Free France Campaign

[bru888]

So with Gabon, I did the following:

- Removed the three weak Gladiator fighters.
- Included two Spitfire Mark I fighters.
- Provided four Fairey Battle tactical bombers to help deal with the naval defences. These must be destroyed in a timely fashion so that the bulk of the player's forces may land.
- Included two more Free France colonial units to deal with their counterparts in the interior. These should be enough for the job.

A new version of the preview has been uploaded. This has the changes made to Dakar as well as Gabon and it includes the new campaign map.

Free France 1940-1945 (first 2 scenarios)

[Mascarenhas]

Gabon - First impressions (version 1)

This is a very carefully an sensitively designed scenario, and if you do wrong tactical choices, you're kaputt. The golden rule is never provoke the armor columns until you have amassed enough strength to face them. There's a high risk in the sea mission, and the preservation of your small flotilla is paramount. I decided to start from the south coastal gun, which gave me the chance to reduce Vichy's air strength as a bonus - because FFF air is really weak in this first incarnation. But it takes a lot of time to achieve air superiority and to enable the landing forces. I'm conducting it very carefully (after Gabe's ill fate), but I believe it can be completed, perhaps with an additional 2 or 3 rounds to deal with sec obj in the hinterland.
Congrats, Bru, I particularly appreciated the most appropriate use of the A-20's in this scenario; at first I thought it was anachronistic, but, after some inquiries I found that you knew better...

[bru888]

Gabon - First impressions (version 1)

This is a very carefully an sensitively designed scenario, and if you do wrong tactical choices, you're kaputt. The golden rule is never provoke the armor columns until you have amassed enough strength to face them. There's a high risk in the sea mission, and the preservation of your small flotilla is paramount. I decided to start from the south coastal gun, which gave me the chance to reduce Vichy's air strength as a bonus - because FFF air is really weak in this first incarnation. But it takes a lot of time to achieve air superiority and to enable the landing forces. I'm conducting it very carefully (after Gabe's ill fate), but I believe it can be completed, perhaps with an additional 2 or 3 rounds to deal with sec obj in the hinterland.
Congrats, Bru, I particularly appreciated the most appropriate use of the A-20's in this scenario; at first I thought it was anachronistic, but, after some inquiries I found that you knew better...

Thanks, Mascar. Well, I did tone it down a bit in version 2, as you saw, but I am glad that you wrote because I was thinking of doing even more. Now I know that it should be alright as it is with FF air forces beefed up and a couple of additional colonial units for the interior. Any more and perhaps it goes the other way.

The A-20 (singular) was a leap of faith in Wikipedia. The game doesn't have it until January 1941 and they are probably right but the French had acquired an earlier version, the DB-7, back in 1939. About 70 of them made it to North Africa and I thought, for variety, 1 may have migrated to Gabon. Wherever possible, I am trying to use units with French markings.

So, a bit of artistic license. As it happened, the Free French never adopted the A-20: "After French forces in North Africa had joined the Allies, DB-7s were used as trainers and were replaced in front line escadrilles with Martin B-26 Marauders."

[Mascarenhas]

Gabon v1 (final)

I did it on 52nd. I guess it'd be possible to do in 48, if only I had deployed a bit more wisely. I got worried of the forces stationed near the coast. In the end I could have dispatched some inf sooner to take sec obj earlier, particularly northeast. Anyway, it was great. I'll try the 2nd version onwards.

[Erik2]

Bru

The Corsica map is probably on the large side for your taste.
I can create a reduced version if you like (after the Soviet beta has finished).

[bru888]

Bru

The Corsica map is probably on the large side for your taste.
I can create a reduced version if you like (after the Soviet beta has finished).

That would be 12OperationVesuvius. Sure, if you have time; I won't be in that neck of the woods for quite a while. Thanks.

[bru888]

I am sure that some players will choose to deliberately fail this "Take the mosque without damaging it" objective to see what happens!

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[ColonelY]

I would have done something sooner, but I've been tremendlously busy lately so... Well, better late than never, right?


To be (well, stay, what! ) quite honest, it's not without a certain emotion that I started to test this campaign...


01Dakar (Version 2):

An excellent scenario, with great content, good immersion, some randomization (converts), etc., etc. But let's jump on more constructive comments, shall we?

-> First of all, despite few lines I've read about it, I think there is no problem with moving our artillery in this scenario... It's up to the player to use the transport means at disposal and not to forget moving the artillery before the end of its turn when all main roads are already overcrowded: By focusing a little on the artillery, several units were doing their stuff for me in Dakar for several turns... So, I would say there is no issue there!

-> For Rufisque obj, the Red Arrow is not pointing exactly at the golden star flag...

-> The "Cie D Patrouille Côtière" is relatively easy to outsupply once the village of Bargny-Gouddou has been taken, as well as the nearby plantation...
As this Patrol stands on a road, what about adding a small supply output for them on this road, over the most eastern hex? Something like 5 or 10 Supply would leave them in trouble (if the player do as I did) but not completely outsupplied as now. Because of this road, they could receive some supply...

