Spanish Civil War ToT Mod

Patine,

Thanks for the offer Patine. I agree wholeheartedly that we will all miss Agricola's playtesting skills. I have no doubt he would have clocked this scenario within days. Whenever I design something I always have it in the back of my mind 'What would Agri do here'!

I would appreciate your input. I would like the scenario to be fun for all levels of player. I hope that the scenario will usually end in a Republican defeat or a stalemate unless the player is at the top of his game. If you are as rusty as you say you will be able to give me valuable feedback as an average player. (A category I would also put myself in!)

Tech,

I did have a spy unit (Fifth Column) but this was really intended for the Nationalists so I dumped it. I may being back a limited number of spies for the Republicans (perhaps disguised as a Rebel unit of some kind) just to spy on enemy defences. Dolores Ibárruri will feature in the events text but I don't think I will use her as a unit

I'm trying to remember how to prevent the human player from pillaging but having little luck. I can alter the 'Pillage What' entry but in game the orders the option to Pillage (Shift+P) is still there. I want to remove the option from the orders drop down (though players could still press Shift=P if they really want to). I have done a quick Google search but come up blank.

In principle will this event work if on turn 38 the Nationalist flag 1 is switched on? Or do I need to use masks etc... My logic would say that this event would be sufficient but its been a while since I worked with flags!

@IF
TURN
turn=38
@AND
Checkflag
who=Nationalist Spanish
flag=1
state=On
@THEN
CREATEUNIT
unit=Example Unit
Count=8
owner=Nationalist Spanish
veteran=yes
homecity=NONE
randomize
locations
10,10
endlocations
@ENDIF

Why not just use a house rule?

I will, but its nice to back it up with an in-game removal of the option. I know you can restrict the types of improvement that can be pillaged but I'm not sure you can prevent it entirely in game.

I have just finished writing the events for the Aragon, Ebro and Catalonia offensives that will only trigger if certain cities are in Republican or Nationalist control, so if the Republican player exceeds expectations they won't have to deal with a major attack in their rear areas! The Aragon offensive is designed for the human player and is more of a reinforcement event with units equipped from French sources after the Anschluss spurred them into belated action. This also solved my spare spot dilema. I decided to create a new Republican Infantry unit called 'Republican Ebro Army'. This army of twelve divisions was hastily assembled from a mass draught of young boys, middle aged men and Nationalist prisoners of war. Needless to say their combat ability fell some way short of the existing Ejército Popular de la República units and this will be reflected in their stats and appearance. At least they will be available in numbers at a vital time and can replenish the Republican ranks after the crucial battles in Aragon.


*Late war Republican Army of Ebro (French equipped) and Nationalist Flechas (Italian supplied and Italian officered - Spanish rank and file) units.

I just need to add a few economic events (similar to the ones from Tech's American Civil War scenario where certain cities provide a monthly gold income) and add a few more historical text events and I should be done.

Really looking forward to the results of this effort Drew - keep up the progress!

Need anything drawing for it? I seem to have finally hit a purple patch of being able to slap together pixel art in good time for a change

Thanks Gareth. I have a really, really good feeling about this scenario. Like a really good feeling and I can't wait to get it finished so I can play it myself. The events have been a joy to put together. They really are quite simple to deal with. Initial rebellion events - Battle of North East - Battle of Guadalajara - Battle of the North/Asturias - Battle of Teruel - Aragon Campaign - Ebro Campaign - Catalonia Campaign simples. Throw in the reinforcements events based on the tech tree for the Republic and dates for the Nationalists plus some hypothetical reward events for the Republicans progressing better than they did historically and the game just comes together nicely.

I'm looking forwards to seeing the units progress as well, from the Militia columns, through the Ejército Popular and onto the Ebro Army with a heavy dose of Soviet hardware and some International Brigadistas. Should be a real journey.

I think I have all the units I need but if you can see anything you think could be improved I'm
more than willing to listen to suggestions. One unit I would like to alter slightly is the Savoia-Marchetti SM.81. Would it be possible to darken the camoflage as below or paint it like the Br.20 and SM.79. It just looks too light and sticks out a bit (too WWII Italian) though I realise it is based on a historically accurate scheme.



