Please help me with "basic training"

[rasnell]

I promise that I read the manual carefully and studied the forums. However, I need some advice for a beginner on these points:

1. Is there a place to view casualty totals for a game in progress? I see where it is listed in the far right column for each platoon or company on the headquarters page. I'm not missing a battle summary page anywhere, am I?

2. Is there a way to move an entire company, group or formation? I don't fully understand if rally or waypoints are the way to do this. If it is, I need a little bit more help than the manual.

3. My first scenario had paratroopers scattered and separated everywhere. I only knew how to move each unit one at a time using the N and P keys, but never really got them together as a group. Again, the question is about group moves or rally or waypoints to converge. I assume no matter how far away they are from their commander, if they have radio contact then I don't need to have them close together.

4. Where is the opening screen of a scenario where I receive the mission briefing. Is there any way to go back to this briefing once you have started your turns? I can't even find the name or remember my scenario by anything in the current game screen.

Sorry for the length of these questions. Any help would be greatly appreciated. You can even bark at me like a drill sergeant if I've missed any of this in the manual.

[iCaMpWiThAWP]

Originally Posted by rasnell

I promise that I read the manual carefully and studied the forums. However, I need some advice for a beginner on these points:

1. Is there a place to view casualty totals for a game in progress? I see where it is listed in the far right column for each platoon or company on the headquarters page. I'm not missing a battle summary page anywhere, am I?

2. Is there a way to move an entire company, group or formation? I don't fully understand if rally or waypoints are the way to do this. If it is, I need a little bit more help than the manual.

3. My first scenario had paratroopers scattered and separated everywhere. I only knew how to move each unit one at a time using the N and P keys, but never really got them together as a group. Again, the question is about group moves or rally or waypoints to converge. I assume no matter how far away they are from their commander, if they have radio contact then I don't need to have them close together.

4. Where is the opening screen of a scenario where I receive the mission briefing. Is there any way to go back to this briefing once you have started your turns? I can't even find the name or remember my scenario by anything in the current game screen.

Sorry for the length of these questions. Any help would be greatly appreciated. You can even bark at me like a drill sergeant if I've missed any of this in the manual.

Ok, i'll be the drill seargent...
BE MY B**** FOR 6 MONTHS AND WAR WILL BE A WALK IN THE PARK!
1.Don't think so, check your field manual
2.Formation Movement like in the original SP?
3.IF they have radios the contact will show as radio contact, BUT in cantact is waaaay better, it also prevents the formation from losing it's strenght
4.Never found such button, check field manual again

[Mobhack]

Originally Posted by rasnell

I promise that I read the manual carefully and studied the forums. However, I need some advice for a beginner on these points:

1. Is there a place to view casualty totals for a game in progress? I see where it is listed in the far right column for each platoon or company on the headquarters page. I'm not missing a battle summary page anywhere, am I?

2. Is there a way to move an entire company, group or formation? I don't fully understand if rally or waypoints are the way to do this. If it is, I need a little bit more help than the manual.

3. My first scenario had paratroopers scattered and separated everywhere. I only knew how to move each unit one at a time using the N and P keys, but never really got them together as a group. Again, the question is about group moves or rally or waypoints to converge. I assume no matter how far away they are from their commander, if they have radio contact then I don't need to have them close together.

4. Where is the opening screen of a scenario where I receive the mission briefing. Is there any way to go back to this briefing once you have started your turns? I can't even find the name or remember my scenario by anything in the current game screen.

Sorry for the length of these questions. Any help would be greatly appreciated. You can even bark at me like a drill sergeant if I've missed any of this in the manual.

0) If you have not yet played through the tutorial scenario, then do that first. Read the "Playing WinSPWW2 - Tutorial" section of the Game Guide first. You should also read the "Game Play Notes" section of the Game Guide.

(You may want to play through the tutorial in windowed mode with that Game Guide section also open in your browser, in order to easily refer between them.)

1) The battle summary of totals appears at game end screen only.

2) An entire platoon can be moved all together with the "A" key as described in the Game Guide in the "Main Map Window" section, in the box detailing the function keys. It is not recommended that you use that function for anything other than administrative moves!. Can be useful, once you have gotten used to it.

3) Waypoints are something that only the experienced scenario designer can use effectively without spraying the troops all over the map. Not for beginners. Not a lot of use other than for AI programming for scenario designers. See the GG section entitled "Waypoints".

Also, scenarios involving paras, gliders or beach landings are most definitely not beginner territory. Start with the smaller scenarios without special troops or situations (e.g. assault engineering) and work up.

3.1) Rally points can be set to give your retreaters a hint as to where you would like them to retreat or rout to. Only really of major use where you are mixed in with the enemy and the normal to-the-baseline rout route is blocked by the enemy, e.g. you are fighting in his rear.

4) You get the mission briefing on the scenario selection page. It is not available during the game itself. Game Guide "Playing a Scenario" section.

5) the "?" key or icon can be used in-game to bring up the quick help text files, e.g. if you cannot remember the keyboard short cuts.


cheers
Andy

[PanzerBob]

Welcome to my Obsession, Rasnell

The above covers your questions very well. I certainly agree with the ABN missions being really a hard place to start, although yes they are interesting.

The only thing I would add is the "A" All move feature is a fickle mistress, it moves your unit only generally where you want them. Only use when well out of sight of the enemy, and never when there is an air threat, it leaves units bunched up and perfect targets for Jabos!!