-> By concentrating the AA capability of all my ships and with a little help of my British dogfighter, the 2 French dogfighters and the 2 French bombers have directly been destroyed!
The third bomber, an Amiot 354, probably slower than the two other bombers, has not been detected by my troops... I assume that this unit has escaped the massacre by being much slower and maybe by carrying as well (a little) less fuel than the others... After this initial air assault, one could maybe check how many French planes are left and, if it's only - let's say - one or two, maybe spawn another pair of air units around the AFs near Dakar... for the final clash, to strengthen them a little AND to prevent our navy (and air) to leave "too" soon... No need to bother about this if most of them have already survived this initial engagment with the player's forces...

-> About the 3 Vichy capital ships:
1. They do travel really fast towards Rufisque, don't they? (But that's fine as it is, I think.)
2. I am wondering: maybe add a "test" in the trigger to displace (maybe by a single hex southwards) any ship of ours already in these docks... these capital ships should later be spawned in docks (by coherence with the text too) and can't be moved (or anything else) by the player (that's perfectly fine! )... BUT, if the player has had the idea to put all his (or her) supply ships on these docks (first to double the supply reaching land and then - later a mere luxury! - to make it look smoother, more organized ), then these 3 ex-Vichy capital ships will be spawned outside of the docks and then it will look a little strange...
3. And maybe target Rufisque's docks for each and every of these three events (to highlight where these ships are now).

-> About French flags on islands:
Well, we aren't going to organise small landings to seize these islands and we know there are several converts here and there, so what about...
1. ...raising a Free French flag on Île de Gorée once its fort has been destroyed?
2. ...raising a Free French flag on Île d'Yof once Yof has been taken and same consideration about Ngor and Île Ngor?
3. ... and perhaps another small event talking briefly about this flag side-story on Gorée, but for the two others islands I don't think it would be worth it... (And we've already a picture for this, a picture showing Gorée!)

-> Event "Royal Navy Retires"... Damned, like this, without warning?! Well, then I fully understand de Gaulle's objections there! Some capital ships could still be useful with supporting fire from heavy batteries for our land troops...
Anyway, there may be a very little detail in the actual event text: "Now that Vichy air and naval forces at Dakar have eliminated, [...]" => here "have eliminated" or rather "have been eliminated"?

-> Some French accents (but not much):
Unit name: Fort Gorèe -> Fort Gorée
Names on map:
1. Kambèrène -> well, it's rather Kambérène... (and I think we don't really care, but according to the template it comes indeed with a "K", but according to Wiki it comes with a "C" instead of a "K" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camb%C3%A9r%C3%A8ne -, but it could of course have changed thoughout History... anyway, it's fine as it is! )
2. Then, I'm not sure at all about the Jefèe North & South -> In French, Jefée!?!? Is it Jefée or rather Jetée (like the "jetty" or "pier")?

-> For the visual aspect of the map, maybe replace in several hexes some forests by jungles here and there , but of course in sectors where our troops are really unlikely to move... So more visual variability but no gaming penalty.

***
By looking at this (rather old) map:

http://1886.u-bordeaux-montaigne.fr/items/show/9378

For flavor and immersion, maybe add few named flags like the "Lake M'Bogòssé"...

Near Ouakam:
1. The famous "Les Mamelles" nearby... -> one named hex with rough terrain?
2. "Camp des Disciplinaires" ... like a jail-camp... something to consider?
***
It's known that there was on the Vichy's side, inside/near the port -> + 3 Merchant ships (Porthus, Tacoma, DANISH Saly Maersk) & 1 Supply ship (La Garonne)… maybe add some of these, like "static" or "idle" to even enhance a little more the flavor...
***
In what I've written before (damn, I've written quite a lot, actually! ), I think that maybe these two elements can still be of some use to add up to two new events... maybe the 3rd near the scenario start and the 6th (a little sad but strictly historical as well) maybe just after that the British ships and planes have left...

[...]
3. “More French cruisers!” – directly after the second event, highlighting this time the waters near the port of Dakar…

http://en.wikibedia.ru/wiki/French_crui ... ge_Leygues

“Because of British mistakes, several ships were able to pass through the Gibraltar Strait. They were headed for our French Equatorial Africa... our armada, with greater fire power, forced them fortunately to change direction. But they were faster and those who had no engine problem managed to take refuge around Dakar, thus reinforcing its defenses.

The dreaded French battleship Richelieu was already there. Was it not enough?”

(In case there is too much text within the 2nd event, some of it could be added within this one, probably... )
[...]
6. “Dakar’s bombarded!” -> maybe when the secondary objective to destroy at least 2 forts (there are 3 of them) is achieved… - it’s historical as well that the forts have been silenced…

“Alas, the fighting has seriously damaged the great city of Dakar... The city's fortresses were almost completely silenced, but several projectiles fired mainly from ships unfortunately fell on houses.”

With a picture chosen for example between these:
https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... 3775433129

https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... 3775181033

https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... 3775028957
[...]

=> On overall: An awesome start for a very promising campaign!


Et voilà!

[ColonelY]

I am sure that some players will choose to deliberately fail this "Take the mosque without damaging it" objective to see what happens!

