Close Combat: A Bridge Too Far
Unofficial Strategy Guide and FAQ
by Kasey Chang
released March 11, 2003
0 Introduction
This section is for "what the FAQ is about" and things like that.
Feel free to skip this section.
If you like the FAQ, please send me a dollar. :-) See [0.3]
0.1 A WORD FROM THE AUTHOR
A quick browse through the gamefaq.com shows that there is no FAQ
for ANY of the Close Combat series, so here's my version for one
of them.
This is a FAQ, NOT a manual. You probably will not be able to
learn how to play the game with this document.
This USG only covers the PC version since that's the only version
that I have (and existed).
Some of you may recognize my name as the editor for the XCOM and
XCOM2: TFTD FAQ's, among others.
0.2 TERMS OF DISTRIBUTION
This document is copyrighted by Kuo-Sheng "Kasey" Chang (c) 2002,
all rights reserved excepted as noted above in the disclaimer
section.
This document is available FREE of charge subjected to the
following conditions:
1) This notice and author's name must accompany all copies of
this document: "Close Combat: A Bridge Too Far Unofficial
Strategy Guide and FAQ" is copyrighted (c) 2002 by Kasey K.S.
Chang, all rights reserved except as noted in the disclaimer."
2) This document must NOT be modified in any form or manner
without prior permission of the author with the following
exception: if you wish to convert this document to a different
file format or archive format, with no change to the content,
then no permission is needed.
2a) In case you can't read, that means TXT only. No banners, no
HTML borders, no cutting up into multiple pages to get you more
banner hits, and esp. no adding your site name to the site list.
3) No charge other than "reasonable" compensation should charged
for its distribution. Free is preferred, of course. Sale of this
information is expressly prohibited. If you see any one selling
this guide, contact me (see below).
4) If you used material from this, PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE the source,
else it is plagiarism.
5) The author hereby grants all games-related websites the right
to archive and link to this document to share among the game
fandom, provided that all above restrictions are followed.
Sidenote: The above conditions are known as a statutory contract.
If you meet them, then you are entitled to the rights I give you
in 5), i.e. archive and display this document on your website. If
you don't follow them, then you did not meet the statutory
contract conditions, and therefore you have no right to display
this document. If you do so, then you are infringing upon my
copyright. This section was added for any websites that don't
seem to understand this.
For the gamers: You are under NO obligation to send me ANY
compensation. However, I do ask for a VOLUNTARY contribution of
one (1) US Dollar if you live in the United States, and if you
believe this guide helped your game. If you choose to do so,
please make your US$1.00 check or $1.00 worth of US stamps to
"Kuo-Sheng Chang", and send it to "2220 Turk Blvd. #6, San
Francisco, CA 94118 USA".
If you don't live in the US, please send me some local stamps. I
collect stamps too.
0.3 VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTION
Gamers who read this guide are under NO obligation to send me ANY
compensation.
However, a VOLUNTARY contribution of one (1) US Dollar would be
very appreciated.
If you choose to do so, please make your US$1.00 check or $1.00
worth of stamps to "Kuo-Sheng Chang", and send it to "2220 Turk
Blvd. #6, San Francisco, CA 94118 USA".
If you don't live in the US, please send me some local stamps. I
collect stamps too.
For the record, out of ALL the FAQs I wrote (31 at least count),
I've received exactly 2 dollars, and 2 sets of stamps, as of
release of this guide. So I'm NOT making any money off these
guides, folks.
0.4 HOW AND WHEN TO CONTACT ME
PLEASE let me know if there's a confusing or missing remark,
mistakes, and thereof... If you find a question about this game
that is not covered in the USG, e-mail it to me at the address
specified below. I'll try to answer it and include it in the
next update.
Please do NOT write me for technical support. That is the job of
the publisher.
Please do NOT ask me to send you a list of controls, the manual,
etc. If you borrowed the game without borrowing the manual, blame
your own stupidity. If you bought the game without a manual,
blame your own stupidity. If you copied the game without copying
the manual, you're not only scum, but STUPID scum.
Please do NOT ask me to answer questions that have already
answered in this FAQ/guide. It makes you REALLY idiotic.
I will NOT answer stupid questions like the ones above unless I'm
in a really good mood. If you send questions like that, do NOT
expect a reply.
The address below is spelled out phonetically so spammers can't
use spambots on it:
Kilo-Sierra-Charlie-Hotel-Alpha-November-Golf-Seven-Seven AT
Yankee-Alpha-Hotel-Oscar-Oscar DOT Charlie-Oscar-Mike
To decipher this, simply read the first letter off each word
except for the numbers and the punctuation. This is "military
phonetics" or "aeronautical phonetics" in case you're wondering.
This document was produced on Microsoft Word 97. Some editing was
done with Editpad (editpadclassic.com).
0.5 THE AUTHOR
I am just a game player who decided to write my own FAQs when the
ones I find don't cover what I want to see. Lots of people like
what I did, so I kept doing it.
Previously, I've written Unofficial Strategy Guides (USGs) for
XCOM, XCOM2:TFTD, Wing Commander, Wing Commander 2, Wing
Commander 3, Wing Commander 4, Privateer, Spycraft, 688(I)
Hunter/Killer. Mechwarrior 3, MW3 Expansion Pack, Mechwarrior 4,
Mechwarrior 4: Black Knight, Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed,
The Sting!, Terranova, Fallout Tactics, Starfleet Command Volume
II, DS9: The Fallen, DS9: Dominion War, Driver, and a few more.
