Hybrid Counters Ver 2.0 (Ready for Download)

[HimAgain]

Hi Richard,

Sorry that I've not been able figure out why this is happening.
I will continue to try and replicate it in order to solve the mystery.

With regards to the ensigns, it's actually by design. I was hoping to have them displayed as they would appear hanging from the lanyard based on the direction that the ships were sailing. They will reverse when the ship sails right to left in my upcoming 3D/NATO version.

In the that version all the silhouettes reverse and point to face the closest enemy.

I hope to get back to you soon with a solution or updated file.

Cheers,

[Cataphract88]

I forgot about wind direction! [:o]

Your future plans sound cool, good luck with the mod.

[SIPRES]

ORIGINAL: cataphract88

ORIGINAL: HimAgain

You say the that file immediately reverted back to the original after copying it without even relaunching the game?
This bizarre behavior may be more related to the Windows OS and not the necessarily the game, but I did have the same thing happen to me when you first pointed this out. The game may also be somehow 'locking' up this file.

Please launch the saved game and switch to the 3D icons, re-save and then end the game. This might 'unlock' the file.

Then try deleting both the 'old' backup and your recently copied unit_sprites_nato.png file from the Major_04 folder in the campaign folder. Then recopy the modded unit_sprites_nato.png to the campaign folder once again. Check that it remains correct then relaunch the game and deselect 3D icons.

Please let me know the results.

Thanks,

Tried all of the above, but still no success, however, strangely enough, Spires '1939 HQ' version Soviet counters work fine on my pc, so for the time being I will stick with that.

hello Richard
check the content of your campaign.ini file (open and edit with any text editor)
If your campaign name is "my campaign test" then you should have a folder called "_my campaign test"
campaign.ini is located in this folder

#CUSTOM_BITMAPS= 1
#CUSTOM_INTERFACE= 1
#CUSTOM_SOUND= 0
#CUSTOM_MUSIC= 0
#CUSTOM_FONTS= 0
#CUSTOM_LOCALIZATION= 1

you must have #CUSTOM_BITMAPS= 1 (if 0 then game engine will continue to use vanilla Nato's)
Not sure this is the problem you met, but could be

Christophe

On a smaller note, if you were looking at developing your mod further, I thought you might like to know that the British and German naval ensigns are reversed (like mirror images). At least they are on my machine!

Hope this helps, and thanks for all your help. [:)]

[Cataphract88]

Hi Christophe, just to confirm that I have checked and all the files have the same configuration as shown in your example, but it still does not work.

[HimAgain]

Hi Richard,

Good news. I was able to replicate the problem and have a possible fix for you.

Please download the attached file and unzip it.
Then copy the extracted unit_sprites.png file to the Bitmaps\Major_4 folder in the saved campaign location. Replace the original when prompted.
Then launch the game, start the campaign and select the 3D counter option. Then have a look at the Russian counters and confirm that they are the Mod version.

Then close the game and go back to the Bitmaps\Major_4 folder in the Campaign location.
Delete the unit_sprites_nato.png file.
Right click on the new downloaded unit_sprites.png in the same folder, select copy and then paste the file into the same folder.
Then right click on the copied file and rename it to unit_sprites_nato.png
Re-launch the game and then deselect the 3D icons option. The Russians should appear properly.

Please confirm that it worked for you. I’m not sure what’s causing this problem. It seems to be isolated and only affecting some user created campaigns that we then paste my modded counters into.

If it still does not work please try SIPRES 1939 Campaign using Hybrid Counters. His Campaign already contains the same Hybrid counters and may work smoother for you.
In fact, you should try his Mod either way as it provides better control over which Generals face appears on the HQ units.

Please let me know how it works out.

Thanks,

[Cataphract88]

Thanks a lot, Angus, that worked. [:)]

[HimAgain]

Glad that it worked.

Sorry to put you through all of that, but it was a strange problem.

Cheers

[HimAgain]

Hi All,

I continue to inch forward on my goal to release the 2.0 Update.

Along with many little tweaks this update will also replace the current 3D units with these same Hybrid NATO units. This will allow the units to flip to face a nearby enemy and include the animated motorized transport to flash on the screen during movement. It will also allow the Naval Ensigns to flip and fly with the wind as the ships change their sailing direction. (See above post 101)

I’m hoping to also address a problem that I’m experiencing with light coloured units with a low readiness value. With my failing eyesight I find myself leaning close to the screen just to read the strength value of the units. The problem is compounded by any bad weather further obscuring the screen.

I’ve created a darker shadow behind the strength value to improve the contrast. This should make it a little easier to read for us older guys. (See my samples below of Rommel and the DAK as they fight their way through both the Brits and a ‘Desert Storm’

I’ve cleaned up the 20mm flakvierling, switched to a less dark background on American armor, fleshed out the 3 tiers of DDs for the American Navy (Fletcher, Sumner and Gearing), etc.
See some samples below.

Any comments are always welcome.

Cheers,

Angus

[Cataphract88]

Hi Angus,

I'd say that the changes are a step in the right direction.

