1. Manuals
  2. Brands
  3. Microsoft Manuals
  4. Video Game
  5. Close Combat
  6. Reference manual

Microsoft Close Combat Reference Manual

Microsoft close combat pc game reference
Hide thumbs
Table of Contents

Advertisement

Quick Links

Close Combat Keyboard Quick Reference
You can choose commands and expand or scroll the Close Combat View Area using the following
key combinations and sequences:
Function
In Windows95
Scroll the View Area
Arrow keys
Expand the View Area
CTRL+G
(or
ALT, O, G
Turn sound on/off
ALT, O, S
Turn music on/off
ALT, O, M
Turn videos on/off
ALT, O, V
Remove trees
(or
CTRL+T
ALT, O, T
Remove soldiers KIA
(or
CTRL+K
ALT, O, K
Pause Close Combat
F3
Stop a game
(or
CTRL+A
ALT, G, A
Exit Close Combat
(or
ALT+F4
ALT, G, X
Get Help
F1
Issue a Move command
Select a team, then press
Issue a Move Fast command
Select a team, then press
Issue a Fire command
Select a team, then press
Issue a Smoke command
Select a team, then press
* 6 9 0 5 2 *
On the Macintosh
Arrow keys
)
COMMAND+G
)
COMMAND+T
)
COMMAND+K
COMMAND+P
)
COMMAND+A
)
COMMAND+Q
COMMAND+H
Select a team, then press
Z
Z
Select a team, then press
X
X
Select a team, then press
C
C
Select a team, then press
V
V
m
Game Reference
Take command of men who act like real soldiers
m

Advertisement

Table of Contents
loading

Related Manuals for Microsoft Close Combat

Summary of Contents for Microsoft Close Combat

  • Page 1 Close Combat Keyboard Quick Reference You can choose commands and expand or scroll the Close Combat View Area using the following key combinations and sequences: Function In Windows95 On the Macintosh Scroll the View Area Arrow keys Arrow keys Expand the View Area...
  • Page 2 No matter which side you choose to play, Close Combat is an intriguing mix of historically accurate weapons and terrain, realistic combat psychology, and opportunities to change history through superior skill and leadership.
  • Page 3 You Lead Human Beings, not Superheroes One of the first things you’ll notice when you play Close Combat is that you can’t always make things happen when or as you want them to. Close Combat challenges the player with a realistic representation of complex and unpredictable human behavior under the stress of combat.
  • Page 4 Weapons have their limitations as well. Every weapon used in Close Combat has a base chance to hit, depending on the distance to the target and the type of ammuni- tion used, and hitting a target doesn’t guarantee its destruction.
  • Page 5 To learn how to play Close Combat, turn the page. For a detailed history of the Normandy Campaign depicted in Close Combat, including a discussion of defensive and offensive tactics in the hedgerow battle, see Chapter 4, “The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat.”...

  • Page 6: Installation And Setup

    Chapter 2 Setup and Game Play This chapter describes how to install and set up Close Combat, how to learn game-play basics using Boot Camp scenarios, and what type of games you can play (Maneuvers, Campaigns, and Replays). Finally, this chapter provides how-to-play procedures for Close Combat.

  • Page 7: System Requirements

    This opens the Close Combat window. 3 Double-click the Close Combat Setup icon. To launch Close Combat on the Macintosh 1 Double-click the Microsoft Close Combat folder, or the folder you specified during setup. 2 Double-click the Close Combat icon.
  • Page 8 Maneuvers, Campaigns, and Replays. Boot Camp Close Combat’s Boot Camp includes scenarios you can use to learn and practice the skills you need to play, and win at, Close Combat. Maneuvers Maneuvers are single battles, such as Off The Beach 1, that represent actions from the Normandy Campaign.
  • Page 9 Once you begin play, you issue commands (Move, Move Fast, Fire, Smoke, Defend, or Hide) until you win or lose. When the game is over, Close Combat tells you who won, then the Debriefing screen appears, summarizing the results of the battle. From this screen you can save any completed game as a Replay.
  • Page 10 You continue through the exercise by performing the action it prescribes. You can quit at any point during Boot Camp by choosing Abort Battle from the Game menu (File menu on the Macintosh). Close Combat Boot Camp consists of the following five exercises: Quick Tour of Close Combat This quick tour is the shortest of the five exercises.
  • Page 11 Maneuver Play When you start a Maneuver, the Game screen appears with Close Combat in Deployment mode. You use this mode to move your teams where you want them (on your side of the battle line) before you begin the battle. Once you have...
  • Page 12 During campaign play, Campaigns are automatically saved when each battle ends. If you exit Close Combat at the end of a battle during campaign play, Close Combat displays the next battle when you restart your Campaign.
  • Page 13 The Command screen consists of the elements described in the following sections. Menu Bar Three items appear on the Close Combat menu bar: Game (File on the Macintosh), Options, and Help. The menu bar appears on all four Close Combat screens.
  • Page 14 When you click the Replay button, the available Replays appear in the scrollable list. As with Campaigns, no Replays appear in the scrollable list when you first start Close Combat; there are no Replays to list until you create them.

