Dogs Of War Vu

Sim/Strategy/War => Games Discussion => Topic started by: Asid on November 10, 2018, 03:51:17 PM

Title: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 10, 2018, 03:51:17 PM
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/header.jpg?t=1538762105)

January, 1915. The Race to the Sea is over. The Great War has just begun. You are the commander of a single division in the meat grinder that is the Western Front.


Steam: Here (https://store.steampowered.com/app/866400/On_The_Western_Front/)
Official forum: Here (https://steamcommunity.com/app/866400/discussions/)


Single-player


Trailer

Coming soon



About

Grand Strategy on a Small Scale
January, 1915. The Race to the Sea is over. The Great War has just begun. You are the commander of a single division in the meat grinder that is the Western Front. Lead your men over the top as you attempt to break the stalemate that is to claim the lives of millions over the course of years.

Are you ready to be a donkey and lead lions to their glorious deaths?

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/extras/MudAndBlood.png?t=1538762105)

Mud and Blood
•   Command your men down to the platoon level. Build trenches, dig tunnels, set barbed wire, and more in a futile attempt to break through the enemy lines.
•   Make use of different unit types to solve the stalemate, from riflemen and machine gunners to engineers and tunnelling units.
•   Multiple shell types allow astute commanders to remain flexible. From gas shells to shrapnel, different situations call for different shells.
•   Weather and time of day will affect everything, including visibility, morale, and the structural integrity of your fortifications. Make sure to maintain them properly!

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/extras/NobleSacrifice.png?t=1538762105)

Noble Sacrifice
•   Earn Valour from your superior officers by sending your men to their deaths during full-scale offensives. Both inflicted and sustained casualties can be used to unlock upgrades - lessons learned through blood sacrifice.
•   Perform trench raids and capture enemy prisoners in order to capture intelligence.
•   Send pilots on reconnaissance missions in order scout the enemy lines and keep an eye on enemy activities.
•   If you can't break the enemy lines above ground, go underneath them and set mines that can be detonated at will.


(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_773394627893e9c15a6d572ec9c70bedad4b2795.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_f4e88cefd5d1bda3bc4b91bf12e9d7a153630247.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_6c3cf15b7452912b756ffb482de283f65d11e963.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_7dc1fb786de151263890fd548c24f2bab7f4efee.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_a9ba4034534c7cfb59ac77c8f42defbaabfcb68d.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_eef2bab87015ae52c9d22b9d4e075e6d13b0c8c9.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_66ada29c394e8145f86799831628682b80019411.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_8f06ac86bddc706a77038f6f5c154f126cf1085a.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_6d6aeb382746f19b032aae1e418d4442b6efa0c8.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_ea300d7726049f98ea3da8744e4b4da366778370.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_e5fc52e2ee9f1500fc46851d522dab3bd0514d09.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_fc2637343418513b8fed6bab81cd3c16cff5435f.1920x1080.jpg?t=1538762105)

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 10, 2018, 03:56:39 PM
Remembrance/Armistice Day Weekend Update
10 November - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

I've added a couple of new features this week!

Alternate Font

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/71569c2c857e64f86e4ecfee39b465c241ac1516.png)

The Settings screen in the main menu now has the option of switching to an alternate font which I believe shows up better at lower resolutions. This can only be done on the main menu, because allowing it from the pause menu would be MUCH harder to implement. Let me know if the new font helps - I can always change it to something else if necessary.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/5a11d431126a94046df5501240afa0e018de889f.png)

Aircraft

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/d94e983ce3220189e42b29e7bd73d314169b5775.png)

I've now made it necessary to assign aircraft to individual pilots before sending them out on sorties. It's pretty basic at the moment. Once you get 1,000 Valour points, you can upgrade any of the aircraft to better models, which provide bonuses in combat against inferior enemy aircraft. You can also have pilots change planes if one becomes too damaged.

Let me know what you think of this feature. I'm not 100% sure how much detail should go into it, so I'd love the feedback.

Bugfixes:
•   In the process of tweaking the aerodrome, I noticed that new pilots weren't being generated. Now, at the beginning of each month, if the number of pilots and/or planes is too low, new ones are generated.
•   Pilot info now contains an icon to indicate whether they are Recon or Escort pilots.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/d95c44c2f71034d1dee3724cad743ef079f9ad24.png)

•   Fixed bug in which scheduled orders for dugouts and blockhouses wasn't working.
•   Fixed bug in which Dry Weather Only scheduled orders wouldn't work a lot of the time.
•   Optimized pathfinding a bit, which should reduce some lag whne pathfinding over long distances.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 15, 2018, 12:03:19 AM
On The Western Front Early Trailer

https://youtu.be/4WGVDcp-2_4
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 20, 2018, 02:55:57 PM
Threads
20 NOVEMBER - AGGROBLAKH

Hi all,

Relatively minor update this week, as most of the work I've done is under the hood. I was hoping to include destructible terrain this week, but it's not quite ready to roll out yet. The reason I'm releasing an update anyways is because I've made a few changes to the way the game runs through each game tick.

Previously, the game timer would interrupt the game and cause issues with using the interface, as well as essentially locking up the game for a few milliseconds while it processed each game tick. Now I've moved things around in code so that the majority of the game tick runs in a separate thread. It seems like an obvious thing to include even before releasing in Early Access, but in my mind performance comes secondary to correctness ie. I was initially more concerned with making sure everything worked and was fun rather than how quickly it ran (as long as it was playable, of course).

Using the UI should now feel a lot more responsive even while the game timer is running, and I'm hoping things run a lot smoother in general. Let me know if you run into any issues - if any of you have done programming yourselves, you'll probably be more than aware that multi-threaded/concurrent programming occupies its own special place in Hell. Nevertheless, I'm hoping this improves the game experience for a lot of you.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Made game tick concurrent.
•   Prevented the HQ and Aerodrome from refreshing every game tick, which should make those screens more easily useable while the game timer is running.
•   Added the ability to use the WASD keys to scroll.
•   Reduced the number of subscreen refreshes, which should make things less "choppy"
•   Drag-selecting entire groups of units and issuing orders to them will now ignore HQ units if HQ units are unable to perform those orders (build orders, wiring, etc)
•   Selecting HQ units will now highlight their subordinate units as well.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/65ff642e8dbc862b45d21f12e3cb841d016ae188.png)

•   Added weapon names in the Order of Battle subscreen.
•   Updated the tutorials so that they are no longer broken versions of the main map. This also means that the bug in which the map toggles in the upper right corner of the screen now work in the tutorials.
•   Changed the game icon to something other than the default Godot icon.

Soon to Come:
•   Destructible Terrain - I have one house type completed, as well as the underlying logic for any type of terrain in general. I probably won't release this feature until I have at least a few different building types, otherwise it's going to look really weird.
•   The ability to schedule attack orders using the Scheduled Order screen.
•   A Retreat button once you send units over the top.
•   Better UI for managing subordinates/superiors. Right now it takes several clicks to, say, select a company within a brigade, and then to select all platoons in that company. I'm probably just going to steal the interface from HOI3, but it will take me a few days to implement, and I wanted to get an update out today.
•   Artillery gun-pits. Some of you have suggested this, but until now I couldn't think of a gameplay-related reason to include them. Since artillery can't enter blockhouses, I'm thinking these will basically be blockhouses for artillery. They take longer to build, and it takes artillery units a long time to settle into them or leave them. However, artillery will be protected from counterbattery fire and aerial observation (signals units can still spot them, though). Let me know if this sounds good!

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: zakblood on November 21, 2018, 08:45:58 AM
not so sure what to say or make of this one, icons for the NATO symbols far too small imo, no idea on losses, advance seems to be piecemeal with no attacks against it going in, with no casualties or attacks / tracers shown going either way, regrading bullets, dead dropping, shells / smoke etc etc shown, it looks like a parade and not a march into no mans land, it losses the feel of the time, and needs a lot more added before the likes of me would even go near it i'm sorry to say, look more like a 1980 space invaders game, and i'm really sorry to be so negative on this one, but only commenting on what's shown on the video, and in the end, it's my impression and opinion only, for what it's worth
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 21, 2018, 02:13:36 PM
Hi Zak.

Some valid points. It is early days and the dev is receptive to input  :thumbsup
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: zakblood on November 21, 2018, 04:08:30 PM
ah sorry is it EA?

thought it was released or something, must admit didn't read much, just watched the video,.

my bad :laughing4

 :thumbsup :howdy
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 21, 2018, 04:42:14 PM
Why Early Access?
“The development of this game is a one-man operation. To avoid scaring anybody off, I've successfully completed and shipped games before, so there is zero-risk of me leaving this game in an incomplete state (barring unforeseen circumstances, of course).

The release of my previous games taught me an important lesson. Namely, that no matter how much I test and tweak the game prior to release, there are always going to be bugs, balance issues, and new features/content that I simply cannot predict. Furthermore, attempting to overhaul a fully-released game constrains my ability to introduce sweeping changes, for fear of breaking savegames and ruining progress. So rather than upsettting or misleading people, I might as well release early and openly declare my intention to continue working on and adding to the game for the foreseeable future.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?
“I'm aiming for no more than about 3-6 months, but I don't want to commit to a hard deadline because, as mentioned above, it's almost impossible to predict how comprehensive bug-fixing and feature requests will be. With my luck, it will be twice as long. To assuage any fears, I've continued fixing and balancing my previous games for more than a year after full release, up to and including porting the entire game over to a new engine simply because there were a lot of Mac and Linux users who wanted to play the game, but weren't able to. Despite whatever one might think of the graphics or audio in my games, I am very proud of my work and outright refuse to abandon them in broken or incomplete states.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?
“There are a lot of features planned that aren't in the game yet, because I figure it's sensible to make sure the core gameplay is fun and balanced before adding a bunch of new content that ends up being broken and needing fixing anyways.

As a bare minimum:
•   The tutorials will be improved. How and where they are improved is up to you guys and the feedback I receive with regard to user-friendliness, etc.
•   Saving and loading will be implemented. Right now it isn't because I expect lots of changes in the weeks or so following Early Access release, so I figure there's no point in creating a bunch of broken saves. Obviously, though, once things start to solidify, save/load is at the top of my list.
•   UI quality of life improvements.
•   A system for loading user-edited language packs in the game.
•   Steam Achievements

I will also be adding different maps based on different theatres of the Great War:
•   Meuse-Argonne: This map will introduce forest warfare and river crossings.
•   Middle East: This map will focus on controlling water wells that are dotted around the map rather than breaking through the enemy line.
•   Italian Front: This one will almost certainly be among the last of the major features I introduce due to the massive amount of work it will require, but since underground warfare is already in the game I'm hoping that I can introduce multi-level underground/mountain warfare, as well as "unit cohesion" to reflect the multi-cultural makeup of both the Austro-Hungarian and Italian armies.
•   Anything else you might suggest!

Lastly, I'd also like to add online gameplay, but I'm not 100% sure how well Godot Engine handles online/Steamworks, so I can't really promise anything. It's just on my radar.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?
“The core gameplay is, to the best of my knowledge, playable and stable. As of Early Access release, the main/default map is playable with AI, and all planned gameplay elements are available to be broken by you guys. My main goal is to ensure that the AI and gameplay for the main map is solid before adding more content, but at the very least the game won't be crashing and taking your computer with it.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?
“The planned price for Early Access is $10 USD, and I might bump it up to about $15 if I end up adding a lot of new content to the game. I don't generally pay more than about $15 for games myself, so I can't in good conscience ask any more from you guys.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?
“The game forums are a good place to suggest features and report bugs, and if anything urgent comes up, feel free to add me on Steam and yell at me via Friend Chat. I'm open to suggestions, and my previous track record should suffice to prove that I'm willing to listen to anything. I've literally had people email me their save games so I could fix them manually when the situation called for it. As mentioned above, I am very proud of my work, and it kills me when people are left feeling disappointed or misled. I'm a fan of Great War history myself, so it's my intention to make a game that fills this void for myself and other WW1 nerds out there.”
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 29, 2018, 12:19:12 AM
Terrain
On The Western Front - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Early stages of destructible terrain are in! So far only a few building types have included, and only a few different configurations. I want to know what you all think before I start adding more types of terrain and customizing things a bit more. For now, houses act as shelter. They hide units from view, and essentially function as a combination of dugouts and blockhouses (albeit less effective at protecting units than blockhouses). The tradeoff is that buildings obscure lines of sight, and will be permanently destroyed if they take enough artillery fire.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/96ce75c8c83cf587c8b0c59f8688293686effd52.png)

I've also taken the liberty of implementing a bunch of the suggestions I've seen in the discussion forums.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Destructible Terrain
•   Commanders now auto-assigned at start.
•   Aircraft now auto-assigned to pilots at start.
•   Supply units have been tweaked so that they automatically resupply and return to their previous order. This should reduce some of the micromanagement associated with supply lines. This was actually present in the last update, but I forgot to tell anyone.
•   An event log display which can be shown and hidden at will.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/70b882fbb6d0adac199c03dcc6890e0ea46b65d8.png) (https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/3ffef7fc15fbca74184879a9b7e2ab0421da4253.png)

•   Coffee and alcohol have been included as new supply types. They aren't limited in number - you can just keep grabbing them from rear lines as you see fit. Coffee provides a temporary bonus to sight range via the new "Alert" status, while alcohol provides a temporary movement boost to help facilitate frontal assaults. Just for fun, each nation has its own version of alcohol.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/a459e465dafd0c6d3086da46bdbef51d0ac49d71.png)

•   Health bars showing unit numbers, morale, primary supply, and readiness are now included on unit lists. This will hopefully provide more visual feedback with regard to unit status.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on December 03, 2018, 03:08:46 PM
Hospitals
On The Western Front - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Some more updates this week!

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Field Hospitals
Field Hospitals can be built by Medical units, and serve as automatic treatment areas for Medical units that pick up wounded men via the Find Wounded order. Units being treated in field hospitals are treated faster, and convalescents return only to units in range. This replaces the existing system in which convalescents trickle back randomly to units along the front, which allows you to prioritize units that need to be reinforced.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/capsule_184x69.jpg?t=1538762105)

•   Performing Wiring, Trench or Comm. Trench actions now activates a separate Build Mode, which allows you to chop and change the lines you draw. This is in response to complaints about the inability to fix mistakes.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/2eb6048bd8542bbe57b92665d80c7f6ecd9f24da.png)

•   Buildings no longer appear underground.
•   I've made a couple of optimizations to the AI's unit rotation functions, which should prevent the game from slowing down so much when enemy units rotate lines.
•   Saving the game now saves terrain properly.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on December 12, 2018, 02:05:59 PM
Building Types and Improvements
12 December - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Some more content and quality of life updates this week, most of which has been requested by you guys. Keep the suggestions coming!

Bugfixes/Changes:

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c2fa8bf264dda96f189b0b4b6ea61b34195abdec.png)

•   Field Kitchens
Field Kitchens are essentially an open-ground version of field supply dumps. Only supply units are able to build field kitchens, and they start off fully stocked. However, they slowly distribute food to the units around them, and thus must be restocked using the Add Supplies command with a supply or rifle unit carrying food.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/eac758e5a727244c84ed6db67cd0493610c32d8a.png)

Food and water combined are now a new supply type, and can be viewed by using a new button next to the morale value on the unit window. Reaching 0% food/water starts to reduce morale, which can affect the ability of your units to carry out attacks and defend their positions. It's worth noting this new addition breaks all your saves, since Food is now a unit attribute. Sorry for the trouble.

