Let's Play Steel Panthers Main Battle Tank: interactive version! - Games

I read some of the tutorial, but I thought since I've played similiar hexed based shit it wouldn't be insanely hard to pick up, but it's just overwhelming.

[QUOTE=zakedodead;27725784]I read some of the tutorial, but I thought since I've played similiar hexed based shit it wouldn't be insanely hard to pick up, but it's just overwhelming.[/QUOTE] Reading the manual is a must. You will be completely lost without it. Once you get it, though, you've got it. @Tac Error: Good post. Orders stand, for now. Just a question: is my infantry platoon motorized? I ask because I see some jeeps and trucks lingering in the back there.

Either play small 20x20 random battles first or look for some of the smaller-sized scenarios. It's best to start small and build up from there. [editline]28th January 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=hurts;27725831]Reading the manual is a must. You will be completely lost without it. Once you get it, though, you've got it. @Tac Error: Good post. Orders stand, for now. Just a question: is my infantry platoon motorized? I ask because I see some jeeps and trucks lingering in the back there.[/QUOTE] Nope, those jeeps are part of the company fire support section and are armed with recoilless rifles. The trucks are transportation for the 4.2 inch mortars so they don't have to walk to the next firing position if they have to redeploy.

[QUOTE=Tac Error;27725842]Either play small 20x20 random battles first or look for some of the smaller-sized scenarios. It's best to start small and build up from there. [editline]28th January 2011[/editline] Nope, those jeeps are part of the company fire support section and are armed with recoilless rifles. The trucks are transportation for the 4.2 inch mortars so they don't have to walk to the next firing position if they have to redeploy.[/QUOTE] Ahh, okay. Good to know.

[QUOTE=Tac Error;27721490]Do you mean at the end of the second bridge or at the place where the first bridge begins?[/QUOTE]I should have been more specific when I said advance to the first part to the bridge, my apologies. That way Hurt's forces could at least catch up with me. Also would like it if my name was simply Kamikaze, it looks strange at kamikaze470. :v:

By the way Tac Error do you have Combat Mission Shock Force?

[QUOTE=JaegerMonster;27733434]By the way Tac Error do you have Combat Mission Shock Force?[/QUOTE] No. IMO I think that Battlefront made a poor decision in diving into the post-Cold War era of regional conflicts and terrorism. Super hi-tech BLUFOR vs. sorta third-rate REDFOR simply isn't my thing and they still haven't fixed the goddamn camera system. It would have been better if they did something like Combat Mission Fulda Gap or Combat Mission Golan Heights. I have higher hopes with Normandy though and I plan on getting that.

Tanks will remain as they are until the infantry squads can catch up.

[QUOTE=kamikaze470;27747319]Tanks will remain as they are until the infantry squads can catch up.[/QUOTE] I feel like that might be a bad idea. As we all know, tanks tied down with infantry make for excellent artillery targets. Not sure how many (or how heavy they are) guns the NVA has, but better safe than sorry, right? It's okay if my infantry are lagging a bit behind. If we're ambushed, you ought to be able to send one tank to double back and help us and have it get there that turn.

Noted, the tanks will ignore the last order and continue to advance to the other side of the bridge while on the look out for enemy troop movements that might enter their view.

[QUOTE=kamikaze470;27761956]Noted, the tanks will ignore the last order and continue to advance to the other side of the bridge while on the look out for enemy troop movements that might enter their view.[/QUOTE] Including the platoon reserve?

If I have played People's General and Panzer General, should I have easier time learning to play this game? The mechanics are pretty familiar and I completely understand what's going on

[QUOTE=Raiskauskone V2;27762741]If I have played People's General and Panzer General, should I have easier time learning to play this game? The mechanics are pretty familiar and I completely understand what's going on[/QUOTE] I guess so. Tactical-level considerations like the use of smoke, unit facing (armored units in particular) and suppression are some of the factors that are introduced moving from operational level to tactics.

[QUOTE=Tac Error;27762675]Including the platoon reserve?[/QUOTE]Move them up a further bit, yes.

