ice.
 

Stemming the Tide