To Grid or not to grid

[malfuriouspete]

Haven't used a grid during gameplay, besides showing the elevations of terrain, is there anything else this is used for?

Personally when I play, I like to see most of the action going on and when plotting moves, usually tend to use the views associated with "3" or "4" on the keyboard

But I also feel that this is somewhat of cheating using the grid and I should probably get in close to plot moves for units...

anyone out there use the grid mod?

[Kineas]

for tanks the '1' camera view is simply indispensable. With grid mods you have a lot better 3d-vision/gauge of the terrain mesh.

Even with that sometimes I lose tanks when I'm absolutely sure they are hidden behind a ridge. It seems if even 1/2'' of the turret is visible, the engine grants a full spot and a full 'hull down' target to the enemy.

[narren2002]

i too have noticed this full hull down and only seeing the turret and hitting the main hull with the shot.. but as you can also see that when two tanks come in close contact with each other they merge so the size of the units in the game and what the game knows as to the size of the units (scale) is two different things, i had rounds of a panzer firing at my fire fly through the corner of the house witch should have taken the house out, but it went right through and KO my fire fly.. i could see this other tank (German tiger) in tree line from my T34-85 but my tank commander who was not battened could not see the enemy tank and the tiger KO my T34.. AARRGGGGG but thats the game.

[Paul AU]

Malfuriouspete

It’s mostly for showing elevations. And gauging short distances. Grid mods are very popular.

I thought everyone would want to use gridded terrain. I don’t think gridded terrain is ‘cheating’ in any sense, it just takes a lot of visual work out of something that would take a lot longer otherwise. It doesn’t give you any information that you theoretically don’t already have.

It’s just giving yourself a more efficient map.

The only counter-argument I can see is a purely aesthetic one – you might not want your game-map to look like a chessboard. And personally I balk at the ‘topographical’ grids (triangular-looking ones) for just that reason. Too many lines. Even though I agree they give “a better map”.

[GenSplatton]

Originally posted by malfuriouspete:

Haven't used a grid during gameplay, besides showing the elevations of terrain, is there anything else this is used for?

This is the sole reason I use it. I really don't understand why you would think it is any form of cheating. It is simply something that makes it easier to see rises and low spots in terrain. Something a commander in the field would certainly have.

[malfuriouspete]

Originally posted by GenSplatton:

</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by malfuriouspete:

Haven't used a grid during gameplay, besides showing the elevations of terrain, is there anything else this is used for?

This is the sole reason I use it. I really don't understand why you would think it is any form of cheating. It is simply something that makes it easier to see rises and low spots in terrain. Something a commander in the field would certainly have. </font>

[Tux]

I love gridded terrain. It detracts a little from the realism when I decide to watch the action from 'ground level' and at 1x magnification, etc., but if you're going to play a game that allows you to make a (theoretically) infinite number of orders within a single minute of battle then I think you should be ok using a gridded terrain map to facilitate your judgement of distances/ elevations, etc. For me, gridded terrain also compensates for the lack of a 'remain at least 26m apart', order which I would otherwise issue to my squads. In a game in which 26m is always far enough away to avoid the effects of fire at an adjacent unit I am willing to accept a similar level of 'facilitated approximation' to avoid those effects.

[DavidFields]

I don't use the grid mods, purely for aesthetic reasons. Certainly don't think it is unfair to use them--seeing the elevations/dips better (without so much eye strain) is certainly tempting.

Similarly, for immersive reasons, I try to keep the trees as dense as possible, without it becoming too annoying at finding units. And sizing the units as small as possible (but, nevertheless, keep the "bases" on--again, to minimize the effort of finding units.)

There are so many mods and possible customizations with this game, and the power of habits is so strong, that we would likely be "shocked" by the differences if we looked at someone else's monitor of the exact same map/file.

[GenSplatton]

Originally posted by Rankorian:

There are so many mods and possible customizations with this game, and the power of habits is so strong, that we would likely be "shocked" by the differences if we looked at someone else's monitor of the exact same map/file.

That would be a very interesting exercise. Produce a file with various units near trees, buildings, etc, and have folks download it and post a screenshot from their given versions of the game.