•   Showers/Delousing Stations
This one's just for fun, like coffee and alcohol before it. Sending your men to the showers adds the "Deloused" effect for eight hours, which increases the rate of morale regain when resting (and also slows the rate of morale loss when food is at 0%). The "Deloused" effect also prevents men from becoming sick/wounded during heavy rain and snow.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/afa75ffc7c40cec51f28bd1bf6da6ee11e8f00ed.png)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c48c02c872a9e34e3a0d2396b1c1a6270ef4b6eb.png)

•   Watch Duty, Rest, and Training are now click-and-drag AOE orders. Watch Duty and Rest will target trench tiles within the selected area, while Training will target open ground tiles. This allows you to select an entire group of units and have them garrison an entire stretch of trenches, or have them spread out and train over a patch of open ground instead of all being stacked on the same tile. This, along with the updated unit window, should make it easier to manage your units by allowing you to issue idle/rest orders over a small area instead of having to manually place subordinate units.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/9d6b837f4da34df4b4d618e42b09b8e65f0b51ce.gif)

•   Tutorials were broken due to a bug with the event log. This has now been fixed.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on December 20, 2018, 01:29:28 PM
Grass
20 December - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Fairly minor update gameplay wise, but a pretty noticeable one. I've added destructible grass, since many of you asked for it to be included in the game. I've also modified the scale of the buildings on the map, making them much smaller and more realistic relative to the units in the game.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/b695bcff1b77f2882c8bc827e93662cfa9133a2f.png)

Lastly, I made it so that using the Rest order and dragging over an area would also include buildings as possible rest locations, rather than being confined to trenches/dugouts.

Hope you enjoy the game!
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 03, 2019, 02:57:31 PM
Happy New Year!
3 January - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Hope you all had a good holiday. I did, but I still managed to set aside some time to update the game a bit more!

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Commander Traits
Commanders now possess traits that they pass down to their subordinates. The effect is inversely magnified depending on the commander's rank. That is, the bonuses (and penalties) given by company commander traits is greater than those given by battalion or brigade commanders, with the obvious tradeoff of affecting fewer units. NCOs earned by veteran-level platoons offer the greatest effects from traits.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c074bd982d8d6b357050e9ad7b590abc6926d388.png)

•   Enemy Strongpoints
This one's not quite perfect yet, but you might notice that the AI now tries to build trenches around buildings. I'm hoping to eventually get to the point where the AI is turning these into strongpoints, just like in real life.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/a2d4f63d79da6d20abd70cf5dd7f1a6a8888af4f.png)

•   By turning "idle" actions such as resting, guard duty, and drilling into AOE orders, I accidentally broke the ability to order a unit to move elsewhere if it was already moving. This bug is now fixed.
•   Fixed a bug in which field kitchens could be restocked endlessly until they held enormous amounts of food/water.
•   Enlarged the range of both field hospitals and field kitchens, as well as increasing the carrying capacity of field kitchens. I found it got kind of annoying having to build one of these every few tiles.
•   Fixed German HQ unit counters. Previously were all set to company commanders.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 07, 2019, 03:53:35 PM
Hotfix 3
7 JANUARY - AGGROBLAKH

Hi all,

Quick turnaround on this update, as there are a few bugfixes and changes that hopefully make the game a bit easier to play.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Underground construction works again. I had broken it when I redesigned the unit order list after adding things like field hospitals and kitchens.
•   Redesigned the "Suppress Area" command at the top of the screen. Previously, clicking it brought up a second menu which could be used to select artillery shell types. Now there is a small window with separate buttons, similar to Build Mode.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/5ce0ccb56758e3999a4ea17c0ecfd258039dce2d.png)

•   Scheduled artillery bombardments now are colour-coded when selected using the pop-up dialog in the top-right.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/8e1ec95f44be5d78317412dece4ff8c1f91cc853.png)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/8e1ec95f44be5d78317412dece4ff8c1f91cc853.png)

•   Cancel and Rest orders have been decoupled. Cancel orders cause units to stop what they're doing and return to an idle state, while Rest remains an AOE order in which you drag an area for your selected units to rest in.
•   Following on from the above update, Rest orders now work for artillery units. Previously, it would assume all selected units were infantry and eliminate all open ground tiles as rest positions after dragging an area. Now I've made it so that artillery units will rest on open ground, while infantry continue to use trenches or houses as rest locations.
•   The AI has been tweaked a bit so that it now attempts to build blockhouses on higher ground, as well as being more proactive in actually garrisoning them.

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 15, 2019, 02:26:33 PM
Hotfix 4
15 January - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Was a bit sick this past week, so I mostly focused on small-ish things rather than adding anything totally new.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   The Alternate Font was bugged out and would often crash when used. I've managed to track down the issue and fix it.
•   "Supply Area" order was buggy due to the units in question sometimes resupplying with invalid load types when automatically resupplying from the rear. I've fixed the issue so that units will no longer resupply with invalid load types.
•   Following on from the previous issue, units that automatically return to resupply in the rear will select load types based on the prevalence of open ground within their assigned areas/routes. More open ground means a higher probability of shells for artillery, while more trenches, comm. trenches, and the like means ammo/tools.
•   Following even further on with supply types, non-artillery units will no longer take shells from supply units.
•   Obscured units that appear when fog of war is enabled now match the colour of their faction properly instead of all looking British. This was an easy fix that really should have been a day one type thing, but it was such a minor issue that I kept putting it off.
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/7a98bde8caaad7e1efe64c287a6b24740b6911dc.png)

•   AI has been improved so that it will now consolidate new forward trenches better (setting up new kitchens, field hospitals, comm. trenches) if it manages to take them from the player.
•   Readiness regain rate has been slowed in sub-optimal weather.
•   Food regain rate has been increased for units in dugouts.
•   Upgrades now actually reduce division Valour points again. I disabled this at some point for my own testing and forgot to re-enable it.
•   Hitting the ESC key while in the middle of a construction order now clears and resets the mouse cursor.
•   Pilots now cannot be withdrawn until the Wireless Radios upgrade is unlocked.
•   Wireless Radio upgrade also cuts order delay in half.

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 18, 2019, 01:52:19 PM
Stacked
On The Western Front - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Another week, another update. Mostly just tightening up the game again.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Increased the multiplier for monthly divisional supply allocation. With an increased emphasis on field supply dumps and supply lines, I figured I would make it less of a headache to deal with supplies in general. Let me know if this is a good change - shell shortage was a real thing, after all, and trying to balance realism and gameplay is a constant concern.
•   Tooltips now show up properly for all unit effects and commander traits. Tooltips weren't showing up properly because each refresh was erasing the entire list and re-creating it with each game tick. Hopefully this makes things a but more clear.
•   Added tooltips all over the place, notably for unit effects and commander traits.
•   Many of you have requested a way to tell at a glance how many units are on a tile. I previously said this was tough because, unlike HOI, units would bleed over into neighbouring tiles if they were stacked. I gave it a try and came up with a compromise - the stack caps at three. This way I can simply shrink the units without having them overlap into adjacent tiles, and there's still a rough overview of how many units are on a tile. I hope this helps!

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/07dc107ed1796e196a37fd9932c2863ea32cf32b.png)

•   Being under attack is (and always has been) rated by severity ie. being under light machine gun fire is less debilitating than heavy machine gun fire. This was, however, impossible for you guys to know because there was no visual indication of this effect. I've now added it in.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/235607086df4fe316669c795c57b5cde9950436e.png)

•   Non-supply units can now carry food. I figured carrying food didn't need specialist supply units, and it helps alleviate the burden placed on supply units in this game. This also means that the Carry Supplies and Supply Area orders are unlocked for all unit types, and they will automatically head to the rear to resupply if they run out.
•   Rate of wire building has been sped up, to encourage more of it.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 21, 2019, 01:54:23 PM
Hotfix 5
21 January - Aggroblakh
Hi all,

Dealt with a rather serious issue this update, which is why there is such a quick turnaround.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Fixed issue in which popups would take precedence over subscreens like Headquarters and Order of battle, effectively locking up the game if these subscreens were open when a popup appeared.
•   The HQ screen was not refreshing properly when reserve units were replaced. This would cause weird issues when attempting to change a unit's type in reserve.
•   Following on from above, upgrades were not being reflected properly after being loaded from a save game. This has been fixed.
•   Debug functionality was left over in which using the "Suppress Area" command would give 50,000 Valour points for no reason. I've removed it. Now your men have to die just like everyone else's.
•   Fixed a crash which would occur if units went on leave while still selected/highlighted.
•   Added the existing commander stats to the commander reassignment popup, so that you can compare commanders.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/fd8ba0f21904ea8abcddf87cde1f11bbfbc4eb42.png)

•   Following on from above, old commanders were not being reset to "Unassigned" when replaced, which meant that commanders would gradually disappear from the list of available commanders. This should no longer happen.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 28, 2019, 01:52:30 PM
New Hotness
28 Jan Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Implemented a bunch of new things based on suggestions and requests, as well as fixing some rather serious bugs with the underground component of the game.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Fixed issue in which underground units sent on leave would go through the ground rather than returning to the surface.
•   Building mines was broken when I added the separate Build Mode. This has now been fixed.
•   Commander traits now refresh properly when units move in and out of company command range.
•   You can now view the status of units in reserve. Selecting the top-level reserve unit in the Headquarters screen will cause a new button to appear.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/d1c64421bc45536d89a78da3c8bfa6f080b33bc4.png)

•   Front-line units are no longer randomized at the start, allowing platoons to start near their company commanders. This should reduce the amount of initial micromanagement when starting a new game.
•   Units in reserve now will also treat wounded men.
•   The target selection list that appeared when using "Attack Unit" was not resizing properly when the name of a target unit was too long, causing the button to bleed out of bounds. This has been fixed for both fonts.
•   Changed the icon for AOE orders like "Suppress Area" and "Watch Duty" into a different icon, so it's easier to tell when you're actually in one of these modes.
•   Commander selection used to only show unassigned commanders. Now there it is possible to toggle unassigned commanders or all, allowing you to simply trade officers instead of having to unassign and reassign in two distinct steps.

Lastly, because I added a bunch of information to officers that needs to be saved when saving the game, your old/current saves are now broken. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on February 04, 2019, 01:33:54 PM
Over the Western Front
On The Western Front - Aggroblakh


Hi all,

Decided to focus a bit on the Aerodrome this week, as I've been neglecting it recently.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Pilots now have traits, just like officers.
•   Pilot balance has been tweaked, so that really good pilots are harder to shoot down, and lower-stat pilots are easier to shoot down. I believe this actually reflects real life a lot better.
•   Following from above, monthly pilot regeneration rate has been increased to compensate for the fact that you will probably be losing more pilots.
•   Pilots now have personal stats, like flight time, number of sorties, number of kills, etc. This is all "flavour" for the moment, but provides a solid base with which to flesh out the individuality of pilots. Feel free to suggest anything else that needs to be tracked.
•   Officers also have personal stats. They're self-explanatory, except for raids. Company commanders will be given credit for a raid when one of the platoons under their command returns with prisoners in tow.
•   Pilots now can develop an affinity for a certain model of plane, causing a temporary penalty when changing planes. This penalty is less than the gains you receive from the new plane, but is still something that needs to be taken into account when upgrading. The greater a pilot's affinity for a certain model, the longer the penalty lasts when changing.
•   I wasn't happy with the rate of wiring that the enemy AI does, as it seemed unrealistically low. Thanks to better optimization of the game in recent weeks, I've been able to tweak the AI so that it lays far more wire than it used to.
•   Fixed potential crash if units were withdrawn as the enemy AI was attempting to target them for bombardments.
•   Fixed bug with supply units randomizing their load type instead of keeping the one they originally had if they return to supply depots automatically.
•   Pilots shot down weren't being properly displayed or tracked, which in turn wasn't updating the number of pilots or planes properly. This should now be fixed.
•   Supply units could restock gas shells without having either gas upgrade unlocked, but this has been fixed.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on February 15, 2019, 12:11:28 PM
More Tweaking
15 Feb - Aggroblakh


Hi all,

Most of the work this week was getting forest tiles in the game, which in turn necessitated a re-scaling of buildings. I also had to rewrite the plane upgrade logic into a form that made more sense. Long story short, this update is really more about refining and expanding what's already in the game rather than adding wholesale new features.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Fixed bug in which selected units that were sent on leave would remain selected when they were recalled.
•   Fixed bug in which enemy AI was too lenient towards retreating units, causing situations in which opposing units would not attack each other even when on the same tile.
•   Re-tweaked the scale of buildings to be more realistic. I've been working on forest terrain, which really made it clear how messed up the scale of buildings still was.
•   Tweaked the plane upgrade mechanic. Instead of upgrading each plane individually, each tier of plane is a single upgrade. Your next monthly supply of planes will then be of the newer models. Additionally, replacement pilots will automatically be equipped with the newest model available.
•   Fixed errors with pilot highlights in Air Activity Screen, whereby units previously selected/highlighted would remain so even when selecting a different pilot.
•   You can now rename your units. Several of you have asked for this feature to facilitate organization of units.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/0776c3ff94477367cb504c3d0651631ef21dd69a.png)

•   Bug in which the Order of Battle never properly refreshed the current actions of each unit has been fixed.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on February 19, 2019, 12:41:43 PM
Hotfix 6
posted by Aggroblakh on February 18, 2019

Hi all,

Some critical (although minor) changes I felt deserved a new build this weekend.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Have changed the default manner in which companies and platoons are named. Now their numbers/names are relative to their commanding unit ie. each company will have its own 1st Platoon, etc.
•   Fixed crash that would occur when scheduling orders if order was issued after its intended start time.
•   Have separated terrain effects into separate effects depending on terrain type. This allows me to customize things, like having forests impede movement, or buildings obscure units based on their condition.
•   Morale and readiness regain is now halted when on watch duty. I'm hoping this gives players more of a reason to rotate units between watch duty and rest.
•   Machine gunners can now explicitly be ordered on watch duty. Previously they could only be ordered to rest, and would switch to guard duty during the day.

I'm also working on getting Help text into the game, accessible from the pause menu. Let me know if there's anything that needs more explaining and I'll make sure it gets in right away.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on February 25, 2019, 11:46:38 AM
Hotfix 8
25 FEB - AGGROBLAKH


Hi all,

Thanks to some fantastic feedback I've received in the Discussion forums, I've fixed a bunch of weird issues that escaped my attention.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Underground pathfinding and actions were broken due to some overzealous optimization on my part. This should now be fixed.
•   Also due to optimizations and tweaking, there was some weird behaviour where units would cross into enemy trenches before starting to perform actions in no-man's land. This is fixed.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/afb00ae5503e3089f5b8edecb25cc617b2da350c.png)

•   Fixed issue with tutorial dialog in which the title bar wasn't large enough, resulting in situations where you would end up clicking on something behind the popup when trying to move the dialog around.
•   Support units can now only make use of melee attacks. I know engineer units often carried carbines, but I wanted more distinction between support and combat units. Note that support units can still use melee combat.
•   Bug in which HQ units would attack opposing units in melee without actually moving to the enemy unit's position has been fixed.
•   Corrected start time for tutorials when loading them after having played a different map. Previously, they would carry over the time from the previous map.

I'm still working on getting Help text into the game, accessible from the pause menu. Let me know if there's anything that needs more explaining and I'll make sure it gets in right away.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on March 05, 2019, 01:36:17 PM
Fonts!
5 MAR - AGGROBLAKH


Hi all,

The game has been crashing quite a bit, most of the time when starting a new map or returning to the main menu. I've managed to track it down to an issue with the font loading improperly. I've now changed the default font from Century Schoolbook to good old Times New Roman. It's no longer period appropriate, but at least it won't be causing issues any more.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Crashes when returning to the main menu or starting a new map have been fixed!
•   Font is now Times New Roman.
•   If fog of war is enabled, enemy-controlled tiles will now be seen as open ground when clicked on until they are revealed.
•   Bug in which showing unit attack ranges would reveal hidden tiles when fog of war was enabled has been addressed.
•   Line of sight has been tweaked so that units can no longer shoot over hills.
•   Some pathfinding optimizations have taken place, which hopefully makes the game run a bit smoother.
•   Elevation Map now appears above other ground tiles, making it easier to see the elevation of trenches, etc.
•   Errors in calculation of total division numbers, morale, supply, and readiness have all been fixed.
•   Bug with names and alternate names of reserve units disappearing have been fixed.
•   Default names of units now have proper notation. For instance, 1st Brigade, 2nd Battalion, C Company, 3rd Platoon is now 1/2/C/ 3rd Platoon.
•   Star shells now decrement properly when used.
•   Units supplying an area no longer distribute supplies to units outside that area.

