Announcing the HCE Challenge!

[CV32]

HarpGamer, in conjunction with Advanced Gaming Systems Inc (AGSI) and Matrix Games, is launching what we call the “HCE Challenge”.

The Harpoon Commander’s Edition (HCE) Challenge will be, for all intents and purposes, a scenario design contest, the goals of which will include:

• providing an interesting, enjoyable and potentially rewarding way to learn how to write scenarios for HCE; and
• generating new and challenging scenarios for potential inclusion in the new official HCE BattleSets: Caribbean, South Atlantic, South Africa and the Middle East.

The HCE Challenge will have a competitive aspect, and the “winners” will receive rewards which may include any of the following (the final details are yet to be worked out, and may differ from the suggested possibilities identified below):

• a period of access to the latest HCE beta version without the usual and strict prerequisite of active participation in the beta testing process (although we’d certainly invite your help as a beta tester!);
• a free copy of another Harpoon version, such as Harpoon 3: Advanced Naval Warfare or the Harpoon 4 paper rules; or
• a discount on other Matrix Games titles;

And, of course, most importantly:

• Inclusion of your winning scenario in an official HCE BattleSet!

Don’t be intimidated by the competition, however, as we intend the HCE Challenge to be a fun experience and in any event, participants will be organized according to their scenario writing experience. We hope to have at least two participants in each of three tiers (Novice, Intermediate and Advanced), for a total of at least six participants overall (and hopefully quite a few more!). How a participant is assigned among these individual tiers will, in turn, be determinative of how complex their scenario project will be.

The format for the HCE Challenge has not yet been finalized, and we thought it might be prudent to gauge your opinion, as HCE players and scenario writers, in how it should proceed. The following three potential formats have been suggested (and if you have another, please let us know):

Suggested format No.1:

a. Two players (Blue and Red) are paired up in each of the three Tiers (Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced).
b. Each pair chooses from one of the four new official HCE BattleSets (Caribbean, South Atlantic, South Africa, Middle East).
c. Each pair comes up with a storyline.
d. The Blue player chooses his order of battle (OOB) from a narrow set of available choices, and crafts his scenario accordingly.
e. Once Blue has finished, Red chooses his OOB, again from a narrow set of choices.
f. Red takes the scenario as provided by Blue and adds the Red forces and actions as AI to try and defeat Blue.
g. Umpires now have complete scenarios.
h. The two players each play the scenario as the Blue side and send in their results.
i. Umpires also play the scenarios as the Blue side and make their notes.

Suggested format 2:

a. Two players (Blue and Red) are paired up in each the three Tiers (Novice, Intermediate, Advanced).
b. Each pair chooses from one of the four new official HCE BattleSets.
c. Umpires present a storyline and the Red OOB (or a close approximation of what it might look like).
d. Each player chooses his Blue OOB, from a narrow set of choices.
e. Umpires refine the Red OOB (as necessary).
f. Final data is presented to the player, and he crafts his scenario (both sides of it, Blue and Red).
g. Umpires now have complete scenarios.
h. The two players each play the scenario as the Blue side and send in their results.
i. Umpires also play the scenarios as the Blue side and make their notes.

Suggested format 3:

a. Two players (Blue and Red) are paired up in each the three Tiers (Novice, Intermediate, Advanced).
b. Each pair chooses from one of the four new official HCE BattleSets.
c. Each pair comes up with a single storyline.
d. Blue player chooses a Blue OOB, from a narrow set of choices.
e. Red player chooses a Red OOB, from a narrow set of choices.
f. OOB's are refined (as necessary) and then revealed to each player.
g. Each player crafts the scenario, to be played by Blue or Red (whatever suits them).
h. Umpires now have complete scenarios.
i. The two players each play the scenarios and send in their results.
j. Umpires also play the scenarios and make their notes.

We expect that the scenario design process – from start to finish – would take approximately two (2) months, followed by the umpires’ evaluation of the scenarios.

Please let us know (by posting here in this thread) which of these suggested formats you prefer, or if you have another brilliant idea you’d like to share for the HCE Challenge. As soon as the format is ironed out, we hope to get this project underway!

[RA5C]

[font=tahoma]One question... regarding "...new official HCE BattleSets: Caribbean, South Atlantic, South Africa and the Middle East."  Where might we find these battlesets so as to create scenarios for them?  I am currently running version 2008.024 (Build Feb. 13, 2008).  Did I miss an update?.. do I need to purchase these?..  [&:][/font]

[noxious]

Should be available in the next build, 2008.44, which should be shortly available in beta version in the members area
So no, you're not missing anything

[RA5C]

[font="Tahoma"]Thanks... I guess they are just posting the contest early considering there would be no way to create scenarios without the requested battlesets...[/font] [;)]

[TonyE]

The battlesets are all available at HarpGamer and have been for months so it isn't at all impossible.  We've waved them about here as well for comment.

[RA5C]

[font="Tahoma"]Sorry... I must have missed them, however I was able to download the latest update which contains them.

One question?.. SE Asia... is it me or is the map not exactly proportional?..[/font]

[TonyE]

Okay folks, all nice questions but please try to return this thread to its intent, you providing feedback on your preferred conduct of the HCE Challenge. 
 
As for the maps, none of them are perfectly proportional (or square as I like to say), WestPac included.