David Aitken

I knew that was gonna happen. (double post) [This message has been edited by David Aitken (edited 11-02-2000).]

The simple answer is, CM currently regards buildings as a single unit. Either it's standing or it's not; either it's not on fire or it is. The backblast from your Panzerfaust started the fire. There is a compensating abstraction, in that your men can evacuate without taking casualties – just because the building looks like an inferno does not mean it is lethal, only uninhabitable. More info in the thread Panzerfaust BBQ. David [This message has been edited by David Aitken (edited 11-02-2000).]

wwb_99 wrote: > this was a suggestion for CM2+ not a patch. The editor in CM2 will doubtlessly be an improvement, although how big an improvement we have yet to see. It would be perfectly reasonable if they left it essentially as-is, modifying it only to allow for the new features of the game. Any work that goes into the editor will detract from work on the game, or add to the overall development time. BTS is not a big company with infinite resources, and I would rather have a good game with a workable editor soon, rather than a good game with a flashy editor later, or an unfinished game with a good editor. > And while they are improving the interface, how about expanding the options availiable? There are many more terrain types than Rural, Farmland, Villiage, and Town. How about a unlimited class for picking troops, where one is only limited by the total points spent not the ratios. Be careful to distinguish between the Quick Battle generator and the editor – you seem to be talking about both. I don't know what you expect from the QB generator, but how would you propose expanding on the four terrain options? The generator is extremely innovative and effective, but it's not as smart as a human designer. The constraints on troop selection are designed to make battles fair. If you want total freedom, go ahead and design your own scenario. This subject comes up a lot, and the response is that no, the QB generator cannot do everything. It does exactly what is says on the tin – it generates battles quickly. To make it any more complex would be to confuse it with the scenario editor. David

I think we should let the Mac/PC argument go, or we'll be here forever. Some people just use computers because they need to, whereas others want to and enjoy using their computer of choice, be it a Mac or a PC. Computers are bitches at the best of times, so if you're used to one platform, you tend to be scared of others, hence the animosity between devotees of different platforms. The real problems start when someone claims that a specific platform sucks, when this is invariably just their biased opinion. Macs are good at some things, and not so good at others. The same goes for PCs. The actual background to the competing OSes is a different matter altogether. While the Mac market is small, the majority of Mac users have positive feelings about their machines. The PC market is big, but PCs are used for all sorts of bog-standard operations, so that's nothing to shout about. Microsoft, from a business perspective, has done all the right things in its promotion of Windows. Apple has done a lot of stupid things. But if Microsoft had been as stupid as Apple, everyone would have dropped Windows like a hot brick. It says a lot for the Mac that its fans have kept it alive despite all Apple's messing around. David [This message has been edited by David Aitken (edited 11-01-2000).]

At the moment, being able to create and edit battles at all is more important than making it as slick as possible. Of course the editor could be greatly improved, but think of all the work involved, which would be much better spent on the actual game. Remember that's what BTS is selling – the editor is an extra, which they could have just left up to third parties to create. By the way, we have contextual menus on the Mac – one of the few things Apple have copied from Windows. There is not much else to steal, as Windows development is largely dependent on the Mac OS (how soon before we see translucent menus and PDF-based graphics on the PC?). David

Claus B wrote: > Huh? I am not shure who you are quoting here, but he better hit the books again.... The information comes from a certain Mr. Kelly who wishes to maintain a low profile. Those who know who I am talking about (have a look in the CM manual) will know why you'd really have to know your stuff to conduct an argument with him. David

Is it just me, or sexual references starting to proliferate around the board? I can almost go into any given thread, and just read the suggestive comments... umm, I mean, not that I'd be looking to or anything... Must be the time of year, now that it's got cold and dark and everyone's shut away indoors. And shut away they should be, if you ask me, which inevitably you don't. David (who hasn't yet worked out that sunset is supposed to be a cue for people to go to bed)

Close Combat! Why oh why can't Combat Mission be more like CC? Now there was a REAL wargame. None of your pansy armour penetration algorithms, I want indestructible buildings and guys that get squashed by tanks and flamethrowers that cataclysmically explode and blood and gore and...

This is the BBC, broadcasting from London. Before the news, first some personal messages. Madame Rousseau is under the misguided impression that the cows are looking unusually agitated. I repeat, Madame Rousseau is under the misguided impression that the cows are looking unusually agitated. Pierre has been extremely confused since he was knocked off his bicycle by a strong Easterly wind. I repeat, Pierre has been extremely confused since he was knocked off his bicycle by a strong Easterly wind. Monique will not resolve to walk more swiftly until the bishop has acquainted himself with the village. I repeat, Monique will not resolve to walk more swiftly until the bishop has acquainted himself with the village. Fabien is of the opinion that the invasion will take place tomorrow morning at 4AM and... whoops, I wasn't supposed to say that... will any Germans or Nazi collaborators listening please disregard the last message.

