The LEADER Mod

Discuss and post your mods and scenarios here for others to download.

Moderator: Vic

lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »

Image



Why can’t I download the Mod right now?
[edit] Ready to go! The LEADER Mod

Well it’s all done. Tested, balanced and ready to go. Been that way for quite a while. I won’t, however, be putting it out there for download quite yet.

Is this some kind of self-indulgent marketing drive to drum up interest in my mod, you ask? Nope.

It’s all about the manual. The mod is reasonably straightforward and intuitive. However there is a lot of it. This is a big *ssed mod. Without at least a cursory read through of the manual you’d be struggling.

Which brings us back to the manual. Sadly the Documentation Department have let the team down and haven’t yet done what they were supposed to do. The same no-hoper Doc Dept. (me) have threatened to never do so given the size of the task and a severe lack of interest given lots of other shiny, alternative, attractions vying for their spare time.

In order to circumnavigate the recalcitrants lurking with the Doc.Dept. I’ve come up with the plan of doing it in bite sized chunks. Which will be posted here, all being well, on a daily basis.

Once it’s all there I’ll wrap it up into a PDF and upload it, along with the mod, to the AT community website.

Give it a week or two. If you have an interest in the mod you’d probably find that there is too much to digest in one hit anyway and that reading it in instalments is a better way to go.

I’ll endeavour to make it entertaining.


Thoughts from the Chairman on Design


A while back I also wrote an AAR based around a paper and dice leader system that I jury rigged for AT.

AAR with Leaders

There is very little of what I did back then in this mod but the experience was useful in determining what worked for implementing leaders and what didn’t.

Basically there are two ways you can go with leaders. You can opt for a broad based approach with many leaders who are depicted in skimpy detail. Alternatively you can go for a deeper approach with fewer leaders but ones that are portrayed in greater depth.

On the scale of broad to deep my design sits way over on the far right. Minimal breadth, maximum depth. To the extent of there being only a single leader at any one time.

“What the heck?” I hear you cry. “Only one? How interesting can that be? “

You’ll have to judge that yourself. I can, however, assure you that you’ll have your hands full dealing with this sole leader.

Apart from the laser like focus mentioned above the other elements of the design are that it throws up a series of decisions. The nature of your leader requires you to make them. Eg. It’s fairly interactive.

This isn’t a passive leader composed of a bunch of numerical stats who sits there like a blob of tame jello on your map. No, this is a leader who has a personality. One who will, if he isn’t happy, will not be shy in letting you know. One who may even take issue with your decisions. This is a leader who requires careful handling.

When you hit the end turn button the mod aims that you not only be thinking about your military situation but that you’ll be praising, cursing, worrying etc. over your leader.

This is a deliberate choice on my part as I’ve found that ATG becomes – after prolonged use – somewhat dry and mechanistic. No fault of its own as it’s a wargame after all. A very good one. But it could, says I, benefit greatly from a dollop of colour and personality.

So the design consists of a narrow, deep focus, meaningful decisions (see below) and an attempt at an emotional connection (as best as can be managed within the confines of a computer game).


Decisions


Deciding on whether to wear a white or blue shirt to work is a decision. In the pantheon of great decision making it isn’t a biggie.

Tossing up whether to call in sick and go fishing for the day is a meaningful decision. One with consequences.

Unilaterally deciding to skip work, glug down an entire bottle of Jack Daniels, tear off your clothes and then tweet a picture of yourself frolicking amongst all those cute little fish to your work colleagues is not only a meaningful decision, it’s also a fun one (at the time).

My aiming point has been for decisions (within the mod) that are, above all, meaningful. Wherever possible I’ve also laced them with a small dose of fun.


A personal note to the Females amongst us

Are there any? There should be.

Regardless, you may have already picked up that I’ve referred to the leader as a ‘he’. The only leaders you will meet in this mod are all hairy-chested blokes. So where, oh where, is Boudicca?

Well she wasn’t an historical commander in WW2. Despite my best efforts I’ve been unable to find any female military leaders of significance, of any nationality, in this time period. Unfortunately you are stuck with testosterone charged men.

Sorry about that. As my wife is fond of saying, ‘you have my sympathy’.


Multi player Musings


This mod, like my Resource mod, is aimed squarely at single player random games.

Having recently been introduced to PBEM games I can see that they are very enjoyable and I’ve sat down and thought about how I could rejig my mods for multi player games.

It’s something that’s doable but very difficult. The nature of the ATG Editor is one of forward momentum. Retracing your steps and taking a different route is problematic because of the limited functionality within to support this, eg. search and replace. I don’t think it was ever intended for this purpose and the fact that it is flexible enough to enable the wide diversity of mods in the first place is quite amazing.

There is also the requirement to support and update the mod every time Vic releases a patch. Even with the excellent automated tools provided this is a time consuming, error prone, process. Having an additional, multi player version of the mod would double the workload.

As my spare time is finite and I have other projects vying for my attention this isn’t, unfortunately, an attractive proposition.

So the short answer is the same as before which is no.


Will it make the game Easier or Harder?

Difficult question to answer as at times it does both. What it will do is add another layer on top of the existing game. A layer without micromanagement, full of decisions and, hopefully, immersion.


Does it work with the RESOURCE mod?

Yes. In fact it is the same Masterfile. Simply one more selectable option.

You can happily use both mods together or one or the other. Doesn’t matter. Everything is compatible.

I considered renaming the combined mod to something catchy like the RES-LED mod but decided to keep them as separate names – and probably downloads - to avoid confusion. Whether you choose to download the RESOURCE mod or the LEADER mod you are getting the same file.


Image


Will the mod change anything in the Game?

Nothing. Same game. Plays identically (this is the case for both mods) apart from any mod-induced effects which are straightforward and well explained. Rest assured that your tanks will still snort, rattle and roll as they did before.


Modding


The underlying design of the mod is hard coded along with all the algorithms that run it. However all the variables that influence the balance of the mod have been parameterised (eg. they are a variable that you can tweak).

Balance is a funny thing. While everyone can be happy with the mechanics of a function, say the ability to promote your CIC, the effect of a promotion on his satisfaction levels and performance, for example, can be a topic for debate.

I’ve set the whole mod up according to what I think is fair and reasonable. I’ve also balanced it so everything works as a whole.

If your version of balance differs from mine then you can change things. Whenever I explain an area of the mod I’ll highlight the variables that influence it and explain their effects so that once you have your grubby paws on the mod you can fiddle away to your hearts content.

If you aren’t up to speed with the editor I will – if I remember – provide a straightforward explanation of how to tweak the controls.

I can do this because I actually sat down and designed the whole mod on paper before I put it together. As a result of this herculean effort of organisation and planning (not my strong suite, I’m a ‘wing it’ type of guy) I was able to specify that all of the variables, which influence the balance of the game, appear in the one spot.


Cheers,

Cameron
lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Not so brief Overview


The Big Picture


Consider yourself as the head of state. You run the place. In order to facilitate your conquest of the known world you have, as a direct report, a Commander in Chief (CIC).

Note: If you’re an American then the term ‘Commander in Chief’ refers to the President which is a little confusing. However ATG models a range of different countries with widely varied political / military command structures.

Rather than get tangled up with multiple naming conventions I’ve standardised on the term ‘CIC’ as the person who both is in charge of your military operations and who reports to you, the Supreme Political Authority.


Your CIC handles all the daily details of running the war. He has numerous nameless minions underneath him whom he prods and pokes to get the appropriate wheels turning. Your job is to manage your CIC for the best outcome.

Now the picture I’ve painted isn’t an accurate one. In reality you still move all the pieces around the board and make all the decisions. Wouldn’t be much point playing ATG otherwise. But if you imagine yourself as the Head of State with a subordinate CIC then you are on the right track.


Image


Your CIC, is in effect, another piece on the board. A super piece. But unlike all the other pieces he has a personality.

He has an opinion of his boss, you. He performs better or worse depending on your relationship with him. At times he may disagree with you and interfere with your decisions. If your relationship breaks down he may resign.

He is also vulnerable to all the things that you can imagine somebody might be exposed to in a war zone – disease, injury, accidents, death.

You are provided with a range of tools to enable you to manage your CIC. There is no set path to success here. Each CIC is unique.


Summary
• You are the Head of State residing in the Capital
• Your CIC reports to you



Getting to Know your CIC

A CIC consist of a range of traits as shown below on the left hand side. These traits impact various mod mechanics as shown on diagram, below right.

Without getting bogged down in details the main points are that your CIC has Skill traits which determine what bonuses he provides to your war effort in various situations. He also has a number of personality traits that wend and weave their way through a wide range of underlying processes and provide the basis from which the ‘character’ of your CIC is derived.

Finally there are some physical traits that are fairly self explanatory. Your CIC may be a fighting fit young buck, a frail old man clinging grimly to his walking stick or anything in between.


Image



Traits are important and no two CIC’s will be alike. There’s lots of interaction between the various traits that ensures that each CIC will be a swirling mix of competing and contradictory impulses. A bit like real people.

Whenever a new CIC is derived their traits are randomly generated. The algorithms can be weighted one way or another depending on the situation.

To prevent ‘churning’, eg. keep firing your CIC’s until you roll up a good one, it takes a while to get to know your new CIC. His traits are unlikely to be fully revealed until some time has passed.

Additionally firing one is a decision not to be taken lightly. There are consequences.

