Times when the AI surprises you

[Imp]

Feel free to post if the AI has a day firing on all cylinders & does something a bit special.

I had a fairly big meeting battle on a large map the other day that was great.
The map had trees running N>S down the centre for virtually the whole length.
There was a one hex break near the top another about a third down slightly wider with a road & a reasonable break around the bottom quarter with a second road which crossed a stream. The top part of the map was difficult to get to from my side due to several streams & minor marshes so the obvious route was the bridge & after setting up I decided to do nothing on go 1 effectivly relegating myself to player 2 as I thought this would produce a better battle for the bridge otherwise I would get there first.

Due to the central woods which are at least 5 wide both sides cannot see anything till past them so the plan was main force for bridge & a couple of attack helos & a fast mech co with ATGMs attached to wind through the streams to the top road. Once over the bridge a road headed up to link up & give support.

All went well to start with beating off Attack Helos that appeared over the treeline & arriving at the bridge. Here the AI suffered not commiting enough forces or more specifically having virtualy no armour support so we took the bridge & sent a force to help out the top guys. A small armoured force was trying to advance here & my helos were having trouble slowing them while my infantry got in place. First surprise was the forces moving to assist came under fire from attack helos that had decided crossing the treeline was not sensible so I commited more than anticipated to break through & help the top force as it was now getting in trouble. Also I had seen the force at the bottom of the map & it was not as large as expected so there must be more further up the map. The top force died in typical AI fashion to a holding force as I was outgunned but the bottom one got serious. APCs lead the way in front of the armour, not a speed diffrence thing purposefull & the armour went to 2 or 3 hexes or stationary no head on rushing even the APCs were on a go slow maintaining position roughly. We slowly pushed forward & found a few units in the centre so dipatched more that way trying to find its forces as there had to be a lot lurking somewhere. I was thinking its got a big reserve this game or is pushing a lot up top, could not have been more wrong. At the bottom of the map the woods turned with a 10 wide or so strip on the AI sides bottom edge. Out of this popped fully half its force on a flanking move which is why it had stopped comming with the force I was fighting letting me come to it. One turn earlier & it would have been curtains only managed to hang on as had destroyed a good portion of the force I had found. Had sent way to much out looking for its forces up the map & discovered the AI had completly ignored it. I mean completly the only unit in the top third of the map past the road was a mortar. Totaly sandbaged by the AI I would say a third of my force never saw an enemy ground unit let alone combat & the others were fighting for survival after a very nearly decisive move.
Have no idea if the AI waited & formed up (it does sometimes) but the first sign I had of trouble in the woods was 30 odd units appearing on my 8 oclock at 3-400m, straight after a 4 plane airstrike. Admit when they first appeared I thought oh good move but as more than a tank co appeared & everyone was out of shots I just watched in amazement as the scrap piled up.
Its also worth noteing & probably luck but AA was concentrated to stop me getting near the lower woods & make the rest of the map a much safer place to use air hence aiding the undetected advance.
Salvaged a draw from the pitched battle that followed.