Scenario Creation Advice

[Kuderian]

Hi comrades,

I am trying my hand at scenario creation. Two questions.

1. Can anyone suggest a good source of free maps with topography that would be a suitable scale for converting into CMx2 maps.

2. When I play the game on defense I keep a mobile reserve to attack the main enemy axis of advance, preferably on the flank, once it has been identified How does one program the defending AI to do the something similar?

Thanks

[LongLeftFlank]

Link to site containing 1947 aerial imagery

The French 1947 aerial views are not in Google Earth -- they're on a different site. But once you download the French photos and convert them to standard JPEGs, you can import them into Google Earth as an overlay. Then you can play with the transparency and scaling sliders to match the 1947 terrain exactly with today's Google Earth.

Here's the link for the French site:

http://loisirs.ign.fr/accueilPVA.do

And here's how to use it, step by step. It's a little complicated, but really not too difficult once you walk through it.

On the main page, in the "Commune recherchee" search field, just type in the city or town you want to look at (e.g, Saint-Lo, and be sure to include the hyphen).

You'll get a list of matches. Scroll to and double-click on the correct one one: Saint-Lo (Manche).

Now you'll be in a map view.

On the right-hand side of your screen you'll see a scale ("echelle") setting. Place it about halfway between "Dept." and "Ville."

On the left side, under "Catalogue," scroll down until you see the items starting with "1947." Place your cursor over any one of them, and you'll get a pop-up window that says which scale it is (1:10000 or 1:25000) and be sure to select one that says "Telechargement gratuite" -- these are the only ones that you can download for free.

Once you've selected your photo, put your cursor over the map window and "drag" the map around a bit by holding down your left mouse button. Look for some little bright green "crosshair" symbols on the map that look something like this: [+]

Each of those crosshairs is a link to a specific aerial photo. So find the crosshair that's closest to the area you want to examine, and double-click it. A box will pop up, asking if you want to order the download. Click "annuler" (cancel) for now. You'll see a green box on the map, outlining the area covered by that photo. Now if you like that area, go back and select the crosshair and download the photo.

Beware -- these are HUGE files and they are in a special format called JP2.

To view them or use them for most purposes, or to be able to place them in a Google Earth overlay, you will want to convert them into regular JPEG format. To do this, go to

http://www.avs4you.com/AVS-Image-Converter.aspxand download the free AVS image converter software. It's pretty easy to use.

Once you have a JPEG image, you can study the terrain in terrific detail.

Link to site containing French topographical maps and modern day imagery

Hi

Perhaps could help

a link to IGN site http://www.geoportail.fr/5069711/visu2D/afficher-en-2d.htm?cg=djoxLjEqYzptZXRyb3BvbGUqY3Y6MS4wKnZ2OjEuMSp4eTotMS41NjM4ODE0ODUwMzU5OTg3fDQ5LjI5NTYzNTEwMDM0MTQxKnM6OSpwdjoxLjAqcDpkZWNvdXZlcnRlKmw6UGhvdG98fHwsU2NhbnwxfHw%3D

you could print map and pics, usefull

[A Canadian Cat]

<snip>

2. When I play the game on defense I keep a mobile reserve to attack the main enemy axis of advance, preferably on the flank, once it has been identified How does one program the defending AI to do the something similar?

Thanks

My AI experience is quite limited, so I may be corrected. I think to do that properly you would need triggers of some kind so you can have the reserve react to what other AI groups made contact (to determine where the attack is coming). Therefore you cannot do that with the current AI - there are no triggers.

The best that you can do with this AI system is hold the reserve for at time and then pick the flank you will deploy them to. You can have several versions of the AI plan so which flank the reserve is deployed to is not predictable. But bottom line you have to guess where to send them.

[mjkerner]

My AI experience is quite limited, so I may be corrected. I think to do that properly you would need triggers of some kind so you can have the reserve react to what other AI groups made contact (to determine where the attack is coming). Therefore you cannot do that with the current AI - there are no triggers.

The best that you can do with this AI system is hold the reserve for at time and then pick the flank you will deploy them to. You can have several versions of the AI plan so which flank the reserve is deployed to is not predictable. But bottom line you have to guess where to send them.

...and when to send them as well. I hope triggers are eventually worked into this franchise.

[winkelried]

...and when to send them as well. I hope triggers are eventually worked into this franchise.

+1

This would indeed help to resolve some challenges in scenario development. We would need triggers for

• one side occupying some ground
  
• the strength of a force falling below a level
  
• ammo reaching a level
  

these conditions then could be used to trigger another plan (so we would need more plans too). the first two are already covered in the game as victory conditions.

[RockinHarry]

Another sort of "trigger" could also be to have any AI counterattack placed second in a campaign game creation. Dependent upon victory or loss level in first battle, it could "branch" to a particular AI counter attack style in second battle. If victory/Loss settings are set correctly (take a particular objective location in first battle, have touch objectives and the like...= triggers), it might work, with some more efforts and calculation of branching dependencies though. So instead of having a 2 hour battle, including attack + counter attack, make it 2 battles lasting 1 hour (or anything) in a branching campaign.

Edit: Since battle damage on a map does not carry over (on same original map, reused for battle #2), one could probably work around with lots of testing the initial battle and thus determine those map parts, that got blasted/damaged most. This damage then can be added/approximated on the original map, then saved with a new name and used for battle #2. Sounds like a whole lot of work overall.

So please BFC, add "triggers"!

[winkelried]

Another sort of "trigger" could also be to have any AI counterattack placed second in a campaign game creation. Dependent upon victory or loss level in first battle, it could "branch" to a particular AI counter attack style in second battle. If victory/Loss settings are set correctly (take a particular objective location in first battle, have touch objectives and the like...= triggers), it might work, with some more efforts and calculation of branching dependencies though. So instead of having a 2 hour battle, including attack + counter attack, make it 2 battles lasting 1 hour (or anything) in a branching campaign.

you would not need triggers for this. i currently work on a campaign where something like this could happen.

side A is threatening to cut side B off at a place X

side B launches a counter-attack at Y - if this attack succeeds A will have to break off the attack at X to protect Z against a breakthrough.

so B will be presented with the option to accept a loss at X, but to concentrate forces at Y to indirectly relieve X

too complicated to undestand?

[RockinHarry]

you would not need triggers for this. i currently work on a campaign where something like this could happen.

side A is threatening to cut side B off at a place X

side B launches a counter-attack at Y - if this attack succeeds A will have to break off the attack at X to protect Z against a breakthrough.

so B will be presented with the option to accept a loss at X, but to concentrate forces at Y to indirectly relieve X

too complicated to undestand?

Looks like what I had in mind, but already worked out! If maps are not too big (OOM...victim), let me know if you need a tester when ready!

[winkelried]

Looks like what I had in mind, but already worked out! If maps are not too big (OOM...victim), let me know if you need a tester when ready!

I tend to have huge maps :-) 3.4x2.8 km or 3.2x2km are the first ones i work on. but no bocage :-)

[RockinHarry]

I tend to have huge maps :-) 3.4x2.8 km or 3.2x2km are the first ones i work on. but no bocage :-)

I tend too...if it works in CMBN, which currently is a gamble. But it´s worth a try. Drop me a PM, when ready.

[Kuderian]

Thanks for advice guys.

+1 AI triggers!