Summary
• A CIC consists of a randomly determined set of traits



The Benefits of a CIC

Any CIC, no matter how bad, is better than none. It is a fair bet that any CIC will be a mixture of both positive and negative qualities. It is up to you to manage him for the best outcome.

A CIC starts off at a rank of 1-star. The aim is to invest time and political capital into promoting them up to the dizzy heights of a 5-star commander.

Sadly some CIC’s, despite your urgings, won’t be able to rise beyond a particular rank as the ‘Peter Principle’ is alive and kicking within the mod.

In general, the higher the rank, the more useful your CIC will be.


Image


In game terms your CIC is restricted to Headquarter units. The mod delineates these into one of two types – The Supreme HQ and all the other, Field HQ’s.

Supreme HQ is fairly obvious. That’s the one in your capital. There is a reason why the Pentagon is situated in Washington D.C and not at beyond-the-black-stump, South Dakota. The Military and Political command structures of a country need to work together.

Field HQ’s are all the rest. You can move your CIC from HQ to HQ via air travel (the mod takes care of this once you have approved your CIC’s travel plans).


Image


The benefit your CIC provides depends on his location. While he is at your Supreme HQ he provides a global production bonus.

A fully fledged 5-star CIC with maxed out stats would provide a +20% bonus to your entire production per turn. A lowly 1-star can still provide a +4% bonus under ideal conditions.

These are significant game effects. Don’t get too excited, though, as getting to the point where you are benefiting from the 5-star +20% bonus is not easy. It is only at the end of a long, obstacle strewn road.

Now if your CIC is flown out a distant Field HQ then the production bonus ceases. He is no longer there at the centre of it all to kick the inefficient flunkies into action.

Instead he is out ‘In the Field’ where he provides a morale and readiness bonus to all units associated with that particular HQ. In effect he is shoring up a weak area of the front or prepping units for an offensive.

Straight away you have a conflict here. Restrict your CIC to your SHQ (Supreme HQ) and get the benefit of the production bonus or forgo the bonus and send him off to the front to provide an immediate boost to hard pressed troops.

“Big production bonus? ‘course I’m going to keep him at the SHQ!”

Not so fast as your decision isn’t as straightforward as it appears.

Firstly certain CIC’s will, because of their underlying skill traits, be better suited for one location or the other. A ‘hands-on’ CIC, for example, is likely to spend more time out and about which in turn bumps up his field bonuses.

Secondly your CIC, because of his personality, may express his own preferences. Does this matter?

It can. If you and your CIC find yourself pulling in different directions then you are staring down the barrel of a breakdown in relations. Off which I’ll talk about shortly.

There are a range of other factors that can impact on your decision where to position your CIC at any point in time.

A doddery old CIC with failing health isn’t somebody you want to put in the firing line, for example. On the other hand a CIC with poor control over his baser impulses isn’t a good bet sitting around your SHQ when he is exposed to all the temptations that a wartime capital offers.

Command Initiatives are the third benefit that flows from having a CIC. Every turn your CIC accumulates a number of ‘command points’ as a result of diligent staff work and logistical preparations. How many points they gain per turn depends on a range of factors that I won’t discuss here, suffice to say that once they achieve a certain threshold they can launch a Command Initiative.

This involves selected a field HQ and declaring such an initiative. The units attached to that HQ will gain a number of additional, bonus, action points which are very handy when launching an offensive or counter-attack.

Interesting decisions arise from this. The rate at which your CIC accumulates the needed command points and the required threshold for an initiative can be adjusted by policy settings.


Image


You have the ability to dramatically speed up the process but at the risk of your CIC declaring your initiative invalid and refusing to implement it when required. How big a risk is this? Depends on his personality.

Once an initiative is declared the benefits in extra action points that accrue to the units of the selected field HQ are increased by having your CIC present, on the scene, directing matters personally. If you are willing to put him in harms way – visiting and inspiring the troops in person – then the benefits are even greater.

Your CIC can alternatively do a Colonel Blimp and direct matters from the safety of Supreme HQ, back in your capital, but he will accumulate command points at a much slower rate and any initiatives he launches will have less impact.

Summary

• CIC’s commence at 1-star rank and can be promoted up to 5-star
• Your CIC can only move from one HQ to another
• Your Supreme HQ is at your Capital, all other HQ’s are considered to be Field HQ’s
• Located at your SHQ your CIC provides a global production bonus
• Located at a Field HQ your CIC provides a readiness and morale bonus
• Your CIC can launch ‘Command Initiatives’, these require an accumulation of ‘command points’
• Command Initiatives provide an Action point bonus to units attached to a Field HQ



The Perils of War

Flying your CIC around the map from HQ to HQ is a viable strategy. Put out a bushfire there, give a rousing speech here and be back home in time for dinner.

There are risks. The act of travel itself can involve anything from unavoidable delays to visceral outcomes of a more permanent nature.

Once in the field there is a small but distinct risk of injury from accidents.

Military operation zones aren’t renowned for safe and courteous driving. Add lots of dangerous, loaded weaponry and any visit to a field HQ can be a challenge. Ordering your CIC to get out and about, once he is there, to visit the troops will serve to ratchet up that risk.


Image


If the field HQ your CIC is visiting is bombed, bombarded or otherwise attacked then state funerals may rear their ugly heads. Like the last chopper out of Saigon, timing the departure of your CIC from a hard pressed HQ, that badly needs his help, is a delicate matter.

In theory the Supreme HQ should be a haven of tranquillity and utmost safety. Maybe. Your CIC could fall ill to any number of ailments that are rampant in times of war and stress. A young, fit CIC has little to fear here.

Sophisticated medical facilities are on hand to deal with any incapacity. As you sweat over your ailing CIC’s recovery you are presented with a range of decisions, none of them easy.


Image


Do I call in favours and access exclusive care facilities in a neutral country? Do I hang in there hoping he will recover on his own accord? Can I afford to be without a CIC for that long? What if he doesn’t make it? Or do I bite the bullet and relieve him from duty as he lies prostrate in his hospital bed, gambling on a better replacement?

Lastly there are the siren calls of various inappropriate attractions and behaviours that tempt your CIC in the midst of a wartime capital. How well your CIC handles these situations depends largely on his level of self-control.

How often your CIC is confronted by the opportunity to sully his own reputation is determined by how long a stint he has spent rattling around your Supreme HQ.

Regular field visits to your various HQ’s can be a breath of fresh air that keeps your CIC on the straight and narrow. Alternatively leaving him to stew in the capital for too long and he is liable to go to seed.


Image


Summary
• Your CIC lives in a dangerous war zone
• Your CIC’s traits can predispose him to certain risks
• Risks are higher when visiting a Field HQ



You and your CIC


Everybody has a boss. Your CIC’s boss is you.

You have a working relationship with your CIC. This is measured by your CIC’s level of satisfaction. This isn’t how he enjoys his job or how he feels about life in general. No, it is a direct reflection of his opinion of you. Yep, you.

Lots of things can affect it, most of which are shown in the diagram, below right.

Take a moment to read the list. All of the items mentioned are matters that you have control over.

“Well,” I hear you say, “if I control everything then how hard can it be to have anything other than a CIC who hero-worships me?”


At times, quite difficult.

The main obstacle to harmonious relations is that, while you are in charge and can order you CIC to do whatever you want, he also has an opinion. Because you are the person in charge your CIC will do as you ask (implementing contentious Command Initiatives being a possible exception) but if doing so is against his wishes then his level of satisfaction may be affected.


Image


Satisfaction is important because it can directly affect your CIC’s level of bonuses. A happy CIC will thrive in his job and gain higher levels of bonuses.

There is a snowballing effect in action here. The happier he is, the more his bonuses increase which will allow him to be promoted at a faster rate and gain ever higher bonuses.



Image



Good oh. But it works both ways. A grumpy CIC leads to a depressed CIC which eventually leads to a CIC who threatens to resign. One who may well do just that.

“Close the door on the way out,” you yell at his back. “There’s no place for dead beats in this man’s army!”

Right about here is where I mention the dark side of having a CIC. Ominous drum roll while I introduce the next topic…

Summary
• Satisfaction reflects your CIC’s opinion of you
• Satisfaction effects result in adjustments to your CIC’s bonuses
• The higher/lower the satisfaction level, the greater the chance of bonus gain or loss
• A sufficiently upset CIC will resign



What happens when I don’t have a CIC?


It would be nice to have a CIC that provides bountiful benefits and who wafts politely away once you wave your magic wand and tire of him. ‘Decent bloke’, you think, ‘but time that he was gone. I’ll run the show from now on.’

Unfortunately it doesn’t work like that. Once you tick the ‘Leader’ option box at the start of the game you are making a commitment to a command structure that has you at the top as the supreme political authority and a Commander in Chief (CIC) directly underneath you who runs the war effort.

All well and good but what happens when you don’t have CIC? Perhaps you fired or replaced him? Maybe he died of as a result of an accident, illness or enemy action? Could be that he resigned.

Either way you don’t now have a CIC. This is bad.

Imagine yourself as President of a large country. You are busy fighting wars on multiple fronts. One day, out of the blue, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff doesn’t turn up for the daily briefing due to one of the reasons stated above.

All of a sudden your War Office is a headless chook, running around not quite knowing what to do. Sure, replacements step into the appropriate shoes and the machinery of war keeps grinding on but not very efficiently.

You do what you can but you are the President, not a military dynamo. Without a CIC in place, your war effort is seriously hampered.

How badly? Well it depends on the level of chaos which results from the departure of your last CIC. The manner of his leaving.

