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Spherical global map - 8/2/2004 6:31:22 PM

Neilster

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I know I'll probably cop heaps of flak for this suggestion but I'm putting it out there in case others think it has some merit. I'd like MWiF to have a spherical global-map

. I'm not in favour of changing the game mechanics (unless it is vital or radically improves gameplay) but I think one of the real benefits of a computer implementation is this kind of "impossible to do on paper" stuff.

I also don't think it's terribly difficult to do compared to things like PBEM and an AI, that Matrix has already committed to, and it may have all sorts of subtle benefits. It appears they'll have plenty of time to work this idea out while they wrestle with the other stuff. I made a post along these lines ages ago but it seems to have disappeared into the ether during the hacking.

I'm thinking of a spinable (East-West and North-South) globe in a small window that works just like the standard global-map. Click somewhere on it and the main game-map centres on that point. Displaying a curved surface on a flat screen will mean the hexes will be distorted in some way but I think not radically. The global map is so big that any screen sized portion will be fairly flat. The same counters could be used.

1. A spherical globe would end the distortion of the map at higher/lower latitudes. When one considers the number of operations that occurred in the far North especially, (Winter War, Norway, Northern Russia, Arctic convoys, Aleutians, Iceland, Naval stuff in far North Atlantic etc) this has to help realism. One hex would mean one hex, just like in smaller scale games.

2. The little globe could be spun quicker or slower by some arrangement of arrow keys or grabbing it with the mouse and moving the mouse at various speeds. This should make it much quicker to leap around the globe, checking stuff and making plans.

3. It should require fewer hexes to model the Earth. A map that more accurately portrays the planet should also make global-scale stuff like convoys, naval operations and strategic movement more realistic.

4. I bet there are unforseen advantages to a model that better reflects the real world. Look at Object Oriented programming for example. It's seems more difficult at first but the more realistic model makes things much easier later on.

5. There may be more far-reaching implications. Suggestions whispered by only the bravest of souls. If one hex once again represents one hex worth of real-estate, Sea Areas could perhaps be done away with. This may help solve problems such as the interactions of Land Based Air with Sea Areas. With Sea Areas gone, LBA is either in range or it isn't. Having said that, I know there are some nice abstractions with Sea Areas and as I said, I think the game mechanics should be meddled with as little as possible.

I'm interested in everyone's feedback, especially from Robert or someone else from Matrix. If it makes the game better then it's not electrons wasted.

Cheers
Neilster.

< Message edited by Neilster -- 8/3/2004 2:32:30 AM >

Post #: 1

RE: Spherical global map - 8/3/2004 4:51:23 AM

Mziln

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A Spherical Globe

I'll Take the Flat Map

Click this Link to Old Screenshots of the Game Map

In the upper right hand corner is the Global Map with positioning sidebars (I mention this just so everyone starts on the same page in this debate).

1.
(A) Naval movement and combat (including Naval Air) take place in Sea Zones (So hex scale dosn't realy apply that much).

(B) The Aleutian's: Attu and Kiska islands wouldn't show up on the map if we are talking scale. Dutch Harbor is on a large Island which is represented.

(C) Iceland: With the exception of the port of Reykjavic is useless in a strategic sense.

(D) This leaves Winter War, Norway, and Northern Russia. Which IMO the game handles just fine.

2. This is already done with the current Global Map.

3.
(A) It would require fewer hexes but would require more complex programing. Or do jou invision a in game Global Map to Flat map conversion?

(B) Naval Operations are handled in Zones so realistic space is unnecessary.

4. Is your opinion. I am taking the other view so I have to disagree.

5. Considering the actual time scale involved in one turn, weather conditions, and units involved. Doing away with Sea Zones would impact the game in a major way. You could make it work but there would have to be an "Opertunity Fire" phase for aircraft or the aircraft would be way too static to be as effective as they were.

When creating a strategic simulation exact scale is not as important as it is in a tactical simulation.

< Message edited by Mziln -- 8/3/2004 2:58:53 AM >

(in reply to Neilster)

Post #: 2

RE: Spherical global map - 8/3/2004 5:18:35 AM

Titi

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A Spherical Globe?

