Wishes for v2.5

[Kharan]

-Larger neutral zone between deployment areas in random battles. Even on a 100X240 map there's only 20 hexes between the two forces. On small maps there is normally 15 hexes. In all cases it results in almost immediate LOS with enemy. I know the neutral zone can be manually altered in the editor, but it is a bit clumsy, not to mention hard to find. Or am I the only one who plays mostly hotseat random battles (because we like to buy and deploy our troops) ?

-Battle turn length modifier. This can be set in the editor, but it only saves it for the scenario and not the map which you want to use in Battle. In SPWW2 this could be set by a keypress in deployment screen. But on the other hand, because of the fixed last turn, SPWAW battles don't drag on forever like SPWW2's. Ideally (wasn't it like this in SP2?) battles would also end when one side had all or most victory hexes and a decisive difference in remaining forces, before the final turn or complete eradication of enemy forces like it is now.

-Unit pictures and descriptions. If I remember correctly they were ready for the first release, but Matrix didn't have time to put them in. Anyway, they would be great for newcomers (and weirdos who sometimes just like to peruse the encyclopedia for hours) so it would make sense to put them in before the game goes on all those magazine cover-cd's.

-These have been mentioned before: firing messages delay issue, Fast Airstrikes option, and targetable empty tanks (for some reason in the end of a battle I still don't get the points for a tank which crew I killed even when I have all victory hexes).

[Voriax]

Might as well use this topic...

Any way to get those small unit nationality flags back on map? It is sometimes very hard to spot units, especially mg's and similar small units that are marked with the '+' sign. Not to mention when they are running and do not have even that '+'. This might be impossible though given the SP3 background.

And how about making it impossible for a buttoned up tank to fire the AAMG. I believe those were very rarely remote controlled from inside the tank.

Voriax

[Galanti]

Fantastic effort to all concerned!

Like many of you, I am amazed at how much I prefer this game to all the other $60 products I've gathered over the years.

However, I would like to see in upcoming versions of SPAW, if possible, reworking of the generic missions assigned in the WWII long campaign. I play campaigns because, I suspect like many of you, I enjoy the sense of continuity and satisfaction of watching your core force grow into a battle-hardened elite Kampfgruppe under your canny leadership.
Is it possible to assign a custom mission once in a while, as in the old Dynamix flight sim Aces Over The Pacific?
If not, oh well, I think I can dream up a few more ways to deploy my Panzer Grenadiers or Stugs more creatively...

Also, please bring back reconnaissance aircraft! The points allotted don't allow me the luxury of squandering points on a JU52 for uncovering my adversaries' soft rear areas.

Finally, I recommend to anyone interested the book Panzer: A Revolution in Warfare, 1939-1945 by Roger Edwards. It's available at Chapters in the bargain section.

[Bing]

Finally, I recommend to anyone interested the book Panzer: A Revolution in Warfare, 1939-1945 by Roger Edwards. It's available at Chapters in the bargain section.

[/B][/QUOTE]

Might be an interesting book. Do you have the URL for the bookstore? Thanks.

Byron Inglesh

[Bondy]

Kharan said:
"-Larger neutral zone between deployment areas in random battles."

I actually like the way it is now - if this was changed I'd hope you could toggle the size of the neutral zone. I can understand why you would sometimes want it larger (more strategic placement possibilities) but I usually don't find a long trip to the battlefield that interesting.

"-Unit pictures and descriptions."

Great idea - I was thinking a user made add-on would be available soon if not from Matrix. It is a big job but maybe the jobs could be given to volunteers. Example: Joe X does descriptions for this list of units, Bob X does the descriptions for that list etc. - same idea with the missing pics.

[Galanti]

Bing, the URL is http://www.chapters.ca/books/details/default.asp?mscssid=DKB5RPSM77SR2GBS00AKHCJKT34H0KAE&WSID=2206E5A83E8A4D5211D4909B00508B62B1515228&ISBN=1860198538

The Canadian branch, that is

[victorhauser]

Before Steel Panthers was released my favorite game was Aces Over the Pacific. I also like the idea of having "designed" scenarios built into SPWAW long campaigns. Unfortunately, having designed several SP3 campaigns, there are so many variables to consider that trying to incorporate "custom" battles might be impossible given the long campaign format. One obvious example--you start a long campaign with a core of 2000 points, but a "custom" battle is designed with a core force of 1500 points in mind. Result = incompatible.

*****
However, one feature that I think can be added and should be added in future versions is to have the unit that shoots down an aircraft get credit for the kill.

[Wild Bill]

Aces in the Pacific, Aces in Europe, Yeager's Air Combat, Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe... I remember!

Ah, life was simpler then,...

But I'm having more fun than ever, so its all good

WB
=====================

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In Arduis Fidelis
Wild Bill Wilder
Coordinator, Scenario Design
Matrix Games

[Supervisor]

Originally posted by Wild Bill:
Aces in the Pacific, Aces in Europe, Yeager's Air Combat, Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe... I remember!

Ah, life was simpler then,...

Ah, but now we have European Air War. Great fun trying to shoot down B-17's in a Bf-109...

[Bing]

Originally posted by Galanti:
Bing, the URL is [URL=http://www.chapters.ca/books/details/default.asp?
The Canadian branch, that is

Galanti - Got it and thanks, the Panzer book looks really worthwhile acquiring.

Bing

[jsaurman]

Something I would like to see is a translator for all the old SP1, SP2, and SP3 maps, scenerios, and campaigns. Yes, I know that SPW@W is much more complex, so all you would be able to extract is the framework, and then you would have to fill in all the extra "gaps" to make it back into a complete scenerio, but I would not mind doing the extra work to be able to play some of the old good scenerios I had. Even if all I could get is a printout of the old stuff, OOB and Map, so I could rebuild it easily in SPW@W that would be great also.

[Tombstone]

The long campaign is certainly one of the mouthwatering features of the SP series. I would have guessed that as many 'little' things as possible would have been done to 'pretty up' the experience of it. Something that would add a lot to the experience would be a expanded list of mission types. If the AI had guidelines for set-up, and the map generator knew 'roughly' how it was supposed to look we could have mountain pass battles, or fortified area battles where the AI buys more bunkers and stuff, or break-through scenarios where the all the victory hexes are on the opposite map edge, but the AI doesn't really try to get them... just defend the front-line, or the same kind of thing but you have to protect some units that are automatically purchased for you (varying from trucks to jeeps or even infantry squads), or crazy "stand or die" battles with the obj hexes strung out in a line just a few hexes behind the deployment line, the possibilities are endless(mostly). If there was some layer added to the game engine that could do this kind of stuff to generated campaign battles I think the long campaign would be that much cooler.

Tomo