Free France Campaign

[Mascarenhas]

So I hope. Such an alteration of this game's pivotal concept will be a risky maneuver, IMHO. Having to deal with green troops whenever you start a theater is worrisome. I imagine when those French rookies have to deal with battle-hardened Heer and SS units in ETO. They;ll be likely crushed for good...

[ColonelY]

Well, it seems to me that's already quite a lot of good work has been done!

[...] Core is out. Specialisations are out. [...]

Core is out? Okay, but then, of course unless you already have done it, all the core units of the scenario 01Dakar have to be put back to aux units (otherwise they will always be kept in the roster without being deployable later which won't be optimal )... If I'm not mistaken there are 7 units concerned by this: 6 infantry units and 1 Panhard unit...

[bru888]

So I hope. Such an alteration of this game's pivotal concept will be a risky maneuver, IMHO. Having to deal with green troops whenever you start a theater is worrisome. I imagine when those French rookies have to deal with battle-hardened Heer and SS units in ETO. They;ll be likely crushed for good...

No. See the post above where I have a schedule for friendly units (and their opposition, of course) to have increasing amounts of experience to start each scenario as the war progresses.

[bru888]

Well, it seems to me that's already quite a lot of good work has been done!

[...] Core is out. Specialisations are out. [...]

Core is out? Okay, but then, of course unless you already have done it, all the core units of the scenario 01Dakar have to be put back to aux units (otherwise they will always be kept in the roster without being deployable later which won't be optimal )... If I'm not mistaken there are 7 units concerned by this: 6 infantry units and 1 Panhard unit...

Already done.

Later today, I will upload a new three-scenario preview with all of the numerous changes of the past several days. Some of the changes have come from your suggestions, good news, and some have come from bad news realizations about cores and specializations not being feasible with a faction as under-developed as Free France.

Hopefully that is the last of the bad news. I think we can still have a great campaign that tells the story of Free France and is a lot of fun. You may want to look at the first couple of scenarios again to see the changes.

[ColonelY]

[...] Hopefully that is the last of the bad news. I think we can still have a great campaign that tells the story of Free France and is a lot of fun. [...]

I am convinced as well that it will be.



O3Kufra:

-> This scenario description looks better than the description of the two previous scenario simply because there is a little more space between "paragraphs"... -> so, in 01Dakar and 02Gabon, what about putting in each scenario description and just after the date a "||" instead of a single "|"? (So just after the first line of infos)

-> Scen descr: "[...] and Kufra is now an important as a station on the [...]" -> isn't there something strange, like an important "what"? or maybe just "an important station"?

-> No XP at all for Col. Bagnold?
All the others at 1,5 stars (except our AA-guns, but that's fine). At least 1 star (if not 1,5 stars as well) for this unit?

-> No air force at all on our side?
Maybe a single Bristol Blenheim (a wink to what has been written about air forces in the last scenario!) from turn 8 or once closing to the Italian Aerodromo or at least at turn 12 (first third of the scen!)
(With an air exit/redeploy hex or with some part of the Italian Aerodromo being of use once under control?)

-> Text of event "Buma Aerodromo" -> "no air defences" or rather "not many air defences"... because we still have two AA units with us...

-> About XP: The Sahariana di Kufra seems a little weak whereas it's supposed to be a dreaded formation already well experimented...
All our infantry start with 1,5 stars but this Sahariana with 1 star only... So, what about increasing this?
Example: Some units of this Sahariana could start with 2 stars, few others with 2,5 stars and the last of them maybe even with 3 stars... Like this it would add some variability as well!
(The sec obj related to them was achieved at turn 5 already...)

-> About Italian bombers AI: I think it would be more challenging if they don't directly target our AA units (except while on trucks for some transport phasis)... otherwise these bombers can be brutally damaged "relatively" easy, maybe a little too much...

-> Well, in the version I have, it doesn't seem that there is a sandstrom... But you said it has already been added, so I'll see the next version for this point.
(Same thing for me in the scen 02Gabon that I have tested: no rain.... but, you said as well that... so, it's fine within next version, I guess!)

-> Maybe add flags with names like "To XYZ, Italian Lybia" or "To YXZ, Chad" near the edges of the map, along the main roads...

-> Once both the Stazione Radio and the Burma Aerodromo have been taken/destroyed... One could perhaps destroy all nearby remaining bunkers or MG-foxholes, perhaps? Or make them directly change flag to the Free French flag? Like together with an event "Surrender!", "Nothing more to defend!" or something...

-> Damaging the Mosque...
Nicely done, especially because it's damn tempting to return some fire to this concrete bunker...

-> The configuration of this fort does greatly favors the defenders as they have much more opportunities to move units around, to replenish them quietly, to use some flanking attacks, etc.
I've encountered some difficulties there...
I believe that the biggest problem was that the Italians were able to replenish their troops in this fort, both too much and too often!
I've finished to fully control the fort on the 40th (ouf of 36th!)...

With previous suggestions, the famous Sahariana di Kufra will be more efficient (more XP to start with) as well as their bombers (no more direct attack vs ready AA guns)... So I'm convinced that making the last part a little easier won't unbalance the scenario.
One could add some turns, but I would vote for another alternative: the Italians should have less RPs at their disposal towards the end.

