Help with Ambushes and Buildings

[GerryCMBB]

Hello All:

I need help setting up an ambush in a building. Here is what I have tried (imagine a window and a door close to each other). Single man is under the window and has a Hide command and also a Face command towards the nearby door.

Graphically he is flat on the ground. However, someone from outside, maybe in a closely-located building kills him. How could they see him if he is hiding on the ground?

I was hoping he would open fire when an enemy entered the building. Is there a proper way to set this up?

Thanks,

Gerry

[LongLeftFlank]

Fortunes of war, basically. The enemy unit spotted him first or smelt a rat in spite of his efforts. I recently had a solo guy lying prone behind a hedegerow toss a grenade into an entire squad entering the adjacent square in Hunt mode, killing 4 of them and Panicking 2 squads. They never saw him.

[eltorrente]

If you hide him, he will hide and won't ambush anyone until he's under fire.. maybe. If you want to setup an ambush, use a small cover arc - hold shift down when making the arc and it'll make a 360. By doing that, he'll attempt to stay hidden until someone comes close.

[LongLeftFlank]

I've found hidden guys will generally open fire of their own accord once enemies enter an adjacent square; sometimes even 2 squares away. I've also been gratified to see computer side troops with no orders, Slow crawl to the next square to get out of heavy fire or regain LOS

[GerryCMBB]

So no Hide command then, right? Just a CA. But will he not be sticking his head up looking around and thus get spotted from a distance?

Thanks,

Gerry

If you hide him, he will hide and won't ambush anyone until he's under fire.. maybe. If you want to setup an ambush, use a small cover arc - hold shift down when making the arc and it'll make a 360. By doing that, he'll attempt to stay hidden until someone comes close.

[eltorrente]

So no Hide command then, right? Just a CA. But will he not be sticking his head up looking around and thus get spotted from a distance?

Thanks,

Gerry

No hide command if you're setting up an ambush. Yeah, they stick their head up sometimes, but they'll still stay hidden for the most part. People really fret about this, but I've found in many PBEM's that it works well.

What I often do is to hide them initially when they get into position - if the enemy is still far away. When they start getting closer, give them a cover arc and unhide them, and the ambush will work fine most of the time.

Keep a unit further back that is unhidden and will shoot at enemy from a distance, and draw their attention. Make it look like your forces are mostly in another spot.

[Vanir Ausf B]

Hello All:

I need help setting up an ambush in a building. Here is what I have tried (imagine a window and a door close to each other). Single man is under the window and has a Hide command and also a Face command towards the nearby door.

If you are wanting to ambush an enemy as they enter the building, which appears to be the case from your description, the best place for your ambushing unit is probably outside of the building on the opposite side from where the enemy will enter.

[GerryCMBB]

Oddly enough I did this tonight. More by chance than design. They killed a bunch of enemy rushing into the building but as they were outside they were wiped out later by enemy approaching from the other side.

As you can imagine I am losing this one! But it was interesting to see how effective your technique could be.

Gerry

If you are wanting to ambush an enemy as they enter the building, which appears to be the case from your description, the best place for your ambushing unit is probably outside of the building on the opposite side from where the enemy will enter.

[LongLeftFlank]

Having the ambishing unit facing toward the back end of the building (away from the intended ambush) on an upper floor seems to decrease the chances of them being spotted or giving themselves away. As the enemy enters, they turn and open fire point blank, with devastating results if they have automatic weapons. That was a staple of my Ramadi CMSF scenario.

[Erwin]

If you have a unit facing in any direction and give them a facing or covered arc in another direction, they will move to face in the arc direction - defiinitely in buildings. So, not sure how you managed to have ambushers facing away from a wall and only have them turn and ambush when someone enter the room via that wall.

Hmmm... or do you use FACE to get them to the other side of the room, then a 360 degree arc, so they don't move away from that position. (I still use 180 degree arcs out of habit.)

[eltorrente]

Hmmm... or do you use FACE to get them to the other side of the room, then a 360 degree arc, so they don't move away from that position. (I still use 180 degree arcs out of habit.)

No that won't work either. What he is talking about I'm pretty sure is to give a simple face command in the opposite direction and that's it. They are still aware of what is going on behind them, and will fire in that direction when there's a threat, but their primary focus is on the opposite side that they are setup at. If you give them a 360 arc, that will cancel the face command.

[Erwin]

I think I have seen units given a 360 degree arc do nothing. ie: They all stay exactly where they were. I thought maybe that's what he meant.

[LongLeftFlank]

Actually I'm not as big a user of covered arcs as many folks, but I am huge on Face command, which accomplishes many of the same ends, as you guys noted above.

[womble]

No that won't work either. What he is talking about I'm pretty sure is to give a simple face command in the opposite direction and that's it. They are still aware of what is going on behind them, and will fire in that direction when there's a threat, but their primary focus is on the opposite side that they are setup at. If you give them a 360 arc, that will cancel the face command.

It will cancel the face command, but it won't change their facing, so they'll stay at the rear wall of the building, less visible from the front. If you don't give them a 360 arc to constrain their engagement range, and they do spot a valid target (which is unlikely to the side of the building we're calling "front" but side windows will complicate matters), they'll engage it, expose themselves and probably start to seek firing positions at the front of the building.

Adding a 360 Cover arc will not undo any of the efffect you've achieved by forcing them away from the front using a Face, so you might as well apply it.

[A Canadian Cat]

I've found hidden guys will generally open fire of their own accord once enemies enter an adjacent square; sometimes even 2 squares away. I've also been gratified to see computer side troops with no orders, Slow crawl to the next square to get out of heavy fire or regain LOS

I have yet to see that. What happens to me is, my guys who are hiding just die as they are shot at close range. Mind you I stopped doing this about the third time it happened so perhaps it works 25% of the time?

[womble]

I have yet to see that. What happens to me is, my guys who are hiding just die as they are shot at close range. Mind you I stopped doing this about the third time it happened so perhaps it works 25% of the time?

I think it depends to some extent what they're hiding behind. If they can see out from prone, they're much more likely to engage than if there's say a low wall between them and the approaching murderers.