I beg your pardon? TWICE? This is the FIRST time that KG2 has entirely no-showed for a TOD to the best of my knowledge. And I am perfectly aware of the TOD rules, Sling.
With all due respect to the CMs, by giving such short notice of a TOD when they KNOW that there is a big game like BoB already on, they are in essence DEMANDING that I spend the whole of my weekend focusing on AH - and anyone else who is a member of a TOD squad and who had signed up for BoB. The CM's knew of when BoB was scheduled for months. They could easily have avoided scheduling a TOD at the same time but chose not to do so.
Daddog, if this is indeed regarded as over, then TOD has lost any claim to being a serious attempt to involve dedicated players, so far as I am concerned. The attitude expressed by yourself and Sling show either no regard for or otherwise understanding of the reality of the situation.
I personally was putting in so much effort and time on BoB - and getting somewhat stressed about it (albeit on top of generalised life stress as well) that I lost my temper with the CMs in that to such an extent that I damned near got myself thrown out of the game - and I wouldnt have argued against that. Whilst my concerns were solely for the good of the game to be played, the way in which I behaved at the time was decidedly not helpful, and I regret that I did lose my temper as I did. This is different, and I do argue against it.
Amid all that, you expect me to be looking out for notice of a TOD on a daily basis, when, as I have stated, the entire unit wasnt expecting any until AFTER BoB, and so some of us are out of contact, and others (my XO, Douwe) overworked on AH-related stuff already? That's a bit damned much.
It would have been sensible for the TOD CM's to think about the situation and give more warning of the TOD. Indeed, it would generally be a good thing to have more advanced warning of individual TOD games, but certainly when they clash with large ORGABNISED (that's the operative word, folks) games like BoB it is ESSENTIAL that more warning be given.
KG2 is and always has been interested in ORGABNISED games, preferably squad-based, like the War Birds S3's and the TOD's, but we also help out as best we can with events like BoB - usually, because of the dearth of organised Axis bomber units, in providing knowledge and an organisational core for the Axis side when they need such for their bombers in organised games. We put in a LOT of time working on how to do bombing and plan bombing raids better and more historically, and we pass the basics of that on to others freely and gladly, with the hope that it will help others to enjoy this aspect of gaming WW2 air combat more.
This we have done, and we have behaved impeccably in the situation under discussion. When I became aware that there was indeed a game on, rash though I feel the decision to run one under the circumstances was, I did attempt to contact my members and see if any could attend. None could at such short notice. Following that, as we had not been in frames 1 and 2, for the reasons stated, I was startled to see that the frame 3 CO seemed to be expecting us to turn up for that, and so I posted as I did.
Kindly point out to me where, in any of all that, I or the rest of my unit have erred. If we are to be penalised for that, then I can only say that it refelects negatively only on those penalising us, not on our unit.
Esme
CO, Kampfgeschwader 2 "Holzhammer"