Other than that I have been more than adequately provided for with fine SCW units.

I'm also looking forward to e-mailing Pablostuka when it is finished. I spoke to him a few years ago when I first started dabbling with this project. He was thrilled that people were still playing and enjoying his scenario after all these years and encouraged me to crack on with it. It was always a great scenario, limited by the capabilities of MGE. With the advances with ToT and now ToTPP I think it will finally realise its full potential!

I'm working on the Republican economy/science rate/Foreign financial aid at the moment. I can get the books to balance at the start with the extra event money coming in from eleven key cities being under Republican control giving approximately 550 gold per turn (this will drop to 325 per turn after the loss of the North). I have factored in the change in the economy after half the country is overrun by the Rebels and I can tweak things to keep Republican finances just about stable with Soviet aid until the point that they should lose either Madrid, Catalonia or Valencia/Cartagena area. At this point things will run at a deficit. I'm happy with how the economy will pan out.

My biggest issue is the science rate. Ideally the Republicans should expect to gain a tech per turn to keep up with the historical reinforcements (boosted by extras for major victories) but after the loss of half of the country the science rate drops to a tech every two turns. After the fall of the North, Malaga and the other cities captured by the Nationalists prior to the Aragon offensive the tech rate drops down to a tech every 4 turns.

To keep the tech rate somewhere near to a tech per turn I have several options and I would like your advice on the best way to achieve this:

1) Alter the tech paradigm

2) Introduce trade units in the Soviet Aid

3) Create an extra Science beakers terrain near Madrid / Barcelona / Valencia

4) Add Science wonders in these cities

5) A combination of the above

I'm going to tinker with this and I'm sure I can find a solution that will work (adding Copernicus to Barcelona doubles the science output to 200 and brings the techs per turn down to 3) but advice would still be appreciated.

I know well the issues of bookkeeping for the intended human player in scenarios, McMonkey. In my old EotRS (which I hope to one day return to, especially with fairline's recent Japanese planes and infantry), the budget was so bad, even Agricola admitted he could only pay the bills through the plunder from cities and caravans straight across the map! It's a factor of the game that is one of the more difficult parts of scenario design to balance, as the finances are always balanced based on the grossly unrealistic vanilla game standards.

Option 2 - Introduce trade units in the Soviet Aid is an interesting one. I could create an island called USSR which could be the spawning round for the aid shipments. The existing Supply Convoy (Truck) and Supply ship (Designed to destroy itself against 'Barbarian' Port for event money/creation of 1x Fighter and 2x Supply convoy bonus) could both be utilised.

The Supply Convoy could then be set to be a trade unit and the player can decide whether to disband it for its shield value (its current purpose) or establish a trade route. I could even remove the event that gives money for the Supply Ship destroying itself as the trade pay-offs can be very lucrative (perhaps too lucrative to use the Supply Convoy as a shield bonus!).

Another option would be to scrap the Transport ship and just have the Supply Ship. The Republicans start with a few but don't really need to use them. An invasion of the Balearics will probably be one of the last things on the players mind (an event does produce a half hearted landing) and if the player gets to a stage in the game where they feel strong enough they can still use the Supply Ships can still be used as troop transports.

The Transport ship could then be used for a second type of Supply Convoy. One for shield value and one for trade. They can then independently be event produced randomly or at set turns in the USSR island and run the gauntlet of Italian subs and bombers to try and offload their cargo at Spanish ports.

This would then give the player options. I could remove the event creating the money and Supply Convoy Trucks and have the Supply ships carry them from the USSR to Spain. The supply ship can still destroy itself to trigger the event to create some gold and a fighter unit and it will have provided useful service by transporting the two or more types if Supply Convoy Trucks (trade and shields) plus any other ground units I choose to spawn in the USSR.

There are quite a few options available. I don't want to upset the balance of the scenario unnecessarily when there are simpler solutions available (the science terrain + a few science wonders and more science improvements in Republican strongholds) but I think I should consider this extra dimension. The simpler solution is more stable but won't allow for dramatic up and downturns in the Republican's situation.

