Choosing sides in Meeting Engagement

[Isto]

If all hex are neutral and in the middle it would be a huge advantage to know which way you are going to play with and in some cases you want to do a setting which depends on it.

So is there a way to know which side you start the game or control it somehow ?

[Imp]

There is a list somewhere I think - wont be all encompassing there are hundreds of possible combinations.
Can often guess based on geographic location, does not work if do what if battles like Brazil vs Germany.
Alternatively save the map deploy your HQ unit to find out, restart the battle and load the map.

[scorpio_rocks]

or while viewing the map, try hitting "Redraw V Hexes" till you get a spread out option which will change the outlying Victory Hexes to the flag of that side and then hit again till you get the centralised neutral grouping you desire.

[Isto]

Yeah, but in my experience it can change randomly with the same map.

Some maps are also built so, that player would want to start from certain side when going first let's say for example there is a map where you are supposed to defend a city that is placed on left side of the map in a meeting engagement battle. In a map like that i would prefer the one starting right to be player 1 so they arrive in the city at the same time, making it a meeting engagement game.

In instances like that, it would be nice to be able to coordinate which side you start with and i have a memory that i had a way of doing this in the past but i do not seem to recall how, or do i remember wrong.

[scorpio_rocks]

It is afaik never random, and it wont change once you get to the view map stage either.


The method I described will always work.

[DRG]

Originally Posted by scorpio_rocks

It is afaik never random, and it wont change once you get to the view map stage either.


The method I described will always work.

This is true. If you have a situation where all are V hexes are clustered in the middle showing neutral a press of SHIFT _ or pressing the redraw V-Hex button will redraw the pattern and unless you have the game set up to only place 3 seven hex clusters you will, after a couple of presses see your sides flag on the side of the map you will start from

[Mobhack]

For most opponent pairings, you will get to know which side they play from after a little experience. However that can change e.g. UK vs Gemany in the desert in WW2 to Europe. In MBT though against some partisan opponents, the side can be random (I think vs VC, and PLO are ones?).

It is not a problem in the attack as one side owns all the V-hexes but can be confusing in the meeter as all are usually neutral. In the original SSI game, one clutch was allocated to each player and one to neutral - meaning the only battle was really for the middle clutch, but since the one on your side had your flags then you knew what side you were on. But there was no way to change the map or placement other than exiting and restarting the entire process in the original game.

We are thinking of a way for players to see what side of the map they have assigned in a battle, probably in the View Map function for the next release. It could be an "extra" flag on each map side (but some players may report that as a bug as there are 2 too many flags! ) or perhaps on the Battle Report button we can report left and right side of the map alongside the battle type and the 2 players.

[Isto]

Somehow i thought the option was in preferences / Battle screen.

Could have possible been in the map editor.

I do remember accomplishing this somehow.

[Mobhack]

Originally Posted by Isto

Somehow i thought the option was in preferences / Battle screen.

Could have possible been in the map editor.

I do remember accomplishing this somehow.

You are thinking of the scenario editor, where you can choose who goes on the left and the right.

[Isto]

No no, it affected normal meeting engagements with custom made maps.

Does not really matter though as player 1 can always skip the first turn.