What kind of manual(s) should we ask for?

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Page 2 of 2. The Matrix Games editor will add the figure numbers below each figure.
===

[Shannon V. OKeets]

I have completed a draft of Section 2 of the Player's Manual (Introduction to Matrix Games World in Flames) and have it available as a PDF it anyone is interested. It is only 6 pages long. Email me at SHokanson#HawaiianTel.net to request a copy to review and comment on.

Here is its table of contents:

===
2.0 Introduction to Matrix Games World in Flames (MWIF)
2.1 Background on World in Flames Games
2.2 Differences between Matrix Games World in Flames and the Board Game World in Flames
2.2.1 Rules as Coded (RAC)
2.2.2 World in Flames Add-ons from Australian Design Group
2.2.3 Optional Rules
2.3 Opening Screen
2.3.1 How To Play
2.3.2 Starting a New Game
2.3.3 Restoring a Saved Game

[Shannon V. OKeets]

2 more pages from the long section on land combat resolution. There will be 5 more figures and lot more text for section 8.7.2.23 once it is all done.
==========

[Shannon V. OKeets]

The 2D10 charts.
========

[sajbalk]

I understand the concern about color blindness, and I am familiar with the game. However, replacing the squiggles and paragraph symbols with colors might be quite useful as it is easier to understand at a glance and easier to read.

On the common 2D10 charts, attacker all unflipped retains the "*", but is colored green. This is Assault 23 and Blitz 21-23.
Similarily, the half-unflipped is yellow, and the extra loss is orange.

This seems easier to understand.

Perhaps show the results tables with colors like this, and show the possible die roll results on the blue column?

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: sajbalk

I understand the concern about color blindness, and I am familiar with the game. However, replacing the squiggles and paragraph symbols with colors might be quite useful as it is easier to understand at a glance and easier to read.

On the common 2D10 charts, attacker all unflipped retains the "*", but is colored green. This is Assault 23 and Blitz 21-23.
Similarily, the half-unflipped is yellow, and the extra loss is orange.

This seems easier to understand.

Perhaps show the results tables with colors like this, and show the possible die roll results on the blue column?

The text in the post above refers to the last 2 pages of RAC for a better illustration of the 2D10 CRT. Here is part of one of those 2 pages. I expect the RAC page to be the one more commonly used. But I didn't want to discard the one from RAW completely.
==========

[Shannon V. OKeets]

I have completed a couple more sections of the Players Manual (3 and 4) and they are available for review and comment by anyone who sends me an email requesting them (SHokanson@HawaiianTel.net).

The list of completed sections is:
2 - Introduction to Matrix Games World in Flames (6 pages)
3 - How To Play (42 pages)
4 - Starting a New Game (8 pages)
5 - Restoring a Saved Game (1 page)
7 - Sequence of Play (41 pages)

Any and all of these are available for review and comment - let me know which you would like to pass judgment on.

I am going to submit these to Jim (who will be editing the manual) as 'Final' in the next week or so. If you want to put in your 2 cents worth, now is the time.
---
I completed section 9, Optional Rules, last spring but I want to reread through it to make sure some of the rules changes from last summer have been incorprated into it. When that is ready for general review, I'll let you know via a post in this thread.
---
I am deep into the creation of section 8, Player Interface, which is 89 pages as of today and is likely to run to around 140 pages when done. It is more likely that I'll complete sections 6, Modes of Play, and 10 Rules as Coded (an introduction) first.
---
Rules as Coded, the actual document, is now finalized (version 20). It is 156 pages. I have not made this generally available for review, though the beta testers have been using earlier versions of it for the past 9 months. I'll talk with Dave and Erik at Matrix to see if they want to make this generally available in advance of the product release. Earlier I had had concerns that it contained references to changes to the rules from Harry Rowland which had not been finalized by him. But that occurrred last fall, and he has published them for everyone to read. So there should be no problems in that regard.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Here is one of today's new sections for the Player Interface section of the Players Manual:

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Some of today's progress on the Players Manual. Page 1 of 2.

Section 8.3.5 is not written because I am still making adjustments based on feedback from the beta testers. For example, there was a discussion earlier this week about enabling player to specify some phases that they might want to skip.
===

[Shannon V. OKeets]

Page 2 of 2.
===

[Shannon V. OKeets]

I occasionally get asked as to how MWIF differs from WIF FE. Here is the heart of section 10 of the Players Manual, which answers that question (list compiled by Patrice).
===
10.5 Deviations
Though few in number, there are places where RAC distinctly deviates from RAW. The use of the unified world map is far and away the most important. Most other deviations are handled as optional rules. Still, there are some places where I decided to make changes to exploit the capability of the computer. For instance, the computer can generate an infinite number of generic counters, so there is no counter-imposed limit on the number of partisan units. Nor are the US Entry chits drawn from a finite chit pool, but rather from an infinite pool according to a statistical distribution.