I'll also Take the Flat Map for the following reason :

You can't keep the hexes lines on a spherical globe because when you are going near the north or south pole, the hexs will turn in some sort of squares or triangles lines.
So on a spherical map, there would be no more hexes.
And without hexes, that's no more something looking like WIF.

(in reply to Mziln)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/3/2004 7:47:50 AM

Neilster

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I forgot to write that with a spherical global map it might be possible to only have 2 rather than 3 maps. I used to hide the intermediate (operational level) map anyway.

I possibly didn't make myself clear. The main playing screen would still be a flat map. The shape of the hexes would have to be distorted a little to map a slightly curved surface onto a flat screen. The maths isn't that hard.

It seems logical that a more realistic map would have unforseen advantages. Also, the superiority of Object Oriented Modelling is hardly just my opinion. It's a paradigm in computer science.

I stressed that the game mechanics could all stay the same. Just imagine that global map wrapped around a little sphere.

To answer Titi, the hexes don't have to change shape toward the poles. You just tile a sphere with the same shaped hexes, just like one could cover an orange by pushing in thumb-tacks.

I appreciate the feedback.

Cheers
Neilster

(in reply to Mziln)

Post #: 4

RE: Spherical global map - 8/3/2004 5:58:56 PM

Mziln

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

(1) I forgot to write that with a spherical global map it might be possible to only have 2 rather than 3 maps. I used to hide the intermediate (operational level) map anyway.

(2) I possibly didn't make myself clear. The main playing screen would still be a flat map. The shape of the hexes would have to be distorted a little to map a slightly curved surface onto a flat screen. The maths isn't that hard.

(3) It seems logical that a more realistic map would have unforseen advantages. Also, the superiority of Object Oriented Modelling is hardly just my opinion. It's a paradigm in computer science.

(4) I stressed that the game mechanics could all stay the same. Just imagine that global map wrapped around a little sphere.

(5) To answer Titi, the hexes don't have to change shape toward the poles. You just tile a sphere with the same shaped hexes, just like one could cover an orange by pushing in thumb-tacks.

I appreciate the feedback.

Cheers
Neilster

(1) I seldom use map #2. But it is nice, at times, to see the broader picture. Remember I posted asking for a Zoom feature to reduce the number of maps (but not at the expense of delaying the game).

(2) I see no problem with a graphic representation of the Global Map as being spherical. If we are just talking about a bitmap representation. It would be diferent (

being diferent isn't always a bad thing

).
But if we are converting to a Flat Map. I dont see the need to distort the hexes on the Flat Map.
(3) As you stated it's your opinion.
(4) No problem, no need to change the Flat Map.
(5) If the Hexes have to be distorted (as you've said) they would have to change.

(in reply to Neilster)

Post #: 5

RE: Spherical global map - 8/4/2004 2:49:32 AM

Neilster

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We need a cartographer

I think a little distortion is necessary, probably toward the edges of the screen. As the map scrolls, some of the distorted hexes will move toward the centre of the screen and look normal again. The normal counters can still be placed on the edge hexes because they would only be a slightly different shape and a little bigger. Also, because the map is so big and the part of it we are displaying relatively small, the distortion required wouldn't be significant.

The reason I think it's necessary is the same reason that the current global map (basically a Mercantor projection) has enormous polar areas compared to their actual size. One can't map a sphere to a flat page/screen without stretching or cutting it in some way. Since cutting it would look pretty crap, I think distortion would be better.

To quote the US geological survey,
"A map projection is used to portray all or part of the round Earth on a flat surface. This cannot be done without some distortion."

Their website has lots of cool stuff on map projections.

http://mac.usgs.gov/mac/isb/pubs/MapProjections/projections.html

Cheers
Neilster

(in reply to Mziln)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/4/2004 3:02:28 AM

rtamesis

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I think a polar projection showing the northern and the southern hemispheres will be more accurate for the European theatre and for the South Pacific. There will be some distortion as you approach the equator, though, but since most of the action in the equator takes place at sea in the Pacific, naval movement and combat could be abstracted to deal with that.

(in reply to Neilster)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/4/2004 4:52:35 PM

Mziln

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

http://mac.usgs.gov/mac/isb/pubs/MapProjections/projections.html

Meridians are equally spaced on the parallels, but their distances apart decreases from the Equator to the poles. At the Equator, meridians are spaced the same as parllels. Meridians at 60� are half as far apart as parallels. Parallels and meridians cross at right angles. The area of the surface bounded by any two parallels and any two meridians (a given distance apart) is the same anywhere between the same two parallels.