Without going into specific details the absolute worst case scenario is if your CIC unexpectedly dies or resigns. One day there, the next day gone.

You have, commencing immediately, a -30% penalty to all of your production. Minus thirty!

If that was only for one turn then perhaps that’s a steep, but acceptable, price for clearing the dead wood from the office.

Perhaps. What happens whenever there is a ‘vacancy’ is that the mod generates a possible new candidate option. One per turn. These can vary from ‘Take the first available candidate’, to the ‘Normal selection process’ and, lastly, to ‘Select the best possible candidate’.

There is a random roll and the appropriate option turns up for you to accept or decline.

Chaos was mentioned above.

Well if the ‘vacancy’ arose due to a more-or-less planned event, eg you replaced him while he was in hospital, then it is assumed that you have had adequate time to select a suitable new candidate. In which case the random roll is heavily weighted towards a favourable option such as ‘Best possible candidate’.

For a situation with an inherently high level of chaos, eg. resignation, sudden death, where there is little time to choose a suitable replacement then the random roll will likely produce the outcome of ‘First available candidate’.


Image


Each turn there is a new random roll which generates a candidate option. You can choose to sit and wait until you get an attractive candidate but with a minus thirty percent production impairment how many turns are you willing to wait?

What difference is there between the various candidate options (assuming that you have selected one)? Flip back to the part on what makes a CIC. A big bunch of traits. Randomly determined.

The random trait generation algorithm is weighted depending on the type of candidate you choose. The ‘best available’ is likely to throw up a higher quality candidate while ‘first available’ may not be Mr. Terrific.

On the other hand a highly qualified and capable candidate could be one with definite views on his place in the world. And yours.

As you can see, having your CIC unexpectedly walk out the in disgust is not a trivial matter. If you find that you absolutely can’t work with your CIC – and this does happen – then a carefully planned departure is the way to do it.

Summary
• Whenever you lose your CIC a level of chaos results depending on the manner of his departure
• A vacancy comes with a global production penalty depending on the chaos level
• Each turn that a vacancy exists a new candidate option is generated, determined by the chaos level
• Once you choose a candidate option a new CIC is generated, his traits weighted by the chosen option


The Art of Management

Fear not for you have, at your disposal, a range of management tools.


Image


Got a CIC with a bad attitude? Haul him in for a reprimand. This might be all you need to do, problem solved. On other hand it might backfire and make matters worse. It all depends on his personality. There is a judgement call involved.

Alternatively you can wave the carrot and decorate him. Everybody likes a medal. Bound to cheer any CIC up.

Want a really happy CIC? Is he vain? Likes preening himself in the mirror? Reach into the wardrobe and find another medal. Fill his chest full of colourful ribbons and shiny metal.

Every time you do so, however, you are burning up political capital. Additionally the more medals you pin on your CIC’s chest the harder he is to fire if your relationship sours.



Image


Sometimes the best thing to do is to issue a leave pass. Give your CIC time to cool down. Of course you won’t be receiving any CIC bonuses while he is on leave but it may be worth the wait in order to get a refreshed and rejuvenated CIC.

Then you have the policy settings. There are two, Control policy and Field policy.

Think of these as directives that you issue to your CIC.

Control policy has two options available. One is to give the man his head and allow him a free reign. This has significant benefits in terms of Command Initiatives, but, as mentioned above, you may find your CIC arguing with you when you instruct him to instigate an initiative.


Image


The alternative control policy is to look over his shoulder and exercise close oversight. Micromanage him.

Command initiatives will be harder to come by but you can guarantee that he will do as he is told.

Naturally your CIC may have a preference for one type of management style over another and won’t be shy in letting you know.

There are also two Field policies. These refer to the times when your CIC is visiting a field HQ. Instruct him to restrict his activities to an ‘HQ inspection’ only and that is what he’ll do. He’ll stay firmly within the confines of the HQ.

As a result the benefits that accrue from the presence of your CIC at the field HQ will be reduced but he’ll be a lot safer than if you issued the ‘Inspire the troops’ policy directive.


Image


In this instance you are telling him to get his sorry *ss out of the blinkered HQ building and go out and assess the situation in person. Meet and greet while he is at it. Lots more bonuses flow to the troops in terms of readiness and morale and also action points if he instigates a command initiative.

But moving around the frontline of a war zone can be dangerous to his health.

A CIC who values his hide won’t like it if he is told to put his neck on the line while an ambitious, hard hitting CIC will be mightily upset if he isn’t allowed to get into the thick of it.

Note: Both Field policies work in the abstract. ‘Inspire the troops’ doesn’t actually mean that your CIC SFT will physically leave the HQ unit. Your CIC is – at all times – restricted to being located in a Headquarters unit.

Your management options are greatest when you CIC is present at your SHQ. A CIC who is out visiting field HQ’s is largely out of your reach. No CIC, however, will refuse if you ask them to return to SHQ at your capital.

Summary

• You can set policy directives instructing your CIC in how to conduct himself
• You have various options to encourage, intimidate or rest your CIC
• A CIC’s personality has an impact on how he reacts to your actions
• Management options are greatest while your CIC is located at your SHQ



Image

User avatar
Keunert
Posts: 885
Joined: Thu Sep 09, 2010 5:58 am
Contact:

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by Keunert »

wow i didn't see this one coming. and you are sure this mod isn't for a paradox dynasty management title?
LazyBoy
Posts: 190
Joined: Sat May 07, 2005 4:20 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by LazyBoy »

This sound very interesting,look forward to it.
A lot of work on your part[&o]
User avatar
Magpius
Posts: 1679
Joined: Thu Sep 20, 2007 11:21 pm
Location: Melbourne, Australia

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by Magpius »

G'day Lancer,
I was wondering what had happened to Emperor Fred...looks like he 'tardis'd' back to earth.
Really looking forward to another epic ATG AAR.
lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »

G'day,

Emperor Fred, unfortunately, had to meet an untimely end in order for me to finish off the Leader Mod.

Emperor Fred goes Postal

Cheers,

Lancer
User avatar
Jeffrey H.
Posts: 3154
Joined: Fri Apr 13, 2007 6:39 pm
Location: San Diego, Ca.

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by Jeffrey H. »

What about ol' Crayon Head ? Seemed like a great guy if you can get past the obvious.

History began July 4th, 1776. Anything before that was a mistake.

Ron Swanson
lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Important Note

This is a big mod with a lot of detail. You don’t, however, need to remember any of it.

The mod does a good job of keeping you informed.

What you do need is an idea of how it all hangs together.

A read through of the stuff that follows (posted over time) should suffice.



What Shouldn’t I do?


The mod is very robust and can take pretty much whatever you want to throw at it. There is one known means of breaking the mod that exists but the code overhead required to guard against it isn’t justified given it’s obscurity. Rivers have to run backwards and dogs need to take a carnal interest in cats before it will come pass.

It’s also likely that there are bugs. Bound to be one or two lurking under the bed despite my best efforts. Find them and I’ll fix them.

As a rule of thumb there is no need to be delicate. The mod is designed for rough handling.

There are a few things that aren’t, however, recommended.

Your Supreme HQ should be at all times named the ‘Supreme HQ’ (the in-game default) and located at your Capital.

Your CIC should restrict himself exclusively to Headquarter units and move between them via the ‘Authorise Travel’ action card. This means no transferring of your CIC to a non-HQ unit for a walk on the wild side.

Now nobody is going to stop you doing any of the above. You are free to do as you please. Be aware, though, that lurking within the mod is a bad tempered gnome whose sole function in life is to spot the times when you transgress from the restrictions mentioned above. He is a tireless, manic, slit-eyed gnome with a firm belief that you should ‘follow the rules’.

If you’re silly enough to razz up the gnome then be it on your own head.



The Universal Test


Image a ten sided dice. Roll it and if you get 8 or above you succeed. This is the universal test used throughout the entire mod. It’s used to test both positive and negative occurrences (eg. if the test succeeds whatever good or bad thing being tested occurs).

The universal test is modified by a range of factors depending on what’s happening. The mod will let you know what modifiers are in play.

In certain places the ten sided dice is tweaked so that the ’10’ becomes a ‘0’ (so ‘9’ is now the highest number) in order to achieve the desired probability. Situations where this happens are highlighted.

So whenever you read of a Universal test being used think of 1d10 with appropriate modifiers and 8+ to succeed.

lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


The Status Report is your Friend

Every turn you receive, courtesy of your hard-working staff, a status report detailing everything you need to be aware of with regards to your CIC.

Depending on the situation you may receive a number of other messages or reports but one thing that you can count on is that each turn there will be a status report.

This is an important report that is worth perusing. The main parts of the report are as follows.


Image


Header (1)
Shows, in order, the current date, the name of your serving CIC, his rank and the number of weeks (turns) that he has been on the job

Status (2)

Shows your CIC’s current location, including the map coordinates. Location could also be a non-map location such as a hospital. If he is at your Supreme HQ then the risk of a random event occurring is also displayed.

Status also indicates if your CIC qualifies for a promotion. In the case above nothing is shown so you can assume he doesn’t.

Policy Settings (3)
There are two policies, a Control policy (the top one) and a Field policy (the bottom one). Each has two possible choices. Your current selection is shown as well as a few notes regarding the particular policy choices.

