Thanks a lot Yogi. And welcome to the forums.
DMP Modding (Afrikakorps)
Moderators: Slitherine Core, Panzer Corps Design, Panzer Corps Moderators
Finally played a bit with this yesterday, though I had to stop earlier than I would've liked.
First impressions:
The installer sucks - I couldn't install to D:\Afrika Korps but had to install to D:\Afrika Korps\, in which another Afrika Korps folder was created.
Still, I guess it's nice you bothered at all to make an installer, and it's nothing really important to me (or anyone, for that matter).
I LOVE the style - everything is a little different from the vanilla game, but fits together - the menus, the units, the terrain etc. - great work.
The intro video was nice and also well done (if a bit low-res) ... but why is the intro about a game covering the Deutsches Afrika Korps showing off nothing but the Duce and (mostly) italian troops? Confused me a little.
The voice actor is an atrocy against mankind, and the briefings are too low-volume and generally of bad quality. I guess I understand now Slitherine's decision not to get any VO's for the DLC rather than sub-par one.
I'll try to play at least a handful of missions before posting feedback on how the missions are designed, so I won't go into that yet.
So far, since the installer is a one-time thing and I hope I can delete the briefing VOs, GREAT work overall. Looks like quite a bit of effort went into this, and it shows.
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rezaf
First impressions:
The installer sucks - I couldn't install to D:\Afrika Korps but had to install to D:\Afrika Korps\, in which another Afrika Korps folder was created.
Still, I guess it's nice you bothered at all to make an installer, and it's nothing really important to me (or anyone, for that matter).
I LOVE the style - everything is a little different from the vanilla game, but fits together - the menus, the units, the terrain etc. - great work.
The intro video was nice and also well done (if a bit low-res) ... but why is the intro about a game covering the Deutsches Afrika Korps showing off nothing but the Duce and (mostly) italian troops? Confused me a little.
The voice actor is an atrocy against mankind, and the briefings are too low-volume and generally of bad quality. I guess I understand now Slitherine's decision not to get any VO's for the DLC rather than sub-par one.
I'll try to play at least a handful of missions before posting feedback on how the missions are designed, so I won't go into that yet.
So far, since the installer is a one-time thing and I hope I can delete the briefing VOs, GREAT work overall. Looks like quite a bit of effort went into this, and it shows.
_____
rezaf
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DMPgebirgsjaeger
- Lance Corporal - SdKfz 222
- Posts: 21
- Joined: Sat Oct 29, 2011 7:14 am
- Location: Austria
- Contact:
Hi Rezaf!
Well - we decided to take the Italian troops and the Duce because the German forces were under the comand of Comando Supremo and Italy forced Germany to send troops there. We have added Rommel in the video but in Germany and Austria we have problems with the law..............
If you want to have the full video just contact me on our board. The resulotion: yes - we couldn´t change that it is a original propaganda video. Strange that you had problems with the installer. I will check that.
Well - we decided to take the Italian troops and the Duce because the German forces were under the comand of Comando Supremo and Italy forced Germany to send troops there. We have added Rommel in the video but in Germany and Austria we have problems with the law..............
If you want to have the full video just contact me on our board. The resulotion: yes - we couldn´t change that it is a original propaganda video. Strange that you had problems with the installer. I will check that.
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DMPgebirgsjaeger
- Lance Corporal - SdKfz 222
- Posts: 21
- Joined: Sat Oct 29, 2011 7:14 am
- Location: Austria
- Contact:
Finished the third mission.
Looks like this mod is not for me, despite all its production values.
The scenario design is very strange. One one hand, I'm always swimming in prestige, and an important point to get anywhere is disband the crap the designers equipped you with and get decent stuff.
Also, to get transports for all the italian infantry and artillery, you'd never get them to the battlefields in time otherwise.
Then there's the fact that your airforce seems totally inefficient, is always hopelessly outnumbered and outclassed by the opposition. Best bet is basically ignoring it until the stupid AI lets it's planes run out of fuel.
What does it for me is the horrible tactic of clamping the final objective into a corner, arranged as an impenetrable fortress. The first two missions are already guilty as charged, but the third is a joke - a literal fortress with basically a one-hex-wide corridor covered by heavy fortress artillery and three large artillery pieces. Oh, and two flaks. And like a dozen other units and MG nests.
