Honch Fall Weiss for PDE

[dhucul]

Since my MOD is all about variability and the ability to do what-ifs, I was thinking of changing the starting date to immediately prior Czech annexation by Germany. The starting OOBs, research levels and activation levels would all be similar to "Storm of Steel" except that the German player would have the following choices in 1939:

1. Proceed with USSR pact and then proceed with the war against Poland and the West or maybe or;

2. Try to get Poland and Czechoslovakia to join in an anti-Communist crusade along with Spain, Finland, Italy and Romania as Hitler initially hoped in 1938, or;

3. Sign a more extensive treaty with the USSR and start an anti-Western crusade to break up the British and French Empires between themselves. There is no doubt that Stalin would have initially agreed to this in 1939. In this case I would forsee a US entry much earlier.

Thoughts?

PS: The AI scripting is almost done! I have also added in alot of the 1940 and 1941 Sealion events to the MOD.

[Cantona66]

Hello, it sound interesting, so there would be a couple of decision scripts?

Then maybe Albania should be a separate country also(before Italy invaded in april 1939).

Another idea could be to use some of the Third reichs VARIANT scripts, check them out.

[Blashy]

I look forward to giving this a shot.

FYI, the best settings for what I consider realistic diplomacy for FWeiss scenarios was this one: (From my WaW mod)

All activation #1 script that affect one minor's join % because another minor was DoW by a Major have been doubled in the possibility of getting a hit and their movement %.

Ex: If Sweden is attacked by Axis in the standard scenario there is a 75% chance that Sweden will move towards Allies by 25-35%.

In my mod the chance of this occurring is 90% and the movement is 50-70%.

You will notice that doubling 75% would be 150%. I put a cap of 90% for possible trigger and 80-90% for possible movement.

Portugal going Allies after Spain is attacked: Default scenario: 100% trigger and 55-65%.

My mod 100% @ 80-90% movement

[dhucul]

While I am still slowly banging away at the AI and mulling over changing the MOD to a Storm of Steel variant, I have made some changes and will upload a new version of the PvP tonight:

1. Added more towns and villages to East Africa including Galabat, Kassala, Kismayu etc.

2. Changed Egypt and the UK territories in East Africa to Anglo Egypt-Sudan and put a secondary capital as Khartoum if Cairo falls. Kenya, Aden and British Arabia remain UK territories. Added a Sudanese militia unit to Sudan.

3. Added a decision script for the Axis player to assist Iraq when they have their coup. If yes, then an Italian air unit will land at Mosul. If no, Iraqi entry to Axis will fall by 25%.

4. Made Kuwait a UK territory instead of Iraqi, added the port of Basra and changed the convoy route to come from the port of Basra. Upon Iraqi coup, a decision script will still ask the UK player if they want to land an Indian brigade in Basra. This will trigger war with Iraq.

5. Changed the "Persian and Iraqi early surrender scripts" to trigger only if there are no German or Italian units within range of their capitals when the British and/or USSR invade.

6. Added the UK airbase of Al Habbaniya outside of Bagdhad with a single UK Brigade there.

7. If Iraq goes Axis then the UK Hab Force will appear in Jordan.

8. Changed the "UK to Assist Greece" scripts so that a yes will land Wilson HQ, a division and an air squadron in Athens but reduces supply in Alexandria and reduces UK unit Strengths in Egypt slightly to represent transfer of equipment.

9. Increased the number of UK Home Guard units.

10. Added a German AA unit to Hamburg on initial OOB.

11. Added a Free French unit to arrive in Egypt if Alexandria is threatened.

12. Added Equatorial Africa to Libya loops for the UK and France so that Allies have an option of dispatching Free French troops through Africa to Libya as occurred in the war.

[Cantona66]

Hello Honch, if you go for the storm of steel variant, here is a link that could be useful.

http://althistory.wikia.com/wiki/Image:Military_Strength_1938.PNG

[Cantona66]

Honch, i am waiting anxiously for the next update (with AI), will it come soon?

[dhucul]

I haven't had alot of time to continue with the AI yet and its ALOT more work than originally thought. For that reason I have stopped work on the Axis AI and will endeavour to get the Allied AI done first. Soon.

Anyway, tonight I am uploading the latest PvP version including a new decision script for the UK to mine Norwegian waters if they choose. The consequence of a YES is that Norway will move significantly to the Axis but the Narvik to Germany convoy will be crippled.

Also, I have added off map convoy tiles to better simulate the US to USSR via Persia and Rumania to Germany convoys.

Lastly, Germany now has a decision script to use poison gas or not if the Allies use the atomic bomb. If they do the Allies will take damage to their cities, ports and units but some of the other Axis nations that may still be at war, notably Italy and Rumania may surrender to get out of the war.

[Hubert Cater]

Good to hear David and as I just posted in the other thread don't hesitate to use the new Battlefront Repository for these files as well.

Here is the link:

http://www.battlefront.com/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=314

[dhucul]

Unfortunately, I have had NO time to continue work on the AI. Between my full time job as a financial planner dealing with the economic problems out there for my clients and beta testing PTO I really jumped ahead of myself in expecting a quick conversion of the AI from my previous MOD. Not to mention 2 little girls in karate, girl guides and dancing. I hope to make time soon and promise that I will keep plugging at it. My hat definately comes off to Hubert and Bill for being able to sit and hammer out these scripts without going crazy. The garrison scripts are done but I thought I was going to give up after several hours.

