benpark

Write your desired Mod Tag in a Notepad file: [germany] Open the Editor. In the first tab (Mission, IIRC), there is a button for Mod Tags. Click that, select your Mod Tag. Open game, they should now be active. You can add any Mod Tags you like to the Notepad file, just make sure each is on its own line. I keep an extra folder for the various Mod Tags, so I can grab them as needed.

Everything is as relative as it is in-game. I can still see them in all states.

Good production!

AI Orders are an entire thing unto itself. My advice for doing the AI Plans is to -Make them usable for all types (foot/wheel/track). This means that painting just buildings, or all impassable terrain won't be great for one type or another as that terrain can't be utilized. -Think like you are playing (though using the 2D map). Paint the AI plan areas only where units should be entering. Use walls and other cover. Study how multiple-action-spot units (squads) spread out over these action spots as you play. Use those patterns to you advantage, along with the Face ability. -I'll tend to paint larger AI Plan areas on the map for QBs, because they are variable. Anything can be in that slot. -Note that Face does not work in Setup. Only on the first order. So if you need an AT facing a direction, give it a face order after Setup. -Set AI artillery targets on areas that are sensible for the flow of battle, and match the QB type (assault, attack, etc). -For QBs, use "Area Fire" sparingly. With all of the variables in QBs, it can be messy in ways that can be controlled in scenarios. -"Withdraw" is very useful. Like Area Fire, the variable nature can be an issue- particularly without Triggers to aid in when to Withdraw. This order can be timed generally, however - and comes with the use of smoke assets for most nations (not the Soviets, unless LL). -Assault, Attack, and Probe types can share plans. I tweak them to better match the described type, and adjust artillery plans for more smoke on Assault, etc. More as I think of it....

I have a request in to join. Thought I was in, but I suppose not.

I've posted the list of Flavor Objects in the Mods part of the forum, so people can know what slots are being used-

Here's the list of the new Flavor Objects included in the module to keep your slots in order. Note- The "column" will reach the second story balcony, so you may use them as either a monument, alone- or as pillars for government buildings, etc. table — Bench6 rubble1 — Junk7 ibeam — Log3 corrugated — Manhole2 monument — Monument1 monument bismarck — Monument2 column — Monument3 kiosk — Monument4 kiosk 2 — Monument5 destroyed pole — Pole6 sbahn sign — Pole7 rubble2 — Rock7 rubble End Down — Rock8 rubble End Up — Rock9 Opel Kadet1 — Vehicle1 Opel Kadet2 — Vehicle2

Not those trucks. The issue is that one of the mods you have has used an "extra slot" in the Flavor Objects. FR now uses that slot for something else, because we added a lot of Flavor Objects and needed the slots! So, when you see that truck, it should be a hunk of rubble, or some other item that has given me claw-hands to place. But - not a truck. The best way to see if something is off in terms of things like this is to pull your mod folder, and reload it. If it still looks off, that's probably a bug- if it is OK, that mod needs renaming/renumbering.

Not that I know of. I just cooked these up since I was noticing the other ones a bit more than I liked. I I ever get some of this Time stuff, I can revisit this and punch out some more for other oft played games. There's definitely other things that could be done with it in terms of shape, size etc.

Yeah- looking for a good (bad) bridge save. I've set up a test map with a few different bridge crossings, but no luck on replicating - but in-game, when complex combinations of things are a specific matter that is best found in the wild.

They are calling that in themselves (!)- I don't have any extra set AI fire-plan, but if I recall they may have a spotter. Moving into town may alleviate that, depending on where the spotter gets placed by the multiple AI Plans. That's maybe due to the barns behind the houses - they have less windows. Not intended to frustrate, only to correctly depict the town as best able from the maps and research I have- many outbuildings. I mainly stay away from going into buildings in contested areas until I know what's in the row behind. I generally stack a team/squad behind the structures, using them defensively until I can get mass. The Face command at the building corner is good for using the corner peeking. Thanks for the feedback!

I can see I coded the entrance to be unable to use by vehicles on that, Geoff- that's a bug. If you have a save file, attach it and I can pass it along to the Wizard List. Thanks. It's great to see people playing it after all the time looking at it!

Tarjan. The German campaign will be on the tough side - it's 1945, after all - but hopefully it will enjoyable to fight through these actions. General advice- Don't spread your forces- there won't be enough for wide offensives, in the main. Choose your routes to focus your attacking power on discrete objectives, and use the small farms and villages as your defensive positions, where available. On the positive side (somewhat), you will be breaking out of the woods soon enough to the plains to the west of Budapest- tank country. I do have two alternate versions of the longer campaigns with extra time added ready to go - which is directed at people that prefer to play campaigns once, at a slower pace - I just need a place to upload 'em. It's 20+ minutes added to some, more to others, variable time added where appropriate (I always try to err on the side of more variety). The AI is designed with this adaptation largely in mind. These campaigns are made to be replayed, with as much variation in AI plans as possible. Also note that replays should not always yield the same results, AT guns may be in other positions, etc. The AI is the thing we want people fighting - not the time, in the main. Time is part of it, but only part. The AI will pull off some surprises on its own, now.

