Paradrop - Enemy M value?

[PirateJock]

Anybody got an idea what the enemy M value is, relating to paradrops (p81 of Manual)?

Cheers

[PirateJock]

I think I might have got it. How about the Anti Aircraft value (AA) set in the scenario data (0 to 3)? Though how AA becomes M I'm not too sure!

However, and should I be that surprised, the info in the Manual doesn't quite tie in. You'd assume (i) an AA of 0 = no anti aircraft while AA of 3 = loads and (ii) the more anti aircraft the bigger the para drop drift. Therefore 0:0 in the Manual doesn't make sense. As the lower the die roll the less the drift. It would have to be if AA = 0 then the die roll modifier is -3 and an AA value = 3 means no modification to the die roll. Alternatively if those -1, -2 & -3 should be +1, +2 & +3 then it makes a bit more sense.

And here ends my ramble! If anyone has a better idea ...

Cheers

[MichaelCooney]

You're right: M = AA. If I recall, we lost the original soft copy of the manual and had to resort to an OCR scan of the book. If you squint - as scanners apparently do - AA looks like an M.

I don't have the book in hand, but the higher the die roll, the less drift. Therefore, with the AA value being subtracted from the die roll, more AA equates to a more erratic drop pattern.

These are the drift values from the code:

Roll = 1-9
Add the Mod from above (-AA, +2 for gliders)

Total:
-1: 64 + Random(0 to 16)
2 : 56 + Random(0 to 7)
3 : 48 + Random(0 to 7)
4 : 40 + Random(0 to 7)
5 : 32 + Random(0 to 7)
6 : 24 + Random(0 to 7)
7 : 16 + Random(0 to 7)
8 : 5 + Random(0 to 7)
9+: Random(0 to 10)

[PirateJock]

Thanks for the numbers.

Looking at it, this section is for working out where the actual drop zone is in relation to the planned drop zone - reported as DropZoneShiftDistance in the combat info box. The result range is wide, anything from 0 to 80 according to the values you've given. Do you know how this number relates to the actual drop zone? Is it a single hex or an area?

As the next step in the drop is to work out the drift for each unit (distance and direction), there must be a point reference to work from. Which would suggest that the actual drop zone is a single hex. Or have I got the completely wrong?

Cheers

[MichaelCooney]

Here's the algorithm:
   1) Start with the drop zone hex you specify
   2) Calculate the the drift as specified
   3) Move the drop zone in a random direction by the specified drift distance
        - There are some checks in here to ensure you're not over or too close to sea hexes
   4) Each unit dropping is then placed randomly within 10 hexes of the drop zone
        - There are some checks in here for avoiding mountains and enemy units

I think that about covers it.