Apparently I didn't explain it clearly. My English is quite poor yet.
The problem is during the act of joining the armies.
Imagine the army A is at position p0 and the army B at p10.
Now imagine each army as a figure with a circular foot with 1cm radius.
If A can only walk 9 steps, his "foot" is over B's foot but he doesn't have the last step to join B army. Do I give A a free step to join B at B's position? Do I move B half a step back and A half a step forward?
The problem is both this solutions generate extra movement and that can be exploited joining many armies into one.
Why use tiles?
No. If they can't meet up that turn because of movement restrictions then they can't join. Just blow out your numbers a little bit:
A is at p0
B is at p10,000
A can move 10 per round.
Can A & B join this turn? No. They can't get close enough. You have to draw a rigid line in the sand at some point so just do it at the exact movement speed.
Now, your example:
A is at p0
B is at p10
If they both can move 9 per round then they can move 5 each and join up.
If A has no move points this turn they cannot.
-me
A is at p0
B is at p10,000
A can move 10 per round.
Can A & B join this turn? No. They can't get close enough. You have to draw a rigid line in the sand at some point so just do it at the exact movement speed.
Now, your example:
A is at p0
B is at p10
If they both can move 9 per round then they can move 5 each and join up.
If A has no move points this turn they cannot.
-me
I'd personally use hexes because they make a lot of rules simpler. Players know exactly how far they can get, exactly which terrains affect them, exactly which units can support or attack them, exactly how long it'll take to reach the target, and so on. If you make things be just by distance instead, then it's a lot harder to judge the situation. That doesn't mean that using a non-tiled system is bad; it just means that you'll have to work harder on the UI to retain the usability that a hex-based system gets for free.
Include easy way to let the player pick one of two join types.
Join style 1: Army A moves ONTO army B's position: Creates Army C with the number of units in Army A + number of units in army B, with the movement points of A or B (which ever is lowest)
IF Army A's movement range does NOT include all of Army B's position, you get your big flashing Red Sign.
Join style 2: Army A and Army B MOVE TO location. Both armies will move toward a location chosen by the player and merge upon arrival. Again creates Army C same as in style 1.
Easy UI ideas for such a system:
1. Select your Army A, issue command "Merge" (or join, whatever you want to call it) click on Army B for Join style 1. Double Click on Army B, then click position for both to move to for Join style 2.
2. Select Army A, Issue Command "Merge". Click on Army B for Join style 1. Click and drag Army B to new location for Join style 2.
In both, provide an over/under lay in 2 shades/colours. Shade X will be maximum movement of your unit A. Shade Y will encompass ALL units that are in range to use Join style 2. Once you select your B unit, show outline of all possible locations to create C from A+B.
Join style 1: Army A moves ONTO army B's position: Creates Army C with the number of units in Army A + number of units in army B, with the movement points of A or B (which ever is lowest)
IF Army A's movement range does NOT include all of Army B's position, you get your big flashing Red Sign.
Join style 2: Army A and Army B MOVE TO location. Both armies will move toward a location chosen by the player and merge upon arrival. Again creates Army C same as in style 1.
Easy UI ideas for such a system:
1. Select your Army A, issue command "Merge" (or join, whatever you want to call it) click on Army B for Join style 1. Double Click on Army B, then click position for both to move to for Join style 2.
2. Select Army A, Issue Command "Merge". Click on Army B for Join style 1. Click and drag Army B to new location for Join style 2.
In both, provide an over/under lay in 2 shades/colours. Shade X will be maximum movement of your unit A. Shade Y will encompass ALL units that are in range to use Join style 2. Once you select your B unit, show outline of all possible locations to create C from A+B.
One consideration for not using tiles you haven't mentioned is the art. If you don't have tiles, how are you going to represent your world? I'm not sure what the graphics will be like in your game, but I thought I'd mention it as that's one of the fundamental difficuilties in going tile-less.
Even if a game uses tiled backgrounds, it doesn't mean that the GAME is tile based. Which is what we're talking about.
Think of most 3D games. Many use some form of tiles for large outdoor areas, but no character is bound in any way to those tiles. And then there are other games like Baldur's Gate where each map is a large, single image.
However the background art is handled, it won't have much impact on how you move your units around the map.
Think of most 3D games. Many use some form of tiles for large outdoor areas, but no character is bound in any way to those tiles. And then there are other games like Baldur's Gate where each map is a large, single image.
However the background art is handled, it won't have much impact on how you move your units around the map.
I'm intrigued. I've never played a strategy game like this via email. I mean I've seen Empire, but uh.. eh. :P Do you have any suggestions for another game like this?
Author
Quote:Original post by Talroth
Easy UI ideas for such a system:
1. Select your Army A, issue command "Merge" (or join, whatever you want to call it) click on Army B for Join style 1. Double Click on Army B, then click position for both to move to for Join style 2.
For method A I'll just merge by drag drop (as the normal movement) without allowing to drop is the movement wouldn't allow a merge.
Quote:Original post by Talroth
2. Select Army A, Issue Command "Merge". Click on Army B for Join style 1. Click and drag Army B to new location for Join style 2.
For method B, tell me what do you think of:
- click A, select MERGE, click B. Both units disappear and the mouse starts dragging unit C only allowing to put it in positions where movement by A and B would allow a merge.
This method allows the player to merge any number of units without losing any movement.
From what I've understood:
If you're going turn-based at all, be it by day or by minute, I think tiles are probably the way to go.
For instance, a player will have an easier time planning future moves based on a tile count rather than some sort of distance radius (impeded by terrain?); this is true for both his moves and his enemy's.
If you want a really hardcore game, go with distance radii. It'll be extremely dificult for players to learn. Unless you want a game where movement is the main aspect of victory, don't do it. If not, I hope your actual fighting calculations will warrant that sort of complexity.
You can make a game equally as intense with tiles, which will be more predictible, and therefore the players will feel that they use more strategy.
My 2 cents on it. Good Luck. Sounds interesting.
If you're going turn-based at all, be it by day or by minute, I think tiles are probably the way to go.
For instance, a player will have an easier time planning future moves based on a tile count rather than some sort of distance radius (impeded by terrain?); this is true for both his moves and his enemy's.
If you want a really hardcore game, go with distance radii. It'll be extremely dificult for players to learn. Unless you want a game where movement is the main aspect of victory, don't do it. If not, I hope your actual fighting calculations will warrant that sort of complexity.
You can make a game equally as intense with tiles, which will be more predictible, and therefore the players will feel that they use more strategy.
My 2 cents on it. Good Luck. Sounds interesting.
How does tiles really make planing future moves any harder than having an in game ruler?
Do you know how you are handling your turns yet?
Do you know how you are handling your turns yet?
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