In the case above you have a Control policy of “Exercise Oversight” which indicates that your CIC will need 75 command points (CP’s) before he can exercise a Command Initiative. Your Field policy is set at ‘HQ Inspection’ which reduces the effect of his field bonuses (bonuses-) and simultaneously reduces the personal risk to your CIC (risk-).

Satisfaction (4)
The current level is shown (’non-committal) along with any effect of this level on your CIC’s bonuses this turn (none).

If there are any particular factors influencing your CIC’s level of satisfaction then they will be listed here along with their effects.

Bonuses (5)
The current level of bonuses that you receive as a result of your CIC are shown here. As your CIC is a lowly 1-star commander with only 2 weeks of experience you shouldn’t expect much in the way of help.

Importantly only some bonuses are in use at any one time (location dependent). The ‘*In use’ note beside a particular bonus indicates that this bonus is in play (production +1%). The Staffing bonus is in use whenever your CIC is at an HQ (SHQ or Field HQ, doesn’t matter). However because a 1-star CIC doesn’t have a staff bonus (a prerogative of 2-star CIC’s and above) the report doesn’t show it as being in play.

Right at the bottom are Command Points or ‘CP’s’. Remember that your CIC gradually accumulates these and once he reaches the threshold (shown in Policy settings - 75 CP) he can exercise a Command Initiative. What the report above is telling you is that he currently has zero CP’s and he gained zero last turn. This was due the factors within the brackets.

Without going into details if you want your CIC to gain lots of CP’s then you need to send him out into the field and give him a ‘Free Reign’ (Control policy). Ole’ George, above, sitting on his bum in your Supreme HQ, with you peering over his shoulder, isn’t going to light any fires.

Traits (6)

Each CIC has a range of traits. Whenever they are outside of the normal range they are shown with this part of the report. However they aren’t shown straight away. It takes time to get to know your CIC and only the traits that have been revealed to date are shown.

George Marshall, it appears, is both vain and old. Not a good combination but give it a few more weeks and you may find that he is a strategic, or perhaps, organisational genius.

Special Traits (7)
These come about for a range of reasons and if any are applicable to your CIC then they are shown in this section. There is no time delay or ‘getting to know’ your CIC’s special traits. If he has them, you’ll know about it straight away.


lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Travelling or Seeing the World on $10 a day


As previously mentioned your CIC is restricted to headquarter units. He is a Very Important Person and HQ’s are the only appropriate locale for such a senior individual.

He commences a new game in your Supreme HQ (SHQ). You can freely move him out into the field (any other HQ, apart from your SHQ, is referred to as a ‘Field HQ’) at any time.

The mechanism for doing so is via the ‘Authorise Travel’ action card.


Image



As noted above there is one criteria that must be met for a particular HQ to be a valid travel destination - it must have staff. Doesn’t matter how many as long as there is somebody present to make the coffee. CIC’s don’t do skeleton HQ’s.

Once you have played the action card you receive the following pop-up box asking you to select a destination. The box will only let you select valid, staffed, HQ’s so it’s impossible to go off the reservation.

Image

There is a trick in using the travel box. When it first opens it will highlight a possible destination on the mini-map. However this isn’t necessarily where you are sending your CIC.

Instead it is the unit depicted bottom left that determines his destination. To further confuse matters it is the HQ that you had highlighted on the main map that will first show as the destination unit, bottom left.

The upshot is that you can open the destination box, see that your CIC’s intended destination is highlighted on the mini-map and click to select only to receive a message stating that you are sending your CIC to your current location.

This happens because the SHQ is probably selected (bottom left) and that’s what’s used, not the mini-map highlight.

The ATG engine controls this, not the mod (to be fair it could also be the way I’ve coded it). But it isn’t a problem. Sounds worse than it is. Click around a bit and you’ll soon figure it out.

A simple way to avoid this issue is to select your destination HQ on the main map before you activate the ‘Authorise Travel’ action card.

The Joys of Plane Travel

Travel is always by means of a dedicated VIP transport plane (not shown on the map and assumed to always be available) regardless of the distance. Even if you travel from one HQ to another, both located in the same hex, your CIC will still fly. Pretty hostesses count for something.

On a side note if you do want to transfer your CIC to a different HQ that is in the same hex as his current one make sure you use the ‘Authorise Travel’ action card as a straightforward SFT transfer between the two could ‘cause the mod to loose track of his current location.

Once you selected a destination you’ll notice that your CIC has been removed from the map. He won’t turn up until the following turn, all being well.

The actual travel happens between turns so it doesn’t matter if you send him to the airfield at the beginning of the turn or the end. There is no impact on his bonuses as they kick in at the start of a turn so, for his current location, they have already occurred.

For his destination he is assumed to arrive prior to the calculation of applicable bonuses so his new location will also benefit upon his arrival next turn.

Additionally you are still able to implement any appropriate management options on the turn he departs (he may be waiting at the airfield but he is still within your reach) so, if you intend for him to travel, you can do so at any point in a turn without restricting your options.

Flying High

Once your CIC’s travel plans are approved you receive the following message.


Image


This travel advisory indicates your CIC’s destination (1st HQ), the flight distance (7 hours) and the risk of a travel incident.

Flight distance equates to 1 hour of flight per hex of distance. As the crow flies. The risk equates to 2% for each ten hours (ten hexes) of flight time or part there-of.

Further you fly the riskier it is. Still it’s a tiny risk. A long haul 40 hour flight (40 hexes) on a large map is still going to clock in at only 8% risk. This isn’t scaled for different map sizes. Planes still fly at the same speed regardless of the size of the world.

On the other hand if you make a habit of zinging your CIC all over the map like a demented blowfly it’s inevitable that at some point in time the view out the window won’t be sky. He’s not flying Qantas.

Mention travel risk and people assume the worst. Terminal engine sounds, screaming passengers, rapidly approaching terra firma. Brace for impact and kiss your a… goodbye.

Sure, that can happen. But most of the time a travel risk will actualise into nothing more sinister than a delay. In which case your CIC won’t turn up at his intended destination next turn and is assumed to be in transit.

During the travel phase (between turns) the mod makes a random roll and, provided your CIC didn’t luck out, he’ll arrive first thing in the morning at the start of next turn without any further ado. You’ll know this both from the status report and by the arrival on the map of his SFT counter at the destination HQ.

If he did get a bad random roll (1d100 less than or equal to his travel risk) then the mod accesses a small database of potential travel incidents and picks one at random. Certain travel incidents have further branching outcomes (plane went down in a lightening storm, did your CIC manage to survive?), none of which you’ll need to worry about because the mod will keep you fully informed.

What’s worth knowing is that a CIC who’s delayed ‘in transit’ isn’t providing any benefits (likewise there are no penalties - a neutral state) nor is he within your reach for management therapy. Delays can be annoying.

Attempting to game the system by leapfrogging your CIC to his destination via interim HQ’s in order to reduce the risk doesn’t achieve anything as the total travel risk for the journey will be the same as if he flew the single, longer leg. Probably greater risk in fact as the leapfrogging likely wouldn’t be in a straight line.

Dark and Desperate Times

So your CIC is in an HQ that’s surrounded on all sides. Is he trapped? Can he still depart?

Provided he hasn’t been filled full of lead he can leave at any time, right up until just before the HQ is overrun. The pilot of his personal transport plane is a fearless individual and will do whatever is required to keep the big fella alive.

I had considered raising the travel risk for when your CIC flies within range of enemy fighters but the coding overhead was excessive for the benefits gained. Instead these situations are part of the database of possible outcomes that can occur as the result of a travel incident.

Modding Travel


CIC_factor_Travel_incident (gamevar #151)
Is the base travel risk per travel increment (#152) or part there-of. Set at 2%

CIC_factor_long_distance_travel_increment (gamevar #152)
Is the travel increment used above. Set at 10 hours (10 hexes)

lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Travelling with George


To tie everything together let’s follow CIC George Marshall as he makes a Field visit.


Image


George, located at your Supreme HQ, has decided to visit 1st HQ about ten hours flight away to the north west and conduct an inspection. It’s important to keep everybody on their toes.

Here’s George at SHQ. Smoking. George tends to do a lot of that. Don’t sell him life insurance.


Image



Having submitted his travel plans for your authorisation (you’ve activated the ‘Authorise Travel’ action card), he has his driver take him to the airport.



Image



The comptroller in charge of travel (you) selects 1st HQ on the pop-up box. As previously pointed out your destination is the unit in the bottom left (circled red above) not the one shown on the minimap (although in this case they are both the same). Click on the mini-map to select the correct unit.

Once you hit the ‘Select’ button on the bottom right, George will be on his way (actually he won’t leave until you end your turn - consider him waiting at the airport for clearance until then. Puffing away).

George, at this point is no longer shown at your SHQ. The mod has quietly removed him from the map as he is considered to be travelling.

A message will pop-up (see previously) indicating the flight duration and travel risk. Assuming George has an uneventful flight he will arrive first thing next turn. This is reflected on the status report below.


Image



George spends a few days at 1st HQ putting things to right. Here’s George with his stoogie (the mod automatically returns George’s SFT to the map once he has successfully arrived at his destination).



Image



Longing for the comforts of home and the shine of his favourite mirror, George decides to return to SHQ.

Unfortunately for George, this time his flight encounters storms and is delayed. In game terms the travel risk for George to safely fly back (2% from memory) came up trumps. The mod accessed the database of possible travel events and resolved the outcome.



Image



Now instead of George arriving at the start of next turn he is considered to be in transit. This is shown in the status report.



Image



If we look at the map we see that he can’t be found in either HQ.



