For those of you following along, all of the tactical maps for the campaign have been created and Marek has graciously put together this “overview” map of the campaign area. There are 7 master maps that will be cut, cropped and adjusted to fit the scenarios. You will likely see sections of these bigger maps used in several scenarios by the time all is said and done.

The overview map is below;

So far 6 of the scenarios have been completed.

Again, special thanks to Marek Tucan for his excellent maps.

For those who are looking forward to this new campaign I am including the briefing for SLII-SCEN-004 (Campaign Scenario 5);

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Withdrawal

United States vs Warsaw Pact

Location: Chalsoviche, Czechoslovakia
Date: August 4, 1986
Turns: 35
Scenario Size: Medium

DATE/TIME
041330ZAUG86

TERRAIN AND WEATHER
Terrain is very open with rolling hills. Weather is clear and warm. It is midday and visibility is about 3000 meters.

___OPERATIONS ORDER

1.__SITUATION:
The Warsaw Pact offensive in Czechoslovakia has severely battered the NATO forces defending the front. In many places the front has collapsed and Pact forces are driving deep into NATO rear areas. 2nd Battalion has not fared much better and you have been ordered to withdraw your company to better defensive positions. A small blocking force has been dispatched to the area near Chalsoviche. You are to withdraw to the South, through this blocking force and take up new defensive positions so that you can cover the rest of the Battalion’s withdrawal towards the West German border. You need to move quickly as your company is being pursued by the better part of a Czech Motorized Rifle Regiment. At this time, all fixed wing aircraft are involved in achieving air superiority and will not be in a position to provide ground support. 2nd Brigade Headquarters has allocated some artillery assets to cover your withdrawal.

__a. Enemy Forces:
S2 estimates that you will be facing elements of the Main Body (MB) of at least 1 MRR of the Czechoslovakian 19th CVA Motorized Rifle Division. These forces can be expected to chase your forces as they withdraw to the South in the hopes of cutting off your retreat. Expected units will include T-72′s, OT-64 mounted infantry as well as light recon, anti-aircraft vehicles and engineers. As always, you can expect significant amounts of enemy artillery to be used in your sector.

__b. Friendly Forces:
Team Delta, 2nd Bn, 68th AR Rgt, 8th ID

__c. Attachments/Detachments:
3rd Plt, B Company, 2nd Bn, 68th AR Rgt, 8th ID
A & B Battery, 4th Bn, 29th FA Rgt, 8th ID
German Reconnaissance Platoon

2.__MISSION:
Withdraw through the screening line and deploy your forces into defensive positions to the South of and in the village of Chalsoviche. Destroy all enemy forces attempting to penetrate through your sector.

3.__EXECUTION:
Team Delta will move at maximum speed to the South of Chalsoviche while the blocking force provides covering fire. No Air support is available although there should be Artillery support from the Brigade’s 4th Bn, 29th Field Artillery Regiment.

4.__SERVICE SUPPORT:
Refuel and rearming will be conducted once the mission is declared complete.**

5.__COMMAND AND SIGNAL:
Captain Jeffries is overall CIC of the operation. Radio silence should be observed at all times.**

ADDITIONAL NOTES:
There is the better part of a Czechoslovakian MRR about 10-15 minutes behind your forces.You need to your forces to the South very fast BUT be on the lookout for enemy scouts and DRT teams in ambush positions attempting to slow you down. Please note, if you move too slow you may find the enemy occupying your new defensive positions as you begin to arrive.
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For those who may be military terminology challenged I am hoping to include a PDF formatted Campaign Handbook that will include some map screenshots, OOB charts, a glossary and some other goodies.

Any comments or questions are welcome.

Also feel free to let me know if you find any spelling or grammar errors.

For who are interested I am setting up a section of my gallery on this blog for images related to this project. This will include some screenshots of the excellent maps by Marek Tucan as well as some taken during playtesting.

You will be able to see them here: Silver Lions II Gallery.

Ok, for those interested, here is a preview of what I am considering for the Silver Lions II User Campaign. It sort of follows the story/theme of the original Silver Lions Campaign and picks up when the war starts back up one year later.

It is expected to take some time to build this especially as I am considering the development of a Mexican Drug War II User Campaign.

