Weather options

[david12345]

Mr. Cater, would it be possible to add an option to have historical weather? How about both sides having the same weather for each turn?

My last game, my Japanese lost the war because of a giant battle. For 4 (I kid you not) straight turns, the allies had clear and the Japanese had rain. It was enough to completely destroy the Japanese navy and change the course of the war. Eeven my opponent agrees that it finished the game for the Japanese. Ok, probably I should have ran, but I had level 5 air and 5 carriers present, and I knew if I could just get my shots in...

I have seen many instances less dramatic than this (in russia for example) where one player clearly got the better of weather for an extended period of time and it ruined the game.

thanx for any consideration

p.s. historical research would also be cool! Example here, I have a current game where my Russians have level 0 antitank in 1944 despite 3 chits in there since late 41.

[Gronq]

Personally I don't mind the weather, apart from the clearly defined weather zones which I think could do with more 'fuzzy' boundaries. It's all part of the randomness of war. If the game is made too predictable we might as well play chess.

[jon_j_rambo]

Weather is the best defense.

[Jollyguy]

I would be against this change. Knowing that one area is prone to poor, unpredictable weather needs to be taken into account by the combatants. Such are the fortunes of war. The Russians didn't complain about the weather in late 1941, and Eisenhower took a chance with a go for D-Day even though it was raining sheets outside at the time, and an opening in December weather at the Battle of the Bulge released Allied air and helped turn the tide. Sometimes you get the bear, and sometimes the bear gets you.

Bob

[Hubert Cater]

One problem, and this came up when we discussed this a bit in Beta a while back is that combat is not guaranteed to have consistent weather on the same turn in all cases.

For example:

Axis Turn 1

Allied Turn 1

Axis Turn 2

Allied Turn 2

Axis Turn 3

Allied Turn 3

Axis Turn 4

Allied Turn 4

Let's say the Allies launch D-Day on their 'Turn 2' in ideal weather conditions, the Axis follow up turn which is 'Turn 3' could be rain and you are likely to still feel cheated by the weather differences.

Granted it may smooth out the weather a bit as the Allied Turn 3 will also be in the rain but as situations as described above are still going to occur I unfortunately don't see an easy way around it.

[david12345]

thanx for your response. Agreed Mr. Cater, that there is still some possibilities for randomness, but it won't be as bad. This system worked great for all the old Avalon Hill games that I played as a kid many years ago.

@ Jollyguy: this would be an option that you could freely turn off, so it should not interfere with your games.

[jon_j_rambo]

@David, which Avalon Hill games did u play? Played tons of Squad Leader. Also played Victory Game's U.S. Civil War.

[Baron]

I loved VG Civil War - I always wanted to see a computer version (that worked). I'm still hoping that someone will do a CW version of SC.

[Sharkman]

I guess this has nothing to do with weather options, but I too played board games in the 70's before I joined the military. From Avalon Hill: Advanced Third Reich, The Guns of August, and Flat Top, From SPI I think it was called ETO (European Theater of Operations), and from Victory Games my absolute favorite was Hells Highway, an odd hobby for a teenager, and I'm starting to feel like a teenager again thanks to Global Conflict and The Great War.

[david12345]

@David, which Avalon Hill games did u play? Played tons of Squad Leader. Also played Victory Game's U.S. Civil War.

A ton of them!!!

Russian Campaign still my favorite game of all time, still looking for a computer game that is that good. Third Reich, Panzer Leader, Midway, Luftwaffe, Victory in the Pacific, War at Sea, etc. There were many gems there that sadly never made it to the PC.

Played a little squad leader, but prefer strategic games.

[jon_j_rambo]

I never liked 3rd Reich, don't understand why people liked it. One turn would take 30 minutes for someone to properly play. At a young age, didn't interest me. Although I did play a few games.

Panzer Leader was okay.

Squad Leader was King, loved it. Yeah, the dice rolls were critical, especially at the beginning of a scenario, but so it is.

Victory Games U.S. Civil War is an absolute classic, played 100+ games of it.

[Baron]

Guns of August was a classic and I played War and Peace - a lot. I loved Russian Campaign but I actually preferred Russian Front that AH released later. It had step losses and the counters were inverted so the other side never really knew what was in a hex before attacking.

I loved the strategic level games and the operational level games. On the tactical level I like PL and PB. Squad Leader was huge but I never really got into it. I didn't like how crowed the board became with counters ( Guns of Augusts biggest fault also ).

[Sharkman]

I really loved Guns of August, the frustrating western front, throwing everything but the kitchen sink into a huge offensive and getting 1 or 2 useless hexes, only later to give them up to shorten the front. I thought that was a great simulation of WW1, I've been playing SC WW1 hoping for some of that old Guns of August feeling.

[lettowvorbeck]

Baron,

Isn't it amazing that no one has ever made a Napoleonic Wars game like War and Peace for the computer. Simple yet endlessly fun. A straight port would have been awesome. I probably played that board game more than any other.

Guns of August was a classic and I played War and Peace - a lot. I loved Russian Campaign but I actually preferred Russian Front that AH released later. It had step losses and the counters were inverted so the other side never really knew what was in a hex before attacking.

I loved the strategic level games and the operational level games. On the tactical level I like PL and PB. Squad Leader was huge but I never really got into it. I didn't like how crowed the board became with counters ( Guns of Augusts biggest fault also ).

[jon_j_rambo]

CEAW made a Napolean game.