Matrix Games Forums

Hello!
I made the mistake of attaching some units to my general HQ (formation A). Now I can't get them out of there any more. It says: "Support and auxiliary units may not be assigned new HQs." Will I have to live with that? Can it be undone?
Also, sometimes, certain units will refuse to be detached from their formation, but the very same unit will comply when I try some minutes later. What are the exact rules for when you are allowed to transfer a unit from one HQ to another? Other than the fact that the unit must not be a support unit, I mean.

Thanks!

ORIGINAL: apollonius

Hello!
I made the mistake of attaching some units to my general HQ (formation A). Now I can't get them out of there any more. It says: "Support and auxiliary units may not be assigned new HQs." Will I have to live with that? Can it be undone?
Also, sometimes, certain units will refuse to be detached from their formation, but the very same unit will comply when I try some minutes later. What are the exact rules for when you are allowed to transfer a unit from one HQ to another? Other than the fact that the unit must not be a support unit, I mean.

Another question: Is it possible to disable the intro movies?

Thanks!

Well lets see, as long as the units are not marked aux/reinforment/support units you can move them from one HQ to another with no problem.
First delete the steel.prf file in your save file. That may be causing some of your problems. A new one will be made as soon as you go back into the game.
But alas you cannot just detach they without assigning them to a new HQ. There is probly more info in the manual.

Hello!
Thanks for the reply!
Alas, deleting that file didn't help. I still can't transfer any unit away from formation A. I can do that for all other formations, except formation A (the one with the general HQ and the Colonel).
Is it possible to edit the savegame somehow?

EDIT: I never wanted to create a new formation. I just want to transfer a unit from one formation to another.

ORIGINAL: apollonius

Hello!
Thanks for the reply!
Alas, deleting that file didn't help. I still can't transfer any unit away from formation A. I can do that for all other formations, except formation A (the one with the general HQ and the Colonel).
Is it possible to edit the savegame somehow?

EDIT: I never wanted to create a new formation. I just want to transfer a unit from one formation to another.

Step 1] Go into the save folder and rename the save000.dat file to scen000.dat or to a empty scen slot you have.
step 2] move said file to the scen folder.
step 3] Start game and go into the editor and load the save/scen file. Don't worry if it does not show up just click the slot and then hit load.
step 4] them go into the deploy sceen and them use the "w" key to move the units you want to move.
step 6] Save you file. and then go back and rename it back and them move it back to the saved folder and then play.

Thank you, Don Doom!
Unfortunately, not even the editor allowed me to transfer units away from my HQ formation. But I still learned a nice trick to use in the future, thanks!

ORIGINAL: apollonius

Thank you, Don Doom!
Unfortunately, not even the editor allowed me to transfer units away from my HQ formation. But I still learned a nice trick to use in the future, thanks!

Can you zip the .dat file and send it to me by pm and I will take a look at it.

You going soft on me Doom? Turning into a Nice Guy?[X(]

If so, we're over, and I won't take you back, even if you send me flowers.[:'(]



Goblin

That is more disturbing than I care to contemplate.

ORIGINAL: Goblin

You going soft on me Doom? Turning into a Nice Guy?[X(]

If so, we're over, and I won't take you back, even if you send me flowers.[:'(]



Goblin

Gobby,Gobby, Gobby[:'(][:'(][:'(]

ORIGINAL: azraelck

That is more disturbing than I care to contemplate.

I just got rid of Doom, and you're sweet talking me already?!?! Give a night-critter time to adjust to being Doomless...[:(][8D]

*points 75mm M3 at goblin*

I don't do sweet talking... [>:)]

Can you zip the .dat file and send it to me by pm and I will take a look at it.

Hi!
Unfortunately, that's no longer possible. I got so frustrated that I started a new campaign, overwriting the savegame.
But you can easly duplicate the issue yourself. Just transfer any unit to formation A (the one with your colonel in it), and try to transfer it away again. It won't work. I tried it in my new campaign, just to see if it would happen again, and it did.

I can't duplicate your problem, apollonius.
I started a campaign, bought a core force, assigned the C4 MG unit to the A0 unit, then reassigned it back to the C0 formation.

At what point are trying to reassign one of the units in the A0 formation? During the first Deploy, or after a battle has begun? You do know that you cannot perform the Reassign action during a game, only during Deploy?

You also cannot assign from, or to, an AUX unit, just your core force units.


Goblin

Well, guess what... I patched to v8.40 and the problem went away.
It seems, it only happens with v8.20.
Anyway, thank you all, guys!

I have a new question now, though. My onboard artillery won't perform indirect bombardment any more. Ever since I upgraded to v8.40, my guns won't show up in the Bombard dialogue. Airplanes and offboard artillery still works, but onboard artillery will only perform direct fire. Is this a bug or a feature? Do I need a forward observer for that now?

which gun's? If they are classed as artillary they should show up.

The German 150mm sIG33, and the sIG33 auf Panzer II. They are genuine artillery, in theory, or so I thought.

No, those are SP Guns. SP Guns are a direct-fire only class. A unit has to be Howitzer, Self-Propelled Artillery, Offboard Artillery, or one of the Mortar classes in order to perform indirect bombardments.

Ow...! I'll have to RTFM more carefully...
What use are those weapons anyway? I mean, they don't have mobility, they can only shoot 3 rounds per turn (if you're lucky), they suffer huge suppression when under fire, and now they can't even perform indirect bombardment (I swear, they were capable of indirect fire in 8.20)? Do they have any redeeming qualities? Do they fill a specific role, or do they only exist because they're cheap?

I checked the "150mm sIG33" in the encyclopedia, and it doesn't read "SP artillery" there. The "sIG33 auf Pz I" is marked as SP artillery, though. Shouldn't there be a difference? One is a SP gun (by the way, what does "SP" mean?), the other is not. Yet they both are incapable of indirect fire.

OK, the Encyclopedia entries haven't all been updated recently. Some things, actually a lot of things, have changed since most of those entries were written some 3-4 years ago.

"SP" stands for "Self-Propelled". Used to indicate a piece of artillery that is mounted on a self-propelling mount.
As for what use are they? Direct support of infantry was what their job was. Considering the maximum range of the sIG33 weapon, which was NOT a howitzer, was only 4700 meters, it's use in the game as an indirect artillery piece is highly questionable. That's about 80 hexes...not enough for offboard artillery barrages.

One problem with these determinations is that, in game terms, indirect fire does not just mean lobbing shells over obstructions at "unseen" targets; it means primarily firing from some distance away from the combat zone. Limitations on the way ranges work in-game mean that once you reach a certain game range, every large-caliber artillery howitzer has the same range. Game maximum range value is around 230; that is an OOB data code, which tells us to multiply the last 2 digits (30) by 8 to get the number of hexes of range, in this case 240. Multiply that by 50 meters/hex, and the maximum range of a weapon in the game is 12,000 meters. Many artillery pieces have ranges well in excess of this, yet for game purposes they all have the same range.

So the SP-Gun Unit Class is for weapons whose main purpose is to provide close support or direct fire for other arms, usually the infantry. They are NOT artillery pieces; for that, you would need to buy the Wespe, Lorraine, or Hummel units, which ARE SP Artillery units, and can conduct indirect artillery barrages.