To contact me, see 0.4 above.
0.6 DISCLAIMER / COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Atomic Games created Close Combat series. May they rest in peace
(yes, they're gone).
Microsoft originally published close Combat. After four games,
Microsoft sold the rights to The Learning Company (TLC), who owns
Strategic Simulations Inc (SSI). SSI published the fourth and
fifth (final) title in the series.
This USG is not endorsed or authorized by ANY of the companies
mentioned above.
The information compiled in this USG has been gathered
independently through the author's efforts except where noted
otherwise.
0.7 HISTORY
16-SEP-2002 Initial release, didn't cover scenarios or
campaigns
20-DEC-2002 More info on the different units, more info
on individual maps, etc. Now can be considered "complete"
11-MAR-2003 Fixed up some more details
1 Close Combat: A Bridge Too Far General Info
1.1 THE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: Can you send me the game (or portions thereof)?
A: No.
Q: Can you send me the manual (or portions thereof)?
A: No.
Q: Can you tell me how to play the game?
A: Read the manual.
Q: But I got the "Smart Saver" version, which does NOT come with
a manual!
A: Sure it does... It's called a HELP FILE. It even comes with a
PRINT button.
Q: How about a patch?
A: V2.0b is available at Atomic Games' website
(http://www.atomic.com), though you may need to go elsewhere for
the actual download. The link appears to be broken.
Q: How about a sequel?
A: There are a total of FIVE Close Combat titles. This is the
second one. The three later ones are "Russian Front" (CC3),
"Battle of the Bulge" (CC4), and "Invasion Normandy" (published
by SSI).
Q: What's the difference among the difficulty levels?
A: Accuracy/skill of the enemies, how much morale dips and soars
on certain events, and the amount of replacements you get.
Q: Can I play both sides?
A: Yes, you can play as Allied or Axis (German) forces. All of
the battles in Operation Market Garden are modeled, albeit not to
"full scale" of thousands of soldiers. You get your own piece of
the action, so to speak. As the Allies, you can play American,
British, or Polish forces. As Axis, you can play regular German
Army or SS forces.
Q: Where is the pause button?
A: Technically, there isn't one. See the README file for more
details.
Q: What about some cheat codes?
A: This is a STRATEGY guide, not a cheat guide. Besides, I don't
know any.
1.2 CLOSE COMBAT HISTORY
Close Combat had a weird start... It started out as simulation of
how soldiers thrive or break under pressure of combat. A combat
psychologist, Dr. Steven Silver, was the primary consultant.
Then Atomic Games decided to turn it into a game to simulate
squad-scale combat. It was confusing to newbies, but the
grognards (wargame veterans) loved it, as it's one of the first
PC games that actually model morale and suppression
realistically.
Atomic originally was known for those hex-based large-scale
strategy/wargames like V-for-Victory series and Close Combat was
their first foray into real-time gaming. It was a such a hit that
Microsoft published three more.
1.3 CC:ABTF REQUIREMENTS
The follow is lifted from the README file.
To run A Bridge Too Far on Windows 95 or Windows NT, you need:
ú Personal computer with a Pentium 90 or higher processor
(Pentium 133 recommended).
ú 16 megabytes (MB) of RAM for Windows 95 or 24 MB of RAM for
Windows NT.
ú At least 45 MB of available hard disk space.
ú 4X CD-ROM drive or higher.
ú Video card that supports 800 x 600 resolution or higher and
16-bit color.
ú Sound card (recommended but not required).
ú Microsoft Windows 95 operating system or later, or Windows
NT operating system version 4.0 Service Pack 3 or later.
ú Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device.
ú Headphones or speakers (recommended).
ú 28.8 modem for head-to-head play.
ú Internet access required for Internet play.
Other O/Ss are not officially supported, though it should run
fine on most versions of Windows.
1.4 SOME CC:ABTF BACKGROUND
The name mainly came from the 1977 movie of the same name. You
can find more info about the movie at IMDB:
(http://us.imdb.com/Title?0075784)
Basically, the game models the battles of "Operation Market
Garden". The short version of the history goes like this...
The Allies was able to push the Germans back on several fronts,
and they sense a possibility to end the war quickly, and they
decide to act upon that possibility.
The plan is simple: use airborne troops to capture a series of
bridges along a route about 60 miles long, and hold it, so the
Allies have a clear way across the Rhine, into the heart of
Germany. In the meanwhile, a heavy Corp full of tanks and other
forces will push up the road and capture each bridge in turn. If
this can be done, the Allies would be crossing the Rhine and the
days of Third Reich would be over.
Due to a series of mishaps (bad intelligence, did not spot 2 SS
divisions in the area, loss of communications, extremely bad
weather the prevented reinforcements, tenacious German defense to
delay the relief force, hard attack on the troops holding the
bridges), the relief force was ONE bridge short. The British
Airborne forces at Arnhem was forced to surrender or escape after
running out of everything (men, weapons, ammo, food, etc.). Of
over 10000 men dropped, less than 3000 were able to escape. The
rest are missing, dead, or captured by the Germans. Or in other
words, They went "a bridge too far".
In hindsight, Gen. Montgomery, who dreamed up this Operation, was
far too optimistic in his estimates. He thought he could have
taken ALL the bridges in two days. It turned out to take more
than 10 days, and even then, they couldn't cross that last bridge
at Arnhem.
