Matrix Games Forums

ORIGINAL: Hubert Cater

It's a great idea and I can see how it would make things easier, just not sure if or when I'd have a chance to implement this... unfortunately.

Maybe on SC4 release[:)]

Ideally a custom Map image layer would be also great but again handling a large image size in the Editor could be a problem.

ORIGINAL: BillRunacre

It does take time, but after a while you'll get the hang of where to find the next bit of coast you need.

I can confirm this is true.[;)]

The download link doesnt seem to work, any chance you can update it?:)

ORIGINAL: Ason

The download link doesnt seem to work, any chance you can update it?:)

Link had been updated (first post), I did some cleanup on my dropbox, should be ok now.

Hey Sipres, There is only a .cgn file there. Is that all we need? If so I have no idea of how to use it. [&:].

Thanks again for doing this.

ORIGINAL: Hairog

Hey Sipres, There is only a .cgn file there. Is that all we need? If so I have no idea of how to use it. [&:].

Thanks again for doing this.

Yes Cgn file is enough (there is no custom gfx)
You can open the file straight with the editor (maybe add an empty folder "_WW2 20kms v1.02" in your game campaign folder , but i am not sure its really required)

I can't open the map, looking for convoy.txt and probably all other stuff that is missing :/

Edit: copied in all the scripts and stuff from another scenario, now it works, but I would rather just have everything original from you..

Has anyone gotten this to load with the latest updates? Like Ason I put in all dummy script files, but it instead gives me a "Failed Retrieve: File Read Error"...

ORIGINAL: Elessar2

Has anyone gotten this to load with the latest updates? Like Ason I put in all dummy script files, but it instead gives me a "Failed Retrieve: File Read Error"...

Hi Elessar2,

The map was designed with an old version of SC3 (1.02)
I did save now with latest version and add the campaign folders structures (including blank scripts)
The Dropbox link had been updated with latest version

Let me know if it fixes your file read error

Wowza. [X(]

Mucho thanks. [&o]

This would at a stroke, even at a divisional scale, minimize all of the crowding issues that plague both other default maps.

Given how the Pacific AI is basically stillborn (hence my disinterest in working on the WitP map), this may be worth a go, but it probably would have to be a collaborative effort.

However, it seems like this version is lacking the Caspian Sea extension seen in post #65, unless I am misconstruing something. [maybe that pic is from one of the default maps, tho the one I DLed is in fact missing parts of Scandinavia]

At any rate, the map would need to be shifted over so as to allow North America to be put in, add marshes & forests and roads and things, but, man.

OK, deciding to give this monstrosity a go. I decided against the much more complete Pacific map because of my concerns about the naval AI [both purchases as well as operational tactics]. PLEASE don't expect anything soon, but yes it is planned to be divisional level. [8D]

I've expanded the map eastwards [to get all of the Caspian Sea in per some discussion upthread] while shifting the entire thing 200 spaces east to make room for the Atlantic & North America; while the Atlantic will be a bit smaller than the scale would indicate, that's probably good for playability and the U-boat war.

Most of the remaining work will be devoted to the southern/northern/eastern edges since Central and Western Europe already look pretty good. Working on the Med right now. I am also grateful for SIPRES NOT using a Mercator projection-instead lines of longitude have been modeled as converging on the north pole [which is somewhere off the map above Norway], which among other things reduces the size of Scandinavia & the Baltic.

New screenies, Mediterranean coast is mostly done:

Sorry for the links, but no matter what I do (site I try, file format I choose), images simply aren't recognized as such by the Matrix server for me.

Crete

Egypt

Istanbul area

Sicily

I've been using Google Maps, having copied and edited a hex grid to superimpose on top of any screenshot. But Google has apparently taken away the ability of a desktop PC to rotate the map, which is an issue because SIPRES decided to use a non-Mercator projection, which as I said above makes things more accurate, but any land towards the edges must be "tilted" to align with where the North Pole is. I basically have to realign the maps in my head to match. Thankfully there is little work left to do on West Coast of Europe (where he had already done most of the coastlines). It actually is pretty fun, kind of like one of those mega jigsaw puzzles... I did find some minor errors in the scale here & there (the Med is apparently a bit smaller than advertised), nothing which should affect things too much.

Understand-there is a TON of work left: just map-wise next will be West Africa, then the Middle East, Norway, then E. Russia. There are 17,000 land hexes to fill in on the right side of the map, and I'll have to draw them one. at. a. time. North America afterwards. THEN have to put all the cities in, as well as terrain features (Russia itself will be a bear, pardon the pun), weather, borders, input all cities and such into the database. **THEN** I can finally get to editing the fun stuff (units and such)-editing the scripts over will be hours of bliss I am sure... Finally it will require a LOT of playtesting.