The decision making for converting RAW to RAC involved dozens of people and for the most part was based on group consensus. Although, of course, I had the final say, so all errors are mine.

Here is a complete list of the Deviations in RAC:
1.2 Scale
Units
MWIF permits an unlimited number of: partisans, fortifications, factories, and infantry-type divisional units. The last is an optional rule which has important restrictions.

1.3 Markers
You are not limited by the number of generic units in the game except for synthetic oil plants. This includes unlimited: pilots and offensive, US entry, and neutrality pact chits.

2.1.2 Sea areas
The hexside northeast of Amsterdam is a canal hexside but it can not be used for naval movement.

2.3.1 Stacking Limits
Any and all hexsides of a land hex can be fortified, but only one fortification per hexside.

2.5 Control
Initial hex control
To determine start lines for the other campaigns use the toggle switch for turning on flags. Every hex will then display a flag indicating which major power controls the hex. At the start of a game, your major power controls all hexes within its home country borders, except any hexes flagged as belonging to the enemy. Again, if you are not sure who controls what, the flags indicating hex control should be toggled on. There are many changes to the non-European parts of the world. For example, North Borneo has been split into 3 separate territories, all of which are controlled by the Commonwealth in 1939: Sarawak, British North Borneo, and Brunei.

Changing control
Starting communist Chinese cities, when playing with the optional rule for additional Chinese cities, are: Lanchow, Sian, Yennan, Sining, Tianshui, Ningsia, and Tungkwan.

9.2 How to declare war
The player is given the opportunity for making some special decisions during the DOW on Minors subphase: Finland Borderlands and Bessarabia claims by the USSR, Occupy Greenland Iceland and Occupy Northern Ireland by the US, Close the Burma Road by Japan, Add Polish units by the Commonwealth and Add Interned Units. The DOW on Minors subphase is also when a player can announce he is breaking a neutrality pact.

9.4 US entry
Attempting to Declare war
Other players are informed how many chits were needed. The US player decides exactly how many are reported if a range of possibilities exists.

9.5 Neutrality pacts
Effect of neutrality pacts
Once a pact is broken, both major powers remove the entry markers they have placed on their common border (see below) from the game.

11.7 Strategic bombardment
Damaged factories are shown as black stacks.

11.10 Rail movement
Factories
For the USSR, an additional restriction applies. Either both the enemy in-supply land unit and the moving factory’s city of origin are in European USSR or they both are in Siberia (eastern USSR). Similarly, either the destroyed factory and the moving factory’s city of origin are both in European USSR or both in Siberia. The destination for the moving factory can be anywhere in the USSR. Here the European USSR and Siberia are defined by the demarcation line running north-south, three hexes to the east of Stalingrad.

Limits
The number of hexes the unit traverses determines the number of rail moves it expends as shown in the following table:

Code: Select all

	Hex Distance	Land or Aircraft Unit 	Factory Unit
 	1 - 60 hexes	1 rail move		2 rail moves
 	61 - 120 hexes	2 rail moves		3 rail moves
 	121 + hexes	3 rail moves		4 rail moves
 

11.16.5 Resolving attacks
Choosing combat tables
If units from different major powers (on the deciding side) might take the losses, the major power with the most units involved in the combat chooses.

13.1 Partisans
Getting partisans
There is no die roll to select a row on the partisan table. Instead, each country has a probability of partisans appearing as a value in the data for the country. The probability of partisans appearing in each country is the same as in the table. However, a separate random number is generated for each country and tested against the probability of partisans appearing in that country. The result is that partisans might appear in more than 8 countries.

Setting up partisans
Set up partisans that are drawn randomly from a fixed distribution that is redefined annually. They are drawn simultaneously for all major powers and set up simultaneously. After all partisans have been placed, the effects upon any overrun hexes are implemented one hex at a time.

13.2 Entry markers
New markers are added to the marker pool at the start of each year, which changes the distribution from which a marker is randomly drawn.

13.3.1 US Entry markers
The regular entry markers drawn have no effect on the markers drawn for neutrality pacts.

13.3.2 US entry options
Other players are informed how many chits were needed. The US player decides exactly how many are reported if a range of possibilities exists.

13.6.5 Building units
When units are randomly drawn, you do not see the actual units selected until after all your production decisions are final.

13.7.3 Mutual peace
The area ceded by the USSR is everything east and south of hex row 46 and hex column 155, inclusive, plus the 3 ports Okhotsk, Magadan, and Petropavlovsk.

