New MG Features Revealed

[Pak40]

After pouring through the manual I found a few new tidbits of info, new to me at least

Ammo Sharing: Pg. 60-61 - ammo sharing now can happen between non-organic units. Heavy weapons teams now draw ammo from neighboring units before depleting their own. Preference order is 1. Organic unit 2. non-organic unit 3. internal ammo

Routing pg 61: No more routed units. Instead they will surrender.

And my personal favorite - Ambush Armor pg 62 - is added to the AI editor. We will now be able to set AT guns to hold fire until armor is spotted.

[akd]

Routing pg 61: No more routed units. Instead they will surrender.

Not a new feature, just a correction to some leftover text from CMSF.

[SlowMotion]

If that ammo sharing change means that in the future ammo will be used first from ammo bearers, that's a great improvement.

[umlaut]

Lots of great news indeed.

One of the pleasant surprises for me - if I´ve understood it correctly - is the extra independent buildings: "new independent buildings can be found in the Other category" (p. 48).

I read this as the new buildings can be used with the old independent building - instead of replacing them. Is this correct?

[Holman]

Lots of great news indeed.

One of the pleasant surprises for me - if I´ve understood it correctly - is the extra independent buildings: "new independent buildings can be found in the Other category" (p. 48).

I read this as the new buildings can be used with the old independent building - instead of replacing them. Is this correct?

If they replaced the old independent buildings, they would mess up existing scenarios. I don't believe Battlefront would do that.

[umlaut]

If they replaced the old independent buildings, they would mess up existing scenarios. I don't believe Battlefront would do that.

Not necessarily as I see it: BFC stated earlier that with MG the scenario designer will have to choose which region the map is in: Normandy or Netherlands. So I had imagined that the Normandy independent buildings would simply be replaced by dutch ditto if I chose "Netherlands" in the editor.

Can anyone clarify/comfirm?

[Pete Wenman]

The new indie buildings are indeed additional and a little bit special

P

[Michael Emrys]

After pouring through the manual...

Have you finally completely liquified? And should we be congratulating you or condoling?

Michael

[Holman]

Have you finally completely liquified? And should we be congratulating you or condoling?

Michael

I poured through the manual and finished the whole thing in two and a half pints!

[John Kettler]

Pak40,

Forgive me, but in poring over your response, it occurred to waggish me that since the manual's digital, the pouring might necessitate a new rig, what with electronics and liquids not playing well together. A novel new computer acquisition strategy, to be sure!

I love the ammo sharing, and it'll now be possible to redo Hellcat Ridge from CMBO (first CMx1 game ever, for new arrivals). There, I was immensely frustrated that newly arriving troops couldn't share ammo with my perfectly functional, but ammo Low, men.

I don't understand why units don't rout and instead surrender, given that routs figure in warfare way back to some of the earliest accounts. Besides, what will the barrier detachments do to justify themselves if Russian soldiers don't rout when we get to the East?!

Regards,

John Kettler

[Michael Emrys]

I don't understand why units don't rout and instead surrender, given that routs figure in warfare way back to some of the earliest accounts. Besides, what will the barrier detachments do to justify themselves if Russian soldiers don't rout when we get to the East?!

I wondered about that too, but I'm not sure just exactly what the rules mean. I should think think units would continue to route if they have a retreat path that is apparently safe, but otherwise will throw up their hands.

Michael

[ChrisND]

Routing is an ooooold CMx2 mechanic dating back to CMSF days. It was when troop morale dropped so low that instead of running or hiding, the troop would actually disappear from the map with a red exclamation point. Routing was replaced with surrendering starting with CMBN, but we hadn't updated that part of the manual until now. In other words, routing has been long, long gone.

[ChrisND]

Lots of great news indeed.

One of the pleasant surprises for me - if I´ve understood it correctly - is the extra independent buildings: "new independent buildings can be found in the Other category" (p. 48).

I read this as the new buildings can be used with the old independent building - instead of replacing them. Is this correct?

The new buildings are in addition to the previous Normandy buildings. You can use them side by side if you want to.

[Pak40]

Pak40,

Forgive me, but in poring over your response, it occurred to waggish me that since the manual's digital, the pouring might necessitate a new rig, what with electronics and liquids not playing well together. A novel new computer acquisition strategy, to be sure!