You can read a blow-by-blow timeline in the helpfile.
1.5 HOW DOES THE GAME PLAY?
Close Combat is a real-time tactical combat simulation with
realistic line of sight and weapons effects. The soldiers may or
may not follow your orders depending on their morale.
Close Combat has a top-down perspective and plays in real-time.
Roughly half of the screen is map view. The rest are unit read-
outs and mini-map, as well as a message list.
Individual soldiers are modeled, so the game is limited to
relatively few fire teams for both sides, usually less than 15
fire teams on either side. Each fire team can have up to 10
soldiers depending on team type.
CC:ABTF adds some strategic decisions where you need to be aware
of the implications of your moves.
When playing as the Allied paratroopers, you need to protect your
own forces while NOT being pushed off the beachhead, and capture
bridges.
When playing as Allied relief force, you need to brush aside the
few German defenders in the area quickly before the German
reinforcements arrive.
When playing as the Germans, you have a lot more reinforcements
than the Allied paratroopers have, and you need to destroy the
paratroopers and/or delay the relief force until the paratroopers
can be destroyed.
Some of the scenarios as linked. If you beat the Germans on one
map, you move onto the second map. If you win, you move onto the
third, and so on. The forces carry over, subject to "historical"
reinforcement levels on a "daily" basis. The Germans will
counterattack when they get an infusion of forces.
1.6 BUGS AND FIXES
You can get 2.0b patch from the Microsoft Close Combat 2 website.
This is from the 2.0b README file:
CHANGES for 2.0b
- German infantry will no longer user their Panzerfaust anti-tank
weapons against Allied infantry.
- The Soldier monitor will now update properly on the Mac.
CHANGES for 2.0a
ú You can no longer deduce enemy placements during deployment
mode by watching for the targeting cursor while dragging a fire
line.
ú Dead tank sprites no longer disappear.
ú Dead tanks will continue to smoke.
ú It is easier to drive a tank straight down a road. They will
also be less likely to expose their side to the enemy in the
middle of a move order.
ú Anti-tank Guns placed in multi-story buildings are assumed to
be on the ground floor and don't get LOS advantages from higher
floors.
ú Tanks now can move onto the Arnhem bridge.
ú Mortars on "Defend" or when controlled by the AI were too
accurate. Now they will target an area, not individual men.
1.7 EXPANSION PACKS? SEQUELS? RELATED TITLES?
This is the "second" in the series.
The first, simply titled "Close Combat", is a sim of some battles
in post-Normandy campaign.
Close Combat has three more titles: CC3: The Russian Front, CC4:
Battle of the Bulge, and CC: Invasion Normandy. SSI published the
final one.
The first three titles can be found together as "Close Combat
Trilogy".
Atomic is out of business and there won't be any sequels.
Spiritual descendents of this genre would be the Combat Mission
series. See Battlefront.com for more details.
2 Controls Overview
Note: Some of this information is from the official
Atomic/Microsoft FAQ for the original Close Combat (circa 1996).
It is also available as the cc.hlp HELP file in your
A Bridge Too Far subdirectory.
The screen basically have the top map pane, which is a scrollable
map view, and the bottom command pane.
2.1 MAP VIEW
The map view has multiple zoom levels. Use the plus/minus buttons
to zoom in an out.
To scroll, move the point to the edge of the screen (any of the
four directions).
You can also use the map monitor to "scroll".
2.2 COMMAND PANE
The command pane itself is divided into FOUR (or five) separate
monitors:
Team Monitor
Soldier Monitor
Message Monitor
Map Monitor
Spyglass Monitor (ONLY appears if resolution set at 1024x768 or
higher).
There is also a "control bar" along the middle that contains
misc. controls like zoom in/out, truce, surrender, current unit
indicator, and some other misc. controls.
2.2.1 Team Monitor
Lists all the teams under your command. The text color and the
"cross" color all mean something. See the help file.
2.2.2 Soldier Monitor
Show the soldiers in the team you selected over in the Team
Monitor. You can see how the soldiers are coping, who has which
weapon, their ammo, the AT/AP capability, and so on.
2.2.3 Message Monitor
That tells you the battlefield messages, like which team is
taking casualties, which team is pinned down, which team is
advancing, and so on. You can filter the messages based on
different types so the minutiae don't overwhelm you.
2.2.4 Map Monitor
Shows you how many objectives have you captured so far (as the
logos) and where your units are on the map (as small dots).
2.2.5 Spyglass Monitor
This ONLY appears if resolution is set to 1024x768 or higher. It
shows you a close up of what's under the cursor.
2.3 KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS
The commands are actually quite limited:
Move Z
Move Fast X
Sneak C
Fire (Shoot) V
Smoke B
Hide N
Just select a unit, select an action, then click on the target.
You can see this is simply the bottom row of the keyboard
starting from Z coming right. Easy to remember, right?
2.4 SOME COMMAND TRICKS
Use the team monitor (lower left) is faster than selecting teams
on the map screen itself.
The colors all mean something. In the team monitor, the text
color shows the morale of the team. If it's green, they are
pumped and ready. If it's yellow, they are normal. If they are
red, they will ignore your commands.
Zoom in to pick out specific units if you go by the map.