  • Page 15: Game Screen

    Game monitors View Area The View Area is the portion of the Game screen you use to play Close Combat. The battle map appears in the View Area; the map shown depends on the battle you play. You can scroll the battle map in the View Area by moving the mouse...
  • Page 16 Toolbar The Close Combat toolbar on the right side of the View area contains buttons you can click to change your view of the game screen, and to issue orders to friendly units. The buttons on the toolbar vary, depending on whether you are in Deployment mode or Game Play mode.
  • Page 17 If you play in 800x600, you also see the Overview monitor; if you play in 1024x768 or greater, you also see the Zoom monitor. Before describing how to use the monitors in Close Combat, it’s important to understand how color is used in the Team, Soldier, and Message monitors. Color is used to indicate quality in the Team and Soldier monitors and to indicate urgency in the Message monitor.
  • Page 18 The team’s cohesion rating is represented by the background color in the Team Type panel; as with all color in Close Combat, green is good (high cohesion), red is low, and black indicates terminally low cohesion.
  • Page 19 Leader Rank An insignia indicates the team leader’s rank. The leader of any given team can be either the leader of only that team, or the leader of several teams. You are the highest-ranking leader as company commander, but there are also platoon, squad, team, and assistant team leaders.
  • Page 20 Chapter 2 Setup and Game Play following the orders you issued. Red text indicates the team is intentionally acting against the command you issued due to local battlefield conditions. White text indicates you have issued no commands to the team, or the command you previ- ously issued has been completed.
  • Page 21 The Soldier monitor displays panels for all members of the selected team. A Team panel also appears in the Soldier monitor; the Team panel consists of fields summarizing the vehicle or infantry team. There is a Vehicle Team panel and an Infantry Team panel.
  • Page 22 A green bar means high firepower, while red means low firepower; the other Close Combat colors indicate relative degrees of firepower. For ex- ample, orange in the Antitank graph means you need a flank or rear shot to destroy a heavily armored enemy tank.
  • Page 23 Smoke Indicator A vehicle can fire smoke shells only if it has the Smoke symbol. Vehicle Condition There are seven vehicle conditions; the condition text is color-coded to match the actual condition. The following table lists the condition text and associated color. Condition text Text Operational...
  • Page 24 A green bar means high firepower, and red means low firepower; the other Close Combat colors indicate relative degrees of firepower. A gray dash or black line shows that the unit is not capable of delivering that type of fire. For example, if an infantry team has gray lines in the Anti-Tank portion of the graph, it means the team has no antitank weapons.
  • Page 25 Current Action Displays what the soldier is doing. The current action text is color-coded; green indicates the soldier is following an order you issued, red indicates the soldier is taking action that countermands your order, and white indicates that no order has been issued and the soldier is acting on local battlefield conditions.
  • Page 26 Crawling Soldier is crawling toward cover or destination. Ambushing Soldier is ambushing the enemy. Hiding Soldier is hiding from the enemy. Bad Shot Soldier has a shot that is a waste of ammunition. In Building Soldier (mortar team) is inside building and cannot fire. No Weapon Soldier has no weapon.
  • Page 27 Health Shows a soldier’s physical state. These states are described in the following table. Health Healthy (green background) Hurt (yellow background) Incap. (orange background) Dead (red background) Emotional State Shows a soldier’s mental stability. The states are described in the following table. Emotional state Berserk (red text on black background)
  • Page 28 Ammunition type Description Armor piercing. High explosive; used against infantry, light vehicles, and structures. HEAT High explosive, antitank; used against tanks, tank destroy- ers, and motorized artillery. Not effective against infantry in the open, but can be effective against infantry in structures.
  • Page 29 Close Combat Debriefing Screen The Debriefing screen appears at the end of each battle (unless you selected Abort Battle, in which case the Command screen appears). You use the Debriefing screen to see the results of the just-completed battle. You also use this screen to go to the Debriefing Details screen, back to the Command screen, to the next battle (Campaign only), or to save a battle as a Replay.
  • Page 30 While the Debriefing Details screen may look formidable when it first appears, it’s very useful in understanding how Close Combat deter- mines team cohesiveness, team quality, and scoring. The Debriefing Details screen consists of the Return button, color scale, Side...
  • Page 31 Return Button When you click the Return button, the Debriefing screen appears. For more information, see “Debriefing Screen.” Color Scale The color scales shows the range between good (green), bad (red), and dead or destroyed (black). These colors, along with text, are used throughout the Close Combat monitors to indicate a soldier’s health, fatigue level, emotional state, experience, and morale;...
  • Page 32 Leadership Leadership indicates the ability a soldier has to lead his team, rally his team, and rally other teams. Color is used to show a soldier’s leadership ability. Green indicates the highest leadership ability, while black indicates the lowest. An arrow symbol is used to indicate whether leadership ability increased or decreased as a result of the just-completed battle.
  • Page 33 Close Combat Soldiers Killed Two numbers may be displayed in this field; the top number indicates the number of enemy soldiers a soldier killed in the just-completed battle, while the lower number is the cumulative total of enemy soldiers killed during a Campaign.
  • Page 34 6 Click Begin. The Game Play screen appears with Close Combat in Deployment mode. 7 Deploy your teams where you want them, then click Begin again. The Maneuver starts and you can begin issuing commands.
  • Page 35 Refining the Level of Difficulty You can refine the level of difficulty of any game. When you select the Custom button on the Command screen, the Custom Difficulty dialog box appears. The items in the Custom Difficulty dialog box are described in the following sections.
  • Page 36 5 Click the text box or press Enter. The selected strength appears in the text box. American Units Always Obey Orders You use this check box to make American units always obey your commands, regardless of battlefield conditions. To make American units always obey orders Click the check box.
  • Page 37 When you start campaign play, you will either start a new or saved Campaign. The procedures for starting both new and saved campaigns assume that you have already started Close Combat and the Command screen is displayed. To start a new Campaign 1 On the Command screen, click the Campaign button.
  • Page 38 The Replay begins to play back. 3 If you want to take command of the Replay, issue a command (Move, Move Fast, Fire, Smoke, Defend, or Hide). Close Combat tells you that it’s ending playback and you are taking command.
  • Page 39 • runs out. Winning Close Combat games also depends on which type of game you choose to play. Winning Maneuvers and Replays is determined by the criteria listed previously. An additional layer of criteria when you play a Campaign is the 43- day historical timeline;...
  • Page 40 Chapter 2 Setup and Game Play If you capture a Victory Location and are not routed off the field, you receive all of the points for that location. For example, if the Americans capture a Victory Location worth 20 points and hold it until the game ends, the Americans receive 20 points.

