Improve Your Tactics... CMBB Strategy Guide Announced and Available FOR SALE NOW!!!!!

[Ignus]

I had to think about this one for a little bit and after I purchased this manual, I realized I got a damn good deal. Even with the cost of shipping, most strat guides are 19.99 and only contain about 60-70 pages -- some more and some less. This contains roughly 300 pages with all kinds of relevant data that will literally save hours upon hours of surfing the net for what you're looking for. If you want to get down to it... Time is money and if it's gonna cost you 15.00 plus shipping to save many hours of investigating, then it's money well spent.

[Coffin 'Enry]

Originally posted by Ignus:

I had to think about this one for a little bit.....

Nah, I didn't need to think at all. I am so bloody useless at this game I need all the help I can get.

What does cause me to stop and think is that when I placed the order the message was that a confirmatory email would be sent shortly. Well 24 hours later and it hasn't arrived. Maybe they are nor being sent till the 13th for UK players maybe my order got lost. I'll just sit and worry, maybe more Laphroaig would help.

Worried of London

[Terrapin]

Originally posted by Coffin 'Enry:

when I placed the order the message was that a confirmatory email would be sent shortly. Well 24 hours later and it hasn't arrived.

Maybe it was a conscript server with no HQ unit around.

[HeadHunter]

I'll be placing an order this weekend after I get paid.

Heck, even if it contained just the "Ueseful Threads" compilation, cleaned up so as to be concise, I'd be glad to pay to have it in a portable format for those times I'm away from the computer.

And anything that will make me a better player is worth it - and given that I'm not a grog, I'm sure it will

[CMplayer]

Originally posted by Dirtweasle:

Who is Tom Walker and has anyone played him PBEM or TCP/IP? I mean does he know what he is about?

His name's Mark, not Tom. I've board wargamed against him using the Vassal engine/server and had a rockin' good time. I've never played CM with him, but we've talked about the game and I'm pretty sure he's been playing it since it came out, or just after. Hope this helps.

[CMplayer]

Originally posted by Hurricane:

So this guy is a total outsider, with no "inside" information whatsoever.

Depends what you mean by an 'outsider'. As far as I know he's been playing CM pretty much since it came out, has had access to beta testers, the designers etc, has published numerous other strategy guides, has designed beaucoup 'in the box' scenarios for wargames and is designing a tactical-level Vietnam game which, according to his self-promo blurb, is almost finished.

OTOH he's not a known assimiliated drone of the CM Borg. If you call that being an outsider, well okay, but that doesn't make him someone they just pulled in off the street because he knows how to string words together into complete sentences. In any case, the reviews will probably start arriving any day now.

[ December 11, 2002, 08:46 AM: Message edited by: CMplayer ]

[Firefly]

Originally posted by Coffin 'Enry:

What does cause me to stop and think is that when I placed the order the message was that a confirmatory email would be sent shortly. Well 24 hours later and it hasn't arrived. Maybe they are nor being sent till the 13th for UK players maybe my order got lost. I'll just sit and worry, maybe more Laphroaig would help.

Worried of London

I ordered from the UK too and got the confirmation immediately. Perhaps you should e-mail Battlefront and check your order went through OK.

[markwalker]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the discussion of my book. I must admit some of it makes me grin... especially the comments debating whether I actually played the game. A bit of background...

*Served 17 years in Navy SpecOps (EOD)

*Started gaming in mid-sixties with Tactics II and the original Gettysburg.

*Began writing about and designing games/scenarios in 1990.

* Authored published scenarios on ASL, MBT, IDF, Sands of War, Tanks!, Steel Panthers (including scenarios released with both SP1 and SP2), etc.

*Played and reviewed over one-hundred and fifty games in the last ten years, including just about every turn-based tactical game made.

*Started playing CMBO with the beta release. Subsequently reviewed the game for GameCenter.

*Started playing CMBB when the tanks were pink and the menus looked like CMBO, and continued playing till it was coming out my ears.

This isn’t a brag sheet, I just get tired of dealing with the “he’s a writer, not a gamer" syndrome. In short I have the experience and chops to put together a sound strategy guide. I hope that you all like it.

