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This may sound like a overly simple question, but can you reverse vehicles whilst still keeping the same facing direction. For example reversing a tank keeping your best armour facing the opposing forces rather than getting shot up the arse in a poorly armoured area?

Logic tells me that this would be possible but how to do it has escaped me so far

You'd think you could do this but you can't. You always end up showing the enemy yer bum. With predictable results:D

I guess the only answer would be to always attack!;)

It's an inherant flaw in the old SP code, it's unavoidable.

Hopefully should be implemented in Combat Leader.
In spwaw only thing you can do when in troubles (besides praying, of course )is popping smoke in front of you and then move back.
Remember some tanks are equipped with smoke discharger; in this case clicking on "D" key you'll pop a consistem quantity of smoke in the 3 hexes in front of your tank.

I think, but not completely sure it has been addressed in CL. I'll look in the private sector.

One thing that IS going for you - the hull turns in direction of movement, but the turret doesn't. So you still have a 50/50 chance the round will hit frontal turret armor. If your new hex position makes you hull down to the firer, then the only valid hits would be the front turret.

You can 'aim' your turret prior to moving by right-clicking on some hex in the direction you want the turret to point. This is really handy when you're approaching a side shot situation and want at least SOME of your better armor presented.

Some is better than none. :p

In the past Paul has resisted calls for a reverse gear in SPWaW saying that tanks just did not drive in revese for tens of yards. Given that the smallest CL scale is 16.7m per hex, perhaps he will reconsider.

Personnally I've served in a tank battalion and I know that tanks reverse often. Its just a question of how far. I also know how hard it is to reverse when you can't see what is behind you. If reverse gear is allowed (& I think it should be), it should be very slow and have a higher chance of short periods of immobilization due to the crew hitting things, running into ditches, etc.then pausing to see what they really hit.

The problem with reverse movement is players ask for it on the grounds of "realism" but if given it will use it totally unrealistically to "retire by prolong" like horse artillery...

Yes tanks reverse all the time, but typically in adminsitrative movement (Ie not under fire) for any thing near the typical hex size.

In the current game if you are adjacent to an obstacle that breaks LOS, you can AUTOMATICALLY in your turn "duck behind it" with ZERO chance that the enemy can do anything about it.

So in essence you can "reverse" out of trouble much more effectively than in real life. This will eventually be addressed.

IIRC in CL right now in "creep" stance you can move either forward or backward - without changing facing. But you have to be unbuttoned to do so (move to the rear arc).

Players will find vehicel movement SEVERELY curtailed in CL. Particularly for vehicles with high ground pressure. The worse the trafficability of the ground and the higher your ground pressure the more "random" the movement point cost for entering a hex will be - and if a slope is over 15 or 20 degrees, don't try driving ACROSS the face of it... (sung to the tune of Paul Simon "slip-sliding away" )

Weren't some models of German armored cars equipped with a forward and a reverse driving position, and a range of 'reverse' gears in order to bug out quickly?

Originally posted by Seagull
Weren't some models of German armored cars equipped with a forward and a reverse driving position, and a range of 'reverse' gears in order to bug out quickly?

Yes, the SdKfz 234 had a reverse driving position. Not sure if all variants had it, but at least the 234/2 8-rad Puma. Practical in streets, if you had no place to turn around quickly.

Ofcourse that hideous Polizei-Panzerkampfwagen ADGZ (M35 mittlere Panzerwagen) sported double driving positions - it even looks like two front ends welded together! :p

When my tanks stumble into an untenable situation, I pop the smoke dischargers (D key) to cover my rear, and turn away.

Easy8 - an Easy8's best weapons are his smoke dischargers and a radio;)

Oops!

Resisti already said it -
"Hopefully should be implemented in Combat Leader.
In spwaw only thing you can do when in troubles (besides praying, of course )is popping smoke in front of you and then move back.
Remember some tanks are equipped with smoke discharger; in this case clicking on "D" key you'll pop a consistem quantity of smoke in the 3 hexes in front of your tank."

I really should read the entire thread before posting.

Easy8 - An Easy8 is redundant;)

Originally posted by Easy8
When my tanks stumble into an untenable situation, I pop the smoke dischargers (D key) to cover my rear, and turn away.

Easy8 - an Easy8's best weapons are his smoke dischargers and a radio;)

And four other Easy8 targets :p

Smoke to hide
The radio to call in the Jabos:eek:

Easy8 - An Easy8 appreciates air superiority

Many thanks for everybodiys input. It has finally put to bed a frustration that I had thought I was tantalisingly close to solving! it seems not to be.

The idea of limited reverse movt with a greater short duration immobilisations seems good. Allows a little risk assessment by the player in the situation, because popping smoke when the opposing T34/85 is in an adjacent hex does not help!