Questions of Combat

[Weather]

Howdy everyone!

I used to play Wact Am Rhine and Bridge Too Far a while ago so I was excited to get my hands on this new version which had been released on steam. Overall I really like it, the graphics are updated, the movement and pace of the game do not seem changed dramatically, but I have noticed a couple of interesting things happening on the field.

1) There is apparently a lack of a flee option, or the ability to just move your men off of the map. My first question is why this functionality was taken away and secondly how hard would it be to mod it back in? It really made the battles feel more dynamic.

2) What is up with German morale in this iteration of CC. I would understand if these guys were like Osttruppen or conscripts, but for the most part they are 12 SS Panzer division troops. Just yesterday I played a game where 7 of my opponents squads surrendered simply because they had lost armor support. Heck, one squad surrendered to an immobilized humber scout car they couldn't seem to kill, which leads me to the next point.... [X(] But again, I ask if there is any way to modify the troops morale inside the game files or settings.

3) Lack of effective anti-armor ability by for the German infantry, and I know that in the Normandy campaign, only roughly 9% of Allied tank casualties were a result of the Panzerfaust, but the Panzershreck was a mainstay of Panzergrenadier Infantry, why aren't they included in the platoons like a PIAT is for the British. I sometimes feel like the infantry is just there for the tanks and uber-accurate mortars to destroy.

I know a lot of this is kind of ranty, and I still enjoy this game, but these are just some of the gripes that I have had after about 40 hours of gameplay. If these issues are not easily patched or fixed I am willing to explore modifications or messing with the settings to help shape this game to my personal preferences.

Thanks,
-Sam

[Saturnian]

1) There is apparently a lack of a flee option, or the ability to just move your men off of the map. My first question is why this functionality was taken away and secondly how hard would it be to mod it back in? It really made the battles feel more dynamic.

2) What is up with German morale in this iteration of CC. I would understand if these guys were like Osttruppen or conscripts, but for the most part they are 12 SS Panzer division troops. Just yesterday I played a game where 7 of my opponents squads surrendered simply because they had lost armor support. Heck, one squad surrendered to an immobilized humber scout car they couldn't seem to kill, which leads me to the next point.... But again, I ask if there is any way to modify the troops morale inside the game files or settings.

3) Lack of effective anti-armor ability by for the German infantry, and I know that in the Normandy campaign, only roughly 9% of Allied tank casualties were a result of the Panzerfaust, but the Panzershreck was a mainstay of Panzergrenadier Infantry, why aren't they included in the platoons like a PIAT is for the British. I sometimes feel like the infantry is just there for the tanks and uber-accurate mortars to destroy.

I totally agree. Flee option has been gone for a long time but there is no reason for that. Many good things have been eliminated over the years for no real reason. The game is still very fun, but for whatever reason things are subtracted. Like kill counts for each soldier and medal counts just seem to disappear. you can't see cumulative kills for each soldier,for example, but you used to be able to.

Also whole battlegroups are destroyed because of one battle involving a small portion of men and frankly that doesn't even make sense but I think we all know that some of the logic is of Close Combat is screwy since it is Real-time strategic mixed with strategic overview map and those things DON'T mix well in terms of realism. at least not in this game. The logic "the group had nowhere to go and was forced to disband" is just absurd. Because ten units fought for 10 minutes a battle group of a thousand men disbands? how is that realistic? it isn't, let us face it!

You are totally right about the Panzerschrecks and panzerfausts. Playing as the Germans the British tanks very rarely are even close enough and if they are they spot the Germans before I have a chance to use them. And I never once, in the whole grand campaign, ever used a single Panzerschreck. A team of 2 men instead of a squad of 4+ or a tank? of course I will take the extra men and machine gun or tank over an overly vulnerable AT team that most likely won't even be used! But the Panzerschreck is barely ever even available in the first place.

Here is another weird thing about the game. What kind of game lets you modify your opponents battlegroup? That just seems cheesy to me, but if I don't modify the enemy battlegroup the battles will usually be too easy. In the future I'd just like a game where it feels like each battle is custom tailored to be challenging, putting obstacles in your way which there are many ways to overcome. But with an enemy force YOU get to choose and which sort of lingers in one area of the map for 20 minutes even on the offensive, the game just feels flat. I often ask myself "why am I wasting my time with this?" Since I can't flee I just watch the clock and wait it out. i'll even get up to make dinner as the enemy lingers around.

there are serious problems with the game because so much has been added and taken away and ignored and disregarded over the years and it is just chop suey now. Still a great game, but it is a cadaver and a fankenstein now and needs to be put down and replaced with a fresh new engine and simpler but more challenging gameplay.

sorry for my negativity but I needed to vent.

[STIENER]

thats the problem with the new way PITF and GWTC have with picking your squads and support troops. having to pick a panzershreak as support over a tank is rediculous. of course ur picking the tank. why after we complained in PITF that we didnt like this way of picking squads they still have it is.. well...just not listeneing to the players who buy your games. we wanted at least to have more support weapons included in the squads and it appears that didnt really happen...the allies got some but the germans didnt?? the faust and the shreaks are basic inf a/t for the premier german units at this time of the war and should have been included in some squads. painfull really.
the game is really made to be played H2H tho...the AI just isnt up to snuff......