Something New This Way Cometh

[DarthVeda]

Ok... and this is without any events yet folks...

Nightfall of day one and here's what I've lost already...

3 Panzer IV G
1 Jagdpanther V
1 Hetzer 38(t)
5 StuG III H
5 Panzergrenadiers
6 150mm Hummel
3 88mm Anti-Tank gun
11 Motorized Infantry
8 Volksgrenadiers
5 Volks w/Pzfaust
3 Fallschrimjager
2 MG42 Machine gun
4 Panzer IV G SS
-57 units total-

Here's what I've been able to kill...

7 US Infantry
4 US Seargent
3 US Infantry w/BAR
7 M4A3 Sherman Tank
8 M10 Tank Destroyer
5 M3 Armored Carrier
1 155mm Howitzer M40
2 105mm Howitzer M7
1 M18 "Hellcat"
2 Recon Unit
3 M3 w/50 cal. Maxon
5 Infantry w/Bazooka
-45 Units Total-

And here we have a screenshot of the already weary German armies reaching the outskirts of St. Vith from the south...

[ravagon]

Hmmm. Is the allied terrain really going to be unexplored from the German POV?
I would've thought the Germans made a map or two while they occupied the west.

Those losses sound a little high for the first turn. IIRC German losses overall were slightly higher but probably not that soon into it ...
Were your allied losses fortified units? If they were it might be better to make them otherwise to reflect the surprise the German units achieved..

[DarthVeda]

Fog of War

[DarthVeda]

Well I went and unfortified the Americans. I took 32 casualties this time... I still have 196 units. The americans took 37 destroyed units. A little less bloodier than last time...

[klesh]

Wow, 196 at the start! Are all waiting to be moved on turn 1? How are you handling the resupply? Will captured cities be building tanks, or do you have some other scheme worked out. I do like the tech re-supply effect in Kyokujitsu.

-FMK.

[DarthVeda]

I really wish I could do it like Kyokujitsu, but it's MGE

So what I've arranged instead is historical reinforcements. Your forces will receive infusions of troops in certain cities behind the lines as they appeared in history. You can't build anything but a few buildings/capitalization and Allied POW.

[klesh]

Ahhhh very Stalingradesque your design. Why is the tech-resupply technique only viable for ToT? I recall PMing you about this ages ago, but it has since been forgotten.

Might I also suggest (if you havent got them already) are a few bridge units. I had made a post in ther gfx thread a looooong time ago asking for stone arch bridges...

What I figure is, make them a German unit... perhaps 2 different units or maybe 3 depending on the unit space you have left in the early phases of the game.

Ger5man must rush forward to 'capture' or 'rescue' these bridges from the American units who will be trying to 'destroy' them. Then, if unitkilled= bridge1 @Then changeterrain BLAH BLAH to ocean and now the river Meuse is not crossable.

Will have to send ol' Joachim a little farther north.

After phase 1, or after the germans pass these bridges in the game, you could free up those slots by forgetting the bridges (and the event to change terrain at the bridgepoints) and now you've got 2 more unit slots to add like schwerepanzerabtl. 501-2-3 or some such for extra firepower.

[/ramble.]

-FMK.

[klesh]

Darth, might I make one last suggestion.

This would serve to tip the scales to the German side early on. Then, through the beauty of controlled resupply, you can slowly lower the ratio of this unit in the german ranks. It would certainly add lots of punch to the Germans, be a really cool new unit with a dope sound effect too.


Alas, I have attempted several times to draw a Nebelwerfer, but I am continually frustrated by it.



-FMK.

[DarthVeda]

Well it so happens I have like six unit slots free...

[klesh]

4 bridges, a nebelwerfer and....

Do you want me to keep thinking? I had alot of ideas floating around for my Bulge scenario, but I have no problem giving them to you so 'the' bulge scenario is made to be the best it can be.

-FMK.

[The ANZAC]

Well, for bridges they mmgith not necessarily have to be German. You could have 1 bridge unit and have 4 of them owned by AI controlled tribes sequestered in a corner of the map... Look at Favored Flight's Fellowship of the Ring and Return of the King to see what I'm talking about. He has some good innovations.

[klesh]

What would that serve to do? Seems like a waste of tribes that could serve as different Ami armies or something more active?

If the Bridges are German, then the Amis will try to blow them up, if the german can get to them, he 'walks across' one of his own units.

[DarthVeda]

I have an even better idea left over from Red Cataclysm.

Hey FMK, give me everything and anything you got in that head of yours on this topic. I want to hear it. Easier to implement it now than a few weeks down the line...

But does anybody have any good bridge graphics?

[The ANZAC]

Well, it would create a german bridge unit in the same spot. I'm just said that idea to save on unit spaces. Didn't think about the different American armies, but wouldn't that just make it harder for units to work together like the 3rd army swinging up 90 degrees from the south or the British 29th Armoured Brigade who stopped the Germans before the Meuse?

[klesh]

Originally posted by The ANZAC
Well, it would create a german bridge unit in the same spot. I'm just said that idea to save on unit spaces. Didn't think about the different American armies, but wouldn't that just make it harder for units to work together like the 3rd army swinging up 90 degrees from the south or the British 29th Armoured Brigade who stopped the Germans before the Meuse?

Right on Jared. I just didn't catch ya at first, no sweat.

Darth, one idea I had to implement was the dash for fuel depots. Germans are of course low on fuel for their armour, and are counting on capturing Ami stocks to keep the offensive rolling.

Originally I was going to have all the player controlled German tanks be settler-type units a la Second Front. Their home cities behind the Westwall wouldn't provide enough 'fuel' so you must get it from the Ami's.

For this I had a couple of ideas. Have perhaps some of the city gfx for certain tribes look like a fuel depot. Perhaps you would have to creat a 'Supply' type Ami civ... It simulates the Red Ball express and whathave you. Give them certain techs to keep their city type graphically, and perhaps all they get for units to build are your oil barrels from Kyokujitsu, immobile.

The I would conitinue this idea by perhaps saying that if 1 oilbarrel is killed -> then (perhaps some a-historical unit creation for the player.

"After hearing of the capture of much of the Americans fuel at xxxxx, Hitler decides to send the rest of Germany's reserves destined for the Ostfront to help in the push to Antwerpen."

Then when you capture the depot cities, you'd have to begin sending tanks there to 'top off' and go back out to battle. I must say though, I found this very tedious and disheartening to do in Second Front. Maybe it would be different not having to ship units across the channel, or maybe its just a lame thing to do in general.

Either way, you should definately include the fights for fuel as it was pretty key to the whole operation. I'll try to think of a different less intensive way of trying to include it now.

-FMK.