My experience of Toth

[GJK]

If Peter could do 3 things, this would be a killer game and would be as complete as far as the ASL Starter Kits go: 1. Add smoke. It's essential in ASL and I don't know why he doesn't have it in here. 2. Rotate the silly tanks instead of using the little arrows. It's minor but it's annoying. Additional: add turret markers/counters while you're at it. 3. Just go ahead and admit that it's based off of ASL and show the charts and the dice rolls. He probably never will for fear of a lawsuit but that's really a game killer for me.

Too many times see what would amount to a 2+2 shot break both squads and a leader in the AFPh (sorry, the Advancing Fire Segment). I'd really like to see the dice roll on some of those shots but that may open up another whole can of worms for Peter if people start to perceive (real or not) that the dice roller is wonky or skewed somehow.

Still, I hold out promise of what the future will bring for the game - I can deal with the not so elegant GUI. The game is very close to being solitaire ASL Starter kit, it just needs those three things above. Then he could move on to adding more items from full ASL if that were the desire. My $.02.

[midgard30]

Hi,

I didn't read much about mortar units in this forum and I'm wondering if it's a concern for other players. I never played ASL, and I don't know how it was implemented, but the fact that they don't have any spotters make them regular guns. For example in Defending Meximieux this mortar placed in the town center has no LOS to any enemy units and can't provide any fire in the first round on advancing german units.

CoH has an elegant rule for indirect fire where the unit LOS can start up to 2 hex further in its arc of fire. In TotH, mortar feels like an incomplete unit.

[Gerry4321]

IIRC in ASL mortars can use direct fire on sighted units but it also has the option for spotters. Hopefully that will be added.

[GJK]

Yes, full ASL has spotters for mortars (ASL Starter Kits do not however).

[asl3d]

ORIGINAL: asl3d

It's true that once the heart of software (AI) has been designed, it's difficult to attack a major change without making a great effort of development.

It is possible that the Smoke will complicate the life to the designer. However, here I propose some advances that perhaps are not so critical:

1.- Extra information about Vehicles, Artillery and SW. The idea is to try to reproduce ASL Chapter H. I do not want to say that the rules are changed by the particular characteristics of each unit. Only provide historical information about the unit, a larger and higher quality additional image, etc. This does not increase the playbility but if it makes the game is even more attractive.
2.- To be able to select different types of Theaters of Operations. That is to say, to be able to select a specific type of file "Terrain" in a concrete Scenario, without needing to change it in the folder Graphics. It would not even be important to change the rules for each Theater of Operations. What I propose is to increase the variety of terrains and units without increasing the work of the IA.
3.- Hedges and Walls. Surely this will be a toothache for the designer but they are essential elements of the Battlefield.

Easy!!

Here’s a proposal that can improve the game interface.

It is about providing the relevant information of the Vehicles and the Artillery without having to consult tables or to remember the summarized characteristics that are in the counters.

The mechanics follow three steps.

Step 1: click on the hexagon on the Tactical Map.

Step 2: Click on the unit that to be consulted in the Unit Control Panel.

Step 3 (this is the newness): In the Action Log Windows is displayed the "Unit Card", with all the information about the vehicle or Artillery, as well as an image of the unit.

Here's an example.

[Gerry4321]

A lovely idea. But I would try and make it smaller and maybe have it floatable (is that a word here?) so that people can resize it and move it to areas of blank space.

[asl3d]

An evolution of the idea of post # 25 would be to act in the Unit Control Panel.

That is, in step 2 it would display directly the counters as they are seen in the Tactical Map, just like with the Pop-Up Window, thus releasing the mouse.

Here is the example of post # 25 with the Unit Control Panel transformed.

[Rosseau]

A lot of work, but so was your counters mod! Not sure how much Peter would have to do assuming you could help with the graphics part.

[GJK]

I don't think that Peter can show actual values for the same reason (whatever that reason) is that he can't show an IFT or the dice rolls. Somebody feel free to correct me if I'm wrong-

[RFalvo69]

ORIGINAL: marcdhanna
The whole point of a computer game is to NOT drown players with rules, which is why the game should continue to divest from ASL as much as possible. Supporting these mods that make the game look like ASL is very much a two-edged sword for the growth of this game but it may be too late as it seems to be an embedded feature for promoting sales.

Don't post this on the World in Flames forum [:D]

Anyway, Steel Panthers had smoke, snipers and concealment - and people were still able to play it. This because the presence of these things is logical on a battlefield, and so you simply refer to your experience with other tactical wargames and weave the needed rules into the new one.

[asl3d]

I'm not trying to correct you.

I just want to add a reflection on the dice roll:

1.- The dice is a way of introducing chance when playing with a board.

2.- It is a solution accepted by all, but it is only a way to reflect a concept.

3.- At times, weapons are malfuntion, a vehicle is bog, a shot at point blank does not produce the expected effects, a desperate shot produces a critical hit, an elite unit breaks at the first opportunity of combat, etc.

4.- It is chance. Sure that AI takes it into account. I do not doubt it.

5.- So, why do we want to see the result of the dice?.

6. A "DR" measures only the effect of chance and not the effect of a successful tactic or an error.

7.- A double 2 or a double 6 does not justify the errors. Only consoles our bad luck or reflect our great luck. Nada more.

8.- I think that see the "DR" does not bring anything.

Regards

[Hailstone]

In "Heroes of Stalingrad" and "Heroes of Normandie" the player has the option to view the dice roll across the board. It's just fun to watch adding an element of a board game but it can get old and slows down play by having to watch the animation. I would like to see that but it is way down my wish list of priorities.

[dox44]

no matter how much i play...gotta have them die rolls if available.

d6 in HON is a killer...much fun to be had.

[Cataphract88]

ORIGINAL: Hailstone

In "Heroes of Stalingrad" and "Heroes of Normandie" the player has the option to view the dice roll across the board. It's just fun to watch adding an element of a board game but it can get old and slows down play by having to watch the animation. I would like to see that but it is way down my wish list of priorities.

You can see the dice rolling in Conflict of Heroes, too.

[asl3d]

Yes, in "Heroes of Stalingrad", the dynamics of the dice is very well done.

But .... beyond the show, they do not contribute anything.

Well yes, I can cry of my bad luck.

By the way, in HoS, there is a mod on Normandy very good.

Regards,

[dox44]

there is a mod for everything right now on the forum for computer HOS...even zombies

should check it out if you haven't

[asl3d]

I did not know, I did not know it.

Thank you very much.

regards