New scenario "Scorched Earth" out now

[PanzerMike]

For all of you interested:
fb.asp?m=4796184

[MorningDew]

Looks incredible.

[PanzerMike]

Thanks! I take it installation went okay and all is looking as it should?

[MorningDew]

Yep - simple installation and looks great so far.

[PanzerMike]

I have been playing it with the latest beta 1.00.7U51 and all worked well. But is should work with the official 1.06 as well. But I always want the latest and the greatest [:D]

[Franciscus]

Looks gorgeous [&o][&o]

Some minor nitpicking: [:D]

Why Ajedabia and not Agedabia ?

Why Marsu Matruh and not Mersa Matruh ?


Regards

[ncc1701e]

Impressive work, thanks a lot!

[PanzerMike]

Ah, the names of all the places, towns and cities. Don't get me started. I have used so many different sources and there are so many different spellings for the same place. And which is the right one... If there is one that is.

There are even differences between what the Germans called a place and the Soviets. Or the Germans and the Poles. Or the Tsechs. The Arabs. Or the ... Like I said, don't get me started [:D]

[Flaviusx]

I like the scenario from the aesthetic standpoint but IMO it doesn't change much from vanilla. I wish you'd done more here in terms of actual gameplay. Much attention paid to map quirks but these are sideshows.

It is a glorified map mod.

[Flaviusx]

I'm waiting for somebody to do an actual mod here that affects the game as per some of the mods I've seen for Strategic Command. The Fall Weiss mod is pretty amazing in this regard, practically a whole new game.

[PanzerMike]

It is indeed mostly a (quite extensive in some ways) map mod. Actual changes to the geography of the map are fairly limited, as are changes to the scripts (and thus gameplay), but they are there:
- added rivers
- corrected location of cities
- changed coastal hexes
- Antwerp is now adjacent to an estuary that needs to be secured to use the port
- overhauled infrastructure
- possibility to enhance the Atlantic Wall with forts
- and more

All of this was done with the aid of historical sources and quite accurate within the limits of the game if I do say so myself.

Many changes are also indeed aesthetic. I felt the vanilla map was rather "empty" looking. Many historical sites were added, for flavor and reference.

What I did not do, was making radical changes. I could have done that, but then you enter a another realm of modding. The vanilla game is still in flux and has changed quite dramatically in some aspects these last few months. The game tries to find a delicate balance between realism and fun. That is a hard thing to accomplish, even with so many people playing vanilla. You need good feedback from players to incorporate their experiences in the game and gradually improve it. What you are looking for in a mod (practically a new game) is a team effort; it is hardly doable by one man. It is just a ton of work and no guarantee that the end result will be fun to play. Many of these efforts die by the wayside.

So, "Scorched Earth" is indeed limited in scope and ambition. The aim was to provide the player with an enhanced Europe 1939 scenario that has a more accurate map based on sound research, that looks good giving the player more immersion, and is playable from the get go.

For some, that may not be enough. They are welcome to make their own mod and I will be sure to play that!

Update: Some extra thoughts on this. I am not sure if Warplan lends itself to the kind of mods you are looking for. Warplan has no decision events for example. This rather limits the possibilities for scripting all kinds of nifty new stuff. Also, the Editor could use some tender loving care first, before taking on the huge task of a bigger mod.