  • Page 41: Issuing Commands

    You can select a team by clicking the team’s icon in the Team monitor. Double-clicking selects the team and centers it in the View Area. Once you select a team, you can issue a Move command by pressing . To complete the command, drag the destination line from the team to its destina- tion, then click to place the...
  • Page 42 Smoke command (to teams with smoke capability). There are two types of fire used in Close Combat direct and indirect fire. Direct fire weapons require a clear line of sight to fire; pistols, rifles, machine guns, submachine guns, antitank weapons, and most artillery are direct fire weapons.
  • Page 43 Once you select a team, you can issue a Fire command by pressing . To finish issuing the command, drag the target line from the team to its target, then click to place the target marker. Once you select a team, you can issue a Smoke command by pressing .
  • Page 44 The target line is red if nothing blocks the team’s line of sight or line of fire to the target. If the target line changes to dark red, the team has line of fire but their line of sight is blocked. If the target line changes from red, or dark red, to black, the team’s line of sight is blocked at the point at which it turns black.
  • Page 45 To issue a Defend command 1 Point at the team you want to order to defend its present position or click the team to select it. When you select a team, the View Area displays blue boxes around each member of the team; a circle is always displayed around squad leaders (or higher), even when the team is not selected.

  • Page 46: Using The Toolbar

    Using the Toolbar The Close Combat toolbar on the right of the View Area contains buttons you can click to change your view of the game screen and to issue orders to all friendly units. The buttons available on the toolbar depend on whether you are currently in Deployment mode or Game Play mode.
  • Page 47 Game Play Mode In Game Play mode, the toolbar looks like the figure at left. Toolbar in Game Play mode The Game Play mode toolbar buttons perform the following functions: Zoom In (+) magnifies an area on a game map to get a closer look at the terrain.
  • Page 48 Using Close Combat’s monitors, you “see” what’s happening to teams not in view. The maps used in Close Combat are too large to fit in the Game screen when you play in normal view. Because the normal view is best for playing Close Combat, you can’t see all your teams without zooming out.
  • Page 49 Close Combat Using the Team Monitor You monitor the status of your teams using the Team monitor. To view all the teams in the monitor, use the scroll bar. To select a team, click its panel in the Team monitor. If you click an enemy unit during game play, the list is replaced by the text “Enemy unit selected,”...

  • Page 50: Pausing A Game

    Close Combat button at the bottom of the screen. On the Macintosh, you can instantly pause and minimize Close Combat by choos- ing Hide Close Combat from the Finder menu on the right side of the menu bar. To resume play, choose Close Combat from the Finder menu.
  • Page 51 The Command screen appears when you stop any game; stopped battles are not saved as part of a Campaign. You can exit Close Combat using the Exit command on the Game • menu (Windows 95) or using the Quit command on the File menu (Macintosh).

  • Page 52: Saving Games

    Saving Games You can save any Close Combat battle as a Replay. You can create Replays at the end of a battle, or when you choose End Battle from the Toolbar. Replays are created using the Save Replay button on the Debriefing screen.

  • Page 53: Using The Options Menu

    Replay. Using the Options Menu You can specify various options and preferences to give Close Combat the look and feel you prefer. You can turn sound, music, videos, and other features on or off at any time.
  • Page 54 Turning Sound On/Off You can turn game sounds (gunfire, soldiers’ voices, and other sounds) on or off. To turn game sound on/off 1 Using the mouse, choose Sound from the Options menu. 2 To turn sound back on, repeat the process. -or- 1 Using the keyboard, press 2 To turn sound back on, repeat the process.
  • Page 55 • In Windows 95, click the minimize button, or press • On the Macintosh, choose Hide Close Combat from the Finder menu on the right side of the menu bar. To resume play, choose Close Combat from the Finder menu.

