Middle East campaign series releases sep. 24

[MengJiao]

  I played it happily for 3 hours last night.  It was sort of a nostalgia fest.  I had forgotten how much CS I played 15 years ago.

I'm glad you're enjoying it!

  I generally don't worry too much about graphics.  I tend to play fairly zoomed out in 2d.  I was happy to find a lot of French and UK
  units for 1956 scenarios, but I played the Last stop in the Negev scenario since I've never seen a comprehensible version of that battle.
  The scenario in this game is very good, though as usual I wonder about the gear the Israelis have.  For example, by late 1948 I'm pretty sure they had quite a few 3-inch mortars since they could make those themselves and plenty of machine guns since they over-produced their own MG ammo (for Bren guns I guess?).

The Bren's are included in the infantry stats, generally speaking. If I couldn't find reference to an overabundance, so I didn't include separate MG units.

Same goes for the 3 inch mortars. I was hardpressed to find the mortars assigned to the units involved in the scenario (from the sources I used in Section 9.1 of the manual), so erred on the side of caution and kept them from the OOB.

Fortunately, Middle East is a living game and if it is found that there were these extras, we can add them in future UPDATES.

I hope you continue to enjoy the series and if you spot anything else that you find odd, please note it and I will comment and address it.

Hope you're well
Jason Petho

   Actually this game is the best I've seen for covering the strangeness of the 1948 battles.  It turns out to be 9mm ammunition that was overproduced.  People were not as eager to use their submachine guns as they had been expected to be.  I'm not sure about the 3-inch mortars, but there were a lot of them around in 1948, though again, they may have ended up more as back-up weapons for not-particularly-well-trained garrisons than as front-line weapons in the fighting formations.
   I built an "Evacuate the Etzioni Block" scenario last night using the game's built-in OOB organizations and it was pretty revealing about why things did not go well at Etzioni:  Not enough transport (or probably radios) in the early Israeli infantry units -- which I think is pretty realistic.
   Anyway, a great game and very well-researched it seems to me.
   

[Jason Petho]

Anyway, a great game and very well-researched it seems to me.

Thank you, MengJiao!

I intended to include some more 1948 scenarios, but alas, ran out of time. For example, I have a Jerusalem 1948 map complete and the OOB's mostly complete. Fallujah is also on my hit list, along with a number of other fairly significant battles.

They will be included in future UPDATES.

Jason Petho

[berto]

For example, Operation Yiftach, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Yiftach.

That scenario is already built.  I've played it.  But it was deemed unfit for some reason, was pulled from the intial public release.  Pretty good scenario.  I hope it can be restored.

[MengJiao]

For example, Operation Yiftach, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Yiftach.

That scenario is already built.  I've played it.  But it was deemed unfit for some reason, was pulled from the intial public release.  Pretty good scenario.  I hope it can be restored.

  Looks like you might need more options for both sides since the UK forces are pulling out, the locals are very mixed and so on.  Plus that early and with the Palmach, a lot of real effects might be hard to work out in the game.

[Jason Petho]

Those are some very key reasons why it was pulled. While it was a fun scenario, the original designer didn't present an accurate picture of what happened. The OOB was incorrect and the map was incorrect.

It didn't meet our basic standards so had to be pulled.

[MengJiao]

Anyway, a great game and very well-researched it seems to me.

Thank you, MengJiao!

I intended to include some more 1948 scenarios, but alas, ran out of time. For example, I have a Jerusalem 1948 map complete and the OOB's mostly complete. Fallujah is also on my hit list, along with a number of other fairly significant battles.

They will be included in future UPDATES.

Jason Petho

Fallujah would be interesting.  Didn't operation Yoav just by-pass it (leaving the pocket, which held out until after the ceasefire/treaty in 1949 if I remember correctly?  What does a Fallujah scenario cover?

[Jason Petho]

One element of the Fallujah pocket I would like to portray is the action during the night of December 27-28 by two Israeli battalions against the Eastern side of the pocket (focusing on 'Iraq al-Manshiya). All in all, the battle was an uncoordinated disaster and in the midmorning a general retreat was called. It was the last attempt to capture the pocket.

[jomni]

Isn't Fallujah in Iraq?

[Jason Petho]

In 1948, there was a Fallujah in Palestine.

[Cyrano]

With this last series of posts? I declare this thread Groggy.

And AWESOME!

[jomni]

In 1948, there was a Fallujah in Palestine.

Different spelling?

[Jason Petho]

In 1948, there was a Fallujah in Palestine.

Different spelling?

Quite possibly, or more than likely, I am not at home yet to check my references.

Might be one l and no h.

[jomni]

Yes. Even the Arabic spelling is different by one letter.

[jomni]

With this last series of posts? I declare this thread Groggy.

And AWESOME!

Yes we are talking about spelling now.

[Jason Petho]

Thanks for the correction!