14.2.1 Fighters
Combat air patrol (CAP)
CAP may only be flown for hexes where an enemy attack is possible. For example, you may not fly CAP during the port attack phase over an empty port.

14.4 Carrier air units
If the carrier air units are flying from a land hex, they can only fly rebase missions.

22.4.7 Siberians
Siberia is defined as that part of the USSR which is east of the north-south demarcation line running 3 hexes east of Stalingrad.

22.4.9 Fortification units
The gearing limits for fortifications is +3 per turn. For example, if you built 2 fortification hexsides in the previous turn, you could build up to 5 in the current turn. All six hexsides can be fortified, but, regardless of type, only one fortification is permitted per hexside.

22.4.15 Chinese Warlords
Warlord units are treated like any other unit for all purposes except that no Warlord unit may move nor advance after combat more than 6 hexes from its home city. They can attack from that 6th hex to a hex where they could not move to, but could not advance after combat.

22.4.17 Heavy weapons units
Not part of MWIF product 1.

22.4.18 Air Cav
Not part of MWIF product 1.

[micheljq]

ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

I occasionally get asked as to how MWIF differs from WIF FE. Here is the heart of section 10 of the Players Manual, which answers that question (list compiled by Patrice).
===
10.5 Deviations

The decision making for converting RAW to RAC involved dozens of people and for the most part was based on group consensus. Although, of course, I had the final say, so all errors are mine.

Thanks for the post, heu sorry what is RAW and RAC anyway?

13.6.5 Building units
When units are randomly drawn, you do not see the actual units selected until after all your production decisions are final.

Just an observation, could be interesting that we do not see our enemy's production in the computer version?

14.4 Carrier air units
If the carrier air units are flying from a land hex, they can only fly rebase missions.

Why carrier air units on land can't do the same actions as a land based air unit?

Thanks, [:'(]

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: micheljq

ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

I occasionally get asked as to how MWIF differs from WIF FE. Here is the heart of section 10 of the Players Manual, which answers that question (list compiled by Patrice).
===
10.5 Deviations

The decision making for converting RAW to RAC involved dozens of people and for the most part was based on group consensus. Although, of course, I had the final say, so all errors are mine.

Thanks for the post, heu sorry what is RAW and RAC anyway?

13.6.5 Building units
When units are randomly drawn, you do not see the actual units selected until after all your production decisions are final.

Just an observation, could be interesting that we do not see our enemy's production in the computer version?

14.4 Carrier air units
If the carrier air units are flying from a land hex, they can only fly rebase missions.

Why carrier air units on land can't do the same actions as a land based air unit?

Thanks, [:'(]

Rules as Written and Rules as Coded (those are defined in the first part of section 10, which I had trimmed off). RAW is from Australian Design Group and can be downloaded from their website. RAC is a modified version of that is an adaptation of RAW specifically for WMIF.

The production builds for your opponents (and allies) can be seen, but not until after you are done your own production. The key point of that sentence though is that you do not see the details of the your own units that are selected randomly until after you have completed your own production; you don't know if you have drawn the best units, the worst, or the mediocre in-between.

Carrier air units represent much smaller groups of airplanes than land based units. When operating at sea from carriers, their effectiveness is comparable to a larger group of land based airplanes. On land, they are simply fewer planes, hence to rule for them only being able to rebase when on land (otherwise it distorts the balance of the simulation's design).

[micheljq]

OK thanks for answers.

I am glad to learn that we cannot see our opponent's production of the current turn before we finished ours.

[paulderynck]

Yeah. Me too. Who said this game has no Fog of War? [;)]

[sajbalk]

USE chits. I understand that there are infinite chits, so the USE chits drawn for Pacts or even for entry do not effect the future pool.

However, in the original game the pool distribution changed year by year.

So, in MWiF if you draw a chit in 1940, it is only influenced by the 1940 distribution? That is, there is no carryover from "left over" 1939 chits?

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: sajbalk

USE chits. I understand that there are infinite chits, so the USE chits drawn for Pacts or even for entry do not effect the future pool.

However, in the original game the pool distribution changed year by year.

So, in MWiF if you draw a chit in 1940, it is only influenced by the 1940 distribution? That is, there is no carryover from "left over" 1939 chits?