I could even alter the Tech events so that they spawn the units in the USSR and not just appear in ports when the tech is discovered so that the player has to transport reinforcements through enemy controlled waters. Aircraft could be treated slightly differently as adding an aircraft carrier might be a step too far.

This is the last aspect of the game I need to get right and possibly the most important. I have several alternative test saves I can experiment on and I'm not going to rush into something I later regret (the master copy is backed up safely). Techumseh has some insight form your supply events work on the Burma campaign?

I'm reluctant to veer of course at this late stage when everything is coming together so well and only the economy needs tweaking. Yet another option is to shelve the modified supply changes, get the thing working in its pre-brainwave form and get that tested and working. I can then work from a backup copy and experiment with these new ideas. At least then I would be able to release a working version of the game. Once that is done I can always go back and attempt an expanded version and if that fails I have lost nothing. My nightmare scenario is over-stretching my capabilities and failing to produce a working scenario <shudder>.

I think I might have just talked myself around for now. Thanks for listening. As ever your wisdom would be appreciated!

I have been having a look at the shipping option. If I create an island (Called From Odessa) on hex 129,101 in the Eastern part of the map it is ideally placed to send Supply ships with 15 move points to either Barcelona, Valencia or Cartagena. It will always take three turns to arrive (if its not sunk!) as 15 moves x2 is always just shy of port. This allows the player to be tactical and decide where to end turns to try and avoid submarines or bombers, but they will never be totally safe!

I did think of an island in North Africa, but I think it is unnecessary with the ideal placement of 'From Odessa' and makes it too easy for the player to skirt round the North African coast. 'From Odessa is also just shy of the safe harbour of Mahon on Menorca.

I'm not a huge fan of house rules unless they are simple to follow and easy to remember. For this aspect of the scenario the simple rule will be:

- Only dock in cities with Ports (the Barbarian unit just off the coast) IE Barcelona, Valencia or Cartagena. No docking in the Balearic Islands! (I will remove the port from Alicante for game play purposes).

- Units may only offload inside the destination port city.

- Aircraft may not offload at sea, they must dock in a city!

This way I can include an aircraft carrying supply ship and a troop carrying one (unless TheNamelessOne introduces a ship with the ability to carry both land and air)

I'm thinking along less radical lines at the moment. Making small changes, testing and adding if successful rather than risky radical changes. Adapting the Republican supply events to spawn in From Odessa will be very quick and easy. All I need to do is give the Republicans a bit of a head start on the tree so that the first few batches of reinforcements begin their journey sooner to account for the three turn arrival time.

I really think the new supply system will add value to the scenario and make the battle for the Balearic Islands an important issue in the war. I will need to work out how to handle the battle so that the Republicans have a chance to capture them without just offloading reinforcements straight from 'From Odessa'.

I will leave the trade unit for now as if it is not handled very carefully it could really unbalance the scenario. Perhaps 'From Odessa' can have very low trade output as from initial testing the pay-offs to Madrid and Barcelona are very high. Getting the balance right there will take some careful testing and consideration!

I would advise against adding more transports, as opposed to "supply" ships. I suspect most Soviet supplies arrived on their ships or on privately chartered ones, not Republican ships that could be diverted to other purposes. No need to create ahistorical naval activity around the Balearic's. Fussy and largely random naval action every turn might prove a bit tedious, imho.

Another option would be to handle Soviet supplies/reinforcements more abstractly using events. I used this approach in American Civil War to represent the impact of the Union blockade, as you know. You could use research to determine the type and timing of Soviet aid, and make the size of each delivery dependent on the number of controlled ports.

Thanks for the advice Tech. The events should create between 1-3 Supply Ships on average per turn who's only purpose will be to avoid the Italian Subs and bombers, slip through the blockade, and dock in either Cartagena, Valencia, or Barcelona where the troops, aircraft of Supply Trucks they are carrying will disembark (a house rule means they can ONLY disembark in these three ports). The Supply Ship will then disband itself by attacking the port unit next to the city triggering an event that will give a cash reward. This destruction is also a house rule and will prevent the a historical situation you warn against.