Enjoy the game, remember every loss is knowledge gained

Bob out

[BadCompany]

Also, try some small generated battles.
Example:
Germany vs Russia
December 1941
50x50
500 pts per side
Meeting Engagment

Generated Battles are also great for practicing.

Edit:Map size,points per side, and air missions are set in the prefrences menu.

[Marek_Tucan]

To add to the "A" key, never use it if in difficult terrain (city, swamps, that sort of thing)!

[rasnell]

Originally Posted by Mobhack

2) An entire platoon can be moved all together with the "A" key as described in the Game Guide in the "Main Map Window" section, in the box detailing the function keys. It is not recommended that you use that function for anything other than administrative moves!. Can be useful, once you have gotten used to it

cheers
Andy

Here's what you're referring to from the manual:
"A" selects the 'All Formation' mode. This is very useful if you wish to set the targeting range of an entire formation with the 'Y' key OR if you wish to move an entire formation to a specific point but it is VERY important to remember that you cannot undo a group move so Remember to toggle this off after the 'Y' operation, or the next time you try to move a unit, the entire formation will move simultaneously under AI control and you will be stuck with that move

I guess this is where I'm slow or hanging up. I just don't understand the paragraph. Is this a simpler understanding. Let's say you have a group comprised of GO, G1, G2 and G3. GO is the commander of all of these units in the G group.

If I use the G key and toggle to GO, I now can choose the A key and point to where I want all of this group to go to? What the manual is warning about is they will continue to follow this order for every subsequent turn unless I go to this group and give them another order?

[Mobhack]

Originally Posted by rasnell

Here's what you're referring to from the manual:
"A" selects the 'All Formation' mode. This is very useful if you wish to set the targeting range of an entire formation with the 'Y' key OR if you wish to move an entire formation to a specific point but it is VERY important to remember that you cannot undo a group move so Remember to toggle this off after the 'Y' operation, or the next time you try to move a unit, the entire formation will move simultaneously under AI control and you will be stuck with that move

I guess this is where I'm slow or hanging up. I just don't understand the paragraph. Is this a simpler understanding. Let's say you have a group comprised of GO, G1, G2 and G3. GO is the commander of all of these units in the G group.

If I use the G key and toggle to GO, I now can choose the A key and point to where I want all of this group to go to? What the manual is warning about is they will continue to follow this order for every subsequent turn unless I go to this group and give them another order?

The simple way to learn is to learn by doing, since that is how the military do it anyway.

Set up a scratch game, or simply reload a saved game. you are going to throw the test turns away anyway.

Now simply select any unit in any old formation that has movement points left, hit the A key, and then click the mouse on a destination hex. See what the platoon now does. Repeat with other platoons. Now exit the game and reload the save, and try it again. Keep repeating this exercise till you have an idea what the severe limitations of that code are.

The A key is original SSI code which we have not touched.

If you use it for a formation move, then the AI is now in charge of all units in that formation, and it will try to get all units of the clicked formation to the destination hex you provided by the shortest move possible. That is all. It has no intelligence - there is no attempt to keep units together, and units with different speeds or that are widely separated will all use a shortest-path of their own. Vehicles may crash through buildings or cross sticky terrain you as a human would avoid, and may become bogged down, or try the route through a minefield. No account is taken of the enemy either - units may happily pass by say known enemy infantry and get assaulted, if the fastest route was calculated so. It will move units in unit number order - so e.g. if the formation was on a road, it will happily move some back elements through lead elements and so incur extra cost for having traversed the occupied hexes.

However, the A key function as I and others have stated does have a limited use for administrative movement. It can be a handy way to move (or concentrate) an entire platoon that is in open clear terrain and is guaranteed not to be shot at by the enemy with a single click. But only once the player has learned the limitations of the algorithm, through experience.

Once upon a time it was useful for selecting the range key (Y key dialogue) for formations, even if most people find it rather limited use for formation moves. I think it was A, Y, set range => all units now set for range chosen. (Now the Y key dialogue has a formation/unit toggle button I added so the A key code is even more obsolete. When you bring up the Y key dialogue, simply press "unit" and it toggles to "formation" - now set desired range and the whole formation is set).

The A key does not allow for the "undo" function. You are stuck with the moved units in whatever position the AI has now plonked those units into. As a new player, you may have not noticed the "undo" function key, which can be very useful if you mis-click.

The A key is a toggled function - it will remain in force till you select A once more to turn it off. This can be very annoying if you mis-click on a new formation and it suddenly does a group move because you forgot to reset the A key!.

All of the above can be learned by simply setting up a "scratch" throw-away game as a training exercise and poking a few keys to see what actually happens when you use the A key functionality.

Cheers
Andy

[rasnell]

this is helpful and exactly what i was trying to figure out. when paratroopers are absolutely spread everywhere and not in contact, it was very monotonous to have to keep clicking on each one to keep sending them to a central gathering spot.

i can understand the downside of them robotically following the all command. they still will shoot and defend themselves, maybe even get pinned, if they are confronted, right?

thanks to all. very helpful

[iCaMpWiThAWP]

Originally Posted by rasnell

this is helpful and exactly what i was trying to figure out. when paratroopers are absolutely spread everywhere and not in contact, it was very monotonous to have to keep clicking on each one to keep sending them to a central gathering spot.

i can understand the downside of them robotically following the all command. they still will shoot and defend themselves, maybe even get pinned, if they are confronted, right?

thanks to all. very helpful

yeah, even get destroyed, but using this feature takes away the fun, since you'll usually care about ~10 units instead of ~40, and the best part of the game is to rule the field