[WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

As mentioned earlier, I made a new campaign. I already did one test runthrough and changed some balance stuff, but it would be nice to get more eyes on it and feedback from others.

This campaign is for a very rare breed of players: The one who likes fighting through really rough terrain on foot... ;)

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

I did a quick check and it plays out to the end perfectly. I'm still trying to figure out what's going wrong with the Freyburg campaign in between the other things we are doing

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

I wonder, should I maybe revisit the Freyberg campaign and maybe regenerate the core force or something like that? Could that help maybe?

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

You could try that but it works great right to the very end and you never see the final campaign score and that's why I held it out from last years release but at the time I thought I could figure out what was causing it but I didn't have the time at the time to give it any attention.

Every once in a while I get an inspiration and try something but nothing so far has stopped it from shutting the game down instead of showing the end of the campaign screen.I had hoped the changes Andy made to the EXE to remove excess baggage from the DAT files would solve the problem but so far....no luck

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

It's been a while since I worked on it, but weren't there aux forces in the final scenario that start destroyed (0 crew). Could that cause some kind of screw up?

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Well, it's worth a try to see. Will do that now

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

WOO HOO!!! It's working.......still more testing to do. The Brit wrecks are not showing up but the Germans are and I finaly got the end of the campaign screen

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

It's the Brit wrecks they are set to FIX and if even one of them is left as FIX the campaign screen craps out at the end. The German ones are normal......no FIX no AUX and they still appear on the map but they aren't part of the campaign score. Right now I have it running but those Brit wrecks won't show up but they are just decoration anyway and if those have to be invisible then so be it

Still testing

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Here is the Revised Freyburg campaign in Slot 38. It won't show the wrecks in the last scenario but they are just decoration but it does now end with the campaign results screen

I have removed the attachment due to new problems found

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Cool! So that is finally fixed.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Not quite.

Those wrecks, both British and German, are "destroyed" but they are more than just decoration in that even though the men were set to zero to give them destroyed status when the scenario starts, they still have their original COST which means at games end that is calculated into the score for both sides and I am investigating further adjustments including simply removing them from the scenario.

As well I am still trying to figure out how the British tanks that start that last scenario near the far "east" edge got to where they are when they are here in the scenario....

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/attac...1&d=1587290767

But here when the battle starts
http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/attac...1&d=1587291083

and how I still need to figure out how we end up with three platoons all "P"

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/attac...1&d=1587290021


So right now the campaign is playable and will allow progression to the end of campaign screen but there are still oddities that need ironing out



Don

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

I suspect that tank placement might be caused by the scenario extraction process somehow?

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Why those and why there ?........IDK either but that's the next step. Methinks there's been a bit too much "creativity" employed in this scenario and the game has lost track of things as they have been shuffled then reshuffled and the fix may be to wipe it clean and start fresh but that's my last resort

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

This is turning into quite a PITA........but in an "interesting" way. I have a version that does not start Three British tanks deep in the German lines ( yeah..!)

But now I have two formations with Q as their designator which is better than three with P but still not right

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

......and I just discovered the first map was resized somehow so I've removed the attachment and will re-issue this when the damn thing is right which the way it keeps resisting change may be never :mad:

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Don't think so. Suspect it may be from all the deleting and re-buying and the "wreck" creativity. I had one that was great except there were patrols deployed in the German lines but they were also in their carriers. If the carriers were unloaded they would teleport back to the carriers.......I redid it and now I have one where they units stay where I put them but have three formations all identified as "P"..... other than that it plays OK and there are no phantoms scouting German Positions but I'm going to take a break from it for awhile.

The fact that now every time I end the fourth battle I get the campaign score screen which was the main problem before......these other things are annoyances...vexing annoyances. I have done just about everything except clearing all units from that sceanrio......saving to clear it then reloading and rebuying everything BECAUSE..... I keep hoping something less drastic will work

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

This is an interesting theme to me personally. The Petsamo-Kirkenese offensive took place at around 70 North.