  • Page 56: Troubleshooting

    ENTER Getting Context-Sensitive Help While you’re playing, you may want information about Close Combat screen features, including game controls, weapons, and terrain. Using context-sensitive Help, you click an area or feature on the game screen to display a specific Help topic in a small text box.
  • Page 57 Close Combat...
  • Page 58 Chapter 3 Tactics This chapter describes tactics and provides game tips you can use while playing Close Combat. Basic Tactics You can use three basic tactics in Close Combat: • Flanking • Shoot it out • Frontal assault Flanking The first basic tactic you can use is to try and flank the enemy attack them from the side.
  • Page 59 Close Combat When you fire smoke rounds, the smoke lasts approximately one minute; the smoke is thickest when the rounds first go off. Smoke plumes are as wide as they are tall. Because the game assumes that a light wind is blowing from west to east, you should try to keep the smoke between your troops and the enemy.
  • Page 60 • Don’t order units too far in advance of Victory Locations until these locations have been neutralized. Doing so is asking for an ambush. • Make sure you order adequate fire against Victory Locations. Remember, you don’t necessarily need to hit enemy soldiers to drive them from a position; a high volume of fire can reduce the morale and effectiveness of an enemy team to make them panic and run.
  • Page 61 Close Combat Vehicle Tips You can use the tips in this section when issuing commands to your vehicle teams. For information on the factors affecting vehicle effectiveness and perfor- mance, the following table may prove useful. Attribute Description Armor The strength and thickness of the armor is rated in eight horizontal angles and three vertical angles, in addition to the top and bottom armor.
  • Page 62 Specific tips for vehicles are as follows: • The Close Combat game design accurately reflects the Normandy Campaign regarding vehicles. Specifically, the majority of German vehicles can defeat the majority of like American vehicles in a one-on-one fight. Consequently, if a American vehicle gets too close to any German position, it is in danger of being destroyed;...
  • Page 63 Close Combat Weapons Tips You can use the tips in this section when issuing commands to your vehicle teams. For information on the factors affecting vehicle effectiveness and perfor- mance, the following table may prove useful. Attribute Description Rounds/clip The number of ammo rounds in a clip.
  • Page 64 Specific tips for weapons are as follows: • Don’t order your mortars to fire at infantry hiding in bunkers or buildings because bunkers have very thick roofs; you can expend all of your mortar ammunition trying to blast your way through without killing or wounding the enemy.
  • Page 65 Close Combat General Tips • When a team is shot at or spots an enemy for the first time, the team cancels its goal. For example, if you issue a Move command and the team is fired on for the first time, the Move command is canceled.
  • Page 66 France, jeopardizing their precarious toehold on the European continent. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat Cherbourg Carentan SaintÐL™ “War is the last of all things to go according to plan.” Thucydides Normandy: June 6, 1944 U.S.
  • Page 67 Close Combat The Evolution of Operation Overlord The Normandy Campaign is the end result of more than two-and-a-half “We must prepare to fight Germany by . . . defeating her years of planning, training, and preparation. The initial invasion plan...
  • Page 68 Germans have mastered. The invaders will pay a heavy price for this oversight. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat British General Bernard Montgomery “. . . the [ bocage ] area will not...
  • Page 69 Close Combat German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel Fooling the Germans with “Fortitude” While Rommel speeded his preparations, German forces in France increased to 55 divisions, many of them far from Normandy. In particular, the German Fifteenth Army remained in the Pas de Calais to repel an invasion force that would never strike there.
  • Page 70 150,000 Allied troops head across the English Channel for the Calvados coast. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “The war will be won or lost on the beaches. We’ll have only one chance to stop the enemy and that’s while he’s in the water.”...
  • Page 71 Close Combat U.S. soldiers crammed into landing craft “Everything was confusion. Units are mixed up, many of them leaderless, most of them not being where they were supposed to be. Shells were coming in all the time; boats The next morning, following a fierce air and naval bombardment, the burning;...
  • Page 72 The Germans of the 352nd, who by now are running low on ammunition and reinforcements, are Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “There are only two kinds of people on this beach: the dead and those about to die. So let’s get the hell out of here!”...
  • Page 73 Although German resistance is fierce, the lack of centralized control hinders their efforts to organize resistance against the Americans. Close Combat Operation: German Side A “last man defense” will lead to a disaster for the German commander’s teams. However, the stone walls, stone buildings, narrow roads, and eventually overwhelmed by the increasing numbers of U.S.
  • Page 74 Americans back; the First Battalion then marches to Canchy and follows the Third Battalion across the Aure. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat Allied supplies pour inland from the Normandy beachhead Close Combat Operation: German Side The German commander’s teams are bolstered...
  • Page 75 Close Combat “I had no intention of pinning down forces at Saint-Lô until Cherbourg was safely in hand ..Not until a few days before the breakout did I lift the prohibition on Saint-Lô.” Gen. Omar Bradley Normandy: June 13, 1944 U.S.
  • Page 76 Heavy German machine guns are dug into Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “We were flabbergasted by the bocage ..Our infantry had become paralyzed. It has never...
  • Page 77 Allied infantry tend to stick to tactics learned in training, advancing two companies forward into a hedgerow enclosure. The Close Combat Operation: German Side Now it is the German commander’s turn to try to “change history” by bogging the Americans down in the bocage .
  • Page 78 British Mulberry. The storm and the damage it causes delay supplies, and force the U.S. armies to ration ammunition. However, Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “Sometimes you hold one end of a field and the enemy holds the...