I'm still working on getting Help text into the game, accessible from the pause menu. Let me know if there's anything that needs more explaining and I'll make sure it gets in right away.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on March 18, 2019, 10:36:45 AM
Bughunting
18 MAR - AGGROBLAKH


Hi all,

Relatively light update this time in terms of new features. The game seems to be crashing quite a bit during gameplay for a lot of you, so I've been poring over the code and trying to identify any potential areas that may cause crashes depending on certain situations. That being said, I've still had some time to tweak the game and fix some bugs.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Errors that were popping up but not causing crashes in the debugger have been addressed, which will hopefully alleviate many of the crashes being encountered.
•   Fixed some pathfinding issues that would arise with the enemy AI that would cause it to skip building certain tiles.
•   Fixed bug in which certain situations would cause the enemy AI to get stuck attempting to rotate its units into the reserve, creating unnecessary pathfinding checks that slowed the game down.
•   Buildings under construction no longer provide protection until complete.
•   Watch duty is now an option when in terrain (houses/forests).
•   Machine gun units can now perform watch duty at night. It wasn't particularly realistic to not have machine gunners attempt to attack advancing enemy soldiers at night.
•   When rifle units attack advancing enemies in no-man's land during daytime, they now specifically target single tiles rather than entire areas.
•   Support units now cause less damage in melee combat.
•   Selecting zero tiles in a rest order no longer crashes the game.
•   Supply Area orders no longer default to the current mouse position as the starting position. This fixes the bug in which ordering a unit to supply an area would result in them moving into no-man's land prior to supplying units in trenches.

Hopefully these changes make the game a bit smoother to play.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on April 01, 2019, 12:15:49 PM
Help Text
1 APR @ 8:33AM - AGGROBLAKH


Hi all,

I've added Help Text into the game now. It's by no means complete but forms a basis to build upon. Please let me know if there's anything that needs to be explained better and I'll add it in. Some critical blocking issues with the tutorials have been fixed, but they'll be overhauled soon anyways.

Other than that, this update is a relatively short list due to the time it takes to simply write all the text.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Help button is now clickable in the pause menu and allows you to view information about certain aspects of the game.
•   Blocking issue involving subordinate/superior units in Basic Training tutorial has been fixed and takes into account the newer unit information popup.
•   Tweaked the enemy AI to be a bit more aggressive in building structures.
•   Fixed bug in which the enemy AI was not properly rotating its troops to the rear.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on April 08, 2019, 01:13:54 PM
Portraits
8 Apr @ 9:07am - Aggroblakh


Hi all,

Some issues with the help text have been addressed, as well as some minor changes that hopefully improve the user experience. I've also added portraits into the game for officers and pilots. This adds literally nothing to the game except for kind of looking cool. I'll add more variation as I go, but for now at least it's functional.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Portraits have been added for officers and pilots.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/6ab5d0887451b25e9e0b8cdfeaff70651d7a72b5.png)

•   Some typos and grammar issues in the help text have been fixed.
•   Section about officers has been added to the help text.
•   Watch Duty is now possible in blockhouses.
•   Structures built in houses and forests are now partially visible.
•   Weather conditions now affect artillery. Number of squares hit within an artillery unit's attack range is now reduced in adverse weather conditions.
•   Artillery now actively avoids tiles which would be unfeasible to stop in, such as dugouts and houses.
•   Bug in which two-tile sized houses were not properly providing cover over both tiles is now fixed.
•   Units will no longer be able to stop in tiles if they are over the crowding limit. I'm hoping this addresses some concerns with regard to the feasibility of having hundreds of men crammed into a single tile by forcing players (and the AI) to be a bit more proactive in building comprehensive trench networks.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on April 15, 2019, 11:46:30 AM
Little Things
15 Apr @ 8:38am - Aggroblakh


Hi all,

Mostly minor gameplay tweaks this update to improve the game rather than adding new features.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Units now spread out when building a line of trenches, communication trenches, or barbed wire. This is done to prevent crowding and reduce micromanagement. However, it should be noted that this doesn't apply for single-tile structures like dugouts or field hospitals, nor does it apply for underground structures.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/52acda79566cd77b0beb1e79eb1a2a377ad17410.png)

•   Added a new forest variation.
•   Bug in which sight was not extending for units in blockhouses has been fixed.
•   Enemy now starts with some wire pre-built.
•   Following on, wire effects have been tweaked so that units will be stunned as they cross wire, rather than simply stopping in their tracks. The duration of the stun is longer depending on how heavy the wire is.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on April 21, 2019, 12:01:35 AM
Easter Rising.. er, Update
20 Apr @ 7:07pm - Aggroblakh


Hi all,

I hope you're having a nice holiday. I've reworked the reinforcement/fortification mechanic this week, as I wasn't really satisfied with the pointlessness of it as it previously was.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Reinforcement of trenches is now a binary attribute ie. a trench tile is either reinforced or it is not. A reinforced trench adds duckboards which reduce the movement penalty in trenches and adds firesteps, which increases the sight range of units on watch duty. Conversely, the sight range of units is now reduced by a few tiles.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c10cc63041edb8c1b8ae204126378a9579f803f5.png)

Following on from above, the movement speed of units in un-reinforced trenches has been reduced.

•   Reinforced blockhouses now look different. Unlike trenches, there is no gameplay effect on blockhouse reinforcement other than to make the blockhouse more resistant to damage.

•   Following on from above, the Fortify Blockhouse order now works again. I had broken it with some of the changes I had made previously.

•   Highlights for paths and areas have been reworked to be less of an assault on the eyes.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/954d87224a36b63437c89596b111d8e6c4583639.png)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/a73f2cf4611819da44516eb41c4db85b5db4d25d.png)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c8e3babf26a5e502ae1ce8a246d9e0f72cdf0df7.png)

•   Support units no longer participate in group construction actions when selected.

•   The unit order submenu used to require you to select a group of units that were all the same type. Failure to do so resulted in a truncated order menu with only three orders - Move, Rest, and Cancel. Now you can select units which fall under the same broad category - Combat, Support, or Artillery. That is, you can select a group of rifle units and a few machine gun units and issue an Attack Area order to all of them. Note that ineligible units still will not carry out orders they normally wouldn't be able to. For example, selecting an engineer unit and a supply unit and issuing a Build Trench order would only issue the order to the engineer unit.


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 06, 2019, 12:07:48 PM
Staff Officers
6 May @ 9:01am - Aggroblakh


Hi all,

Sorry for the long delay between updates. Fairly sizeable content update this time, as I've added both divisional staff officers and random events.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/78408d608f1b52c91ed2c0b26f89da0f4f6eda01.png)

The headquarters screen now contains a section which allows you to assign divisional staff officers, each with different effects on the division as a whole. Additionally, the frequency, type, and possible outcomes of random events are dictated by who you assign to these positions. For instance, it might not be worth it to have a competent Chief of Staff if his personal traits aren't very good, as the events and decisions he forces you to deal with might be a giant pain.

For now, the number of events and decisions is limited to one per officer type - I'll be adding to it gradually as I continue to work on the game.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Staff officers now appear in the HQ screen.
Chief of Staff: Affects order delay for all units.

Operations: Affects artillery effectiveness and readiness decay when both attacking and switching tasks.

Administration: Affects passive morale loss and replenishment rate of units in reserve.

Logistics: Affects food/water regain when in range of kitchens.

Intelligence: Affects success rate of air reconnaissance and revealing of units due to noise.

The help text for this new feature is also included. Additionally, German staff officers now have the "von" in their surnames, and British staff officer names will sometimes be preceded with "sir."
•   Random events and decisions now appear every now and then.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/441186e968703e5921cc901de51eab82eb225108.png)

These can sometimes cause temporary effects that affect the whole division.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/4d8e61123fd699e221a4a25b432a5328eb3afcd3.png)

•   Since your Operations officer now affects the number of tiles attacked by artillery batteries, the default number of tiles bombarded is reduced.
•   Following on from above, the number of tiles bombarded is now affected by current readiness levels. This is to encourage more frequent drilling and troop rotation.
•   Readiness used to be reduced when in reserve, as sort of a tradeoff to the restoration of morale and numbers. Readiness now increases when in reserve. However, readiness now goes down when units attack, to simulate the breaking down and overuse of equipment. Thus it becomes necessary to rotate troops even after taking offensive actions.

•   Fog of war has been tweaked to make it harder to scout enemy positions without constant reconnaissance.
•   Aerial reconnaissance is now more difficult, but can be mitigated with a good intelligence officer.
•   Added a few more variations to the officer portraits.

Important notes:
You might notice a few references to something called "unit cohesion." This is irrelevant for now, but will eventually come into play once I get the Russians, Italians, and Austrians into the game. No timeline yet on when that happens, but it's just something for the future.

You might also note that a lot of traits for the staff officers, such as "Reactionary" don't have proper tooltips. This is related to some of the random events I have in mind for future updates, so proper tooltips will appear for these traits once I hash out their associated events.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 14, 2019, 11:45:13 PM
More Events
14 MAY @ 9:08AM - AGGROBLAKH


Hi all,

Relatively minor content update this week. I just focused on adding some more events rather than adding any new features this time around.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Fixed bug with construction of field hospitals, showers, and field kitchens.
•   Added eight new random events, with at least one new event for each officer.
  o   Chief of Staff - Telephone Lines
  o   Operations - Shells Taken
  o   Operations - Large-Scale Exercises
  o   Administration - Reserves Disabled
  o   Administration - Medal for Ace Pilot
  o   Logistics - New Railhead
  o   Logistics - Divisional Supplies Taken
  o   Intelligence - Communications Research

Thanks for playing!
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 27, 2019, 12:07:16 PM
Tweaks
27 MAY @ 6:30AM - AGGROBLAKH


Hi all,

It's been a busy week for me personally, so I mostly focused on some more content and tweaking the AI to make things a bit more challenging.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   More events, which are not tied to a specific staff officer
 o   Disease: Increases rate of wastage even during favourable weather.
 o   Officer Birthday: Choose between allowing an impromptu birthday celebration in the trenches, which decreases Readiness, or banning the celebrations, which decreases Morale.
 o   Shellshocked Officer: Choose to limoger/relieve an officer or monitor him, which may result in a new trait.
•   More names for all factions.
•   Map is now 50% wider and can be scrolled from left to right. The camera can also be zoomed out a bit further to see more of the battlefield.
•   Firepower of rifle and machine gun units has been increased.
•   Enemy AI is more proactive about attacking units in no-man's land. Prior to this, players could build trenches and wires relatively unmolested by enemy fire, which is obviously unrealistic.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 10, 2019, 08:00:16 PM
Squads
9 Jun @ 9:51am - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

I've managed to implement some of your feedback this update.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   I've added squads into the game. When you select a platoon, you can now view the men in each individual squad.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/6c1abd07d2e81236d7233c34a50cb4495ae5287b.png)

•   Following on, the numbers in each unit have been lowered. Part of this is to reduce numbers in HQ and support platoons to more realistic levels, but also to make the numbers divisible by 4.
•   If any of you have encountered the event in which your ability to recall reserves is temporarily disabled, you might have noticed it takes a very long time to regain this ability. I've reduced the effect to about 3-4 weeks rather than the 6-8 it previously took.
•   Camera scrolling has been reworked to be smoother. Widening the map broke the horizontal scrolling due to the way I had set up the camera.
•   You can now use the middle mouse button/mouse wheel button to click and drag the screen to scroll.
•   Fixed bug which prevented underground construction.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 24, 2019, 11:25:52 PM
Plane and Pilot Roles
24 JUN @ 9:23AM - AGGROBLAKH

Hi all,

Major changes to air combat this update. Planes now have both roles and attributes of their own. Fighter planes remain the same as before, but recon planes are now two-seaters which take a pilot and an observer. Pilots are only responsible for evading the enemy, while observers are the ones whose Vision determines what they reveal on the ground below.

Plane stats modify air activity accordingly. For instance, a plane with a good engine will be more effective at pursuing the enemy. However, since you're only a division commander, you don't get to choose which planes you receive, so you'll have to manage plane supply accordingly. I'm hoping this adds more strategy to the air combat.

Help text has been updated with the new information, under 'Aerodrome - Roles'.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Planes are now separated into recon and fighter planes. Pilots in recon planes cannot perform escort roles, and vice versa. Upgrades will unlock both types.

•   Planes now have stats which vary based on different variants. Note that a higher tier plane will be more effective than a lower tier plane with the exact same stats.

•   Fixed a few bugs which were causing unnecessary performance spikes.

•   Moving the camera should now be smoother since it temporarily stops the game timer. It's a bit of a hack but both the camera movements and timer intervals are multithreaded already and thus interfere with each other if both are active. This is why the scrolling was choppy.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on July 02, 2019, 02:36:40 PM
Hotfix - July 1
2 JUL @ 9:15AM - AGGROBLAKH

Hi all,

Releasing this hotfix as it contains not only some important optimizations and bugfixes, but also contains the start of what I hope will address concerns about realism regarding scale and time.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Time intervals are now 5 minutes, and cooldowns/effect durations have been changed accordingly.
•   The map has been embiggened and the scale of the starting trenches has been tweaked. The scale still isn't perfect, but this work is in preparation of further changes to scale. Let me know what you think. The buildings/houses will soon be rescaled to fit the size of trenches.
•   Did some optimization of enemy AI and pathfinding, which should improve performance.
•   Camera scrolling with the middle mouse button has been fixed. Previously, the vertical movement would override the horizontal movement, which was why it was difficult to do so.
•   Reduced the effect of disease, as the disease event was wiping out entire units.
•   Fixed bug in which orders issued with no units selected would cause units to skip tiles when building things.
•   Fixed bug in which selecting a tile for construction would wipe out barbed wire on that tile.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on July 16, 2019, 12:39:21 PM
Dots
16 Jul @ 9:41am - Aggroblakh

Hi all,
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/acac1d8e4d62db1df611fc86419df8c8a0f50af0.png)

Squad "sprites" are now an option that can be toggled in the Settings screen from the main menu. They are disabled by default, as I'm not totally sure all of you want them in the game.

This is the only major change this update. I had to do a bunch of optimization and deal with a bunch of technical debt in order to add sprites without a major hit to performance, so most of the real work this update has been under the hood. Let me know what you think about the sprites, and how they can be improved.

Actual human body sprites (though obviously less accurate with numbers) will come later as a separate option, but for now I'm hoping this helps with the scale.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Sprites are now an option.
•   Enemy is now more proactive with suppressing fire when units hop out of the trenches.
•   Loading saved games has been tweaked so that there is less initial lag before proceeding to the progress screen.
•   Sickness has been tweaked to be less debilitating.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on August 06, 2019, 02:31:11 PM
Balloons
6 Aug @ 7:35am - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

Balloons are now in the game. They can be launched, repaired, and sent back up from the Aerodrome screen.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/5e4d29cd4c97555abf5fdb3eae5ee480839a9126.png)

Air sorties consisting solely of fighters will now target balloons for both attack and defense if they are present. Balloons are divided into eight sections, each with their own set of hit points. However, if one section is destroyed, the whole balloon is destroyed.

Balloons exist for the purpose of artillery spotting. As such, artillery accuracy is now reduced for all types by increasing the attack area size if there is no friendly balloon in the air.

Another major change is that Repair, Fortify, and Destroy orders are now click-and-drag orders rather than "Build Mode" orders. For example, you simply select "Repair Trench", drag over an area, and all trench tiles in that area are marked for repair. This functionality extends to scheduled orders as well. I hope this helps reduce the amount of micromanagement needed in the game.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Balloons now in the game.
•   Repair, Fortify, and Destroy orders are now click-and-drag orders that specifically target the ground types you've chosen to Repair/Fortify/Destroy.
•   Squad lists have been removed.
•   Fixed bug with issuing wiring orders via the scheduled order screen.
•   Scheduled order popup dialog now refreshes upon completion of a non-repeating order, so that there are no "dangling" orders remaining.
•   Fixed bug with enemy AI constantly issuing repeated construction orders which was causing game to slow down.
•   Fixed bug in which blockhouse and dugouts were no longer accessible after reloading a save.
•   Pause menu now appears on top of everything, to prevent game from locking up if a subscreen like Aerodrome or Order of Battle is opened when the game is paused.

