Any news on the Modern Wars Middle East Game..

[berto]

ORIGINAL: Crossroads

It was a dark and stormy night... [:D]

A new day dawns...

[berto]

Looking good for the Israelis:

[berto]

[ridiculous! for some reason, the Forum software is censoring this screenshot. now you see it, now you don't!]

[Hexagon]

Great, looks impresive but a little question, what represent the red/yellow stars/crosses in the images???

ORIGINAL: Crossroads...

[berto]

ORIGINAL: Hexagon

Great, looks impresive but a little question, what represent the red/yellow stars/crosses in the images???

The turn has just switched from night (dawn) to day. Those are 2D gun flashes. Shouldn't be there. Will be fixed.

Apart from the de facto AAR that this has developed into, I am doing this play through (a) for my own amusement (haven't actually played the game in over a month <cough cough>, been coding instead!), (b) to note remaining bugs and things to-do (see above), and (c) to demo to the player community that we have an actual game here. Coming soon!

[berto]

[trying again...]

A slugfest!

Those remaining Jordanian Objective hexes will be tough nuts to crack! If the Israelis can get there in time. Maybe just go for unit kills?

[berto]

Time -- and forces! -- are running out. Victory seems unlikely.

[berto]

The Israelis were inching close to a Minor Victory on kills, then ... a Jordanian counter-assault took back the Latrun Village 50-point objective hex!

There aren't enough Israelis on hand to retake the village. With so much Jordanian firepower in the vicinity, it's not worth the sacrifice.

This will end in a draw for sure.

[berto]

And so it ends, in a Draw as predicted.



A really hard fight. In RL, we might suppose that the Israelis are now positioned to besiege and starve out the Jordanian stronghold around Latrun. But maybe not, because they failed to take Deir Ayub, thus leaving them open to Jordanian counterattack from the northeast, or perhaps the south.

A useful exercise. Along the way, I've noted several things that need fixing, or tweaking.

Back to coding!

[Hexagon]

Thanks for the info, i see... well, when i see the red/yellow thing i think first in a feature to show the units that fire over enemy or were shoted by enemy (maybe from the bug is possible release a feature and you dont need use the used points thing).

I find fun the unknow infantry NATO icon... looks like a cactus [:D]

[Warhorse]

Desert Infantry![:D]

[Hexagon]

Desert infantry in close combat in a key point in enemy defensive deployment

[Warhorse]

NICE!![:D]

[berto]

To whet your appetites still more, here's a screenshot from another test game, Formalities in Suez (24 October, 1973), As_Suez_1973.scn:



I don't know if this will turn into another de facto AAR. We'll see what develops...

[berto]

Same scenario, same situation, 2D Extreme Zoom-Out View (hot key 7):



You will note that in Extreme Zoom-Out view, we no longer display unit info or unit icons on-counter; it's blank counters only. Extreme Zoom-Out view (both 2D & 3D) are intended for battle planning, not for actual game play. But you can move and fight exclusively in Extreme Zoom-Out mode if you really want to!

(The sharp-eyed among you will note a graphics glitch here and there, also the Opaque White "Hvy Pontoon (9)" labels in the map southeast. Like the rest of the labels, those two labels really should be Transparent Enhanced. It's a bug! Hence the playthroughs -- for both business and pleasure.)

[berto]

Uh oh. In 2D Zoom-Out view (hot key 6), unexpected guests from the northeast (circled in magenta):



(Do you detect a trend here? Do you begin to see where I very much like the new 2D views, and prefer to play the game that way?)

From the scenario briefing:

Behind the EgyptianThird Army, the city of Suez was thought to contain the supplies for the army. The Israeli's, having encircled the city from the west, after crossing the canal and penetrating south from Deservoir, created a task group based on tanks from Karen's 217th Brigade and Yoffe's Parachute Battalion to capture the city before the 7:00 AM ceasefire deadline. As Egyptian forces had been exiting the city and surrendering, Zakem and his tanks thought the mission would be a formality.

This was supposed to be a "formality", a mopping-up operation. I guess not! [X(]

[berto]

I think I can manage my flanks:



Must. Press. On to. Objectives at. Suq el Nimsa.

[berto]

Hey, this was supposed to be a walk in the park. Seems not:



HQ's got some splainin' to do.

Where's the IAF? They're a no-show in this scenario.

This is beginning to look like another draw.

[berto]

For you 3D guys, the situation around Suq el Nimsa:



The Israelis are taking heavy losses. This is becoming more trouble than it's worth.

[berto]

I'm almost ashamed to show this:



With the scenario only about half finished, I'm near Major Defeat. Against the A/I!

The last turn was particularly brutal, disastrous even. The Israelis are getting clobbered!

If you are wondering why, with so many Side B Egyptian SP Losses, the Side B Point Loss is so low -- it's because some of those losses are Civilians (on the map, "CIV"), hence killing them "earns" me negative points. Hard to ignore the Civilians, hard not to kill them, because in addition to getting in the way, they are belligerents, they take and occupy Objectives, they fight!

In Real Life, the Israelis expected an easy time of it. Just like the RL Israelis, I was too cocky, and plunged straight ahead.

There is no way I can expect to take those two 100-pt Objective hexes.

My right flank is in shambles. Nothing accomplished with little to show for my losses there.

I'll be fortunate to extricate myself with my force half intact.

Maybe if I pull back to As Suways, maybe if I attend to my flanks, maybe if I go for some easier kills (but not Civilians!) -- maybe I can salvage at least a Draw from this mess. Maybe. [X(]