A possiblity would be to artificially remove most of their RPs once the bunker at the gate of the fort is destroyed, but I'm not sure at all whether it's possible to have the equivalent of an "#warbonds = -500" or something in the triggers directly (where I think one can only Add Ressources but with no "-" sign allowed and a total put back to 0 anyway...)...
Another possibility would be to reduce their income on several occasions: once their air force is gone, once Al-Jawf is taken and perhaps even once the Mosque is "liberated"...

And there, by the way, the help of a bomber could be of much use...
*************************
-> From my old posts: still an event to add or something?

1. "Leclerc set up this operation which, to all, seems impossible... His cult expression: « Ne dites pas que c’est impossible ! » ("Don't say it's impossible!”) -> an event somewhere, or part of the briefing?"

2. And another event, another:

(to put, as usual, at the good place with respect to timing )

Title: "The Léopard's claws!"

"24 February 1941: The Free French destroyer Léopard damages a U-Boat in the Atlantic; it’s the very first victory of the FNFL (i.e. “Forces Navales Françaises Libres”) against the Kriegsmarine".
It's highly symbolical and there is a little less events than in 02Gabon right now, so, well, why not?

[...] You may want to look at the first couple of scenarios again to see the changes.

Indeed.

[bru888]

Regarding "This scenario description looks better than the description of the two previous scenario simply because there is a little more space between "paragraphs"... -> so, in 01Dakar and 02Gabon, what about putting in each scenario description and just after the date a "||" instead of a single "|"? (So just after the first line of infos)," it's funny how we are thinking alike on various topics. I was thinking about this myself; my fear was that the reader would not realize to scroll down if there are spaces between paragraphs and one space at the bottom made it seem like that was the end. As a matter of fact, I had gone the other way and had taken out the extra spaces in the Kufra description! But having read what you said, I spaced all three scenario descriptions accordingly. If the reader is not paying attention, it's his fault. (Some people will not be reading at all, I realize.)

As you can see from above, a run-on paragraph is hard to read and thus tiring.

[ColonelY]

[bru888]

See, this is what I mean. The first two descriptions are cut off mid-sentence, so the reader is prompted to scroll:

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In the third, a paragraph space makes it seem like the text has ended, which it hasn't, of course:

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That's why I initially took the spaces out. But as I said earlier, if the reader is not paying attention, the heck with him.

[ColonelY]

Exact!

[ColonelY]

Or, if one really wish, there could be some alternative , maybe like this:

Kufra, also spelled Cufra in Italian and Koufra in French, is the largest district of Libya. Its capital is Al-Jawf, one of the oases in the Kufra basin.||The name Kufra is a derivation from 'kafir,' [...]

... may become...

Kufra is the largest district of Libya. Its capital is Al-Jawf, one of the oases in the Kufra basin.||The name Kufra, also spelled Cufra in Italian and Koufra in French, is a derivation from 'kafir,' [...]

Like this it should be obvious for the player that there is more to read... on the other hand, this first paragraph may seem really short (with 2 phrasis and about 1,5 lines)...

[bru888]

Nah, thanks for the suggestions but the 'issue' is going to recur again and again in other scenarios, so better to just keep to the better format and let the paragraphs fall where they may.

[ColonelY]

That's right, for sure. So, let's just keep it that way and carry on!

[bru888]

Removed specialisation point awards.

Dakar: "Capture both airfields" - now "Any remaining enemy aircraft units will exit."

Gabon: "Do not lose the HMS Devonshire" - now, in addition to Churchill's wrath, "One less cruiser will be deployed in future scenarios in which the British Navy is involved."

Kufra - "Defeat the Compagnia Autosahariana di Cufra" - now "Destroy at least six Sahariana units and one will be captured for our use."

[bru888]

03Kufra

-> Scen descr: "[...] and Kufra is now an important as a station on the [...]" -> isn't there something strange, like an important "what"? or maybe just "an important station"?

Heh, make sure YOU are scrolling! The text was "Moreover, Italian colonization of Libya had began in 1911 and Kufra is now an important as a station on the north-south air route to Italian East Africa." However, I substituted "waypoint" for "station."

-> No XP at all for Col. Bagnold?
All the others at 1,5 stars (except our AA-guns, but that's fine). At least 1 star (if not 1,5 stars as well) for this unit?

Fixed. Also the AA guns, the Italian fighter-bombers, and a bunker or two (but not the mosque). Notice that this is one time when the Allies have a bit more experience than the Axis; usually they will be even. In this scenario, though, I was afraid that it would be too hard for the player without a small edge in experience (they are just coming off their victory in Gabon whereas the Italians have been doing garrison duty).

-> No air force at all on our side?

Correct, by design. I saw no reference to any air support that Leclerc had in this battle. Which makes for the challenge that concerned me; those fighter-bombers can wreak much damage before the Free French can shut down the airfield. Hence the two AA guns thrown in.

-> Text of event "Buma Aerodromo" -> "no air defences" or rather "not many air defences"... because we still have two AA units with us...

