AndrewJ
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Joined: 1/5/2014
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Here's some thoughts. I haven't had time to look through all the missions and events, so I'll try and send more info tomorrow.
SCENARIO PLAY OBSERVATIONS
This one has a nice live feel to it at the start, with numerous things happening along the length of the Gulf, a long area of operation to worry about, and interesting news reports coming in about other developments. It gives me interesting choices about where to spend my combat power. Try and defend the wide-spread tankers from a vague submarine threat, or concentrate on specific military units? Like many long scenarios, the end-game gets quieter once the player has had time to dominate the situation. I had no effective enemy resistance for the last two days. Giving the enemy more combat persistence in the mid and late game would definitely be advantageous, I think. (Shortening the tanker/logistics transit distances, and cutting a day off the scenario, might work too.)
The missile shortage is interesting, and I think it could be made slightly more acute. A few less AMRAAMs, forcing the player to go to Sparrows sooner, or to limit operations sooner, would preserve enemy capabilities longer into the game. (Although I’m speaking from the micromanaging play style, where I have fun flying the planes and firing manually, so someone relying primarily on missions will probably find their missile usage rate is already higher than mine.) This would also make the arrival of the freighter more important. (In my case the main fighting was over before it arrived.) I never really used the full AA power of my carrier air wing, so a slightly more acute missile shortage would probably encourage the player to bring those assets into use.
The La Combattante ships deployed along the Iranian coast are quite suspicious by their isolated nature, and invite immediate inspection and attack. Perhaps adding a few extra little fishing boats anchored there and elsewhere along the coast, with associated coastal docks and town markers, would disguise them and add some interesting confusion? If some fishing boats are at sea the player may ID them first, and then assume the warships are the same. This might help them last longer.
The SSMs around Bandar Abbas are relatively easy to find because they are all emitting. Perhaps only one or two could be radiating at first? Or maybe they only turn on later in the scenario, not in the first couple of days, before enemy forces could arrive? Alternatively, perhaps some of these mobile units arrive late, only driving in and setting up on Night 3 or 4? Perhaps the Russians have been hiding them in buildings, and they simply cannot be spotted from the air. A scattering of town markers, a warning in the briefing about the sneaky tactics, a special message about increased chatter (in Russian) near Town X shortly before deployment, and then LUA them into existence an hour later, and turn them on half an hour after that? Perhaps they arrive at night late in the scenario further down the coast near Jask, and engage tankers from there? (The same sort of late-arrival reinforcement could work with SAMs too, I guess. As could late-game LUA replenishment for the SA-5 ammo, for example, since they've only got 6 shots each.)
Late-arriving subs might be good too, particularly if they target the long stream of tankers on either side of the Straits. I know I didn't have a lot of ASW power along the N coast of either Gulf, so a sub might be able to hide there on the bottom, and then sneak south into the stream of tankers slow and low once the lead escorts have gone. By Night 5 I had a big gap between escorts up in the straits and the carrier group at the mouth of the gulf, which a sub could have exploited, provided it remained undetected up to that point.
Thinking of ways to prolong the enemy air power, is there any way to simulate the rough-field capabilities of Russian planes, if their runways have been bombed? LUA-in some bulldozers, and then (if they are not destroyed) LUA-in a short runway a day later, to represent a freshly scraped landing strip?? Maybe the Iranians can tow a plane or two up the road to a local civil airfield? Just enough for one or two lightly loaded intercept missions? Some older aircraft on very long ready times (several days) might represent obsolete aircraft being brought out of storage. A handful of fresh Mig-21s from some little airfield late in the game might make a nasty surprise once the player has relaxed, or switched planes from air-to-air to air-to-ground. I know I got careless enough at the end that a couple of old jets (ex-Iraqi Fitters?) with iron bombs could have bitten off a tanker without too much difficulty, provided it wasn't near the CAP in the straits. (Assuming they could find it, of course. Alway the trick...) Another way to put the player off balance might be to have just one or two Phoenix-armed F-14s with late ready times, so just when they think they can deal with them reasonably easily, they have something new to worry about.
(Please forgive all these musings. It’s easy to make suggestions when I don’t have to implement them!) 
The minefields were good (although the Iranians had already lost 57 small craft to their own mines, with several more damaged, before I took a shot at them), and I was never fully confident I’d found all the mines in the field. Maybe there was one more just beyond the edge of where I’d searched? I wonder if late-game replenishment of the minefields by submarine (lurking as close to the bottom as quietly as possible) would be useful? If the player isn’t keeping a careful watch, a new minefield (even a very small one) could be a nasty surprise. They don't even have to be in the straits. A small field projecting off the corner W of Jask might catch tankers trying to cut the corner, or a field on either side of Abu Musa might do the trick.
