Sneak Peeks, Coming Attractions, Works-In-Progress

[Jason Petho]

As we get closer to release, I’ll post scenario names to give an overview of what to expect in the 1.00 release.

[Big Ivan]

Just a though for consideration by the dev team.

In a post above we were discussing variable entry of air strikes by turn which will be a nice feature going forward.

With the new code could it be possible to have variable supply for artillery and troops which could change
based on the event engine or randomly change throughout the scenario by turn or say a block of turns.

As an example: Say on Turn 1 your artillery ammo is 80 but on turn 4 something happens with the event engine or randomly and
your artillery ammo drops to 55. Just wonder if something like this could be coded in the game. Could make the situation
really interesting if a variable like that was introduced during play.[:)]

[Crossroads]

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

Just a though for consideration by the dev team.

In a post above we were discussing variable entry of air strikes by turn which will be a nice feature going forward.

With the new code could it be possible to have variable supply for artillery and troops which could change
based on the event engine or randomly change throughout the scenario by turn or say a block of turns.

As an example: Say on Turn 1 your artillery ammo is 80 but on turn 4 something happens with the event engine or randomly and
your artillery ammo drops to 55. Just wonder if something like this could be coded in the game. Could make the situation
really interesting if a variable like that was introduced during play.[:)]

Yes, that is something that can be done with CS Event Engine. In fact, if you already look at CS Middle East 2.0, and the Crisis in Sirte scenario #1, the British supply goes down 2% each turn as I recall, depicting the difficulties of keeping an airborne landing supplied.

[Crossroads]

In fact, here's the code snippet, from my CS Event Engine developer diary (Check the Mods and Scenarios table-of-content post).

Here, from turn 2, the British supply drops 2%, with a starting level a high 80% value. In ten turns, they are down to 60%, and in 15 turns down to 50%. It gets tricky.

(Parameter "a" passed on the function call refers to side a. This is early code, the current CS Event Engine api is more helpful in many ways. Hopefully, with the documentation available, and with sample scripts from supplied scenarios, this is something the community scenario designers can pick up as well.)

Of course, events that change supply levels can vary, it can be a next_turn event, it could be a loss of a hex or an objective, what not, as the scenario designer chooses.

[Big Ivan]

ORIGINAL: Crossroads

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

Just a though for consideration by the dev team.

In a post above we were discussing variable entry of air strikes by turn which will be a nice feature going forward.

With the new code could it be possible to have variable supply for artillery and troops which could change
based on the event engine or randomly change throughout the scenario by turn or say a block of turns.

As an example: Say on Turn 1 your artillery ammo is 80 but on turn 4 something happens with the event engine or randomly and
your artillery ammo drops to 55. Just wonder if something like this could be coded in the game. Could make the situation
really interesting if a variable like that was introduced during play.[:)]

Yes, that is something that can be done with CS Event Engine. In fact, if you already look at CS Middle East 2.0, and the Crisis in Sirte scenario #1, the British supply goes down 2% each turn as I recall, depicting the difficulties of keeping an airborne landing supplied.

Excellent Crossroads! I never noticed that but I will take a look at that scenario.

BTW being a fringe computer guy without to many computer smarts, How do you open the lua files? I read the manual/directions
on the event engine but maybe I missed it. My rig keeps coming back with Windows can't open this file and I'm leery
of trying notepad or something like that for fear of damaging the file.

[Crossroads]

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

ORIGINAL: Crossroads

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

Just a though for consideration by the dev team.

In a post above we were discussing variable entry of air strikes by turn which will be a nice feature going forward.

With the new code could it be possible to have variable supply for artillery and troops which could change
based on the event engine or randomly change throughout the scenario by turn or say a block of turns.