3 How a Battle is Won
You win by doing three things:
* Capture the various victory locations on the map (those little
"flag" symbols) (as many as you can)
* Maim/destroy enemy teams until they are no longer combat
effective so they can't contest your ownership of the field
* Demoralize enemy teams so they don't want to fight any more
(i.e. they just retreat)
It is best to do all three simultaneously, as doing one will
often do the other two.
The battle is considered "won" when one side is too demoralized
to go on (or have no more combat effective units). You can also
order a truce, or surrender outright.
You lose if the enemy was able to do all these to you before you
can do them to him, or if you choose to surrender.
3.1 CAPTURE VICTORY LOCATIONS
During deployment, you should see the objectives on the map. By
destroying all enemies near the victory location, and move your
units over the flags, you will secure the location.
The more victory locations you hold, the more battlefield you
control. If you control all locations, you will move on to the
next map (if there is one). Once you got the victory location,
you also need to defend it from being retaken.
If you lose all victory locations on a map, you will be forced
into the next map. If you lose ALL maps, you lose the operation
or campaign.
If you win all locations on the final map, the enemy gets two
free locations in the next battle on their "edge".
3.2 MAIM/DESTROY ENEMY TEAMS
The enemy teams must be combat effective to fight. If you wound
or kill most of a team's members, they can't contest your
presence.
In general, this means careful use of ambush, suppression, and
close assault. If you take out the defenders instead of forcing
them back, they can't come back to hit you.
If you destroy ALL enemy units, you win an overwhelming victory.
3.3 DEMORALIZE ENEMY TEAMS
By inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy teams, you can
demoralize enemy team members so they will not want to fight any
more. Some of course can turn heroic, but many will turn coward
and run from battle. If they exit from the map, they are out of
the battle for good.
A sniper can be really useful here as they can take out the
leaders, thus demoralize rest of the troops.
Cause maximum amount of casualties, usually by planning great
ambushes. Put machine guns (heavier the better) to cover victory
locations to protect against enemy assault and to cover your own
assault. Put troops nearby to protect the machine guns from being
overrun.
4 Before the battle starts: Planning Defense
One of the things you do before the battle starts is place your
units based on how many victory locations you hold and wish to
hold. Here are some tips that can help you "win" the battle
before it even starts.
4.1 LOCATE PROBABLY AVENUES OF APPROACH
Look at each map. As you fight on each map, you'll soon notice
that enemies usually come from certain paths. Use that knowledge
to your advantage and place your defenses accordingly.
Usually, enemies attack near roads.
Also look at their possible objectives, and how well you can
defend each one. Enemies must become visible as they move, and if
you have your teams positioned correctly they will control the
battlefield.
4.2 KEEP FIRING LANES OPEN
Long range weapons/teams like AT guns, snipers, and so on should
have a wide LOS so it can engage targets at long-range.
The only exceptions are mortars, which can shoot anywhere without
a direct LOS. However, mortars are so inaccurate any way their
use is mainly to keep the enemy moving slowly, or to pound
enemies that went prone.
Conversely, those short-range weapons like flamethrowers, heavy
machine guns, and so only should be reserved for close-range
work.
4.3 MAINTAIN OVERLAPPING FIELDS OF FIRE
Each firing point should be covered by at least one, preferably
two or more other positions.
4.4 MAINTAIN RESERVE
The reserve should be close by to be ready to plug any hole in
your defense.
Sometimes a part of your line can suddenly collapse due to an
unlucky hit. Having a reserve ready to plug the hole can turn the
tide of the battle.
Keep the reserve (a rifle team and a MG team, and maybe an AT
team) near but NOT at the front. Then just have them RUN-FAST to
where they're needed.
4.5 TRY NOT TO PUT MORE THAN ONE TEAM IN EACH BUILDING
Unless room is REALLY tight, don't put more than one team in a
single building. If the enemy assaults the building you can lose
both.
4.6 KEEP ANTI-TANK TEAMS BACK
Those are only ONLY AT weapons if you're playing the Allies. The
Brits are especially short on AT capability, and they have a HARD
time killing Tigers, Panthers, Jagdpanthers, and even the
flamethrower tanks. Supposedly they have those "handbombs" they
could use, but I haven't seen one being used, ever.
Tease the tanks and suck them into AT traps where your AT teams
have a chance to go for flank/rear shots.
4.7 FINALLY, CHECK ALL YOUR UNITS ONE BY ONE
The AI that places the units initially put them anywhere it likes
to, where they are quite unlikely to do a lot of good. Check
EVERY single unit to make sure they are where they need to be,
move them if necessary to cover.
5 Before the battle starts: Planning Offense
If you are attacking, you should also place your units carefully
as well, as it can significantly help your offense.
5.1 LOCATE PROBABLY AVENUES OF APPROACH
If you are on offense, zones of fire are less important, as you
need to be on the move. You need to know what are some likely
approaches that are good for you, and avoid the obvious ones.
You need cover, and a lot of cover. Infantry needs a LOT of
cover. Use firepower available to suppress the enemy so you can
rush in the units and capture those locations (and kill enemy
units).
5.2 STAY IN COVER INITIALLY
Enemy mortars will quickly fire on your positions, so you need to
keep them under cover. Move them as close as possible to the
starting positions with cover, but not TOO close to enemy
positions.
5.3 PLACE SUPPORT UNITS
Attackers usually have a surplus of firepower, the problem is
using it. Basically, you need to break up the enemy's firing
zone. Put the support units where they can shoot at the suspected
enemy positions.