This is significant due to the location of 60� on the globe. It covers the area of Norway, Sweeden, Finland, and the Northern U.S.S.R.

WORLDATLAS.COM - LATITUDE & LONGITUDE

If distortion is at a constant rate, and I'm pretty sure it is. By the time your map reached North Africa your hex distortion would be a quarter as much as the ones at the equator (Singapore, Dutch East Indies, and New Guinea).

As things stand we receive more information from the Flat Global Map. You would have to enlarge the display to actualy show a Sphere instead of the Flat Map and get the same information. I.e. Hexes in North Africa would be 1.25 tiimes the width as ones in Norway.

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/4/2004 11:48:23 PM

YohanTM2

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In another post Rob states that he will not be starting over and Matrix will not let him. While he is adding new art I think this will preclude any major changes.

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/5/2004 6:39:28 AM

Mziln

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3 reasons to keep this thread going

quote:

ORIGINAL: RobertCrandall - It's a disgrace -6/22/2004 8:46:49 PM

(1) First let me say that we really appreciate the extensive feedback that has been posted here and I have been saving large swathes of it into my design notebook. Serious posts are taken seriously here! Keep it coming.

Cheers all, Rob.

quote:

ORIGINAL: RobertCrandall - If I was the AI... - 7/31/2004 2:31:51 PM

(2) Beta testers will be selected from this forum (amongst other places) but that is not my particular job. Bart was working on this a while ago but before we can really consider this we have a whole lot of figuring out and documenting to do ourselves. Everyone who looked at CWIF had ideas for things they would like to see changed or added to it - not least myself. We are at the stage of looking at all possibilities and trying to sort out priorities. Then we have a lot of writing and preparation to do, and then we need to start making the changes. When that process is a few months in, then we will be getting serious about beta testers. We will want to beta from an very early stage with this one but it is premature still. You will see a call for beta testers posted here when the time comes. To improve your chances just keep making thoughtful, useful posts here. I read everything and frequently cut and paste ideas directly into my MWIF notes.

Ta, Rob.

(3) I like debates

(in reply to YohanTM2)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/5/2004 9:42:16 AM

Neilster

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Mziln

As things stand we receive more information from the Flat Global Map. You would have to enlarge the display to actualy show a Sphere instead of the Flat Map and get the same information. I.e. Hexes in North Africa would be 1.25 tiimes the width as ones in Norway.

We see very little of the flat global map in the window. Projecting a sphere in there would display half the globe at once. Sure the equatorial regions would be easier to see but that's why I wanted a North/South scroll as well as an East/West one. Thus one could spin the globe around and up/down so that the area of interest, say Europe, is in the centre of the displayed hemisphere.

Yeah Yohan, I read the post about no major changes. Depending on how the coding has been done though, it may not actually require huge changes and may even generate efficiencies later on. If the code was originally written using Object Oriented principles, it should be quite compartmentalized and ameniable to changes such as this.

Cheers
Neilster

< Message edited by Neilster -- 8/5/2004 5:39:29 PM >

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/5/2004 5:50:30 PM

sedecula

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Use a Fuller Projection. It's a flat map that can be constructed into a globe; it has equal area projection in both latitude and longitude.

http://www.bfi.org/map.htm

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/6/2004 12:47:11 AM

Mziln

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So it would be a Icosahedron instead of a Globe. I like it (it looks like a big d20)!

Link to Icosahedron description

We will never convence Matrix to go for it

Maybe they could use it in another game and use a multi hex (couldn't find an example for the corect name) polyhedron and avoid the copywrite problems.

< Message edited by Mziln -- 8/5/2004 11:17:31 PM >

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/6/2004 8:34:03 AM

Neilster

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quote:

ORIGINAL: sedecula

Use a Fuller Projection. It's a flat map that can be constructed into a globe; it has equal area projection in both latitude and longitude.

http://www.bfi.org/map.htm

It looks cool and I love Buckminster Fuller but we want to do the opposite, ie display part of a globe on a flat map (the main playing map). How does one, for example, scroll down from Japan to its Southern Resource Area on the Fuller projection? There's a big black bit there.

I'd love to live in a dome-home though.

