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Since I was that PBEM opponent, I think I have right to tell you my point of view. First of all, I'm sorry, if my poor English have tricked you somehow. If somehing remains unclear, I'd hope you'd ask first, before judging.
ORIGINAL: TokyoBoyTensai
I thought this game would be excellent for human vs human cause it isn't filled with cheesy exploits but alas... I learned the hard way this is not true.
Russia (me) vs Romanian cheese artist 1941
1500 points
After a struggle almost as long and grim as the fight for Stalingrad itself, I finally found someone who wanted to play a PBEM game. I was further astonished that not only did he want to play PBEM, but he even changed his multimod version and patch to match mine. Thankful for the offer and his efforts to make it happen, I requested a meeting engagement and agreed to his option settings but he snuck in one extra nasty twist without telling me. [:@] Already dark clouds were forming and vultures gathered.
He set the visibility to one (visibility 2 but all forest which reduced visibility to 1) with reduced spotting chance. Then he bought a company of flamethrower engineers, flame tanks and artillery. That is, nothing but flame and arty. [8|]
In 8.4 I usually play as spotting 80% on both sides. Spotting issue has been widely discussed in forums. however, in close distance it wouldn't change anything as far as I know. Forestry map was the first that the game randomly chose. I have no idea about what is the average Romanian-Soviet battle map.
About the visibility: Before the game in PM you suggested some messy weather. Then I suggested the visibility of 1 or 2, remember? I got no answer so I thought it was ok. Only after the game you said that you'd have liked more vis 6 to 8. So I think our thoughts were different.
Romanians don't have flametanks, you had them. My forces were: three companies of FT engineers (Romanian OOB has such of companies), two MGs of each companies changed to three tanks (R-2 and T-26), platoon of cavalry, 2x FO, 4x 81mm mortar, 6x 105mm FH, 2x Stuka + gun teams. So I chose the units according to the map, yes that's true. I thought you'd do so too, because in the buying screen you can see all the details of the battle. So if that's gamey, I'm sorry. I didn't knew that.
Anyways, I bought a mix of different infantry types, cavalry, AT guns, motorbikes, a scout car platoon and 2 sections of light tanks (one section flame) as I'm not a big user of armor.
Here's how the 'battle' went... I dropped paratroopers between him and the middle objectives of which a couple landed near his horde of flamers and they were barbequed as he went first. So i moved up my units to try and locate him over the next 4 turns and was continually ambushed and torched as I couldn't see anything at all. Apparently he wasn't moving any units at all and simply waited for me to get ambushed. I'm not a camper [>:] so I had to move. I managed to push his flamers back a ways but he used arty to take advantage of my inability to unsuppress my earlywar russian blokes. The pattern was... he camped, I got ambushed, he moved his flamers away, artied to suppress, then came back and finished off my units with more flame. Over and over. He lost some flamers due purely to the grit of my sooty troops but this is no way to conduct a battle.
Meeting engagement. Yes, I defended at first. Since you had most of the VHs I should have finally start to advance anyways. You should have only waited couple turns. Before that my tactic was to weaken the enemy. Then of course I use artillery to suppress before I attack. And that unability to rally -problem is still in 1941 bigger problem in Romanian side. Tell me if I'm wrong but isn't that pure tactic?
He seemed to be enjoying it as his emails were full of bragging. On turn 4, I told him I was quitting cause the game was so unrealistic with nothing but flamethrowers and blindness and he actually wanted to play me again. I told him to find a mouse to play with who can enjoy his cheese.
Actually I never get that last post. My habit is to use some rhetorics and try to be 'Romanian' in the battle. If that confused or hurt you, I'm really sorry. My intention was not that but made it fun to both of us. And 'full of bragging' goes anyways way too far, I think. I'm also sorry if my English made me look like that.
I suggested another game because that was something you had suggested in the PMs before the first battle. And I wanted to correct the things you thought were wrong in my unit selection, visibility and the map the game chose. Before the PBEM we all have different expectations and that's why it's important to try to discuss as much as possible beforehand. And I really tried.
With no one responding to my pbem thread and more than a little disappointed with this exploit used against me, I decided to hang up my PBEM gloves and stick to single player. Many thanks to Wild Bill for providing fun, challenging battles to make up for the total lack of human opponents for this game. [&o]
If you are disapointted in me, don't take it as a disappointment to PBEM. Find another opponent and go for it.
Ps. I never replay my turns. This is offending. My units as well as your units didn't assault due to lack of exp and morale.
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I’m not an experienced PBEM’er. Maybe average/mediocore. I’m still learning and naturally making some mistakes. I had no idea about these thoughts of TBT before I read this. Was I really gamey?
And yes, I do hate cheating too.
TBT: In your next PBEM, ask your opponent before judging him/her.
