AP111 SSR Terrain Overlay

[BigAl737]

I'm on a roll...

The scenario is AP111 The Katanas Come Out At Night. It uses boards 58 and 73. I know Bret is an ASL Ace so what am I missing when SSR 1 says all roads are paths? Paths go through woods (or crag) in this case but there aren't any woods/roads hexes that I see. There are tons of road/orchard (scrub) hexes. Does a path through scrub make a difference in game play? Or maybe it's an SSR just to get rid of the roads. In any case, I'm confused which shouldn't surprise anyone.

 

[Eagle4ty]

For that specific scenario I don't believe it makes any difference; not to mention I don't believe it would be supported by any rules anyway. Now if if one were to incorporate the KGP "jeeps using paths" rule AND if the scenario contained these small type vehicles (I could also see a SSR that would allow motorcycles, Kfz, etc. to be included) there may be an effect. As for now, since Scrub imparts no additional MF to enter nor would a Path impart any advantage for MF/MP spent to enter such terrain, I don't see a need to include them.

 

[bprobst]

Paths are extremely important for a night scenario; they help to cut down on (possible) straying.

They don't make any difference for movement (in this scenario) other than that, but you absolutely, positively need them depicted on the map.

Why use non-standard crag depictions?

 

[BigAl737]

I knew I was missing something. Thanks Bruce.

The non-standard crags were easier for me to use as they're just a pattern fill.

Here's the latest:

 

[bprobst]

That looks just about perfect, Al; my only suggestion for improvement would be to improve (emphasise?) the path depictions in hexes 73I1 and 73Q1. (It's a little bit odd that there's no road (path) depiction at all in 58I1, but that's not your fault!)

 

[BigAl737]

These are now available in v2.03

VASL Overlay Extension

This thread serves as the reference point for all things regarding the VASL Overlay Extension. Update Jan 2022: v2.10 has gone active. Version 2.10 adds DASL overlays dx10-21. You can get it here: http://vasl.info/extensions.htm (The link above says scenarios but it takes you to the right...

www.gamesquad.com

 

[bprobst]

Thanks Al ... but ... any chance of making the overlay less transparent? Because as it is the underlying terrain shows through making the overall effect much less attractive than your illustration above.

E.g., woods is showing underneath the crag hexes, the roads are showing underneath the path hexes, etc.

Honestly, I don't think the extension is the best place to put major map changes like this ... they're much better as, well, BSO options in the actual bd files.

 

[BigAl737]

You got me wondering if I screwed up the overlay. I’ll check it next chance I get in a few days. By chance you don’t have opacity cycled on (Ctrl+O) do you?

 

[bprobst]

I didn't even know there was an Opactity option; but no, it has nothing to do with that setting.

The overlay has no coloured background, so everything not on the overlay shows through. The woods are not totally obliterated, the roads show through, etc.

 

[BigAl737]

I didn't even know there was an Opactity option; but no, it has nothing to do with that setting.

The overlay has no coloured background, so everything not on the overlay shows through. The woods are not totally obliterated, the roads show through, etc.

View attachment 14775

Looks like you need to nudge it into place. Select each overlay then use ctrl+an arrow key to move it a pixel in that direction. You should be able to cover the background terrain completely.

 

[bprobst]

Al, "nudging" is not going to solve the problem. The roads, for instance, are about 5 times (or more) the width of the paths. How is moving the paths a pixel going to make the roads disappear? Similarly the woods that are showing through are more than a pixel worth.

Giving the overlay the same background colours that any other overlay has would solve the problem. I'm not sure what the difficulty is here. You've got the correct artwork a few posts up this thread, but that artwork is not what has been put into the extension. I'm sure you have reasons for that, but I'm at a loss to know what those reasons are.

Doesn't matter to me any more. The scenario is finished and I'm quite unlikely to play it again. All I know is that if I were to play it again, I would be unable to use the overlay as presented in its current form.

Incidentally, if an overlay only "works" when there is an exact pixel match, then the overlay will never work. If absolutely rigorous exact placement of the overlay is required, then why does VASL allow non-exact placement at all? "Near enough" should be "good enough". Blaming the user for not having a mouse fitted with micro-calipers seems misguided ....

 

[BigAl737]

Well you don’t need a mouse fitted with micro calipers. You just need to hit ctrl+an arrow key a few times. There are reasons behind the madness we call VASL.

But I’m not the brightest bulb in the socket so I am open to new ideas and feedback. I may have induced a bug when I went final so I’ll look at it again.

Thanks for your input Bruce. Though you didn’t get a chance to use this overlay, I aim to have it perfected for those that come after.

 

[asloser]

This discussion made me look up the scenario and I will play it sometime soon.

 

[BigAl737]

This discussion made me look up the scenario and I will play it sometime soon.

I just checked the overlays and they work. Please let me know if you have problems.

 

[bprobst]

You just need to hit ctrl+an arrow key a few times

No, I really don't. I need to be able to drag the overlay onto the map, make sure the hex grids are lined up and I should be good to go. (Actually what I really need is to go into the terrain modifications dialog, find and tick the "Scenario AP111" check box for each map, and then be good to go.)

What do you mean when you say "I just checked the overlays and they work"? I checked the overlays and clearly they DON'T work (as per my screen shot above). Seeing roads and woods bleed through the overlay is the exact opposite of "working". One of us appears to be missing something. An overlay that only "works" when there's an exact pixel match doesn't "work" at all.

If this is the way SSO will be handled going forward, I'll know better than to request them in future. Clearly more trouble than they're worth.

 

[von Marwitz]

'Gruffian' mode activated, eh?

von Marwitz

 

[BigAl737]

I understand your point Bruce. I did this overlay per your request. Making it drag, drop and nudge was a quick way for me to get it to you for your use and feedback. There’s behind the scenes reasons for this that I won’t go into.

The overlays work in that I can drag, drop and nudge them into place to achieve the screen shot in post #4.

As for is this the future of SSOs, the trial is ongoing. My thought is to eventually transfer the perfected drag, drop and nudge SSOs to the actual board file. There are behind the scene reasons that I don’t want to do this while the overlay is being perfected.

I think drag, drop and nudge works perfectly well and could even be a better long term solution. But VASL isn’t just me. I value what the community wants. At some point in the future I’ll solicit their opinions and come to a decision. I know your opinion Bruce.