Wargamer's Corner

Just started a write up of the Air Tutorial (which seems popular with folks) - I try to explain the process of creating form up points, and inactive empty missions, so you can schedule the air wing waves onto the target..

Part 1
http://sugarfreegamer.com/?p=83502

Part 2
http://sugarfreegamer.com/?p=83580

Being one of those old-school Harpooners looking for an updated system, I'd say CMANO is better on this release than Harpoon was, and I found the review optimistic that the issues will be solved by Christmas. They also noted correctly that if you're into detailed platforms and planning, this is your game. If you're looking for a lighter experience, it mentions some other games to try.

So I think it's a fair review.

Neat looking article (that some of you have probably read) on the history of Israel told through wargames.

I've played a bunch of games on this topic over the years, all of them interesting.

Flashpoint Campaigns: Red Storm has been released. The sequel to Flashpoint Campaigns: Germany.

http://wargamer.com/news/7992/press-...!

I'm torn on this. I like the topic, but the original left me quite cold. Too dry and, I dunno, clinical.

@Robear, well this one is a big leap in the evolution of the game engine. It's been refined and polished at every level. It's still heavy on tactical detail, but it plays a lot easier than the first game. Much more accessible. Easy to play, hard to master.

Here's my stab at the tutorial mission, running alongside the quick start guide, but its still been informative, in what can be brought to bear on the enemy. I think the word is 'ass', and I certainly brought a lot of ass down on those russkies!

Here's the state of play at the end of the Tutorial, the smoke screen/mines trap was very successful (using arty to drop scatter mines at key points, and then using more arty to fill the place with smoke - so that the Red Storm rolls over them blind), along with co-ordinated air strikes from my Tornado, plenty of followup neutrilising artillery barrages and a solid dose of tank ass! They never got any further than the neck of the forest.

IMAGE(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/spelkUK/fcrs-tutorial-map_zps66b2685d.jpg)

And the results, which I'm quite pleased about. A Decisive Success no less.

IMAGE(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/spelkUK/fcrs-tutorial-summary_zps54ab61e9.jpg)

And theres something grossly fascinating about a kill/loss table so detailed.

IMAGE(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/spelkUK/fcrs-tutorial-tco_zps716f7fb0.jpg)

I've dabbled with another scenario "A Time to Dance" set in 1989, where you have minimal US/NATO troops trying to stem the flow of the Red Tide, and it gets really tense, last stand situation. I've run the scenario several times now and I've yet to do anything other than lose big time. I think my problem seems to be spreading my firepower out to attempt to cover all Victory Point objectives. So I'm going to concentrate on one or two bridges, rather than cover a wide arc frontline, peashooting piecemeal at the hordes of red armour rolling in.

I like the way the new interface feels up to date. In fact if Command (CMANO) had a UI this tight and together I'd be a very happy grog indeed.

Now I'm going to have to buy a load of expensive military books on Modern(ish) Land Warfare! Any suggestions?

I've just finished my "blow up all the bridges" effort on the "A Time to Dance" scenario...

Here's the stage I got too just at the end of "turn 3"- where I've got the four bridges all blown, the fifth bridge far left needs another turn on it to complete the destruction.

IMAGE(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/spelkUK/fcrs-blown-bridges-a-time-to-dance_zps5e6d2fd5.jpg)

It seemed to go very well in the beginning, I stationed what firepower I could high up with as much cover as possible, and just let them take pot shots at the Russkies over the other side of the river. However, given enough time, they get some engineers up to the front and they created a new bridge and then started rolling their armour across. That's when it got tricky.

My best shout was to pull back into a defensive bundle, centered around the trees and hills and hope to survive what they threw at me. The good thing was that with the bridges out, they had to channel what they had through a small area to get to me, so I just heavily soiled that area with fire.

They eventually forged another bridge in the North, and pushed their way into the town, then flanked Northwards and got to my back quarter.

They didn't manage to secure the 3000 VP's hex on the far left ever! Which I think was partly due to having to run such a bottlenecked gauntlet at their re-made bridge.

In the end though, they pushed north and started to overwhelm me, dropping airstrikes on large stacks of my units (ouchy!). However, I held out, had plans to push hasty recon vehicles back into the VP hexes along the river, but sadly the mission ended and the scores were tallied. I think its the best yet for this scenario, but I still only managed 52%, a Contested Battle result. Two more percent and I would have eeked it over into a Marginal Success.

IMAGE(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/spelkUK/fcrs-stats-a-time-to-dance_zps023e158a.jpg)

Now I know they can make their own bridges, I'm going to have to work out how to stop that.

I took out 142 of the blighters though!

IMAGE(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/spelkUK/fcrs-losses-a-time-to-dance_zps57061dd8.jpg)

Here's how it was left. I'd managed to destroy the Northern invasion force, and was about to begin a desperate run back east to take those unguarded VP hexes. A little more time, I might have done it!