Now, on to the guide... if your name is Mad Matt you won't find a thing in the guide that you didn't already know. On the other hand if you are Cindy Lou Who, straight from a challenging game of Tomb Raider, you'll think this is the greatest tome of technique ever posted.

If you fall between Mad Matt and Cindy Lou, then so will the amount of new information that you glean from the guide. I think I've covered everything that you need to know to play CMBB well. The effects of leadership, reverse slope defense, forward defense, armor tactics, recon, infantry tactics, tips from the playtesters and designers, thousands of words on scenario design, etc, etc. Is everything in this book on the boards? I don't know, perhaps. But everything on the boards is not as well orgaized as this book.

Will some of the tactics seem basic to veterans? Perhaps. But those same tactics will be new information to many players. As we used to say in the Navy, "There's always 10%." For example, ten percent of the people who don't know a tactic or ten percent that will 'dis this book no matter what.

And the volumes of data will interest most anyone. I thought I detailed EVERY unit in the game, but BF says "majority" in their press release, so I may have missed some. To paraphrase Matt, It wasn't like I was sitting on my deck, sucking beer, and randomly deleting units from the table. It was an immense task, done "by hand" through the scenario editor. I apologize if I missed any.

So, that's the word on the strategy guide. Please feel free to ask questions. I'll answer what I can.

Best,

Mark

[ December 11, 2002, 08:48 AM: Message edited by: markwalker ]

[Holien]

Always good to hear straight from the horses mouth.

You just have to smile at some people and nod knowingly.

Cheers

P.s. I did not get a confirmation e-mail either. Is hall dig out the order number tonight from home and e-mail BFS.

H

[ December 11, 2002, 09:14 AM: Message edited by: Holien ]

[Terrapin]

And, hey, Mark's been registed on this forum for a year and a half, so I'm assuming he's been something of a lurker on this forum!

[Panzer Leader]

Hey Mark! Update your home-page! You don't even list your soon-to-be New York Times Bestseller!!!

[aka_tom_w]

*Served 17 years in Navy SpecOps (EOD)

OK then!

On that point alone it sounds like he is very qualified to comment on small arms tactics to me :confused:

NO?

-tom w

[Terrapin]

Anyone who has written a strategy guide for Alundra 2 is alright with me!

[Thin Red Line]

Ok, now i'm conviced to buy the book.

But i have a question : what is EOD ?

[CMplayer]

Originally posted by Thin Red Line:

Ok, now i'm conviced to buy the book.

But i have a question : what is EOD ?

Try this.

[ December 11, 2002, 10:21 AM: Message edited by: CMplayer ]

[Spook]

I thought of making up an earlier battery of questions for Moon (Martin) or some other BF rep to pose answers to. But now, with the author Mark Walker now providing commentary too, this should be of course open up to him too.

While some questions always persist amongst some CM vets like myself as to what ultimate "value" might be gained from this CMBB strategy guide, let me first add this perspective statement. Mark, producing a tome over 300 pages on just one game is no small feat, and I am very, VERY appreciate that you made the effort to do this for the CM wargaming community. Anything that expands gamer interest and participation in the CM system is a net gain to the CM market and its future development. Well done, sir.

And now, I will ask some basic questions for which I hope the answers will suffice for some CM gamers who are also curious.

1) While the web pages describing the CMBB strategy guide indicate the primary sections of the book, can a "breakout" be given as to how much that each section takes up? For example, how much do the primary contents (Parts 1-4) occupy as compared to the unit data charts?

2) With the data charts, are "Tables of Organization & Equipment" (TO&E) provided for higher formations within CM's scale, e.g., battalions and regiments, for the various nationalities? Such TO&E's, in print, might be of help to scenario designers to review before iterating on unit choices in the editor itself.

3) Central to choosing movement orders for infantry, in the expanded options of CMBB, is having some sense of the relative "speed" of each movement type, prorated by terrain and weather effects. (Of course, how the movement order choice can effect fatigue and morale are important too.) Does the strategy guide get into this enough for a CM gamer to gain some added discretion for what movement types to use in covering ground?