Hmm? What? Oh, we're talking about building destruction! And there I went to all the trouble of linking to a thread about picking wild mushrooms. Say, has anyone noticed that buildings in CM collapse all of a sudden? I think troops should be programmed to evacuate a building before it collapses, because sometimes a tank magically appears and demolishes buildings which I've crammed with a whole company of men, all within 60 seconds thus depriving me of an opportunity to save them. The game must be reprogrammed to prevent me taking casualties.

According to what I am told, KingMikeH is correct, but not in the specific circumstances found in Combat Mission. > ...there were two distinct types of schuerzen based on time period and geographical location. > The types of schuerzen in use in Northern Europe 1944 were far tougher than the extempore wire mesh types used to stop AT rifle rounds in early 1943. > As for schuerzen making HEAT rounds more effective.... That ONLY applies if you increase standoff range WHILST preventing bleed-off and especially off-axis bleed. That's why sandbags were not very much use against HEAT BUT is why schuerzen were very effective. a 15cm or 30cm air-filled gap could cause massive bleed-offs of HEAT jets such that their effectiveness was massively reduced.

Thanks again! Cripes, this thread is turning into a testimonial... =)

More info on CM's modelling: > Aye, it also causes APCBC round head deformation with a resultant 10% (roughly) decrease in penetration. > Short version: Buy the schuerzen. It won't always make a difference but your vehicles now have maybe 10% better chance of surviving a side hit and for only a 1% increase in cost that's nothing to sniff at. [This message has been edited by David Aitken (edited 10-31-2000).]

Apologies to BTS, I am informed that Schürzen are indeed realistically modelled. =) David [This message has been edited by David Aitken (edited 10-31-2000).]

Wow, more compliments! I appreciate it. Good to 'hear' you've benefited from downgrading SoundSprocket. =) David

I expect vehicles with skirts have a slightly higher armour rating for the appropriate area on their sides, although I doubt the actual effect of skirts is modelled in CM. Rather than just adding to a vehicle's armour, skirts are designed to detonate rocket projectiles before they hit the hull, so their benefits are very specific. I am not aware of the Allies having used skirts, although you find a miscellany of improvisations on the battlefield. I expect Allied tankers were less concerned about rockets than the fact that their tanks were no match for their enemy's (skirts are no protection against AP). David

Read this thread for more info: Building Destruction damage to units. David

On the PC, bitmaps are stored in the BMP directory. On the Mac, they can be found in various ResEdit files in the Data folder. It can be very useful to note that, despite the completely different way the images are stored, the numbers are the same on both platforms. So "1234.bmp" on the PC would be ResEdit image ID 1234 on the Mac. If you download PC BMPs, provided you have ResEdit you can just cut-and-paste them into the appropriate locations. ResEdit is free from Apple, by the way. David

Wild Bill Wilder wrote: > Very nice website, David!... Thanks! Chupacabra wrote: > Bear in mind that all this (soundcard, mixer, powered speakers) will set you back quite a ways unless you can get it used. But like I said, if you're absolutely insane... Now where did I put my credit card... ------------------ Somewhere between a joke and a conspiracy

Pfhwoarr, I need some intense AI-on-AI axxion!!

* means upwards of 50% damage ** means upwards of 75% damage This change was instituted in a patch, hence the lack of reference in the manual. It was required because people kept complaining about their soldiers being squashed by falling masonry – ie. when you see two asterisks, get your men out unless they are in no danger. David ------------------ Somewhere between a joke and a conspiracy

While we're on the subject, if anyone doesn't know yet, SoundSprocket 1.0 is better than 1.7.1 where Combat Mission is concerned – more info in my old post here. (The URL in the CM 1.05 ReadMe is outdated.) mensch wrote: > anyone notice the game sometimes slows down on the G4?? As always, the potential causes of such behaviour are myriad. Maybe there is a problem with G4s in general, or maybe it's just your machine. Best to go through the same old routines – allocate more RAM to CM (assuming you have RAM to spare); quit other running applications; switch off File Sharing; rebuild your Desktop File (hold down Command-Option when you're booting up, just before the Finder loads); defragment your hard disc using Micromat Techtool or Alsoft Diskwarrior or Norton Utilities; sacrifice a few chickens to the Gods of Technical Gadgetry; repeat ad lib. David

Kingfish makes a very good point. I will add that the soul of the kind of games you might compare CM with – Unreal, for example – is the graphics. The graphics are everything – the actual game is pretty basic. The graphics are the selling point, what attracts interest. The soul of CM is anything but the graphics – it is the underlying engine, all the painstaking thought and research and work that has gone into the simulation. The graphics are simple placeholders – change or simplify the graphics and the game is no less impressive. Take graphics away from Unreal and you have very little left. In my opinion, Combat Mission should tag along with graphical developments, but it should not try to compete with the latest and fanciest games. Graphics certainly have a role to play in the simulation, but they should follow, not lead – and they should never threaten to alienate any of the fan base, for both ethical and commercial reasons. David ------------------ Somewhere between a joke and a conspiracy

There is an easy solution to that – you drink the water, and the resulting ordinance is far more potent than simple H20. It should be noted that flamethrower teams should not attempt this technique.

Not sure about that... I'm okay with Nerf guns, though.