Cheers
Neilster

(in reply to sedecula)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/6/2004 3:45:21 PM

Mziln

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

It looks cool and I love Buckminster Fuller but we want to do the opposite, ie display part of a globe on a flat map (the main playing map). How does one, for example, scroll down from Japan to its Southern Resource Area on the Fuller projection? There's a big black bit there.

I'd love to live in a dome-home though.

Cheers
Neilster

Big Black Bit? What Big Black Bit ? You did click on the in animation (link), didn't you?

It morphs the Flat Map into a Icosahedron (a Icosahedron is the shape used for a 20 sided die).

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/6/2004 4:48:58 PM

amwild

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quote:

ORIGINAL: sedecula

Use a Fuller Projection. It's a flat map that can be constructed into a globe; it has equal area projection in both latitude and longitude.

http://www.bfi.org/map.htm

I have created my own fuller projection world maps for the worlds I have invented for my roleplaying games for years now. They work quite well with hex grids too, except for one slight problem: At the apices of the icosahedron (the points), the hex surrounding those points become pentagons (think soccer-ball, which is made of hexagons and pentagons).

Personally, I would prefer the WiF maps to be pasted around a sphere (or cylinder) so that functionally they operate in a cylindrical fashion. Anyway, the WiF maps do not show the polar regions, where the distortion of flat maps usually becomes greatest.

(in reply to sedecula)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/7/2004 9:00:22 AM

Neilster

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Mziln

Big Black Bit? What Big Black Bit ? You did click on the in animation (link), didn't you?

It morphs the Flat Map into a Icosahedron (a Icosahedron is the shape used for a 20 sided die).

Yes I did, but the main game display would have to use the flat projection, which has big, black chunks on it. We want to display a section of a globe on a flat map, not the other way round.

Cheers
Neilster

(in reply to Mziln)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/7/2004 6:50:08 PM

Mziln

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I was thinking wether you used a globe, cylinder, or icosahedron. You would link back to the same Flat Map the game has now.

So whatever global representation you used we would still retain the standard original map. Although your version of would require slight distortion of the hexes themselves.

< Message edited by Mziln -- 8/7/2004 4:52:30 PM >

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/11/2004 10:33:02 AM

Neilster

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Mziln

I was thinking wether you used a globe, cylinder, or icosahedron. You would link back to the same Flat Map the game has now.

So whatever global representation you used we would still retain the standard original map. Although your version of would require slight distortion of the hexes themselves.

But that's the point. What I'm talking about is changing the global map so that it's a sphere tiled with hexes. We then display the part of that map, slightly distorted to make it fit a rectangular main game screen, on which we are playing. Everything else goes like normal.

As I explained earlier, I think a spherical global map might have advantages that makes it worth it and computers can do the hard work of storing/manipulating the virtual 3D map and displaying it.

Cheers
Neilster

(in reply to Mziln)

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/11/2004 11:02:47 AM

Neilster

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I thought I'd reply to myself

Say there's a spherical global map. Might not a roughly circular, blobby main screen be able to have hexes about the same shape? Dunno. Bigger in the middle I guess. Maths might be easier? Doesn't fit so well on a rectangular monitor screen perhaps. Maybe less game area.

Possible subtle elegance to solution in that displaying the main display map in MWiF is like it is captured by a satellite in a low orbit around planet WiF. That's essentially what a spherical global map implementation would do, putting a virtual camera above a virtual 3D map and displaying what it sees. Would the satellite return a circular view of the planet?

Here's a blocky sort of Earth...

http://www.butera.org/planetbrick/images.html

Cheers
Neilster

< Message edited by Neilster -- 8/11/2004 7:21:16 PM >

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/12/2004 1:53:19 AM

Mziln

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Neilster

Say there's a spherical global map. Might not a roughly circular, blobby main screen be able to have hexes about the same shape? Dunno. Bigger in the middle I guess. Maths might be easier? Doesn't fit so well on a rectangular monitor screen perhaps. Maybe less game area.

Possible subtle elegance to solution in that displaying the main display map in MWiF is like it is captured by a satellite in a low orbit around planet WiF. That's essentially what a spherical global map implementation would do, putting a virtual camera above a virtual 3D map and displaying what it sees. Would the satellite return a circular view of the planet?