You gotta be kidding me...
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rezaf
Looks like this mod is not for me, despite all its production values.
The scenario design is very strange. One one hand, I'm always swimming in prestige, and an important point to get anywhere is disband the crap the designers equipped you with and get decent stuff.
Also, to get transports for all the italian infantry and artillery, you'd never get them to the battlefields in time otherwise.
Then there's the fact that your airforce seems totally inefficient, is always hopelessly outnumbered and outclassed by the opposition. Best bet is basically ignoring it until the stupid AI lets it's planes run out of fuel.
What does it for me is the horrible tactic of clamping the final objective into a corner, arranged as an impenetrable fortress. The first two missions are already guilty as charged, but the third is a joke - a literal fortress with basically a one-hex-wide corridor covered by heavy fortress artillery and three large artillery pieces. Oh, and two flaks. And like a dozen other units and MG nests.
You gotta be kidding me...
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rezaf
I agree with you to a certain degree but I don't think the scenarios are that bad!rezaf wrote:Finished the third mission.
Looks like this mod is not for me, despite all its production values.
The scenario design is very strange. One one hand, I'm always swimming in prestige, and an important point to get anywhere is disband the crap the designers equipped you with and get decent stuff.
Also, to get transports for all the italian infantry and artillery, you'd never get them to the battlefields in time otherwise.
Then there's the fact that your airforce seems totally inefficient, is always hopelessly outnumbered and outclassed by the opposition. Best bet is basically ignoring it until the stupid AI lets it's planes run out of fuel.
What does it for me is the horrible tactic of clamping the final objective into a corner, arranged as an impenetrable fortress. The first two missions are already guilty as charged, but the third is a joke - a literal fortress with basically a one-hex-wide corridor covered by heavy fortress artillery and three large artillery pieces. Oh, and two flaks. And like a dozen other units and MG nests.
You gotta be kidding me...
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rezaf
I compeletely disagree about the air force issue.Ok you cannot bring down the enemy air force in one turn but if you use in combination all of your assets (fighters+ 88s) in the end you can win the air war without great difficulties.
The 3rd scenario you are talking about is early Tobruk. Historically this campaign was a failure (Tobruk wasn't captured until 1942) and Tobruk was a fortress. So I agree with the scenario being difficult and Tobruk a heavily fortified point. The only strange thing is that the hex column adjacent to the western fortifications is impassable even though the hexes are clear (possible bug or scenario design error) so in reality attacking tobruk from the west is as you say it is. But you can attack the fortified position from the south (it is not impossible to take).
Generally I like the mod except some terrain issues (bocage in the desert!!! passable minefields or impassable clear hexes)
I didn't say they are "that bad", I just said it might not be for me.
I think it may just be hard to go back to the "old" way of doing things after enjoying the varied goals and stuff of the DLCs.
That said, each map ends with a fortrified city that is crammed into a corner of the map so you cannot circumvent it, stuffed with AA so you cannot bombard it and well protected by artillery - you need to run headlong into a wall until it breaks down. The scenarios give you enough prestige to do so, but it's still not exactly enlightened design work, imo.
The airforce issue is very real - even the german Bf109 don't stand a chance against the allied fighters, and let's not even talk about the crap the italians bring. Once, an extremely lucky roll allowed my '88 to shoot a bomber squadron out of the sky in one go (perfect 10 kill), but other than that, firing with the 88 and attacking with two Bf109's couldn't bring the enemy fighters down. The maps are too wide with too few and far between airfields, so you fighters cannot stay in air long enough, essentially after exchanging a round of combat, boths sides have to withdraw and the circle starts anew. However, just waiting it out always helps - the AI cannot cope with the large distances between airfields and of (I think) four allied fighters I encountered, I couldn't kill one - the other three just disappeared after running out of fuel...
Your comments on early Tobruk were spot on, though - it's very possible to penetrate the defenses from the south, that's true. There's still a lot of luck involved if you want to storm the city, but it's possible.
Then comes Malta. You start with a lot of landing crafts, but there's a SINGLE tile that allows you to actually land troops on it, and another a long way north of your second staging area. Am I expected to land units one-by-one for twenty turns now? To repeat myself, you gotta be kidding me...
