Matrix Games Forums

Hello,
thanks to the very helpful QGis guide I made my first try in map making for Flashpoint Campaigns. For this I chose the area east of Würzburg, the result with QGis is attached to this post (the map graphic, not the fp9 file).

This is roughly the area the map covers on OpenTopoMap.org

Now, the QGis result seems to be fine to create the .fp9 file but it is not really fun to play with. I'm looking for ways to make the map more visually appealing. The most straight forward thing to do would probably be to use screenshots / scans of topographic maps (e. g. opentopomap) cropped and scaled to the necessary dimensions but I worried that it would not represent the actual map value accuretly enough due to the abstraction in the 500m hexes. Are there any opinions and recommendations on how to process QGis maps into more pretty maps for the player?

Update:
Find attached the final result to the following post: http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/fb.asp?m=4223022

Find attached the fp9 file here.

ORIGINAL: zwobot
Hello,
Now, the QGis result seems to be fine to create the .fp9 file but it is not really fun to play with. I'm looking for ways to make the map more visually appealing.

Hi Zwobot,

thanks for contributing this map. I can render it for you in the Red Storm style if you make available a .png version with FCRS styles (basically grey roads) and no labels. (Send me a personal message please).

Most likely blending in a relief map will make the map more attractive. I did that for the example Minden map in the QGis guide.

William

Alternatively I could do a hand (mouse?)-drawn render.

Thank you for the offer stimpak. Doing a hand-drawn render sounds very laborious to me. Would you do that in Gimp/Photoshop/Paint.Net?

I use paint.net for all my works. All of the East German maps were done in it (Maybe I'll remake them, because in hindsight they're quite ugly), and as I got more proficient I also produced the Jever map, and my last one was Bad Segeberg.

It's been a real long time since I last did a map, but I'm confident I still remember what to do.

Here's a small section of the map (~15x10 hexes) in the top left corner, done 100% (EDIT: 90% [:'(].) in roughly 4 hours



Naturally I'm not satisfied with my own work... the urban sections definitely have some kinks to be worked out, and the plains need better texturing. But just showing you what I'm working with.

EDIT: I'm getting strange numbers from the obstacle ID. Are there creeks and streams in there that I didn't notice?

There.



And as you might have guessed, it's not entirely hand drawn. Paint.net features plenty of plugins to speed up the process.

The stream data was recognized by William also when he kindly did a render for me. I don't know exactly where it came from, I have deleted the superfluous obstacle IDs manually in the map values editor now.

Stimpak, what are those plugins for Paint.Net you are using?

Shame. I thought the streams made it look prettier.

The plugins I use are a series of simple artwork plugins.

I don't remember all of the ones I installed, but the ones I am using now are:

Outline Object by Pyrochild <-- Makes things stand out on the map a bit more.
Object Shadow by Boltbait <-- Makes some things on the map stand out more, and look prettier.
Bevel Object by Boltbait <-- Helps to distinguish between elevations
Fill from file by Boltbait <-- Very important, responsible for pretty much all the textures

The rest is my own linework and the town textures were done by me as well. The Rivers are the same two-tone I've been using for awhile but this time treated with a surface blur when they're done.
Just installing the plugins and using them isn't 100% of it, of course, it takes a bit of finesse and use to get used to it. Learn to abuse layers and selection tools.

Here's how the map's progress looks before I remove the streams.

Here's the local American forces on the map circa summer 1989.



3rd Infantry Division DISCOM is in Würzburg itself, along with the 3rd battalion of the 67th ADA Rgt. They have 24 Vulcan, 24 Chapparal, and 72 Stingers. Also in Würzburg is the EW battalion, Chemical unit, and MP company.

The distinguished Third (Rampage) and Second (Rogue) battalions of the 64th Armor battalions are just 25 klicks north in Schweinfurt. They are notable as being the very first battalions to become equipped with the M1 Abrams.
However, they've likely already been engaged by nuclear and conventional forces as Schweinfurt itself, apart from an important barracks and command center, is also another river crossing am Main.

The first and second battalions of the 30th infantry regiment would have also been in Schweinfurt, but ironically were deactivated just a week (June 16) prior to the events of FCRS.

The HQ for the 41st Field Artillery Regiment is located in Kitzingen. The positions of the three batteries, likely M109s, are unknown to me as I couldn't find them in my research. The MLRS battery originally belonging to the 76th artillery rgt. was deactivated two years ago in May 1987.

The proud 15th "Can Do" Infantry Regiment's first battalion is also in Kitzingen alongside the 63rd Armor's third battalion and the 69th Armor's first. The 63rd was previously deployed in Augsburg, and veterans claim that Kitzingen is a dump in comparison. All three battalions are stationed in Harvey Barracks at Kitzingen, which also includes it's own airstrip. It will probably be evacuated by the time Warsaw Pact forces reach it.
They will likely form the primary battle line, but must take care as Soviet and Czech forces (This map falls on the boundary between the 8th Guards Shock and 1st CSLA) could outflank from Segnitz and Schwarzach.
Giebelstadt airbase isn't far south. The fourth brigade operates here and is equipped with AH-1S cobras and OH-58C Kiowas, as well as possible fixed wing support. 4th Cavalry Squadron can't really be counted on as reinforcements as they're likely too busy providing security to the airbase.