I'm sort of lost here which map do you want to replace

Currently CWiF displays 3 maps at the same time. Which can be modified (or eliminated) at the players discretion.

(1) #1 Map Window (Linked) - detailed flat map (covers an area about the size of Poland in hexes)

(2) Globe - Only active air and naval units are displayed. Example of displayed area:
(North - South) Norway to Kenya
(East - West) Urals to Greenland.

(3) #2 Map Window (Linked) - Example of displayed area:
(East - West) Benghazi to Alexandria and about 6 hexes to to bottom.

< Message edited by Mziln -- 8/11/2004 11:55:04 PM >

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/12/2004 12:25:45 PM

Neilster

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I was arguing the merits of replacing the current flat global map with a spherical one. Imagine a globe of the Earth tiled with WiF hexes.

The Earth is a sphere; so why not model it that way if we can, using a computer to keep track of what's happening on the surface of a hexy, virtual Earth, 1939?

I proposed that do so may not be terribly hard to program and has some advantages. It would also "unify" the game onto a continous, true scale map, where the movement/combat engine can have free reign with no "edge of map" effects. This may make possibe some simplication of the rule set and provide opportunities for gameplay efficiencies.

Shouldn't there be a reduction in the hex count, as many useless distorted polar hexes disappear? I think so. As I understand it, at the moment, that alone would speed gameplay later in the war when counter densities rise.

The flat global map in the CWiF demo doesn't really exist. It's just a bunch of zeros and ones in your PC's memory. The computer doesn't find the nasty 3d maths required to book-keep a spherical map any harder really. Programming the representation is the tricky bit.

To display the "detailed flat map" or "#1 Map Window" as you say Mzlin, we just display the relevant bit of the 3d map that's in memory. That's what CWiF does now. It's just that currently the global map in its memory is flat. Gameplay-wise, things could stay the same. I think we might be able to get away with 2 maps but we could have three too. It's just a another, zoomed out, view of the hex tiled globe.

Can anyone tell me the dimensions of the latest global map? Is it about 300 hexes by 200 hexes? That's 60 000 hexes square. I'm trying to do some maths.

Cheers
Neilster

< Message edited by Neilster -- 8/13/2004 2:18:49 PM >

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/12/2004 6:42:02 PM

SeaMonkey

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I'm just going to throw this out there cause my brain is so simple...yes I'm a simpleton! One world=2 hexes. Each hex=1 hemisphere. Look at a hex and imagine abstractly that it is a circle, then imagine concentric circles. Take a hex...now add another group of hexes on its circumference....another set of hexes on the added hexes' circumference and on and on. Set the scale for the basic subhex and fill the hemishere hex with subhexes. Allow the players to choose any parental size hex representing the area of their chosen observation and then allow max zoom to as low as the basic hex. All will be in perspective as the polar regions will have fewer basic subhexes compared to the greatest amount of basic subhexes at the equator.

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/12/2004 7:59:45 PM

coregames

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The Fuller projection is modular in such a way that any two adjacent triangular panels can be displayed as adjacent in a flat way... no need to show any large black regions, just bring the two faces of the icosohedron together when scrolling over that connection. The only change would be the compass, which would shift by 30 degrees, but with the mechanics of weather zones, direction never comes into play anyway. Also, the vertices where the corners of 5 faces meet could simply include a "partial" hex with one slice missing, and as you scroll away from the vertex the map could automatically "refold" itself to stay flat from that perspective.

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RE: Spherical global map - 8/13/2004 7:11:20 PM

rtamesis

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Looking at that animation of the earth being transformed into the icosahedron and then flattened out, it occurs to me that perhaps it would make sense to use triangles instead of hexagons for the map grid if you wanted to use the Fuller projection. After all, a hexagon is really just 6 adjacent triangles.

(in reply to coregames)

Post #: 25

RE: Spherical global map - 8/14/2004 11:33:52 AM

Neilster

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quote:

ORIGINAL: rtamesis

Looking at that animation of the earth being transformed into the icosahedron and then flattened out, it occurs to me that perhaps it would make sense to use triangles instead of hexagons for the map grid if you wanted to use the Fuller projection. After all, a hexagon is really just 6 adjacent triangles.

