Free France Campaign

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bru888
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by bru888 »

Free France 1940-1945 v0.76 has been uploaded. It includes the new Black Forest scenario. One final campaign message, a quote from Charles de Gaulle, has also been added.

Free France 1940-1945 (24 scenarios)

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A wistful scenario-ending victory message:

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Here is the added campaign victory message:

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Black Forest is the 24th and final scenario of this campaign. Free France 1940-1945 is not yet complete, however. ColonelY has kindly offered to play the entire campaign through once more in order to offer last-minute suggestions and to devise a methodology of adjusting the human player's resource points which tend to accumulate to excessive amounts. Each scenario is adequately set for resource income if played independently, but if played sequentially in a campaign, the RPs do pile up. We will be working on this and should be able to wind things up soon.
- Bru
bru888
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by bru888 »

Colonel, I have begun reading your latest comments on resource points, and I have a request:

Simply compile a list of resource point subtractions to make for each Allied faction to make at the start of each scenario, beginning with 02Gabon.

Your suggestions are a bit convoluted, and I don't have the desire at this point to make many complicated adjustments. Just a simple list of scenario-start reductions to keep the amounts of resource points reasonable without overthinking and overdesigning the problem, please.

Or, I can go with "RPs = -1000" at the start of each scenario for every Allied faction which would work. I am not sure that I share your desire to reward good performance in each scenario in this faction. This campaign, as we know, is unlike others in several ways; merely having a linked set of individual scenarios that together tell the story of Free France has always been what I have in mind.
- Bru
bru888
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by bru888 »

bru888 wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 1:17 pm Simply compile a list of resource point subtractions to make for each Allied faction to make at the start of each scenario, beginning with 02Gabon.
The way to do this, incidentally and as I envisioned it, is to just play the campaign through as you would normally play and note the accumulation of resource points for Allied factions after each scenario. Then apply your judgment: How much of each of these amounts is superfluous, in your opinion? That would be the adjustment for the start of the next scenario. I would much rather do it this way than to be adjusting the number of turns and the resource income amounts in each scenario. This project needs to be finished soon.

Here is what I anticipate:
• A set of standalone scenarios that have no campaign variables (and have any reference to bonus XPs, etc., removed).
• A set of campaign scenarios that do have these references and contain scenario start adjustments for excessive RPs.

Other than these differences, the sets remain identical. For, it is my opinion that, played individually in standalone mode, the numbers of turns and resource income are appropriate. It is the carryover of RPs that is the problem. This is why I would like a simple table of RP adjustments for each scenario when played in campaign mode.
- Bru
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by bru888 »

Free France 1940-1945 v0.77 has been uploaded. It includes the following bug fixes in the The Capture of Kufra scenario.

Free France 1940-1945 (24 scenarios)

• Provided experience to Italian AA units in the fort.
• Corrected this error:

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As to your other points, Colonel, I could find no bugs in the triggers. For example, when you say the “Remove (our) bombers” set of triggers in “Allied Activations” isn’t working now… Because under each “Remove Unit”, you’ve no hex selected and no distance neither, scroll down the effects box and you will see that a specific unit type is listed instead.

Incidentally, I thought I was going to use version 0.77 to correct an oversight in Black Forest: no German resource income. Upon subsequent thought, however, I decided to leave it this way. This final scenario is supposed to be a blood bath / mop-up job in which the player needs to kill 150 units in 60 turns. I don't want the player to be frustrated, watching the AI repair 1-strength units. At this very late stage in the war, enemy supplies would be nil anyway.
- Bru
ColonelY
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

bru888 wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 1:26 pm
bru888 wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 1:17 pm Simply compile a list of resource point subtractions to make for each Allied faction to make at the start of each scenario, beginning with 02Gabon.
[...] This project needs to be finished soon. [...] I would like a simple table of RP adjustments for each scenario when played in campaign mode.
Well, okay. I took a bit too complete/complex approach :? (and I wanted to put in the details too :roll: ). So, I'll forget too about perhaps changing income or extra starting RPs for Allied factions!

:arrow: I will put a simple list of what should be deducted at the beginning of the scenarios, starting with the second one. No comments added. But it will take a little time anyway, given the number of scenarios. :wink: Now, if you really wish to finish this soon, the automatic "-1000" may be a possibility too...


Anyway, my next step will be to start testing the last scenario now. :D

A very appropriate quote from de Gaulle, by the way!
bru888
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by bru888 »

ColonelY wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 3:39 pm
bru888 wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 1:26 pm
bru888 wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 1:17 pm Simply compile a list of resource point subtractions to make for each Allied faction to make at the start of each scenario, beginning with 02Gabon.
[...] This project needs to be finished soon. [...] I would like a simple table of RP adjustments for each scenario when played in campaign mode.
Well, okay. I took a bit too complete/complex approach :? (and I wanted to put in the details too :roll: ). So, I'll forget too about perhaps changing income or extra starting RPs for Allied factions!

:arrow: I will put a simple list of what should be deducted at the beginning of the scenarios, starting with the second one. No comments added. But it will take a little time anyway, given the number of scenarios. :wink: Now, if you really wish to finish this soon, the automatic "-1000" may be a possibility too...


Anyway, my next step will be to start testing the last scenario now. :D

A very appropriate quote from de Gaulle, by the way!
Yes, sorry, I don't mean to rain on your parade but at this point, I don't have the stamina for making minute changes like bumping resource points up and down during the scenario and tinkering with the number of turns after we reached a point of comfort on that during your first couple of beta tests. See what you think; this is your opportunity to be in charge of RPs but the simple running balance adjustments as we begin each subsequent scenario are what we need now. Plus if you uncover any more bugs.

