Which do you prefer?

SPWaW is a tactical squad-level World War II game on single platoon or up to an entire battalion through Europe and the Pacific (1939 to 1945).

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Alby
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Which do you prefer?

Post by Alby »

In the oobs, do you like names like Shutzen Grp, Grenadiers, SS Shutzen Grp, and
SS Grenadiers etc etc...
or the standard names like
GE Rifle Squad and SS Rifle Platoon...
Just thinking about changing some names in my latest mod..
I cant decide which I like best.

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KG Erwin
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by KG Erwin »

Alby, I definitely like the German designations--it adds to the "flavor" of the game.






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Goblin
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Goblin »

Normal ones.



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VikingNo2
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by VikingNo2 »

There both are crushed by the Might of the M4 so it makes no difference[:'(]
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by soldier »

I vote for the German names
maybe the SP truck mounted 88 should be size 4 also
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Goblin »

ORIGINAL: VikingNo2

There both are crushed by the Might of the M4 so it makes no difference[:'(]
[8|][:-][;)]
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Puukkoo
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Puukkoo »

Yeah, I like Germans having their own names for units. I think that all wargamers know German to that extent that they don't get lost when finding engineers. It ain't too hard to guess that Pionieren are Combat Engineers and not those men who won the west.

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Alby
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Alby »

ORIGINAL: VikingNo2

There both are crushed by the Might of the M4 so it makes no difference[:'(]




there goes another M4 ....[:D]

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Alby
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Alby »

ORIGINAL: soldier

I vote for the German names
maybe the SP truck mounted 88 should be size 4 also


Good catch I never noticed that
the truck mounted 76 is size 4 so makes sense to me.

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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by VikingNo2 »

Hurry back Jess I am out numbered[:(]
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Korpraali V
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Korpraali V »



Original names:
good: respecting every nation's own units and more realistic view to game
bad: who can understand them all? needs lots of work to a) collect correct names and to b) learn to know them


English names:
good: fast to learn, same for everyone
bad: language rasism [:-] [;)] [:D] [:D] ...and ofcourse would like to see Finnish names above Finnish units [:D][:D]


---> I prefer original names generally. If it's confusing me too much I can choose not to use the Mod.

Alby could it be possible to make separate mod just for languages? [&:]
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Alby
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Alby »

only thing is if you play pbem one person using the german names and the other using english names will cause error messages in email games...but your idea is a good one.

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KG Erwin
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by KG Erwin »

The idea of expanding the OOB terminology to reflect national designations would be a HUGE task.

However, I made concessions here & there, most notably with the Germans, as much info is available on the web.

Another change I made is with the Japanese OOB-- all SNLF units are now identified by the Japanese term "Rikusentai". Unfortunately, a definitive list of other Japanese designations is not readily available, AFAIK.
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Alby
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Alby »

what does that Japanese name mean??
I may use it...[:D]

I really need to change some of the Japanese weapon sounds too.
I dont care for many of them.

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KG Erwin
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by KG Erwin »

ORIGINAL: Alby

what does that Japanese name mean??
I may use it...[:D]

I really need to change some of the Japanese weapon sounds too.
I dont care for many of them.

Alby, I don't have the literal translation--the SNLF is a term WE gave them as the best approximation of their role.Sound files for Japanese weapons is something else entirely-- I'd love to them, too, but where to find them?

However, the "Rikusentai" designation IS accurate-- "sentai" simply means unit. So it could be simply be "sea-borne unit", maybe? The Japanese language is notorious for its subtleties, and allowing for multiple meanings within a given context.

Whether you want to use it or not is up to you--however, for me, getting the message that "Rikusentai fires Type 99 Rifle" is a not-so-subtle warning that I'm facing the toughest infantry they have. Add to this the units which have bayonets in slot 1--these are the "Banzai" guys--if you blunder into them, expect to be counterattacked immediately. All of this only adds to the "pucker" factor when facing these formidable opponents.

In the early days of the Pacific counteroffensive, you rapidly discover why US Marines placed a premium on having a high volume of automatic-weapons fire and, if available, supporting tanks.

The Japanese are tough motherf*ckers, and when they decide to dig themselves in, you're in for a bloody slugfest.
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RUPD3658
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by RUPD3658 »

I took 4 years of German and was an exchange student so the German names don't bother me.

I personally think that what would be best for "The game" would be all English designations since most (but certainly not all) of our players speak this as their native language. Maybe this could be an option or toggle switch?
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KG Erwin
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by KG Erwin »

The 8.3 version of the Italian OOB is a good example of how it should be done -- units are expressed in the native language (partially), but formations are expressed in English -- this might be a reasonable compromise.

This convention could be extended to the Germans -- for example, a Motorcycle Platoon consists of three Kradschuetzen. This provides both a lessson in German terminology and a convenient outlet for English-only speakers.
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Hauberk
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Hauberk »

Perhaps the manual could have an index that lists the unit names in their respective languages with a brief translation.This is just an idea,I couldn't honestly say how feasible it would be.I'm sure some of the more experienced members of this forum could address that
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Major Destruction
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Major Destruction »

I prefer English designations for generic units. Therefore Rifle Squad or Rifle Section is a generic name that describes the unit adequately.

Marine Squad, Sissi Squad, Alpini Squad, Gurkha Squad are all adaptations that fit this same idea but add a National uniqueness to the unit.

To me, Spaeher Unit does not add to the game. They are scouts plain and simple and that should be enough. If you want to translate the name 'scout' into German, then please do it for the scouts in every other Nation- Italian, Romanian, Chinese etc.
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RE: Which do you prefer?

Post by Goblin »

ORIGINAL: Major Destruction

I prefer English designations for generic units. Therefore Rifle Squad or Rifle Section is a generic name that describes the unit adequately.

Marine Squad, Sissi Squad, Alpini Squad, Gurkha Squad are all adaptations that fit this same idea but add a National uniqueness to the unit.

To me, Spaeher Unit does not add to the game. They are scouts plain and simple and that should be enough. If you want to translate the name 'scout' into German, then please do it for the scouts in every other Nation- Italian, Romanian, Chinese etc.


Well said Major!


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