It is a cumulative distribution. Here's the code:
========

Code: Select all

   case Year of
     1939:                  // Average = 70/30 = 2.33
     begin
       case RollX(rsEntryChit, 0, TEntryChitRoll.HighRoll, nil, nil,
           TEntryChitRoll.RollRange) of
         0: Result := 0;        // 4   3   1
 
         1..9: Result := 1;     // 6   7   9
 
         10..16: Result := 2;   // 6   7   7
 
         17..22: Result := 3;   // 7   6   6
 
         23..28: Result := 4;   // 5   6   6
 
         else Result := 5;      // 2   1   1 (29)
       end;
     end;
 
     1940:                  // Average = 101/53 = 1.91
     begin
       case RollX(rsEntryChit, 0, TEntryChitRoll.HighRoll, nil, nil,
           TEntryChitRoll.RollRange) of
         0..4: Result := 0;     // 12   6   4  -> 5
 
         5..23: Result := 1;    // 12   8   10 -> 19
 
         24..36: Result := 2;   // 11   5   6  -> 13
 
         37..45: Result := 3;   // 10   3   3  -> 9
 
         46..51: Result := 4;   // 6    1   0  -> 6
 
         else Result := 5;      // 2    1   0  -> 1 (52)
       end;
     end;
 
     1941:                  // Average = 154/68 = 2.26
     begin
       case RollX(rsEntryChit, 0, TEntryChitRoll.HighRoll, nil, nil,
           TEntryChitRoll.RollRange) of
         0..4: Result := 0;     // 12   0   0  -> 5
 
         5..24: Result := 1;    // 13   1   1  -> 20
 
         25..40: Result := 2;   // 14   3   3  -> 16
 
         41..52: Result := 3;   // 14   4   3  -> 12
 
         53..62: Result := 4;   // 9    3   4  -> 10
 
         63..66: Result := 5;   // 5    3   3  -> 4
 
         else Result := 6;      // 1    1   1  -> 1 (67)
       end;
     end;
 
     1942:                  // Average = 213/82 = 2.60
     begin
       case RollX(rsEntryChit, 0, TEntryChitRoll.HighRoll, nil, nil,
           TEntryChitRoll.RollRange) of
         0..4: Result := 0;     // 12   0   0   -> 5
 
         5..24: Result := 1;    // 13   0   0   -> 20
 
         25..41: Result := 2;   // 15   1   1   -> 17
 
         42..56: Result := 3;   // 17   3   3   -> 15
 
         57..70: Result := 4;   // 13   4   4   -> 14
 
         71..78: Result := 5;   // 9    4   4   -> 8
 
         else Result := 6;      // 3    2   2   -> 3  (79..81)
       end;
     end;
 
     else
     begin // 1943 +        // Average = 284/94 = 3.02
       case RollX(rsEntryChit, 0, TEntryChitRoll.HighRoll, nil, nil,
           TEntryChitRoll.RollRange) of
         0..4: Result := 0;     // 12   0    0   -> 5
 
         5..24: Result := 1;    // 13   0    0   -> 20
 
         25..41: Result := 2;   // 15   0    0   -> 17
 
         42..57: Result := 3;   // 18   1    1   -> 16
 
         58..73: Result := 4;   // 15   2    2   -> 16
 
         74..85: Result := 5;   // 13   4    4   -> 12
 
         else Result := 6;     //   8   5    5   -> 8  (86..93)
       end;
     end;
   end;
 end;
 // ****************************************************************************
 class function TEntryChitRoll.HighRoll: Byte;
 // ****************************************************************************
 // # of chits (minus 1) to randomly select from for each year
 // ****************************************************************************
 begin
   case ChitYear of
     1939: Result := 29;
 
     1940: Result := 52;
 
     1941: Result := 67;
 
     1942: Result := 81;
 
     else Result := 93;     // 1943 +
   end;
 end;
 

The 3 or 4 numbers in the comments (following //) reflect changes in RAW over the years. The 3rd and 4th entries are for the current version of RAW.

For example,

In 1942 there are 81 chits. The chance of drawing a '3' is 16/81. That is because the '3' chits are in the quanitites 6+3+3+3+1 in the years 1939->1942.

[Taxman66]

Some of us still don't like this decision, and believe that overly aggressive actions by the axis that cause the next year's chits to enter sooner a good thing... and conversly overly aggressive actions by the allies that keep the low value 1940 chits recycling out, then back into the USA pools also a good thing.
 
*sigh* 

[brian brian]

so basically, the '5' chit from 1939 could appear in pools several times then. likewise, the odds of drawing a lot of zeroes have also gone back up, after several were taken out in the last change.

[Shannon V. OKeets]

ORIGINAL: brian brian

so basically, the '5' chit from 1939 could appear in pools several times then. likewise, the odds of drawing a lot of zeroes have also gone back up, after several were taken out in the last change.

There is no '5' chit in the physical sense. It is more like roulette where the wheel spins and 5 can come up repeatedly or not at all.