SITREP

[Arjuna]

Miquel and I are working through two tough issues. The first one concerns some really suspect routes to the FUP for an attack. The second is when HQ and spt units moving off before the assault units in an attack. We have made good progress on both. The latter one was due to startAt duration being miscalculated and I have made changes that hopefully will address this. But I need to test this tomorrow.

The first one about the errant routes to the FUP appears to have been due to a couple of copy and paste errors when I duplicated some code from the route finding that truncates routes. I have fixed those except this has revealed a deeper issue with the wrong destination location being passed in when it calcs the values for the route. I'll hopefully knock that one the head tomorrow. Hopefully then we can wrap up this patch work and put out another build later this week.

[BletchleyGeek]

I want to add that I came across this issue by accident, while testing some changes in the modeling of anti-armour fires (I was basically running over the same benchmark scenario 10 times, and in one I got a casualty rate for one of the sides higher than was expected).

I am writing this to emphasize that when you guys come across the planning code doing something weird, take care to make save right after the orders register in the UI. Even if you don't get the same result that prompted taking the save, that doesn't mean it's useless!

[Stilletto]

Thank you for the update. I bought BFTB and HTTR in the Holiday Sale and noticed the new patch was close. So I've waited to jump in with both feet until it's done.

Can't Wait!

[jimcarravall]

ORIGINAL: Stilletto

Thank you for the update. I bought BFTB and HTTR in the Holiday Sale and noticed the new patch was close. So I've waited to jump in with both feet until it's done.

Can't Wait!

I'd suggest jumping in and playing the game to get familiar with the techniques to command as higher echelon commanders (those you read about in books) managed the battle space before worrying about the nuances corrected by the patch.

It's a long way between learning the game and enjoying the results of managing at a macro level before the micro details addressed in patches affect the entertainment value.

The OPART series was my favorite simulation until I discovered Panther's offerings.

It took ten years of tolerating the shortfalls of OPART to enjoy the ability to command at an operational level before I ran across this significant improvement in command / control and AI "realism" at the operational level of battle space management.

[Txema]

Arjuna,

Please, consider releasing this new build as a beta patch to allow us to test it during the Christmas vacations [:)]


Txema

[Arjuna]

I would if I could but it's not down to me. I'll ask Erik from Matrix what can be done.

[Stilletto]

ORIGINAL: jimcarravallah

ORIGINAL: Stilletto

Thank you for the update. I bought BFTB and HTTR in the Holiday Sale and noticed the new patch was close. So I've waited to jump in with both feet until it's done.

Can't Wait!

I'd suggest jumping in and playing the game to get familiar with the techniques to command as higher echelon commanders (those you read about in books) managed the battle space before worrying about the nuances corrected by the patch.

It's a long way between learning the game and enjoying the results of managing at a macro level before the micro details addressed in patches affect the entertainment value.

The OPART series was my favorite simulation until I discovered Panther's offerings.

It took ten years of tolerating the shortfalls of OPART to enjoy the ability to command at an operational level before I ran across this significant improvement in command / control and AI "realism" at the operational level of battle space management.

I am doing just that. I'm working through the tutorial with the tutorial videos on Youtube done by Panther.

[Arjuna]

Success. Here you see that the AI has successfully interrogated the approach route, found that the reserveLoc is on it or close to it and used that portion of the approach route for the route to the reserveLoc. So now you will see the HQ and spt units moving along the same route as the assault group and dropping of at the reserveLoc. This should avoid those cases where we might see the HQ determining its own route to the reserveLoc and sometimes getting into harms way. Note that the HQ may still detewrmine its own route to the resLoc the resLoc is not near or on the selected approach route for the attack.

[Arjuna]

Erik reckons he'll try to get the public beta out before XMas if we get him the files asap. I just have one issue outstanding but I need to consult with Paul on this tonight. Either way we will do a new build tomorrow and upload to Matrix barring any unforseen circumstances (touch wood).

[BletchleyGeek]

This patch took a long time in the making, but for a good reason. Below you'll see the state of an AI vs. AI game I've been running to test how the changes we've been making is affecting the big picture: this is a simulation of operational level warfare after all.

That's the Race for Bastogne scenario, where the AI has managed to break through Clervaux quite cleanly and seems to be quite willing to exploit deep into the US rear [:)]

[Phoenix100]

Great stuff. Be very cool if you can swing it before Xmas, Dave and Miguel. Fingers crossed. I'll be right back into From the Meuse to the Rhine as soon as I get it. I will take those bridges, and I will hold them until relieved....and I will not lose all my supply jeeps doing it....

[Tophat1815]

Fantastic! Will start from the beginning and battle through the bulge.

[RangerX3X]

ORIGINAL: Tophat1812

Fantastic! Will start from the beginning and battle through the bulge.

+1

It is patches like this that make me want to go through each and every scenario all over again.

[&o]

[captskillet]

Great Dave, thanks for the effort and Merry Christmas to yall down under. Must be nice to lay on the beach at X-Mas

[Arjuna]

I will be going to Newcastle for Xmas and staying with my brother. We usually head down to Bar Beach on boxing day. I grew up near Bar Beach and probably went to the beach most days. Living in Canberra, which is inland near the mountains, I do miss the beach at times. So looking forward to it this break.

[BletchleyGeek]

ORIGINAL: Arjuna

I will be going to Newcastle for Xmas and staying with my brother. We usually head down to Bar Beach on boxing day. I grew up near Bar Beach and probably went to the beach most days. Living in Canberra, which is inland near the mountains, I do miss the beach at times. So looking forward to it this break.

And I've got my family coming over to visit from Spain. We got a nice beach house at Mt. Martha, in the Mornington Peninsula, so my mom can get a peek of the koalas in Healesville and of the penguins in French Island.

I'm afraid it's going to have quite a "National Lampoon" vibe to it, along the lines of "Who invited the wogs?", since I understand that Mt. Martha is where the rich from Melbourne hang around in Christmas [:D]

[Phoenix100]

Australia sounds like the place to be.... I'll do the one hour drive down to Malmedy and Bastogne, I thought, and look at the battlefield in winter conditions...

[dazkaz15]

Great work on the patch guys [&o]

Think of me, in the cold, grey, wet, of a typical British winter, while your sunning it on the beach, Won't ya [:'(]

[Arjuna]

I'm not that cruel daz! [:)]

[Arjuna]

Well after my post yesterday afternoon in which I claimed "Success" I tested it on the Battle of the Roadblocks scenario and saw a particular attack where the route to the reserveLoc was fine but the HQ and its support were leading the charge. I have spent many hours trying to work out why, with many false starts and minor bugs fixed along the way.

Touch wood I have nailed this problem with the HQ and Spt units leading the charge in attacks. What was happening was that we were not factoring in the player delay when the attack order was issued because a flag that it was relying on ( ie isHumanControlled) wasn't being set until after the call to determine the orders delay for the player. That's now fixed. But then I noticed some double dipping in the UI which was applying the user's ordersDelayMod (based on the setting they choose when they start the scenario) both within and after the call to the standard calc function. Fixed that now and finally as you can see below the reserveTask has been delayed till 0853 and has just started. This ensures that the HQ does not lead the charge ahead of the assault group. That was one heel of a bug to track down. May it never return.[:)]