KNOWN BUG: Saving and loading works, but for some reason, loading a saved game, then reloading another saved game seems to cause issues. I'll keep trying to track this down, but it shouldn't be more than an inconvenience at the moment.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on August 19, 2019, 01:59:13 PM
Areas of Interest
19 Aug @ 8:39am - Aggroblakh

Hi all,

The ability to add areas of interest is now in the game. This allows you to mark and label any part of the map by painting it with a "brush". This feature can be accessed from the Scheduled Order screen.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/4dbaaa5d6a5fcb59b77af5376b17c9baa15221ad.png)

This new feature is hooked into the scheduled order system, so that you can assign multiple orders to the same area. This will hopefully reduce some of the micromanagement in the game.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/ee9c719fd368592f951a4ad14b5955f1d2cba065.png)

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Areas of interest now in the game.
•   Help text is now updated with both areas of interest and observation balloons, which I had forgotten to include in the last update.
•   HQ command range now temporarily decreases when under artillery bombardment, which worsens order delay.
•   Save/Load has been optimized, so the crashes that would occur when loading previous saves or continuing on from them should no longer occur.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on August 26, 2019, 12:32:27 PM
Content Update
26 AUG @ 8:29AM - AGGROBLAKH


Hi all,

The last couple of updates added wholesale new features, so I decided to take it easy this week to add some content and fix some bugs.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   New events added, mostly related to command range:
Chief of Staff - Runners borrowed
A friendly division requires extra communications for a raid and needs to borrow yours. Command range maximum is reduced for 4 weeks.

Logistics - Use POWs to build support buildings
Once you have 1,000 prisoners and 2,000 Valour points, this event may pop up. Accepting this event causes the prisoners and Valour to be subtracted, and at the end of 5 weeks you get 6 field hospitals or kitchens built automatically.

All - Communications Sabotaged
An enemy spy sabotages communications. All command ranges reduced to 1 for 3 weeks.
•   Fixed path drawing bug when using a brush size of 1 to denote an area of interest.
•   Progress now renamed to Ownership
•   Open ground with buildings/forests on them now say building/forest rather than staying as Open Ground. Building and forest tiles also display strength levels now.
•   Open Ground renamed to Plains.
•   Fixed the ability of artillery to move laterally.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 05, 2019, 12:10:20 PM
Artillery Pits
05/09/19
 
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c3589aa21fed0ae63d854649ee36a361c8673eb2.png)

Artillery pits have been added into the game. You can build them like any other structure. Reinforcing them camouflages them rather than strengthening them, so that enemy pilots cannot see them.

Additionally, artillery units that dig in to them enjoy extra protection from all forms of attack. The trade-off is that digging in to an artillery pit takes longer than on open ground, and there is a longer than usual delay when moving a dug-in artillery battery out of an artillery pit.

If there's anything I can do to improve artillery pits, feel free to let me know!

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Added artillery pits. Can be reinforced/camouflaged, but reinforcement is easily destroyed by enemy artillery.
•   Non-player owned goal tiles now negatively affect command range and morale/readiness regain from rest. Melee defense is also increased when in one's own trenches.
•   Added attack animation for ballistic (rifle and machine gun) weapons. I'm hoping this provides a bit more feedback when your units are under attack.
•   Settings now persist throughout the game.
•   Right clicking when Build Mode is active will now switch between add and subtract modes so that you no longer need to manually click the buttons at the top of the screen to switch between the two.
•   Fixed bug with construction of mine entrances.
•   Fixed bug where enemy AI was getting stuck in its own wire forever.
•   Fixed bug in which enemy offensives were too staggered, resulting in only a handful of enemy units going over the top at a time.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 11, 2019, 02:09:43 PM
Hotfix - September 11


Hi all,

Trench raids/melee attacks have been slightly revamped. Movement in open ground at night is now slowed down to represent sneaking when units are not visible to the enemy. Each step taken will result in a reveal/noise check. If it fails, the moving unit becomes visible, and resumes moving at normal speed. This is to facilitate trench raids at night. Additionally, Valour gain and prisoner count now increments at the point of capture - it is no longer required to bring prisoners back to your own trenches, as this was far too difficult to do on a regular basis.

Also, thanks to a suggestion in the discussion forums, field hospital placement is now more useful. Wounded men and sick men now automatically get sent to field hospitals if they are near them. This occurs once a day when resting or on guard duty. Previously, this effect only occurred one-way, with recovered convalescents being sent to units that needed them.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Fixed pathfinding when attempting to explicitly target an enemy unit for melee attack.
•   Added variation to starting communication trenches, so that they are no longer perfectly vertical.
•   Invisible or obscured units now sneak at night until revealed by the enemy.
•   Prisoners no longer need to be brought back to your own trenches during a raid to gain experience.
•   Fixed bug in which enemy artillery would retreat too easily after exchanging counter-battery fire.
•   Enemy AI now builds blockhouses along rear trench lines as well.
•   Sound effects for rifles/machine gun animations now fixed.
•   Men who become wounded or sick near field hospitals now automatically get sent to the hospital.
•   Fixed the ability to add supply dumps, which had been broken by refactoring in recent weeks.
•   Food consumption and resupply from field kitchens rebalanced.
•   Field kitchens can now be resupplied by right-clicking on it with no units selected. Nearby units will be assigned. Additionally, the same can be done with field supply dumps if you right-click on a dugout tile with no units selected, assuming your division still has ammo, tool, shell, or gas shell supplies remaining.

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 20, 2019, 01:12:40 PM
New Scheduled Order Options
Fri, 20 September 2019


Hi all,

As per your suggestions, I've now added support tasks into the Scheduled Order system. They kick in when the proper type of unit is selected. For example, for resupply tasks to show up, only Supply units must be selected.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/3d92ef1b3248084d6b8d6e69b7bdefc777e6d454.png)

Other tasks, such as Finding Wounded will be in later, as the logic behind them is a bit different from most orders. However, I believe this update covers most of the common tasks players might want to be able to schedule.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Random lines being added when using a tile size of 1 in Area Paint Mode has been fixed.
•   Pressing space bar while naming areas of interest no longer toggles the game timer.
•   Scheduled orders now spread out assigned units to prevent crowding.
•   Scheduled orders now include support tasks such as building field hospitals and resupplying areas.
•   Fixed crash bug that would occur upon completion of scheduled orders.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 29, 2019, 02:15:33 AM
Automatic Sorties
Sun, 29 September 2019

Hi all,

I've started to add the ability to delegate/automate tasks to reduce micromanagement. For now, only air reconnaissance can be automated. This can be done by going to the HQ screen and checking the checkbox above the Intelligence officer. Note that balloons are not automated yet, but this will be added soon.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/594d6b592d27c36ecb8d2df3cd8d2f236719adc8.png)

Eventually, I'll add the ability to automate tasks for each officer.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Can now automate the sending of air sorties. Quality is dependent on Intelligence officer.
•   Scheduled orders now spread out assigned units to prevent crowding. For real this time.
•   Fixed potential pathfinding bug that would cause algorithm to break down when certain buildings were created.
•   Fixed bug that allowed pilots to be assigned as both pilot and observer.
•   Rebalanced air combat so pilots don't all die within the first few days.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on October 29, 2019, 02:44:46 PM
Tutorial Update
Tue, 29 October 2019

Hi all,

Given the length of time it took to develop the task delegation, I took a bit easier this week and simply updated the tutorials. There is now a new one regarding support buildings as well.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/81b590ba3f688f0c2e36ac153454a51b8c9235d8.png)

Let me know if there's something that needs to be covered better. Once staff officer traits are implemented into events and task delegation I'll probably add one for Staff Officers and Scheduled Orders as well.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Tutorials have been updated, and now include a tooltip in the upper right of the screen next to the tutorial popup button.
•   Fixed bug which made it impossible to build Mine Entrances.
•   Fixed bug in which reassigning a unit in the process of building something to a different order would not properly clear the tiles assigned to it, resulting in a weird alternation of in progress and plains tiles.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 09, 2019, 12:47:07 AM
Unit Cohesion
Fri, 8 November 2019


Hi all,

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/04cd258b14d15a9f0a3c264e63651d01ad78a70d.png)

I've included a new unit attribute: Cohesion. This is more of a long-term attribute that lowers gradually over time to simulate the eventual falling apart of units later in the war. Unit Cohesion will lower over time unless within an HQ unit's command range. If it reaches 0, units will strike and not respond to orders until you move an HQ unit - any HQ unit, even battalion or brigade HQ - nearby. If left on strike for too long, the unit will eventually desert and take your Valour points with it.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/2c07db22f269078bd451f634057a7f624016042f.png)

The rate of cohesion lowering is different for each nation, and each year. I'm hoping it will largely not affect the British or Americans (yet to be included), but will hammer nations like the Russians or Austro-Hungarians.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Unit Cohesion is now included and can be accessed by clicking the button next to a unit's Readiness level.
•   Low morale can now cause units to go on strike.
•   Retreating units now strike when they arrive at their location.
•   Fixed bug in which squads were still visible even with fog of war enabled.
•   Fixed bug in which units returning from leave could get bombarded in communications trenches.
•   Reduced ability of enemy to spot your units at night.
•   Time of day - morning, day, evening, night - is now dependent on the season.
•   Commanders can no longer be Beloved and Hated. Also, commanders can no longer be Reactionary and Intellectual.
•   New Logistics-based event:
Engineer Strikes
Engineer companies may complain that their tools are inadequate for their jobs.
You can either lose 10,000 Support Tools from your supply pool, or refuse their request, which will cause the whole company to go on strike.


Thanks for playing!
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on November 16, 2019, 12:19:11 AM
Telegraph Cables
Fri, 15 November 2019

Hi all,

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/a416c0377b8dddfb3b20b262202a4d0d541abe53.png)

Air sorties are now capped in number, as is the size of each sortie. To mitigate this, I've added the option of upgrading the aerodrome, which increases both the number of sorties you can launch, as well as the size of each one. This is to reflect the growing sizes of air forces later in the war.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/280110f8746c59e8948cb3c8a4f108bd7c6c0e02.png)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/4b29394d198a86aaaa04043d15ed6eb0de6338ff.png)

I've also added "underground" telegraph cables. I use the quotes because you don't actually build them underground. Basically Signals units now have the ability to lay cable. If a unit is connected via cables to its HQ unit, it eliminates the order delay for that leg of the journey. For example, if the delay between Brigade, Battalion, Company, and Platoon is 3 tiles each, building cable between Battalion and Company gets rid of the order delay incurred between those two HQ units.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/a8452bd773347054fa93239f6f619a678126a2cb.png)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/28a257ee74da75da3f496d72dbf6ce5991722a89.png)

Tiles with cables are denoted by a Signals icon on the left side of the ground details popup. Cables in progress are denoted with a progress percentage and a red Signals icon. Rather than using build mode to lay out a line of cable, you simply drag a box. If there are any non-open ground tiles in the selection box, then only those tiles are targeted. Otherwise, a path is drawn from the start of the box to the end. Cables can be destroyed by enemy fire, and is easier to destroy in open ground.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Sorties are now limited in terms of number and size, and can be upgraded in the Aerodrome screen.
•   Pilots now require a readiness rating of 40% to launch.
•   Signals units now have the ability to eliminate order delay by laying cables.
•   Units in the middle of construction orders will no longer make progress once they run out of tools.
•   Fixed potential crashing when checking for noise/visibility.
•   Selecting Supply Area with an idle Supply unit now offers you the choice of what to supply an area with. I realized how annoying it is to select Resupply -> supply type -> Supply Area while testing the new Signals updates. Note that selecting Supply Area with Rifle units still defaults to Food, since that is the only supply type Rifle units can carry.
•   Carrying Supplies has been removed, as I feel it has become redundant.
•   Low morale no longer results in strikes, but striking units must recover both cohesion and morale before they will un-strike. I found too many units were striking due to the more fickle nature of morale. Low morale still causes retreating, however.
•   Did a bit of optimization when charging positions, removing redundant sight checks and making the whole thing a bit smoother.
•   Help text has been updated with changes.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on December 08, 2019, 02:32:49 PM
Officer Details
Sat, 7 December 2019


Hi all,

Officers and pilots now have sub-experience bars underneath their attributes. These increase along with the officer's overall experience depending on the tasks completed by the platoons under his command, or by himself if a pilot. While filling the bar does not directly improve the attribute, it will increase the probability of the attribute improving when the overall officer level improves.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/95a854e0cb40b392416ed546d9602165952de132.png)

Leadership experience is gained by partaking in offensive actions and taking prisoners. Organization experience is gained by performing logistical duties, such as treating wounded, carrying supplies, or laying telegraph lines. Command experience is gained by building things or drilling.

For pilots, accuracy experience is gained by successful attacks on enemy pilots. Skill experience is gained by evading enemy attacks. Vision experience is gained by revealing enemy tiles, and Discipline experience is gained by reconnaissance pilots when successfully focusing on reconnaissance rather than being drawn into a dogfight.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Commanders now gain experience for performing different actions.
•   Commanders and pilots now have individual experience bars for each stat, which influences possible stat gain after level up.
•   Pilots are now rotated properly by the AI when delegating Intelligence tasks.
•   Pilots are slightly more likely to be shot down when pursued.
•   Open-minded Intelligence officers now provide a bonus to division experience for all successful pilot actions. They also have slightly lower Valour requirements for Flamethrowers and Tanks.
•   Close-minded Intelligence officers now penalize pilot experience gain. They also have slightly higher Valour requirements for Flamethrowers and Tanks.
•   Open-minded Operations officers have slightly lower Valour requirements for Flamethrowers and Tanks.
•   Close-minded Operations officers have slightly higher Valour requirements for Flamethrowers and Tanks.
•   Aristocrats, when assigned to Administration, boost morale and readiness daily for all units in the first year of the war. Each year, the effect is reduced and eventually becomes a negative effect on both morale and readiness.
•   Tooltips for Open-minded, Close-minded, and Aristocrat traits have been updated.
•   Fixed bug in which closing the event popup would unpause the game automatically.
•   Help text updated with sub-experience bar information.
•   New events:
(Administration) Censor Mail - Choose between censoring mail to reduce morale or allowing potentially subversive thought and reducing cohesion. The effect of the morale loss is reduced if your Administration officer has the Propagandist trait.
(Administration) Drill Sergeant - Allowing an old drill sergeant of one of your commanders to become one of his NCOs can provide a boost to his Organization and Command sub-experience points at the risk of adding the Slave Driver trait. Preventing this sort of nepotistic behaviour may, however, cause your commander to gain the Lazy trait.
(Logistics) Supply Reshuffle - Choose between supplying your front-line troops at the expense of your support troops, or causing a morale drop to your front-line troops. Only available for Logistics officers with the Aristocrat trait.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on December 20, 2019, 02:53:57 PM
Game Update - Dec. 20, 2019
Fri 20 Dec


Hi all,

General update this time around. The biggest change is that the map is wider and the scroll has been worked on to allow for a zoom level which encompasses the width of the whole map. Other than that I mostly spent the last week and a half adding a few requested items and fixing bugs.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Map is now wider.
•   Scroll has been tweaked so that the widest zoom level encompasses the width of the map. Note that if you have squad sprites enabled, zooming out to the widest two zoom levels will temporarily disable them.
•   Scroll speed now adjusts itself depending on zoom level.
•   Aerodrome screen now split into recon and escort roles.
•   Balloons are now more dangerous to attack.
•   Fixed bug in which observer would not appear in pending patrol list when assigning a recon pilot.
•   Fixed bug in which pilot experience in pilot profile popup was incorrect value.
•   Fixed bug in aerodrome that would make it difficult to un-assign pilots from pending sorties when the timer was running, since the list was refreshing each game tick.
•   Logistics delegation now includes the automatic resupply of field kitchens.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 07, 2020, 11:31:47 PM
Update - Jan. 7


Hi all,

Due to the holidays, I didn't get a ton done for this update. Mostly fixing a few bugs and doing a bit of optimization.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Fixed bug in which enemy AI supply units weren't working properly, preventing it from proper construction.
•   Reworked texture rendering so that map scrolling is a bit smoother at higher zoom levels.
•   Fixed bug in which delegating tasks to your Operations officer would lag the game.
•   Slightly increased the amount of starting wire for the enemy, but limited it to the first two trench lines.
•   Fixed tooltip in top menu bar - the red cross should say "Casualties Sustained".
•   Crowding should be automatically avoided when issuing build orders.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 24, 2020, 03:00:49 PM
Update - Jan. 24
Fri, 24 January 2020

Hi all,

I'm starting work on the Eastern front map type, which will introduce the Russians and Austrians. It will also introduce marshes, cavalry units and rivers. This is a lot of work, so this update and probably the next will be relatively light.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/e4a3c42b6b4d901fc4306d3dc0d575c87896b21c.png)

I've added the farmland terrain type in the meantime. It doesn't add that much to gameplay, but I figured it's always nice to have more stuff in the game, especially since I was already working on terrain. Lastly, due to complaints about crashing when saving or loading, I took a few days to rewrite the save/load system to be less of a memory hog. I suspect this was a major reason for the crashing. Needless to say, previous saves will be made obsolete by this update.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Rewrote save/load to use less memory, which should reduce the amount of random crashes from doing so.
•   Added farmland terrain type. It will obscure and hide units, but offers no protection from attacks.
•   Fixed bug in which units were crowding on single-tile build orders.
•   Construction in general is quicker - I felt it was unrealistic to take weeks to build a communication trench, for example, when motivated troops were capable of entrenching within days.
•   Trenches are now quicker to build, but provide less protection from artillery. Conversely, reinforced trenches provide more protection, but it takes longer to reinforce trenches.


Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on February 27, 2020, 01:25:04 PM
Eastern Front
Thu, 27 February 2020

Hi all,

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/4a3a9ae0375646b1502a626250a72fe77b7f6be9.png)

The features for the Eastern Front map type are done. I've added the Austrians and the Russians into the game, with their own pros and cons. The Germans are also an option on this map type.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/aff8d060aae442feb09f01aadffaa9f63f456ffb.png)

Biggest addition is the addition of rivers. I'll be adding more variations later on, but the core mechanics are present. To cross rivers, you must build bridges or pontoons. Pontoons build a lot more quickly, but are more easily destroyed. If there are no bridges available, units will ford the river, which incurs a large movement penalty. Artillery and cavalry units will ford the river more easily, but incur the same movement penalty, so it becomes important to plan ahead a bit with bridges and pontoons if large scale movement occurs.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/1bef51b47d2df3bd23f06a6339ac0144b3633b9d.png)

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/6f34d5bb2bf6b33f4c2b5f0bb66a3e8354e8a8e3.png)

Cavalry units are also added and become part of the default allocation of units when starting an Eastern Front map. The tradeoff is that tanks are no longer an unlockable upgrade on the Eastern Front map type. Cavalry have the ability to attack at range using carbines, but most notably they can also charge. Charging works like painting areas, except that cavalry units will attempt to follow the path you've drawn once it is confirmed. This will switch the selected cavalry units to melee attack mode.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/f13c7b20f345c8c321fba2c6fbecef7a4cd5a70d.png)

Lastly, I've added marshes into the game. This is just another terrain type that heavily hinders movement and increases rates of sickness for units in it. Marshes do, however, conceal units, so it's not all bad.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Added marshes, rivers, and cavalry into the game.
•   Area paint brush can now paint paths when brush size is thicker than a single tile.
•   Fixed pathfinding bug in which units would always go to the front line, then run back rather than proceeding directly to specified position when told to move into open ground.
•   Fixed bug which prevented build orders from properly being issued when issued in succession.
•   Fixed bug in which Cut Wire order would randomly disappear.
•   Changed loading text to be more accurate.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on March 15, 2020, 01:25:36 AM
Optimization - Mar. 14
Sat, 14 March 2020

Hi all,

After the large content update last time around I spent the last two weeks optimizing and refactoring to make the game a bit smoother. Hope it helps!

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Rewrote underlying game logic to improve loading speeds and overall smoothness of game. Should no longer take as long to reload save games or return to the main menu.
•   Toggling the Underground and Ownership buttons at the top of the screen should be a lot quicker now.
•   Charge Position is faster.
•   Inverted camera controls for mouse wheel drag, so that moving the mouse up with the middle mouse button pressed moves the screen up. Previously, doing so would "drag" the screen up and move the camera down.
•   Fixed pathfinding issue with underground tiles.

Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on April 08, 2020, 12:29:50 PM
Detailed Task Delegation
Mon, 6 April 2020

Hi all,

I've spent the last week or so tweaking some of the task delegation.


(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/d66cbb0a514adb2f6a8adcce25c653ae205bae3c.png)

I've introduced a new popup in the Headquarters screen that allows you to customize task delegation. Each task is capped by the assigned officer's Organization rating with the exception of the air sorties, which must be upgraded at the Aerodrome. It is also worth noting that the AI will attempt to prevent crowding, so things like Rest orders will only be issued if there are open dugouts available.

This new popup should allow more transparency and granularity in the task automation, and will hopefully make it easier for me to add new tasks as I go along.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/990fcdaba4368ea4fbd1e2606f99da1fcbfd8a72.png)

Another big change is that the Suppress Area and Charge Position buttons are now split into several buttons. This allows you to suppress area as before, but using different shell types with one click. It also means you can have multiple barrages going on simultaneously. This applies to Charge Position commands as well. Raids are now split into three types.

Intel raids are focused on grabbing prisoners. Units will retreat the moment they capture enemy soldiers.

Hold raids are focused on disrupting the enemy. Units will stay in place and attack passing enemy units until ordered back manually.

Assault raids are focused on hurting the enemy. Units enjoy bonuses to melee attack strength, as well as extra damage to enemy morale. However, units will also take more casualties.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Menu bar at top of screen has been reworked to allow more options with fewer clicks. New raid types are available.
•   Added stretcher bearing, drilling, and resting in dugouts to task delegation. Drilling falls under the Operations officer. Resting falls under Administration. Stretcher bearing falls under Logistics.
•   Automatic field kitchen construction now occurs closer to the front line.
•   The user now has the ability to customize some of the task delegation, assigning different priorities to each task. Note that normal restrictions, like crowding, still apply.
•   Fixed bug that would break pathfinding when crossing rivers after loading a saved Eastern Front game.
•   Fixed bug in which medical units weren't actually picking up wounded men and bringing them to dugouts/field hospitals.
•   Optimized the intense lag that would occur when using the Suppress Area command.
•   Selecting a unit in the Scheduled Order popup now selects the unit for real.
•   Obscured units, after being observed by pilots, now last longer to give the player a better idea of where units in no-man's land might be. Previously they were disappearing way too fast to be of any use.
•   Cavalry and tanks can no longer be obscured or made invisible/unknown to the enemy (although blocking of sight and attack lines against them due to elevation still applies).
•   Unit stun duration is now dependent upon the severity of the attack. For instance, heavy machine gun fire from multiple sources will stop units in place longer than a single gun.
•   Gas is now a lot more deadly without gas masks.
•   On/off buttons and sliders have been reskinned.


Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on April 22, 2020, 11:59:29 PM
Redoubts
Wed, 22 April 2020

Hi all,

Mostly just focused on refining what is already in the game and fixing some bugs, some of which were brought on by the changes I made to scheduled and automated orders last time round.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/38c8acd15f631c595a5054ebadb512f4a0074af1.png)
 
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/9acc22100d88a382eff205e9dc6df16ce7cad8fa.png)

One major addition is the addition of larger-scale terrain features, like hills and high ground. This was made possible due to the expansion of the map. Note that these only appear in the Western Front campaign, as strongpoints and redoubts played a larger role in this theatre.

The player also starts with a second trench line on the Western Front to reduce crowding at the start. I tried to space things out a bit better when starting a new game, so hopefully it helps a bit with organization.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Added larger ground elevation configurations, and the enemy occasionally starts with redoubts.
•   Artillery battalion HQs now spawn near their companies.
•   Player now starts with a second trench line and second communication trench.
•   Cancelling orders or withdrawing units from orders no longer cancels everything.
•   Units performing scheduled orders set to repeat return to their jumpoff positions properly again.
•   Fixed potential crash bug when using gas shells.
•   Fixed bug in which units in blockhouses were not properly sighting and attacking approaching units.
•   Building trenches and comm. trenches using a painted target area now only builds them around the edge of the area rather than all over the entire area, which made no sense.
•   Fixed crash bug when assigning scheduled order to a target area.
•   Fixed crash when loading a new game on the Western Front after playing a game on the Eastern Front.
•   Tweaked pathfinding across rivers and reduced lag when crossing them.
•   "0th Division" should no longer happen.
•   Sunrise and sunset times are now different based on week. Western front is a rough approximation based on sun graphs from Brussels, Belgium. Eastern front is based on Krakow, Poland.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 01, 2020, 02:13:00 PM
Supply Priority
Fri, 1 May 2020

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_7dc1fb786de151263890fd548c24f2bab7f4efee.1920x1080.jpg?t=1550347337)


Hi all,

I've added the ability to prioritize supply types when delegating supply lines.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/078f439a85e626e2e2b5dd307e95fe2d34ce2582.png)

Other than that, just a bunch of quality of life changes and bugfixes, as well as the fixing of a memory leak which slowed the game to a crawl when run for too long.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Distance now affects damage from enemy attacks.
•   Enemy AI no longer launches more planes than it should based on its Aerodrome level.
•   Can now set supply type priorities for delegated supply orders.
•   Units now retreat to a nearby position after a scheduled order completes rather than going all the way back to where they came from. This is to avoid wasting time on continuous orders.
•   Fixed bug in which cohesion was being regained even when out of company HQ range.
•   Choking gas can no longer be unlocked without requisite Valour points.
•   Mining tools upgrade no longer appears on the Eastern Front.
•   Inactive exit button in the top-right corner of the pause menu no longer appears, since you must use the "Close" button to close the dialog.
•   Infantry weapons for Austria and Russia have been updated in the Order of Battle screen.
•   Fixed bug in which Supply Area delegated tasks were not properly refreshing themselves, causing units to endlessly supply fully-supplied units.
•   Fixed a rather serious memory leak that would slow the game down to a crawl after a few in-game months.
•   Fixed another rather serious memory leak that would slow the game down to a crawl during mass artillery bombardments.
•   Event log now keeps track downed pilots and low supplies even when not open.
•   Fixed potential crash when issuing orders without units selected.
•   Experience bars in the headquarters screen now have tooltips that let you know how much Valour is needed for each upgrade.
•   Fixed bug in which unit path highlights would disappear even with the movement information button in the top-right toggled on.
•   Fixed bug in which service time for officers was being recorded incorrectly.
•   Eastern front orders pop-up dialog now properly says AOK and Stavka for Austria-Hungary and Russia.
•   Fixed bug with small bars showing numbers, morale, supply, and readiness in pop-up dialogs with clickable lists of units. Previously, the maximum value of the blue numbers bar was set to the maximum value for a rifle platoon, which caused some confusion when units with lower maximum numbers, like artillery, were selected.


Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 14, 2020, 12:11:58 PM
Large Forests
Thu, 14 May 2020

Hi all,

As per request, I've added large-scale forests, as well as making the map much more populated in terms of houses and farms in general.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/14adb3f05a9c345839a481e54497b7e371328ec9.png)

Most of the work I've done in the past week or so has been under the hood, so the updated terrain is the only change for this update.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   More terrain variety and quantity to prevent the map from being so empty.
•   Large-scale terrain features now in the game.

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 29, 2020, 12:17:40 AM
Update - May 26
Wed, May 27, 2020

Hi all,

Several notable updates this time round. First and foremost, weather is now scaled. This affects movement for infantry and observation for pilots accordingly. Additionally, rates of sickness and damage to trenches during heavy rains are affected by weather scaling.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/a4f0270faf4377356b5a5dddf3ae632fd1f14c99.png)

Another new addition is the addition of overall artillery upgrades.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/3d016678dcbc0aeb5a7a21e40567bab4656cfbb5.png)

This slightly modifies the ability of artillery as the game goes on, so that different nations have varying artillery capabilities.

Movement - Determines the movement speed of artillery units.
Damage - Determines damage done to structures, as well as casualties inflicted upon infantry units in the open.
Rate of Fire - Determines number of tiles attacked when bombarding an area. Since only a portion of an attacked area is actually hit per game tick, high rate of fire can provide an advantage.
Range - Determines attack range of artillery batteries.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/d487db27b8ea5ce97cb5b8a480936d4ceeeaecbe.png)

Also, a new popup that displays unit composition is now available from both the unit details popup when a unit is selected and the Order of Battle screen. For the most part it's just flavour, but you will be able to see artillery attributes from this popup as well.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Order delay is now shown in detail, allowing you to see the breakdown in how the distances of HQ units affects it.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/8bd79c64c53596a3a423d6624d60a1ec4d2bee83.png)
 
•   Passive upgrades now take some time to be distributed to units in the field.
•   There is now a popup dialog that appears next to the unit's name when selected. This shows the weapons possessed by the unit, as well as any passive upgrades. This information also shows up when selecting units in the Order of Battle screen.
•   Passive unit upgrades, such as gas masks and helmets, are now determined per unit rather than instantly across the whole division when unlocked. This means it takes time to distribute them to relevant units.
•   Added an upgrade for steel helmets.
•   Fixed bug in which units from multiple scheduled orders would return to the same location regardless of where their targeted tiles were.
•   Command range of all units has been increased.
•   Base movement speed of all units has been increased.
•   Fixed crash when viewing status of reserve units from HQ screen.
•   Weather and fog are now scaled. This affects movement for infantry and observation for pilots accordingly.
•   Time of day and fog now causes a subtle overlay and color effect which might help with easily identifying both of these things.
•   Cancelling orders now works for moving units. Previously it would only cancel the unit's intended action, but not the underlying move order.
•   Enemy offensives used to lag the game dramatically, which forced me to stagger the assaults and stretch them out over unrealistic durations. I've tweaked the the pathfinding logic for enemy offensives so that enemy offensives are a lot more instantaneous.
•   Previously, artillery units would also charge during enemy offensives. This no longer happens.
•   Help text has been updated.


Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 03, 2020, 01:36:12 PM
Optimization - June 2
Tue, 2 June 2020

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg?t=1550347337)

Hi all,

Relatively quick turnaround on this update due to me wanting to push another optimization which I think will improve playability, as well as fixing some fairly serious bugs with underground construction and mine-setting.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   More optimizations, which should increase FPS.
•   Fixed crash bug when setting and detonating mines underground.
•   Fixed issues with underground unit visibility when reloading saved games.
•   Fixed bug in which underground mines and tunnels would not properly load from a saved game, causing broken paths underground.
•   Cancelling a Go On Leave order via an HQ units now properly cancels the order for all subordinate units as well.
•   Slider lock for supply priority now persists even when dragging the slider manually. Previously the lock would prevent movement when toggling other sliders, but you could still toggle the locked slider itself.
•   Damage reduction from machine gun fire (including those mounted on "Female" tanks) now begins at a closer distance, rendering machine gun fire less effective earlier.
•   Fixed bug in which charging cavalry were somehow not being detected by the enemy even on open ground.
•   Setting mines is now an order which requires you to drag over an area rather than selecting a single tile at a time. Defusing mines, however, remains an order in which you select tiles one at a time.
•   Fixed bug in which weapon names were not being stored properly, causing them to change each time the unit was selected.

Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 14, 2020, 03:00:30 AM
Update - June 13

Hi all,

A couple of requested features are now in the game. Field artillery and machine gun units can be placed on anti-air duty. Only artillery pit tiles are eligible to be used for anti-air duty. If there are none in the selected area, the order will not be issued. Units on anti-air duty will essentially mask their area of responsibility, making it more difficult for observers to reveal the tiles, as well as damaging any ground attack aircraft that target any tiles within the area.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/1786a457ceaa79b67d911b55f91c8712d969a1e1.png)
 
Additionally, new mission types are available in the aerodrome screen.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c192059cc9753f4e4114b6fbc35d8b22e798e39c.png)

Observation missions are the same as before - pilots will attempt to observe enemy positions and structures from the air. The difference is that escorts can no longer be paired with reconnaissance planes, only as part of separate Air Superiority sorties.

Balloon Attack and Ground Attack missions are only available to sorties consisting entirely of fighter planes. Balloon attack missions focus on engaging enemy balloons if present, and enemy pilots if not.