Image



Image



George will arrive at his destination (SHQ), hopefully, the following turn after a few nights of rough living in the great outdoors. That’s why George always takes the plane. Trains and trucks don’t come equipped with friendly air hostesses to help swat the mosquitoes.


Cheers,

Lancer




lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Traits or the Make of the Man

Every CIC has a range of traits. Each trait can have a value ranging from +2 to -2. The vast majority of them will have values of ‘0’ indicating a run-of-the-mill, average status.

A trait with a value of ‘1’ is one with substance and meaning. Your CIC has a characteristic here that is out of the ordinary, one that other people around him take notice of.

A trait with a value of ‘2’ is significant to the point of being exceptional. A CIC, for example, with a Strategic ability of +2 would be considered an outstanding military practitioner of his day by his peers.

The flip side to the above are that negative values have the same impact but in the opposite direction. A CIC with an Organisational ability of -2 couldn’t find his way out of a wet paper bag.

Personalities are easily stratified. Take a CIC with a Vanity rating of ‘0’. If he walks into a crowded room nobody is going to take much notice of him (provided that was all they were judging him on). Yet give him a Vanity rating of ‘1’ and heads will turn, discrete comments will be made and, whatever else, he can guarantee that he will be noticed.

Infuse him with some serious hair styling genes (Vanity rating of +2) and any entrance he makes will be an immediate conversation stopper. The badly dressed bum with the awful body odour and last nights dinner stuck in his beard, lurking in the corner, is your reincarnated CIC, but this time with a Vanity rating of -2. You get the idea.

Age is the exception. The rating here is a measure of mileage. A CIC with Age -2 is a young spring chicken. A CIC with Age +2 is an ancient, doddery old fart.

How are Traits determined?


Randomly. The base odds for a particular trait are as follows



Image



As you can see, the majority of traits are likely to be zeroes. Normal, average values and qualities.

When your first CIC arrives at the start of the game he has been randomly generated as per above. However when, for various reasons, you find yourself needing a new CIC the generation routine is tweaked according to the type of candidate selection process you choose (more details on this late).

If you opt for the normal selection process then nothing changes from what has already been mentioned. You are just as likely to receive a bad candidate as you are a good one. The overwhelming probability is that you will receive a new CIC with a mixture of both good and bad.

However if you chose one of the other two options - ‘First Available Candidate’ or ‘Best Available Candidate’ - then the generation routine has a twist.

For each trait a normal 1d100 random number is spat out but, unlike the standard process, it is further modified by a 1d10 random number (either up or down depending on the chosen option with it being fairly self evident which is which).

Let’s see this in action.

We’ll generate the value for the Popularity trait. First the mod kicks out a 1 to 100 random number, say 96.

Now this value would normally provide a fantastic trait value of +2, it being in the top 5% of possible outcomes.

However if we had chosen to select the ‘First Available Candidate’ then the mod generates a further 1 to 10 random number, say 9. Because we are willing to take whoever is available at short notice the 1d10 acts as a negative influence (it would be positive in the case of taking our time to select the best possible candidate).

Now our initial roll of 96 is reduced by -9 and becomes 87 which still gives us a CIC with a +1 Popularity rating.

On average all of our hastily chosen CIC’s traits will be reduced by about -5. On average. It’s possible that a lot of them might only be reduced by -1 and we’d still end up with a stellar CIC. You never know. Which neatly segues into our next topic.

Why do I have to wait to find out what traits my CIC has?

Your CIC is effectively your right hand man. You are aiming to maintain a close working relationship. Doubtless your staff have provided you with a comprehensive briefing on any new CIC that turns up for work.

But no matter how well researched the briefing is it won’t tell you a great deal about your CIC as he has just stepped into some pretty big shoes and will inevitably change as a result in the face of such responsibility and power.

The only real way of finding out your CIC’s inherent capabilities is to spend time with him. Which you can only do so while he is at the Supreme HQ (normally located at your Capital where your seat of government also is).

Game wise the mod tests each and every trait prior to the start of a turn. If it hasn’t been revealed then there is a 20% chance of you finding out it’s true value. Gradually, over time, you’ll build up a picture.

Any time a trait is revealed it is displayed on the weekly status report from that point onwards.

There are a couple of provisos here. Firstly if your CIC isn’t available for meetings (he’s off on a Field visit, for example) then there is no chance of finding out the value of an unknown trait. You can’t get a feel for your CIC if you aren’t talking to him and observing.

Secondly if a trait has a value of ‘0’ (most of them) then it isn’t shown either way. It is only the exceptions to the norm that are highlighted.

As the weeks pass and you anxiously wait to see if you have a military dynamo on your hands it may be that what you have instead is Mr Average. Or it could be that the right situation hasn’t come up yet for his talents to shine ( the 20% roll for revealing the trait each turn has yet to score the jackpot).

Your only option is to wait for the fullness of time to reveal his talents or lack there-off. Which, if you think about it, is similar to real life.

Hands up everybody who is married. Nobody married a stranger. Everyone had a reasonable idea of what they were getting into beforehand. Yet I’m willing to bet that in every case, after some time has passed, your view of your wife is different to what it was prior to the wedding. Which is where we’ll leave this dangerous train of thought.

The passage of time is not the only means of finding out. You can infer particular traits levels by your CIC’s actions. Whenever an event or outcome occurs, the trait that influenced it - if any - is highlighted in either the message or the weekly status report.

It won’t tell you the actual value but if you see multiple occurrences of your CIC expressing his dissatisfaction with an issue with a note beside it saying it was affected by his ‘Ambition’ you could reasonably infer that he is probably endowed with a healthy ego and high self opinion.

With regards to their set of traits that provide bonuses (production, morale, readiness ) you can get a reasonable idea as to their value by watching how fast they increase (via the weekly status report).

Finally no traits are revealed on the first turn apart from age. You can be expected to judge a persons age upon first meeting them.

The design philosophy behind having traits revealed over time is to provide both a measure of realism and to prevent the ‘churning’ of CIC’s. If you really have lucked out and got General Dud in charge, by the time you realised it a range of other factors may have kicked in making the decision to axe Dudley not as straightforward as it would have been if you knew everything about him from the get go.

Firing CIC’s is best done as soon as possible but this has to be tempered by the fact you don’t want to be inadvertently getting rid of a CIC who has great traits, but just hasn’t displayed them to date.

There is a measure of tension here with any newly arrived CIC between restricting them to your Supreme HQ (so that you can have a chance of revealing their traits) and sending them straight out into the field (where they are more likely to develop their skills - learning on the job, so to speak).


The Influence of Traits


How big a difference do traits make? Recall the Universal Test - throw a ten sided dice (1d10) and 8 or above is a success for whatever you are testing. The base probability for success here is 30% (ten possible outcomes with 8, 9 & 10 considered a success).

Most rolls involving the Universal Test are modified by the relevant trait. If your CIC had a run-of-the-mill ‘0’ rated trait then the odds would still be 30%. But if the specific trait being used was ‘+2’ then the odds jump to 50% for a successful outcome.

If his trait was rated at ‘-2’ then the odds drop to 10% for a success. The full range of possible traits therefore runs the gamut from a mere 10% to a big 50% for a success. Traits have an impact.

Names

Slightly off topic but all CIC’s need a name. Unfortunately you can’t provide that name yourself. Instead the mod looks up a database of historical, WW2 names according to nationality. I’ve selected the ten most prominent names for each of the various ATG nationalities.

I’ve fudged it a little in that some of the more senior staff commanders were not that well known so they’ve been replaced by lesser, more popular choices.

Close your eyes and name the ten most popular Arab leaders in WW2. Can’t do it? Neither could I. That’s why I’ve had to seed the list with a few, more recent, blow-ins. Don’t be surprised if your CIC turns out to be a certain rat-up-a-drain-pipe gentleman last seen on the nightly news.

Whenever your CIC is replaced by another the mod will access the same list and pull out the next likely contender. Due to a lack of interest on my part in coming up with a clunky ATG editor version of a fancy, non-repeating search routine I’ve simply coded it to choose anyone on the list. If it turns out that it is the same name as a previous CIC then he will arrive being called George Patton ‘the Second’. Or the ‘the Third’. You get the picture.

To avoid a never ending succession of George Patton’s darkening your doorstep I’ve made it so that once you get to ‘the Ninth’ any subsequent Georges will all be ‘Jedi Warriors’. The odds of getting ten Georges in a row are unlikely as it would have to be the same 1 out of 10 random choice each time.

But with probabilities you never know. They can throw up some weird outcomes on occasion.

So if your CIC ends up wielding a light sabre and poncing around in a pretentious cape then you’ll know the reason why.

Modding Traits


CIC_Traits_reveal_% (gamevar #149)
The percentage chance of a particular trait being revealed each turn. Set at 20.

Lihnit23
Posts: 45
Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 4:20 pm

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by Lihnit23 »

This mod is an example of brilliance in action. [&o]
User avatar
Stardog
Posts: 93
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 11:17 pm
Location: Hickory N.C.

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by Stardog »

Howdy!!

The Lanceranader!!

Dude! This is so Awesome! Vic/Matrix should be recruiting your a$$!![;)]


I replied to/on your post in main ATG board.
I agree in that ATG is a very,very good game but if a few things were added it would become one of the all time greats!

I can not wait to try your MOD! < When you have it complete(All bug's if any worked through) Vic&Matrix should consider adding it to the game permanently!