6 Common Assault Tactics
Here are some common tactics for assaults you should learn
quickly if you are to survive on the battlefield.
6.1 OVERWATCH
Basically, this means one team moves from one direction while
another team shoots at the suspected target from another
direction. If there are enemies inside the target building, they
will be suppressed (see next section) and will be less effective
shooting at the attacking team or the shooting team. When you are
ready to hit the next building, switch the roles and repeat.
6.2 SUPPRESSION
Suppression is a very important aspect of CC. Basically, a
soldier being shot at is less likely to take careful aim. So if
you fire upon his position, he's been suppressed and less able to
return fire effectively, or spot new targets, or dodge shots, or
any of the other things. Thus, you should use suppression to your
advantage.
A suppressed soldier is extra vulnerable to mortar fire if he's
out in the open. There are other advantages as well.
Basically, have one team shoot at suspected enemy positions that
can shoot at your other teams, while other teams move toward
their objectives.
6.3 FIRE SUPPORT
Fire support is very important in creating suppression and
limiting enemy LOS so you can attack from different directions.
Enemy suffers more casualties if attacked on the flank and rear.
Mortars can be used to take out enemies in the open. They can
also be used to damage buildings, drop smoke, etc. to cover
advances.
If you have support weapons like tanks, tank destroyers, assault
guns, and so on, use them to hit buildings where enemy units may
be hiding. Suppress them, THEN move the soldiers in.
6.4 FLANKING
It is MUCH better to attack enemies from the side or the rear as
you'll get them on where they are not expecting, thus cause more
casualties and/or kills.
Flanking is the ONLY way a wimpy AT weapon can kill heavy tanks
and tank destroyers.
6.5 COVER
You should ALWAYS use cover to advance. Go THROUGH buildings
instead of around them. Hide in ditches, embankments, and so on.
If your cover is blown (enemy tanks and assault guns are shelling
your position), then retreat to a different building quickly.
If you have tanks, using tanks as cover is a valid tactic, as
long as the tanks don't blow up from enemy AT teams.
6.6 RECON!
You MUST use recon to know where the enemy is in order to attack
them properly. Use cover, withdraw if fired upon.
7 Common Defensive Tactics
7.1 RECON!
You MUST use recon to know from where the enemy is going to
attack. You can use those understrength reserve units for this as
well. That way, you won't be surprised with your reserve out of
position.
7.2 FORM A PERIMETER
Do NOT separate your units by too far. They need to be able to
cover each other. Keep them within shooting distance.
7.3 KEEP A RESERVE
You need it to plug the holes in your perimeter. A counterattack
right into a building the enemy took by a tiny margin will
quickly turn the tide of battle.
7.4 PREPARE FALLBACK POSITIONS
As soon as you open fire, enemy mortars will zero in on your
position. So you will need to consider your fallback positions
after you open fire.
7.5 AMBUSH
Your troops default to "hide", which means they will carefully
conceal themselves until given the order to shoot. If you hide
the troops in the right places, the effects on attacking forces
can be devastating.
Remember, your troops will open fire at 30m even if you don't
order them to shoot. So just keep them hiding... And BLAM!
7.6 SUPPRESSION
Suppression is a very important aspect of CC even on defense. If
you shoot at enemy soldiers, they'll be forced to seek cover,
making them vulnerable to YOUR mortars while they are out in the
open.
7.7 TERRAIN
CC2 has a nice feature where if a building has multiple stories,
it's assumed that the soldiers are on the TOP floor, thus gaining
better LOS (line of sight) (except AT teams, which are assumed to
be on ground floor, with 2.0 patch).
Use terrain and houses to hide yourself from attacking enemies,
WHILE still giving yourself a good field of fire.
8 Special Tactics
8.1 USE THE RIGHT WEAPONS!
All units have a "rating" for AP (anti-personnel) and AT (anti-
tank), which is short of shown via the two AP/AT lights. You can
tell if your unit has any AT capability or not by looking at the
light. In general, Allied units have virtually NO AT capability
except the few PIAT/Bazooka team or AT gun teams, while Germans
have plenty of anti-tank in almost every team. .
8.2 ANTITANK
ALL Allied units are SERIOUSLY deficient in anti-tank weapons.
ALL Allied commanders should grab at LEAST TWO PIAT/Bazooka teams
when they become available, and protect them with rifle or MG
teams.
The "fixed" AT guns are nearly useless. Put them in TIGHT spaces
a little FURTHER back from the first houses, so when the tank
drives by you can surprise it with a flank shot. Other than that,
they are useless. What's worse, those guns have NO ARMOR so one
or two hits and they're toast. Use them in ambush situations
only... Let the enemy tanks get close, then BOOM!
German MG teams come with Panzerfaust, so those can take out
Allied tanks pretty easily. Stay AT LEAST 60m away from suspected
German MG positions. Remember that German Panzershreck (German
equivalent of bazooka) has even LONGER range.
Most AT weapons need a flank shot to improve their chances.
Flank/rear shots are essential against German tanks, which have a
LOT of armor.
8.3 SNIPER USE
Snipers should be left as far from the enemy units as possible,
in as good cover as possible (on the highest building, top of
hill, etc.) They can take out leaders and demoralize troops.
Remember, with only one "body" they die very easily, esp. when
being chased by mortars.
8.4 AT CANNON USAGE
AT Guns, like the British guns, can be used as very effective
anti-personnel guns that can kill 2-4 soldiers per shot and break
up an attack quickly at extreme ranges (half-way across the map).