  • Page 79 Close Combat “Give me ten infantrymen in this terrain with the proper combination of small arms, and we will hold up a battalion for 24 hours.” Lt. Jack Shea, from Yank “This was about as bad a place to mount an infantry assault as...
  • Page 80 The attack begins by penetrating the hedgerows of the two outer fields. When they are taken, the team moves to breach the hedgerows that border Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “Every goddam field in this hedgerow country is a battlefield.”...
  • Page 81 Close Combat The local dairy herd was a casualty in the Normandy Campaign the center field and attack the flanks of the German positions there. This allows the U.S. soldiers to take more territory while facing less direct tough for infantry to handle. Artillery spotter aircraft are an enormous help, since the limited line of sight in the hedgerows makes the job of forward observers on the ground almost impossible.
  • Page 82 Saint-Lô–Bayeux highway. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “The Germans adjusted much better to new conditions than we did.” British intelligence officer Brigadier Bill Williams U.S.
  • Page 83 Close Combat “Throughout the fighting, French farmers and their families live in holes dug into their cellars while the farmhouses are destroyed over their heads.” Sgt. Bill Davidson, in Yank approaches to the hill were targeted with artillery, mortars, antitank weapons, and machine guns, and the German defenders, mainly from the Third Parachute Division, were well dug in.
  • Page 84 Saint-Lô–Bayeux highway. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat roadway by nightfall. With the Seventh Army occupied on so many fronts, no reserves are left to reinforce the surviving Germans on Hill 192.
  • Page 85 Close Combat The ruins of Saint-Lô the eastern outskirts of Saint-Lô. The 35th keeps the pressure on the depleted German 352nd, which is gradually giving ground. When a Panzer Lehr counterattack on the advancing 30th Division fails on July “. . . officers who have received...
  • Page 86 1900 hours, after encountering pockets of resis- tance in what remains of the town, the 29th Division secures Saint-Lô. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “I have the honor to announce to the Corps Commander that Task Force C of the 29th Division secured the city of Saint-Lô...
  • Page 87 Close Combat “I did not feel we owed an apology to anyone for our gains. At the end of one week ashore we had linked beachheads. During the second we cut the Cotentin. In the third we captured Cherbourg. During the fourth we attacked out of the neck.
  • Page 88 The Germans lose 450,000 men, including 240,000 killed or wounded. The Allies take 209,672 casualties, with 36,976 killed. Chapter 4 The Normandy Campaign in Close Combat “We must strike like lightning. When we reach the sea the American spearheads will be cut off.
  • Page 89 Close Combat The Falaise Pocket: August 13Ð20, 1944 Cherbourg U.S. 12th Army Group (Bradley) Casualty rates for the Allied and Axis sides, along with French civilians, average 10,000 a day, making the Battle of Normandy one of the bloodiest battles ever fought. With these momentous events, the first phase of the invasion is over and the race to the Rhine is on.
  • Page 90 Chapter 5 Weapons Colt .45 model 1911 Operation Semiautomatic Caliber .45 (11.4 mm) Muzzle velocity 253 mps (830 fps) Capacity 7-round detachable box magazine Weight 1.1 kg (2.43 lbs) Overall length 21.9 cm (8.62 in.) Effective range 30 m (32 yds) The most famous American handgun of World War II was the Model 1911 .45-caliber semiautomatic pistol invented by John M.
  • Page 91 Close Combat Mauser Kar 98 Operation Manual, bolt-action Caliber 7.92 mm (.31 in.) Muzzle velocity 745 mps (2,445 fps) Capacity 5-round magazine Weight 3.9 kg (8.5 lbs) Overall length 111 cm (43.75 in.) Effective range 550 m (600 yds) The Mauser Gewehr 98 (rifle, model 1898) was the...
  • Page 92 Garand Rifle Operation Semiautomatic Caliber .30 (7.62 mm) Muzzle velocity 853 mps (2,800 fps) Capacity 8-shot clip Weight 4.3 kg (9.5 lbs) Overall length 110.7 cm (43.6 in.) Effective range 550 m (600 yds) The U.S. Rifle, Caliber .30, M1—or Garand—was the standard issue rifle for American infantry.
  • Page 93 Close Combat M1 Carbine Operation M1 & M1A1: semiautomatic; M2: selective fire (fully and semiautomatic) Caliber .30 (7.62 mm) Muzzle velocity 600 mps (1,970 fps) Capacity 15- and 30-round detachable box magazines Weight 2.3 kg (5 lbs) Overall length 90.4 cm (35.6 in.)
  • Page 94 Thompson Submachine Gun Operation Selective fire (fully and semiautomatic) Caliber .45 (11.4 mm) Muzzle velocity 280 mps (920 fps) Capacity 50-round drum 20- and 30-round detachable box magazine Weight 4.9 kg (11 lbs) Overall length 85.6 cm (33.7 in.) Rate of fire 600 to 725 rounds per minute Effective range 50 m (55 yds)
  • Page 95 Close Combat .30-caliber Air-Cooled Machine Gun (M1919A4) Operation Fully automatic, air-cooled Caliber .30 (7.62 mm) Muzzle velocity 853.4 mps (2,800 fps) Capacity 250-round belt Weight 18.5 kg (41 lbs) with tripod Overall length 104.1 cm (41 in.) Rate of fire...
  • Page 96 Chapter 5 Weapons .50-caliber Air-Cooled Machine Gun (M2-HB) Operation Selective fire (fully or semiautomatic), air-cooled Caliber .50 (12.7 mm) Muzzle velocity 893 mps (2,930 fps) Capacity 110-round belt Weight 57.6 kg (128 lbs) with tripod Overall length 165.4 cm (65.1 in.) Rate of fire 450 to 550 rounds per minute Range...
  • Page 97 Close Combat Panzerfaust Antitank Grenade Launcher Operation Grenade launcher, percussion fired Caliber 44 mm (1.73 in.) Weight 5 to 7 kg (11 to 15.4 lbs) Overall length approx. 104 cm (40.95 in.) Range up to 80 m (88 yds) Armor penetration 240 mm (9.4 in.)
  • Page 98 Bazooka Operation Rocket launcher, electrically fired Caliber 2.36 in. (60 mm) Muzzle velocity 84 mps (275 fps) Weight 8.1 kg (18 lbs) Overall length 154.9 cm (61 in.) Range 455 m (500 yds) In response to the need for an infantry antitank weapon, Leslie A.
  • Page 99 Close Combat American Hand Grenades Mark II Fragmentation Grenade Grenade weight .59 kg (21 oz) Charge weight .14 kg (5 oz) Overall length 139.7 mm (5 in.) Range 45 m (50 yds) maximum American soldiers used many types of hand grenades...
  • Page 100 Chapter 5 Weapons 60-mm Mortar (Mortar 60-mm, M2 and Mount M2) Caliber 60-mm (2.36 in.) Muzzle velocity 163 mps (535 fps) Weight 18.9 kg (42 lbs) Overall length 72.6 cm (28.6 in.) Rate of fire 18 rounds per minute (normal), 35 rounds per minute (maximum) Range 1,806 m (1,975 yds)