Ground attack missions focus on attacking enemy ground units, which may cause casualties, but primarily affect readiness and morale. If ground units are carrying supplies, they may lose some when attacked from the air. You must drag over an area to attack, and any open ground tiles without enemy units on them will be ignored.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Anti-air orders are now available.
•   Anti-air, artillery spotting, and adding cables now options as delegated tasks for your Intelligence officer.
•   Air sorties are now broken down into mission type. Fighter escorts can no longer be assigned to observation sorties, they must instead be assigned to separate air superiority missions.
•   Added "soft factors" by changing the previous Supply levels button in the top-right of the screen to allow for different supply types and attributes. Also changed the method in which units are coloured when toggling the various buttons in the top-right of the screen to make it more obvious.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/14fa26673b73364013c22641b154e41e61f87b0f.png)  (https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/1f03ea68dd1e21118c26fd0fc3a2ae0a58bbb894.png)
 
•   Optimized cavalry charges, so that there is less lag when ordering multiple cavalry units to charge.
•   Reduced some of the morale and readiness regain/loss rates for certain commander traits.
•   Line of fire in terrain is now possible, but only at close distances. This allows units to fire into and out of forests, for instance, rather than having to resort to melee.
•   Fixed bug in which player trenches would get rushed by enemy HQs.
•   Fixed bug in which unit weapons would be duplicated when reloading.
•   Tweaked pathfinding to reduce periods of intense lag, usually when the enemy AI was calculating supply lines all at once.
•   Added new river variations.
•   Tweaked river crossings to reduce lag that would arise when pathfinding algorithm failed.
•   Fixed strange pathfinding bug when units were ordered to attack, which would cause them to step out of the trenches first.
•   Fixed bug in which units caught in barbed wire would jump or teleport back to where they started.
•   Artillery batteries sent on leave now no longer need to retreat to a rear supply tile. This should cut down on the lag encountered when sending entire battalions of artillery on leave.

Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 21, 2020, 12:36:30 AM
Update - June 19

Hi all,

This patch updates the tutorials and fixes the ones that were blocked. However, this update also fixes the Build issue several of you were having, hence the quick turnaround.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Crossing wire penalty is less severe for light wire.
•   Fixed bug in which Medical units prioritized returning to cover before stretcher bearing, which made them unable to grab wounded men in open ground.
•   Fixed bug in which Build orders were being overridden by repair orders.
•   Fixed bug in which plane reassignment wasn't working.
•   Added ability to skip tutorial steps.
•   Fixed some blocking bugs that would prevent completion of some tutorials.
•   Updated some tutorials to take into account new gameplay elements.
•   Tutorials will now highlight next steps on the screen.

Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on July 14, 2020, 12:41:04 AM
First In Deed
Mon, 13 July 2020

Hi all,

I've added the Meuse-Argonne front to the list of possible map types.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/95560df46d4a02c4d396e42898cde8d2a8c76934.png)

The main difference in this map, besides the inclusion of the Americans, is the Meuse river acting as a large barrier between the two lines. The original focus of this map was going to be close-quarters forest combat in the Argonne, but I realized the game wasn't very fun. Reconnaissance was basically non-existent, and the gameplay consisted of simply sending your men blindly forward. Thus I decided to move to the other end of the sector and simulate one of the many crossings over the river Meuse onto the heights of Meuse beyond.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/8d2c310ea03a641cedcb90132bf70c6653c74e78.png)

The game starts in 1918 with many upgrades automatically unlocked. If you play as the Americans, offensives happen much more frequently to allow you to be more aggressive. Tanks are automatically available for the Americans, while Flamethrowers are automatically unlocked for the Germans.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/65c3e3cd6c06fd388b9beb1e62a3938ea00bad8e.png)

If there's something else you'd like me to add, feel free to let me know!

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Meuse-Argonne map has been added.
•   Fixed potential issues in the event of a successful enemy offensive, such as tiles not being claimed properly.
•   Bigger raids are more likely to be revealed, placing your units at risk.
•   Whether or not units are revealed is now affected by their readiness levels.
•   Attack strength is more heavily affected by readiness.
•   Fixed bug in which weapon name in Order of Battle screen didn't match the actual primary and secondary weapon names.
•   Updated weapon names for tanks.
•   Hovering over the number of units attached to a tank will now show a list of unit names.
•   Fixed bug with tanks not being able to attack properly.
•   Fixed Flamethrower units, which weren't working properly at all.
•   Can now use the "Replace" button to add Cavalry battalions on the Eastern Front.


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on July 27, 2020, 01:13:53 PM
Fortresses
Mon, 27 July 2020

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg?t=1550347337)

Hi all,

Relatively minor update this time, since I'm currently working on the Verdun map. That being said, I added fortresses to the Eastern Front.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/b102feaaa6132e952fabd8ba10d326d662ba437b.png)
 
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/ad5be179b7d290cb49e9b411e192a639c5b4fbcf.png)

Fortresses consist of both above-ground and underground tiles, and act as permanent field supply dumps for the side that owns them. Fortress tiles generally act as open ground, except that they obscure vision and lines of fire. However, some fortress tiles are casemates, which allow units underground to fire at units above ground with impunity.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c8c9cb69ab1b59fbec32e80dcc38047c426cac3c.png)

To attack a fortress, you must use fort entrances to enter the fortress underground. Once units enter a fortress, they must navigate to various goal points, represented by the flag of the nation in control of the fort. To capture a fort, units must hold all goal tiles for 24 hours.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/18805aced6f9766c88573cf7efb93d5274c85526.png)

A progress bar appears above the fortress when all goal tiles are being captured. Once it finishes, the fortress is yours.

I've also added a few new events unique to the Eastern Front.


Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Fortresses occasionally appear on the Eastern Front.
•   Order delay has been drastically reduced, but being under attack will increase it. This is a two-way modifier. For example, the delay between brigade and battalion HQs is lengthened accordingly if either party is being attacked.
•   New events:
Foreign Advisors (Operations)
If playing as Germany on the Eastern Front, the Austrians may ask you to lend them some officers. Doing so will increase troop morale but lower readiness.
If playing as Austria on the Eastern Front, the Germans may ask you to accept instruction from their officers. Doing so will increase troop readiness but lower morale.

Kaiser Franz Josef Dies (Austria Only)
Always happens on Nov. 21, 1916
All units lose 30% Cohesion and 40% Morale

Tsar Nicholas II Abdicates (Russia Only)
Always happens on March 15, 1917
All units lose 40% Cohesion and 20% Morale

Kaiser Wilhelm II Abdicates (Germany Only)
Always happens on Nov. 9, 1918
All units lose 20% Cohesion and 20% Morale

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 09, 2020, 11:20:59 PM
Verdun
Wed, 9 September 2020

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg?t=1550347337)

Hi all,

Sorry for the delay between this update and the last, it's been a busy month for me personally. I've added the Verdun map type, which encompasses the area between Fort Douaumont and Fort Souville. The trenches in this sector are pre-determined, but obviously can be expanded as you see fit. Fortresses play a larger part in this map, and the player's goal is to have all four of them in your possession by 1918.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/1e94614be8f224eb4ead6f5a1c32845d63c5e46a.png)

Besides the fortresses, the main difference in this map type is the fact that the Germans begin with much higher numbers of both front-line and reserve personnel, whereas the French have to make do with what they have until they gradually receive reinforcements. Reinforcements occur each week and allow either more front-line units to be deployed, or more reserve units to be called up.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/80caa39f25ae651f1aaf9cddc0ada9e7d0cce67b.png)

Due to the lack of uniformity in trench dispositions, I've added extra functionality to formal offensives. Prior to an offensive, you now have the option of moving units up to the front line en masse. As a corollary, sending men over the top now only does so for units in the front lines. This allows you to control how many men to keep in reserve by moving them away from the front lines prior to charging.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/934c9e25b4455be7890d1a2ff0bc904980a0c781.png)

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Verdun map added.
•   Rate of Morale loss from low food has been reduced.
•   Units only receive passive resupply from field supply dumps and fortresses when Resting.
•   Artillery unit now no longer require all targeted tiles to be in range with clear line of sight when firing. However, if a targeted tile is not within range of within line of sight, it cannot be hit. This may waste some of your artillery unit's attacking ability.
•   Tooltips for different attack types have been updated. Previously, they would all say "Under Fire" and players would have to rely on the icon to differentiate attack types.
•   Enemy artillery barrages prior to offensives have been tweaked to be less piecemeal.
•   There is now a preliminary step you can take prior to sending men over the top when an offensive starts, which moves all combat units to the front line.


Thanks for playing!


Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 25, 2020, 02:02:40 PM
Trentino and Trieste
Thu, 24 September 2020

Hi all,

I've gotten around to adding the Italian Front to the game. This is the last major map type to be added into the game in terms of maps that add new gameplay elements. I'm still flirting with the idea of smaller-scale scenarios, but they would likely be variations of existing maps.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/3671b8552b9546f962ea7453c73c26e0acf5f90b.png)

The most obvious difference between this map and others is the presence of karst, which affects both movement and readiness during task switching. Karst creates two separate effects depending on elevation. An elevation of 4 causes the Crossing Karst effect, which does not affect movement but does cause more damage from shrapnel and ballistic weapons in the open. An elevation of 5 causes the Climbing Karst effect, which heavily affects movement and readiness for all units except mountain units.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/15a4f2bb69cafc60c057cd201fc0c95320a3cf4e.png)

Mountain units can cross and operate with no penalty when climbing karst.


Bugfixes/Changes:

•   Italian Front has been added.
•   Added Karst ground type, which slows down non-mountain units at an elevation level of 5, as well as inflicting more damage on units when using shrapnel shells.
•   Rebalanced offensives to make success rates less permissive - previously it would be too easy to permanently conquer enemy lines.
•   Tooltips added for divisional artillery upgrades.
•   Tooltips added for various staff officer traits.
•   Star shells are no longer infinite. In the interest of game balance, your division receives a new allocation each month.
•   Line of sight no longer reveals enemy trenches when fog of war is enabled.
•   Attacking no longer reduces readiness.
•   Number of tiles attacked by artillery has been tweaked.
•   Artillery attribute effects have been increased.
•   Fixed issue with incorrect values in order delay tooltip.
•   Fixed issue with sight range not being updated properly in adverse weather conditions and time of day.
•   Drag and drop windows for showing unit details, selected units, and ground information can now be reset by pressing ESC if you accidentally drag them off-screen. The next time anything is selected the popup dialogs will be placed back in their default position.
•   Fixed bug in which units in dugouts were not appearing when starting a new map.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on October 31, 2020, 02:10:14 AM
Medals
Fri, 30 October 2020

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg?t=1550347337)

Hi all,

Since all the map types are in, I've begun adding some frills to the game. Most obvious change is that there are now a few customization options on the Headquarters screen. From here you can customize yourself a bit, such as adding a division insignia and changing your name.

This gave me the chance to implement some achievements/medals in the game. Hovering over them will produce a tooltip detailing their requirements. These aren't hooked into Steam yet, as I'm not sure if they're final, but the system for recognizing achievements is in and I'm open to suggestions.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/ce4e935139ae39a09d15b16a3061ca5ba8381a6a.png)

Lastly, it is now possible to "win" scenarios. The Meuse-Argonne and Verdun maps have explicit win/loss conditions, while the other fronts simply measure how many times you advance or retreat by Nov. 11, 1918. Advancing or retreating reloads the map, but progress shows up under your commander's portrait.

Verdun requires you to hold all four fortresses by the Armistice, while the Meuse-Argonne requirements change depending on your nation. The Americans must conquer the map by Nov.11, 1918, whereas the Germans only need to survive. I'll probably add things like more comprehensive enemy starting trenches and improved AI as you advance, but for now there is at least some kind of end goal in sight.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Added Division commander section on Headquarters screen.
•   Added medals in game.
•   Americans now start with four rifle brigades both in the field and in reserve.
•   Units now return to original positions when scheduled order is completely done. They will still remain relatively close to the order target area when taking breaks if the order is set to repeat.
•   Previously, only balloons would permanently decrease the size of artillery target areas. Now, unlocking the new Calibration Range upgrade will also do this.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/269dd7b129c85d17d4232513475db7f94b7edca5.png)

•   Fixed bug in which resupplying units would lag the game down heavily.
•   Fixed bug with damage on grass appearing in the wrong areas when playing as Germany on the Verdun map.
•   Got rid of sharp edges in grass.
•   Fixed bug in which reverse slopes were not properly protecting units on them.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on December 07, 2020, 01:30:45 AM
Hotkeys
Sun, 6 December 2020

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg?t=1550347337)

Hi all,

It's been a busy time for me personally, so this update is relatively small despite the time that has passed since the last update. The main new feature this time is the addition of customizable hotkeys.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/95ee722bc1e41f136c5218de890ddaf43b2ec6d7.png)

The default hotkeys are kind of all over the place, but you're free to remap them however you wish. It's worth noting that the arrow keys and the + and - keys on the numpad are always mapped to the camera scroll and the timer speed respectively. Other than that, you're free to customize everything to your heart's content.

I've also addressed some bugs that have been brought up in the forums.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Customizable hotkeys for construction actions are now available.
•   Fixed incorrect scenario end popups.
•   Fixed bug in which HQ units would stand around outside fortresses after conquering them.
•   Fixed crash when attempting to replace a reserve unit.
•   Fixed crash when removing area of interest.
•   Added inverted camera scroll option on settings screen.

Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 02, 2021, 02:36:43 PM
Brigade Command
Sat, 2 January 2021


Hi all,

As per request, I've added a smaller scenario in which you control a single brigade rather than an entire division.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/f18e27b42d181a13cfc193c2c32483ac42ddd466.png)

The map revolves around taking a single redoubt. It otherwise operates mostly the same way, except that reserve brigades are no longer available. Additionally, it is no longer possible to use the Aerodrome on the Redoubt map, as it is the responsibility of the Division commander. Air sorties are automated and cannot be disabled.

(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/b8dfa0c321309ab48352f0f1f146e7dc82c07a54.png)

Certain windows can now be resized as well. Any popup that appears on the main battle map can now be made smaller or larger by clicking and dragging the right and/or bottom of the window. They can be restored to default size by clicking the button on the top left.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Redoubt map now exists, allowing control of a single brigade.
•   Windows that appear in battle can now be resized.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on February 01, 2021, 01:10:53 AM
Localization
Sun, 31 January 2021

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg?t=1550347337)

Hi all,

The big change this time is the addition of localization files. Since I don't have the ability to actually get translations done, I figured I'd just provide the ability for others to do it.

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/ed9db4d0a6030119c7ad77a560adabeaa2c8213b.png)

Now you can use a csv/Excel file to add different languages to the game. The key is to ensure that the first line of the csv file contains the language itself, followed by the actual lines of text in the game.

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/3120951ee429ced5223a0218c11004f66a3569d5.png)

It is strongly advised not to change the values in the first column, as the game looks for these tags when converting text. The default localization file has been placed into the game folder, under Graphics/Names, along with the name files. You can also select a file from anywhere on your computer.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Improved pathfinding across rivers to prevent unnecessary river crossings.

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/db703bbdcc8235536458968ea7f3cf771fed0416.png)

•   Fixed potential crash with certain event choices that increase commander stats.
•   Improved performance of raid area-drag over large areas.
•   Plane upgrades are locked behind an experience wall again.
•   Music files from the game have been added into the game folder.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on March 08, 2021, 01:46:03 AM
Update - March 7
Sun, 7 March 2021

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg)

Hi all,

I've mostly spent this last update implementing some requests and suggestions you've made in the discussion forums.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/93bf46253aa853b25e5ddb5c436a647a61a3443e.png)

Raids now result in after-action reports when you either call them back or they end normally. This took a little longer than expected to implement, because there were some bugs in the raid mechanic I had to iron out. I've also added the ability to schedule orders according to the time of day rather than having to manually set a time. This is useful for more general orders.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c743c33d3d55f993fa3d684d7520520db69a4e46.png)

Lastly, there have been a few changes to the information available to the player. Units with subordinates will now show the combined status values for all of their subordinate units, which allows the player to see at a glance the overall status of an entire unit.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/7466f3297acface0fd5a4bfd8d7d7f7dda12f20f.png)

Vertical bars represent combined values, while horizontal bars are the status values of the unit by itself.

