Command Ops Highway to the Reich - It's Good to be Back ...

... To where all started. Panther Games' original game engine resembling what nowadays is one of the most exquisite war gaming experiences you can get, saw the light back in 2002 under the name Airborne Assault Red Devils Over Arnhem. I've just retrieved my copy of Red Devils from my cabinet and I can't help to marvel  how far Panther Games has come.

Command Ops Highway to the Reich is an expansion to the base game Battles from the Bulge, that takes advantage of all the goodies that during the recent years were introduced into Panther Games' war game engine. Command Ops Highway to the Reich now replaces Airborne Assault Highway to the Reich, which is now discontinued.

Achtung Panzer Operation Star - Quick Facts

I've missed Achtung Panzer Operation Star's release back in November. Not for lack of interest but because of the gaming backlog I have. Time to catch up, fellows.

Since it is a bit late to review this game and Operation Star is closely related to the previous highly acclaimed Kharkov 1943, this entry will be just a quick overview of what's new and better.

ArmA 2 Operation Arrowhead - Named Area of Interest "Viking" - An Inconvenient Combat Outpost

As part of the impending NATO invasion, my Czech team of special forces is tasked with developing ground truth intelligence plus organizing and training Takistani rebel forces in a location centered around a dilapidated enemy air force base (NAI Viking) of the Takistani Air Force.

The Takistani Army has increased its presence in the region and now they are putting pressure against the rebel forces. A reinforced company enemy force has been deployed and the works on combat outposts around the airbase are increasing. The combat outpost pictured above, north of the airbase overlooks the main avenues of approach to the airbase and is looking good for a baptism of fire.

This entry just to show you some pics of the (built from scratch with the editor) combat outpost before we try to blow it into oblivion ...

Combat Mission Battle for Normandy - Yet Another, Final Note on Combat Functions/Services and Weapon Systems

This is a continuation of a continuation ... I know, it's getting messy. This entry just to wrap it up, I promise. :)

Tigers Unleashed (HPS Simulations) - Review

A detailed, high fidelity simulation of WWII land combat … Are you ready for the real deal?

At the time of this writing, HPS Simulations’ Tigers Unleashed (TU) is the most detailed WWII tactical land combat simulation out there. This simulation is data heavy, versatile, highly scaleable and offers an enormous range for customization of weapon systems. A greatly improved offshoot of the Point of Attack 2 simulation, TU's topic is tactical combat in Poland (1939) and the Soviet Union (1941-1942).

ArmA 2 Operation Arrowhead - Bunkers with Improved Frontal Cover

Do you remember this old entry, where I was complaining about the lack of frontal cover in the stock bunkers? Well, it doesn't look pretty, but it is doable.

Side by side comparison of the stock bunker (left) and the modified bunker (right) with more frontal cover. I went a bit loco and added overhead cover to the modified bunker too.

Combat Mission Battle for Normandy - More Notes on Combat Functions/Services and Weapon Systems

This a continuation of a previous entry. The topic is how this Combat Mission scenario took me out of a cozy tactical mind frame of just simple fire and maneuver.

Germans hiding in ambush within a French village. Come on! Like the hedgerows were not hard enough to take these out from ...

The scenario: Bloody Dawn, by one of the great scenario designers Field Marshal Blucher
The game: Combat Mission Battle for Normandy

Spoiler Alert! Do not read if you are still going to play this scenario against the computer.

Mius '43 (John Tiller Software) - Soviet Phalanges Pushing Forward

In ancient warfare, the Greek hoplites deployed in tight formations called phalanges, which were eight or more ranks deep. The usefulness on the rear ranks is still a matter of scholarly debate, but many now believe that the rear ranks had a role beyond replenishing casualties in the front ranks. The "physical pushing match" school of thought believes that the rear ranks exerted so much pressure on the front ranks that the resulting shock action of the phalanx was, at least partially, a physical push forward.

I'm enjoying John Tiller's free demo for the Panzer Campaigns series. You can ask for it in this webpage. I recommend this fantastic graphics mod for a more complete enjoyment.

The demo features the Soviet offensive in the river Mius in July 1943. I'm not new to commanding a whole Soviet WWII front in an offensive against prepared German defenses. But I'm not getting any better!