I never did use the special action to announce my intentions to open the straits. I couldn’t see any particular advantage to telegraphing my moves to the enemy. Although it was said it would reassure my allies, it wasn’t clear if it would bring an immediate military benefit, or that it was really necessary in any way, so I just continued without it. (Also, section in the briefing on the special actions to be used in the scenario might be useful. I know to look for them, as an experienced player, but it might be helpful to have them explicitly spelled out for novices.)
Had you intended us to take the CVBG into the Gulf? I had the tanker support I needed to stay out at sea, so I didn’t go into those horribly restricted waters, and stayed in the mouth of the Gulf of Oman. I think most players would need explicit orders if they are intended to take the carrier in.
This is one of the first scenarios where the Quick Turnaround on the ASW helicopters has been really handy. Rather than using them in long duration patrols, I’ve been keeping them on deck, and darting out to investigate and classify distant sonar contacts, and then immediately heading back to the ship. It’s actually working quite well.
TECHNICAL ITEMS
The neutral tankers are trying to plot their own minimum distance course through the S-bend of the straits, and as a result they cut very close to the land in several places, in particular the Iranian shore at Jask, and all along the coast past Qeshm Island. A guy standing on shore could hit them with an RPG! (Well, he might actually have to wade out up to his knees. :D) This would be a very risky move for tankers that are presumably trying to avoid a hostile shore. More importantly, they also hug the tip of the peninsula near Khasab Airbase, and then cut between the little islands at the very tip. That means they will completely miss the minefields without any intervention at all, which takes away the main obstacle in the whole scenario. I think you may need to have individual courses plotted for the tankers, to keep them in the center of the sea lane.
As mentioned earlier, the speedboats (and many of the minelayers) are getting hit by their own minefield, which saved me a fair bit of work. The Straits Ctr ASUW patrol overlaps very slightly with the east edge of the 'Straights' mineing zone, but the big problem is the Straits West patrol, which almost overlaps the entire minefield. (I think you were looking at the RPs on the wrong side of the minefield when you set it up.)
The minelaying mission also has the mines set for a two hour arming delay. Mines deploy at 3 minute intervals, so the 40 mine load will take the full two hours to deploy. When the minelayer turns to go home it may pass through already active mines it just laid. One of the minelayers is in the zone already, but the others are 1 to 2 hours away at cruise, so when they enter they will be passing through active mines for some or all of their mission. (Incidentally the mission is set as inactive, but the start time is 5 days before the start of the scenario, so it activates immediately.) If you extend the arming time (1 day?) the minelayers should be able to get in and out safely. It may be worth having a mission deactivation time too, so they don't re-arm and hurry back into a live minefield.
I’m not sure how big an impact my inadvertent discovery of the bombers was (due to the wandering Saudi AWACS). However, when the Blinders formed up at their loiter station they were given away by their active radar. Could they be radar silent until they are actually advancing to engage? (The Bears were emitting too.) Also, is there any LUA way that bombers can retreat if fighters approach or get in among them?
The SSK in the Persian Gulf gave itself away by surfacing. (Mentioned in other reports.) His patrol area includes a lot of very shallow water with islands, and I doubt the AI helmsman will have much luck. His initial course is already pointed at very shallow water, so he'll be on the surface almost immediately.
The Saudi doctrine allows them to refuel from allies, which means their AWACs etc. will attempt to fly to the far end of the theatre in order to refuel from NATO tankers way down in Oman. (Already reported)
Bandar Abbas AAW West mission has its prosecution area curved behind its patrol area. Perhaps one of the reference points got moved by accident?
The La Combattantes along the Gulf of Oman coast aren't on a mission, and won't fire, even at known targets. If I set them to Engage Opportunities = Yes then they will shoot. (Unless there's some event to assign them to a mission that I haven't seen yet.)
Typo in scenario file name – “Homuz” Hoedown.
Missing verb in scenario briefing: “There are strong indications that a Costal Missile Regiment, probably the 24th from the Black Sea Fleet has moved? to the area of the Straits.
Typo in briefing: “Details of what we assess tor remain are:”
Typo in briefing: Thumrait AB: 2x E-3B AWACS, 2x KC-10, 2x kC-135, 1x EC-130H Compass Call
The game starts with an obsolete contact for the Palang, to the East of the Straits, but there’s nothing actually there.
Was the Saudi AWACS North mission supposed to have 3 RPs like that, or is one an accidental extra?
My isolated surface groups start the scenario with radar active, which makes sense. Should they also be running with sonar active, since subs are a threat?
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RE: New Scenario for Testing - IOF #5 Hormuz Hoedown - 
And he's been in range of my ships almost the entire time... If any of my trailers had been spotted (by that Badger, f'rinstance) they'd have been paste.
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