I live at 66 North. :)

When I first got into making scenarios the Soviet 99th Corps in Maretskov’s offensive was the very first thing I researched. But, I never went ahead with it because I saw no solution to the mixing the peculiar nature of the terrain in the far north with a fun game. (The game has evolved considerably since then).


First off, the fixed core won’t work for me. I don’t want infantry platoon leader units being MG’s or mortars – this will be problematic for leadership reasons when the battle starts.

I opted to make it an open core and built a new core force for myself:

Bn HQ
Forward Observer
Bn Spt Co (2 Ski scout sections, Ski sniper, Ski pioneer plt, HMG plt, MG plt, 45mm AT-gun section, infantry gun section, 82mm mortar section)
Ski rifle company
Ski rifle company
Ski rifle company
SMG Company

I made it a Ski battalion giving the troops better mobility. Added a SMG armed company (non-ski units) for comparison reasons.


Map looks nice, Venhola I assume. I’m not sure you’ll find green trees this far north in October though...

It is hard to judge lines of sight which might be annoying to some players but that is largely how the actual terrain is – large amounts of ravines, gullies and the like, and higher hills offering better observation in good weather.


Strongpoint Zuckerhutl existed in reality. Nice.

I decide for a frontal attack without much finesse. Brute force. I expect the enemy to be a reinforced company (Gebirgsjäger) with a few bunkers and small calibre AT-guns and limited artillery. I have 60 turns and I’m confident I’ll be able to take the strongpoint without taking too many losses. I aim to plaster all discovered targets with my plentiful artillery.

The attack goes in and by about turn 40 the majority of VHs are taken. My losses are not quite minor though. I lose a few scout units and have a number of infantry sections shot up, 117 Soviet losses vs 206 German. In the end I decide not to finish off the last German units in order to conserve my own infantry strength for future battles. The game plays out the entire 60 turns. The German defenders do not counterattack.
I did not know where the ammo wagons would appear. Moving at about 1 hex per turn they never made it to any unit in need of ammo (mortars) before it became clear that the German force was all but beaten – given that I had deployed the mortars a bit forward.

Overall the scenario is well balanced IMHO – not too easy, not too frustrating. :up:


https://66.media.tumblr.com/d5084b4f...5fee20c416.png

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

The MGs are not platoon leaders, they are just in the first slot of the platoon. The platoon leaders are infantry squads marked with "PL".

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Right, nonetheless, I think I prefer to have the 0 unit being the leaders. Just my preference.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Yeah it's fine. I am just gonna assume that if you finish a scenario early it might be in part due to the ski troops.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Second battle - night action for the hills.

I went for an attack on a narrow frontage with the companies in echelon, assuming the enemy had no indirect fire assets. The ski companies can negotiate the terrain at about twice the speed of my non ski company.

I estimated the enemy to be two companies of Gebirgsjäger and one company worth of artillerymen infantristisch eingesetzt and wanted to avoid engaging the bulk of the enemy force. The actual German defence was significantly weaker.

The map is good, I found no errors, but as before, it is hard to judge LOS until basically drawing fire. I took a few more losses than I'd care to admit.

The GebJ "Counterattack-platoon" deployed to the lower left counterattacks when most VHs are taken. Other German units do not seem to counterattack (I'm guessing this was by design).

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Thanks for the useful feedback. I wonder how the next mission will go, the setup is a bit different on it.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

- -- - - - - - - - SPOILERS - - - - - -- - - - -


Height 281

I expected about a German GebJ Btl, likely reduced in numbers but still about three companies, entrenched with MGs in good positions with good vis, perhaps some mines too.

I expected the AI to spot my advance early and have his mortars go to work quickly.

For this reason I let the non-Ski units start the advance and kept the bulk of my arty ready to silence the enemy mortars. I expected the first wave to get bogged down but hoped to pinpoint his mortars and maybe the MGs.

My advance, however, draws no fire...?

I figured it must be a reverse slope defence and that the AI would counterattack once the VHs were lost. I wanted to avoid taking all the VHs before my force were in good positions to beat back a counterattack (still expecting it to be Bn strength).