Thank you for continuing to work on your mod. [:)]

[RussW]

12Best thing that's happened to the game for me..I started wargaming in the 70's and still like my counters over pictures makes it easier to see what's going on,,,good work and thank you

[HimAgain]

ORIGINAL: cataphract88

Hi Angus,

I'd say that the changes are a step in the right direction.

Thank you for continuing to work on your mod. [:)]

Hi Richard,

I'm still experimenting with the darker shadows. It may not be required for the units above 50% readiness as their brighter white numerals make them easy to read already. I may just do it for the units below 50%. We'll see what other responses we get.

As always, thanks for your feedback.

Angus,

[HimAgain]

ORIGINAL: RussW

12Best thing that's happened to the game for me..I started wargaming in the 70's and still like my counters over pictures makes it easier to see what's going on,,,good work and thank you

Thanks for the feedback RussW. I feel the same way as you and I'm most comfortable playing with old school counters. I believe they help you assess the situation much more quickly.

But now you've got me curious and I have to ask, what were the other 11 best things that have happened?

[mroyer]

>I'm most comfortable playing with old school counters.

Yes! Like RussW I started gaming in the '70s. I think part of it is simply familiarity and fluency with the traditional counter style, but I also think pictograph symbols (as cool as they can be) required additional visual processing to translate to cerebral concepts.

-Mark R.

[HimAgain]

Hi All,

Below is a sample of the latest changes planned for the 2.0 Update.

I plan to replace the 3D units with the Hybrid NATO Counters. This will allow the transport animations to flash on the screen if you select the option, along with some small variations in the unit counters.

It will include a fix for the scripted Italian Expeditionary force deployment to Russia which I’ve been discussing with SIPRES. It will correctly display Messe’s HQ portrait if you use SIPRES 1939 Campaign using Hybrid Counters Mod once we update it.

You will notice the Unit Strength and Attribute values extend below the counters. These include the higher contrast Strength Values discussed earlier.

One other compromise is that unlike the NATO counters where the correct flag is superimposed on the HQ counters, the Minor HQ Flags are now limited to the preset 6 Generals and their respective countries for each side. You will have to manually change them.

Hope you like them.

Cheers,

Angus

[BillRunacre]

Great work! [:)]

[Cataphract88]

ORIGINAL: Bill Runacre

Great work! [:)]

+1

[sanderz]

possible bug???
or maybe an installation problem my end - i just copied the bitmap folder into the main directory

updated game to 1.10
started new campaign
german leaders all show guderian pic
loaded up allied campaign - leaders were fine (all different)

thanks for a great mod [:)]

[HimAgain]

Hi Sanderz,

I’m glad you like the mod. I enjoy using them myself because it really helps me see what’s happening at a glance and the HQ portraits add some immersion by literally adding a face to the units.

I’ve just upgraded to 1.10 myself and loaded a few saved games. All appears to be working normally. Nothing of what I read in the 1.10 upgrades would affect the HQ displays. By overwriting the Bitmaps folder in the main directory, you’ve overwritten the standard NATO Counters. Unless you play a custom campaign, all your games will now use the Hybrid NATO counters unless you select the 3D counters.

If you install the Mod to either the main directory or the preferred campaign folder it should still work the same. It is normal for all the German HQ counters to display Guderian at the start of the game. In this mod, you only have limited control over which HQs portraits display by upgrading their Ant-Aircraft Defense attribute.

SIPRES has created a campaign which is basically the standard 1939 Campaign using these Hybrid counters but with expanded control over which HQ portraits appear. He’s introduced a new Custom HQ Display attribute which has a 0 MPP cost. You can use this to more easily change the HQ Portrait. There are still some limitations but it’s much better if you want more control of the HQ portraits. He’s also allowed for the scripted appearance of the BEF and DAK units as well as matching the starting Major countries HQs and portraits. I highly recommend it.

You can download it from this post: tm.asp?m=4342847

If you chose to download it, be sure to place it in the correct campaigns folder this time.

Cheers,

Angus

[sanderz]

thanks for the reply and info (i kept a backup so will be able to restore things)

as a matter of curiosity - why do the german pics just show guderian but the allied ones are all different?

cheers

[HimAgain]

Hi Sanderz,

Each major country has their own roster of generals. The portraits progress via an upgrade to the Anti-Aircraft Defense value. Guderian’s Pic is in the 0 Slot which is equal the 0 AA Defense value.
For example, if you were to purchase an upgrade to an HQ’s AA Defense value the portrait will progress just like the Tank units silhouettes do with Advanced Tank progress.

Sorry, but it’s been a sore point that I could not do any better without making any other changes and still keep the Mod widely compatible with other peoples custom campaigns.

The good news is that SIPRES’s campaign Mod addresses this limitation to a certain extent. Where possible it also matches all the starting Major Country’s HQs, HQs in production and possible scripted HQ deployments with the correct Generals portrait. It’s a great improvement and I suggest downloading it if you haven’t already.

We can’t seem to get the minor axis/allies HQs to display properly yet on initial deployment but we’re hoping that a future patch from Hubert and his team helps us out with this.

I should have made this clearer in the first page of the post but I've done so now.

I hope you continue to use it despite this limitation and FYI, I’ll be releasing an update soon which addresses several minor issues and makes some graphic improvements.

Cheers,

Angus.