If there are no tanks around, let them engage anything in range.
8.5 TANK USAGE
In general, tanks must be protected by infantry. You must clean
out the enemy AT teams using your infantry, then use your tanks
to suppress the enemy infantry so you can assault the enemy.
Tanks, with plenty of machine guns and the main cannon, is a
great offensive AND defensive tool. Its high mobility can get it
into trouble though. Remember to use combined arms.
Tanks can be used as sort of "armor" if you place them between
the unit you need to shield. Move them in tandem and you can get
through easily.
9 Winning Operations
Operations are basically several battles linked together with
units that carry over. They simulate one small section of the
overall Market Garden campaign.
The trick in winning operations is to minimize losses. In
general, kill enemies without being killed. Run from the fight if
you need. Fight enemy from house to house. Kill some, run to
another house, repeat. Give up space for kills, bleed the enemy.
Against enemy tanks, suck the enemy tanks in and move up the AT
units to get flank shots.
10 The Units
I'm NOT going to waste the space of this FAQ when all the weapons
and unit references are on game CD. Simply open your Windows
Explorer to
X:\Data\Data\Base
Where X: is your CD drive containing the CC2 CD. In there, you'll
find the following files:
BATNAMES -- names of the battles
BRNames -- British soldier names, used to randomly generate
soldier names
Elements -- terrain and wall and their effect on shots, movement,
sight, and so on
GENames -- German names
PONames -- Polish names
SolActn -- soldier actions, what can each soldier do in certain
circumstances
Soldiers -- non-vehicle units with firepower, weight, speed, and
so on
TeamDesc -- full descriptions of various units/teams, both
soldiers and vehicles
Teams -- Soldiers and their primary weapons
USNames -- American names for soldiers
Vehicles -- detailed stats on each and every vehicle
Weapons -- detail stats on each and every weapon (accuracy,
reload speed, damage, etc.)
A copy of these files is in your HD as well in the CC2 install
directory. You may even be able to customized them a bit to fix
something if you don't quite like that.
There is also a full overview (complete with pictures and sound)
of all the weapons in the help file.
10.1 AMERICAN UNITS
American Paratrooper units tend to have nice firepower, but lack
of AT. They have bazooka available, but no fixed AT gun. BAR
delivers a LOT of lead. Just don't use up all that ammo.
American infantry should bring along tanks. The M-4's can't stand
up to individual German tanks except those Type-IV's. However, if
they keep their distance they can take out the German tanks due
to superior numbers.
Americans should allocate 1/3 of units as bazookas or tanks in
mid to late battles, when they're up against German armor.
10.2 BRITISH UNITS
British units have SLIGHTLY more AT due to the Hammond bombs, but
they're still pretty worthless at AT without the PIAT teams. Keep
those teams back to the flanks for flank shots. The AT guns are
pretty worthless. Keep them hidden among the buildings except for
those narrow "gaps" between the buildings.
You COULD use those 6-pound guns as assault weapons if you are
trying to take a building. Use them before you lose them.
Snipers are generally pretty worthless. Once they've been spotted
mass fire kills them dead.
Main difficulty surviving as the Brits is to survive those German
tank/infantry assaults. Those tanks can really kill you if you
stay in the front-row buildings.
I'll just discuss the units I use most often.
10.2.1 Rifle Units
This is your normal rifle unit with a couple guys with guns and
grenades. Do NOT expect it to go up against tanks, "Saving
Private Ryan" notwithstanding. They are good for "assaults" on
enemy positions. Stay in cover. Shoot at enemy positions to
suppress them, then RUSH them in for point-blank grenade fire.
10.2.2 BREN Gun Units
This is your typical British light machine gun team, one shooter,
one leader, one ammo bearer. It can be used in assault, but is
not that good at it. It can't shoot the gun while it's moving...
10.2.3 PIAT anti-tank unit
This is like the ONLY tank killer unit you have... Keep these
BACK from the first row. When the enemy tanks come by, try to
arrange so you can do rear/flank shots.
10.2.4 Sniper unit
Only useful on maps with LONG views... Like a long street or open
field. Put him back from the main battle and enable "defend". On
the other hand, they don't make that many kills. Usually you need
more "bodies" around...
10.2.5 Recon Units
Short on range, short on bodies, recon units should be placed on
HIDE in strategic positions to tell you if the enemy is
approaching. If you are on defense, you MAY want to use better
units.
10.2.6 Mortar team (aux)
Mortars are useful as fire supplements. Basically, you use
regular guns to force the enemy to ground, then drop mortars
rounds on them when they can't move. Otherwise, they don't do
much.
10.2.7 AT Gun Team (aux)
The problem with AT Gun is they are QUITE vulnerable. If the gun
gets hit, the crew runs away. Any sort of heavy hit (from tank /
tank destroyer / whatever) and the gun goes poof. They are also
IMMOBILE.
AT Gun team, on the other hand, is VERY useful as a weapon. It
has tremendous range and big explosions. It's also a very decent
weapon on offense AND defense. On defense, you can blast those
enemy teams before they get close. On offense, use it to suppress
defenders. Of course, it also kills tanks.
If you want it to kill tanks, arrange for FLANK shots. Use some
sacrificial teams to pull the tank in a certain direction.
10.2.8 Flamethrower (aux)
Flamethrower is GREAT as a defense tool... Any enemy that
approach will be instantly cooked... It's also great on offense
if you can get it close enough. Shoot at the enemy from another
direction, then SNEAK him in and POOF!