  • Page 101 Close Combat Standard and Short 8-cm Mortars Caliber 81.4 mm (3.2 in.) Weight 56.4 kg (124 lbs)/28.2 kg (62 lbs) Overall length 123 cm (48 in.)/96 cm (37.8 in.) Rate of fire 18 to 35 rounds per minute Range 2,400 m (2,625 yds)/1,100 m (1,200 yds) When the war began, the German army’s primary...
  • Page 102 50-mm Antitank Gun (Pak 38) Caliber 50 mm (1.97 in.) Muzzle velocity 550 to 1,200 mps (1,800 to 3,940 fps) Weight 916 kg (2,016 lbs) Barrel length 3.17 m (10 ft 4.96 in.) Armor penetration 159 mm (6.25 in.) at 100 m (110 yds) The German 50-mm Pak 38 antitank gun, introduced in 1941, replaced the earlier 37-mm gun in an effort...
  • Page 103 Close Combat 75-mm Antitank Gun (Pak 40) Caliber 75 mm (2.95 in.) Muzzle velocity 450 to 990 mps (1,476 to 3,250 fps) Weight 1,425 kg (3,136 lbs) Barrel length 3.45 meters (11 ft 4 in.) Armor penetration 174 mm (6.88 in.)
  • Page 104 88-mm Antitank Gun (Pak 43) Caliber 88 mm (3.46 in.) Muzzle velocity up to 1,130 mps (3,705 fps) Weight 3,636 kg (8,000 lbs) Barrel length 6.58 meters (21 ft 7.25 in.) Armor penetration 206 mm (8.1 in.) at 100 m (110 yds) The most famous—and the most feared—antitank weapon of the war was the German 88-mm gun.
  • Page 105 Close Combat M5A1 Light Tank Weight 15,380 kg (33,912 lb) Maximum speed 60 km/h (37.2 mph) Main gun 37 mm (1.46 in.) Armor 12 to 67 mm (0.47 to 2.64 in.) The M5 light tank, introduced in 1942, was fitted with a larger turret and additional radio equipment early in 1943 to become the M5A1.
  • Page 106 M4A1 (75-mm) “Sherman” Tank Weight 30,160 kg (66,352 lbs) Maximum speed 38 km/h (23 mph) Main gun 75 mm (2.95 in.) Armor 25 to 51 mm (0.98 to 2 in.) The American M4 medium tank, nicknamed the “Sherman,” was the primary tank of the Allied armies;...
  • Page 107 Close Combat M4A3 (76.2-mm) “Sherman” Tank Weight 32,285 kg (71,027 lbs) Maximum speed 47 km/h (28.7 mph) Main gun 76.2 mm (3 in.) or 105 mm (4.13 in.) Armor 38 to 63.5 mm (1.5 to 2.5 in.) The American M4A3 “Sherman” medium tank was a better-armored version of the original M4A1 medium tank.
  • Page 108 Tiger I Heavy Tank Weight 57,000 kg (125,685 lbs) Maximum speed 37 km/h (23 mph) Main gun 88-mm (3.46-in.) L/56 Armor 25 to 100 mm (0.98 to 3.94 in.) Introduced in 1942, the Tiger I heavy tank was larger, heavier, better armed, and better armored than any previous German tank.
  • Page 109 Close Combat Marder III Self-Propelled Antitank Gun Weight 9,700 kg (21,340 lbs) Maximum speed 42 km/h (26 mph) Main gun 76.2-mm Pak 36 Armor 10 to 50 mm (0.4 to 1.97 in.) The Marder III was one of several German self- propelled artillery designs based on the Czech LT-38 light tank chassis.
  • Page 110 M36 Tank Destroyer Weight 28,120 kg (62,004 lbs) Maximum speed 48 km/h (29.8 mph) Main gun 90 mm (3.54 in.) Armor 12 to 50 mm (0.47 to 1.97 in.) The Gun Motor Carriage M36 tank destroyer was the most powerful American antitank weapon of World War II.
  • Page 111 Close Combat M3A1 Halftrack Weight 6,660 kg (14,800 lbs) Maximum speed 74 kph (45 mph) Armament Various Armor 6 mm (.24 in.) The American military used a variety of halftracks during World War II; these half-tank, half-truck vehicles were used both as infantry carriers and...
  • Page 112 Chapter 5 Weapons SdKfz 231 Armored Car Weight 7,590 kg (16,700 lbs) Maximum speed 32 km/h (51 mph) Armament one 2 cm-gun (Kw.K30 or 38) and one 7.92-mm MG 34 machine gun Armor 8 to 18 mm (0.3 to 0.7 in.) The SdKfz 231 heavy eight-wheeled armored car was manufactured from 1937 to 1942.
  • Page 113 Close Combat Kfz 1 Kübelwagen Weight 986 kg (2,170 lbs) Maximum speed 80 km/h (50 mph) Engine 1,131 cc (69 cu. in.) 25 hp 4-cyl (rear-mounted, horizontally opposed, air-cooled) Built by Volkswagen, the simple and reliable Kübelwagen (“bucket car”) was the German equivalent of the U.S.
  • Page 114 Chapter 6 Terrain You fight battles on game maps that consist of interlocking tiles 40 pixels by 40 pixels large (or 8 meters by 8 meters in game scale). Each tile is composed of terrain elements reflecting the actual terrain found in the Norman countryside in 1944.
  • Page 115 Close Combat Civilian Terrain Civilian terrain elements are those created by the Norman farmers and villagers, such as plowed dirt, stone fences, and bocage. Marsh Height: Flat Concealment: Poor Visual hindrance: Poor Protection from aimed fire: Very poor Protection from HE shells: Fair...
  • Page 116 Orchard Height: Very tall Concealment: Good Visual hindrance: Blocks view Protection from aimed fire: Very good Protection from HE shells: Very poor Bocage Height: Tall Concealment: Very good Visual hindrance: Blocks view Protection from aimed fire: Excellent Protection from HE shells: Poor Hedge Fence Height: Short Concealment: Good...
  • Page 117 Close Combat Military Terrain Military terrain elements are those created by the war being fought in the Norman countryside, such as barbed wire, shellholes, obstacles, and rubble. Break in Height: Short Bocage Concealment: Good Visual hindrance: Blocks view Protection from aimed fire: Poor...
  • Page 118 Shellhole Height: Flat Concealment: Fair Visual hindrance: Very poor Protection from aimed fire: Very good Protection from HE shells: Good Wooden Height: Short Barrier Concealment: Good Visual hindrance: Blocks view Protection from aimed fire: Fair Protection from HE shells: Poor Wood Rubble Height: Medium Concealment: Very good...
  • Page 119 Close Combat Structures Structures are buildings constructed by the Norman farmers and villagers, by the German Army, or by the United States Army. Wood Buildings Wood buildings consist of civilian structures such as houses, barns, and outbuildings. These buildings also include those built by the military, such as barracks.
  • Page 120 Stone Buildings Stone buildings include civilian structures such as houses, churches, and shops. Interior (Floor) Height: Flat Concealment: Poor Visual hindrance: Fair Protection from aimed fire: Very poor Protection from HE shells: Poor Wall Height: Tall Concealment: Very good Visual hindrance: Blocks view Protection from aimed fire: Very good Protection from HE shells: Fair Door...
  • Page 121 Close Combat Bunkers Bunkers are structures built by the military specifically for defensive purposes. Interior (Floor) Height: Flat Concealment: Fair Visual hindrance: Fair Protection from aimed fire: Poor Protection from HE shells: Poor Wall Height: Tall Concealment: Excellent Visual hindrance: Blocks view...
  • Page 122 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II The seeds of World War II were sown at the end of World War I the “war to end all wars.”...