Another example of having fixed something once and not saved it. I remember removing that phrase when I brought the two AA guns in. I am going to have to get a new quality control manager.

About XP: The Sahariana di Kufra seems a little weak whereas it's supposed to be a dreaded formation already well experimented...

Good point. After talking them up, they should get an advantage. All eight cars moved up from 1 star to 2 stars. Please keep bringing situations like this up as we go forward because I tend to treat experience in overall terms; everybody at the same increasing level from one scenario to the next.

About Italian bombers AI: I think it would be more challenging if they don't directly target our AA units (except while on trucks for some transport phasis)... otherwise these bombers can be brutally damaged "relatively" easy, maybe a little too much...

There's not much that I can do about this except to direct the fighter-bombers away from the AA guns except to concentrate the Seek & Destroy on Recon and Infantry and not Anti-Air. It is a flaw of some sort in that the AI planes view the AA guns as weakest, most prone to damage, and therefore they go after them first, only to suffer extra damage themselves. We will see if this fix works. I assume you would not favor taking the AA guns out altogether; that would be too one-sided the other way, I think.

Well, in the version I have, it doesn't seem that there is a sandstrom... But you said it has already been added, so I'll see the next version for this point

Correct. A random sandstorm, I might add! Also, there are multiple periods of rain in Gabon now.

Maybe add flags with names like "To XYZ, Italian Lybia" or "To YXZ, Chad" near the edges of the map, along the main roads...

Another good idea. I always like doing this to orient the player. Please keep this type of suggestion coming as well.

Once both the Stazione Radio and the Burma Aerodromo have been taken/destroyed... One could perhaps destroy all nearby remaining bunkers or MG-foxholes, perhaps? Or make them directly change flag to the Free French flag? Like together with an event "Surrender!", "Nothing more to defend!" or something...

Again, we are thinking alike. I remember wondering the same thing; that the bunkers and foxholes now have nothing to do and the player has no incentive to go after them. So the compromise is this: When Stazione Radio and the Burma Aerodromo have been taken/destroyed, the nearby foxholes and bunkers will self-destruct (not switch sides), but the tradeoff will be spawning two units of Italian infantry to represent the former defenders in those structures, now joining any other surviving Guardia Aerodromo. There is a new message now that reads "With both the Stazione Radio and Buma Aerodromo destroyed, the surviving Guardia Aerodromo units have blown up and abandoned their defences and are now on the loose."

Damaging the Mosque...
Nicely done, especially because it's damn tempting to return some fire to this concrete bunker...

I see that you didn't explore the alternative . . .

The configuration of this fort does greatly favors the defenders . . . I've finished to fully control the fort on the 40th (ouf of 36th!)...

I added 6 more turns, for a total of 42. Also, a couple of Bristol Blenheim Mk. IV bombers will be dispatched to deal with just the fort (reversing what I said above).

[bru888]

When Stazione Radio and the Burma Aerodromo have been taken/destroyed, the nearby foxholes and bunkers will self-destruct (not switch sides), but the tradeoff will be spawning two units of Italian infantry to represent the former defenders in those structures, now joining any other surviving Guardia Aerodromo.

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I added 6 more turns, for a total of 42. Also, a couple of Bristol Blenheim Mk. IV bombers will be dispatched to deal with just the fort.

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But there are two catches. One, if the player flies the bombers too far south, they are undeployed. Yes, he can deploy them again next turn. The other catch is this:

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An updated 3-scenario preview has been uploaded: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MnVcfF ... sp=sharing

[ColonelY]

03Kufra [...]

Damaging the Mosque...
Nicely done, especially because it's damn tempting to return some fire to this concrete bunker...

I see that you didn't explore the alternative . . .

Really?

Well, I've done it once, "just to see" the troops spawning (with two different kinds of units) and the event... Then I've simply reloaded a save and continued my test "as normal"!

[Mascarenhas]

New version is not working. I nuked the first two scenarios without visible problems, but when Kufra loaded, it was just the map, no units available.

[bru888]

New version is not working. I nuked the first two scenarios without visible problems, but when Kufra loaded, it was just the map, no units available.

I just nuked to Kufra and it looks fine. True, this is a desolate opening scene; it reminds me of Lawrence of Arabia where Peter O'Toole and his guide see Omar Sharif far out in the desert, approaching on his camel (ultimately bad news for the guide):

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No one in sight, but that's because you are meant to deploy your entire force in that Free French enclave:

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And doing a #orbitalcommand reveals that the enemy is already in full force, waiting for you:

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That said, Colonel, if you would just do a walk-through test of this latest version (download link above) for functionality, I would appreciate it. You may want to see all of the recent changes that we discussed.

[ColonelY]

[...] That said, Colonel, if you would just do a walk-through test of this latest version (download link above) for functionality, I would appreciate it. You may want to see all of the recent changes that we discussed.

All right, I'll do soon the first three scenarios in a row... Results probably within a few days...

Meanwhile, I think you can already carry on with the 4th scenario: Keren!

[bru888]

Don't replay them unless you want to, Colonel. I meant just an "#igotnukes" walk-through just to make sure the campaign is progressing properly.

I'm caring about Keren, Kerenel, even as we speak!