Hmm, seems like a cool game. I will definately play this tonight or sometime tommorow

[b]Good Morning Vietnam - Turn 2 - US Army[/b] [img]http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/2193/campaign037.png[/img] In the southern sector, Zocom and 3rd Platoon continue to advance to contact on the southmost objective cluster. No contact with VC forces yet though I must admit that we should’ve purchased some scout teams in order to properly conduct small-scale tactical maneuver. [img]http://img827.imageshack.us/img827/3476/campaign038.png[/img] Kamikaze’s M48s move up to the other side of the bridge, only 400 meters away from the northern objective. However, hurts’ 1st Platoon has to revert to column formation to cross the bridge while the platoon MG team still needs to wade through another few hexes of rough terrain before they can deploy in a good firing position. [b]Good Morning Vietnam - Turn 2 - Vietcong[/b] [img]http://img695.imageshack.us/img695/7683/campaign039.png[/img] Still nothing for the VC yet, but the last of our turn 0 artillery fires drop their load.

Give me a overview of the area ahead of me, please.

[img]http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/6743/campaign040.png[/img] [editline]30th January 2011[/editline] Also, added the OPFOR Battle Book and a Soviet Army Studies Office paper to the OP. They should prove useful when commanding a Soviet or Warsaw Pact force in the game. They don't paint the picture that the Russians are dumb, inflexible, ignores casualties, and slow to react which is how countless pieces of media have depicted them for so long.

Two M48's take the hill to the north, facing the bridge farther down the path. Don't move too close to the points because I know how much the AI [i]loves[/i] to bomb the objectives from time to time. The last will sandvich itself between the Northern and Southern objectives. As for the reserve unit; position them where the leading tanks have been beforehand.

[b]Good Morning Vietnam - Turn 3 - US Army[/b] [img]http://img194.imageshack.us/img194/7365/campaign041.png[/img] [img]http://img683.imageshack.us/img683/1756/campaign042.png[/img] In the northern sector kamikaze’s tanks forming the first echelon begin to deploy near the objective area. hurts’ 1st Platoon continues to advance behind the tank platoon reserve while one of his squads and his machine gun team have settled down in their overwatch positions securing 1st Platoon’s flanks. [b]Good Morning Vietnam - Turn 3 - Vietcong[/b] [img]http://img585.imageshack.us/img585/8535/campaign043.png[/img] No contact from the enemy yet, but you can bet they’re all hiding under that vegetation in droves. [img]http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/2630/campaign044.png[/img] Oh wait, scrolling down to the south it looks like our 203 mm fires have knocked out a VC mortar! [img]http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/1328/campaign045.png[/img] In Soviet doctrine an infantry mortar like this would have been utilized at the battalion or even company level. Such a weapon wouldn’t hurt our tanks but are pretty effective in pinning down our unmechanized infantrymen.

Looking good so far. In the event of an ambush on the bridge (unlikely) my orders are to continue moving to the other side of the bridge, disregarding losses. Getting caught on the bridge = death.

Getting caught on a bridge would lead to certain death, if you've got a lot of momentum or fire support push through hurts or if you're intending on keeping losses low pull back and try to requisition some 203 fire.

oh wow. I forgot about this game entirely. thank you so much -- I should probably learn how to use some of the key functions cause some of them never did make any sense a few years ago.

[QUOTE=Blitzkreig;27806059]Getting caught on a bridge would lead to certain death, if you've got a lot of momentum or fire support push through hurts or if you're intending on keeping losses low pull back and try to requisition some 203 fire.[/QUOTE] Hence my orders.

Move the lone tank up one hex and the other two to cap two of the closet points.

[QUOTE=kamikaze470;27807857]Move the lone tank up one hex and the other two to cap two of the closet points.[/QUOTE] You have too many avatars.

[QUOTE=zakedodead;27821574]You have too many avatars.[/QUOTE]1, 186 avatars and counting.

[b]Good Morning Vietnam - Turn 4[/b] [img]http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/809/campaign046.png[/img] As the M48s move up to begin capping, the crews encounter some mud on the objective. Entering those hexes would mean the possibility of bogging down and there won't by any recovery vehicle to help them. However, infantry can certainly enter those hexes, but only at a reduction in mobility. Otherwise, it's been a quiet battle. No contact for the southern sector as well.

I'll move my infantry platoon up to capture the hexes so that Kamikaze's tanks don't get stuck. If we capture them uneventfully, I will also want to start to move my two covering teams up (the MG and the sniper team)

I'll order the reserve tank to move further down the road while still being concealed by the trees. The two other tanks will try to reverse their way out of the muddy hexes.