What else do you want to know more about?

Gary Grigsby’s War in the West 1943-45 is the most ambitious and detailed computer wargame on the Western Front of World War II ever made. Starting with the Summer 1943 invasions of Sicily and Italy and proceeding through the invasions of France and the drive into Germany, War in the West brings you all the Allied campaigns in Western Europe and the capability to re-fight the Western Front according to your plan.

Moderators: Joel Billings, RedLancer

tiger111
Posts: 495
Joined: Fri Nov 25, 2005 7:19 pm

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by tiger111 »

I`m reasonably familiar with WITE (played since release) and the supply question in that game quite difficult. This has promted me to ask this :-
Please do a more detailed post regarding supply and how it relates to divs and corps units, and the significence of the different types of supply in game.

Also
A post outling how USAAF and RAF night raids are planned and executed. Also how to deploy the Luftwaffe in response(generally and how to intercept raids).Are there dedicated "Defence of the Reich" Geschwaders?Any ingame tips are welcome.

Obviously Supply and the Air War seem to be the major changes from WITE. Thanks.
JamesM
Posts: 1024
Joined: Mon Aug 28, 2000 8:00 am
Location: QLD, Australia

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by JamesM »

IN Gary's Bombing of the Reich, the Allies Strategic Air Forces had compulsory targets they had to bomb every now and then i.e. Transportation targets on the lead up and post invasion, V sites, etc. Will the same requirements happen in WitW?
HMSWarspite
Posts: 1404
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2002 10:38 pm
Location: Bristol, UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by HMSWarspite »

Why would you need this? In BtR, the land war is abstracted and does not get the emphasis in the VP (you can win without invading Germany). Thus an artificial rule is required, In WitW, the player is the 'distraction from strategic bombing'. If anything, the demands of the strategic bombing campaign have to be carefully imposed (via measurable effects on GE supply and equipment production), or you would need compulsory targets in Germany to prevent the heavy bomber force just becoming another Tactical Air Force! The Transportation plan affects the ground war directly, so that is a free choice, and V sites are VPs so there is an incentive there. We need the maximum of 'real' choices and the minimum of game mechanics to create a realistic effect don't we?
I have a cunning plan, My Lord
User avatar
Lützow
Posts: 1520
Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2008 6:09 pm
Location: Germany

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Lützow »

Well, I have a technical question. Can somebody confirm that WITW works with Parallels in OS X?
User avatar
warshipbuilder
Posts: 2670
Joined: Sat Feb 23, 2013 8:52 pm
Location: C-eh-n-eh-d-eh

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by warshipbuilder »

In BtR, the land war is abstracted and does not get the emphasis in the VP (you can win without invading Germany).

Therein is one of the big problems with BTR. You are restricted at times to completely doing tactical airstrikes in support of Avalanche and Overlord, which is fine, because that is the way it was. BUT it makes no difference on how successful you are, the land war is scripted. The Gustav Line collapses when it is suppose to, D-Day is June 6 and the Allies break out of Normandy right on schedule. So no matter how badly you pound the Wehrmacht in to dust, the armies do not move until the calendar says it is ok.
warshipbuilder

Any ship can be a minesweeper, once.
ED/BTR Ressurection Project
https://www.bombercommandmuseumarchives.ca/
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

ORIGINAL: Augustas

I`m reasonably familiar with WITE (played since release) and the supply question in that game quite difficult. This has promted me to ask this :-
Please do a more detailed post regarding supply and how it relates to divs and corps units, and the significence of the different types of supply in game.

The system is significantly different from WitE. 'Supply' moves on the map as freight. Units get freight from depots and NOT - I repeat NOT - from a working rail hex. HQs no longer hold supply or fuel - their role is now only range with respect to the comd range and the leader rolls.
When freight gets to a unit it is converted depending on need into supply, fuel, ammo or replacements. Replacements are no longer a separate transaction.

Fuel is needed for motorised movement - less fuel less MPs. Ammo is needed for combat - less ammo then less CV. Supplies are required for non-motorised movement and is involved in reducing fatigue (nothing like a good feed!)
Unlike WitE units in combat with less than 60% Fuel/Ammo or 40% Supplies will try and draw more freight during combat resolution.

A post outling how USAAF and RAF night raids are planned and executed. Also how to deploy the Luftwaffe in response(generally and how to intercept raids).Are there dedicated "Defence of the Reich" Geschwaders?Any ingame tips are welcome.

The post on Air Directives gives you the basics - even after 18 months I don't think I've got all the nuances - factory information is subject to fog of war so recon is important. Interception is automatic so for the LW you are positioning staffeln in the right place. Oboe is modelled as is NF radar. There are no restrictions on which units you need to use for defence of the Reich but air groups must stay in stream - a NF Unit always uses NF. The Player's Handbook has a guide on air planning with tips on best altitude for cameras, at what height AA can fire into adjacent hexes and that sort of useful stuff we've been learning during testing.
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

ORIGINAL: jamesm

IN Gary's Bombing of the Reich, the Allies Strategic Air Forces had compulsory targets they had to bomb every now and then i.e. Transportation targets on the lead up and post invasion, V sites, etc. Will the same requirements happen in WitW?

