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CM Final Blitzkrieg - ALLIED (Defense) BETA Battle Report


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Well, I didn't see this one as all that close to be honest.  I made many mistakes, one of the first and costliest being my reaction to the JagdTiger moving up.. I had one turn's warning that it was on its way if you remember.. instead of closing with my Hellcats and using my Shermans as bait I withdrew all of them and lost the battle.  

Goes to show actually how close the tipping point was.. after that error Baneman's force inflicted Pain and Punishment on my tanks until I could see the writing on the wall and could tell that I had no chance to win.   

There were other mistakes as well.. advancing without enough intel (lost three Hellcats that way), pushing a counter-attack well beyond what was reasonable (the Team Punishment Sherman Section), etc.

Well I doff my cap to you Bil.  Being willing to step up on near every release and do a DAR with all that goes along with that takes some guts.  That you manage to do so with humility and a good natured attitude says a lot for you.  You are a true treasure to this community.  You may not have won this round, but I have no doubt you'll still be the favored bet on the next no matter who pulls the short straw.. err I mean agrees to go forward and battle you in the next release.  :D

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Bil,

  I have to echo the previous sentiments.  No apologies necessary.  This was an amazing AAR and one hell of a showcase.  I enjoyed every part of your presentation, from the build-up to the choices for OOB to the stunning screen shots.

  You presented us one smashing battle with a rollercoaster of action, from the good to the bad.  As I said in an earlier post, Colonel Abrams would have expected you to bring the fight to the enemy, not just sit back.  Your aggressive moves felt very real for those of an armor commander who had been given a fast and varied mix of tanks to accomplish this mission.  It was all good!!!

  Bravo Sir.  I salute you for a most impressive showcase of the upcoming CMFB.

  Now, if only the map guys had given the commander of the Pershing the right directions….:o

Heinrich505

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maybe I'll do an AAR of the game against Scott after release, if just to exercise the demons from this one.  ;)  

 

Now that would be great, it is a real pleasure to read your AARs Bil, and I always feel a little bereft when one ends. It also goes without saying that I have learned a great deal from you.

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I got to this party late but read the whole thing over the past three evening and must admit I am sorry to see it come to an end 

and especially this kind as I always am for the underdog and In opinion we ( Americans ) were the underdog back then.  

Anyway I really enjoyed it and yeah thanks for that bold decision to use a offensive defense.  I also assume you choose that partly for 

our enjoyment so yeah thanks.  It worked!  

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Regarding the M10 and M36: 

 They were never very popular, the US take on turreted TDs looks quite good on paper and in Cm scenarios, though. 

I think the main gripe against them was that they were inadequately armored, especially the turrets. In contrast, the Soviet and German TDs had very heavy armor, at least frontally. And of course the lack of overhead protection for the turrets made the crews more vulnerable to fragmentation weapons. The other big problem for American TDs was that for the last year of the war they were used not for their designed purpose, but to provide infantry support as substitute tanks, a role they were not especially well suited for.

Michael

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Regarding the M10 and M36: 

<snipped>

The other big problem for American TDs was that for the last year of the war they were used not for their designed purpose, but to provide infantry support as substitute tanks, a role they were not especially well suited for.

Michael

The irony of which is that 1940's US TD doctrine stipulated that Tanks were for infantry support and TD's for killing tanks!  I opine that US TD doctrine was a bad outcome from a US Services Infantry lobby that followed French thinking to subordinate armor as a support system and a Cavalry branch which didn't want to unsaddle their horses.  I will always wonder how US tank battle history would differ if those wonderful TD high-velocity cannons had been mounted on Sherman tanks instead.

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Thanks Michael. Since I posted that I did some reading on the topic... the story gets really interesting when one learns about the tug of war between generals Leslie McNair - the proponent of the doctrine that Badger mentions - and Jacob Devers on this issue (who would go on to command the 6th Army Group). That kind of struggle, and an underestimation of the ability of the Germans to equip and field the Panther goes a long way to explain some stuff.

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The myth that US doctrine said that tanks should never engage enemy tanks, that this was a job for TD:s only, is just that, a myth. There is a very interesting video on this subject, busting this and a lot of other myths about US armor, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNjp_4jY8pY

I concur.  My post does not say such.  It referred to the 1930's US doctrine development determining PRIMARY and SECONDARY roles assigned to US AFV's.  I continue to wonder how US tank battle history would differ if those wonderful TD high-velocity cannons had been mounted on Sherman tanks instead.

Enjoyable video which notes so as well but elaborates in much greater detail very nicely.  Thanks for posting.

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I concur.  My post does not say such.  It referred to the 1930's US doctrine development determining PRIMARY and SECONDARY roles assigned to US AFV's.  I continue to wonder how US tank battle history would differ if those wonderful TD high-velocity cannons had been mounted on Sherman tanks instead.

Enjoyable video which notes so as well but elaborates in much greater detail very nicely.  Thanks for posting.

Ok, sorry. I guess I didn't read your post carefully enough... glad you enjoyed the video too, it is indeed very interresting.

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Thank you Bil for the effort you put into your DAR vs Baneman, Always clear as crystal your ideas, your writing style and your graphics going with it.
You are a boon to the Combat Mission Community. A real treasure.

Regards,

WineCape

 

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WineCape,

Always great to see you surface--however belatedly I noticed! You continue your tradition of recognizing great CM AARs. I believe the current CM community was greatly helped in its early days by your inspiring oenophile gifts to the near mythic CMx1 Invitational Tourney and the far better remembered RoW winners. And I was certainly inspired by your wholly unexpected wine gift for my, as you termed them, "excellent posts." Well do I remember the magnificent Springfield Estate Life from Stone Sauvignon Blanc with its distinct gunpowder note in the wonderful wine selection you so kindly sent me. How gloriously grog appropriate! Gunpowder! I need to go find some more. Can you recommend a specific year? Hope you and your still undefined-near-two-decades-later relative Charlize Theron are doing well.

Regards,

John Kettler

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On ‎21‎/‎05‎/‎2016 at 1:01 PM, Aragorn2002 said:

That reminds me of something I wanted to ask for a long time. Is it possible to upload this map, so it will be available to everyone?

It's the Noville Master Map cutdown - The village of Foy was cut off the East side and Vaux off the North side.

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