  • Page 123 Close Combat Let Loose the Dogs of War: World War II Begins On August 23, 1939 Germany and the Soviet Union sign a nonaggression pact that secretly divides Poland, Lithuania, Finland, Estonia, and Latvia between them. Neither side announces the pact’s existence for almost a month.
  • Page 124 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II Russia Invades Finland Finland, one of the countries apportioned to the Soviet Union as part of the pact with Germany, becomes the next battleground. When the Soviets invade Finland on November 30, 1939, the attacking Red Army forces dwarf the Finnish army;...
  • Page 125 Close Combat Field Marshal Rundstedt’s Army Group A roars across the French border on May 10 against light resistance. General Heinz Guderian, a leading proponent of German tank tactics, leads one of the Panzer corps driving into France. Bock’s Army Group B races across Holland and Denmark.
  • Page 126 Allied troops massed on the beach at Dunkirk on the morning of June 4, they still capture some 40,000 men. While the success of the evacuation has exceeded Churchill’s expectations, the troops arriving in England have lost virtually all their heavy equipment and weapons. On June 5, the German attack on the Somme River Line begins.
  • Page 127 Close Combat “To make union with England was fusion with a corpse.” Marshal Henri Pétain, who capitulated to Germany rather than participate in what he saw as a doomed alliance with Britain On June 22, the French sign an armistice with Germany. The Germans have won they have crushed four Allied armies and driven a fifth, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), off the continent.
  • Page 128 eventual invasion of Great Britain an operation dubbed Sealion. The Luftwaffe’s orders are to destroy the RAF. In preparing for the expected German air attacks, the British develop an effective network of radar stations, observation posts, and radio listening stations tied into an equally efficient communications and command structure.
  • Page 129 Close Combat Agents of the Italian Servizio Informazione Militare steal the “Black Code” from the U.S. Embassy in Rome. This is the code used by the U.S. Military Attache in Cairo to send accurate and detailed reports to the U.S. War Department concerning the British Eighth Army’s plans.
  • Page 130 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II sides losing about 25 planes, but the RAF stings the Luftwaffe by swatting 35 bombers out of the sky and damaging scores more. The raids on September 15 mark the last major effort by the Luftwaffe to destroy the RAF.
  • Page 131 Close Combat From late June until early November, the British regroup and resupply. By late November, they are ready to launch a counterattack. Operation Crusader, aimed at retaking Tobruk, begins on November 28. The British outnumber the Germans in men, armor, and planes, and the Eighth Army pushes Rommel’s forces back. By the end of 1941, the British have relieved the German siege around Tobruk.
  • Page 132 German Panzer armies. Still, the Red Army has a two-to-one advantage in tanks, including the superior T-34 and KV1 models. The Soviets also enjoy a nearly three-to-one advantage in aircraft, but German air strikes knock out communications and destroy many Soviet aircraft on the ground. In the first seven hours, the Soviets lose over 1,000 aircraft and the Germans quickly establish air supremacy over the battlefields.
  • Page 133 Close Combat Still, the Germans continue to taste nothing but success while the Soviets swallow the bitterness of defeat. The Germans capture Kiev at a cost of 100,000 casualties; the Soviets suffer 500,000 casualties. By early October, Army Group South has bottled up and destroyed Soviet units composed of 700,000 men.
  • Page 134 Finally, on December 5 Hitler agrees with his commanders he must suspend the offensive against Moscow. The next day, Stalin orders a counteroffensive. The Soviets attack all along the 500-mile front. Their objective is to quickly drive two wedges deep into Army Group Center, isolate the Germans, then beat them in detail.
  • Page 135 Close Combat 188 American aircraft are destroyed. But not all goes as the Japanese planned. By coincidence, the U.S. Navy’s three aircraft carriers are not in port and escape destruction. And contrary to orders, the massive fuel oil storage tanks at Pearl Harbor are not destroyed.
  • Page 136 The Allies Agree to “Beat Germany First” In the months following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. is in no position to actively pursue the war in Europe. Its army is far below the strength required for the task, there are no U.S. forces in Europe, and the shipping needed to transport a massive invasion force does not exist.
  • Page 137 Close Combat The Long Road to Normandy With the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and America’s entrance into the war, the conflict is now truly global. Over the next 30 months it will be fought on frozen plains, on steamy jungle-covered mountains, high in the sky, and under the sea.
  • Page 138 perform holding actions while the Germans develop a new generation of submarines. The victory in the Battle of the Atlantic is critical to the success of Operation Overlord. The buildup of men, machines, and materiel necessary to launch the Second Front can now be marshaled in Great Britain, with relative impunity from the U-boat threat.
  • Page 139 Close Combat April, 51 divisions from Italy, Rumania, Hungary, Slovakia, and Spain arrive on the Eastern Front. In preparation for the summer offensive, the Germans reorganize their forces in the south. Army Group South is divided into Army Groups A and B. Army Group A is to capture Rostov-on-Don, and drive southeast to Baku on the Caspian Sea.
  • Page 140 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II Russian soldiers in winter camouflage on the attack By being thrifty with reinforcements and resources, the Soviets have amassed 500,000 infantrymen and huge artillery batteries. More than 1,000 attack planes are poised to strike.
  • Page 141 Close Combat On December 12, Manstein launches Army Group Don’s 13 divisions toward Stalingrad. Manstein’s fear fast becomes a reality; Soviet antitank weapons decimate German armor. On December 19, Manstein orders Paulus to attempt a breakout immediately; Paulus refuses. Army Group Don’s progress is grinding to a halt.
  • Page 142 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II infantry that make the difference. A bloody toll is extracted from the German forces. Those not killed or wounded in the barrage are badly shaken; the attack itself is beset with problems. Many new Panther tanks break down with teething problems.
