Red Front: Problems?

[Captain Nemo]

I am opening this new thread to get problem reports from Red Front players. Please address only problems here and be as specific as possible so I can find and fix the problems.
Any play impressions and general game feedback can still be posted on the other Red Front topic threads.

So far I have reports of:

- Downloaded zipfile for Sounds 3 cannot be opened.
- Impossible to extract terrain files from RFgame2.zip
- Pontoon bridge near Stalingrad does not dissappear in the winter of 1942 when events announce it has broken up.

Has anyone else experienced any of the above?

[Overdrive]

...bribing....

[Captain Nemo]

Regarding bribing:
The best I've come up with in version 1.3 is that I have changed the game.txt to read:
"Anti-communist subversion among Red Army officers: your (unitX) has defected to the Germans"
This is not totally unrealistic as the ROA headed by General Vlasov recruited over 50,000 Russian POW to fight with the Germans against the Communists. These troops "defected" back again to the Soviet side toward the end of the war but Vlasov was nevertheless executed.

[Miner]

Why not just remove Writing from the AI?

[Captain Nemo]

A GOOD THOUGHT...
But the AI doesn't have Writing... I don't know what else to do to prevent the bribing... He has no spy or diplomat units, and not Writing nor Espionage technology. The diplomat slot is occupied by the He-111 bomber and the spy slot by floating mines.
I think it's pure AI cheating as the bribes usually get some of the units that are near impossible to kill (Partisans on mountain-tops, fortified battery, AA battery in fortified squares).

[Overdrive]

Good point...I had my fortress in front of Narva bribed...

[Miner]

Whoops, should have known you would of already thought of that

[DarthVeda]

Here are the problems so far:

• Extra2.wav in Rfsound3.zip was unextractable
• There is a refugee near tobolsk building a factory (118,50) at the start of the game.

As I thoroughly playtest this (for a review no-doubt) scenario, I'll post my notices here. I'm also keeping a thorough log of what I am doing and what territory has been traded.

[Captain Nemo]

The extra2.wav is the sound of Allied bombers that attack German industry in 1944-45. Just used in the events. I don't know why it isn't extractable because it does extract from my zipfile on the harddisk.

Ooops, I missed that little guy near Tobolsk. I will add a few Labor brigades from the start of the game so it becomes possible to build minefields fast once "Labor Front" becomes available... I have moved up that event 1 month. Still it is near impossible to protect Leningrad with minefields (I lose my Labor Brigades to the ground troops that take Narva by September)

Darthveda: I look very much forward to your review!

[DarthVeda]

• Crapify Romanian infantry for the first two phases of the game. Odessa fell on the second turn (which I don't believe was done until Spring of 42) (?)

More coming soon!

[Captain Nemo]

I think you are thinking of Sevastopol... Odessa fell on the 16th of October, 1941 after the Germans started assisting the Romanians who weren't doing too well on the southern front. By December Sevastopol was cut off and the Germans had seized Kerch and a small bridgehead across the marshes into the Caucasus (But they could not hold it through the winter).

[DarthVeda]

Woops, it fell on the 16th of October... why'd I think it fell later?

Here's the list of things I'd like (and love to help you with):

• Is there anyway to simulate the Stalin Line? It was practically worthless from a defensive standpoint, but it would be another morale-breaker for the Soviets if all those Red Army units should fall to the blade again.
• What would be really great is a new events file every 3 months (Fall, Winter, Spring Mud)... I'd be happy to help author it if you need...
• Your scenario I think would be complete with this because the mud was as bothersome to the Germans than the winter. The winter saw at least some movement from German tankers, whereas with the mud, they had to stick mostly to the roads. Mud would be bad for mechanized units on both sides (1/2 road movement and very slow tanks)
• I'd like to see the soviet tankers get a winter paint job every winter (I could do this really easily using PSP if you'd like...) same for German tanks. It would also be interesting if the PzIIIs and Pz38t's (see below) froze over. (No movement--hue them blue maybe).
• While we're at it, how about for summmer-winter 1941/2 that the Sdkfz (AA) is represented as the Pz 38(t) (One of the predominant tank forces in the panzers [25%])
• In the last three sets of units (sum 1944+), replace the Panzer III with the Hetzer 38(t)... seeing as this tank (pz3) was out of war production by 1943
• If you haven't already done it, change the stats and looks of the PzIV to represent its stages of design (The Pzkw IVH had armor skirts I believe. The J was similar but with reduced time to build because removal of automatic turret operator.)
• Upgrade Me109 to Me109G in Winter '42
• In the summer of '44, upgrade the Ju-87 Stuka to the Me-262, this will free up another slot. (Considering Ju-87 production ceased in '44).
• In the fall of '43, upgrade the KV-1 to KV-85 (And allow those to be built).
• In the Summer of '45, upgrade the KV-85 to JS-III.
• Improve the caliber of the Soviet AT Gun throughout the war. Make them cannon fodder infantry in the first months, so the player has to use them in conjunction or retreat them. Here's my suggestion: 14.5mm AT Rifle Infantry -- Simonov AT Rifle PTRS-41 [Sum '41], 45mm AT ZIK-37 [Win '41], 57mm ZIS-2 [Sum '42], 76.2mm P39 [Win '42], 85mm AA/AT ZP39 [Sum '43]
• With the JSU-152 slot, start it off as the KV-2. This is a pretty worthless tank. Keep the player from being able to build them and convert them to KV-1s in the Winter of '41. This will give the player a respectable defensive tank for the Winter, but a slow cannon fodder in the summer (Give it a top speed of 3 or so). In the Spring/Summer of '43, allow the player to build Su-85s out of this unit. Then in the Summer of '44, upgrade them to SU-152s.
• Slow down the T-26. It is way too fast compared to the T-34. Give it a movement of 3 or 4. This will allow more to be destroyed in the summer of '41.
• For the summer of '43 and '44, give the Panther a tiger/camo color scheme. I'll give you a pic if you need an example.
• Upgrade the AA Sdkfz to Flakpanzer IV in the Winter of '43.
• Instead of a Battleship, replace that unit with the U.S. Sherman Tank (Available through London shipment every other 2 turns starting Summer '42). The Battleship is overkill and is not really necessary in a sea swarming with Cruisers, Destroyers, and U-Boats. Upgrade the M4A1 to A3 in the summer of '44.
• Starting in the summer of '43, rename the armored infantry Russia gets through the U.K. to U.S. M3 Halftrack
• Redraw the roadways in the winter as tire ruts. Do the same for the mud.
• With all these changes, you might as well add a fall1-9,spring1-9,winter1-9 units.gif, I really don't think people will mind the extra download time.

I have a lot of free time in the next two weeks, so if you need help editing new events.txt files or .gif files, just mail me at darthveda@hotmail.com

BTW: I'll be working on those spring and fall terrain files.
[This message has been edited by DarthVeda (edited December 20, 1999).]

[St Leo]

Well, you could move Riga so it is situated right on Daugava(West Dvina).:-)

------------------
St. Leo
http://ziggurat.sidgames.com/
http://www.sidgames.com/forums/

[Mao]

Let me be the first to say I wouldn't mind the extra downloading

[Mao]

Oh and I agree about the battleship. Didn't the Germans only make like 3 in the entire war? and they all went against Britain? I know there's the Bismarck that went against shipping, but I mean, we really don't have a chance in hell at beating those battleships.