Another new graphic...

This one donated in part by a friend... not bad for a first contribution!

Just a graphc test...

Just a test of a graphic piece that might be a mess, or might be usable...

Greatest Miniature Collection on Earth

Okay... no comments necessary.

The Greatest Collection of Miniatures Ever

Part 2

Part 3

Okay, new buildings are in!

The first set of new buildings are ingame... here is a look at a few of them! A group of soldiers go to rescue a downed pilot... however, some insurgents are lurking behind some nearby buildings, ready to attack! In the shot below, a mixed force of UN and NATO troops are pinned down by a sniper... but one soldier is circling around to hit them from the flank...

Next up; implementing the "occupy building" feature, and then we need to probably start building the skeleton for the combat system... but hey, for a week and a half of work, it looks pretty good so far I think!:)

Building Sizes...

Just playing with building sizes... unfortunately, I think the first go was a bit oversized, so now I am working on smaller buildings... takes a little touch up, but not too much work... better to get it right now!

Creating buildings for the game

Hey all,

Well, I am working on the Middle East building set... and I have to admit, I've got a few tricks down now that really make it easier!

Anyway... here is the "so far" work, with what could be done before TV time! My coding partner did some CRAZY nice work, and all the buildings can now be dropped into the game... good stuff!

Death and dying percents in the new game...

Hey all,

Thought I would post this here, almost as much as a brainstorm type of thing as for anyone else to read...

So... as I mentioned previously, I am trying to get away from hit points and the like. So, I am considering something like this:

When shooting at a target, first the computer decides what area (legs, chest, head) are hit.

THEN it randomly generates a number; say, 1-100.

1-60 would be a miss
61-80 would be a minor wound.
81-90 would be a major wound
91-100 would be death

This would then be modified. For example... say a weapon was a bit crappy, it might get a modifier like -1.

However, this would not just subtract one from the number generated.

Rather, it would take away one space for each type other than miss and make it a miss! For example, a -1 weapon would be...

92-100 would be death
91 would be a miss
82-90 would be a serious wound
81 would be a miss
62-80 would be a minor wound
1-61 would be a miss

Things like long range, lower powered weapons, bad accuracy, moving while firing, armor, and the like would subtract. Things like shorter range, good accuracy, and more high power weapons would increase the number.

Keep in mind; this is a fairly representative system, in that it is not breaking up HITTING and HURTING. However, I like it. Rather than basically just making the extreme examples (i.e. the top of the chart, the death) less likely I think it spreads it out some. At some point (say at -6 or worse, or +6 or better) we could even start saying "penalties of -6 to -9 count as -6, -10 to -13 counts as -7) in order to make sure that it doesn't become TOO ridiculous. Also, there would have to ALWAYS be a chance of each category.

Just so folks know, I would imagine a light bulletproof vest might give you a -2, a heavy vest say a -4 or so, something like a wall a -6? I don't know, we'll have to crunch the math a little and see how it works out, percentage wise.

Plus, we could do some interesting things... lets say you were behind a wall that gave the shooting a -5 penalty.

96-100 would be a death
91-95 would be "the shot hit the wall!" (or "the bullet hit your armor" or...)
86-90 would be a major wound
81-85 would be "the shot hit the wall!"
66-80 would be a minor wound
61-65 would be "the shot hit the wall!"
1-60 would simply be a miss.

It opens up some possibilities for the narrative.

Now you might ask; why determine the TARGET of the shot BEFORE determining whether it hits? Well, that is to account for things like armor... for example, if your torso is armored to a -3, but your head has no armor, then the game needs to know if it should apply the armor penalty or not.

So. I don't know if this will be the way we do it (there may be consequences I haven't predicted) but we'll see!

Name That Gun!

Howdy all!

So, got some more work done on the game... wanted to see if people could name the guns in the above picture, where some UN and US troops face off with some insurgents! I know it is hard, but give it a try... I think a few of them at least are fairly good 10 pixel representations!

Just some haircuts...

Just wanted to post an in-game shot of the work, showing off the different head possibilities (without helmets or hats, of course.)

I've also added another shot... this is two squads, one a larger squad of well-armed soldiers (with the squad leader highlighted, displaying a command radius) and another, smaller spec ops squad slightly behind them. They are obviously all built on the same skeletons (the current desert camo skeleton) but have a variety of weapons and gear equipped.

A Random Assortment...

... of troops from the new game... featuring the first set of gear, which includes an assortment of weapons (M4, AK, MP5, SAW, sniper rifle) headwear, armor, and of course basic fatigues. So far, so simple, so good!