I have an issue tho, and it has to do with the tiles. There are 48 "cross" tiles in the editor, ones which ostensibly have land/sea edges diametrically across from each other, 2 sea, 2 land. The issue is that almost all bulge wayyy out, or way in, making any coast drawn at the matching angles a crooked mess of bays and bluffs. I'd redraw half of them to be much more straight, but not only would I have to do the default 24, I'd also have to do the matching ones for the alternate weather/climate, 12 total tile files, which means 288 tiles to edit, where the ones with the same number would have to match each other. Sigh. Or just live with the lumps, come up with creative ways to minimize the distortions.

May likely go with seasonal turns of 10/8/6/8 Winter/Spring/Summer/Fall, alternating turns, which would give you about 48 turns per year (as I said in another post it can be frustrating to get crap weather on your turn when your opponent got all sun, but the Axis player using simultaneous turns has a big advantage knowing what the weather will be for the Allies, and can adjust his choices accordingly).

Tech will likely use the 1/1/1 max 3 chits system I've been playtesting on vanilla, but 2 chit techs will take an average of 40 turns to go up a level, which may mean making turns longer (14/10/6/10 days will give ~40 turns). Not sure how catchup, sharing, and spying would impact that, given that those bonuses are 1 point each. I believe I can turn off ally sharing, unless I feel that the Western Allies (the main beneficiaries) should keep it. One way of reducing the "Everybody has the same tech" syndrome would be to reduce how many MPP's can be invested total.

One thing that occurred to me the other day was naval search on such a big map. So far on both vanilla scales naval combat tends to be a slugging match, since it's pretty hard to avoid being spotted (I know I use my subs as scouts a lot, esp. in the Med) combined with transports zipping around once they know where the enemy is, often able to embark and dock on the same turn. If however I can make it that even with naval cruise (where I may indeed reduce the movement boost there) transports would have to stop in the middle of the Med, then things might proceed more like World In Flames, with air, sub, & ship scouting looking for the convoys & task forces (along with some lucky spying spottings)

TLDR: stay tuned, but don't expect an alpha for at least 6 months. At some point I may recruit someone to edit the scripts.

Here is some other area you might have not done yet (tiles ID)
Hope it can make it easier for you

That is much appreciated, [8D] tho as it turned out I did Sardinia last night (Corsica here in a bit).

One more quick note: those who have sharp eyes may have noticed that Malta now has two hexes. The Allied player can now park a bomber there and ravage any Axis North African ports within range (I may give maritime bombers some strategic abilities-note B-24's among others did such double duty). The Axis player in turn can bomb the Allied air unit, render it ineffective (or cause it to skedaddle away). and thus protect his ports. This is of course precisely how things proceeded in the actual war. IOW no more random Malta supply events, and as I've ranted about elsewhere there will be no automatic attacks or invasions of any sort. You want to bomb Taranto Harbor then you'll have to risk sailing your carrier into enemy waters.

I hope you guys are still on it - really need the bigger map- thanks a lot for the effort

One guy-as said, it won't be an overnight success. Right now I am working on Scandinavia, then will have to get the NE coast of Russia correct (given how the original mapmaker used a non-Mercator projection where longitude lines converge on the North Pole which is some hexes north of the N edge of the map. Did find a utility that tilts the pics at 1 degree intervals, mucho better than Paint's coarse 90 degree intervals), then the Caspian Sea and the Middle East. THEN a lot of terrain needs to be laid down, roads, rivers, cities named and put into the database, then the Americas.

Only then would an alpha become a glimmer on the horizon. But it's getting there, slowly but surely.

Great thanks for your effort!

FINALLY got all the Old World coasts done (aside from some minor tweaking). Just finished the Caspian Sea this weekend, and, since it was not on the original map, it was a bear to perfect. Once I hosed my hex scale, and made ~4 errors that I had to go back and fix (by copying tiles to their correct locations). The projection SIPRES used was as said a non-Mercator one, where the longitude lines converged towards a single point N of the map, so I had to choose the angle for the Caspian very carefully (20 degrees, since Spain was tilted at -20 degrees the other way).

The only thing left to do coast-wise is to move the Persian Gulf N 20 spaces (the SW/SE sides of the map are raised up compared to where they are in a Mercator), and do N America (where I'll have to ignore the Old World tilts, otherwise Newfoundland will end up sticking into Ireland). It will be closer than the scale would indicate, but I've already maxed out the width, but that's ok since it will shorten ship travel times. Otherwise, it's as close to scale as I can make it I'd say, but feel free to be the judge.

As said a LOT of work is yet to come, but stay tuned.

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Very good job
Don't forget Iceland.
The map I use for reference was from 1792, so I think North Africa coast may not be very accurate
can't say wich projection type it was.

I'am please that you continue this project as I kind get lack of time to achieve it (after spending many hours on coastlines and cities location)