The Soviet forces themselves are a mystery. As stated before, the boundary between 8th GCAA and 1st CSLA is here, but as the Czech forces aren't in game until Southern Storm, we'll have to go with a Soviet unit. The primary army to identify here is the 8th Guards Combined Arms Army. The last we heard of them chronologically was in an engagement with the 8th Infantry Division in Frankisch-Crumbach. This region is quite a ways west of Würzburg itself however, and it seems the Soviet advance had come from the north as opposed to the west. By now, the 8th GCAA is probably fought-out and spent.
Ate Up does mention the 1st Guards Tank Army waiting on the 8th GCAA to clear that same area. However, they would most likely be following the same path that the 8th cleared, totally avoiding Würzburg and Schweinfurt.
At this point, it becomes more likely that rear-echelon Soviet Units and Warsaw Pact allies are more likely to be tasked to this region. Any attack here is more likely to be a holding action (As the poorly equipped Non-Soviet-Warsaw-Pact 'NSWP' would most likely be chosen for those missions), so it becomes increasingly likely the 1st CSLA would have jurisdiction here.

So let's look at our likely candidate armies:
-1st CSLA (Czech)
-3rd NVA (East German)
-2nd PPA (Polish)
-28th Unified Army Corps (Soviet)
-Follow-on forces from the Ukraine Military District

Between these, three faction choices are available: The East German and Polish factions I made awhile back (And the Dev team's versions will be officially introduced in Southern Storm), and the Soviet OMG introduced last patch. Multiple scenarios could be created to account for them all [;)]


In the meantime, I have finished the terrain and forest layers and the road net is in progress:

Mostly done now.



The last thing I need to know is if any of those streams were -not- errors since I didn't get W1ll14m's copy of the data file. Now's the time to let me know.

Hi stimpak, that looks like a lot of work you've done. I had to do some updates to the map but cannot attach a new version just now: I forgot to add a bridge across the Main at Sommerhausen and one of the secondary roads in fact is a primary road (B22 if I remember correctly).
All of the streams in the original file are no longer there, I manually removed them in the map values editor.

What sources did you use for your summary on the deployment of forces? I have not really paid much attention to which forces would be likely to be deployed on the map as I mainly wanted to use the map to get used to the map editing with QGis. I only remembered a scenario in the Danube Front '85 game in which the Schweinfurt-Würzburg area is defended by parts of the US 3rd ID and parts of the W. German 12th Tank Division respectively. They are attacked by 79th Guards Tank Division and the 106th Guards Airborne Division airdrops just east of Würzburg.

Hi,

Have you take a look at http://www.relikte.com/literatur.htm

I cross reference multiple sources, mainly the FPRS addon to Google Earth, this site with a full Soviet order of battle here, and whatever information I can find through Google.

Indeed, the area is covered by both the 3rd Infantry Division and 12. Panzerdivision. Based upon the information I discovered and what I could siphon from the Google Earth file, I found that the only units holding this area would indeed be the Second Brigade of the Third Infantry Division. The Division HQ itself and subsequent support assets are also in Würzburg itself.

As for Soviet forces, I paid more attention to the story of FCRS as opposed to what forces they'd have in the area. Warsaw Pact forces have the luxury of deploying whatever they wish, since they are on the attack and have the initiative.
I wouldn't send the 79th Guards Tank Division as they were the very first unit engaged in the story at Bad Neustadt an der Saale. I found it instead more fitting to take a unit from Czechoslovakia, from the 28th Unified Army Corps. I've gone with the 15th Guards Tank Division, a category A unit that uses high-end T-72s and BMP-2s.

Could you send me the new data file so I can make final adjustments?


EDIT: When you can't find any English information, you have to get multilingual...

As far as I can tell this forum post is a summary of the Central Group of Forces. It's all in Russian. http://maxpark.com/community/politic/content/2157421
It also appears to lack information past 1985. So we do know this Division once was equipped with T-72A, BMP-2, D-30, D-20, 2A36 Giatsint-B, BM-21, Shilkas, Strela-10 (SA-13 Gopher), Osa (SA-8), and Kub (SA-6).

From conjecture we can assemble a 1989 roster of T-72B, BMP-2 obr. 1986, 2S1 Gvozdika in the RAG, 2S3 Akatsiya in the DAG, 2S5 Giatsint-S in the AAG, BM-21 in the DAG, 2S6 Tunguska, Strela-10M, and equal parts SA-6 and SA-8 in the ADA Rgt. The source also claims a battery or battalion of 2S7M Malka which will either form in the AAG or FAG. Can't see them being subordinated further.

Thank you for the new data file.

Significant terrain errors have been made.
EDIT: It looks like I'll have to delete and re-do the entire terrain layer.

What terrain errors do you mean?

William kindly provided renders of the map, find attached a preview. I'm going to test the map now with these and see if there are any things which might need to be corrected on my end.

If you compare the render you just posted, and the one I made earlier, you'd see that the elevations are completely different.

So I'm redoing the terrain layer. Thankfully I don't need to worry about the others much.

Alright, it's re-done completely. Here's my final render.



Note: The linked image is the .png file. The attached is the .jpg file. Download which ever one you prefer.

Thanks to William and Stimpak you will have three different map graphics to choose from. Unfortunately I cannot package everything into a single archive and upload here due to the file size constraints for attachments.

The attached archive contains the .fp9 file and William's renders.

Thank you William and Stimpak for your renders!