Soviet side:

This icon mod is a low visibility icon set for RT/FR for people that spend lots of time at ground-level, or near it and find the icons can sometimes be distracting from what's happening on-screen. Soviets are dark red, Germans grey with an option for grey-green. Opacity is something like 40% of original. I generally plan big orders at start, then mainly stay near the ground level. The icons were getting in the way. These are more low-key for the ground-level player. Harder to see, at times from higher heights but still there- that's a given. These are tailored to where I almost can't see them, but still can- almost out of the way, but still providing the needed information. Soviets are a bit tough to see in the red Setup zones, but are good once the game starts. Probably will work with stock RT, but I can't go backwards from FR now. I'm attempting to attach them here, until I can figure out where to upload stuff now (Mod site seems down)... benpark CMFR Lo-Viz Icons.zip

You need to go into the Unit part of the Editor, and change the unit "Appearance: to whatever you want to see. If it is the vehicles, that's probably a Mod Tag- you can clear that from the Editor as well. When you restart, the scenario should be without camo/whitewash.

I can't recall what confines were present for the October/January start date- TO&E, possibly, or the January date being the start of continued, sustained combat within the confines of Germany. In the meantime use [germany] as your Mod Tag. That should kick everything (buildings, etc) in when you load it, and keep the seasonal stuff.

It would be most helpful to have a save from that bridge issue, if you have it. I think you can attach it to a post. That's a pretty standard bridge setup with no past reported issues, so it would be helpful to have the specific behavior to pass along with the report.

I'll try to answer some of this- probably over multiple posts, as there's a lot going on- Yes- QB maps require just about everything. They can be the most time-consuming to do, but they also deliver massive re-playabilty (with a few extra bits of work). It helps to think of these like doing scenarios- but with the knowledge that the game engine will assign whatever to that particular AI Group it sees fit to- unless the player selects- but the designer can't know that either- so the AI Plans need to accommodate all foot/wheel/tracked types. A note about AI Groups- The game engine does seem (through lots of testing) to assign the AI Groups on a higher-HQ basis, so if you were to select units by Battalion, they would show up as their own AI Group. That can help control the randomness, but that means the player is selecting the forces. -Start with a map that is suitable for what the QB is- meeting engagements have different needs than an assault map, for instance. Give each side a Setup Zone (required). Any AI Plan painted for Setup must be in the Setup Zone, or they won't do anything (I have ideas around this, and hope it can be changed so that the AI can be setup outside it, but my idea list is another deal altogether). I tend to think anything larger than 1440 should get transport of some kind, but you can't enforce that on a player- bear that in mind with giant maps and infantry-only situations. That precludes too much "Dash" or "Quick" during the QB. -Decide where the Objectives are. Paint those in the Editor. They should cover an area that makes sense as an objective, in my book- not a massive square on the map that doesn't seem like a rational Objective. I name them (as others do) with a name, and then I add the Objective point number. Easier to decide things on-map that way. Note on QB Objectives- they only use the Occupy Objective- this means no Touch, etc. Objectives- and no Triggers. The AI does use Area fire and Withdraw, as they are not Objective-based. AI groups can coordinate through Triggers that are based upon other AI Groups- this can be used with some discretion. Again- the game engine is choosing the forces, so you don't want a Platoon of AFVs waiting on an AT Battalion to move out. I'll add the rest of my basic check-list when I get time. I also have Photoshop tool that I use to keep track of all of the AI positions at once (P.A.I.N.- I can't remember what it stood for when I made it- but you get the point). Once I figure out where the best spot for a few things is for downloads, I'll get that up(and other things in various states).

No second crossing due to another collapsed span, but debris from things like partially-sunken barges around the Custom Yards that could have been exploited (with effort) by small groups of men. Here is a notion of this on the map below, at the left- the probe that strikes across the river. Adding the possibility of an arrow on a map keeps the Germans from the surety that the Soviets won't try something that they had capabilities of doing, which seems accurate to the mindset of defending this terrain. Any scenario has to do some degree of compression- there would be far too many men packed into this small area to have a working battle. It's also a day's fighting in an hour plus. This addition is compressing some of these potential (less useful) crossing areas being exploited, as well. The AI may or may not use it- but it doesn't need it.

I think that may be tied to the "snow paths"- it will work in winter for the time being. Logged as a bug.

Absolutely.

I'd wager that most of those older mods will indeed work, but will need to be renamed to the FR file names. This generally happens with things like the new winter panzer crew uniforms in FR - something that wasn't there needs to be made, which might impact something else.

I do see other videos going up, and the game is released- I put a flare up for Elvis, just to be sure- but it seems fine to put it back up. I need to see what happens after I had to go, besides.