I love the ammo sharing, and it'll now be possible to redo Hellcat Ridge from CMBO (first CMx1 game ever, for new arrivals). There, I was immensely frustrated that newly arriving troops couldn't share ammo with my perfectly functional, but ammo Low, men.

hehe, please excuse the crap spelling. I'm not sure how widespread the ammo sharing is, they seem to hint that it's only heavy weapon units that do the sharing. Not sure about regular squads, I guess we'll find out soon enough.

[Fenris]

Typo on page 34 in the PzIII description?

It says "Available only in small numbers, the the Panzer III was an excellent tank for its, easily able to best Polish and most French tanks."

-F

[IanL]

I'm not sure how widespread the ammo sharing is, they seem to hint that it's only heavy weapon units that do the sharing. Not sure about regular squads, I guess we'll find out soon enough.

The wording was very precise:

1. Organic ammo bearer team
   
2. Non-organic ammo bearer team
   
3. Internal ammo
   

This makes no mention of units from other formations. So I am sure the original sharing only withing a platoon still stands. In other words there is nothing in that text or the surrounding paragraphs that revokes the previous - inside the platoon only - sharing rules. Only the order that the HMG / mortar will use ammo has changed.

[MikeyD]

...will have to choose which region the map is in: Normandy or Netherlands. So I had imagined that the Normandy independent buildings would simply be replaced...

Good guess but only half right. Basegame independent building models stay unchanged but when you switch to Holland commercial building signage will switch languages. The newest Holland indi building need to be placed by hand to get onto a map. Oh, and mile markers, street signs and some wall posters automatically switch languages too.

[Juju]

I hope you mean Kilometer markers? No miles over here.

[Canada Guy]

Some clarifications

-I agree with John and Michael, I think that routing is a viable option for certain fronts (e.g. Eastern) as I think it is much more likely for the Soviet or German units to want to rout than for them to be willing to surrender. It would have meant certain death especially late in the war. Running 5 kilometers vs death has a certain appeal.

2. Ammo Sharing - Would this now include vehicles? I know it does not say anything explicit but it would be nice to park a vehicle beside a unit and have that unit grab some ammo when needed rather than take time to un-deploy weapon, jump in the vehicle, grab ammo, jump out of vehicle, redeploy weapon, and then use it. - And should this not be extended to allow acquire commands for units in the same action area?

[c3k]

Routing is part of the game. When your men run away and don't fight anymore, they've routed.

[sburke]

Routing is part of the game. When your men run away and don't fight anymore, they've routed.

You mean when other player's men run away right? Your men don't do that. Just clarifying.

[c3k]

QFT. (They don't survive long enough to feel fear. It's best for them that way. Their families thank me.)

[akd]

2. Ammo Sharing - Would this now include vehicles? I know it does not say anything explicit but it would be nice to park a vehicle beside a unit and have that unit grab some ammo when needed rather than take time to un-deploy weapon, jump in the vehicle, grab ammo, jump out of vehicle, redeploy weapon, and then use it. - And should this not be extended to allow acquire commands for units in the same action area?

Pretty sure ammo sharing already includes vehicles within the unit's own formation. But I just tested in 2.10 to see if the sharing order has changed for vehicles, and firing team ammo is still used before vehicle ammo. If you want the vehicle ammo to be used first, you need will need ammo bearers or the firing team to acquire it, otherwise it is kept in reserve and only drawn on when the firing unit has exhausted ammo bearer and self-carried ammo.

[Chops]

Routing is part of the game. When your men run away and don't fight anymore, they've routed.

It seems to me that routing (CMSF style where the units disappear) as well as surrender should be implemented in the game. Also, the End Game screen should have a better breakdown of statistics with separate numbers for surrender and routed units.

[Michael Emrys]

...I think that routing is a viable option for certain fronts (e.g. Eastern) as I think it is much more likely for the Soviet or German units to want to rout than for them to be willing to surrender.

Granted that surrender was not a surefire guarantee of survival on the Eastern Front, the kind of routing we are talking about here was just about as common in the West, where it was sometimes referred to as the bug-out. In the East, the choice was not so much between surrendering and routing as between surrendering and fighting to the death. But even there, plenty of times if an avenue of escape presented itself, it would be taken. The ranks of Russian partisans were largely filled by soldiers who had been trapped behind German lines but who had managed to escape capture.

Michael