Bugfixes/Changes:

•  Added after action report when performing raids.
•  Tweaked effectiveness of raids and melee combat.
•  Added ability to set scheduled orders to different times of day. This will update automatically depending on the time of year. Not setting a time of day will set the order to the specified time, same as before.
•  Added total numbers, morale, supply, and readiness to units in both the unit detail popup and the Order of Battle screen.
•  Added subordinate unit list to Order of Battle screen. These also show the combined numbers, morale, supply, and readiness of their subordinates when applicable.
•  Units now blink red when under attack.


Thanks for playing!
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 25, 2021, 11:30:02 PM
Update - May 24
Tue, 25 May 2021

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_0c04994060cbdb39dbc5d7fd0f6c7442ec9db80d.1920x1080.jpg)

Hi all,

Quicker than usual turnaround on this update, as it mostly consists of pathfinding changes that should help unit rotation go along a lot smoother. I'm hoping this reduces a bit of the clumping that would happen when new units were brought into the lineup.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Time increments have been decreased to two minutes, down from five. Things like cooldowns, etc, have been modified as well.
•   Fixed potential crash when crossing rivers at the extremities of the map.
•   Improved pathfinding when units rotate to the rear and there is no clear path of trenches and comm. trenches that exists to lead them there.
•   Staggered unit rotation so that they are less clumped together when returning from leave.
•   Fixed occasional crash when performing raids.
•   Fixed bug in which only the commanding unit of an artillery battalion would withdraw to the rear.
•   Tweaked frequency of enemy AI unit rotation.
•   Fixed issue in which destroyed trench tiles would sometimes show the wrong ground type instead of reverting to open ground.
•   Modified Administration delegation options - increments now modify morale and numbers thresholds by 10% instead of 5%, giving more unit rotation variability.


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on October 25, 2021, 11:52:48 PM
Animation
Mon, 25 October 2021

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_8244540b466f19e52a55ab2b81aa7d7178d5ede7.1920x1080.jpg)

Hi all,

Pretty long gap between this update and the last one. Aside from a bit of code refactoring and a couple of minor bugfixes, the main thing I've added this time are animated sprites. I hadn't intended on doing this so soon, but work got a bit hectic and I found myself doing 3D work in Blender just to unwind, so it ended up being a good time to do it after all.

It's not perfect, and I've still got to add sprites for aircraft, as well as dying animations, but the bulk of animations are in now. I'll probably add a method of switching on the fly between unit display types soon - a lot of the behind-the-scenes work was actually geared toward making this a reality.

A lot of the detail I added in the sprites can't even really be seen due to the small size of the units on the map, but I'll admit it does look kind of cool zooming in and watching units move around, even if it's only really visible when the game speed is lowered.

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/5c35d984f26517b4016c6b20da036369dddf88e1.gif) (https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/c9fc162c6e5c2a1b3c4ed981b63bec0993ddcabc.gif)

Hope you all enjoy it, and let me know if there are any other animations you'd like me to add in.

Bugfixes/Changes:

    Dealt with residual bugs which resulted when I converted time increments from 5 minutes to two.
    Added animated sprites as an option in the settings menu

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/e92a9bd09d106b7098e2ee67e5cf8c01440807d6.png)
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 17, 2022, 11:44:18 PM
Update - Jan. 16
Mon, 17 January 2022

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_8244540b466f19e52a55ab2b81aa7d7178d5ede7.1920x1080.jpg)

Hi all,

I've added a few quality of life updates as well as some bugfixes in this update. The big one I suppose is being able to rotate individual subordinate units, such as battalions within brigades, etc. The caveat is that the unit is replaced by a fresh unit of the same type. If you wish to retain the experience of the unit sent away or alter unit composition, you'd have to rotate the entire unit to the rear as before.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/1aa5d8db23e58658b472456bd542904f086dbdf7.png)


Bugfixes/Changes:

    Fixed Germany victory conditions on Meuse-Argonne map.
    You can now use Page Up and Page Down keys to cycle through units on the same tile.
    Units will now avoid crowding more strictly, so if you attempt to move too many units to a tile all at once they'll end up 'bleeding' over to other tiles.
    Updated scroll bars on various popup windows.
    Previously, being forced to retreat would leave the player empty-handed, since the shattered units from the previous sector carried over. Now a fresh brigade will replace a depleted one automatically.
    Can now send subordinate units to the rear from the Order of Battle screen.
    Fixed issuing orders and cavalry charges. The feature which allowed players to use Ctrl to select multiple units at a time was messing with the ability to drag and drop orders.



Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on April 26, 2022, 10:31:18 PM
Update - April 24
Mon, 25 April 2022

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_8527c85f0813afad657a25d98b784ff9e2f5ea41.jpg)

Hi all,

Sorry for the long delay between updates. I didn't have any new features to add this time, so I took the opportunity to bug hunt and deal with issues that I've known about for some time but hadn't gotten around to fixing yet.

The biggest and most time-consuming one was to track down and eliminate the long 10+ second pauses that would occasionally occur when the pathfinding broke down and had to brute force a path. Upon refactoring and restructuring some things under the hood, I think I've managed to get rid of the problem.

I also took the time to update the Unit Rotation tutorial to use the Order of Battle screen instead of the context menus. Using the context menu to withdraw units wasn't very intuitive, so I removed that ability without updating the corresponding tutorial. Apologies for any inconvenience.


Bugfixes/Changes:

    Updated the unit rotation tutorial.
    Updated pathfinding so long pauses in the game should no longer happen.
    Fixed issue with units returned from raids continuing to fire forever.
    Fixed bug with cancelling scheduled orders.
    Tweaked formatting of pilot lists in Aerodrome screen.
    Adjusted enemy offensives to focus more on the first line of defense rather than attacking everything indiscriminately.
    Fixed crash with grenades upgrade caused due to a missing tooltip.
    Fixed reserve unit names generated when starting a new game.



Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on May 17, 2022, 10:55:15 PM
Update - May 16
Tue, 17 May 2022

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_7b50509a76286cf2f265abf47949d12208afc184.jpg)

Hi all,

Once again I focused mostly on tightening up what already exists rather than adding anything new. I finally was able to get around to improving underground mines by making them more powerful than they were previously. Having a mine destroy only a single tile didn't seem worth the time and effort it took to actually set them, so I'm hoping this makes mines more viable. I also managed to fix the animations for both mines and star shells by ensuring the animation plays before moving on.

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/32805249/ed07eff4d4b42fb017447a5af3ae5c72cf6a29c6.gif)

Other than that, I mostly mopped up some pathfinding lag on the Verdun map, and changed the way the enemy AI attempts to take fortresses. Previously the enemy units were rushing across the whole map to take the nearest available fortress, which was suicidal.

I also took the time to add some more tooltips and help text in the pause menu.


Bugfixes/Changes:

    Fixed issue with being able to select Attack Unit command even on invisible tiles when fog of war is enabled.
    Fixed long pathfinding delays when enemy AI attacks fortresses on the Verdun map.
    AI now prioritizes trenches over fortresses on the Verdun map, instead of charging across long stretches of open ground to assault fortresses that are far from the enemy lines.
    Fixed bug where units would get stuck underground if player switched from above ground to underground while units were exiting tunnels.
    Fixed bug where rotating enemy units would sometimes get stuck and never return to the front lines.
    Added tooltips to the task delegation popup dialog.
    Fixed animations for star shells and detonated mines so that the animation plays out in full rather than quickly appearing and disappearing when the game timer is set to high speeds.
    Mines now destroy a 13x13 area rather than a single tile. They also now properly destroy terrain and grass in addition to any constructed tiles and units.
    Updated help text to include a bit more information about the Verdun and Isonzo fronts, as well as the task delegation popup in the Headquarters screen.



New Localization keys:

    HELP_SUBTOPIC_TASK_DELEGATION
    HELP_TEXT_TASK_DELEGATION_01
    HELP_TEXT_TASK_DELEGATION_02
    HELP_TOPIC_VERDUN
    HELP_TOPIC_ISONZO_FRONT
    HELP_SUBTOPIC_VERDUN_DISPOSITIONS
    HELP_SUBTOPIC_ISONZO_KARST
    HELP_TEXT_DISPOSITIONS_01
    HELP_TEXT_DISPOSITIONS_02
    HELP_TEXT_KARST_01
    HELP_TEXT_KARST_02
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_REPAIR
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_FORTIFY
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_TRENCH_RAID
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_EXERCISES
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_CUT_WIRE
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_SET_WIRE
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_REST
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_MORALE
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_NUMBERS
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_SUPPLY_AREA
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_FIELD_HOSPITAL
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_FIND_WOUNDED
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_FIELD_KITCHENS
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_FIELD_SUPPLY_DUMP
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_SORTIES
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_ANTI_AIR
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_ARTILLERY_SPOTTING
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_ADD_CABLES



Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 07, 2022, 04:23:06 PM
Update - June 5
Mon, 6 June 2022

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_200942129b6bedfae9768038722cc136bebc61d3.jpg)

Hi all,

This update focuses mostly on bridges and pathfinding. There were still some outstanding situations in which the pathfinding would lock up for a long time when attempting to find paths over bridges on the Eastern and Meuse-Argonne maps. I believe I've managed to track them down and eliminate them now. I also tweaked charges and raids in order to avoid situations in which units would run alongside bridges and pontoons rather than on them.

On the Eastern front, and on the Meuse-Argonne map as the Americans, you can now delegate the building of pontoons. The Germans on the Meuse-Argonne do not have this option, as they're on the defensive. Orders will only be scheduled if there is a river between the two front lines.

Other than that, I mostly tracked down bugs and added some more tooltips to the ground/tile popup window. If there's any part of the game that you feel requires some more tooltips, feel free to let me know in the Discussion forums.

Bugfixes/Changes:
•   Can now delegate build pontoon orders via the Task Delegation popup for your Operations officer in the Headquarters screen.
•   Charging/raids now use bridges even if they are incomplete. Previously issuing a normal order would use incomplete or broken bridges if no complete ones were available, but this did not extend to charges, which used the shortest path to the target.
•   Added tooltips to the ground/tile popup, including tooltips for fortress tiles.
•   Fixed bug with scheduled orders which caused scheduled units to sometimes get stuck Switching Tasks.
•   Fixed occasional crash when determining bridge crossing paths.


New Localization keys:
•   TOOLTIP_EFFECT_OPEN_GROUND
•   TOOLTIP_EFFECT_ON_FORTRESS
•   TOOLTIP_EFFECT_IN_FORTRESS
•   TOOLTIP_EFFECT_FORTRESS_ENTRANCE
•   TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_BUILD_PONTOONS


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 27, 2022, 12:11:05 PM
Update - June 26
Mon, 27 June 2022

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_7d8cf37b7502a5d17a74193d6bd1658f53f0f5a7.jpg)

Hi all,

This update mostly focuses on Supplying Areas. I reworked it so that supply units (and rifle units carrying food) no longer traverse to the next unit they plan to supply and instead simply select a random unit in their assigned area to distribute supplies to without actually moving to that tile. I believe this makes it easier to keep units supplied since you can see at a glance which areas are covered.

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans//32805249/84862f07b09f0ecdae8cd01a0337d5d51f9ad229.png)

To this end I've added an extra button the top right which shows supply coverage by supply type. I'm hoping this allows players to better optimize supply coverage and keep track of supply levels better.

Bugfixes/Changes:

    Supply Area order has been reworked to allow players more control over manual supply orders. Units no longer traverse to units they are supplying but instead passively resupply units in their assigned area.
    There is a new info button in the top-right that highlights supplied areas by supply type.
    Units manually ordered to supply areas no longer refresh Supply Area orders with random supply types if the division runs out of the original supply type. Players will now be informed that the unit has stopped supplying an area.



New Localization keys:

    TOOLTIP_SUPPLY_AREA_INFO
    LOG_TYPE_TILE_FULLY_SUPPLIED ( Updated )
    LOG_TYPE_TILE_OUT_OF_SUPPLIES
    EVENT_LOG_FULLY_SUPPLIED
    EVENT_LOG_OUT_OF_SUPPLIES

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 12, 2022, 12:52:11 AM
Update - Sept. 10
Sat, 10 September 2022

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_f365c185026484f3e9c5844b734777700d64f0de.jpg)

Hi all,

Mostly just spent this update tightening up and tweaking existing functionality again. I also added tank usage to the Support Units tutorial, as there was no clear explanation on how tanks really worked in this game and how you're able to have units follow behind them for protection.


Most importantly, I tweaked the Aerodrome to be less restrictive, but more dependent on the conditions at the front, as well as your own upgrade level.

Bugfixes/Changes:

    Added tank cover to Support Units tutorial.
    Horizontal trench tiles that are reinforced now confer a firestep bonus to rifle and machine gun units, which boosts their attack power on these tiles.
    Offensives are now cancelled if the enemy strikes first, and rescheduled once the enemy offensive is concluded.
    Max number of patrols and pilots per patrol has been increased per upgrade level, but pilot and plane recovery is much slower. Pilot readiness and plane ammo/fuel recovery now takes into account the upgrade level of your aerodrome in addition to the overall aerodrome status of the sector.
    The number of sorties that can be launched by your Intelligence Officer now also takes into account the upgrade level of your Aerodrome in addition to his Organization level.
    Can now customize Readiness threshold for pilots when issuing orders to Intelligence Officer.
    Fixed bug in which dugouts couldn't be built by Engineers.



Updated Localization keys:

    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_TANKS
    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_GET_BEHIND_TANKS_01
    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_GET_BEHIND_TANKS_02
    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_MOVE_TANK
    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_TANKS_TOOLTIP
    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_GET_BEHIND_TANK_TOOLTIP
    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_MOVE_TANK_TOOLTIP
    DELEGATION_PATROL_READINESS
    DELEGATION_PATROL_READINESS_THRESHOLD
    TOOLTIP_DELEGATION_PILOT_READINESS
    HELPER_UNIT_ACTION_TOOLTIP_FORTIFY_TRENCH
    UNIT_EFFECT_ON_FIRESTEP
    TOOLTIP_EFFECT_ON_FIRESTEP


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on January 30, 2023, 12:04:50 AM
Update - Jan. 28
Sat, 28 January 2023

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_dc1cd6204a093b7e8a8e9d37acd7fefd7016e1ab.jpg)

Hi all,

Managed to add a few quality of life updates, but mostly focused on balance issues and bug fixes that were pointed out in the discussion forums. It is always appreciated when you guys go out of your way to suggest improvements to the game, so keep the feedback coming!


Bugfixes/Changes:
•   "Build Mode" - where players can paint lines of trenches and other tiles in order to build them - now allows you to drag over an area to resume construction of tiles previously marked for construction. You can also now remove an entire area of painted tiles by dragging over them.
•   Fixed bug where tiles still under construction would change appearance if the tile next to them was finished building, despite not being complete themselves.
•   Units are less prone to wandering away when orders are cancelled. Previously they would try to reposition themselves when orders were cancelled, leading to weird results.
•   Upon finishing a "shift" for a repeating scheduled order, units will choose to reposition themselves in nearby forests or houses if close enough to one.
•   Support units are now assigned to proper orders based on their unit type when set to be automated, rather than random orders like Drill or Resting.
•   Terrain effects no longer affect underground units.
•   Fixed Attack Area workaround that would allow units to attack into trenches by targeting adjacent tiles.
•   Units attacking an area around them can no longer hit themselves.
•   Units in dugouts no longer become sick.
•   Units can no longer shoot into dugouts or blockhouses. They must move directly into them and engage any units inside in melee.
•   Commander caps are no longer lowered twice when changing commanders. A previous update made it so that removing a commander would lower the cap of Morale, Supply, and Readiness twice.
•   Default size of the commander selection popup in the Order of Battle screen has been set properly to accommodate the new buttons on the right. The addition of the resize feature caused this issue.
•   Railroad label tooltip in the Headquarters screen has been fixed.
•   Tooltips in officer replacement popup have been updated.
•   Officer experience tooltip now adds numbers of attribute effects.