I hope that this struggle to get supplies through will add to the games appeal and not be tedious, but if after testing it does prove to be so I have the original Republican reinforcements events file backed up so I can revert to the simpler system (IE the Technology spawns the units in Spanish ports).

I have been mulling over the economy/science situation and I have decided to go for a compromise between the Odessa supply route for units and a re-balancing of the Republican economy and science rate to keep the reinforcements (spawned from Tech discovery) flowing until slowed down when their strongholds (Vizcaya, Asturias, Catalonia, Levante or Madrid) fall.

I won't be introducing the Trade type Supply Truck at this point as it is too difficult to judge its effect on the balance of the game. If after testing I decide the Republican player does need a boost I will simply replace some of the 'Shield' type Supply Trucks spawned in Odessa with 'Trade' ones. This would involve sacrificing the Spanish Foreign Legion Cavalry unit. A major alteration of the events would not be required to achieve this as they are fairly rare.

I have re-written the Republican supply events with the Odessa option and will test them in a special events file with just them and the Nationalist Naval and air units in the Balearic Islands included. This way I can get the balance right without running a full and lengthy play-test of the entire events file.

When it comes to getting the science rate and economy right I have created several test saves.

1) Pre Rebellion

2) After first wave of Rebellion

3) After loss of the North and rest of historical nationalist victories pre Aragon campaign

The data from these saves has allowed me to add science improvements / wonders / special high science terrain to core Republican cities (such as Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia) and tweak the scenario tech paradigm so that the flow of reinforcements remains near one per turn after stage 3. To prevent the Republicans developing multiple technologies per turn at the start of the game I will be removing a lot of Libraries/Universities and Research Labs from cities that will fall to the Nationalists in the first few months. This is possible as the Nationalists do not rely on science for their reinforcements. It will also help prevent the science rate going through the roof if the Republican player starts to reconquer significant territory later in the game.

The last part of this balancing act is the gold per turn events for holding key cities (in Vizcaya, Asturias, Levants, Catalonia and vitally Madrid). As the Republicans lose territory so their economic and science situation deteriorates. Selling improvements is not allowed (disabled by the ToTPP option) and the only other means of cash will be the Supply Ships destroying themselves on the port units. I expect that the Republican player will have cut food rations to maximise science beakers in cites and there will be little surplus cash for rush building units (incremental rush building is disabled with ToTPP). The 'Shield' Supply Trucks can move quickly along the railroads to cities that desperately require a certain unit type (the Truck disbands in city for half its fairly substantial shield value).

All this may sound complicated, but it should just be a case of tweaking values (cash via events, number of Supply units etc...) to get the economy working but vulnerable and the techs running at close to one tech per turn.

My second play-test (of first few months) has confirmed that the economy and science rate are now working, the Nationalist Rebellion and initial advances events are working and the modified supply events are working. I'm just trying to slog my way through the historical text events. I want to add some flavour to the scenario without boring the player to death. Once they are done I will run my first real play-test where I will command the Republican forces to ensure they have enough reinforcements to hold the line and, if properly handled, push the Nationalists back.

All of the historical events are done. It was a bit of a long winded task as, in many cases, I had to merge new text I had found on Wikipedia and other sources with the existing text myself or Pablostuka had written. It was worthwhile as while I went through it I added quite a few new events, many with flags so they react to the situation in the game,including the Jarama offensive.

The last thing I would like to try and add, before I start play-testing in earnest, is Leonardo's workshop to the Republicans. In principle this should allow me to upgrade the Militia units into the Peoples army as the historical events render them obsolete. I would also like to obsolete the International Brigades later in the game but I'm not sure how this will work out with their excellent stats. It's been a while since I worked with this wonder and I know I had a few difficulties when working on Aeterna Civitas III. I will make another backup save point and if things don't work as I hope I will scrap the idea, but it might just work perfectly first time. Worth a try!

It looks like I have found a way to utilise Leonardo's workshop. Upon initial testing with Leonardo's pre-built in Odessa the wonder upgrades existing Republican Infantry (loyal Army troops you start the game with - unbuildable) but none of the Militia units when they became obsolete. This seemed a bit pointless as the Republic doesn't start with many Republican Infantry units and it isn't much of an upgrade to Peoples Army.