I also welcome any suggestions/recommendations on what “path” the story should follow.
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Silver Lions II

Date: August 1986
Game/Version: WinSPMBT 4.0
Fixed Core Force Campaign

Average Turns:_TBD
Nation: United States Army
Command Size: Company/Team

Number of Scenarios:_TBD

INTRODUCTION:

In the summer of 1985 World War III finally erupted between NATO and the Warsaw Pact. After 3 months of heavy fighting and the seesawing back and forth of the front lines a cease fire was finally negotiated. For the most part, the orginal borders were restored with the exception of a couple of significant NATO penetrations into Western Czechoslovakia. During the somewhat peaceful winter of 1985/86, both sides rearmed and redeployed their forces for the expected resumption of hostilities. It was at this time the US 8th Infantry Division (Pathfinders) was deployed into defensive positions in the vicinity of Cachrov, Czechoslovakia. In August 1986, fighting was renewed when Warsaw Pact forces launched extensive offensive operations all along the front.

For this campaign, you are the commander of the US Army’s D Company (Team Delta), 2nd Battalion (Silver Lions), 68th Armor Regiment, 8th Infantry Division. This unit is a standard US company sized armor heavy task force. Your unit is deployed in the area of Cachrov and the men await your orders.
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Special thanks to Marek Tucan for his maps. I will be using these excellent maps for the area where the campaign takes place.

Now Available!

This new, small campaign for WinSPMBT is now done and available. Here is the main briefing;

Betraying the Bear

Date: October 1985
Game/Version: WinSPMBT 4.0
Fixed Core Force Campaign

Average Turns: 6-20
Player: Poland
Command Size: Company (-)

Number of Scenarios: 6

INTRODUCTION:
As expected by many the Cold War finally goes hot in 1985. Warsaw Pact forces assault NATO defenses along the length of Central Europe. In an attempt to flank the NATO forces in West Germany and gain access to the North Sea, Pact forces led by Polish Naval Infantry and Soviet Airborne forces invade Denmark.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:
For this campaign you are Col. Banasiak of the Polish 1st Recon Company/7th PPR Naval Infantry Brigade. Your company will lead the assault on NATO’s northern flank. Just before dawn on October 3, 1985 you and your men will land and probe the Danish defenses. Once the beachhead has been established your company will lead the rest of the Brigade inland.

It can be downloaded from either the GameSquad or Shrapnel Games Websites.

I have attached an interesting questionnaire on what players of the WinSPMBT/WinSPWW2 game seem to prefer when it comes to User Designed Campaigns over at the Shrapnel Games Forums. It is primarily directed at WinSPWW2 but some of the information should apply to WinSPMBT as well. You can download it here:

WinSPMBT/WinSPWW2 User Campaign Preferences

It covers some of the various parameters of a campaign that players seem to prefer to play. It should be helpful to anyone interested in User Campaign Design. You will find the preferred settings for each category highlighted with a Light Yellow bar as of the date this data was collected.

For those who want the latest data, the questionnaire can be accessed here: User Campaign Player Preferences

TURN 1

Now that UN Forces have now completely left the country both sides go on the offensive and fighting is reportedly under way all across the country. The heaviest fighting appears to be mostly centered around the capital at Luanda. Pro-Government commanders are predicting a quick victory over the Rebels. Both sides are reporting that morale among their men is very high.

Here is the current situation map. (Pro-Government Forces are represented in RED, Rebel Forces are represented in Black).

This is a multiplayer Combat Campaign with 2 teams recreating a fictional civil war in a fictional country using the Steel Panther’s: Main Battle Tank (WinSPMBT) game engine with an operational overlay. UN Forces previously occupying the country to maintain the peace have been ordered out as rumors of war escalate.

In this coming Civil War, one team represents the Pro-Government forces and the other represents the Rebel forces. Force Order of Battles are based on the those of Angola around October 1976. Players get to assemble their forces for each battles the are involved in. They are not restricted to historical OOB’s nor do losses from a previous battle affect what is available for the next battle. The teams initiate their attacks at the operational level on a hex based map, then fight out battles at the tactical level using WinSPMBT. The main objective being the capture of the national capital (Luanda) and the 2 regional capitals (Cabina and Luena).

vs

The current Rules, Player Roster can be found here:

FICTIONAL CIVIL WAR CAMPAIGN – WinSPMBT

Disclaimer: This is not based on any “real” situation in the world.

One of my 2008 New Year’s Resolutions will be the creation (and completion) of at least 3 User Campaigns for WinSPMBT/WinSPWW2. Not yet sure of the mix but I have do the drafts written out and some scenarios files already started for at least 3 WW2 campaigns and 2 modern era campaigns. I just need to gather the files and move them to my new laptop so they are all in one place and can be worked on a more regular basis or at least more frequently than I have this past year.