Not exactly - you gain points for damage caused by strategic bombing and lose them if you do not damage U-boat factories and V- Weapons. Not supporting an invasion with strategic bombing could be a disaster in the making - your choice.
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
User avatar
Lützow
Posts: 1520
Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2008 6:09 pm
Location: Germany

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Lützow »

Ok, I got two more questions:

- Regarding air warfare, it is possible to transfer squadrons between airbases?
- How appealing is WITW being played from Axis side against AI?
User avatar
Emx77
Posts: 456
Joined: Mon Mar 29, 2004 11:12 am
Location: Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Contact:

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Emx77 »

Would developer change term "morale" to something more appropriate? IIRC, moral in WitE represents the training levels and doctrine capabilities of the countries more than reflecting the willingness of the soldiers to fight. I think such terminology caused confusion among players in the time of WitE launch. For example, It would be more appropriate to use term "proficiency" as it better capture essence of training levels and doctrine capabilities.
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

ORIGINAL: Lützow

Ok, I got two more questions:

- Regarding air warfare, it is possible to transfer squadrons between airbases?
- How appealing is WITW being played from Axis side against AI?

Those I can answer.

Yes you can transfer using F10 Mode which works in both the air planning phase and the ground movement phase. You need to be careful not to overload air bases as that impacts on air sorties generation and if the air group and the air base have different HQs then maintenance is impacted.

It's very appealing - of course I would say that - a lot of effort has been put into the Allied AI and it can pull some surprises.
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

ORIGINAL: Emir Agic

Would developer change term "morale" to something more appropriate? IIRC, moral in WitE represents the training levels and doctrine capabilities of the countries more than reflecting the willingness of the soldiers to fight. I think such terminology caused confusion among players in the time of WitE launch. For example, It would be more appropriate to use term "proficiency" as it better capture essence of training levels and doctrine capabilities.


I think we debated this ad nauseam. Whilst proficiency might be a better term my recollection is that because of the use of morale throughout the code changing it was a step too far.
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
User avatar
Balou
Posts: 848
Joined: Fri Jul 24, 2009 7:12 pm

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Balou »

ORIGINAL: Red Lancer
In WitW the ability to launch invasions (almost anywhere)...
So the Pas de Calais won't be safe [:D] ? I wonder how the allied AIs decision making works. Is there some (Enigma) Intel going on (such as in WITP) or does it work thru recon and whatever the AI makes of it ?
“Aim towards enemy“.
- instructions on U.S. rocket launcher
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

The Pas de Calais is not safe. There is no Enigma - you use air recon.
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
User avatar
Balou
Posts: 848
Joined: Fri Jul 24, 2009 7:12 pm

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Balou »

Ok, thanks. Somehow WitW with a little bit of Enigma or Red Orchestra stuff would have been nice. And I know that the German side was less informed about Allied intentions in later stages of the war
“Aim towards enemy“.
- instructions on U.S. rocket launcher
User avatar
Commanderski
Posts: 941
Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:24 pm
Location: New Hampshire

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Commanderski »

Will there be any changes to the Editor? I played around with before and just used it to make some leader changes, Command Point changes and withdrawal changes to the Campaign and it really was quite easy.
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

I've just finished writing the Editor Manual - the changes are minor beyond the need to add improvements for the new game functionality and map construct. If you are WitE editor savvy you'll have no problems.
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
Kronolog
Posts: 138
Joined: Wed Mar 23, 2011 6:00 pm
Location: Sweden

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Kronolog »

When do you think that you will start posting AARs?
User avatar
Jim D Burns
Posts: 3980
Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2002 6:00 pm
Location: Salida, CA.

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by Jim D Burns »

ORIGINAL: Red Lancer

We're working on AARs at the moment but is there anything else you'd like to know more about?

How is the strategic bombing campaign handled? Is it even part of the game? Are there hundreds of target types (ball bearings, fuel, munitions, etc.) on map like in Eagle Day Bombing the Reich?


I know about the directives settings screen, but explain in detail how missions are created and flown. Is it detailed with lots of missions hitting dozens of individual targets like in Eagle Day or is it more generic and missions simply hit cities and do % damage to the selected target directive types?

Jim
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

Yes it is very much part of the game and it is detailed - I'll put together a collage of screenshots to show you just how detailed as one doesn't do the effort that Pavel has put in justice..
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
User avatar
RedLancer
Posts: 4338
Joined: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:09 am
Location: UK

RE: What else do you want to know more about?

Post by RedLancer »

OK - this screenshot shows the detail you can specify. Once you have set the parameters the game does the donkey work of sending the missions to meet your intent. You can set the game to watch each of the thousands of missions flying or check out the summary at the end.

It's difficult to explain as I'm so used to the system so please ask if you want me to explain more.

Image
Attachments
AirStuff.jpg
AirStuff.jpg (210.4 KiB) Viewed 133 times
John
WitE2 Asst Producer
WitE & WitW Dev
Post Reply

Return to “Gary Grigsby's War in the West”