Darren,
This covers the bulk of the recent changes (scraped from whatsnew.pdf). Players can always read the gory details at the release notes thread,
http://harpgamer.com/harpforum/index.php?showtopic=2395 .
2008.045 to 2009.042 Changes:
New Features:
• Unit Window now uses the same zoom levels as the Group Window and can use the Textured Land
and Water settings.
• Submarines can now shoot guns at ships.
• Air to Air guns in aircraft loadouts now work allowing much better modeling of WWII air warfare.
• Non Intercept/Escort planes will no longer go off on ATA missions.
• Implemented a new Escort jamming model with greater variability in the protection a jammer can
offer nearby groups against distant radars.
• Improved AI BOL shots so that the AI shoots itself less!
• Scenario Designers can now add a platform of a particular name to a scenario any number of times,
allowing more units of a Class than the database recognizes. This is particularly useful for
land-based air defense units.
• Added ‘o’ hotkey to show On Station Rectangles, if present, for victory conditions. Added ‘l’
hotkey to return to 1:1 time compression. The Alt-t hotkey will now alternate thru showing no
paths, showing selected group’s path, and showing all friendly group’s paths in both GE and SE.
• When the player deletes a formation air patrol event, the game will no longer maintain that air patrol
if the returning plane is shot down.
• The Aircraft RTB dialog will now highlight the original airfield by default if it is capable of landing
the planes.
• Added the stopped clock time compression option (the ability to pause without the pause dialog
preventing map traversal and menu traversal). Also effected with Ctrl-Alt-p hotkey.
• Sufficiently damaged subs will surface and stay surfaced. They will also split into a new group of
their own.
• Scenario designers can now successfully use Staff Notes to send the player messages at specific
times in the scenario.
• Expanded WestPac BattleSet as seen in the HCE Demo!
• New EMCON AI that tells the AI when to turn on sensors and prompts player to turn on sensors. It
is now much more intelligent and at times sneaky.
• Many new command line switches for the Game Engine and Scenario Editor.
• Updated HCDB Database including but not limited to…
o Shi Lang (Varyag) CV – China
o DF-21C ASBM Bty – China
o JAS.39C Gripen - South Africa
o Manthatisi (T209/1400) SS - South Africa
o P-8I Poseidon - India
Bug Fixes/Workarounds:
• Multiple Crash bugs eliminated in both Game Engine and Scenario Editor.
• EC2000 BattleSets will now show the correct Strategic Map graphic.
• Got rid of the double prompting for game options (side, nuke release, etc.).
• ASMs/SSMs with the Snap Up/Down flag can now be shot at by point defense weapons (previously
ASMs/SSMs outside the altitude capabilities of defensive mounts could not be engaged in point
defense mode, now they can be if the ASMs/SSMs have the Snap Up/Down flag.
• When a surface or sub group is given a stop order, keep it stopped. Previously they would often
start moving again in response for formation keeping events.
• ASW birds will now RTB when told to do so instead of choosing any action they wanted to take.
• Fixed the 10x too large BOL range rings and made it yellow like it should be.
• Fixed the inability to re-task air groups already on an attack mission.
• Logging will really work in Release builds now.
• Refueling tweaks to prevent refueling immediately upon takeoff.
• Fixed out of fuel problems caused by aircraft that fly faster at lower altitudes than higher altitudes.
Endurance is now calculated from the slowest speed.
• Tweaked the shortening of the information in the installation/ship/plane/submarine list boxes in the
Scenario Editor so that more relevant information is shown in the space available.
• The SE now properly stores the database information in scenario files.
• Repeating LR patrols can now be properly deleted from a scenario and will trigger properly in the
game.
• The Scenario Editor was throwing away the % chance of inclusion for planes, now it isn’t.
• Many other minor fixes, tweaks, and improvements.
See the Release Notes section for greater detail.