  • Page 143 Close Combat “I tell you no one on God’s earth can follow what’s going on. The boys are just weaving in and out… There’s everything in the air tracers, shells, bullets, ricochets, incendiaries, and bits of red-hot metal whanging off the burning tanks.
  • Page 144 Rommel’s forces are again desperately short of supplies, but after receiving promises that supplies will arrive soon, he decides to attack. As usual, Rommel’s tanks lead the attack east. After traversing British minefields, Rommel’s tanks turn north toward the Alam Halfa ridge. The attack is stopped at the ridge when British airplanes and artillery pound the German positions.
  • Page 145 Close Combat behind schedule. On October 25, Monty personally intervenes in the battle to make sure that the advance is vigorous. The British have more men, tanks, and ammunition, as well as dominance of the airspace over the battlefield. By the end of the day the British have lost 250 tanks, but the Germans have only 40 tanks left.
  • Page 146 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II On November 5, 1942, General Eisenhower arrives in Gibraltar to command Operation Torch. On November 8 three task forces begin landing troops in North Africa. The Western Task Force, commanded by General George Patton, lands on a 200-mile front between Safi and Port Lyautey.
  • Page 147 Close Combat On March 9 Rommel leaves North Africa for good. On his way back to Germany he meets with Mussolini in Rome and Hitler in East Prussia; despite his best efforts, neither leader agrees to withdraw from North Africa.
  • Page 148 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II The Long Formation The Air War In Europe The air war raging over Western Europe turns in the Allies’ favor in 1944. Three factors contribute to this turnabout. First, both the RAF and USAAF finally have enough long-range bombers to increase the monthly tonnage dropped to over 40,000 metric tons.
  • Page 149 Close Combat “Major Martin” There is an interesting prelude to the launch of Operation Husky. In late April, the British submarine HMS Seraph releases the body of “Major Martin” of the Royal Marines into the sea off the Spanish port of Huelva. Major...
  • Page 150 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II On July 10, General Patton’s forces land, smash through light resistance, and quickly take Gela, Licata, and Vittoria; Montgomery’s troops land unopposed and capture Syracuse by the end of the day. The landing forces use, for the first time, two craft that will play important roles in the Normandy invasion: the landing ship, tank (LST) and landing craft, tank (LCT), which enable the Allies to land armor with the first wave of infantry.
  • Page 151 Close Combat “Corporal Joseph Toporski, a paratrooper from Milwaukee, shot two snipers and was looking for a third when an Italian girl named Marissa tapped him on the shoulder as he peered around a building and asked him if he would like...
  • Page 152 way up and over mountains, hills, and ridges. When the Germans do withdraw they do so in an orderly manner there are no panicked mobs fleeing the front. Bridges are blown, mines sown, and booby traps rigged; the Germans do everything that can be done to slow the Allied advance.
  • Page 153 Close Combat “Actually, I believe our fondness for the BAR was more concerned with the type of fire than with the weapon itself. We would have been equally pleased with the Bren gun perhaps more so. What we yearned for was a good gun to throw a lot of lead, faster and harder than the Tommy Gun.
  • Page 154 When the Allies renew the offensive on May 11, four corps are thrown forward the U.S. II, the Polish II, the British XIII, and the French Expeditionary Force. The twelve attacking divisions face only six German divisions. While there is general progress all along the Gustav Line, it is the French who finally crack the line for good.
  • Page 155 Close Combat Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969). Eisenhower’s distinguished military career began with his graduation from West Point in 1915. Although he was forced to remain in the U.S. through- out World War I, he formed America’s first tank corps in 1918. By the end of the war he commanded 10,000 men.
  • Page 156 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II On the Eve of Operation Overlord By May 1944, Germany has seen its fortunes fade; they are losing on every front. The promise of 1940 and 1941 is crushed under the reality of 1942, 1943, and the first six months of 1944.
  • Page 157 Close Combat The Collapse of Festung Europa Close Combat Game Area Cherbourg StÐL™ F R A N C E Allied Forces The Red Army Marches To Vengeance By April 1944, the Soviets have been on the offensive for four months. On the southern portion of the front, the German armies are destroyed.
  • Page 158 The Soviet campaigns of 1943 1944 have proved decisive. Russia regains most of the territory lost in 1941 and 1942; more importantly, the Soviets have destroyed entire German armies. Hitler contributes significantly to these losses, refusing to allow withdrawals that could have saved hundreds of thousands of soldiers for a final defense of Germany.
  • Page 159 Close Combat reacts quickly, sending the Seventh Armored and 101st Airborne Divisions to hold the road junctions at Saint Vith and Bastogne. The Germans capture Saint Vith, but not before determined American resistance further slows the German attack. The Germans surround...
  • Page 160 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II The Road to Berlin After the Battle of the Bulge, the Germans have only 26 divisions on the Second Front; most are either far below strength or consist of old men and young boys. Facing them are 57 infantry, 23 armored, and five airborne divisions, all at full strength.
  • Page 161 Close Combat flag from a second story window of the Reichstag. An hour later, Hitler commits suicide. At 2250 hours, Soviet flags fly from the Reichstag’s roof. Negotiations between the Soviets and the Germans begin. They break off in the middle of the day on May 1;...
  • Page 162 Chapter 7 The Big Picture: A Short History of World War II advance of the Fourth Guards Tank Army. This force reaches Prague to find the Germans have gone. The Russians finally bring Army Group Center to bay on May 10. Over the next two days, the Soviets pound German positions with every available weapon;...
  • Page 163 Close Combat...

Table of Contents