4) In regards to the armor & gun sections (under Part Two, Armor Tactics), do these relate enough detail as that a CM gamer can get a sense of effective "engagement ranges" for various ordnance types by given nationalities? After all, a key tactic of gunnery combat is knowing when to engage, and how far away. Are added factors like unit experience or optics types related in some quantifiable way?

Some of these queries may be asking more detail than seems appropriate from BF's view, while others may only be asking the obvious, but perhaps I am just shifting around perspectives between novice and veteran CM gamers. Anyway, whatever you or the BF members can answer would be appreciated.

[Abbott]

is designing a tactical-level Vietnam game which, according to his self-promo blurb, is almost finished.

Where may information on this be found?

[CavalryMan]

Originally posted by Thin Red Line:

Ok, now i'm conviced to buy the book.

But i have a question : what is EOD ?

Navy EOD is for people who find playing with unexploded bombs on dry land is too dull. They want to do it underwater in the cold, wet and dark whilst avoiding some of the floating contents of the water!

[Captain Wacky]

Originally posted by Thin Red Line:

Ok, now i'm conviced to buy the book.

But i have a question : what is EOD ?

He blew up things that were supposed to blow things up...underwater

[Dirtweasle]

Originally posted by markwalker:

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the discussion of my book. I must admit some of it makes me grin... especially the comments debating whether I actually played the game. A bit of background...

Thanks Mark, that pretty much answers me and secures an entry to the Christmas wish list!

[CMplayer]

Originally posted by Abbott:

is designing a tactical-level Vietnam game which, according to his self-promo blurb, is almost finished.

Where may information on this be found?

Shrapnel Games product page

FAQ

Hope this helps...

[markwalker]

Hi Everyone,

I'm not the greatest at pasting quotes, so I'll just type and I'm hope you all can sort it out.

I may have created the wrong impression. The Navy just HAS to be different. They call their EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) folks SpecOps. That doesn't mean they are throat slitters. That is left up to the SEALs, who are called SpecWar. When I retired, EOD was integrating with SpecWar. The idea was simple, SpecWar gets EOD to the bomb, EOD difusses it.

On the book. Yes, it was hard to write 300+ pages on a game, but CMBB deserves it. And to top it off, I didn't "do" it all. Martin provided great suggestions, Charles explained exactly what happens when that 20mm shell pierces the T-26 turret (it's in the book), Matt provided stuff from his site, Andreas, Dan Brown, Tim Orosz, and several others provided insight and words.

I don't have "hard copy" of the book in hand, so I can't give the page breakdown. Suffice to say the charts are significant. About 15-20% of the book, if I remember correctly.

No, there are no To&E's. Sorry, that would have been fun, but we were running out of room.

Yes, I'm put a small table in the book that delineates the relative speed of the new movement orders, and how much they tire the infantry carrying them out. I also discuss it a bit in the tactics.

In addition to weapons type, ground pressure, etc., the armor charts give armor thickness of hull and turret, F/S/R. Penetration for each gun is given for 100, 500, 1000, 2000 meters. So yeah, I think that it will help in developing tactics.

No problems with the queries. As the drunk fighter jock in Independence Day said, "Keep it coming."

Best,

Mark

[markwalker]

Hi Again,

My tactical boardgame system is titled Lock 'n Load. The first module is about Vietnam. The product homepage is http://www.locknloadgame.com .

There is a Lock 'n Load forum at Consimworld (www.consimworld.com) under Boardgaming>Individual Game or Series Discussions>Era: Contemporary>Lock 'n LOad.

I appreciate the interest, but I'd prefer talking about LnL at Consimworld. After all, this is Battlefront's forum. Fair enough?

Best,

Mark

[Spook]

Originally posted by markwalker:

I appreciate the interest, but I'd prefer talking about LnL at Consimworld. After all, this is Battlefront's forum. Fair enough?

Or, perhaps interested gamers in the BF forums can take it up in the "General" forum. After all, why should gamers wanting to discuss GI Combat over there have all the fun?

BTW, thanks for your replies. I think that I will soon be ordering the CMBB strategy guide too.

[markwalker]

Spook,

You are welcome. Thanks for the considerate way you posted your questions. I hope that you enjoy the book.

Best,

NMark