Free France Campaign

[ColonelY]

Candidates as potential pictures for the Authion scenario (where it could be possible to enter Italy...):

-> Page 3/5 from this document (the last picture): https://www.academieduvar.fr/Activites2/Authion.pdf

-> https://www.france-libre.net/site/wp-co ... l-1945.pdf

-> https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... egUIARC6AQ

-> https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... egUIARC0AQ

-> General view of the massif (a bit blurry unfortunately): https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... egUIARC8AQ

-> A bit snowy: https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... egUIARDfAQ

-> Caption: "This tank of the RFM jumped on a mine on the road of Cabanes Vieilles, during the fighting of the Authion on April 10-13, 1945. Blocking the road, it was tipped over by another tank." https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... egUIARDWAQ

-> Which may make think to this picture: https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... hAegQIARBO (perhaps from another battle!)

-> More for general info, there, we see of course the Italian border and, as arrows, the center action, as well as the North and South overflow actions... but also coverage and support actions North and South!
https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... egUIARCvAQ

[ColonelY]

Very little detail: campaign event about "Authion Massif"... "sieges" rather than "seiges", probably...

[Erik2]

cake.jpg (105.39 KiB) Viewed 1449 times

[bru888]

I'm surprised we didn't blow up the forum.

[bru888]

Very little detail: campaign event about "Authion Massif"... "sieges" rather than "seiges", probably...

Allow me to ask you rhetorical questions.

Why is it "siege" when it is also "seize"? Why is it "i" before "e" except after "c" ... and in the word "seize"? English is such a frustrating language.

I really do have mental blocks at times. This is one of them.

[ColonelY]

Hey, that's nice, Erik, thanks!

I'm surprised we didn't blow up the forum.

( )

[ColonelY]

22AmherstDrop:

The number of turns is well adjusted; during the 40th turn, all the map was to the Allies... There is no real need to add enemy units to this map anymore, I think.
*******
Issue: the Dutch partisans stayed on the map, without revealing anything... the Alpha group died on the way , the others arrived at their destination, one of them strongly weakened... 4 out of 5 would have been enough to have enough targets of opportunity and thus succeed in this objective (the only one not accomplished, as no single target do spawn => Draw! )...

I’ve found the key!

I’ve taken a look into the triggers, and I can confirm that both “Spawn Partisans” and “Route Partisans” do work as expected…
I’ve reloaded a save at the start of the last turn to check on which hex the Dutch partisans have stopped (and thus entrenched themselves!). And used the Editor to know exactly on which hex they should be. 1 unit down (Alpha), but for the 4 others, they were at the exact correct hex, waiting there, fully entrenched…

=> So, this part is working. The problem should come just after that…

I’ve made a test, cloning some actual triggers, adding a Dutch partisan to the AI moving from turn 1 to reach the Alpha’s location… At first, as I thought it was an issue with the “Deploy”, I’ve tried “Spawn” instead, but nope. Then, I’ve changed “Move Event” to “Turn Start” and then it works!

=> So, change these 5 “Move Event” by “Turn Start” and we’ll be fine!
=> Then:
1. From Beta to Epsilon, it should be, as “Remove Unit”, “Exit” rather than “Kill” (as for Alpha!)
2. Several of these targets to be deployed could start facing the right, right? ( )
*******
Good counter-attack, but they show up directly outsupplied if the player had taken the town to the south... even if the tank takes it (even if taken by the player, it shall at that time be empty), these German troops will have to wait 3 turns to benefit from this supply output... => Maybe complete their arrival with a "change hex ownership" to put the city immediately under the German flag (in any case - if it is already under the German flag, it won't change anything; if it is not under the German flag, it will give a more or less correct supply to these troops...)
*******
Now, a very little detail: there is only one supply output missing… a +10 at the town of Sleen (W of Emmen, roughly in the eastern center of the map).


And, with these few points, I am not afraid to say that this is another masterpiece!

Et voilà !

[ColonelY]

Very little detail: campaign event about "Authion Massif"... "sieges" rather than "seiges", probably...

Allow me to ask you rhetorical questions. Sure!

Why is it "siege" when it is also "seize"? No idea one'd have to do some etymology to know... Why is it "i" before "e" except after "c" ... and in the word "seize"? English is such a frustrating language. Sometimes, perhaps... ( )

I really do have mental blocks at times. This is one of them. Really?! Come on, my friend, it's so easy to invert these letters from time to time. And this is also one of the interests of teamwork: what one person missed is found by the other, and vice versa.

[bru888]

Very little detail: campaign event about "Authion Massif"... "sieges" rather than "seiges", probably...

Allow me to ask you rhetorical questions. Sure!

Why is it "siege" when it is also "seize"? No idea one'd have to do some etymology to know... Why is it "i" before "e" except after "c" ... and in the word "seize"? English is such a frustrating language. Sometimes, perhaps... ( )

I really do have mental blocks at times. This is one of them. Really?! Come on, my friend, it's so easy to invert these letters from time to time. And this is also one of the interests of teamwork: what one person missed is found by the other, and vice versa.

Yes, definitely, two heads have been better than one on this project!