Flamethrower can also be used as antitank weapon, if you can get
it close enough to a tank.
Of course, if he gets hit, he can explode, taking out all around
him.
10.3 POLISH UNITS
In general, Polish units are armed just like the British units,
except for slightly less variety.
10.4 GERMAN UNITS
German units can vary in quality greatly, from SS to regular to
AB. While in general the firepower is slightly lower, German
units have plenty of AT firepower as every team carries 1
Panzerfaust, and Panzershreck teams can be ordered.
German units in general are on the defensive, except on the days
they receive reinforcements for counterattacks.
To win as Germans, you need to learn how to use your armor and
support properly. Basically, you shell the suspected positions
with your firepower, get them suppressed, THEN attack.
11 Specific Map/Battle Tactics
Note: This map list is not complete. If you have your own
approaches, I'd like to hear about them.
11.1 ARNHEM
11.1.1 Arnhem Rail Bridge
The bridge is in the middle, and is the only significant terrain
feature. There is essentially no cover unless you want to sneak
along the coast all the way to north.
11.1.1.1 Attack
To get the bridge without it blowing up in your face is going to
be difficult. You must do an ALL OUT RUSH of ALL rifle teams from
the coast side, while the machine gun teams and mortar teams keep
up a constant barrage from the south side at the entrance.
Consider dropping smoke with mortars. You're hoping that you'll
make it that far in two and a half minutes. Get as many teams on
the bridge and capture the "bridge approach" ASAP.
Defenders have advantage of position. Use smoke so you can get
close. One possibility is rush in from the north, put smoke in
the middle, and use suppression fire with MG to the south. Once
you get to the walls, start shooting north to south and wipe out
the defenders.
After that, it's just a matter of wiping out the defenders
without destroying your forces. Usually they will deploy more to
the south. So if you rush in from the north you can sweep south
and take them from the flank. Pin them down with gunfire and kill
them with mortars.
11.1.1.2 Defend
You probably won't be able to hold the attackers here for very
long. Preferably, you want to hold them here for a day, AND blow
the bridge. With only some reservists and some MG teams you will
have a hard time doing so.
You will need to keep two equal strength teams at the west wall,
one to the north gap and the other to the south gap. You need to
be able to repel assault from both north and south. Set all teams
to hide.
The Allies will come to you, so let them come into point-blank
(30m) to trigger the firing automatically, then set all teams to
"defend". Their mortars will kill you if you stay there after you
fire. After you take out the first wave, fall back to the backup
position. Your job is to bleed them.
Be ready to move other teams into support positions if the enemy
seems to be committed toward a single axis of attack.
11.1.2 Arnhem suburbs
The town on the south/southwest side is going the center of the
fighting. Almost all the defense will be there. If you can
control that, you control most of the map.
11.1.2.1 Attackers
The prison and the ruins to north and south will be difficult to
assault. Taking the prison from the east is NOT recommended as
the trees offer almost no cover. Instead, put your units to the
north and come down from the coast, then hop from building to
building. Use mortars to drop smoke to help you go through
sections with little or no cover.
11.1.2.2 Defenders
Use MG teams to hold each position. If you're inside a building
you're nearly mortar-proof. Keep reinforcements nearby so you can
plug a hole if necessary.
11.1.3 Arnhem Tree road
Interesting map, as this river makes the assault quite
interesting. The south side of the river is the critical part.
11.1.3.1 Attacker
Attacking along the coast is generally a bad idea as you are
vulnerable to fire from across the river. However, if you assault
straight up the road, you're toast as well. Move in from that row
of houses south of the road, hop from house to house, then do a
big rush for the houses just north of the road.
11.1.3.2 Defender
You can probably put mortars on the other side of the river.
Defending the town is critical and basically, you must prevent
him from establishing a foothold. Forward defense with MGs backed
up by infantry is the best. Don't even let them get in through
multiple spots.
11.1.4 Arnhem west Approach
This map is mostly houses, with some objectives such as railroad
station, hotel, and so on. Each of those can be defended, though
it's better to defend from those 3-story houses instead of those
low factory buildings. House-to-house fighting will be vicious.
Use cover effectively and you'll win the day.
11.1.4.1 Attack
House-to-house fighting is not fun when you don't have many
troops to start with. There are also quite a few objectives to go
after. If he doesn't attack, you'll have to go in there and dig
them out, and that can mean heavy casualties.
Consider bringing an AT gun or two and use them as assault guns
on suspected enemy positions, or bring extra mortars.
If he has tanks, use the houses as ambush points.
11.1.4.2 Defend
If you are holding the map, forward deploy the troops a bit and
hold them to the east at the edge of the city. Keep a reserve one
house back in case the allies made it all the way to the
perimeter. If your teams are inside buildings mortars can't
really hurt you.
It's possible for the enemy to sneak around the waterfront to the
north, so deploy a small team or two of scouts up north as early
warning.
11.1.5 Arnhem bridge
The bridge itself is a big rally point. Capturing it is not THAT
difficult if you hurry a bit, the problem is how many casualties
can you afford. The town offers a lot of places to ambush
attacking German tanks, if you want to draw them closer.
11.1.5.1 Attacker
Plenty of cover as you go from building to building, bypass enemy
defenses whenever possible. If you can capture the bridge without
it blowing up in your face, do it.