IMAGE(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/spelkUK/fcrs-map-a-time-to-dance_zps5f45f94d.jpg)

Very moreish planning and watching it play out, shouting at my hummers "blow the damn bridges NOW!", and my surprise when the Russkies forged the river and started rolling down the roads! Every loss is a blow, taken personally. And when they'd knobbled my only Arty unit, there was a cry of despair! Bloody good jolly japes this is, really enjoying the game!

That does look better than I remembered. Okay, it's on the next paycheck list. Thanks Spelk!

"In the battle of 'Tutorial Scenario'" is awesome. I almost expect to read "In the battle of 'Tutorial Scenario'" 120mm Nerf cannons were deployed to the zone known only as the Bouncy Ball Pit.

Strangeblades wrote:

"In the battle of 'Tutorial Scenario'" is awesome. I almost expect to read "In the battle of 'Tutorial Scenario'" 120mm Nerf cannons were deployed to the zone known only as the Bouncy Ball Pit. :)

Oh man, an extremely serious wargame with stuff like Nerf guns and bouncy ball pits would be AWESOME!

Kamakazi010654 wrote:
Strangeblades wrote:

"In the battle of 'Tutorial Scenario'" is awesome. I almost expect to read "In the battle of 'Tutorial Scenario'" 120mm Nerf cannons were deployed to the zone known only as the Bouncy Ball Pit. :)

Oh man, an extremely serious wargame with stuff like Nerf guns and bouncy ball pits would be AWESOME!

AFAIK, it's VERY moddable. So this could be on the cards. It just needs someone with the abilities to put it together, and provide soft drinks for the interval

So, I've been waiting to get my bonus to pre-order CMBN: Market Garden, and today I decided to plunk down my money. The pre-order is only for the download + physical version, but it's $10 off, so that's okay. That takes it from $55 to $45 ($35 + $10 shipping). That's cool.

So I got the pre-order price, finished the order, and checked my email. The confirmation came in... Along with a working download link! Apparently, the game is in stealth release, and they have not yet updated the store. So if you want it now, at the pre-order price, get typing.

Couple of big changes in Market Garden. Tanks and other armored vehicles are now more disadvantaged in urban environments. If they are targeting someone above them, nearby (ie, trying to crank the gun barrel up to the limits), their aiming time is greatly increased. The same effect applies in trying to target infantry in the immediate environment of the tank, heh heh. Also, buttoned up tanks have less sighting ability than they did before, representing the inefficiency of vision slits and periscopes. And panzerfausts and similar weapons can now be fired within buildings, but with the risk that nearby infantry will be demoralized or injured by the backblast.

There are huge master maps, seven of them, from which scenario designers can cut maps to use in scenarios.

New units for the Brits and Germans include stuff you'd expect, like infantry, armoured infantry, parachute and glider units, pack howitzer units and that sort of thing. But there are also specialized ones, like companies made up of glider pilots, and German "School" battalions, and even Kriegsmarine naval infantry thrown into the fight. There are also lots of new tanks and armored vehicles on both sides, as well as new gear, like new rifles, mortars, etc. And there is a full array of anti-air weapons, including the famous Wirbelwind!

For scenario designers, there a bunch of new bridges, some very large, as well as Dutch style buildings and a "ditch lock" feature that lets you create ditches that can provide low elevation cover in the game, as well as new dirt paths.

Requires CMBN 2.0.

A Google Earth Battlefield Tour of the maps in Flashpoint Campaigns: Red Storm!
http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm...

Robear wrote:

Couple of big changes in Market Garden. Tanks and other armored vehicles are now more disadvantaged in urban environments. If they are targeting someone above them, nearby (ie, trying to crank the gun barrel up to the limits), their aiming time is greatly increased. The same effect applies in trying to target infantry in the immediate environment of the tank, heh heh. Also, buttoned up tanks have less sighting ability than they did before, representing the inefficiency of vision slits and periscopes. And panzerfausts and similar weapons can now be fired within buildings, but with the risk that nearby infantry will be demoralized or injured by the backblast.

There are huge master maps, seven of them, from which scenario designers can cut maps to use in scenarios.

New units for the Brits and Germans include stuff you'd expect, like infantry, armoured infantry, parachute and glider units, pack howitzer units and that sort of thing. But there are also specialized ones, like companies made up of glider pilots, and German "School" battalions, and even Kriegsmarine naval infantry thrown into the fight. There are also lots of new tanks and armored vehicles on both sides, as well as new gear, like new rifles, mortars, etc. And there is a full array of anti-air weapons, including the famous Wirbelwind!

For scenario designers, there a bunch of new bridges, some very large, as well as Dutch style buildings and a "ditch lock" feature that lets you create ditches that can provide low elevation cover in the game, as well as new dirt paths.

