A Canadian Cat

I don't think baneman knows enough yet for that.

No plans have been articulated for that feature. It is on my top three list so I hope one day. The announcment for CMFB said that there would be no additional game play features so not this time.

That would actually be a useful tool for designers.

Cool, I am impressed. That should settle it then. Mind you I think you should have used your time for something better, like staring at your navel You are something special!

Believe it or not I don't have a problem with people expressing their opinion on the matter. We have a market economy and people are free to choose to buy or not. So, don't buy the new game and if BFC have it wrong they will feel it and adjust. That is fine. It starts to be annoying when people make demands and act all offended when BFC don't bow to their impressive wisdom. Sorry if I don't let the whiners off easy. Well actually I'm not sorry

Nope

Absolutly spot on. Just because someone saw a flash does not mean they will instantly spot what caused the flash. And the further away it is the harder it will be to spot it even after you are looking in the right place. Not to mention not everyone will seen each flash especially when it is far a way. Those people who expext perfect sspotting from their perfect pixel troops (tm) are totally out to lunch and this is just another example in a long line of examples of unreasonable exptations.

LOL at leat this thread is somewhat humourus.

Sigh. They said up front there were not going to be any new features. Of course people are entitled to their opinion and each of our whacky opinions are just as valid. BFC have been clear how this is all going to work. It is all above board and we'll understood. Cintinuing to harp on about it has very little value. Are we going to have this same conversation when the next Eastern front game comes out? Never mind I know the answer.

Yep Perhaps things are a bit different out in left field.

Oh that's just brilliant to see. Welcome back @Michael Emrys. Someone had a pool going to guess if you would make it back before bulge was released. I thought it was a bit gouche (sp?). All the same I'm glad you made it first.

???? Yep I was responding to it. I read it again. I just think you are out in left field on this.

Right, to be fair @ChrisND stated up front that the title would be based on the v3 engine with no feature work to do except a small amount of setting specific work that they wanted to do. They have done that and added streams to boot. So, BFC will have over delivered again. Please note I understand that they did not deliver what *you* wanted but that does not change the fact that they have done more than they said they would. Sure just like the Eastern front holds little interest for me. Good thing BFC will satisfy everyone, just not all at the same time.

I posted some pictures and described the in game effects of streams the Bulge basics thread. Yes they are a welcome and important addition that work very well.

That's quite the conclusion you jumped to there. Considering how well units that don't shoot stay hidden and how much quicker units that are firing get spotted I am pretty sure muzzel flashes *are* taken into account.

Oh I don't know if things are that dire for baneman. I think he will do better than that.

The usual answer is when it is ready i know helful right. Once the per orders start you can make an educated guess.

That is a nice and thorough explanation. As you can see that is a resource intensive process in terms of grenades, ammo and men. If you have to do that for building after building it is going to take a while. That is why you often hear people suggest that your starting point should be to ask the question: do I really need to clear this building, or can I just bypass it?

Actually your impression is spot on. It is a game play compromise. The SOP was to move, halt, fire, get moving again repeat when the next round was ready. So, they never really fired in the move. Programing the AI to do that is lots of work so the compromise / fudge is to let the AI fire on the move but with an accuracy that is higher than it should be for a moving tank. That way they simulate stopping to fire without the extra work / complications. Mine too.

Oh to see that we are going to need your IP address user name and password

Careful you are starting to sound like @JasonC Ah there you go that's better

I do not have an example. My first try was terrible and since I didn't need it for my map I never fixed it. But don't worry they do link up fine. Perhaps another map author has an example they can share... LOL sometimes these maps will do that. Yes, with the way they are done there is great flexibility. You can make them straight and shallow or meandering and deep or any combination. It does take some work though to make sure you don't get a race track look with banked corners

Answers in the "Some Final Blitzkrieg basic details" thread: http://community.battlefront.com/topic/121406-some-final-blitzkrieg-basic-details/?do=findComment&comment=1643801

Given your question I asked Chris if I could post something about steams, he said go for it, so. The answer is that the streams themselves do not have terrain mesh sculpting capabilities so you have to do that yourself with elevations. Below are a few screen shots from my Lanzerath Village Map. @sburke already commented on putting various tiles under it to get the right effect. In these screen shots I have mud, dirt, rocky under the stream time and tall grass next to it. The elevation change is normal not ditch lock in most places. In the field the elevation difference is bigger between the stream and the field (because water tends to carve into soils) than in the forest area. Under the bridge I used some ditch lock around the bridge to get the look that humans had messed with the stream when they built the bridge. In answer to your second question, yes, the stream itself impedes motion and introduces a higher risk of bogging. I did a quick test with Sherman tanks, jeeps and soldiers. I placed stream tile on flat grass tiles (it looked boring) so that the underlying tiles would not be a factor. All units showed down to cross the stream and in one case a Sherman tank bogged for a while trying to cross it. On a real map the elevation change and any underlying tile choices would increase the obstacle but the stream itself *does* effect mobility. Now for some fun pictures (after the game is out I can show some "how Its made" pictures too and perhaps some of the other map makers can add their tips too because plenty of people have been experimenting with streams). A Stream passing through a field: A stream passing under a bridge: Here is the end of the stream in a small swamp in the middle of a forest:

Since the question came up in the AAR thread I am going to put together some answers but I was not happy with my first pics and real life means I have no more time today. Stand by for answers tomorrow.