[bru888]

Can you explain further why there is a problem with "Deploy Targets"? Why should Turn Start work where Move does not?

[bru888]

Can you explain further why there is a problem with "Deploy Targets"? Why should Turn Start work where Move does not?

Oh, wait a minute. I have forgotten an important rule of thumb: The game prefers to spawn and deploy units only at turn start because doing so during the turn would confuse movement and combat calculations.

Would you be willing to try this again later, a short test?

[ColonelY]

Can you explain further why there is a problem with "Deploy Targets"? Why should Turn Start work where Move does not?

I can try, but without guarantee.

-> While playing, nothing happens. (Except for the AI of the German groups, which will indeed change).
-> I did the test (I've explained) to check and found this solution.

My only real explanation would be that, maybe, the system is just not set up for items to be added to the map DURING an AI turn?

[ColonelY]

( ) Hey, we must have written this around the same time...

Well, good, I've somehow rediscovered this principle.

[ColonelY]

I may have been a little too succinct there... Okay, so here goes:

To find a solution, I've started by building a micro-test (added on this same scenario, that is):

A partisan unit under the Dutch flag, deployed at the beginning of the scenario, controlled by the AI. Mission: to reach the exact destination of the future Alpha group. Deployed where? Just a few hexes away, in order to reach this point in one turn...

Effect on arrival? As a starting point, I cloned the planned effect as it was, before moving it to the root folder (easier and quicker than to modify some enabling of folder)...

I just had to load the scenario. To save time, all the German planes were set to idle and I didn't even bother to move mine.

So, it was: Load the scenario, watch the unit of partisans arrive at their destination... and see what happens!
Then think a little bit, make a little change, do that again, until it works.

Hence the idea of the "micro-test".

(I wasn't going to replay all the turns required to clear the skies, then wait for the partisans to arrive - well, the first group, anyway, then follow them to their destination to finally see if it was going to work or not... that wouldn't have been efficient testing at all, but very time-consuming instead.)

[bru888]

I think we have our solution. I will fix it tonight. By the way, is the German convoy/truck module working? Were you able to bag eight of those critters?

[ColonelY]

I think we have our solution. I will fix it tonight. Nice. By the way, is the German convoy/truck module working? Yes. Were you able to bag eight of those critters? Yes, and more.

No issue related to the German convoy/truck module. (There, the "Move Event" is considered during the player's turn, not during an AI's turn. )

When I reloaded my save file from the last turn (to see exactly where the Dutch partisans went), this counter was at 14/8... so 14 trucks were destroyed, so we could increase that threshold to 10, but not much more for player's comfort.

[bru888]

No issue related to the German convoy/truck module. (There, the "Move Event" is considered during the player's turn, not during an AI's turn. )

That's the subtlety. When the AI Dutch partisans approach their trigger points, it's during the AI's turn. There is only one AI regardless of which faction it is moving and I bet it has already thought ahead for both the Dutch and the Germans and laid things out to its satisfaction. But then a trigger calls for introducing an element while it is executing its plans, which upsets them. It therefore refuses.

As you say, when a French paratrooper approaches a village where a truck will spawn, the condition is evaluated during the player's turn and is in place when the AI begins thinking in its own turn. This is why the trucks worked but the partisans did not.

Now the trick is to remember this for next time. Or, stick to my rule of thumb which is to deploy or spawn only on Turn Start. (For the sake of not fixing what is not broke, I will leave the German Convoys module alone.)

Thank you for your detective work.

[bru888]

Actually, it could be even more fundamental than that. The triggers were flawed because they called for movement of the Dutch partisan unit in the condition AND removal of the same unit in the effect. I don't think the AI can compute this sequentially in one trigger event:

Screenshot 1.jpg (550.6 KiB) Viewed 1383 times

[bru888]

So, there's good news and bad news.

The good news is, the Dutch partisan module works with Turn Start, as you suggested (forget what I just said above, it works; apparently the computer can process the move and the remove sequentially in one trigger — it's when it processes that matters).

Here is the Partisans Alpha unit arriving at its destination:

Screenshot 7.jpg (676.98 KiB) Viewed 1379 times

and here are Targets Alpha, deployed. Partisans Alpha has exited:

Screenshot 6.jpg (681.61 KiB) Viewed 1379 times

The bad news is, you never got a chance to properly test this module. I believe you would have told me that it is too tough. The Dutch partisans go charging off immediately, heedless of the enemy, and repeatedly stumble into trouble. One runs afoul of the garrison in Assen or Groningen, I forget which.

Even if I told the player to "Remember, these partisans are vulnerable. Protect and escort them to their destination," the player probably only has one paratrooper unit nearby to go chasing after the partisan unit. That's not enough to destroy every obstacle that could be in their way.

Back to the drawing board.

[bru888]

I have it.

Dutch partisans will be under human control. You will be told where to escort each partisan unit so that it may reveal the targets of opportunity in the area. It will be your responsibility to see that they get there safely; else, no targets, objective failed. Once Dutch partisans have done their job, they will still exit.

This will be better, maybe even more fun. Look for an update soon; maybe as soon as tomorrow.