Curtis Lemay
Posts: 12969
Joined: 9/17/2004 From: Houston, TX Status: offline
|
quote:
ORIGINAL: MarGol Extended and enhanced gameplay 1.13 multiside 1.14 multiplay These items would bring new and interesting possibilities to TOAW 1.15 units in multiple-round combats placed in 'engaged' mode I do not know it that was the origial intention behind this item, but I would like to see a way to weaken the effect of "turn-burning" engagements. Although this is put to good use in some scenarios, forcing the commander of low-proficiency units to adapt, I still find it hard to accept that a single engagement may paralyze the entire force for the rest of the turn. An alternative where the unit's formation has its MPs zeroed for the remainder of the turn might be worth considering. Extending the scope I am the first to admit that TOAW already has been brought outside the original intended scope. Nevertheless, one of the main reasons that TOAW appeals to me is the flexibility and ability to model almost any military conflict. If designers are willing to take the risk, I see no reason not to stretch a bit further... 1.3-1.4 extended setting of hex size & turn interval 4.10 OOB hierarchy 9.12 submarines Perhaps not highest on my list, but would add to the naval component. Could maybe be modeled like air interdiction, attacking transports and naval vessels within range, itself subject to ASW capabilities present. 11 Pre-20 century Judging from available scenarios, there is an interest for using TOAW further back in the past. (12.17.2 Sphere) Well, we had a thread on this a few years ago... Wouldn't it be cool playing TOAW with a GoogleEarth-like interface? (or maybe not...) "Power to the scenario designers!" Although no designer myself, the mere possibility to design almost any scenario is a main reason for me to place TOAW as the #1 wargame. I would like to see as many parameters as possible tunable by intrepid scenario designers (although many of those parameters probably would be detrimental to tamper with in most cases) 1.5 free setting of hex size & turn interval 1.6 turn interval changed by event Would for instance enable speed-up of the Sitzkrieg 2.26 terrain parameters modifiable by designer Would enable designers to define new terrain types they need 12.1 Parameter expansion (see title of this group of items) 12.2-12.5, 12.13, 12.25 Additional... (see title of this group of items) 12.21 Old scenarios loadable Although ACOW-owners in the community are wonderful when it comes to converting old scenarios, it would be great to have direct access in TOAW III to all those older scenarios out there. Admittedly, they need tweaking to play well with TOAW III, but I would hate to see all those efforts slip into the digital abyss. I think Ralph once mentioned that the backwards compatibility was broken at some stage when going from ACOW to TOAW III. A very good list - although I still see the Sphere as impractical if not impossible. Note that 12.25 is implemented already - in 3.4. quote:
Some suggestions I would like to add: (1) Detailed game engine documentation It would probably be useful both for designers and players to have a detailed reference to the gory details of the TOAW engine. As an aside, I have found some interesting material on combat simulation models used professionally, which would be interesting to compare with TOAW. My impression is that TOAW stands up well, at least when comparing to what was around in the 90's. While desirable, I doubt there's anyone who has that info. And trying to discern TOAW's operation via poking around in the code is a fool's errand. It would have to be determined via rigorous testing. Also, note that the Wishlist is just for code issues. Somebody once posted a list of scenarios he wanted designed. That's fine, but not for this document. I don't even include equipment suggestions anymore, since one can do that oneself. Same for graphics wishes. So, sorry, no documentation requests for the list - regardless of their merit. Gotta stay on topic. quote:
(2) "Smallest undivisible unit" setting To make the section '..' workaround unneccessary. Good idea. quote:
(3) "int -> float" ...which would be a programmer's way to suggest going from using integer-valued parameters (like 1 or 2) to real-valued (like 1.62). This might not sound very cool, but I think it would benefit the game engine to take this step. Some wishes that would benefit from this are: 1.5 free setting of hex size & turn interval 2.26 terrain parameters modifiable by designer 3.20 more precision in AP, AT (etc) values 6.1 movement allowances scaled correctly 6.7 motorized bonus on road I realize this would be a major rewrite of exisiting code, but if a future TOAW 4 is built from scratch it might be good to have this in mind from the outset. In the past, I guess integers were preferred in order to save memory and computational speed, but with the current capabilities sitting on desktops that should no longer be a big issue. Watch out though for a false sense of precision that simply cannot be achieved in the modeling: a 32.4 km hex grid with 21.1-day turns, units moving 15.23 hexes per turn, forests having a movement cost of 2.45 and infantry defensive factor 3.28 I suggested this over and over to Norm practically right from the start.
< Message edited by Curtis Lemay -- 1/9/2011 5:14:48 PM >
|