As an example: Say on Turn 1 your artillery ammo is 80 but on turn 4 something happens with the event engine or randomly and
your artillery ammo drops to 55. Just wonder if something like this could be coded in the game. Could make the situation
really interesting if a variable like that was introduced during play.[:)]

Yes, that is something that can be done with CS Event Engine. In fact, if you already look at CS Middle East 2.0, and the Crisis in Sirte scenario #1, the British supply goes down 2% each turn as I recall, depicting the difficulties of keeping an airborne landing supplied.

Excellent Crossroads! I never noticed that but I will take a look at that scenario.

BTW being a fringe computer guy without to many computer smarts, How do you open the lua files? I read the manual/directions
on the event engine but maybe I missed it. My rig keeps coming back with Windows can't open this file and I'm leery
of trying notepad or something like that for fear of damaging the file.

I'd recommend a programmer text editor such as Notepad++. An editor such as that recognizes the .lua file as programming language, and highlights and colors the text like in the snippet I showed.

I use jEdit, which is a bit more complicated than Notepad++, but something that I have used for years.

[Crossroads]

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

My rig keeps coming back with Windows can't open this file and I'm leery
of trying notepad or something like that for fear of damaging the file.

When you have Notepad++ installed, you can right click at any *.lua file on File Explorer, and choose "Edit with Notepad++".

Here's what it looks like. This one is the current release version from the same snippet as above. Note the simplified code.

You can damage a file only if you save over an existing one. Copy the file you are interested to another location, then it should be absolutely safe to open and view it.

[Jason Petho]

Campaign Series Vietnam: ALPHA Graphics. Screenshot of elements of the 120th CAC "The Deans" lifting an ARVN infantry company towards the battle around Kien Long (in the Mekong Delta), April 12, 1964. As they fly over the dry rice paddies, they are being escorted by a couple gunships. The Deans were still flying the CH-21's at this time.

[Big Ivan]

Thanks Crossroads for the detailed workings on Lua and Notepad++![:D]

Screen shot looking good Jason![:)]

[Crossroads]

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

Thanks Crossroads for the detailed workings on Lua and Notepad++![:D]

Sure thing. Is this something you are further insterested in, like adding CS Event Engine scripts to scenarios you have done? Idea being that if you take existing samples from other available lua scripts that are already out there, it would hopefully not be too difficult to add your own event. One good starting point would be simply to add side specific user briefings to your scenarios.

I could create a new thread for CS Event Engine How-To related questions. I'd be happy to work with anyone trying these scripts. It would also be very valuable to us to learn how easy these CS Events would be for some one not part of the dev team. Our aim is to have this as something the community would be able to pick up as well [:)]

[Big Ivan]

Crossroads,

Yes I would. I have the Merks and Teacher scenario out there that I would love to learn how the lua files work.
Also I have about 15 or so Random Battles in CSME I could experiment with too. Random battles IMO would make a nice
and safe venue to work with lua.

A dedicated forum thread would be a very positive undertaking to help us CSME enthusiasts with working with these files.

That having been said, I think once a few of us CS diehards see how lua works and most likely how easy it is others may
jump in and try it for their designs. I'm hoping a lot of it would be copy and paste but don't know that for sure.

Good stuff going forward my friend![:)]

[Oberst_Klink]

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

Crossroads,

Yes I would. I have the Merks and Teacher scenario out there that I would love to learn how the lua files work.
Also I have about 15 or so Random Battles in CSME I could experiment with too. Random battles IMO would make a nice
and safe venue to work with lua.

A dedicated forum thread would be a very positive undertaking to help us CSME enthusiasts with working with these files.

That having been said, I think once a few of us CS diehards see how lua works and most likely how easy it is others may
jump in and try it for their designs. I'm hoping a lot of it would be copy and paste but don't know that for sure.

Good stuff going forward my friend![:)]

That's one point I had and will address again; to show the community that with the .lua scripting alone it's a game changer. I also have to get into it at some stage for potential tutorials and as a promotion aid.

Klink, Oberst

[Crossroads]

ORIGINAL: Big Ivan

Crossroads,

Yes I would. I have the Merks and Teacher scenario out there that I would love to learn how the lua files work.
Also I have about 15 or so Random Battles in CSME I could experiment with too. Random battles IMO would make a nice
and safe venue to work with lua.

