First Effort Scenario -- Jumbo

[Chief]

I just saw my first effort at scenario design posted on the Combat Mission HQ website. It's title is "Jumbo" and its subject is the American push west in the Lorraine in November of 1944. I'd appreciate feedback from any hearty souls who play it. If you're playing solo, I suggest taking the Americans against the AI.

[jasoncawley@ameritech.net]

I tried it. I can give you a full AAR, but I don't have your email. I don't want to give too much away for others who may wish to play it, but I can give some comments here.

I had no problem winning first time with the Americans, but I did have to use a sensible plan to get that result. There are some tweaks and suggestions possible for the default German set-up. I thought a few of the quality ratings were overdone, but that did not have all that much real effect. The German force mix is also perhaps tweakable.

My biggest quibble is with the map. The main features of it are fine, and present an interesting tactical problem, but the rest of it feels too empty and bare. There should be more "extraneous" detail, more random hedges and small patches of brush and scattered trees. As it is, the action is a bit too channeled to obviously important terrain features, and there aren't enough possible enemy locations to worry about. You don't have to break up the long lanes of fire to do this. Hedges around some of the grain fields, brush in areas of low ground, etc, would make a difference, visually and tactically.

Also, the briefing is long on overview of the operational level, but short to non-existent on tactical briefing and "sit-rep" type intelligence. The U.S. briefing should include an overview of the force actually present in the scenario, and something about the scale of enemy forces expected, even if that something is just "you are on 'point', nothing more is known".

All of that said, it was an enjoyable scenario. I felt that I had to make full use of my assets to succeed and to keep my own losses down to levels I personally find acceptable (against the AI I mean). There was plenty of room to get it wrong and get burned.

If you email me with your own addie, I will give you a detailed AAR, where it won't spoil it for anyone else.