Just a quick piece...

Here is a rough of an advancing guy from the new game... this one is armed with level 2 body armor, a black body suit, level 2 tac helmet, and an M4. This is only five frames of the animation, rather than the proper number, but you get the idea:)

Thinking about going modern...

After some discussion, we are thinking about maybe tackling a modern squad combat game before a Napoleonic one... while we enjoy the Napoleonic time more, we think there might be some aspects of the modern (for example, a lot more variety of kit) that lends itself more to the first effort.

The idea would be you have a mercenary group of soldiers, able to deploy to various missions around the world. You would fight a mix of enemy, including insurgents, drug lords, and the like, and as you do well, your men would advance in stats and so on.

In the squad breakdown to the right you can see some basic thoughts (missing stealth, which will likely be added as a stat... imagine a soldier with an MP5 and a full black uniform sneaking up and killing the enemy without them being able to retaliate, and you get the idea.) You can see the blue (for now) which indicates commander skills and how it is modifying soldier skills, and the red, which shows the stats as modified by a wound.

In the end it will be the same engine, so all it is really is a skin of graphics and tweaking. Anyway... we'll see what we like!

Just starting work on a Napoleonic video game...

Howdy all!

As some of you may or may not know (well, I guess if the options are may or may not, EVERYONE qualifies) I have done some work on video games in the past… I helped make Napoleonic Total War and American Total War, worked on a little dungeoncrawl type of game, and recently wrapped up my first XBOX 360 project.

So one of my buddies and I are now starting our next project; a very, very basic, single player squad combat game set in the Napoleonic period… basically a chance to build up a little group of soldiers and play out Sharpe's sort of scenarios.

Right now we are just starting to put code together and futz around... at the top you can see the results of basically the first day of work:) I think it will be similar to Sharpe's Practice (although I've never read the rules) in that your "squad" will have a few characters, each of whom will lead some "regular" troops… characters will have a command radius that can be increased, and troops within that radius will benefit from special bonuses, and the troops and characters both can advance with experience…

Right now we are VERY much in the planning stage, so I wanted to ask… what sorts of features would people like to see in a fun Napoleonic squad based game? The game is really being made with the idea of being able to make it flexible enough for any era with a little tweaking, and will likely form a part of a larger project down the road, but I thought I would ask to see if folks have any interesting ideas!

Right now I envision the two rosters being something like… (names are just the basics right now)

French line
Voltigeur
Old Guard
Sappeur
Dragoon (cav who can dismount and shoot)
Artillery of some sort
Cav of some sort which cannot dismount, like cuirassiers

British line
Rifles
Highlanders
Guard
some sort of Spanish guerrilla
Haven't through through the British cav yet, although might go with the basics.

Then, on top of that, you would have the characters who lead each unit, each of whom would be named and have certain abilities… for example, you might have a guy who is a "combat leader" which gives all squad members within his command radius a +1 in close combat, or a guy who has the "booming voice" trait, which increases his command radius by a bit, and so on and so forth. Which skills each character would have access to would be partially random, partially determined by nationality, and partially determined by their "base" class… for example, a character based on a British rifleman might have a better chance of getting the "marksman" skill, whereas a character based on a highlander might have a better chance of getting access to the "combat leader" skill.

I envision that, at the end of each fight, your men get experience, which can be traded in for increases in stats or even special abilities. Regular troops would have a ceiling, although I would like to do something where they can eventually become NCOs or something… like a step between regular soldier and character. Also I think there should be some sort of pillage of the battlefield at the end, and you can divvy gear up.

I want to do away with hitpoints, and indeed make the damage system "invisible." Basically you would get "results" from combat like "You missed!" or "The guy is slightly wounded" or something similar. Characters would simply have a MUCH higher chance of getting results like misses or "It is just a scratch," but they CAN still be killed. I want to avoid a straight up, mathematical system because I feel like that takes away a little of the romance. Indeed, I want to avoid visible numbers all together, if possible!

Thanks!

The Fight Commences!

The 10mm Napoleonic battle has commenced!

The French are a bit stuck, as far as tactics go... their left flank, held by the Old Guard at the chateau, is fairly secure... these tough veterans would be tough to dislodge. However, there is also a brigade of cavalry on that flank, which the British have no answer for... for now, the French divisional commander is holding the infantry steady, but he pushed the cavalry up.