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rezaf
I think it may just be hard to go back to the "old" way of doing things after enjoying the varied goals and stuff of the DLCs.
That said, each map ends with a fortrified city that is crammed into a corner of the map so you cannot circumvent it, stuffed with AA so you cannot bombard it and well protected by artillery - you need to run headlong into a wall until it breaks down. The scenarios give you enough prestige to do so, but it's still not exactly enlightened design work, imo.
The airforce issue is very real - even the german Bf109 don't stand a chance against the allied fighters, and let's not even talk about the crap the italians bring. Once, an extremely lucky roll allowed my '88 to shoot a bomber squadron out of the sky in one go (perfect 10 kill), but other than that, firing with the 88 and attacking with two Bf109's couldn't bring the enemy fighters down. The maps are too wide with too few and far between airfields, so you fighters cannot stay in air long enough, essentially after exchanging a round of combat, boths sides have to withdraw and the circle starts anew. However, just waiting it out always helps - the AI cannot cope with the large distances between airfields and of (I think) four allied fighters I encountered, I couldn't kill one - the other three just disappeared after running out of fuel...
Your comments on early Tobruk were spot on, though - it's very possible to penetrate the defenses from the south, that's true. There's still a lot of luck involved if you want to storm the city, but it's possible.
Then comes Malta. You start with a lot of landing crafts, but there's a SINGLE tile that allows you to actually land troops on it, and another a long way north of your second staging area. Am I expected to land units one-by-one for twenty turns now? To repeat myself, you gotta be kidding me...
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rezaf
Well, I have to say that, although I've only been playing it for a day or so, this mod is BRILLIANT! While Rezaf is correct in saying the objectives tend to be in a fairly narrow corridor near the sea, this is also true of the real North African campaign to a large extent. I have read several accounts of long convoys of single-lane traffic making their way along the coastal roads of Libya and Egypt, and the game recreates these 'choke points'. I've played through the first five scenarios of the grand campaign, and while they get progressively tougher, it is possible to score a victory, even if a marginal one. So far, though, I haven't scored a decisive victory, but that just makes me want to come back and try again. A great mod for an already superb game, and it's completely free! Thank you, DMP.
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DMPgebirgsjaeger
- Lance Corporal - SdKfz 222
- Posts: 21
- Joined: Sat Oct 29, 2011 7:14 am
- Location: Austria
- Contact:
Well - we used the original "Battle maps" for our mod. I think you can´t judge the whole project when you have played only three scenarios. These are the starters 
Tobruk - was a key city - the only deepwater port of the whole region. The Germans and Italians could not capture it for nearly two years. It was highly fortified. BUT: if you use the right tactics it is possible..... have you thought about using your "Technisches Bataillon"?
Tobruk - was a key city - the only deepwater port of the whole region. The Germans and Italians could not capture it for nearly two years. It was highly fortified. BUT: if you use the right tactics it is possible..... have you thought about using your "Technisches Bataillon"?
My experience with the air war is a bit different.Buying in the first 3 scenarios a total of 3 fighters and 2 88s I manage to gain air superiority in these scenarios. As for the refueling issue you mention, I haven't noticed it. The AI sends his aircraft for resupply except if you manage to take his airfields so his airplanes remain isolated in the front line and eventally fall (but I would like to play without FOW to test this better).The airforce issue is very real - even the german Bf109 don't stand a chance against the allied fighters, and let's not even talk about the crap the italians bring. Once, an extremely lucky roll allowed my '88 to shoot a bomber squadron out of the sky in one go (perfect 10 kill), but other than that, firing with the 88 and attacking with two Bf109's couldn't bring the enemy fighters down. The maps are too wide with too few and far between airfields, so you fighters cannot stay in air long enough, essentially after exchanging a round of combat, boths sides have to withdraw and the circle starts anew. However, just waiting it out always helps - the AI cannot cope with the large distances between airfields and of (I think) four allied fighters I encountered, I couldn't kill one - the other three just disappeared after running out of fuel...
Gebirgsjäger, I've since passed Tobruk - slb79 was right when he explained that it's very possible to penetrate the fortress if attacking from the south.