Outstanding job!![&o]

Diplomacy without arms is like music without instruments.

Frederick the Great
lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »

G'day,

Thanks for the feedback.

The mod was only ever made for an audience of one (myself). Not a lot of extra effort required for it to be suitable for general consumption.

If anyone uses it and enjoys it then that's a bonus.

As mentioned at the top, the mod is ready and raring to go. I'm only holding back until I've posted the rest of the manual.

Cheers,
Lancer

lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Bonus Skills or Getting Maximum Mileage out of your CIC

Your CIC has four traits. Three of these (Strategic, Popularity and Organisation) directly relate to skill bonuses (shown in the weekly status report). The fourth trait (Tactical) is used to gain command points for the purposes of exercising a Command Initiative, of which more later.

All of the three bonus skills start, for a newly arrived 1-star CIC, at 1%. Each turn a test is made to determine if they increase. The relevant trait is used as a modifier for the test so a CIC.

While the traits each have an associated bonus skill they are separate items. The relationship between the two is that, over time, the bonus skills increase in value and their rate of increase is determined by the relevant trait.



Image



To put that into context if your CIC has a Strategic trait value of +2 (superb!) then you’ll find that his production skill bonus will, in all likelihood, increase dramatically faster than another CIC who is burdened with a Strategic trait value of -2 (woeful).

Another way of looking at it is that their skill bonus is the actual benefit provided by the CIC and their associated traits represent the potential for that skill to develop. As promotional prospects are tied in with the increase in skill bonuses, a CIC with low value traits will have poor potential and will be struggling to gain higher ranks.

How Bonus Skills Increase


Each turn a Universal test is made for each of the three skill bonuses to determine if they increase. If successful they always increment +1%. They can continue increasing at this rate, provided they pass their Universal tests, up until they hit their rank cap. Important note: this is one of the time where the Universal test uses the 0 to 9 distribution, not the normal 1 to 10 (base chance of success is 20%, not the normal 30%).

As an example your newly arrived CIC will start with his three skill bonuses at 1%. They can all increase up to his 1-star rank cap of 4% before plateauing out. If your CIC wants to advance further he will need a promotion in order to raise the cap. There is only so much you can learn at each rank before promotion brings greater responsibility and learning opportunities.

The Universal test is modified by the relevant trait and by their location. If they are at your Supreme HQ then they gain a +1 modifier to their test (making it easier) for their production bonus. Conversely they get lumbered with a -1 modifier to their Readiness and Morale tests.

Send your CIC out into the field and the location modifiers are reversed. Now production bonus gets a -1 modifier and the other two, Organisation and Readiness, gain +1.

This is a learn by doing situation. The CIC’s production bonus is utilised whenever he is located at your SHQ so it’s logical that he is more likely to improve the skill there. Likewise, his organisation and readiness bonuses are put to use whenever he is in the field so that’s where they gain an advantage.



Image

This Weekly status report shows the Rank cap (’1’ above) that the skills can increase up to and that the CIC passed a Universal test and increased his Readiness bonus skill (’2’ above).



The astute reader may have noticed that, of the three bonuses skills, only one of them is applicable while your CIC is at your SHQ (production). Out in the field there are two bonus skills (organisation and readiness) which means that there is twice the opportunity for an increase (because there are two skills and each skill has its own test each turn) compared to being back at the SHQ. If you wanted to promote your CIC as quickly as possible you would immediately send him out into the field.

With the passing of a certain amount of time you’ll find that your CIC’s three skill bonuses will have diverged quite a bit from each other. Your CIC will likely become good in a particular area depending on where you have sent him.

His inherent traits have a lot to do with it as well. With a CIC showing promise (+1 or +2 trait) in production, for example, you’d be inclined to keep him at your SHQ in order to gain the benefits and reap the rapid rise in the value of his skill. A CIC with a +2 trait is going to overide any location bonus (which is only + or - 1) so you could send him anywhere and expect him to improve. Put him in the right location for that skill, though, and he’ll race ahead with a combined +3 modifier (trait +2 and location +1).

I could talk about laggard CIC’s with underlying traits that are all sad and bad (-1 or -2) but I don’t want to pop your bubble of happiness as you enjoy a vision of rapid promotion and great bonuses.

Don’t get too depressed if you hit a non-starter in a certain area. With CIC’s, as with reality, it’s all about maximising their advantages and trying to dodge around their limitations.

Rank and Bonus Skills

Rank determines the ceiling cap on bonus skill advancement and modifies how hard it is to do so. Notice from the diagram above the ‘Rank Modifier’. The higher up the ranks you go, the more difficult it is for your CIC to improve his bonus skills. Higher the rank, tougher the job gets. Fair enough.



Image



Here is where the Peter Principle (’ever body rises to the level of his incompetence’) kicks in. Take a CIC with a Popularity trait of -2. This is a man who people cross the street to avoid.

At 1-star rank the odds of him passing the test for a bonus skill advancement (for Morale) would be, assuming he is in the Field, 8+ with a -2 trait modifier and a +1 location modifier giving him a total roll required of 9 to pass.

Remember that the Universal test rolls a ten sided dice, but for the bonus skill advancement it assumes the ‘10’ is a ‘0’ so the chance of getting a 9 or better (there isn’t any better as 9 is the highest you can roll) is only 10%. Not a lot. But the test is every turn so sooner or later our popularity challenged CIC will hoist his Morale rating up to the rank cap of 4% and, fingers crossed, get promoted.

With Mr.Popularity strutting around with 2-stars on his shoulder what are the chances of his Morale bonus skill increasing? Zip.

It will be the same as above but there will be an additional -1 modifier due to his 2-star rank which means he’d have to roll a ‘10’. Not easy to do when the highest number on the dice is ‘9’.

So Mr. Popularity is only ever going to get to 2-star rank based on his Morale skill. Hopefully he has talents in other areas that will enable him to rise further up the slippery ladder (you only need one bonus skill to hit the rank cap before you can promote).

Either way his Morale bonus skill is always going to be on the low side. Given that he is probably an obnoxious *sshole (Popularity trait of -2) you wouldn’t be expecting him to boost anyone’s morale beyond the impact of his inherent rank and position.


Bonuses in use - Production Bonus

This provides a global benefit to all production in all your HQ’s. It is only ‘in use’ when your CIC is located at your Supreme HQ. The weekly status report shows the size of the production bonus and whether it is ‘in use’.

You can easily check if what the status report is telling you is correct with regards to production. Go to any HQ, press ‘P’, and look at the production costs for the various SFT’s. Riflemen are an excellent yardstick as their base production cost is a nice, round 100 points.

If you CIC is providing a +2% production bonus then you’ll instead see a cost of 98 points (100 less 2%). This is reflected throughout your empire with all your HQ’s and with anything else you attempt to produce.

If you’ve had a difference of opinion with your CIC and the b*stard had the temerity to resign then, just for giggles, take another look. The production cost of riflemen will have risen to 130 points (-30% production penalty due to the severe chaos induced by your CIC’s sudden departure).

Bonuses in use - In Field Bonuses

If your CIC is located at a Field HQ a number of bonuses (Morale and Readiness) are applied to all the units associated with that HQ. The bonuses are applied at the start of a turn and are in addition to any normal ‘recovery’ of readiness or morale.



Image



If you CIC has Morale and Readiness bonus levels of, say, +10% then can you expect all the HQ’s subordinate units to gain at this rate each turn? No. There are a few checks and balances put in to stop people gaming the system.

For a start the Field HQ must have a staff rating of 100% or better. Your CIC’s staff bonus is taken into account when this is calculated. The benefits of your CIC being present can’t be propagated down through the chain of command if there is insufficient staff to run the HQ.

Bonuses are reduced proportionally if the HQ staff ratio is under 100%. Let say it was 50%. As a consequence the bonuses applied to the subordinate units are reduced by half, in this case 10% drops to 5%.

The units attached to an HQ can be scattered across the map. Their connection with their HQ is represented by their ‘HQ Power%’. If this is 0% then the unit is considered to be geographically isolated from it’s parent HQ. It will receive no bonus.

Any unit in close proximity to their HQ (HQ Power 100% - within 3 hexes) will receive the full amount of the CIC’s Morale and Readiness bonus each turn. Now for the majority of units they probably have an HQ Power% sitting somewhere between 100 and 0 depending on how far they are from their HQ.

For these units how much bonus they receive depends on what Field Policy you have in place.

With a policy of ‘HQ Inspection’ (CIC restricted to the HQ), unit’s have their bonuses proportionally reduced according to their HQ Power%. Using the above example of a +10% Readiness bonus, a unit with an HQ power rating of 60% will gain +6% to their readiness each turn, whereas a unit with an HQ Power rating of only 20% would receive on +2%. The further the unit is from their HQ, the less impact your CIC has on their Morale and Readiness.

Unless, of course, you have a field policy of ‘Inspire the Troops’ (CIC instructed to get out and about). In this instance all units will receive their full bonuses regardless of their HQ Power rating. Distance is no longer an issue as your CIC visits them in situ. The downside of this policy is that the risk of injury to your CIC doubles.

In the message dialogue shown above you can see that four units are shown with an increase in their Morale. None of them gained a Readiness increase, despite their CIC having a +2% Readiness bonus. Why is this?

A unit can’t have a readiness greater than 100%. Unless something happened (eg. Combat) that caused a recent drop in readiness then they will be sitting on full, 100% readiness and any bonus would have no impact. They are about as ready as they are ever going to be.

