How is the FW VASL looking?

dpabrams77

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Set up my first scenario today in VASL, that of course uses existing boards and counters. Just curious, I thought I had read that it's usually a month or so before the updates are released for new modules?
 

BigAl737

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Haven’t received my copy yet but from pictures I’ve seen, there’s a lot of goodness stuffed into the box. It’ll be a while.
 

Sully

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Al - has anyone signed up to do the counters?
 

Robin Reeve

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Oops! I pissed in my pants...
I couldn't wait, you see. :waiting::oops::facepalm:
 

Brian W

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The boards were designed back in the 90s. It's a shame KE/MMP never gave any of the map elves a copy way back then.
 

zgrose

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The maps are the easiest bit if people don't want all the bells and whistles from the get-go.
 

dpabrams77

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One would think that this would have been play tested on VASL to begin with? All the play testing I have done for MMP (GTS) and GMT are done in such a manner.
 

Tuomo

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The boards were designed back in the 90s. It's a shame KE/MMP never gave any of the map elves a copy way back then.
I can't remember that far back, but the hardcopy maps had VASL versions from the get-go. In fact, the VASL versions might have predated the hardcopy versions - I'd have to go back into the archives to find out for sure.

Regardless, even if one submits a board idea to MMP and they approve it, you just can't assume the published version will be the same as the VASL version of the board you submitted. MMP's board artist doesn't have to adhere 100% to the contours of the submitted board art, and even if they tried to, you just don't want to make assumptions there. Better to just take the as-published board and VASLize it.

Fortunately, the time-intensive things about VASLizing a board aren't really in play in Korea - there's not much Woods out there to turn into Dense Jungle or the various "Woods Roads Are X" overlays. There is a certain amount of Brush that'll have to be given the Bamboo Overlay treatment, and some Crags will require "Crags To X" overlays, but honestly, these boards aren't really complex.

Yes, it helps if MMP sends the Map Elves a PDF of the published board, but in a pinch, homemade scans or pictures will do.

Tom
 

dpabrams77

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Tom,

Thanks for the answers. How about the counter art process? I have digitized additional counters and added them to VASSAL modules for years as scans just don't cut it. Are there templated VASL counters ready to be populated with art and info?
 

Tuomo

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How about the counter art process? I have digitized additional counters and added them to VASSAL modules for years as scans just don't cut it. Are there templated VASL counters ready to be populated with art and info?
Oygh. Accessing the memory banks...

No, that's not how VASL counters work, unfortunately. As of a few years ago when I left the VASL biz, counter artwork was essentially a handcrafted thing, where you grabbed an existing counter and modified it to your needs. There is an automated tool out there somewhere in VASSAL-land that allows one to take a spreadsheet of info and auto-generate counters from that, but IMO the time savings in using that tool would be about the same as the time spent learning it. If we had started out that way Back In The Day, things would be simpler/easier now, but foresight was lacking.

Forever On The Horizon is the concept of using Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) for both maps and counters, but the amount of work to go to that model is simply mind-boggling. As the VASL Map Elves prefer to not have their minds boggled (and the Counter Trolls pretty much live in the boggled state anyway), it's just never gone beyond Powerpoint Engineering.

On the other hand - I haven't been in the VASL Board Meetings in a long time, preferring instead to sit in my cushy Emeritus Status office and smoke cigars while waxing poetic about the Good Old Days. The current VASL Cabal is pretty darn energetic and resourceful, and if they came out with an SVG update tomorrow, I wouldn't be surprised. They're pretty impressive in their drive for excellence.
 
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