Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

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AlbertoC
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Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by AlbertoC »

Hi all and welcome to another Developer Diary for the upcoming DLC of Order of Battle, Burma Road!

Today we’ll talk and show some of the new units and specializations coming with the expansion.


Special Services

The SAS (Special Air Service) and SBS (Special Boat Service) commandos are designed for sneak attacks and sabotage operations behind enemy lines. The SAS can be transported by armed Chevrolet trucks, only detectable by adjacent enemy ground units. They can also be airdropped and can move easily through all terrain types. The SBS commandos on the other hand can travel through shallow water by canoes, disembark without penalties and cross rivers unobstructed.

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Gurkhas and Chindits

Like the commandos above, the Chindits are established for sabotage and harassment. Unlike commandos they require access to supply sources to remain efficient, but this is compensated by their higher combat strength against enemy infantry and armoured units.

Gurkha units on the other hand are regular infantry units composed from Nepalese soldiers. They are known as some of the most skilled - and most feared - warriors in the world however, and thus provide a unique elite infantry type to the British army.

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Hobart's Funnies

The vehicles designed by Major General Percy Hobart are designed for very specific tasks: The Churchill Crocodile tank mounts a flamethrower for rooting out enemy infantry units, the Churchill AVRE mortar launcher excels at destroying enemy entrenchments and the Sherman Crab carries a device to clear landmines ahead of its path. Finally, this specialization allows normal Churchill tanks to create pontoon bridges, for easier movement across rivers.

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Artillery

The Commonwealth forces will have a wide range of artillery guns at their disposal. In general, bigger - and longer - barrels means higher range and firepower, but each weapon has its own advantages and disadvantages:
The light, short-barreled 4.5 inch howitzer for example can be moved through mountains and difficult terrain, but has a short range and limited firepower.
Heavy guns such as the 7.2 inch Mark 6 excel at destroying enemy fortifications and providing counter battery fire, but their heavy weight causes efficiency loss when pulled through the dense jungles of Burma.
Motorized guns on the other hand have a clear advantage in mobility and can keep up with fast moving armoured vehicles, but their cost in command points and resources limits their widespread use.

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Lend Lease Act

A diplomatic agreement with the United States allows the British and Commonwealth forces to acquire American tanks such as the Stuart light tank and the Sherman medium tank series. Later in the war the British can also deploy Sherman Firefly tanks, which combine the reliable US vehicle with a powerful 17 pounder anti-tank gun.

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Mine Sweeping

Besides the Sherman Crab mentioned earlier in this preview, the British have access to the Metal Detector specialization. This device allow engineers to move around freely on the battlefield and reveal hidden landmines without taking any damage. In addition, the mines can then be cleared quickly within the same turn.

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Military Police

During the unique Quit India scenario in the new campaign, players will have access to unique Military Police units to quell the Indian uprise. These don't pack a lot of firepower, but their shock value is useful in dispersing protesters and rioters. After all, the objective in this mission is to avoid unnecessary casualties among civilians!

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Bomber Stream

The British are specialized in heavy strategic bombers and this is further reflected in the "Bomber Stream" specialization. This gives unique defensive bonuses to their bombers when adjacent to other strategic bombers, both against enemy fighter attacks and flak fire from naval and land-based AA guns.

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bru888
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by bru888 »

I wonder how many screen prints (F9) it takes to get those muzzle flashes just right! Other than that nonsensical thought, very impressive additions indeed. What? :)
- Bru
adherbal
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by adherbal »

Actualy I try to hit PrntScrn at the exact right frame - which often fails, meaning end turn & try again - and then photoshop the result (once I manage to grab it) into the same image :)

So it's a bit cheating but if you have the reflexes of a god on steroids you could grab these exact screenshots from a single print screen ;-)
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Andy2012
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by Andy2012 »

adherbal wrote: if you have the reflexes of a god on steroids ;-)
You called? (Sorry, takes me some time to lug my swole body here to flex my stuff, bro... :mrgreen: )

Jokes aside, this does look great. Hopefully, there are not too many SAS and SBS missions. Because I bet these can get finnicky. And they are not that useful in a regular game. Or do you guys actually use them?
bru888
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by bru888 »

Andy2012 wrote:Hopefully, there are not too many SAS and SBS missions. Because I bet these can get finnicky. And they are not that useful in a regular game. Or do you guys actually use them?
From what I saw in beta (so far, that is; it could still change), these units were not specifically scripted in any Burma scenarios. They will be available for purchase only.
- Bru
best75
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by best75 »

