Lone Star shopping Plaza by MikeyD

[DaveDash]

Anyone played this?

This is an evil evil evil evil mission.

For those of you who don't know, it's US Army Vs Marines. The Marines (Red) have holed up in a shopping complex and the terrain is completely in their favour

Has anyone managed to get a total victory with Red surrender?

SPOILERS

I can only beat the Red AI on this mission as blue with a 'Major' victory, but that involves killing the Red XO and taking hold of the Childrens center with my entire company. Even then my guys get pretty torn up.

It involves lots of wall blasting and taking out the auto store first, then around the back to the office blocks. With everyone. Assaulting the main structure in the middle is just suicidal.

Those automatic grenade launchers....

[MikeyD]

Thanks for the kind ("evil evil") words. And thanks for remind me of the scenario too! I had originally built that mall map way back around patch 1.08 and thought it would forever stay unplayable.

I haven't touched the scenario for awhile and just gave it it's first spin in v1.2. Omygod, what carnage! This is the game for those who always grouse about fighting a weak opponent. You've got to admit, though. Calling in airstrikes on a suburban Texas shopping mall is... cathartic

One interesting point. When I first built the map the mall complex's scale was considered 'outrageous'. A bit over a year later, acceptible-size building compounds in the Brit campaign are edging closer and closer to that size. Maybe not 91 interconnected buildings, but still closer.

[DaveDash]

Thanks for the kind ("evil evil") words. And thanks for remind me of the scenario too! I had originally built that mall map way back around patch 1.08 and thought it would forever stay unplayable.

I haven't touched the scenario for awhile and just gave it it's first spin in v1.2. Omygod, what carnage! This is the game for those who always grouse about fighting a weak opponent. You've got to admit, though. Calling in airstrikes on a suburban Texas shopping mall is... cathartic

One interesting point. When I first built the map the mall complex's scale was considered 'outrageous'. A bit over a year later, acceptible-size building compounds in the Brit campaign are edging closer and closer to that size. Maybe not 91 interconnected buildings, but still closer.

Just for sh*ts and g*ggles I gave myself a whole bunch of 155mm artillery, some F-15E's, 4 tanks (3 of which were promptly destroyed by pesky Javelins), and a couple more strykers, 4 hours, and STILL couldn't get a total victory. lol.

You reckon an airstrike on suburban Texas shopping mall is cathartic, you should see a battalion fire mission. Still, you'd be surprised to see what those Marines can survive!

[Sequoia]

One interesting point. When I first built the map the mall complex's scale was considered 'outrageous'. A bit over a year later, acceptible-size building compounds in the Brit campaign are edging closer and closer to that size. Maybe not 91 interconnected buildings, but still closer.

Is that because rendering has gotten better in game or because of hardware improvements?

[MikeyD]

Same old hardware. The game could always render the buildings. I think building compounds are getting bigger because the AI doesn't totally spaz out trying to move infantry through them anymore. Like I said, that map was made back around patch v1.08.

[ShaneO]

I was playing this against my housemate, over an extended period of time (a few turns whenever we're both in the house and think of it and aren't doing something else), and had to call it quits the other day when Brits came out and we both wanted to upgrade. But it was a foregone conclusion by then anyway - I was playing Army, and every single thing I'd tried had resulted in butchery. I just could not find a weak point in his defences. He reckons I could maybe have forced through toward the back (right, from my perspective) like I was trying, but I was getting torn up trying, and if I'd waited to bring in air support I was about to, he revealed as we ceased fire, get a squad of Marine engineers blast through the wall we were hiding behind to murder everyone.

Super-tough mission alright, but a load of fun, and the backstory actually adds a ton to it when you're trash-talking with your opponent.

[DaveDash]

I was playing this against my housemate, over an extended period of time (a few turns whenever we're both in the house and think of it and aren't doing something else), and had to call it quits the other day when Brits came out and we both wanted to upgrade. But it was a foregone conclusion by then anyway - I was playing Army, and every single thing I'd tried had resulted in butchery. I just could not find a weak point in his defences. He reckons I could maybe have forced through toward the back (right, from my perspective) like I was trying, but I was getting torn up trying, and if I'd waited to bring in air support I was about to, he revealed as we ceased fire, get a squad of Marine engineers blast through the wall we were hiding behind to murder everyone.

Super-tough mission alright, but a load of fun, and the backstory actually adds a ton to it when you're trash-talking with your opponent.

Step 1.

Blast through the walls on the far right of the map to get around the back. DO NOT run your guys over the little wall, blast another hole closeish to the L. You can funnel your guys through into the grassy back area without too many casualties this way, especially if you use lots of smoke. Move your entire company around the back.

Step 2.

Get ALL your dudes and line them up against the wall behind the back. Use one platoon that is behind the auto shop and blast some holes in the wall and take out the guys in the auto shop. Use another platoon for supporting fire. The third pulls security. I have found if you line up your squads on the little wall between the high wall and the auto shop, they have surprisingly good cover there.

Step 3.

Get ALL your dudes and go around the back, right around the back. Since you have taken out the guys in the auto shop, you won't take serious casualties. Avoid putting your guys in high places where they can get shot at, especially by those fvcking nasty grenade launchers.

Step 4.

Kill the XO

Step 5.

Cease-fire.

Not sure how effective this would be against a Human player... but it's worth a go.

You are basically in a straight up fight against the Marines, you are not going to win a 1:1, so the idea is to gain a 3:1 local advantage. Around the back offers the best cover and you can kill the juicy target which is the XO. Just hope a human player doesn't cotton on and run him away somewhere else.