Mark Buetow  - Dec 20, 2008 7:17 pm (#25858 Total: 25869)  
Tactical, Tactical, Tactical! Anything else is not Applicable.
 	 
Suggested to be posted by Chad Jensen...my Combat Commander:Pacific AAR
from today. (also posted at BGG and in the CSW CC folder) 

Got to my regular gaming group today, a good friend, Marc, and his son,
Risdon. We played four games, each of them playing two against me. I had
already played against Risdon this week. We decided to make our games
into a play through series of all the scenarios. Against Marc, I'm the
Japanese. Against Risdon, I'm the Allies. Off we went! 

Scenario A against Marc, Mindanao 1945 - Won I put my bunker in Obj 5. I
put a forward unit with an LMG in at the end of the trail along my right
(through the bush). That's the way the Americans came. It was a slow
slog for them. The eventually took that first foxhole but I was able to
keep them moving slowly with the battalion gun and mortar fire. 

On my left, the Phlippino guerrillas began appear. One managed to dash
over to control my leftmost object near my board edge. But Bam! I used
an infiltrate order to bring in another team with another Battalion gun.
It began to pound the guerrillas. It was at this point that tons of fire
traded between forces brought us to sudden death at 7. Marc passed the
Initiative Card and rolled again, getting a six and ending the game! 

This scenario is really tough for the Americans. I'd like to hear how
others have succeeded with the Yanks on this one! 

Scenario B against Risdon, Burma 1944 - Lost Here is a long trail that
passes through a collection of huts with a road snaking though
crosswise. My Commonwealth forces set up bases on hidden placement of
Objective markers. Being somewhat in a fog from my previous evening's
Christmas party (and that was WITHOUT alcohol!) I really didn't pay
close attention to my setup. So, instead of getting my units near the
end of the trail, they were scattered all over. The Japanese are
required to set up all along the trail. 

The main result of this battle was that Risdon got lots of units off the
board via the trail and had a couple of other leaders who came in. There
were battles all over but my units were slowly overwhelmed. Supposedly
there were worn out Japanese troops who were ambushed by the
Commonwealth. It may as well have been the other way around! 

My units near the end of the trail were picked off slowly. Finally I had
pretty much nothing but my collection of green teams with my "2" leader.
They advanced and then tried to head toward the trail end to cut off
more troops. But those Japs were sooooo strong in melee that I was
finally beaten down into surrender. The embarrassing thing was that it
took 16 of my guys to get killed to surrender. The Japanese had only
four units dead! I thought this scenario was pretty weighted toward the
Japanese with their awesome melee skills. Until I switched sides... 

Scenario B against Marc, Burma 1944 - Lost Marc set up his CW soldiers
(they're strong and dangerous Gurkhas!) near his edge of the map in
order to cut the head off the snake, as it were. I managed to get some
units off the trail and map quickly but that was the end of that plan! I
had one successful melee after which He advanced several squads onto me
and took care of those guys. 

I tried to bring some other guys up the trail but by then his green
teams had been rallied and were on the move along the road into the
collection of huts. He had a "1" leader and three Green Teams. Here is
where this scenario turned absolutely insane. He marched those four
units into the huts and down the trail, over the course of most of the
game, and thereby eliminating six hexes of my troops in melee! IN MELEE!
Did I mention his GREEN TEAMS killed my JAPANESES SQUADS in MELEE!?
Incredible. I brought in a Team with a Battalion gun but it was
eventually overrun. 

Near the end of the game, I was down to three squads, two of which were
broken by fire and then killed in melee by that same group of GREEN
TEAMS. That left me with one SNLF squad which was down in the corder. He
scooted around, trying to avoid several hexes full of determined
Indians. Finally, in the very last corner hex on my right, they were
surrounded. They were fired at and broken. Revived. Fired at and broken.
Revived. Fired at and broken and revived a third time. But then Marc got
his Advance card and killed my last unit with a 30 to 12 melee! 

So I have concluded, like most Combat Commander scenarios I have played,
it is not biased toward one side or the other. It's biased toward me! 

Scenario C against Risdon, Guadalcanal 1942 - Lost This is the Ilu
river. The Japanese have a Banzai posture! A tiny batch of Marines are
defending, until the Japs hit the river and they get some
reinforcements. 

It seemed to be starting so well. I was able to pick off a few units
using my MMG and Pack Howtizer. But there were so many Japanese that I
couldn't seem to get a good fire lane. And clumps of swamp on the
American side of the river block LOS. 

Then it finally came: the Charge Order. HOLY MACKEREL! What a rush...of
Japanese soldiers! In the Charge Order (only playable during Banzai
posture), all units not activated that turn are activated, all
suppressed Japanese units are unsuppressed, and all broken units rally.
Plus, in Banzai posture, eliminated units go to the time track to come
back on the board. The Allies get all of their units (not yet activated)
to Op Fire. Boy, talk about a fast way to burn cards. It was because of
the Charger Orders that the time track advanced so quickly. 

While the free Op Fire is nice, I just didn't have the units to do much
difference. I got two HMGs on the board, neither of which was ever able
to fire. He brought in an HMG (reinforcements) which were able to blast
away at me from across the map. Then, a stack of a leader and two Jap
squads finally got in close and personal and was tearing up my Marines
in melee. 

I had thought I was doing well during the charge orders to be
eliminating some units. But then when the Japs were able to start
exiting units off my lower right edge, it was pretty much over. The VPs
went shooting to the Japanese side and when Sudden Death hit, that was
it (though the IC had to be passed a couple of times). 

That, dear reader, is what is called an overrun! 

Post Game Thoughts I don't claim to be a good player. I learn lessons
but slowly. But I don't think I've ever played a game of Combat
Commander that I didn't enjoy, even if I lost. The storylines are just
so great. 

That Banzai posture with a charge order is pure craziness. It just keeps
going and going. It think one Charge Order took, like, 10 minutes to
complete, what with all the Op Fire. And, since they're just going on
the time track, the whole "human wave" bit is quite frightening. Of all
the games we played, the Guadalcanal with the Banzai charges was quite a
visceral and draining experience. 

I know that the PTO (Pacific Theater of Operations) was a very different
beast than the fighting in Europe. From what little I have read and
learned, CC:Pacific does a masterful job capturing the unique aspects
and the horribly violent and vicious nature of the fighting during our
island hopping Pacific war. 

I am not surprised that CC:Pacific is as good as it is. After all, CC:E
& M are great games. But I am very pleased that CC:P is so good and yet
such a different animal that there is really a feeling of something new
and exciting in playing it It's also my first PTO game.