Requires CMBN 2.0.

Yummy!

Fantasy Kommander is out on Matrix Games. I picked up - pretty inexpensive. Graphics are dated, but I am seeing that the gameplay is pretty good. Turn based fantasy warfare weekend.

Thanks for the impressions on Flashpoint Campaigns: Red Storm, spelk. Don't have the time for it now, but it looks pretty compelling. Sounds like a meatier mission would make for a good blog post.

A bit of publicity as I have been involved in the development of the latest expansion for Battle Academy. They have announced the expansion and it is coming out.... well soon ...

Battle Academy is very much on the lighter side of wargaming, these are quick tactical battles but with enough realism to provide strategic depth. In this expansion there is a big focus on history fidelity, missions are varied and in general, I recommend the game in general for TB fans, it has been my top "underdog" for several years.

http://www.slitherine.com/games/ba_me

Thanks, Anyone. I think most of us know BA and like it. For those who haven't, if you like the Panzer General style turn-based games, this is a tactical game with a similar feel. It's surprisingly challenging and definitely fun.

I'm still working my way through the existing content, Anyone, there's quite a bit of it.

If you own BA you can sign up for the addon beta.

Matrix has the two latest Command Ops games on sale this week. Highway to the Reich is $15 and the Bulge game is $30 (both prices are for digital download only). These are *tremendous* games at an operational scale and well worth it at the price. I paid a lot more for the Bulge one and it has been entirely worth it to me.

Conflict of Heroes and it's expansion, Ghost Divisions, are on sale this week at Matrix. $30 for the pair (download). Great game, and the second standalone game in the series, CoH:Storms of Steel, will release Nov 20. It's about a little place called Prokhorovka, and a bigger place called Kursk, and the tanks that blew each other to bits in the area.

It's an excellent, often hard, tactical WWII game, turn-based with action points and cards that can provide special advantages for the players. A faithful rendition of the board game.

Robear wrote:

Conflict of Heroes and it's expansion, Ghost Divisions, are on sale this week at Matrix. $30 for the pair (download). Great game, and the second standalone game in the series, CoH:Storms of Steel, will release Nov 20. It's about a little place called Prokhorovka, and a bigger place called Kursk, and the tanks that blew each other to bits in the area.

It's an excellent, often hard, tactical WWII game, turn-based with action points and cards that can provide special advantages for the players. A faithful rendition of the board game.

Omg, this is great news! I love COH games (and can't wait for solitaire module for boardgame). I had no idea this was coming (even tho' I check Academy Games and their forum on Boardgame Geek). Thanks RobearGWJ! (I take it a digital DL at Matrix?)

Yep, just hit up matrixgames.com, it's on their front page.

Somewhat related to that, I picked up CoH: Awakening the Bear in board game version and love it. A friend and I have been playing through the scenarios in Memoir 44 (also in board game form), and as we're nearing the end of the scenario book we wanted something level or two more advanced and a bit less dependent on luck. We were recommended Conflict of Heroes and it turned out to be a great purchase. It's actually quite a bit more complex than Memoir 44 but much more satisfying in gameplay and tactics. (IMO)

Michael wrote:

Somewhat related to that, I picked up CoH: Awakening the Bear in board game version and love it. A friend and I have been playing through the scenarios in Memoir 44 (also in board game form), and as we're nearing the end of the scenario book we wanted something level or two more advanced and a bit less dependent on luck. We were recommended Conflict of Heroes and it turned out to be a great purchase. It's actually quite a bit more complex than Memoir 44 but much more satisfying in gameplay and tactics. (IMO)

AtB first or second edition?

I've owned CoH: Storms of Steel for over a year now (got for the same reason—enjoy M44 and wanted something more advanced in addition—and it has tanks), and have finally started learning the rules solo. I still love M44 and its rafts of expansions for a good time pushing plastic tanks around and going "Vrrrrrrrrm BOOM" with a friend of mine. But yeah, CoH adds a lot more factors—but not overwhelmingly so—to chew on while playing and after when going over what woulda/coulda/shoulda been.

Doesn't hurt that it's so good-looking too.

I have to admit that even though I have the boardgames, I love the computer version. Besides, I don't have a lot of people to actually play the tabletop version with.

Robear wrote:

I have to admit that even though I have the boardgames, I love the computer version. Besides, I don't have a lot of people to actually play the tabletop version with. :-)

I'm in the same boat. That is why I can't wait for the solo expansion. It's been delayed several times, but for good reasons. More material added and play testing. It should be great.

Btw, I agree that the CoH: AtB computer version is excellent. I've read over and over again how true to the boardgame it is. I just love it for it's simple mechanics, but really rich and deep play.

So on the 20th, you'll get tanks and more tanks!