Well, out of curiosity, it's indeed almost certain!
I think I will once as well... if only in a professional setting to test the different variants.

By the way, could we not directly write "Mosque" with a capital letter?

[ColonelY]

I'm happy to see that this project is progressing well!

[bru888]

Well, better late than never, right?

You said it, mon ami. I was beginning to fear that you had hung up your colonel's uniform for the last time, and retired from the service.

Funny thing about that Rufisque pointer; I remember fixing it! However, two things sometimes happen, the second much more severe than the first:

1) I will make such a change, then go on to something else which gets botched and causes me to reload the scenario, forgetting the previous fix.

2) I will get confused when backing up files and copy an old version of the scenario over what I just worked on.

When 2) happens, depending on the severity of what is lost, I see my OOB-designing career pass before my eyes. Fortunately, it is a rare occurrence.

[bru888]

Good suggestion about the "Cie D Patrouille Côtière" and supply. I usually do not want supply to be a factor in my scenarios unless it is a part of the missions or tactics. So I took your suggestion to add 10 supply to all road edge hexes which stands to reason as the Vichy would be in control of points north and east of Dakar at this point.

I am okay with your results of using the AA capability of ships to destroy planes. My initial concentration is on the sea battle and when that is over, hopefully with an Allied victory, I don't want all of those ships to be sitting around with nothing to do. So clearing out the Vichy air and naval forces is what is intended, so the focus then shifts to the land battle.

Regarding "About the 3 Vichy capital ships . . . They do travel really fast towards Rufisque, don't they?", yes, it's instantaneous. I'll briefly explain why. When a unit is removed, to be replaced as if it was captured, the problem for the designer is that he has no knowledge or control over where the unit will be located when this happens. The old unit is removed and a new one, under a different flag, must be spawned, but where? That is why you will see "excuses" such as "Your captured tank was taken to the armory in the rear for refurbishment" and the spawn is at the edge of the map. In this case, it is "The battleship Richelieu has capitulated. It has been towed to the docks at Rufisque." While your attention was elsewhere, engaged in battle.

Regarding your other suggestion about where they are spawned if the Rufisque docks are occupied by friendly ships, I am alright with them appearing out to sea a bit; in real life, you do see ships anchored in bays rather than moored to a pier.

[ColonelY]

[...] Regarding your other suggestion about where they are spawned if the Rufisque docks are occupied by friendly ships, I am alright with them appearing out to sea a bit; in real life, you do see ships anchored in bays rather than moored to a pier.

Yes, you're right!

Well, better late than never, right?

You said it, mon ami. I was beginning to fear that you had hung up your colonel's uniform for the last time, and retired from the service.

[...]

No worries, my friend, I'm still up to duty.

I may just have less time at disposal right now and for a little while, but I won't quit.

[bru888]

Glad to hear. Continuing:

These have been corrected:

"Now that Vichy air and naval forces at Dakar have been eliminated . . ."

Unit name: "Fort Gorée" (I got the island name correct, though. These accents drive us non-Gallic people willy-nilly!)

"Cambérène" it is, thanks. The old map that I used had it with a "K" but I see most sources have it with a "C."*

I'm not sure where "Jefèe" came from. I can't blame it on Google Translate** which is my usual excuse. I went with "Péninsule Nord" and "Péninsule Sud."

*Interesting to note that the old map to which you linked has it with a "K."

**I just bookmarked WordReference.com which I have been meaning to do. I had the English-French page bookmarked but I have decided to use WordReference.com more regularly, for this and other projects, because it gives you variations and examples of meanings that Google does not.

[bru888]

Near Ouakam:
1. The famous "Les Mamelles" nearby... -> one named hex with rough terrain?

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[bru888]

6. “Dakar’s bombarded!” -> maybe when the secondary objective to destroy at least 2 forts (there are 3 of them) is achieved… - it’s historical as well that the forts have been silenced…

“Alas, the fighting has seriously damaged the great city of Dakar... The city's fortresses were almost completely silenced, but several projectiles fired mainly from ships unfortunately fell on houses.”

With a picture chosen for example between these:
https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... 3775433129

https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... 3775181033

https://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=htt ... 3775028957
[...]

Screenshot 7.jpg (534.14 KiB) Viewed 1366 times

[bru888]

-> About French flags on islands:
Well, we aren't going to organise small landings to seize these islands and we know there are several converts here and there, so what about...
1. ...raising a Free French flag on Île de Gorée once its fort has been destroyed?
2. ...raising a Free French flag on Île d'Yof once Yof has been taken and same consideration about Ngor and Île Ngor?
3. ... and perhaps another small event talking briefly about this flag side-story on Gorée, but for the two others islands I don't think it would be worth it... (And we've already a picture for this, a picture showing Gorée!)

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As I said earlier, not everything that you suggest is adopted, but much of it because much of it is good. Now, Colonel, if you would be so kind as to scour and scrub Gabon while I temporarily return north to the sands of Kufra (which I mention is also spelled as "Koufra" by the French), I would appreciate it.

[ColonelY]

Fine! I'm on it.

[bru888]

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[bru888]

Coming together nicely. Will be done with Kufra soon, then will release a three-scenario preview.

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