A CIC induced bonus can’t increase either Morale or Readiness above 100% no matter what.

Image



The Field HQ receives no bonuses regardless. Having the big fella running around, peering over shoulders and shouting orders isn’t a conducive environment for the HQ staff to improve either their morale or readiness.

Field bonuses are a powerful tool. Send your CIC to an HQ and, given sufficient staff and the right policy, you can make a significant impact. But Field HQ’s are hazardous locations and the benefits have to be weighed against the risks to your CIC. Worth remembering is that the risks are modified by your CIC’s age. Young, fit CIC’s have less chance of coming a cropper than a bifocal, zimmerframe equipped CIC.



Image



Bonus Skills in Action - Rommel on the Run


3-Star CIC Erwin Rommel has been rushed to ‘Western Theatre HQ’ to shore up defences. It’s an important resource area and under-garrisoned. Rommel, good lad and fast rising star that he is, has significant field bonuses as shown above (10% each).

Exactly what effect will Rommel have on the ramshackle units of Western Theatre HQ? Can he make a difference? Can he save the day?

We can assume a couple of things regardless of policy settings. Firstly the staffing ratio at the HQ is over 100% so there won’t be any reduction in bonuses as a result of inadequate staffing at HQ. Paper shufflers aplenty.

Secondly there are a couple of units way up to the North East (G & H) that aren’t shown on the map above (light blue arrow). These units are too far away from the HQ to get any field bonuses regardless of policy (their HQ Power rating is 0%). Rommel, despite his best efforts, won’t have any impact on them unless they are moved closer to the HQ.

Lastly there are a couple of units near the HQ in the city of ‘Malo’ (units C & D shown in White). These units have HQ Power ratings of 100% so they will get the full benefit of Rommel’s presence regardless. Any units lurking in Malo in the shadow of their wayward HQ will benefit likewise.

That leaves the four units spread further out in the field (coloured yellow, units A, B, F & E). Rommel’s influence over these depends on your Field policy settings.

With ‘HQ Inspection’ Rommel will confine himself to the Western Theatre HQ. He will holler down the radio at various commanders in frustration but he won’t be wandering any further from the front door than the HQ latrine. Consequently all the units in yellow will have their bonuses proportionally reduced. Take unit A with HQP 60%. That’s 60% of the available bonus they’ll receive (+6% Morale, +6% Readiness) this turn.

Unit E, way down south, with only a 40% HQP will receive even less (+4% Morale, +4% Readiness).

Now if Rommel was operating under the ‘Inspire the Troops’ Field policy then he would be racing around the countryside in the staff jeep visiting all the individual units. Rousing speeches and Schnapps snorters all-round. Everyone of the yellow coloured units will instead receive their FULL field bonuses (+10% Morale, +10% Readiness). Big difference.

On the down side Rommel, by the time he returns to Malo, will have a massive headache and his driver is likely to spear off into the undergrowth ‘cause he’s drunk, putting the both of them into hospital (injury risk doubled).

I’d better stress, once more, that Rommel zooming around in his staff jeep to visit the troops is something that happens in the abstract. His SFT counter remains at the HQ. It’s not possible to transfer him to the actual units.

Well it is, but the gnome (remember him?) will break out in a bad rash and turn feral. Save your game beforehand if you’re silly enough to prod the gnome awake.

Staff Bonuses

Your CIC is considered to have his own personal staff which travels with him wherever he goes. See above (under Staff and Bonus skills) for the staff bonus that each rank provides. The staff bonus applies to whatever HQ is currently at.

Modding Skills


CIC_factor_skill_start_level (gamevar #150)
Determines the start value of all skills for a new CIC. Set at 1.


lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Promotion or Climbing the Greasy Ladder of Power



Image



Promotion is straightforward. In order for your CIC to qualify for promotion at least one of his bonus skills must have increased to the level of the rank cap. Looking at the table above, a 1-Star CIC has a rank cap of 4%. He commences with all his bonus skills at 1% and each turn (refer to the trait section above) there are tests to see if the skills increase.

As time passes one, or more, of his traits will reach the rank cap (4%) and he will be eligible for promotion. If a bonus skill reaches the rank cap then that’s as far as it will go until such times as you hand a new gold star to your CIC.

Looking at the table above there are a few columns that highlight what we previously discussed in the Traits section. You can see that a Universal roll is made each turn to determine if a bonus skill gains an increase (with ‘10’ on the ten-sided dice counting as a ‘0’) and each rank adjusts the roll with a modifier.

In short, the higher your rank the harder it is to gain the necessary bonus skill increases that are required to reach the rank cap and qualify for promotion.

There is also a column headed ‘Trait needed to reach Rank Cap’. Remember each bonus skill has an associated trait. What the column shows is, at the various rank levels, what level of trait your CIC will need in order to have some chance to gain an increase in his associated bonus skill. So for a 2-Star CIC as long as any one trait is greater than ‘-1’ then you should eventually be able to promote him.

Note that the values assume that your CIC is in the correct location for the particular bonus skill, eg. Your CIC being located at your SHQ gets a +1 location modifier to the roll, whereas if he was in the Field then he would gain a -1 penalty.

The net effect of the above is that with a Mr. Average CIC, (all relevant traits at ‘0’), 4-Star rank is as far as he is ever going to go. He will also have to work very hard to get there.

There is a cost in Political points for a promotion. This consists of a base cost (10 x the rank level) modified by any decorations you have given your CIC ( less 2 x number of medals) and is finally adjusted to reflect any political support your CIC may or may not have.

The reasoning behind the simple algorithm above is that, while you may be the ultimate political authority, you don’t exert untrammeled supreme executive authority. There are other, unnamed political factions in the background working against you. Doing things like promoting your chosen CIC costs a certain amount of political capital on your part.

If you have already decorated your CIC then you have acknowledged to all concerned that he is doing an excellent job and hence the amount of political capital you need to expend is lessened.

Each CIC, through the course of events, can gain or lose political support with the background factions. If he is popular (positive political support) with the dominant factions then your job in promoting him is made easier. Conversely if he is on the nose with the factions then you have to work harder at making a case for promoting him.

Don’t need to remember any of this as when your CIC qualifies for promotion a red action card will appear with the cost in PP’s as well as a full breakdown.

Promotion isn’t compulsory. Keep in mind that deliberately holding back your CIC may result in him getting upset. A CIC, primed for promotion, has an expectation of a higher rank. Even more so if he is of an ambitious nature.

The last thing worth knowing is that promoting your CIC at your SHQ involves suitable amounts of pomp and ceremony. Your CIC, in all likelihood, will be suitably chuffed and his opinion of you will rise. Award him a Field promotion instead and all he will receive is an impersonal telegram notifying him of the event. He’s willing to suck up the disappointment of not having you do the official deed but don’t expect him to be happy about it.

Modding Promotion


CIC_factor_Promotion_cost (gamevar #208)
The base promotion cost in PP’s. Currently set at 10. This is multiplied by the CIC’s new rank to get the actual cost, eg. To promote to 2-Star’s then it’s 2 x 10 = 20 PP

CIC_factor_decorations_promotion (gamevar #214)
Multiplier for lowering the promotion costs ( x the number of medals). Needs to balanced with the medal implications for firing a CIC.

lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


The Sad Tale of Hajime Sugiyama

The best way to tie all of the above together is to tell a little story. This will touch on a few areas not yet discussed. I’m happy to run with it if you are.

I needed a few screen shots for this section so I fired up the game and found that I was the Emperor of Japan. My CIC is Hajime Sugiyama who turned out to be an interesting character. Here he is.



Image



Hajime (how do you pronounce that?) has been around for a solid 14 weeks. Because I’m only after screen shots I’ve left him to stew at Supreme HQ at the Capital. You’ll notice, under ‘Status’, that he ‘can be promoted’. The reason, if you look under ‘Bonuses’ is that all three bonus skills have increased up to the 1-Star rank cap of +4%.

I could promote him provided any one of them had hit the cap but I’m after the trifecta. I wanted to be sure that Hajime was up to the job.

Which I’m in two minds about. If you cast your eyes to ‘Traits’ I find that after 14 turns of both him and I having meetings in the Capital I know that he has talent in the area of Strategy (Production bonus) - good - and some serious self discipline issues (Self Control -2).

‘Ole Hajime is liable to fall of the rails at any moment. Even worse, because I’ve left him for so long at SHQ the chance of a random event occurring has risen to 30% (under ‘Status’). Random events, in brief, are essentially ‘temptations’ put in the way of your CIC. How they handle them is largely due to their level of Self-Control.

I’ve issued strict instructions he isn’t to touch any form of alcohol and to close his eyes whenever he sees a member of the opposite sex but I don’t have high hopes.

On the plus side Hajime is a very happy chappy. Look at his ‘Satisfaction’. He is thrilled with me. Which is as it should be, I’m a nice bloke.

If I pull up his Personnel Dossier and look under ‘Decorations’ you can see that his happiness is largely derived from the two medals I’ve pinned on his chest in the forlorn hope that he will stick to the straight and narrow.



Image




The ‘Order of the Black Duck’ cheered him up but it was the ‘Wicked Wings of Willpower’ that really hit the spot. Loved them. Always a winner, the Wings.

Note: Historical medals vary by country. Awarding a Japanese General the Victoria Cross didn’t seem appropriate so I’ve made up a large number of fictional decorations instead that are of a more worldly nature.