Malta, however, really does it. Is it really WAD that you have a grand total of ONE hex where you can land your troops? I found some more hexes half a dozen turns away, but more than half the turn limit of the scenario would fly by even landing your troops, let alone capturing objectives.
Also, it's going to require a HEFTY dose of luck to be able to immediately capture the airfield on the northernmost island - if you don't manage to do it quickly with the very first one or two units you landed, your precious aircraft are going to drop into the ocean.
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rezaf
Malta, however, really does it. Is it really WAD that you have a grand total of ONE hex where you can land your troops? I found some more hexes half a dozen turns away, but more than half the turn limit of the scenario would fly by even landing your troops, let alone capturing objectives.
Also, it's going to require a HEFTY dose of luck to be able to immediately capture the airfield on the northernmost island - if you don't manage to do it quickly with the very first one or two units you landed, your precious aircraft are going to drop into the ocean.
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rezaf
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DMPgebirgsjaeger
- Lance Corporal - SdKfz 222
- Posts: 21
- Joined: Sat Oct 29, 2011 7:14 am
- Location: Austria
- Contact:
Yep - because that´s the topography of Malta. AND: it is a "turning point" scenario. All this "fictinal scenarios are hard - very hard to master. Why do you think the Italians never launched an amphibian invasion? German losses to the highly trained air corps in Crete were staggering and the OKW never again employed parachutists on a large-scale airborne operation.rezaf wrote:Gebirgsjäger, I've since passed Tobruk - slb79 was right when he explained that it's very possible to penetrate the fortress if attacking from the south.
Malta, however, really does it. Is it really WAD that you have a grand total of ONE hex where you can land your troops? I found some more hexes half a dozen turns away, but more than half the turn limit of the scenario would fly by even landing your troops, let alone capturing objectives.
Also, it's going to require a HEFTY dose of luck to be able to immediately capture the airfield on the northernmost island - if you don't manage to do it quickly with the very first one or two units you landed, your precious aircraft are going to drop into the ocean.
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rezaf
Like I said Gebirgsjäger - maybe it's just not for me.
I LOVE the terrain and units, but these kind of design decisions are driving me nuts.
Why not, you know, start fleets reasonably close to where they can land instead of at an arbitary point close to the cost far, far away from a beach?
Why not give them a field airport on the edge of the map that will be useless for anything else other than keeping their planes from crashing before an actual airfield on Malta is captured?
It's a hypothetical scenario anyway, so - why not give a little bit of auxilary paratrooper support?
I apologize for all my ranting - it's just that - like I wrote - I'm very fond of the style, so it sucks a bit that I hate the scenarios. Ah well.
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rezaf
I LOVE the terrain and units, but these kind of design decisions are driving me nuts.
Why not, you know, start fleets reasonably close to where they can land instead of at an arbitary point close to the cost far, far away from a beach?
Why not give them a field airport on the edge of the map that will be useless for anything else other than keeping their planes from crashing before an actual airfield on Malta is captured?
It's a hypothetical scenario anyway, so - why not give a little bit of auxilary paratrooper support?
I apologize for all my ranting - it's just that - like I wrote - I'm very fond of the style, so it sucks a bit that I hate the scenarios. Ah well.
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rezaf
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DMPgebirgsjaeger
- Lance Corporal - SdKfz 222
- Posts: 21
- Joined: Sat Oct 29, 2011 7:14 am
- Location: Austria
- Contact:
As I said before Rezaf. No problem. I just tried to explain why we created the scenario this way. It has to be (in our opinion) very difficult - otherwhise it wouldn´t reflect the real situation.rezaf wrote:Like I said Gebirgsjäger - maybe it's just not for me.
I LOVE the terrain and units, but these kind of design decisions are driving me nuts.
Why not, you know, start fleets reasonably close to where they can land instead of at an arbitary point close to the cost far, far away from a beach?
Why not give them a field airport on the edge of the map that will be useless for anything else other than keeping their planes from crashing before an actual airfield on Malta is captured?
It's a hypothetical scenario anyway, so - why not give a little bit of auxilary paratrooper support?
I apologize for all my ranting - it's just that - like I wrote - I'm very fond of the style, so it sucks a bit that I hate the scenarios. Ah well.
_____
rezaf