Forums

Gentlemen:

Could someone please tell me how to fire star shells? I've glanced through the "Player's Guide" but with no such luck.

Game Manual
Pages 72 and 73

5.23.2 Star Shells
In a Night scenario, both sides will usually be allotted a number of Star Shells. The number allotted to each side, if any, is listed in the Unit below “Smoke”. The number of Star Shells available to the phasing side is also displayed in the Status (to the right of the number of Smoke rounds available). If Fog of War is in effect, the number of Star Shells available for the opposing side is shown as a question mark (?).
A unit with an Attack Factor > 0 and at least 20 Action Points can attempt to fire a Star Shell during its Turn. Each attempt to fire a Star Shell costs 20 APs, regardless of success. Each attempt to fire a Star Shell has a 40% chance of success (this is decreased to 20% if the unit attempting to fire the Star Shell is Disrupted). Additionally, if a Leader is selected with a friendly unit trying to fire a Star Shell, he will improve that unit’s chance of successfully firing a Star Shell (a number equal to five times the Leader’s Command Rating is added to the base success rate). If used thusly, the Leader also has 20 APs deducted for each Star Shell attempt he is used for (whether successful or not). A Leader by himself cannot fire a Star Shell; he must be selected with an eligible friendly unit.
A Star Shell can be fired by selecting an eligible unit, ensuring that the program is in Fire Mode and, while depressing the Alt and Shift keys, right clicking in the target hex.
The range from the firing unit that a Star Shell can be fired is two hexes — unless the firing unit is using Indirect Fire, in which case it equals half (fractions rounded up) of the unit’s maximum range. Also, a Star Shell fired from an Indirect Fire unit is not delayed a Game Turn (unlike normal fire from such a unit). Once fired, the Star Shell has a 40% chance of landing in the intended target hex; otherwise, it will land in one of the six hexes adjacent to the intended target hex.
A Star Shell illuminates its hex and the six adjacent hexes. An illuminated hex is considered to be “in the LOS” of all units that would have a Line of Sight to it in a Daytime scenario (exception: An illuminated hex cannot be spotted or Direct Fired on beyond the scenario’s visibility limit). Illuminated hexes do not display the night-darkened pattern. Note that a just-placed Star Shell will not automatically reveal hidden enemy units in its illumination zone. Instead, it sheds enough light such that any unit that enters a location in its illumination zone is revealed if it is in Line of Sight of an enemy unit (taking into consideration the maximum visibility due to current weather conditions set for that scenario).
A Star Shell is removed at the start of the friendly Player Turn following the Game Turn in which it was placed.
________________________________



RR

Thank you Sir... :thumbs_up:

As usual, RR's response is johnny on the spot, professional and accurate.

Now I'll give you the short version....cross your fingers and pray to whatever gods of phosphorus you are on good terms with...(:O)

Starshells = chaos...failed shots...wasted APs....drifted illumination that lights up your side as often as theirs...
In other words...exactly what night combat was about...and historically accurate...

Regards.

Hey Reddog, just wanted to make sure you knew I was joking around with my above post.

On a more serious note, I'd say your best bet for starshells is to use your lighter artillery (75mm and below) first to attempt and get a starshell where you want it. With the halved range often as not they won't be able to get where you want them. Failing that, you can use the close up infantry units, and pay the 20 point fee each time you attempt. Eventually you will get your starshell. Most units don't fight effectively at night in any case so the wasted AP's really don't matter all that much.
Since they are subject to drift however...I am usually very careful about choosing my target hex...and will push it one further over the enemy positions I'm trying to light up if I know that one hex shorter will light up my own units.
THAT is a real problem...lighting up your own boys in a night fight...and is embaressing not to mention lethal.

I personally believe night scenarios would be more enjoyable if the designers supplied more starshell ammo. Night scenarios tend to be games of "blind man's bluff" where whoever has the most stacks wins by volume of fire. You spend a lot of time trying to get effective shots, what with halving for night effects, minimal range, etc, so those starshells become your best way to hurt the enemy. The more the merrier I say, and this is a plea to those miserly designers out there to lay in large supplies of willie pete...
Phosphorus....good stuff...

I wonder if the game could model spotlights?
Fixed positions, and ships of course, made heavy use of spotlights during night combat.

Regards,

Dan

Dan Caviness Wrote:I wonder if the game could model spotlights?
Fixed positions, and ships of course, made heavy use of spotlights during night combat.

Hey Dan:

I know that on the early morning hours of the first day of the Ardennes Offensive (Battle of the Bulge), the Germans used searchlights to provide "artificial lighting" for their advancing troops. The searchlights bounced their beams off the low hanging clouds to produce a twilight lumination.

I'm not sure how you model this into CS... maybe give stationary combat units a better percentage chance to call in starshells on the first turn? :chin:

In the case of advancing troops, any kind of searchlight lumination "advantage" would need to be limited, since friendly forces would quickly move beyond the effective light range of the searchlights... and I don't see searchlight trucks / trailers limbering up to keep pace with advancing combat troops. Searchlights in WWII were used primarily for detection and tracking of enemy aircraft at night.

Yeah Mike...I realize it's a stretch...it's just the old sailor in me trying to figure out how to get an Aldiss Lamp in the game...(:O)
Spotlights...like tracers...point both directions...and they would attract some deadly attention...

Regards,

Dan