After some experimentation and deliberation I decided to change the unit obsolescence in the rules file so that the Popular Front Militia units upgrade to Peoples Army instead. This way the upgrade of around 20-30 units into the new Peoples army is a boost but not as unbalancing as if all the Anarchists and POUM Militia upgraded as well. This is especially important as the POUM act as the 'Partisan' unit, rising up to resist the Nationalists when a city is captured.

Historically the Popular Front would was most in line with the Republican Government and would have been most willing to submit to its authority, whilst the Anarchists and POUM resisted the Governments (increasingly under Communist influence) and had to be suppressed and their units disbanded. I'm happy with how this works and I'm going to leave it like this. To spend many hours fiddling with Leonardo's seems like a distraction I could do without at this stage and could prove to be buggy anyway. It works and I'm going to go with what I have!

Great, I'll watch "Land and freedom" tonight. Thanks for the inspiration.

Love that film. I believe it is loosely based on George Orwell's book. ¡No Pasarán!

I'm just going to start my first real play-test, resisting the Nationalists with everything I've got. From my initial 'passive' play-test I think everything works OK and now, hopefully, it should just be a case of getting the reinforcements balance right (easily done by changing count= in the events) and tweaking some unit stats. That's the theory anyway.

A can make a few observations about Leonardo's Workshop in scenarios, based on my experience with "Red October". I wanted to upgrade static Central Powers units on the eastern front into mobile ones so they could attack when the Germans and Austro-Hungarians broke the cease-fire and began their 1917 offensive in Russia. The problem was there were five different types of units, and I wanted them to upgrade with the same pre-req technology. But they all turned into German infantry, even if they were, say, A-H cavalry. I found that changing the role of each unit ensured they turned into the same type as the original. So one was given the attack role, one defense, one was air superiority, one naval superiority, and one was naval transport. Using lots of moveunit events made sure all types went in the right direction and attacked Russian units.

The trick is that the new unit type must be buildable, or Leo's won't switch the old unit to it. The original unit does not have to be buildable.

Thanks for the advice Tech. If I need to make any of the other Militias upgrade I will follow this guide.

I decided to make Anarchists cheaper than other Militias as a USP (unique selling point). POUM are created when cities are captured, Asturian Miners via events and the Popular Front Militia will upgrade into the Peoples Army so I decided to make the Anarchists cheaper so the player has an incentive to build them too. This should maintain a pretty good balance of Militia types in game.

I started my playtest this afternoon before work. I'm looking forwards to a lazy morning of coffee and Civ2 tomorrow!

Things are going well in my first play-test. The economy is working very well (in as far as the Republic is relying on Soviet aid shipments to stay solvent) and the science rate it just about staying at one technology per turn...just. The unit stats are working very well after a few minor tweaks. All of the events seem to be working as planned. The only major problem is the Nationalists still seem determined to send the Army of Africa east instead of north to attack Madrid from the south. I think this can be remedied with a few move unit events that will draw the Legionarios and Regulares north whilst leaving the Italians and Nationalist Army units in Andalucia.

The reinforcements and naval campaign are both working very well. The only problem is the aircraft carriers 20 capacity. Hopefully the next version of ToTPP will remedy this as it makes loading the aircraft in Odessa a bit messy. I might just re-order the reinforcement events so that there are never more than 5 aircraft at one time. This should not be too difficult to accomplish.

The game is tough! However, with a solid strategy, well controlled logistics and some discipline I think the player can make headway. My first attempt has been a bit haphazard and has lacked a clear strategy and I'm getting my ass kicked as a result. This is fine as it reflects the historical reality. Had the Republicans been able to be more focused they may have had more of a chance.

I'm working nights for the next few days and providing it's peaceful (touch wood) I should be able to make the changes and start my second proper play-test. I brought a reconditioned laptop from E-Bay (very cheap ex-Argos office stock) and I now store everything on a solid state hard-drive with a usb connection so I can swap between my desktop and laptop without getting things mixed up. So far I'm pretty pleased with the way this project is working out. I hope it continues to be so hassle free!!!