MAP READING? WHEN DOING ORDERS

[gbs]

Another thing that blocks the map view is the bunching up of the unit icon that cover up location names. "If the 42nd Mississippi would move over just a hair......" Maybe a button to make them temporarily invisable?

[BOSTON]

Players on the forum; What technics are you using to identify a 'GO To' Location by courier, if you are not sure what the location is? or is not listed in the 'Go to' List supplied when composing a courier message?

[Los]

Look at Map pick name of nearest landmark you want your recipient to go to, THEN call up courier screen and give the order, I would prefer a printed map or to be able to call up a map from courier screen but doing it the other way works fine for now. From there you can add more instructions move here, attach there etc etc. Other than that it's basic map reading and terrain association and then letting the generals do their job from there. If you have to get more specific then I ride my but over there and place them by hand once they arrive (I prefer to do HITS myself). If the real generals could manage with that crappy map than so can you!

[Ingles of the 57th]

Not quite on this stream but in the same ballpark !

I’m not greatly into courier messages at the moment but, following the TDK release, have become very interested in maps and map references generally as I try to include alternative or additional objectives into scenario variations and later hopefully to set up some scenarios of my own once I have mastered the orders.

I use a large sheet of paper at the moment with the x and y axes drawn on and try to make a best guess of the map position that I want and then fine tune it ….. all a bit time consuming.

Do you scenario designers have an easier method that you utilise ?

A very useful facility would be a mini-“Google Earth” display… a small dynamic box that displays the co-ordinates at the cursor position. “On demand” perhaps, if dynamic is too difficult or resource consuming.

I am also working on a routine that allows you to set up in advance, and name, a library of all the likely objective points for each map. Farms, crossroads, runs etc….. could be hundreds. Then, when working on a scenario, simply select the ones you need. This could, I think, be done most elegantly using an expanded “maplocations.csv” with a column for “hide “ or “show” value against each entry. Or just keep a master version and copy across any locations that you need into a scenario “maplocations.csv”.

Alternatively, if I put the “start time” and “finish time” for an objective the same as the scenario start time, does this mean it will never appear at all during the scenario except perhaps for a microsecond ? If so this could serve my purpose without an additional column. I must experiment.

I guess the sandbox routine must have a similar table somewhere of available objectives from which it can randomly choose. ?

If I can set all this up in due course, I would be quite happy to e-mail copies of the expanded annotated “maplocations.csv” to anyone who might be interested. I am not into downloads at the moment.

Geoff Laver
Late of Her Majesty’s 57th Regiment of Foot

[Ingles of the 57th]

Further to my earlier post, I have been doing some experiments, trying to get all the possible objectives to display on one map for reference.

I modified one of the scenarios that use the McPherson’s map. I went to the map.csv in the sdk folder and copied the 21 location id’s lines over into the maplocations.csv for the scenario and added the additional data needed.

The 21 objective icons duly appeared on the map but, when the cursor is placed over the objective, “not found” is displayed rather than the “location name”. What file is used to hold the location names and by which field-name(s) is the matching done ? As far as I can see I have got the location id’s identical in similar case on both files.

I assumed the master was the base ‘map.csv’ file (currently hidden and non-updateable) but contents shown in the sdk. I can understand not being able to add new objectives to the map.csv (which curtails my earlier ambitions a bit) but I thought the ones already there would match up and display properly.

Clearly I am doing something wrong.

Any advice ?

Geoff Laver
Late of Her Majesty’s 57th Regiment of Foot.

[ADukes]

Make sure that you put the "IDS_MAP_" string copied from the map.csv in the "Objective Name" column of the maplocations.csv file.

[Garnier]

Ingles, is this like what you want:

Textured Minimaps Mod

[Ingles of the 57th]

I thought that is what I had done but I will check.

I will post an extract "selection" of the relevant fields from the two files.

Geoff Laver
Late of Her Majesty's 57th Regiment of Foot

[Ingles of the 57th]

Hi Garnier,

Thanks for the interest.

The scale of the map is a bit small to see exactly what is there but it looks like your basic map.

I am using this textured maps but I want to be able to use the locations shown as objectives and maybe add some more. I can get the icon up at the right place but am having trouble getting the name of the location to display via the cursor. Just says "not known".

I have had suggestions from ADukes and am working it up further. I appreciate there are restrictions at the moment on modding maps.

Geoff Laver
Late of Her Majesty's

[BOSTON]

Garnier wrote:

Ingles, is this like what you want:

Textured Minimaps Mod

Personally, that's something I would like as a print-out, sized for a sheet of copy paper if practable. I would have to ask if there is more than one view of what you presented(different battle maps of the game)? There seems to be interest by other members in a map of some kind, that is legible and less cluttered in appearence.

Another thing; In the "TO the round tops", The Devil's Den, Weatfield, ect. are not used in courier messages, but are clearly listed as objectives on the map, but not locations, which confounds me to a degree. It's closely related to what I have in mind, however, not the main issue.