Stalintc
Posts: 291
Joined: 8/2/2006
From: Bristol UK
Status: offline
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Scenario: Iron Wolf
Author: Brad Leyte (CV32)
Battleset: EC2003 GIUK
Database: HCDB
Skill level: Intermediate
Involved units: Full (Land\Sea\Air operations)
Where can I get it? Here (Harpgamer)
Review:
First impressions:
As I have come to expect from a Brad Leyte scenario, this one requires some good interpretation of the orders by the player and the ability of the player to devise their own plan, rather than working to already outlined goals. This I find to be quite enjoyable and most certainley a method of scenario creation which is very much like Brad's signature on the scenarios he writes.
When I first opened the scenario I was presented with control over almost the whole Western side of the Baltic's and several bases on the Eastern side in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, it was quite clear from the orders that these three places on the Eastern side must not fall to RED attacks (Russia). I had a large number of air assets available to me from these bases, including some Russian made aircraft based in Poland.
When I noticed I had these Russian made aircraft in my arsenal, I found myself intrigued to continue and experiment with mixing these aircraft with NATO ones to see what kind of impact they had. This point I thought to be impressive, since there are not many scenarios out there which give you the chance to experiment with combining aircraft which were produced by opposing nations in essence to combat each other, insted in this scenario, being used to complement each other.
I had a handful of sea based assets at my disposal of mixed types, but mainly frigate sized vessels, with limited but present ship to ship capabilities.
Also I couldnt help but notice each of the airbases on my side had some armoured units in the form of Self Propelled Artillery, external structures were present for the bases and some moderate IADS were installed.
Gameplay:
The Russians have been given a very powerful airforce in this scenario and it requires that a player be quite familiar with the use of effective combat air patrols and AEW coverage. The Russians pose a formidable threat, the AI driving them uses them to great effect, thanks to some excellent and well crafted little extras added by Brad, which shows his excellent understanding of the workings of the scenario editor.
At no point during the scenario did I feel at ease or in a state of being idle, the threat from RED was constant and un-relenting. There are many surprises along the way which have been installed and are designed to catch the player and force some quick thinking.
I feel the urge to divuldge the details of several events that occur during the scenario which had me on my toes, but I must resist the temptation because these events are all part of keeping the player on the toes and I highly respect Brad's intent with these features.
The action during the scenario I found, meant I spent much of my time with the air operations side of things, but there was plenty here during the scenario to keep me working the land and sea situation too and was well balanced in accordance with the scenario orders.
Conclusion
This scenario is a true masterpiece in every respect, surprise, suspence and utilisation of the players ability to think freely were all present and very welcomed. On further investigation after completing the scenario I also noted that enough variables had been put in place to allow for a good chance of replayability.
It is also a good scenario to investigate, even if on a small scale the effectiveness of both Russian and NATO air power when combined, which was a real eye opener.
Thank you for the time and effort that went into building the scenario, I hope others will enjoy it as much as I have. 
The Score 98%
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REVIEW - Brad Leyte's Iron Wolf - 
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