How much effort do you put into a BFC scenario before moving on?

[markshot]

Well, last time I played, I had the impression the Germans knew they were under attack when I took out the pillbox.

My only viable option given weapons and the situation was the back door and satchel charges.  Which means that I should be in about 20M.  So, possibly that was the trigger event.

[markshot]

I admit I am playing for the German attack.  I am going to kill the pillbox, but except for that team, everyone is deployed to face the counter attack Axis.  In reality given my current intel picture, a perimeter would be the more SOP thing to do.

[chuckdyke]

Is the pillbox your objective or an obstacle? Example Gettysburg. Did Lee have to attack the Union Army at Gettysburg? He could have attacked Washington and made the Union army waiting for him irrelevant. The Germans had 300000 men in Norway during WW2. Completely irrelevant the lack of oil cost them the war not the Iron Ore from Sweden. The allies attacked Germany instead. Look what the MG in the pillbox can do bypassing could be a viable option. 

[markshot]

My on map platoon begins out of LOS.  And they have a covered routed to objectives projected with heavy weapons:  HMG & AAA.

My reinforcements will be arriving such that if the pill box is not taken out they have no safe way to advance or cross sides (open field; a long open field).

I only have personal smoke grenades:  no arty or mortar smoke rounds.

That pillbox has to go!

---

Here is a funny thing about the ACW and Gettyburg.  As we know already, I was on the Panther Games team.  Dave and Paul were attending  a games convention on the West Coast, and then they had meetings out on the East Coast with the US military.  So, I, Bil and they met up at Gettysburg (kind of mid point drive).  Before that I had no interest in the ACW, but it was a couple of Australians who got me interested, and I have been playing ACW games ever since starting with SMA.  Go figure!

* Former member of Mad Minute Games and AGEOD; both developers of ACW games.

[markshot]

It is going as we speak.

FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!

[chuckdyke]

 

The world is full of Gettysburgs, the Russians went for Berlin and postwar superpower status. 25 years before that they were a basket case. The Germans had men all over the place example Norway just one of it. They all became irrelevant on VE-Day. Going to the game I always make my situation map. Orientation Compas is one of my peeves, point the needle in the right direction.

 

Edited May 28, 2021 by chuckdyke
forgot graphic

[markshot]

The counter attack is just getting organized.  So, they are coming again.  I don't know what trigger is, but I am as ready as I am ever going to be.

[Lethaface]

On 5/27/2021 at 2:54 PM, markshot said:

When I was starting my career, one of my managers wrote on my annual performance review, 'Mark does not tolerate short comings in others easily.'  She meant this as a negative in regards to my team interactions.

I wrote in the box next to it for my comments.  'Thank you.  Few really understand the value excellence.  I will NOT slack off.'

Recognizable. I too have learned that expecting the same qauality & quantity of others (who can't always deliver that) is bound to lead to friction and or disappointment.

Although you should always slack off to be able to keep surpassing expectations when it matters ;-).

 

On 5/25/2021 at 1:49 PM, markshot said:

I am kind of stuck, but even stuck admitting I am stuck. 

Generally, I assume all BFC included scenarios can be won; unless an engine has skewed the difficulty.

I used to beta, and I know we we did not do regression testing on everything.

On scenarios, for me it depends what I expect from the scenario / why I play it:

* A casual playthrough of a scenario, or just for immersion (RealTime can be fun for this): just play it out in one go and don't mind too much about winning / losing. If I win I win, if I lose I lose and that's fine.

* A determined play to beat the scenario with proper analysis, planning and tactics: Restart if necessary and or if I want to try out several approaches of a given problem, savescum. Another reason for save/load is when troops do things I didn't want them to do. I can't really remember much scenario's that required more than one restart to win, perhaps apart from some vignettes which are notoriously hard.

* Campaign play: depending on the campaign (Modern vs WW2, type of army) I can become a bit obsessed minimizing casualties and or the optimal way to achieve victory. So probably like determined play but more savescum/restarts if I don't like how things played out. However, if I feel I gave good orders and the troops behaved accordingly I'l usually accept the outcome and not restart or reload; casualties are a factor and the immersion of having to use units with prior casualties in further battles can be very rewarding imo. 

However determined CM play requires a lot of thinking and energy (in my case), so that's not always an option after a busy workday / week. 

[markshot]

I have concluded the reason the scenario is so long is because it revolves around the efficient use of mortars to take out heavy weapons.

So, you have scouting, spotter positioning, fire mission, kill confirmation ... this all takes time.

[markshot]

I must say and also I didn't expect was a active defense, but a very, very active defense as opposed to just a little maneuver.  That tore me apart on the first play through.

[chuckdyke]

1 hour ago, markshot said:

the efficient use of mortars to take out heavy weapons.

Be prepared, LOS with suspected positions? Call out your available mortar. Canceling a mission is easy, to wait for one when your troops are shot and blown to pieces is frustrating. Scout or probe the area of your strike and adjust or cancel when necessary. Trust the intel in the beginning of the game. You can strike anywhere later it takes a long time. Won a game with 50 or 60 105 mm HE left? I never do they are gone. 

Edited May 29, 2021 by chuckdyke

[Erwin]

5 hours ago, chuckdyke said:

Won a game with 50 or 60 105 mm HE left? I never do they are gone. 

In some of the best campaigns, one needs to worry about force and ammo conservation.  Even when playing a standalone scenario, I play like there will be a next battle or an enemy counterattack, so tend to conserve ammo.  

[chuckdyke]

1 minute ago, Erwin said:

n some of the best campaigns, one needs to worry about force and ammo conservation. 

You read the script naturally as they are your orders. But in a scenario? Use it or you lose it, is my motto. I conserve the life of my troops and artillery makes life a lot easier. You must understand the beast it looks impressive, but a heavy barrage is an overkill. I go for light on long on areas I want to deny to the enemy. I never use artillery alone, always with other units. Different players different methods.  

[womble]

Having some arty on a Harass, Minimum/minimal tubes, Maximum mission gives some highly responsive indirect HE at only a minute or two's notice for a good long time. I'm redoing Task Force Raff to get back onto the horse, and one of the 60mm mortars got 25 kills in one scenario... The AI's attack was broken before I even saw it; I thought the opfor had reduced strength units when they finally began to assault my positions, but realised at game end that no, they'd started the game full strength, but the mortar fire at "tentative contacts" had chopped them up like so much chum.

[Bulletpoint]

On 5/27/2021 at 2:54 PM, markshot said:

I will NOT slack off.

 

Must have slack...

[markshot]

Well, I am playing MIUS and CMBN alternating.

I like the OPs.

I know I have already screwed up this Barbarossa OP (Odintsov) as the Red Army.  I thought I would play for good ground and kill ratio.

A major blunder.  I should have been falling back as fast as I could (meaning Withdraw) as I will get a company of tanks.  But that precious infantry were their eyes.

So, I failed to see the big picture.

I like play like this ... that allows you to feel you made the right decision in a fire fight, but actually as a commander, you are an idiot! 

[Codreanu]

For individual scenarios I will give them one or maybe two attempts before moving on to the next with the intention of going back and beating them eventually but there's so much other content I haven't had the need to yet. I've never played a campaign to completion yet minus the two-parter Battle of Berlin one in FR because the longer ones seem pretty intimidating, but it seems fair to save before and after a mission just in case you work your way into a position where you've lost so many troops you can't proceed.