I am very pleased with the PvP version though and have added some more tweaks. The bottom edge of the map is now similar to an old SPI board game. It includes off map sections for South Africa, Madagascar, Tanganyika, Australia, New Zealand and India as well as some other items to put as much historical realism into the game as possible.

Unfortunately again there is no option to convert the MOD to PTO as I would have liked to take advantage of the new carrier model, air operation restrictions, supply versus industrial centres etc. It will have to wait for a new game engine. Stay tuned though!

The new version will be on cmmods and the Battlefront site by Friday.

Thanks for being patient.

[Cantona66]

Hello, i can not find any updated version on CMMODS yet, i guess it´s not there right?

[dhucul]

Making some last minute adjustments this week. Keep checking.

[Retributar]

Sometime's we don't say much!,...but we watch never-the-less!. Keep it coming!.

[dhucul]

Still working on it.

[dhucul]

Unfortunatley I have had to make a decision to postpone any more work on the AI for my MOD. Two reasons:

1. It is way more time consuming that I intially planned. I have all of the event script embedded AI scripts completed and do have a couple of the AI scripts files doen for the Axis but I am too busy to give any more time to this.

2. The AI takes up to 15 minutes to complete its turn with the rudimentary AI scripts that I have included. I beleive that this is due to the fact that my map is so large and there are so many more resources and units.

I have made some good progress on making the PvP MOD even more balanced and detailed.

I have done the following:

1. Changed anti-tank units to "garrison". These are infantry units very limited in attack and movement. They can be upgraded with motorization and anti-tank weapons but are only useful for protecting resources from partisans etc.

2. I have removed anti-air as a separate unit. Even at my corps level scale they are not realistic.

3. I have radically changed the French Surrender scripts. If Germany says yes to Vichy then Syria, West and North Africa go neutral and Free France is born in Libreville. If they say no, then North Africa goes allied under Admiral Darlan. The French fleet goes to the UK. Free France under De Gaulle is born in Libreville but also includes Syria and West Africa. If the Axis conquer North Africa, Franco will come to the Axis asking for Morocco and Oran. If Germany says yes, these territories go to Spain and Spain joins the Axis. If they say no then North Afirca simply surrenders to the Axis.

4. The UK colonies of Australia/New Zealand, India and British Africa are fully respresented by off map tiles at the bottom of the map.

5. Italian East Africa is a separate nation under Italy that activates upon war with the allies.

6. I have added the Arab Nationalist army to appear in Palestine if the Axis liberate it from the UK.

I should have it on cmmods soon.

[Cantona66]

Honch, i´m sorry to near that - i have really been looking forward to your mod since your earlier work has given me lots of pleasure playing them but i understand why you stop. One way to get down the number of resources could be to change all small towns to one graphic that really is a forest or whatever that has been changed to look like a town but not give any MPPs or counts as resource. Will you uploaded mod include the AI/event scripts that you have made?

I have actually on my own been trying to expand your map on your first PDE Honch MOD (with smaller map), i have added more of USSR and Afghanistan, India and Nepal, is it ok for you if a post it at CMMODS when i´m done?

[dhucul]

No problem at all.

[dhucul]

Newest version on cmmods now.

[dhucul]

A few more improvements:

1. Fixed the minor HQ flags.

2. Fixed the Cape Horn route so that ships can now go all of the way around. (They had been blocked by the South African port)

3. Adjusted garrison unit costs to 75 for every nation.

4. Adjusted the Gdynia and Hel Peninsula tile to include a fortification.

5. Added German Landwehr (garrison) units to the German-Belgian border.

6. Adjusted the entry values of Portugal and Turkey to 0% Neutral.

7. Added a partial strength Norwegian cruiser to Narvik.

8. Added Narvik to the list of Norwegian capitals.

9. Added a few US National Guard units to Boston, Miami and Philadelphia.

10. Removed MacArthur from the US production queue in 1946.

11. Added country, region and water area names to the map.

12. Added the German Hitler Youth, Reserve Army and Volkstrum (Home Guard) to activate upon certain conditions.

13. Adjusted downwards the convoy levels from British Africa, Australia and India to the UK.

14. Added a script to hit Finnish resources due to Allied blockades if they enter Leningrad or Murmansk.

15. Removed Italian HQ Prince Umberto from map and added him to activate as Viceroy of Ethiopia upon war.

16. Changed the UK Habbaniyah division to an entrenched air unit

17. Added script to activate UK Wellington bomber unit at Shaiba upon war with Iraq.

18. Reduced the strength of the Iraqi division in Baghdad.

19. Removed the Turkish armour unit from the map.

20. Added an Italian division to activate at Kismayu upon war.

[dhucul]

The final version of my PvP Honch Expanded Fall Weiss for PDE is in the Battlefront repository. It has alot of changes including map adjustements, new starting OOB adjustments and balance changes.

The next version will be released with the next SC2 project.

At that time I will also undertake to MOD the AI as well.

[Cantona66]

The next SC2 project, and WHEN DOES THAT COMES?

Sound very interesting!!!!

Can´t wait