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The Forbidden Motorcycle Subject


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I know motorcycles are not included in the game because, as the manual states, "to prevent them from being used in an ahistorical manner". Now it doesn't bother me that there are no motorcycles, but I'm curious; I assume the ahistorical manner would be to use them as scouts and spotters to find your opponents units. My question is, why would this be ahistorical? Is it because motorcycles didn't carry radios?

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IIRC from the old discussions, it was a consensus that they'd be so relatively cheap and easy to run around (suicidally of course) and that most they'd be used to more or less expose the entire enemy deployment in a quite unhistorical fashion. With Borg Spotting, motorcycle units could lay open the entire enemy force with little effort. Just not realistic. MC troops in actuality were highly vulnerable and not the best spotters unless stopped - making them even more vulnerable standing there on their mounts. Their real utility was as couriers, military policing and as early-war operational transportation.

If the next engine can get us away from Borg Spotting, perhaps we can see the MC troops finally implemented in the game in a historical fashion.

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I recall BFC considered motorcycle troops about on par with horse/ bicycle troops, in that the vehicles would've normally been ditched well back from the enemy before engaging. I even recall Matt even voicing a distain for trucks in the game(!) but I guess he was outvoted on that matter - trucks can at least be used for towing.

Adding motorcycles would probably do little more than giving you another easy target to shoot-up.

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Along with the motorcycles, horses would be pretty neat to see too. I read something about Russians charging German troops on horsback early in the war. That would be pretty "historical" if you ask me. And I have seen pictures of SS Recon troops on horseback. I know they weren't much of fighting units of coarse but Horses in WW2 played a major role.

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Tiger ace Carius got almost killed doing recce with a motorcycle. So maybe it could be included the same way: only available in combo with an elite Tiger and if you loose your recce motorcycle, your elite Tiger will loose its commander and its overall experience will be reduced to veteran...

:D

Marcus

****

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I would like to see them in the game.... same with horses. Could make for some great ambush scenarios and meeting engagements. I just created three battles involving Motorcycle Battalion 61 who was acting as the spearhead for the 11th Panzer Division between June 25 and 27th 1941 at Karlswalde and Ostrog. Having the MCs would have been a nice touch.

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