How do you plan a CM PBEM game?

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Lighthorse

Guest
Some PBEM game one does not know what the map/terrain like look like, thus purchasing forces is questionable. Some player thinks there a secret to pre-battle purchases that will guarantee success. Know do you prefer to purchases units for CM PBEM fight?

1. Purchase the same tactic group make-up as from earlier fight.
2. Purchase base on whom you're are fighting.
3. Keeping changing what you purchases to fool your opponent and yourself at time?
4. Try to purchase that will guarantee victory? A gamey force of arms, of King Tiger II, elite paratroopers, etc. that will totally out class that the other side will have. This is the main reason why Redwolf armor rules were made to counter.
5. Prefer purchasing whole Battalion and/or Regiment and/or tank platoons for that discount in volume you can get.
6. What I like is a balance force of infantry, armor, and support for any fight.
7. Or lastly, let be crazy and try something totally off the wall, just for the fun, knowing you will most likely lose.

Please pick your style and explain your reasons why please.


Side note;

Meeting engagements are mostly a race to the center to get there before your opponent...no real fun. But if you get to most of the victory flags, you then force your opponent to attack you.

Attacks are ok too, but not knowing what the terrain/map looks like, its difficulty to plan an effective defense. And good chance the attack will hug one flank as he trys to roll up your frontline on one flank.

Small size map guarantee no maneuver, but a shooting match.

This why I for one prefer a scenario and tournament matches in which the map and forces are already chosen for both sides.

Some of my thoughts on CM PBEM

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Lighthorse
 
None of the above.

I usually just let the AI pick my force by setting up a similar Q-Battle. Then I just look over what was selected and load up the real PBEM file. I then choose pretty much the forces that the AI picked with a little fine tuning to allow me some lift for guns ect. But overall, I think that I am able to replicate the AI pick so my force for the game is about90-95% what the AI had chosen.

The reason why,... I hate picking my forces. Too stressfull. I would rather let the AI pick and get on with the fighting. I find that when I pick my forces, I tend to want to play a certain style and I revert back into a boring(for me) set of units that do not really inspire me nor do they force me to think out of the box and come up with unique ways to both win and lose games. It might not be all that successful, but it is never boring. I get to play some units that I might never choose, plus it ups the challenge to play what you have been given. This is why I prefer scenarios over Q-Battles. In a scenario, you get a force handed to you and off you got to solve the situation presented by the enemy and your force's limitations.

I try to not play Q-Battles with a generic map. I like to make a map or let my opponent make one first, then pass the map file along with the game file so that both sides can take a look before forces are selected. Even though I let the AI pick for me, I still like to know what the map will look like beforehand. Plus, a little time invested into making a good map is worth it when you see the terrible maps that the AI makes most of the time. Tough to get immersed in the battle when the map is bad and you spend your time hating the map instead of enjoying the battle.
 
When I don't know what the map will look like, I go for standard OB I feel comfortable with, which is usually a mix. For 1500 pts I would say 1 Co Infantry, 2 or 3 tanks depending which ones and how much they cost, a couple of scout cars, 1 or 2 mortar obs ( or 1 obs + 1 mortar HT) and support ( Zooks/Schrecks if I think I will have to encounter AFVs, HMGs against infantry, 1 or 2 snipers, an AT gun from time to time for a change, a howitzer - towed or SP - to blow up houses if I know the map has a village/town.)

For the meeting engagements, I am not sure the "rush for the flags and hold them" is always the best strategy, except on small maps, but I usually never play on small maps. When your opponent rushes for the flags, you know where he is (and your arty also) ! I think part of the fun is knowing where your opponent is and not let him know where you are until late in the game when it is too late to reposition everything.

I also much prefer playing scenarios, specially historical or semi-historical. But I learned how to play the game with QBs against AI on defense (AI is no good for attack/ME) with random OBs picked by computer. I had to use all kinds of exotic stuff I never saw again !
 
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