Probus' Head-to-Head (H2H) Etiquette to Reduce Problems with PBEM Gameplay

[A Canadian Cat]

19 hours ago, KGBoy said:

This is for Meeting Engagements only.

My thinking is you don't know the terrain so how can you plan TRPs without coordinates?

This exactly.

[A Canadian Cat]

20 hours ago, Probus said:

The etiquette is just to make sure you and your opponent are on the same page when you start a game.  So you would just say lets use the 'Probus etiquette' for this game except blasting approach avenues is OK.

Ah as a communication check list I can see the value. As a set of rules everyone should use I balk.

I totally agree that communication is a good thing.

[Probus]

19 hours ago, KGBoy said:

My thinking is you don't know the terrain so how can you plan TRPs without coordinates? You don't bomb towns because you don't want to kill town-folk. Both are 'realistic' considerations. 

Dumb question here. In real life (at least in situations in WWII) a TRP required the indirect arty to actually fire munitions at the TRP pre-battle to verify targeting.

First is that true?

Second, is that still true?  With GPS, do we even need TRPs anymore?

Third, what is the reasoning behind onboard units getting bonuses to hit when fighting around TRPs?

EDIT: Oh yeah, and with regards to killing townsfolk, that varies widely depending on the conflict and the nations involved.

Edited January 20, 2022 by Probus

[Redwolf]

Well, the major thing missing from CM TRPs is the ability to create them on the fly.

When FFE you should be able to register whatever you are firing at as a TRP to later return to. Like TacOps4 did.

[A Canadian Cat]

22 hours ago, Probus said:

Dumb question here. In real life (at least in situations in WWII) a TRP required the indirect arty to actually fire munitions at the TRP pre-battle to verify targeting.

First is that true?

My understanding is yes.

 

22 hours ago, Probus said:

Second, is that still true?  With GPS, do we even need TRPs anymore?

That I have no idea about.

 

22 hours ago, Probus said:

Third, what is the reasoning behind onboard units getting bonuses to hit when fighting around TRPs?

This is where TRPs get into an abstract territory. They don't do a perfect job for artillery since they would have to be set for each and every battery. In other words they would not be universal really. The lore is that they also represent setting up and ambush or a placement of an MG where you range the kill zone so your prepositioned men will be planning the ambush. I have not seen tests done that show small arm fire s more effective when directed at enemy units on or near a TRP.

TRPs have an abstraction to them that don't represent everything perfectly. Not having them though would be worse IMHO

[domfluff]

22 hours ago, Probus said:

Dumb question here. In real life (at least in situations in WWII) a TRP required the indirect arty to actually fire munitions at the TRP pre-battle to verify targeting.

First is that true?

Second, is that still true?  With GPS, do we even need TRPs anymore?

Third, what is the reasoning behind onboard units getting bonuses to hit when fighting around TRPs?

EDIT: Oh yeah, and with regards to killing townsfolk, that varies widely depending on the conflict and the nations involved.

So, my (limited) understanding:

1) A TRP is a pre-measured range, and some trigonometry. I imagine that it doesn't really matter how you measure that range, but the easiest and most accurate way would be to fire the thing pre-battle.

2) GPS does allow for pre-measured ranges, but with greater inaccuracy. You can target based on a grid reference and a computer, but they still teach the spotting cycle that CM demonstrates, even if it's not the first choice.

3) Pre-measuring the range allows you to (for example) get your sights aligned correctly. By default your sights might be set to 300m, so if you've premeasured the distance to a nearby ridgeline as 200m, and you're tasked with defending from that direction, then you can set your sights to 200m. That way, hitting is mostly lining the sights over the target.

Now, in CM there's some abstraction - CM can't know what you're intending to do with a given rifle platoon, so it has to give a bonus to everything that's firing in that area.