Panzer Battles 111

[jimcrowley]

It seems a very long time since we last have heard anything about this.

Anything?

Cheers

Jim

[Strela]

It seems a very long time since we last have heard anything about this.

Anything?

Cheers

Jim

Patience!

We wanted to clear the East Front Panzer Campaign Gold updates out and then post an update on this title.

Expect more info in the next month.

David

[Xaver]

I dont know if you notice it but in Tiller web is a survey based in PzB, is very complete and show that you guys have an open mind for serie or series 

The problem i see is you cant rate 2 options for future PzB with same value and maybe is to focus in say one period-front but not with option to add "if".

For example i prefer see next PzB covering east front over west BUT only if is a title with attractive scen types... for example i prefer Kharkov42 or Budapest45 (more for the non urban combat actions in the city) style over the other battles covered in east PzC and even here i prefer a Berlin45 title because is something not covered at all and with "exotic" OOBs + have west and east in one title.

I see Market Garden as a great title for PzB (a much better scale to deal with german kampfgruppes) but after Normandy, Crete+early desert battles... i feel return to east is good and in a more "mobile" style oposite to Kurks... at least with no bunkerwarfare 

Other interesting point is that modern version of PzB (Armored battles???) is still in Tiller mind after years with no info... curious is not see WWI but expand to the period interwars and postwar (asia in war).

Well, lets have first PzB3 before think in PzB4/5/6/7/.... still waiting the update for PzB3 since september 

[19 Delta]

The series could stay in the Mediterranean for the next four titles and I'd be happy, but bouncing theaters makes more sense.

[Xaver]

Well, bouncing theaters is good if titles offer variety and options.

For example in East i prefer Budapest45 or Kharkov42 if we cant see a Berlin45, if not i prefer see Market Garden or Sicily (even when for me Market garden is with Normandy and Bulge the black hole of wargaming... they attract all games and leave very short room for other interesting battles-campaigns) because PzB scale is really good for them... i see France40 as a good option to but i really want see that german add-hoc units hehehe.

In Mediterranean well, we have El-Alamein+Tunis and i miss the Malta What if... set in 1940 with Italins using brain and taking it early or in 1942 when is to late for an easy win... i am curious if PzB3 cover Malta as italian but well, we dont know if title cover the italian offensive in 40.

[Sgt_Rock]

The series could stay in the Mediterranean for the next four titles and I'd be happy, but bouncing theaters makes more sense.

I also prefer the Med but also the Western Front over the Eastern Front for a couple of reasons:

1. Eastern front games have all of those Russian foot troops which take forever to move anywhere in a game turn in the large scenarios.

2. Western front offers more terrain variety. Russia is usually one endless set of clear terrain areas broken up by rivers and marshes and some woods. Frankly the mechanized actions are not that interesting with the Germans usually having the hammer. The static situations like at Rzhev '42 take "the patience of Job" to wait out before the bunkers fall.

Truly the Eastern Front had more static situations than the Western Front. The Germans and Russians would build lines which historians have said were more intensive than the WW1 trench lines! While this happened in the West (Atlantic Wall and West Wall) it doesn't take anywhere near as long to take out a defensive line as it does on the Eastern Front.

I enjoyed Smolensk '41, Stalingrad '42 and the Budapest '45 games the most. Plenty of mobile actions. Some of the others offered mobile action too and the Kharkov '42 game was decent too. I have yet to try out the newer Kharkov '43 game. It sounds like a good "Fire Brigade" action type game.

The Med beach battles were my fav. I hope that when they redo the Anzio battle they change the Allied and German fire values as the latter are just mauling the Allied forces - I have yet to play a game of Anzio where the Allies can hold the line after they land. The "12" firepower of the Germans just creams the Allies. Actually by this time in the war organic artillery and squad fire power for the US was on a par with the Germans. While the latter still were using two-three MGs (crewed) in a squad  the US were using all sorts of MGs and mortars as well to equalize the situation. In short, if the firepower of Anzio had been true then the Germans would have overrun Mark Clark's landing.

For the Desert battles - I hope that the small armored car units get removed or consolidated. The 2 vehicle units should be consolidated to something more like 6 vehicle units. Other than that - I love the Desert!

Bulge remains my favorite game. I have built many variants of the grand battle and also built a breakout scenario that uses the France '40 map. "Beyond the Meuse" or something like that is what I called it. I think I still have the setup for it on my system too.

[Xaver]

I have oposite point of view, i dislike more west titles over east titles because terrain made west titles less attractive for mobile combat and armor use in east is at same time very important BUT very complicated use it to because you need foot guys do the dirty job to prevent find your armor isolated and with bigger fronts, with more areas where enemy can counter you (terrain is not very defensive friendly) is allways a pain in the ass... and a good oportunity to made enemy enter in a trap.

West title for me are "slower" and punish more minimal mistakes because terrain maximize them, hard recover from a bad turn... i think in the Arhem scen, is not like you have a lot room to be original to take the objetive in the bridge, at least in PzC, i dont know how could be in PzB scale.

But is true to that usually west titles offer the more attractive OOBs... for me Budapest45 is in the line of what i like see in an OOB, very diferent units and with some exotic options (like Market Garden or what we can expect in a Berlin45 title).

Kharkov42 in PzB scale... i think could be much better than PzC specially in middle size scens.

PD: one of my best memories in PzC was with 3 very incomplete PzDivisions, i manage to hide them to enemy, wait the best moment seeing how enemy rush over my north area and launch a masive counterattack in enemy flank eating 3 armored brigades, 1 motorized brigade and pratically a full infantry division destroying enemy main attack and leaving more troops isolated between enemy objetive (he was preparing the cross of a river) and my counterattack troops.... but i was under heavy pressure in south performing a fighting retreat to short my front that was totally broken in 2... maybe in France40 is possible have something like this and in north Africa titles.