Chindits need supply? This is a bit of a surprise to me because I thought they would not need supply
Andy2012
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by Andy2012 »

bru888 wrote:
Andy2012 wrote:Hopefully, there are not too many SAS and SBS missions. Because I bet these can get finnicky. And they are not that useful in a regular game. Or do you guys actually use them?
From what I saw in beta (so far, that is; it could still change), these units were not specifically scripted in any Burma scenarios. They will be available for purchase only.
I meant, are they useful outside specially designed missions. I mean, if I have few credits in the bank, do I invest them for commandos or marine raiders, or for regular units? I'd probably choose the regular ones. Especially in multiplayer, I guess. That was my question.
Andy2012
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by Andy2012 »

best75 wrote:Chindits need supply? This is a bit of a surprise to me because I thought they would not need supply
They were regular light infantry, deployed in the jungle in large numbers. And one of the crucial issues in the Chindits campaign apparently was resupply by air with ammo, medical supplies and maybe even fly out wounded (which mostly was not possible. Being wounded meant death...tragic stuff...).
There is a marvelous documentary on youtube about the Chindits, title was in the series "Gladiators of WW2". I watched it for this DLC, highly recommended.
best75
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by best75 »

Andy2012 wrote:
best75 wrote:Chindits need supply? This is a bit of a surprise to me because I thought they would not need supply
They were regular light infantry, deployed in the jungle in large numbers. And one of the crucial issues in the Chindits campaign apparently was resupply by air with ammo, medical supplies and maybe even fly out wounded (which mostly was not possible. Being wounded meant death...tragic stuff...).
There is a marvelous documentary on youtube about the Chindits, title was in the series "Gladiators of WW2". I watched it for this DLC, highly recommended.
Oh thank you for the information. I guess I had the wrong impression of them. Since they worked behind enemy lines I had the assumption they did not need supply.
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by WWII44 »

Will there be new units for the Japanese too?
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by Erik2 »

WWII44 wrote:Will there be new units for the Japanese too?
I have not come across any new Japanese units in the last beta tests.
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by gemman64 »

Finished this DLC and couldn't find the Sherman Firefly, am I missing something?
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by adherbal »

Did you get the Lead Lease specialisation?
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by gemman64 »

Yes, I had the Sherman III and the Stuart was available.
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by adherbal »

Hm I checked the data files and for some reason the Firefly went missing. We'll fix this in the next patch!
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gemman64
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by gemman64 »

Sounds good.
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by rupd3658 »

I just finished the Burma Road campaign and have a few questions.

1. I didn't see bomber stream as a specialization. Did I miss something?

2. The screen shot of the bomber stream in this thread does not look like any I encountered in the game. The only scenario with naval units was task Force Z

3. The only strategic bomber available to me was the Wellington III. The only tactical bombers were carrier based ones. The ones pictured in the screen shot do not appear in the game. again, did I miss something?
bru888
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by bru888 »

rupd3658 wrote:I just finished the Burma Road campaign and have a few questions.

1. I didn't see bomber stream as a specialization. Did I miss something?

2. The screen shot of the bomber stream in this thread does not look like any I encountered in the game. The only scenario with naval units was task Force Z

3. The only strategic bomber available to me was the Wellington III. The only tactical bombers were carrier based ones. The ones pictured in the screen shot do not appear in the game. again, did I miss something?
An official person should respond about the bomber stream specialisation (I am a mere forum moderator) but if I had to guess, I would say that Alberto was given that screen print and information while this specialisation was "still on the drawing board" and, for technical reasons, it never made it out of production. It's not your game; it's definitely not in the game because these are the only 16 specialisations included in Burma Road:
Capture008.jpg
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A lame explanation but it's all I got.

Regarding the bombers, I can be a bit more definite. You may have noticed that in the beginning of the campaign, you have three types of British strategic bombers available:
Screenshot 1.jpg
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You can see from this screenshot of units.csv that two of those bombers expire in May and June of 1943, meaning they will not be available for Ledo Road, Imphal, Irrawaddy River, and Race for Rangoon:
Capture010.jpg
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Now, the Lockheed Hudson Mk III, the twin-tail bomber in Alberto's screenshot above, is accurate in this regard. However, the Bristol Blenheim Mk IV should be available into 1944 according to Wikipedia. Even so, there were later models of both bombers, a Hudson Mk IV and a Blenheim Mk V.

So, one way or another, versions of all three bombers should be available throughout the Burma Road campaign. If later models are not "designed" yet, then the existing ones should be left "open-ended" like the Wellington Mk III in units.csv.
- Bru
rupd3658
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by rupd3658 »

Thanks. Just wanted to make sure I didn't miss something
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Re: Order of Battle: Burma Road - The new units!

Post by JLChamberlain »

I'm playing Burma Road. I just got to the Race to Rangoon, with Hobart's Funnies unlocked - is it just me or are there no advantages to the Churchill AVRE and the Crocodile over the normal Churchill? No new abilities, no stat bonuses that I can see. What's the deal? Nor did I see the Sherman Crab minesweeper tank available for purchase.

Also, I've had Lend Lease unlocked since fairly early in the campaign and have seen neither hide nor hair of the Firefly.

Am I missing something?
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