Achtung Panzer Operation Star - Volokonovka 1942 - The Breeze of Summer and the Smell of Burnt Tank Hulls

Graviteam is on fire, fellows. After the release of the second installment in the highly acclaimed Achtung Panzer series (Operation Star), it's DLC after DLC and there is no other choice but to enjoy.

Volokonovka 1942 is new DLC to be released on 15Jan12. It's a new area of operations, with campaigns and missions during the summer of 1942.

Here are some screenshots of a quick battle where I fed Soviet tanks into the teeth of a German tank company defending in a reverse slope. The body and burnt hulls count was not pretty.

France '14 (HPS Simulations) - 20th Century Firepower, 19th Century Tactical Mobility

If you are about to start playing France '14, I'd recommend getting a good stomach for high casualties and lots of patience for your operations timetable.

The German XII Corps (grey counters at the right) advances towards Dinant. It's 8 o'clock of 22 August 1914.

These armies can kill wholesale, you just have to give them time to deploy.

Tigers Unleashed (HPS Simulations) - Gameplay Notes - What Killed Sonderkraftfahrzeug 251? The Blog Goes Into Battlefield Forensics!

In my latest entry, one of my German halftracks (SdKfz 251) was dispatched by an enemy 7.62 mm SMG firing from a wooded hill.

Bug? Oddball?

7.62 mm PPD SMG vs. German halftrack. Plot of detection time vs. distance in the sandbox mode.

Tigers Unleashed has a so-called "sandbox" mode in which the user can choose a firing unit and a target. The sandbox mode then shows the data for shots being fired from the firing unit and taking into consideration the distance, terrain, illumination, shadowing, even the angle of both units.

Combat Mission Battle for Normandy - A Note on Combat Functions/Services and Weapon Systems

After an intense week at work, I decided to relax with a Combat Mission scenario. It was an unusually warm winter Saturday morning in the US east coast ...

Half and hour later, my son found me in the war room (AKA my home office), all twisted in my armchair, cursing at the monitor, the coffee and Argentine pastries untouched and put well out the way.

The scenario: Bloody Dawn, by one of the great scenario designers Field Marshal Blucher
The game: Combat Mission Battle for Normandy

Spoiler Alert! Do not read if you are still going to play this scenario against the computer.

Steel Armor Blaze of War Features Both Sim and Wargame Traits

This entry is about something I forgot to mention before: in Steel Armor there is a turn-based interface where you can maneuver your tanks and troops pretty much in the way that we have seen in the beloved Achtung Panzer war games.

If as the result of your (or your enemies') maneuvers there is a contact there will be a tactical combat which is automatically resolved by the computer (tactical combat not involving your own tanks) or is fought by you in the 3D-tank-sim mode.

Tigers Unleashed (HPS Simulations) - Gameplay Notes - Close Combat at Position 877

Moving men under fire and detached from their leaders is a battle in itself.

The status of my only platoon of PzGr. and their waypoints. Note how they are heavily suppressed (window on top, status tab, current levels group). 

This is a continuation of the previous entry where I edited a battle from scratch. Quick refresh: a company-sized team of German PzIVs and PzGr. against a computer controlled Soviet infantry battalion reinforced with a company of AT guns. I have my PzGr. ready to take a foothold in the first enemy position. Do I?

Red Orchestra 2 - Random Tactical Observations on the Lone Warriors

More Red Orchestra 2, fellows ... I've got the bug in me now ...

These entries are written with a tongue in cheek spirit. I am no expert in online first person shooters and I get killed a lot. I am not criticizing, just trying to entice a healthy discussion. All screenshots in this entry from a multiplayer server I joined, got killed enough to be sent into the bleachers of shame and spectating. All online nicknames have been covered to protect the innocent.

Steel Armor Blaze of War - Soviet Combined Arms in Afghanistan

The game: Steel Armor Blaze of War
The scenario: quick battle, T-62 platoon (player) supporting armored infantry platoon vs mujahideen infantry (computer). The Soviet-Afghan War.

Armor, the decisive maneuver formation to be used in mass against NATO's best. Here used in penny packets against these barely fed fanatics. I am in command of a T-62 tank platoon, supporting Soviet infantry forces in a sweep operation.