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans//32805249/993448638508b2b4cc588abec83a091a2b3cd84f.png)
 
•   Units experiencing order delay will no longer trigger sounds when viewing their information on the unit details popup.
•   Destroy and Repair orders can now be performed on tiles that are currently being built, rather than only on fully constructed tiles.
•   Shells Taken event has been fixed to prevent infantry battalions on the Redoubt map from being affected. However, reserve battalions are now affected.
•   Added ability to shoot into nearby trenches from blockhouse.


New Localization keys:
•   TOOLTIP_BUILD_MODE_ADD
•   TOOLTIP_BUILD_MODE_SUBTRACT
•   TOOLTIP_BUILD_MODE_DRAG_ADD
•   TOOLTIP_BUILD_MODE_DRAG_SUBTRACT
•   TOOLTIP_SENIOR_COMMANDER_BONUS_LEADERSHIP
•   TOOLTIP_SENIOR_COMMANDER_BONUS_ORGANIZATION
•   TOOLTIP_SENIOR_COMMANDER_BONUS_COMMAND
•   TOOLTIP_COMPANY_COMMANDER_BONUS_LEADERSHIP
•   TOOLTIP_COMPANY_COMMANDER_BONUS_ORGANIZATION
•   TOOLTIP_COMPANY_COMMANDER_BONUS_COMMAND


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on February 14, 2023, 01:03:12 AM
Update - Feb. 12
Sun, 12 February 2023

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_f365c185026484f3e9c5844b734777700d64f0de.jpg)

Hi all,

Nothing major in this update, but there are a few fairly important bugfixes that I wanted to address. Most of these had to do with some work under the hood that went a bit awry.


Bugfixes/Changes:

    Fixed crash when quitting to the main menu and starting a new game immediately afterwards.
    Fixed issue where terrain effects weren't reloaded properly.
    Fixed bug in which commander traits weren't being properly removed when reassigning them.
    Fixed bug with dugout textures not changing to completed dugouts when finished building.
    Fixed bug in which unseen wire in terrain would override the terrain type in the tile details window when Fog of War was enabled.
    Units now reset to idle instead of attempting to build forever when out of tools.
    Fixed potential crash when stealing supplies.



Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 04, 2023, 12:17:15 PM
Online Multiplayer
Sun, 4 June 2023

Hi all,

Sorry for the much longer than usual delay between updates. I generally try to put one out every few weeks, but this update is a fairly substantial one. It was a massive undertaking, but I got online multiplayer working. It's currently limited to 2 players per lobby, but you can play VS. or Co-op against the AI.


(https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images//32805249/01829c64c4c46dcc979c785f5f60c9f2f368dc9a.png)


It's my first attempt at anything like this, so please do let me know if you encounter issues. It runs well enough on my two personal computers, and I was able to cross-play between Mac and Windows with no issues. However, running smoothly on the same network is no guarantee it will do so in the wild, so to speak, so I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that the netcode holds up.

Bugfixes/Changes:

    Online multiplayer is available.
    Fixed elevation map offset when playing as Germany at Verdun.
    Tweaked camera elasticity so scrolling from edges is a bit quicker.
    Fixed crash when removing individual units from scheduled orders.
    Fixed bug in which Intelligence officer would schedule air sorties at night.
    Fixed bug with fortress goal tiles being in the wrong positions when playing as Germany at Verdun.



New Localization keys:

    ONLINE_LOBBIES_LBL
    ONLINE_LOBBY_CREATE_BTN
    ONLINE_LOBBY_JOIN_BTN
    ONLINE_LOBBY_LEAVE_BTN
    ONLINE_LOBBY_REFRESH_BTN
    ONLINE_CHATROOM_TITLE
    ONLINE_CHATROOM_SEND_BTN
    ONLINE_CHATROOM_OTHER_PLAYERS
    ONLINE_MATCH_TYPE_VERSUS
    ONLINE_MATCH_TYPE_COOP
    ONLINE_LEAVE_LOBBY
    ONLINE_LOBBY_LEFT
    ONLINE_LOBBY_JOINED
    ONLINE_LOBBY_JOIN_FAILED
    CONFIRMATION_ONLINE_NO_LOBBY_NAME
    CONFIRMATION_ONLINE_NO_LOBBY_SELECTED
    ONLINE_ROLE_HOST
    ONLINE_ROLE_GUEST
    ONLINE_LOBBY_CREATE_OR_JOIN_PROMPT
    ONLINE_IN_LOBBY_LBL
    ONLINE_WAITING_FOR_GUEST_TO_CHOOSE
    TITLE_SCREEN_CHAT_ENABLED_LBL
    CHAT_CONFIRM_TOOLTIP
    CHAT_CANCEL_TOOLTIP
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_USER_LEFT
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_INCREASE_GAME_SPEED,
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_DECREASE_GAME_SPEE
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_GAME_PAUSE
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_GAME_RESUME
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_SCHEDULED_ORDER_COMPLETED
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_TARGET_AREA_ADDED
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_PATROL_CREATED
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_BALLOON_STARTED
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_ASSIGN_PILOT_TO_PLANE
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_SEND_UNIT_ON_LEAVE
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_ASSIGN_COMMANDER
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_UNLOCK_UPGRADE
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_ASSIGN_STAFF_COMMANDER
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_ERASE_UNIT
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_REPLACE_UNIT
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_RECALL_UNIT
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_TOGGLE_DELEGATION
    ONLINE_NOTIFY_CHANGE_PRIORITY



Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on June 21, 2023, 09:23:05 AM
Update - June 21
Wed, 21 June 2023

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_f365c185026484f3e9c5844b734777700d64f0de.jpg)

Hi all,

After the last update which introduced a major new feature, I mostly focused on tightening up the game. Some minor bugs have been fixed, and some quality of life issues have been addressed.


Bugfixes/Changes:
Added option to play ambient sound instead of music.

(https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//32805249/a9f967da6f94c59f262bc4eb029893a4d7182846.png)

Added chat hotkey rebind option to settings screen.
Fixed bug with unit attributes increasing endlessly after repeated reloads.
Fixed bug in which Fog of War setting was not being saved properly between each session when relaunching the game.
Fixed bug in which creeping barrage buttons were not being re-enabled when loading a saved game in which Creeping Barrage was unlocked.
Fixed bug with artillery forward positioning for mass bombardments.
Ctrl-click now works for scheduled orders.
Fixed bug with gas shell slider on maps where gas shells are unlocked at the start.
Fixed potential crash when enemy AI handles wounded soldiers.
Fog of War now disabled in Skirmish tutorial.
Fixed debug text {hotkey_add_units} in Basics tutorial.
Added extra tutorial steps in Construction tutorial for dragging over areas in order to resume construction.
Added extra tutorial steps in Construction tutorial for using Ctrl-click to build multiple single tile structures.
Updated help text for the above two functions.


New Localization keys:
HOTKEY_CONSOLE
HOTKEY_CHAT
CONSTRUCTION_TUTORIAL_DRAG_01
CONSTRUCTION_TUTORIAL_DRAG_02
CONSTRUCTION_TUTORIAL_BUILD_DRAG_TOOLTIP
CONSTRUCTION_TUTORIAL_CTRL_01
CONSTRUCTION_TUTORIAL_CTRL_02


Updated Localization keys:
CONTROL_TUTORIAL_SELECT_TRENCH
HELP_TEXT_BUILD_MODE_01
HELP_TEXT_SINGLE_TILE_BUILD_02


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on August 16, 2023, 12:20:38 AM
Update - August 14
Mon, 14 August 2023

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_ef360546c5550bf6d0cbe380cdea085700e72218.jpg)

Hi all,

I did a bit more bughunting this time, as well as implementing a new feature that was requested in the Discussion board. Keep it coming!


Bugfixes/Changes:

    Added a game diary option in the Event Log. You can now add random notes as you play the game. These are saved to a separate file, located in the Logs folder of your save directory.

(https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//32805249/a9941bf66d786fe2971bec09d33faa765adf5a86.png)

    The main caveat here is that word wrap doesn't work. Try as I may, the TextEdit control in Godot doesn't seem to have functioning word wrap, and my attempts at actually modifying the C++ engine code to include it were not successful. To write on a new line, you'll have to press Enter manually.

    Reserve unit lists in the Headquarters screen and corresponding reserve unit detail trees now properly refresh in real-time rather than requiring the user to close the popup and bring it up again to refresh unit details.
    Reserve unit replenishment is properly scaled so it doesn't all happen at once any more.
    Minor bug in which destroyed units on the Order of Battle screen would not refresh their numbers properly when destroyed, so that their displayed numbers would remain above zero.



New Localization keys:

    EVENT_LOG_RECORD_BTN
    EVENT_LOG_ERASE_BTN
    EVENT_LOG_NOTIFICATION_LBL
    EVENT_LOG_DIARY_LBL



Thanks for playing!
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on August 28, 2023, 12:13:10 AM
Update - August 26
Sun, 27 August 202

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_4a75a6ee79a901639193de4add726c36c7adbf28.jpg)

Hi all,

I've been doing a lot of playtesting recently, so this update consists of some game balance updates, as well as quality of life updates and bugfixes.


Bugfixes/Changes:

    Raid type buttons are reset properly when reloading saved games.
    Increased river crossing movement penalty.
    Fixed possible crash when rotating units during mass offensives.
    Creeping barrage upgrade now overrides artillery max forward position when suppressing area.
    Artillery can no longer cross rivers without bridges or pontoons.
    Added objectives to scenario descriptions.
    Added a warning popup when proper tiles for Rest and Supply Area orders are not selected. Previously the user would get no notification if selected tiles were too far forward or if there were no units in the selected area available to be resupplied, leaving them in the dark.

(https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//32805249/0eededf4d0bcd14eb0d5696b18c3d024b44c3977.png)

    Removed islands from the Meuse-Argonne map. I found it had a tendency to make pathfinding weird, and complicated bridge and pontoon orders.


New Localization keys:

    TITLE_NEWGAME_WESTERN_FRONT_DESCRIPTION
    TITLE_NEWGAME_EASTERN_FRONT_DESCRIPTION
    TITLE_NEWGAME_MEUSE_ARGONNE_FRONT_DESCRIPTION
    TITLE_NEWGAME_VERDUN_FRONT_DESCRIPTION
    TITLE_NEWGAME_ITALIAN_FRONT_DESCRIPTION
    TITLE_NEWGAME_SCHWABEN_DESCRIPTION
    CONFIRMATION_ORDER_INVALID_TILES_SUPPLY_AREA
    CONFIRMATION_ORDER_INVALID_TILES_REST

Thanks for playing!
Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on September 21, 2023, 12:57:07 AM
Update - Sept. 20
Wed, 20 September 2023

(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_4a75a6ee79a901639193de4add726c36c7adbf28.jpg)

Hi all,

This update consists mostly of responding to user feedback and adding quality of life changes. The biggest one is changing the Find Wounded/Stretcher Bearing/Treat Wounded process to match that of supplying an area. Rather than Medical units running to units with wounded men, then bringing them back to treat them, Medical units now simply treat wounded over an area of your choosing. This streamlines the process and reduces it into a matter of keeping track of area coverage rather than having to individually keep tabs on each Medical unit. It was somewhat more realistic, but ultimately not very intuitive.

I've also changed the way Supply units perform Add Supplies tasks. Previously, they would revert to resting once they filled up a supply depot. However, this led to confusion and inefficient supply management. Now they continuously top up the supplies until ordered elsewhere. Again, making supply a matter of keeping track of coverage rather than individual units. Hopefully these changes make logistics easier to manage.

Bugfixes/Changes:

    Creating a new pilot via the debug screen now works properly.
    Enemy AI division can no longer unlock achievements.
    Tweaked line of sight against units in houses or forests, now affected by the terrain level rather than being a flat visibility modifier.
    Fixed casemate unit effect and tooltip.
    Units adding supplies to field kitchens no longer automatically stop when the kitchen is full, instead continuously topping them up.
    Units no longer automatically revert to supplying area after completing an Add Supplies order on a dugout.
    Find Wounded orders now function similarly to Supplying Area orders. You now drag over an area and Medical units passively treat wounded units in it.
    The Medical status button in the top right of the screen now also shows areas covered by Find Wounded orders.
    Updated Support Units tutorial with new medical unit process.
    Fixed alternate font on tank step in Support Units tutorial.
    Added tooltips for 'Select Visible', 'Select All', and 'De-select All' in the unit details popup.
    Destroyed units can no longer be selected via the checkbox next to their name.
    Rest and supply area orders now still work properly if the player has been driven back beyond his or her last trench line. Previously, "running out" of trench lines would cause basically every tile in front of the very bottom of the screen to count as being too far forward.


New Localization keys:

    MOUSE_DRAG_FINDING_WOUNDED_LABEL
    CONFIRMATION_ORDER_INVALID_TILES_FINDING_WOUNDED
    HELPER_UNIT_ACTION_PREPARING_AID
    UNIT_DETAIL_WINDOW_SELECT_ALL_TOOLTIP
    UNIT_DETAIL_WINDOW_SELECT_VISIBLE_TOOLTIP
    UNIT_DETAIL_WINDOW_DESELECT_ALL_TOOLTIP


Updated Localization keys:

    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_MEDICAL_01
    SUPPORT_TUTORIAL_MEDICAL_TOOLTIP


Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on December 11, 2023, 12:12:21 AM
Update - Dec. 9
Sat, 9 December 2023

Hi all,

(https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//32805249/2425307311956116283273a2a5e0ca1fbc851246.png)

(https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//32805249/f3b4337b04d409738c9a4e4e13492858662eae44.png)

You now have the ability to customize both the player division and the enemy division when starting a new game. From here, you can add and remove units, set starting battlefield parameters, and generate officers. It's not unlike the debug console, but you can now build from scratch and save the result to file in case you want to carry over the divisions.

I've also addressed a few points of feedback from the discussion forums, mainly the inability of rifle units to supply field kitchens like they're supposed to be able to.

Bugfixes/Changes:

    Added custom start screen.
    Fixed bug in which rifle units were not able to top up field kitchens.
    Added the ability to Add Food to field kitchens when Rifle units are selected.
    Can now assign camera zoom to buttons.
    Fixed bug in calculating division numbers when starting a new game.



New Localization keys:

    FILTER_BY_UNASSIGNED
    COMMANDER_UNASSIGNED
    CAMERA_ZOOM_IN
    CAMERA_ZOOM_OUT
    CUSTOM_START_BUTTON
    CUSTOM_START_PLAYER
    CUSTOM_START_ENEMY
    CUSTOM_START_SHOW_RESERVES
    CUSTOM_START_SHOW_ACTIVE
    CUSTOM_START_RESERVES
    CUSTOM_START_ACTIVE



Thanks for playing!

Title: Re: On The Western Front
Post by: Asid on March 02, 2024, 07:16:56 PM
Update - March 2
Sat, 2 March 2024

(https://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/866400/ss_dc1cd6204a093b7e8a8e9d37acd7fefd7016e1ab.jpg)

Hi all,

This update fixes some more issues that were brought up in the discussion forums, and adds a few quality of life fixes as well. Thanks again to everyone who tried the game out and provided valuable feedback. It is all very much appreciated, as always!


Bugfixes/Changes:
Fixed season indicator in the top left of the screen.
Added tooltips to season and time of day on top left of screen.
Units can now see through farmland, but still not into it.
Fixed bug with Issue Order button in Scheduled Order screen, where it could be disabled when selecting invalid unit types and would not re-enable when selecting artillery units.
Can now issue rest scheduled orders to artillery units.
Can now issue rest orders to mixed groups of infantry and artillery. Previously you had to select groups of either all infantry or all artillery.
Rest scheduled orders for artillery units now properly prioritize artillery pits.
Sight range reduction when resting (as opposed to watch duty) has been increased.
Fixed bug in which Supplying Area orders generated by your Logistics officer would always show Ammunition as the supply type.


New Localization keys:
HELPER_SEASON_SPRING
HELPER_SEASON_SUMMER
HELPER_SEASON_AUTUMN
HELPER_SEASON_WINTER
HELPER_TIME_OF_DAY_MORNING
HELPER_TIME_OF_DAY_DAY
HELPER_TIME_OF_DAY_EVENING
HELPER_TIME_OF_DAY_NIGHT