If you are counterattacking as Axis forces, attack from the NORTH
side, get across the bridge, THEN sweep south. The southern part
is too open, even with tank support. Mortars and others will kill
you. Instead, use tanks to reduce the first row of buildings to
rubble, use smoke so your troops can get close, then use
flamethrowers to cook them out.
11.1.5.2 Defender
If you are defending against German counterattack, put your AT
back to give them some cover. Multiple tanks and such will
approach. Keep AT guys (like PIAT) ready to repel tanks, then put
MG's and such ready to repel borders. Keep mortars back to kill
attacking troops in the open. Keep the AT guns further back to
ambush enemy tanks.
11.2 OOSTERBEEK
11.2.1 Oosterbeek Rail Bridge
Same as Arnhem Rail Bridge
11.2.2 Oosterbeek Caldron
Half of map is the town. Attacking house to house provides a lot
of cover. Use scouts to know which way to defend, and shift your
direction accordingly. If you're attacking, try flanking your
opponents from an unexpected direction.
11.2.3 Oosterbeek North
The bridge, where the rail line and the road intersects, is the
"center" of action, though a lot of defenses tend to be further
south of that. If you can get forces through from the north, then
sweep south, you should be able to flush the enemy. Another way
is attack across the broken railway if the defenses there are
light.
11.2.4 Oosterbeek LZ
That ravine to the south has the best cover. The map is quite
open so guns can reach pretty far. Tanks and AT guns are
excellent support weapons, though you still need MG and infantry
to clean out the enemy.
11.2.4.1 Attackers
You need armor support, and you need to take out his AT guns
(probably hidden in one of those barns) ASAP. You can try
sneaking in from the south but a heavy MG or two there will stop
you cold. The woods can be infested with AT and rifle teams so
armor assault into the woods is NOT an option.
Use your support weapons to clean out the woods while taking out
any AT guns you see. Then take the woods, and use it to launch
attack on the northern barn. Once that's done, use the open field
to suppress the eastern barn and rush it.
11.2.4.2 Defenders
There really is no choice but to put the AT guns in the two barns
and use them to take out the enemy tanks ASAP. You will STILL
need AT teams hidden in the woods in case enemy tank can take out
your AT guns from long range.
Defending the southern ravine will take mortars AND heavy MG
teams, plus a few rifle teams. Those German sturmgrenadiers are
pretty tough.
11.3 SON
11.3.1 Son Bridge
Difficult to assault, as the defenders have the advantage of
position.
11.3.1.1 Attack
The first row of buildings are a firetrap as one or two machine
guns placed here can kill a LOT of your soldiers. Consider attack
on the NORTH side of the road, where there is slightly more
cover. Smoke here is nearly useless.
11.3.1.2 Defend
Protect the Flak88 as you can use that to break up just about ANY
attack. Forward deploy the MGs so you can cover each other. After
you bleed them, pull back slightly and repeat.
11.3.2 Son Town
11.3.2.1 Attack
Your mortars should shell the location around the FlaK 88 ASAP.
If you can kill enough of the gun crew you can assault MUCH
easier.
Attack from the north maybe easier rather than just go up the
road from east. Those houses are difficult to crack and that Flak
88 in town will make mincemeat of any one it sees.
11.3.2.2 Defend
If you are defending, you must control the depot. The FlaK 88 is
vulnerable and immobile, so you must protect it. The Americans
will likely come in from east and northeast. Put most of your
defenses to northeast, leave enough units that can switch to
east. The FlaK 88 will kill attackers quite dead.
Occupy the buildings around the Mayor's house and the school.
That should give you a great cross-fire.
11.4 SCHIJNDEL
11.4.1 Schijndel Road
11.4.1.1 Attack
If you are attacking, try NOT the use the roads. The enemy
defenses have those roads probably well sealed. Instead, try
sneaking along the southern edge of the map then north into the
town, then flank the enemy.
11.4.1.2 Defend
Center your defense around the town. The bridge to the north is
worth defending. I would put 1/3 to defend the bridge to north.
After you wipe out the light force that try to capture it you can
send them back to join in the main defense, maybe even flank the
enemy.
11.5 VEGHEL
11.5.1 Veghel Bridge
11.5.1.1 Attack
If you're the Allies attacking, your problem is cleaning out the
enemy on your side of the river, as you can't be sure you took
out all of them. If the enemy chose not to defend the bridge,
thank him for his stupidity.
Sneak your forces into cover to either side of the road, go north
and south. Then use suppression and cover fire, rush into the
trees along the banks, then sweep toward the road. Then kill any
defenders just on the other side of the river, and you can cross.
11.5.1.2 Defend
If you are defending, I would stop them before they try to cross
the bridge. Put the reserves in cover on the bank near the road,
then put the 2 Schutzen teams you get to either side of the
reserves. Keep the MG on the other side of the river.
Let the enemy come to you. When the enemies come close enough,
turn everyone to "defend", and be ready to rush the sneaking
enemy soldiers.
After you defeat one wave, switch positions ASAP (even the MG
team), as you need to prevent the mortars from zero-ing in on
you.
You may lose most of your team as it is very difficult to hold
here due to vast number of Allied soldiers. Only surprise and
sudden use of firepower can save you.
12 Multiplayer
No information at this time, can't find any players. :-/
However, fan clubs of such games are still apparently active.
Look on the Internet for fan sites and such.
--THE END--
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