Hey there, i'd like some analysis please.

[Bridger]

I just recently picked up CMBO after readinga bout it in PCG. I'd heard about it before and even been to the site, but i never actually got it till the other day (i'm aware it wasn't on retail until recently).

So i played through the tutorial, read the manual cover to cover, and i still feel kind of...unchalanged by the AI. I'm not sure if i just learn fast or the computer sucks or the scenario i'm playing is easy on the side i'm playing?

I'm currently playing Operation Carentan V2 (what's the diff between V1 and V2?). As germans i've been able to knock out so many shermans it isn't funny! The AI drove 3 shermans 1 by 1 down a road into 2 panzershrecks waiting for them! Then in the next battle he's sending troops 1 by 1 into a killing zone of about 2 squads and an MG. They are getting whiped out every time. He's not pulling back and attacking from a different direction, just keeps sending them to the meat grinder. Finaly later on i notice that he's trying to flank me...with a morter and a machine gun? wtf? I easily destroy them both with a sharpshooter and a squad that's low on ammo!

Then i get reinforcements for the next battle including tanks. I'm dug into a forest that extends almost in an L shap to the road and another treeline. So i'm able to get a really great crossfire going and anytime his troops even try to stick their head up from the treeline it gets hit by some 6 squads and 3 HMG42s. Safe to say he didn't advance at all.

Then he finaly does something smart, he brings up 2 shermans and starts blasting the left flank of my line (and actually kills my panzershrek in a lucky first shot). He is *just* far enough back so that my AT gun can't hit him. Next comes the kicker. He's got an artilery spotter somewhere hidden and hidden *well*. He pours down artilery (first time i'd seen Artilery and not morters, it looks so sweet!) on my left flank in addition to the tank attack. He gets quite a few casualties and routs a few of my squads. I decide to cut my losses and pull back my left flank to a furhter wooded area. With no more targets, he sends his shermans up the road...and right into the line for my AT. 2 shots fired, 2 dead shermans.

So now i flank around to the right side with my reserve platoon, while i bring another reserve platoon up to reinforce the platoon that got hit by the aritlery on the left flank.

This whole time he's got infantry sitting in a forest way over to the left of the map. There's a small gap between hedgerows and he sends out a few units every 3 turns or so, they get shot up by 2 tanks i have stationed on either side of the gap and retreat.

Not once does he use this other infantry (must have been at least 2 platoons before my double morter fire racked through it) to support his failing right side. He just keeps sending them out "gee, i wonder if those tanks are gone yet." He doesn't even try to send them a different way.

By the end of this last battle, i had killed every single unit on the right side of the map, and still had his infantry pinned on the left side.

So what is it? Is this operation easy for axis? Is the AI pretty bad? (hoping to look into multiplayer soon). Maybe i just learnt really fast-like

[Elmar Bijlsma]

The achilles heel of just about every tactical/stategy game is that AI does not attack well. Attacks are seldom imaginative. CM is better then most[1] but still a push over for a defender that knows what he's doing. Try Carentan attacking, I think you'll find it a bit harder, even know you know the enemy's force composition. Wasn't the Carentan operation recommended as best played as Allies? If it is, now you know why.

[1] The Total War series is the best attacker I've seen so far and the only one I can remember beating CM in regards to attacking AI.

[Bridger]

Have you played Rise of Nations? It's a new RTS by the guy who made Civ II and Alpha Centarui (Brian Reynolds). It's got some of the best real time AI i've ever seen. In addition to it's ability to effectivly manage economy (most computers are very effiecient at that), it uses tactics and grand strategy. The AI will *never* attack in tiny units 1 at a time like you see in other games. It *always* brings a good sized army including seige and cavalry forces. He'll pull the general "seige the city and defend the seige, when the city falls, move in with army to claim it" strategy. Nothing fancy about it, but it generally works well.

Then he'll get real smart on you, and break up his army. He'll send a small deversionary force at the front lines, while his main army marches on your capitol! After attacking one place and failing, he might come in from another direction, or attack a different city all together. He won't fight to the death either. If you take out all his seige (thus, destroying his ability to capture your city quickly) he will cut his losses and pull back, only to attack 2 minutes later with reinforcements and new seige.

In fact, most people complain how difficult the "moderate" setting is, hehe. In fact, the computer doesn't even get any kind of handicap until the "tougher" setting. With moderate, he's actually holding back on you. Tough is the highest level before the computer starts cheating. He'll use spies to gain information on your troop composition, he'll build the correct counters for that composition, he'll ambush his cavalry and charge in from the right if you don't have scouts.

It's really a great game Don't get me wrong, after mastering the game, a tough AI can be beaten 90% of the time by a skilled player, but the average player will probably always struggle with a tough AI.

Anyways, back on topic. I figured the AI would be much better at defencive strategies, but the text recomended you play germany if it's the first time your playing the operation.

One more question, do foxholes only apear after the first setup of the day? Between dawn/day battles i didn't get any fox-holes

[ August 01, 2003, 04:50 AM: Message edited by: Bridger ]

[Beta1]

As stated the AI is a better defender than attacker but then thats cos attacking is generally harder. Try playing a few scenerios as an attacker - if you dont lose a few shermans to AT guns you didnt know were there I would be suprised!

You have to remember that if your playing with fog of war on then that affects the AI too - he drove the tanks onto the AT gun because it didnt know the AT gun was there.

Try playing humans, its a whole new game.

[Elmar Bijlsma]

Foxholes only appear on the first battle of the day. So after a night battle, you get a dawn battle where you can dig in during setup.

I would recommend playing humans aswell but for goodness sake play around with the game and it's units first. And even then, your first game is likely to be a horrendous arse kicking. I know mine was.

[Bridger]

I really would like to play a PBEM or TCP game against some other new players, but i have no idea what the standerd settings are, and i havn't learned all the units yet :\

Would you guys recommend a good operation to play next to help me see a variety of units? Or a number of operations covering many kinds?

Do multiplayer games usually play QB? operation? battle?

What about game type? Most common is ME? Assault? Advance?

[ August 01, 2003, 02:22 PM: Message edited by: Bridger ]

[Green Hornet]

Hi Bridger,

I'm glad you're enjoying the game and doing well. However, be sure to take note of the comment being posted. Defending against the A.I. is by far the easiest task in CMBO.

Definitely try attacking against the A.I., it should give you a more challenging experience.

Be sure you have full FOW turned on. Partial or no FOW really is only useful for just learning the basics of the game.

Turn detailed armor hits off. It makes it more difficult ( realistic ) to tell the correct status of enemy AFVs.

You can also give the computer various bonuses at teh beginning of the game that will beef up the level of difficuly a bit.

Finally, when you've decided thet A.I. is just no longer a formidable foe, you have two more options -

1) Play against a human opponent. For a real humbling experience, play against an experienced opponent.

2) Play against the A.I. using Franko's True Combat Rules.

Have fun.

[Green Hornet]

Originally posted by Bridger:

Do multiplayer games usually play QB? operation? battle?

What about game type? Most common is ME? Assault? Advance?

Most multiplayer games are either scenarios or QBs. The QB ME is very common if you strike up a ladder game. But attack/defend battles are played quite often as well. Assaults and probes seem to be very rare in my experience.

It really boils down to what you and you opponent want to play and agree on. Once you start getting some regular multiplayer buddies, you tend to start playing a variety of different battle types and operations since the QB ME with default settings starts to get a little stale rather quickly.