I haven’t made any other moves apart from pressing the End Turn button. Consequently the hairy hordes are over running my Oriental empire. It’s time to promote Hajime and swing him into action. Pressing ‘F2’ I bring up the relevant action card.



Image



Looking at the card I see it will cost me only 16 Political Points to get my favourite CIC into a new uniform. Those couple of medals have not only given me a cheerful, Emperor worshipping CIC, but they’ve saved me 4 valuable PP’s when I promote him.

Which I don’t. Had to get up and answer the door. Came back and forgot.

To my detriment.



Image



Hajime has finally come a cropper. Couldn’t help himself. It’s the Wicked Wings that did it. Went to his head.

When he finally sobers up I find that I have a CIC with a sullied reputation, one that no longer loves me and who appears to have lost all of his zing and zest.

The Weekly Status report lays it all out (’Special Traits’). Note that the chance of another random event (’Status’) has dropped to an insignificant amount. Having already done himself serious damage it could take a while before Hajime has another crack at political Seppuku.



Image



This time I’m not mucking around. I immediately promote him to a 2-Star general. Perhaps all the extra responsibility will help.




Image



Unfortunately the cost of doing so has jumped to 19 Political points. Note that the action card will dynamically update the cost (and the breakdown) whenever something that affects the promotion changes. Whenever you look at it, rest assured it will be fully up to date.

Hajime, duly promoted, fronts up in his new uniform, ready for more ne’er do well mischief.



Image



The mod, once you promote your CIC, automatically swaps out the SFT picture for the new one with the correct number of stars. Hajime is still smoking. All CIC’s smoke. It’s a worry.


Lancer
lancer
Posts: 2963
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 8:56 am

RE: The LEADER Mod

Post by lancer »


Policy or Keeping the Big Fella On Track




Image




There are two policy areas that you can influence - Control and Field. Each has two options. The policy options, for each area, have deliberately been made binary - you have to choose one or the other, there is no middle ground.

Each policy option has a particular effect. Individual CIC’s can have a preference for one policy option over another. If your choice of policy (and it definitely is your choice as you are the boss) coincides with your CIC’s preference then happiness will result (satisfaction levels can rise). A difference of opinion can result in a disgruntled CIC (satisfaction levels can fall).

You can only change policy settings when your CIC is located at your SHQ. He needs to be there in order for you to tell him of your wishes. If you send him off into the field then whatever policy settings you have made will stay in effect for the duration of his jolly.

Policies can be changed at any time, taking into account the above, at your whim. You’ll find that as the game progresses you’ll have a need for different approaches. But - big but here, pay attention - there are limits to what you can do before your CIC starts to think that you are a fickle minded dill whose mind changes faster than a weather vane in a storm.

You start the game with the default policy settings of Control: Exercise Oversight and Field: HQ Inspection. You are given enough latitude to make two changes in quick succession without upsetting your CIC to accommodate your personal preferences with regards to policy settings. In short you have two free changes at the start to tweak policy to your liking. After that you need to carefully space out any changes to avoid upsetting your CIC.

Control Policy

Do you want to look over your CIC’s shoulder and keep him on a short leash or let him have his head? Control policy is all about Command Initiatives.



Image




Field Policy

As this has already been discussed (’Bonus Skills’) I’ll re-use the appropriate graphic as a memory jogger.



Image




Your two policy choices here determine how your CIC’s Field bonuses are applied. What isn’t shown above (but already mentioned elsewhere) is that instigating a policy of ‘Inspire the Troops’ allows your CIC’s Field bonuses to have greater impact but at the cost of doubling the risk of your CIC being injured.

Fickleness of Decision Making


Once you’ve used up your two free changes then you are subject to the ‘fickleness effect’. This is best explained in personal terms. Everybody has a boss. It is reasonable to expect that your boss will change their mind about how you can legitimately conduct yourself from time to time. But imagine how you would feel if major changes were made on a regular basis? One week you’re supposed to do it this way, the next that way and then, bugger me, they change their mind back to where things were originally, three weeks back.

How would you feel? Same here game-wise, the difference being that you’re the boss. Your CIC is working for you. Treat him kindly.

The ‘fickleness’ effect comes into play if you change any policy within ten turns of a previous change. Make a change and then hang fire until the dust has settled. That’s how it should work.

The mod will tell you when the ten turns are up and you are good to go again.



Image



The above status report, referring to a certain big-gutted Frenchman (it’s randomly determined, no offence), tells you the current policy settings. The comments in brackets for ‘Inspire the Troops’ are there as memory aides to remind you that with this option you get increased field bonuses, greater risk to your CIC and more effective Command Initiatives.

Because it doesn’t tell us that we are able to change policy (like below) you can assume that you are subject to the ‘fickleness of decision-making’ effect.



Image




Note in the above status report (from our impulse challenged friend, Hajime) has the vital ‘can Change’ indicator. It also shows the reverse policy options for each policy area (Control policy is always on the top with Field policy underneath it). You can see that ‘Exercise Oversight’ requires a big 75 CP’s (command points) before you can order your CIC to exercise a Command Initiative (well talk about that soon) whereas the the French gentleman previously shown needs only 50 CP’s as he has a policy option of ‘Free Reign’.

So you can tell by your status report whether you are able to change policy without penalty. You don’t have to scribble down on a notepad how many turns to go. Another way of checking is by looking at the Policy action cards.



Image




The cards dynamically update their text to indicate how many turns remain before you are free to change policy. You’ll know you’re OK when you see this…




Image




Green for go. Let’s change a policy and see what happens.



Image




Self explanatory. It’s worth reading the messages as very few of them are proforma. The text changes to reflect the situation and can undergo dramatic changes from message to message.

All well and good but don’t forget that you are the Boss and it is your prerogative to change your mind whenever you bloody well feel like it. What if you did?

The policy will change. Automatically. Whatever your wish, it will be carried out. But your CIC may get his knickers in a knot. Let’s have a look.



Image



Mr Big Belly Frenchman is starting to get edgy. This can be reflected in his level of satisfaction.

The mod makes a Universal test every time you make an unreasonable change (’fickleness’ effect). Standard 8+ with modifiers (as shown above in the glossy diagram) for each rash change of mind you have made. So for the above instance where you have unreasonably (in the eyes of your CIC) changed your mind twice you would get a +2 modifier to the roll.

If it succeeds (8+) then there is a one level hit to your CIC’s satisfaction. To spice things up a touch if the roll is a natural ‘10’ then they suffer a double (-2 levels) hit. Here’s an example.



Image




This is an internal mod debugging screen shot. You don’t normally get to see this but it serves to illustrate the point. We can see that the Universal test has rolled its ten sided dice and got a ‘5’. This is modified by the Fickleness stat (number of times you have unreasonably changed your mind), in this case one, to make it a net 6. Not enough to pass (standard 8+ to pass any Universal test) so while your CIC may be giving you strange looks he is willing to work with you. For now.



Image



Above is the debugger shot of the actual roll that came about from our favourite Frenchmen with the bionic beer gut (do I need to stress again that this is randomly determined and the Frenchman could just as easily be an Australian?). Now the mod rolled a ‘6’ but added +2 because you’ve changed your mind, unreasonably, twice. Which neatly flops it over the line to give a hit to your CIC’s satisfaction. Which you can see in the following turns weekly Status report. Like thus.



Image



Satisfaction, in addition to Command Initiatives are topics not yet covered but you're starting to get the drift.

Decision wise you can make a few rapid changes of policy and expect to get away with it but the modifier to the die roll (# times you have, unreasonably, changed your mind) grows ever bigger and makes it increasingly likely that you’ll suffer a satisfaction hit. The fickleness counter is specific to each CIC. They don’t forget. Ever.

Flip flop over policy too often early on and you’ll find yourself backed into a corner later on when you really do need to implement a change but can’t afford to upset your CIC any more than he currently is. It’s recommended that any policy changes are spaced well apart.

One final point. While I’ve stated above that your CIC won’t ever forget your dithering, fickle nature there is one specific instance where he will. Send him on Leave. That will cheer him up and, with enough of the right kind of R&R, he may be willing to overlook your limitations. Such as they are.


Satisfaction Effects of Policy or What does your CIC think about it?

Satisfaction. We’ll get to it. In the meantime you need to be aware that, while you can change policy at your whim, your CIC has his own views on what constitutes an appropriate policy option.



Image



As you can see above a CIC with a neutral Ambition trait (’0’) won’t have an opinion one way or another. Everybody else will. When deciding an appropriate policy response it pays to keep in mind the views of your CIC. You don’t have to agree but, if you don’t, except a certain amount of tension. The effects are magnified for CIC’s with very high Ambition traits (+2 or -2).



Modding

CIC_factor_Initiative_Free (gamevar #204)
Command points required to activate a standard ‘Command Initiative’ card (bonus AP’s applied to all subordinate units of an HQ) when you have a control policy of ‘Free Reign’. Set at 50

CIC_factor_Initiative_Oversight (gamevar #205)
Command points required to activate a ‘Command Initiative’ when you have a policy of ‘Exercise Oversight’. Set at 75.

CIC_factor_fickleness_start (gamevar #206)
Start value for fickleness setting. Set at ‘-2’ which allows two free changes of policy before fickleness effects kick-in.

CIC_factor_fickleness_time (gamevar #207)
Sets the time period inside which fickleness kicks in on a policy change. Currently set at 10. Avoid changing it to a number over 12 as this impacts other areas.
Post Reply

Return to “Mods and Scenarios”