As the French cavalry got closer to threatening the British artillery which was unlimbering on the hill, the British pushed forward a brigade of Allied infantry to protect the guns. The Brunswick troops came under immediate fire and actually began to take casualties, one battalion even failing a "Steady!" test and becoming Shaken.

The British commander quickly moved them into the woods to recover, and moved a second Allied brigade up to protect the guns. This brigade also came under artillery fire, and men began to fall and even edge back...

The French cavalry, seeing the infantry blocking their initial target, then spotted some more British artillery in the center that was remarkably vulnerable, and began to spur their horses forward...

Meanwhile, the British center and left was a mess. Commanders misunderstanding their orders, too many troops in one place... there was a massive traffic jam on the road, and the British struggled to get it all sorted out, costing their own artillery some time to deploy properly, and leaving one battery vulnerable in the center... Finally, however, they got moving, with the elite brigade under Colonel Sharpe taking the lead on the road, with the majority of the infantry falling in behind them, as the whole began to advance towards the French redoubt. The British commander hoped he could hold off the French cavalry in the center and gain artillery superiority... maybe then he could pound the French defenders until they were ready to break! Otherwise, the attack could be awful difficult...

So that is where it ended! The British had largely sorted out their traffic troubles but still had one battery not deployed and another threatened by French cavalry. Meanwhile two Allied brigades had been halted by the horse-riding enemy and had come under fire. The French were largely standing still, using their cavalry to try to force the British to slow down while the French cannon did some damage!

I'll have more tomorrow!

The troops arrive!

Well, the troops have arrived!

Today I put the troops out for the battle! Above is an overall shot of the table... the French are deploying on the left side. The first division is at the bottom left of the above photo shot. It consists of two brigades of infantry and an artillery battery. They are behind their redoubts.

The second division is deployed to the far left corner of the photo, with their flank held by a brigade of Guard holding a chateau. Amazingly when I rolled up the forces the British got NO cavalry... so the single brigade of French cavalry will be unopposed and will be able to move quickly and hopefully help pin the large British force down and threaten any artillery that is left open. There is also a battery of horse artillery, that may or may not be left in the center to batter the British as they advance.

The British are attacking with three divisions; two in the center, and one opposite the French-held chateau. The two in the center are large, include two batteries of foot artillery, and are headed by an entire elite brigade, consisting of two battalions of Scots and a battalion of Guard.

On the flank is the third British division, consisting mainly of Allied troops, and also supported by artillery. The British do have an artillery advantage in this game, but the fact that they have to move into position, combined with the French having the fortifications and the only cavalry on the board, may help counter that advantage.

So... the troops have arrived, and the battle may commence!

The officers arrive on the field...

Well, after watching a little TV with the wife ("Madmen" and "Fringe") I deployed the officers to the table!

There are two French divisions on the table. The two divisions start VERY far apart; at opposite ends of the table, actually. The first is a smaller division made of two brigades that will deploy behind the redoubt. The second, which is a larger division, deploys on the road to the chateau... in fact, the divisional commander has decided that he will give a quick look in the corners to see if any wine was left behind!

There are three British divisions that will attack in this game. Two of them are advancing up the main road in the center of the table... they will have a little ways to go, and a LONG way under the guns of the French behind the redoubt!

The third British division will deploy to the right, marching up between two copses of trees. This division will be facing the chateau, but the idea of actually attacking a larger force (the British have only two brigades in this division, versus three French brigades to their front) is not one that seems too palatable...

So... the officers are on the field! In the next day or so, the troops will follow!

Ready to put the 15mm Napoleonics down...

Well, the table is cleared, and reset for 10mm Napoleonics!

I am still futzing with the ideal settings for the camera for the lighting, but for now, here it is! It will be a smaller force defending against a larger attack force... the defending force will get a part of its troops behind the redoubts in the corner, and the rest will be marching onto the board... the attackers (which I think will be the British, as odd as that seems) will come in on the other side in column and ready to roll. we'll see how it goes!

Next up... troops! First, however, I want to review my 10mm Nappy rules, and maybe do some futzing with them... a little revision never hurt anyone!

A few photos of miniatures...

Hey all!

Well, it has been a LONG time since I posted here at The House of War!

I have been hard at work finishing up my first XBOX game... to check it out, visit the fan page on Facebook!

Zombie Armageddon on The Facebook!

Anyway... I thought I would get back to the war room, now that the game is in the can, and figured I would start simple... clear off the 15mm ACW stuff, and take one or two photos of miniatures, just because... so, here they are!