Michael Emrys Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 Good to know, but I guess I'd personally feel more comfortable sending off a couple of less 'valuable' halftracks for pure recon, and keep the best firepower at home. If the AC gets picked off by say an 88, no-one will know (unless they spot the smoke plume in 30 minutes!), and there goes the recce groups most powerful (and only) AC...First of all, I don't think the Germans used their big 8 rad ACs for the kind of patrol and observation I was describing. They had smaller, cheaper ACs for that kind of work (I'm guessing on this, but it is an educated guess...somewhat). If you were a Brit and you let an 88 get close enough to pop you, you probably deserved it. Except during the high heat of midday or during a sandstorm, sight lines in the desert were measured in miles. Moving vehicles raised a lot of dust that could be seen for miles and miles and miles. Terrain permitting, you parked your vehicle where it would be out of sight even from close by and observed from the ground. If possible, you allowed the enemy to pass by while you remained hidden. If they were coming straight at you, you already had identified your bug out route and were probably faster than anything they would send after you. The fact is, that system worked pretty well. The recce guys were there to provide information, not engage in gun battles. And if after that you got caught anyway, well...cést la guerre.Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kohlenklau Posted March 10, 2016 Share Posted March 10, 2016 <snip>I do love the 'wide angle' shot of the whole recce group hull down in the wadi; it really immerses you in the North Africa environment (I only just watched 'Sahara' (1943) a month ago for the first time!)."Sahara"...wow, I have it on DVD and have watched it dozens of times. My sons and I swap quotes back forth! I even have an unfinished CMBN campaign from years back based on that movie. ....20 August 1944, late afternoon, in the vicinity of the Falaise pocket, the hamlet of Ausson Baronet..."SARGE!", MSGT Joe Gunn could not only hear the fear in Jimmy's voice over the headset but the driver's tug at his leg told him something even more."This cement mixer won't start!" "Hey! Lay off that cement mixer stuff!", barked Gunn. Looking back at where the bridge had just been, Gunn couldn't see any movement around Greenstreet's burning Sherman. When the bridge blew, it wiped out the tank along with her Canadian crew. Up ahead, LT Lorre's Sherman was not burning but was dead nonetheless. "Kinda got us boxed in. Anyplace is healthier than here." "BAIL OUT!", ordered Gunn. "Cover us Jimmy! Waco, run and get Lorre's starter and make it snappy." Jimmy would cover them as they went to remove the starter from Lorre's sherman. Then they would high-tail it back to Lulubelle and get her started. "She's a good tank and a good tank with a full crew has a lot better chance than a bunch of men on foot."Sigh, so many ideas for projects, so little time....Glad we got Bud Backer! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 First of all, I don't think the Germans used their big 8 rad ACs for the kind of patrol and observation I was describing. They had smaller, cheaper ACs for that kind of work (I'm guessing on this, but it is an educated guess...somewhat).From my research, I believe you partially correct. There are a number of factors that complicate things, plus the design choices for the scenario.I will tackle the latter first: there should be two, not one heavy armoured cars. More often than not they operated in pairs. However, I didn't want to buy more than one for this CAAR, so they I could have more variety of kit to show readers.As to their use: the smaller armoured cars (largely replaced by the 250-series half tracks later in the war) were 4 wheelers and while having excellent road performance their cross county performance was much more limited. The 8-wheeled arrmoured cars had off road mobility considered comparable to tracked vehicles. This was more an issue on the Eastern front, but nonetheless, was going to be a factor anywhere there are no roads. The 8 wheelers were used for deep reconnaissance, typically 20-40km distance into enemy territory. At least this is what I gleaned from some first hand accounts I could find. I'm still digging. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 10, 2016 Author Share Posted March 10, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 (edited) Edited March 14, 2016 by Bud Backer 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Love the inclusion of the Bf-109. I am picking up a hint that he might be up to no good.Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baneman Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Really like the way you lowered the camera when he was "machine gunning the few who raised their heads" to show the height differential. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hank24 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Wow Bud, now you really got me hooked. Outstanding quality - the story and the pictures. I even saw that the rear part of a Krupp Protze is visible at its rear-view mirror. Never noticed that before. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Wow Bud, now you really got me hooked. Outstanding quality - the story and the pictures. I even saw that the rear part of a Krupp Protze is visible at its rear-view mirror. Never noticed that before.Angling to include that mirror and fitting it in the comic was about 2 hours work! I really wanted that in there, it's just an incredible part of the game that it includes little details like that. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Love the inclusion of the Bf-109. I am picking up a hint that he might be up to no good.MichaelBut have you figured out who that is? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Really like the way you lowered the camera when he was "machine gunning the few who raised their heads" to show the height differential.I'm finding it quite a challenge to show height differentials. I'm also having to use Zoom a lot to include both foreground and relevant details in the background. Every now and then I must zoom out so that the reader can see the true distances or else it seems both sides are 100m apart when in fact the distance between the armoured car and the trucks on the road is several hundred. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baneman Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 But have you figured out who that is? H-J himself 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 H-J himself Ding! ding! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 But have you figured out who that is? Of course. I had that figured out even before I read the blurb. I'm pretty sure I have seen that same photo before. And besides, who else would you single out for mention but the Star of Africa?Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bud Backer Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Of course. I had that figured out even before I read the blurb. I'm pretty sure I have seen that same photo before. And besides, who else would you single out for mention but the Star of Africa?MichaelI generally try to avoid including iconic characters because it opens the door to debates about historical accuracy, but it seemed the perfect place to do that here. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heinrich505 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Bud, Very cool. Another gem. You keep raising the bar. The blur effect works well where you blend the moving vehicles into the dust behind them. Saw that in the panel above the "Star of Afrika's" 109. I think the B & W works great for both the flashback and the perception of the heat/desert in general. I too am one of those who grew up seeing North Africa in black and white photos. It strikes a cord with us. Very well done.Heinrich505 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kohlenklau Posted March 12, 2016 Share Posted March 12, 2016 A couple Bofors rounds in the fuselage and we can rewrite a bit of history. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AttorneyAtWar Posted March 12, 2016 Share Posted March 12, 2016 Ah Marseille, I read "Star of Africa" and loved it, what an interesting guy!Its nice to see my favorite aircraft of World War 2 as well featured in an AAR! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kohlenklau Posted March 12, 2016 Share Posted March 12, 2016 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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