The German counterattack begins at about turn 30, before my force was really in place, and gives my spearhead trouble but is not strong enough to beat back the full Russian main force. The German force equals about a reinforced company.

Not all German troops counterattack either. Some remain in their positions (I imagine by design) until the end.

My core is too beat up now. I will have to get rid of units to bring others up to strength. The AT guns and sled transport will have to go. Maybe some of the SMG inf too...

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Thanks! Did the non counter attacking Germans fire at your units on the victory hexes?

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Some did, both sMG and infantry units, while I also used smoke to mask my troops in an effort to keep losses down...

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Ok. The thing I tried to do was portray an "ambush" where the Germans held fire on the reverse slope until the Russians crested the hill. Would you say that worked out (within reason of the AI) or does the setup need adjusting?

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

It worked fine in my game. The timing of the counterattack was just right. My intention was to position my force in a comfy setup around the VH clusters, take the VHs and obliterate the AI counterattack - but this did not happen as the counterattack went in while only my spearhead had made it onto the target hill(s)...

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Hello.
Here is the updated version of this campaign. Typos were fixed, the difficulty of some scenarios was tweaked and some other small fixes were done.

The old version can be regarded as obsolete.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

In the last scenario the German units at the top left do not appear. They were grayed out at the end of the scenario. Only the 2 aa guns were there.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

I had shelled the area but none seem to have been damaged so I don't think they retreated off map.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Interesting... IIRC these are set to counter attack at some point. Thanks for the report! Did you play the whole campaign up until the last mission? Any other feedback or bugs?

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Everything else worked fine. Had to sell back some units to get points for repairs.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

I just ran the scenario with both players as the AI and it looks like the AI retreats the infantry off map immediately. Will try to fix this.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Alright, I fixed it by changing the reaction turn. This is the latest version of the campaign now.

BTW, what was your final result of the campaign? (Victory level)

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

I got a DV in every scenario and the campaign.

For the first I split into 3 groups (one on each set of objectives). This was the hardest.

The key was to focus on the objectives and ignore the enemy forces outside of them. I used a lot of smoke to do this. I would later repel the counter attacks, which was easier than dislodging them in the first place.

I also scrapped the SMG squads early on for points and replaced them with rifle squads when I had leftover after repairs. Most of my fire was concentrated long range fire so they did not fit the strategy. I used the smoke to create fire lanes so I always had the local advantage.

I would also use the scouts out front to spot targets for the HMGs to chew up.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Please keep the scenarios coming. They are helping me stay sane during quarantine and are greatly appreciated.

I will gladly playtest anything you would like checked before publication.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

Cool, thanks! Could you please roughly describe what you did in the final scenario? That one is the hardest for me to predict, since it has many possible outcomes and approaches.

Re: [WIP] Campaign - Arctic Struggle
 

I used my build points to buy 2 extra landing craft.

I put my HMGs and mortars on the island at the top right to pick off targets at range once they were spotted.

I laid smoke and landed my DUWKs at the lower/middle part of the lower island and worked my way north.

Once that was clear and the landing craft had loaded tanks, I again laid smoke and crossed the short straight between the lower island and the shore on the left side of the water.

Forces then split into 3 groups. One went up and right to clear the units across from my HMGs. One went up and left to finish off the German mortars and take the central objectives. The third went down and left to clear that area.

Once these were clear I sent one group up the road towards the final objective and had the central group head the same way but cut above the woods.

I used the aircraft to spot targets and then had my arty and HMGs take them out. Enemy mortars were the top target.

My heaviest losses were from German arty fire while my units were grouped together after landing. I had the DUWKs pull back after landing so that they would not be destroyed by this.

I decided against landing at the points across from the top right island since it was a narrow front and had wire and presumably mines. Since the DUWKs would be carrying the troops I decided they were too vulnerable to make an opposed landing. I figured that I had plenty of time so I chose the safer spot.

When it came to ferrying tanks I landed them at the same point as my initial landing and then had them go north on their own. Another landing craft was there to shuttle them across and the first landing craft went back to repeat the process. This was faster than transporting them all the way to their final destinations.