Wartbed:Data structures
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* '''Solidity'''. Units can be of different size. IIRC in Warhammer v3 or 4 push-backs were determined by comparing #wounds dealt in a round. In Dark Omen there are no push-backs. However, in 3D units could (should?) have weight. | * '''Solidity'''. Units can be of different size. IIRC in Warhammer v3 or 4 push-backs were determined by comparing #wounds dealt in a round. In Dark Omen there are no push-backs. However, in 3D units could (should?) have weight. | ||
* '''Training''': Some manoeuvres might be too difficult for certain units. Experience and leadership reflects these. Perhaps units could try difficult manoeuvres but need to pass both a leadership and stupidity test or be confused? | * '''Training''': Some manoeuvres might be too difficult for certain units. Experience and leadership reflects these. Perhaps units could try difficult manoeuvres but need to pass both a leadership and stupidity test or be confused? | ||
| - | * Which leads us to '''Leadership''': the Warhammer notion is a gross simplification for the sake of making a table top game manageable. It subsumes things such as training, experience, discipline, psychological stability, cultural disposition and "anti-stupidity" (it all boils down (1) manoeuvres, (2) save against rout and (3) roll to rally). It reminds a bit of Black Adder's Lord Wellington who believes that leadership is all about shouting. Really, things like psychological stability, stoicism, fatalism, bravery, training, discipline and much more all would weigh in. | + | * Which leads us to '''Leadership''': the Warhammer notion is a gross simplification for the sake of making a table top game manageable. It subsumes things such as training, experience, discipline, psychological stability, cultural disposition and "anti-stupidity" (it all boils down (1) manoeuvres, (2) save against rout and (3) roll to rally). It reminds a bit of Black Adder's Lord Wellington who believes that leadership is all about shouting. Really, things like psychological stability, stoicism, fatalism, bravery, training, discipline and much more all would weigh in. |
| + | * Other RTT games, such as Close Combat and Total War, includes '''other attributes''' not part of orthodox Warhammer, These include '''fatigue''', '''morale''' and '''ammunition'''. Provisos for using these should be made, but these are types of attributes that shouldn't be necessary to be used. Having them optional would also allow difficulty and realism settings. | ||
===Suggested set=== | ===Suggested set=== | ||
Revision as of 13:30, 27 July 2008
Contents |
WARTBED Data Structures
Atm I (Mikademus) am using this article to jot down structures and ideas about the internal functioning of (OMG-)WARTBED. Please feel free to partake and discuss. Both the discussion page and this article can be used, use your judgement.
Unit characteristics
The Warhammer attributes
In Warhammer, units are defined by a set of attributes ranging from 1 to 10 (where humans average at 3).
| M | Movement (in inches per turn) |
| Ws | Weapon Skill |
| Bs | Ballistic Skill |
| S | Strength (punching power) |
| T | Toughness (resistance to strength of attack == save against wounds) |
| W | Wounds (hit points, usually only 1) |
| I | Initiative |
| A | Attacks (# of attackes per turn) |
| Ld | Leadership (save against routing, fear etc) |
Warhammer 40K adheres to this set too, but units there lack the Movement attribute and has a Sv (armour saving throw) as part of the set (in fantasy battle armour saving throw is contingent on which armour you equip the unity with).
While the Warhammer attribute set is tested and refined, there are two issues at hand. (1) WARTBED will be able to accommodate more games than "just" Dark Omen and those games might not easily lend to the Warhammer set; and (2) it might not be wise to use the Warhammer set straight off for reasons of IP rights (meh).
Issues and shortcomings with the Warhammer attributes
- Stupidity in Warhammer is a racial attribute (a boolean switch). This could be better represented as an analogue value.
- Fear: Warhammer system good: units can cause fear and terror; terror > fear; terrific creatures are unaffected by terror or fear and fearsome creatures feat terrific ones. We can generalise this to a fear attribute, which is usually zero, but in Warhammer, undead and trolls would have 1 ("cause fear") and dragons 2 ("cause terror").
- Solidity. Units can be of different size. IIRC in Warhammer v3 or 4 push-backs were determined by comparing #wounds dealt in a round. In Dark Omen there are no push-backs. However, in 3D units could (should?) have weight.
- Training: Some manoeuvres might be too difficult for certain units. Experience and leadership reflects these. Perhaps units could try difficult manoeuvres but need to pass both a leadership and stupidity test or be confused?
- Which leads us to Leadership: the Warhammer notion is a gross simplification for the sake of making a table top game manageable. It subsumes things such as training, experience, discipline, psychological stability, cultural disposition and "anti-stupidity" (it all boils down (1) manoeuvres, (2) save against rout and (3) roll to rally). It reminds a bit of Black Adder's Lord Wellington who believes that leadership is all about shouting. Really, things like psychological stability, stoicism, fatalism, bravery, training, discipline and much more all would weigh in.
- Other RTT games, such as Close Combat and Total War, includes other attributes not part of orthodox Warhammer, These include fatigue, morale and ammunition. Provisos for using these should be made, but these are types of attributes that shouldn't be necessary to be used. Having them optional would also allow difficulty and realism settings.
Suggested set
- Multiply the Warhammer values by 10, giving us a range of 0--100, with humans averaging at 30. This gives us more room to adjust values.
- Renaming certain (all?) attributes. If we assume that size equals strength, and size can be used as solidity, then S can be called "power" or "might" or something, and used for both weapon power and unit solidity.
- Add Fearsomeness as an attribute.
- Change Ld from being an kitchen-sink attribute to a bonus to the attributes below.
- Add Tactics attribute that represents unit level of training (manoeuvres and formations; resist pursuing)
- Add Steadfastness attribute that represents unit discipline and psychological stability (resistance against feat and routing; rallying) - basically anti-cowardice.
- Add Ferociousness attribute that represents an unit's disposition to charge and pursue - basically anti-discipline.
- Add Stupidity attribute - much better in game context than an "intelligence" attribute.
Game engine structures
{{see Game Engine Structures}} When making a game it is extremely important to as far as possible separate the "logic" from the "view" or "presentation" (what this means in simple terms is basically that the game should be able to run without graphics). If nothing else, a huge advantage of this is that the game can easily be ported to other rendering contexts (==platforms).
OGRE Rendering engine structures
{{see Rendering Engine Structures}} Overview and discussion of the rendering engine data structures.