A dedicated forum thread would be a very positive undertaking to help us CSME enthusiasts with working with these files.

That having been said, I think once a few of us CS diehards see how lua works and most likely how easy it is others may
jump in and try it for their designs. I'm hoping a lot of it would be copy and paste but don't know that for sure.

Good stuff going forward my friend![:)]

That's what we're hoping for as well! [:)]

Granted, for Middle East 2.0 CSEE was just finished, so there's the few scenarios using it. All the Bootcamp scenarios and all the Teaching Set scenarios, for one. Also the Crisis in Sirte scenarios, albeit just the first one with a more expansive set.

That said, the Event Engine has expanded tremendously with the CS Vietnam development, and it is there where the first full set of CSEE enabled scenarios truly will shine, with AI having battle plans, and an ability to react to events taking place even with more detail.

I will put the first post for the new CS Event Engine How-To thread out this weekend. Let us start small, and build from there

[Oberst_Klink]

... and remember letting me (#Twitter) and Jason (FB) know in order to spread the word.

Klink, Oberst

[Crossroads]

Sure thing, herr Klink!

[Big Ivan]

[:)]

[Jason Petho]

Campaign Series Vietnam: ALPHA graphics. Here is the latest on the III Corps area master map. A lot of focus has been centered on the southeast area of the map, including the northern reaches of the Rung Sat swamp. Here is the Bien Hoa Air Base, with northern part of Long Binh in the southeast part of the screenshot.

[Jason Petho]

The Morning Calamity - Battle of Michelin Rubber Plantation

November 27, 1965

[Michelin Rubber Plantation, South Vietnam]: [SIDE A/H2H][HIS][CSL]: The 272nd VC Regiment was reported operating in the 31,000 acre Michelin Rubber Plantation, 72 kilometres northwest of Saigon. The 7th ARVN Regiment , with a handful of U.S. Advisors, were trucked in with the task of clearing the plantation and hunting down the VC Regiment. A few days of cat and mouse skirmishes lead to a few captured caches and a handful of casualties. Bivouacking for the night, the battalions of the regiment were scattered throughout the plantation, the 3rd Battalion in various positions to the north along a tributary of Suoi Cau Trac that flowed past the hamlet of Ap 14 Chanh. It wasn't until dawn that the nature of the situation was revealed. The cover of night allowed the battalions of the 272nd to surround the ill-fated 7th Regiment and launch their surprise attack. [ALL][CSEE, Variable Objectives] [NOTE: None] [1.00]

[Jason Petho]

Additional Note to the above:

The defeat of the 7th ARVN Regiment lead to Operation Bloodhound /Bushmaster II a week later where elements of the 3rd Brigade were hunting the Regiment to the southeast of the plantation. There is where the U.S. 2d/2d Infantry made heavy contact, which is the subject matter of the next scenario.

[Jason Petho]

Campaign Series Vietnam: ALPHA Graphics: Design Decision

In the previous post, there was reference to the follow on engagement of the U.S. 2d/2d Infantry and VC 272 Regiment. The screenshot below shows the area where the battle took place, basically in the woods northwest of Ap Nha Mat.

You will notice how large the rest of the map is (considering it is a couple battalion sized engagement) and you'll notice that a lot of the scenario maps are significantly larger than what you'd expect to find, in particular if you're coming from the World War 2 games. This is a scenario design decision to help manage the newer features, such as helicopter operations.

To the southeast of the battle area is Lai Khe, which served as a FOB for the helicopter gunships that were supporting the operation. As helicopters will need to refuel/rearm, we need to include a place for them to do so.

Sure, I could throw a supply unit in a clearing in the middle of a jungle, but we are striving for accuracy.

To the northwest was where the artillery firebases for the operation were established. I could just use offboard artillery to represent those guns, but where's the fun in that!