As to the quote from de Gaulle, it is inspiring, yes. There are times, though, when I would doubt its veracity. Especially in these past several years, when I have witnessed what has happened in my own country. My wife assures me that, in aggregate, it is true and that progress is not in a straight, upwardly sloped line. The societal improvement of our species is a very slow-moving phenomenon. Technological changes make it seem like the pace should be rapid, but it is not. Still, she says, it is happening.
- Bru
ColonelY
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

History tends to repeat itself, and often, it goes in waves... there are ups and downs. :? We can only hope that, on average, it progresses upwards... :) Hard to get the big picture. :wink:
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

bru888 wrote: Thu Aug 05, 2021 4:38 pm [...] As to the quote from de Gaulle, it is inspiring, yes. There are times, though, when I would doubt its veracity. Especially in these past several years, when I have witnessed what has happened in my own country. My wife assures me that, in aggregate, it is true and that progress is not in a straight, upwardly sloped line. The societal improvement of our species is a very slow-moving phenomenon. Technological changes make it seem like the pace should be rapid, but it is not. Still, she says, it is happening.
I do hope she's right. :D
Epperaliant
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by Epperaliant »

Hey I think I saw some hexes without units in it, fix that!!! :D
bru888
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by bru888 »

Epperaliant wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 12:31 pm Hey I think I saw some hexes without units in it, fix that!!! :D
Heh, I assume this is tongue-in-cheek. Look, let's have YOU come up with an exciting, climactic campaign-ending scenario that is based on a real-life mop-up job, two weeks before the end of the war! :x ( :wink: )
- Bru
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by Epperaliant »

bru888 wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 2:55 pm
Epperaliant wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 12:31 pm Hey I think I saw some hexes without units in it, fix that!!! :D
Heh, I assume this is tongue-in-cheek. Look, let's have YOU come up with an exciting, climactic campaign-ending scenario that is based on a real-life mop-up job, two weeks before the end of the war! :x ( :wink: )
Joking , of course :D
ColonelY
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

24BlackForest: 8)

Excellent! :D Not much to change here.

Major Victory during the 30th turn...


60 (turns) is too much, but it doesn't matter for the very last scenario... :wink:

It is perfectly feasible to seal the Swiss border in the allotted time... in fact, this is the most challenging part, in my opinion. :wink:
I mostly (maybe only) used the non-elite replenishment. With a few hundred RPs used from the (currently too large) available pool, the player can get by just fine.


Well, I expected to find the Lebel Group on the other side of the forest (east side), but that's fine as well like this.
No extra German infantry unit spawning inside the depths of this forest, but it may be better like this, as this wouldn't probably add much more anyway, so that's fine too.

:idea: Two very small suggestions:

1. If we can find a tiny bit of room in the end message that talks about his future, perhaps we could recall that Pétain was considered a hero of the Great War/World War I (that's a big part of why he wasn't executed like the others even though he was found guilty). :wink:

2. Offer the player a single captured German Panzer unit? :P (Perhaps deployed in the NE of our starting area, 1 hex South of our mobile AA unit?)

& Some very little details in the victory texts: "[...] fully up to expectations [...]" (MV only) & "[...] significant forces [...]" (both MV and mV).



:D And the words at the end, how beautiful! :D (Que c'est beau ! :wink: )

:arrow: Many thanks and warm congratulations, excellent work! :D
ColonelY
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

Perhaps still another idea:

:idea: Add some basic regular French infantry in the town "Breisach" (W) in garrison... the SS unit nearby being very likely to move there, this may be a nice little touch! :wink:
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

So, we're almost ready. :D

We'll just have to see by how many to reduce the RPs at the beginning, but these changes will be done quickly - what will take more time is to replay them all to make our list (which will also be the occasion to make a new check :wink: ).
bru888
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by bru888 »

Free France 1940-1945 v0.78 has been uploaded. It includes the following changes to the Black Forest scenario.

Free France 1940-1945 (24 scenarios)

• Reduced the total number of turns from 60 to 50.
• Corrected misspellings in the scenario outcome messages.
• Changed the SS Armoured Brigade's AI task from Seek & Destroy to Local Defense (radius 5 hexes). This will prevent units of this brigade, particularly the Königstiger, from crossing the Rhine to take Breisach or Erstein.
• Removed change income effects (Germany +1) whenever a new Luftwaffe plane spawns. As explained earlier, the Germans have no income in this final scenario.
• When the "Capture the Vichy government" objective is achieved, these are now the event messages (the recommended change is in the last one):

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- Bru
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by terminator »

bru888 wrote: Mon Aug 09, 2021 7:34 pm Free France 1940-1945 v0.78 has been uploaded. It includes the following changes to the Black Forest scenario.

Free France 1940-1945 (24 scenarios)

• Reduced the total number of turns from 60 to 50.
• Corrected misspellings in the scenario outcome messages.
• Changed the SS Armoured Brigade's AI task from Seek & Destroy to Local Defense (radius 5 hexes). This will prevent units of this brigade, particularly the Königstiger, from crossing the Rhine to take Breisach or Erstein.
• Removed change income effects (Germany +1) whenever a new Luftwaffe plane spawns. As explained earlier, the Germans have no income in this final scenario.
• When the "Capture the Vichy government" objective is achieved, these are now the event messages (the recommended change is in the last one):
The final version ?
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

Almost. :wink:
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by terminator »

I suppose that the final version should be version 1.00 ?
ColonelY
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by ColonelY »

Yes, this will most certainly be the case.

For the moment, it remains to stabilize a little the case of the RPs which accumulate too much (because of all these auxiliary units) and to make a "last" general control or playthrough. :wink:
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Re: Free France Campaign

Post by GabeKnight »

Nice. Looks good, guys! :) 8)
...was following this thread and am awaiting the final version...

I'm actually inclinded to update my mod for this... (and Erik's request)
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