The code for this game largely exists already in the form of Chris' CWiF beta, and Matrix have said that they aren't going to make major changes. That's why I suggested changing the map in such a way that everything else stays the same. I don't think radical changes to the hex-based nature of WiF are going to get up.

In the current demo, we can circumnavigate the world by continuously scrolling sideways, so any change must still enable this to occur. If, as stated by coregames above, a Fuller projection implementation would involve a sudden 30 degree change in direction of the map when moving from one surface to the next, it will look crap and be very annoying.

I think the angles of the surface of the map must vary evenly and continuously in every direction. The Earth is a sphere, so why, if the computer can look after all the annoying details, don't we use a model that closely resembles one? That's why I suggested a spheroid constructed of hexes. Nothing else needs to be changed except the way the map is stored in memory and displayed. We would be able to do a North-South circumnavigation with a spherical map too.

I have to do some study on theoretical mathematical tilings.

Cheers
Neilster

(in reply to rtamesis)

Post #: 26

RE: Spherical global map - 9/11/2004 3:39:18 AM

coregames

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Actually, now that I've taken a look at some online resources, Fuller has a flat icosohedral projection that unfolds and keeps all the land masses contiguous, so that the change moving over a corner of the icosohedron would only happen over water, thus preserving the hex grid without refolding. Higher and lower lattitudes would be much more accurately depicted than in the current cylindrical CWiF map.

Here is a link to a Fuller map site: http://www.bfi.org/map.htm

and here is a clue to how accurate it is:

Also, I see Patrice's point that the unified scale could at least affect the game in a balanced way, as long as you were playing with divisions and artillery to help fill in that sparse Chinese line.

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by coregames -- 9/11/2004 1:45:05 AM >

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RE: Spherical global map - 9/12/2004 4:09:25 AM

Mziln

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Coregames you might want to look at Sedecula's post 8/5/2004 3:50:30 PM on this thread.

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RE: Spherical global map - 9/13/2004 9:55:43 PM

rtamesis

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Joined: 7/24/2004
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I'm been doing some reading on different map projections, and it seems that Fuller's icosahedral projection of the world is still the best from the standpoint of minimal distortion of the land masses and adaptability to wargaming. While it is already unlikely that the existing mapping system in CWIF will be changed in MWIF, this discussion might be of use in future games that involve the world (eg a WWIII game).

I think that this projection can be easily mapped onto hexes. The most difficult and time consuming part will be determining the scale of the projection onto the hex grid. From an object oriented programming standpoint, if each hex is then numbered and considered a cell or an object that stores information about the area it represents (movement point cost to enter a side, combat modifiers, graphic display, etc), then the different hexes/objects can be stored in a database. A mapping display class/object could then be in charge of assembling these hexes to dynamically display a particular area of the world and rotating the dynamic map in either 30 or 60 degree increments.

(in reply to Mziln)

Post #: 29

RE: Spherical global map - 9/13/2004 11:01:03 PM

Froonp

Posts: 7995
Joined: 10/21/2003
From: Marseilles, France
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: rtamesis

I'm been doing some reading on different map projections, and it seems that Fuller's icosahedral projection of the world is still the best from the standpoint of minimal distortion of the land masses and adaptability to wargaming. While it is already unlikely that the existing mapping system in CWIF will be changed in MWIF, this discussion might be of use in future games that involve the world (eg a WWIII game).

I think that this projection can be easily mapped onto hexes. The most difficult and time consuming part will be determining the scale of the projection onto the hex grid. From an object oriented programming standpoint, if each hex is then numbered and considered a cell or an object that stores information about the area it represents (movement point cost to enter a side, combat modifiers, graphic display, etc), then the different hexes/objects can be stored in a database. A mapping display class/object could then be in charge of assembling these hexes to dynamically display a particular area of the world and rotating the dynamic map in either 30 or 60 degree increments.

Now that you said it this way, I can't help thinking that WiF FE would be the best candidate to have such a map. It would add a lot !!!!
After all, part of the pleasure we have in playing WiF (at least for me) is :
- Having the whole world mapped and ready to receive troops.
- Having very beautiful counters.
- Being such a good wargame !!!!!

So if the map of the Computer version could be both beautiful and exact to reality, and best of all, movable so that I see it from where I want, thsi would be a jewel !!!!!!

Cheers !!!

Patrice

(in reply to rtamesis)

Post #: 30