Juju Posted January 7, 2001 Share Posted January 7, 2001 Recently I was browsing the CMHQ archives and stumbled on the "Classic Alpha Battle AAR." An interesting aspect comes up there, which has been on my mind a lot lately. In Steve's overall debriefing he tells about both players (Fionn and Martin) thinking repeatedly that they were losing/would lose. He also mentions the "fear" both players experience: ------------------------------------------- "The very cool thing to see from my neutral perspective was how much FEAR these guys had when things got rough. Seriously, both were totally depressed during these lows." ------------------------------------------- Now, I think we can all relate to THAT feeling. I sure experience it from time to time. Which brings me to my point: In what way is "Player Morale" crucial/important to making full use of your units and your own capabilities as a player? I've noticed that after losing a couple of PBEM's in a row, my own morale drops. In essence this means that I'm marching into the next battle with a heavy heart, and the feeling I'm going to lose, no matter what. I'm prone to being overcautious and indecisive and the loss of crucial units lowers my morale even more in those circumstances. Any field commander would find this a VERY dangerous development, I presume. On the other hand, when things do seem to go my way, there's this overpowering excitement, to the point where I will gleefully pursue and rout an enemy, in a bloodthirsty attempt to eliminate every last one of them. I tend to be more confident, more bold, more patient AND -probably the most important thing- I shrug off the loss of a couple of semi-crucial units early in a game in the firm believe that I WILL manage without them. Another point: In what way does taunting have an effect on us? An opponent's well placed suggestion of any piece of foggy info on your units could put some serious question marks on a proposed action if you're not very confident. Even better, a well placed "Aw ****" could fool an opponent into becoming more daring. In essence taunting is just another form of tactics (thrust, parry, dodge, spin, feint, KICK! ). So, how about you guys? How do you cope? Are there nerves of steel out there? Are the 'green' players more susceptible (probably spelt wrong, but hey) to 'panic' than some of you 'veterans?' How do YOU boost morale? Tell me your stories! Regards, Juju ------------------ I prefer an enemy who's willing to die for his country. That way both him and me have the same aim in mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Tom Posted January 7, 2001 Share Posted January 7, 2001 I used to be pretty good at fooling my enemy into a false sense of security, especially after he knocked out all my tanks The thing about CM, is, that you could wipe out 1/4 of your enemy with little/no loss at the beginning of the game and still loose. Taunting your enemy into believing that you are either stronger, or weaker than you actually are has and is an important strategy to get them to do what you want them to do. If you are really weak, just casually mention something about the difficulty of positioning large numbers of tanks, if you are fairly strong, start ranting about the poor amount of coverage of one platoon. This works very well for pre-made scenarios, where you have ZERO idea on the point composition of your enemies, let alone your own forces. Self confidence can backfire. Back when I stated you can still win with losing 1/4 of your forces is usually done when your opponent becomes too confident in their ability of destroying your forces 100%. Then they start getting sloppy (letting tanks wander too close to woods or buildings, moving groups without the ability to support one another, etc...). Taunting in an effective way in getting your opponent to be unnerved a bit. Even if it is blatant taunting, your opponent will always think that just maybe there is a little truth to it. Of course, it works both ways Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarmo Posted January 7, 2001 Share Posted January 7, 2001 Player morale has a crucial effect on the performance. When I "know" I can beat this guy, I'm capable of much bolder manuevers. But against some opponents I'm continuosly doubleguessing, questioning my actions. Almost to the point of paralyzis. Actually defeating myself. Of course, sometimes I win even these "desperate" ones. Much to my surprise. As for the taunting, not usually my style. (Well maybe a little. ) I prefer to not bluff, but rather be quite straightforward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berlichtingen Posted January 7, 2001 Share Posted January 7, 2001 If you break your opponents's personal morale, you will win. Lose your own morale, and you will lose. Its that simple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Michael emrys Posted January 8, 2001 Share Posted January 8, 2001 "I plan to cry a lot." --Jose Jimenez (Bill Dana) Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Tom Posted January 8, 2001 Share Posted January 8, 2001 Mockery is also a good way to either lull your opponent into a feeling of self security (ie. This guy mocks so bad he must really suck at CM too), or into a state of shock (ie. I can't believe he knew that about my mom, maybe he knows my CM battle plan?!?!). It is very effective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucero1148 Posted January 8, 2001 Share Posted January 8, 2001 Well I see 2 of my most recent opponents on this thread and I will agree with both of them. Taunts in a game is part of any psych war plus it is funny, especially if you can get the upper hand and make them eat their words! Some of my current opponents however don't say more than 2 words throughout the whole game and just send the game file. I find that more unnerving than reading blood thirsty taunts. For one I don't get any insight into how they think . Whether they'll be aggressive or cautious. In 2 games I'm playing now and possibly a 3rd one I was on the losing end, having lost troops, positionand my own morale. However by consolidatiing my forces and adapting a change of tactics suitable for the terrain and the forces at hand I was able to turn the tide where I am now with a distinct advantage and my opponent getting more than he bargained for. If I lost my nerve I doubt that I would have been able to fight back and turn a losing situation to a win or a draw. All best Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hnh3_cm Posted January 8, 2001 Share Posted January 8, 2001 anti-spam bump Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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