WitP. Still going strong?

[Krauter]

I was thinking back on Egans old WitP AARs and I was thinking of how I might actually enjoy playing this game. When I checked the price it kind of brought me down a peg, but I'm still a little interested.

What is the playerbase like for this game? And how does one go about getting other players for an MP game?

For example; seeing a few of the Arma2 threads here I thought we had a decently sized playerbase of Arma2 players here, yet in MP every game I walk into it's usually empty.

[Takeda Shingen]

I still play it regularluy, but I have never played against another human. Still, it is one of the few games that has remained on my hard drive longer than a few years. In fact, the only game on there that has been longer is Dangerous Waters. FSX is a close third.

[Stealhead]

If you are planning on playing against others you will want to buy WitP:AE
(Admirals Edition) in fact buy the Admirals Edition regardless the devs do not support the older WitP version and AE has lots of improvements in it.

It is $80.00 but if you are into the subject matter it is a not that bad seeing as they put a lot of work in research into the game.

You want this one: http://www.matrixgames.com/store/351/War.in.the.Pacific.-.Admiral's.Edition

Not this one: http://www.matrixgames.com/store/294/War.In.The.Pacific

[Krauter]

Alright. Thanks! That is the one I was looking at.

How is the learning curve? Obviously I realize there is a lot to learn, but are there decent tutorials?

[Egan]

It's nowhere near as difficult as some people make out, but it is complex and huge. That seems to put some people off. As long as you understand that every single, little, tiny thing is done by you, the player, you'll be fine! :)

Yes, there is a steep learning curve but in terms of regular play a lot of it becomes second nature and whatever the wargame equivalent of muscle memory is. There are, of course, a few players out there who know every possible bonus that every possible situation provide, and every possible trick that can give them an advantage. They are strange and tragic beasts, and on no account must you play against them. In fact, they should either be shunned or beaten with sticks, Or kept in cages and treated like strange savants where they will give you occasional nuggets of advice in exchange for a cup of weak soup. Do not pity them, for they would sink all your carriers with a single PT boat and claim historical precedents if you gave them half a chance.

Best place to find opponents is probably over at Matrix. Just post in the opponents wanted board. Probably best to outline what sort of game you are wanting as well - more historical or whatever - and then you can discuss house rules and what not from there.

Yes, it is an expensive game, whether you think the price per hour of entertainment arguement holds water is up to you. Personally I think it does but it still doesn't make the initial price any easier to stomach. You could alway wait for one of their occasional sales, but there is no garrantee that AE will be one of the reduced items. I think Amazon might also be stocking it now, so it might be worth checking them out.

EDIT. Yep, just checked out Amazon.com. You can get a used copy for 30 bucks. Probably won't contain a physical manual, but at that price, who cares? I wish I could remember whether the serial numbers are tied to accounts, though.

[Krauter]

It's nowhere near as difficult as some people make out, but it is complex and huge. That seems to put some people off. As long as you understand that every single, little, tiny thing is done by you, the player, you'll be fine! :)

Yes, there is a steep learning curve but in terms of regular play a lot of it becomes second nature and whatever the wargame equivalent of muscle memory is. There are, of course, a few players out there who know every possible bonus that every possible situation provide, and every possible trick that can give them an advantage. They are strange and tragic beasts, and on no account must you play against them. In fact, they should either be shunned or beaten with sticks, Or kept in cages and treated like strange savants where they will give you occasional nuggets of advice in exchange for a cup of weak soup. Do not pity them, for they would sink all your carriers with a single PT boat and claim historical precedents if you gave them half a chance.

Best place to find opponents is probably over at Matrix. Just post in the opponents wanted board. Probably best to outline what sort of game you are wanting as well - more historical or whatever - and then you can discuss house rules and what not from there.

Yes, it is an expensive game, whether you think the price per hour of entertainment arguement holds water is up to you. Personally I think it does but it still doesn't make the initial price any easier to stomach. You could alway wait for one of their occasional sales, but there is no garrantee that AE will be one of the reduced items. I think Amazon might also be stocking it now, so it might be worth checking them out.

EDIT. Yep, just checked out Amazon.com. You can get a used copy for 30 bucks. Probably won't contain a physical manual, but at that price, who cares? I wish I could remember whether the serial numbers are tied to accounts, though.

Cheers! Thanks Egan. I'll take a look at it. Hopefully I'll get the chance to have my rear handed to me by you in the near future.

[Egan]

Make sure you check over at Matrix whether there will be any problems with the serial number thing. I don't imagine there will be but probably best to make sure.

[Stealhead]

The forums for the game on the Matrix games site has a pretty extensive "how to" section someone made several videos that explain the more complex things once you see those and try it out for yourself it really is not that hard.

Also playing around with the Coral Sea and Guadalcanal scenarios is a good way to learn how the game works.The main thing is learning what to do and how to do it.Landings take time and you have to deal with supplies with fleets you can resupply at sea of course to some extent and carriers also have a limit to the number of sorties that can be flown.There is a lot of management to be done which can be a bit confusing at first.You also must deal with inaccuracy of intel reports.There are lots of little details but it actually makes the game more fun and challenging.

bunch of useful stuff here https://sites.google.com/site/n01487477/Home

I have no idea about a used copy and the keys though.You might want to do some research before buying a used copy before you waste your money.I would ask on the matrix forums to be sure.

[Tribesman]

The videos Steelhead links to are very good, though there have been some changes since the last patch.
This AAR by Sardaukar is good introduction to the mammoth task of starting a game.http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=2564541

Or is that the mini mammoth as it is Allied while the Imperial Japanese start would be the true mammoth?

[Fincuan]

Good info there, in Subsim WitP thread #8 :D

I`d like to add that in addition to the above mentioned scenarios the Aleutians scen on the Allied side is a good starting point. Imho the best because it`s an isolated area with a passive enemy that let`s you focus on the game mechanics. Babysitting carriers is also limited as there`s only one CVE to deal with.

[Krauter]

Oh god, what did I just do?

I am now in the process of kissing my social life goodbye as I come to terms with how to play this game.

[Egan]

Oh god, what did I just do?

I am now in the process of kissing my social life goodbye as I come to terms with how to play this game.

Ahahahahahaha! :har:

Come on in, the water's lovely, but full of task forces that forgot to reset 'DO NOT UNLOAD'.

Did you get a new copy or one from Amazon, if you don't mind me asking?

[Krauter]

Ended up picking up the digital download from Matrix.com

Wow. I just loaded up the Coral Sea scenario.. :huh:

[Egan]

Ended up picking up the digital download from Matrix.com

Wow. I just loaded up the Coral Sea scenario.. :huh:

I think that's the smallest scenario available. It's great for learning the basics of movement and carrier ops. You'll probably lose all your carriers first time around. We all did, i think.

I recommend you get the latest available patch from Matrix. If you want to play the campaign, I also recommend getting the modded scenario files from here. (http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3092284) They change the AAA, the problem with Japanese late war ASW but not much else, I don't think. It's worth it for the ASW. In the stock game, it's just horrible for the Allies past mid 44.

[Stealhead]

I do not find the game to be social life killing myself.Often times I will play a scenario over an extended period usually a month or so and I might only play one or two turns in a single day.Turns in the full length scenario can take about an hour counting the time it takes to check on each unit and decide the course of action and proceed with your goals.

Some guys really get into the stats game and use WitPTracker AE myself i just write down what I am doing/planning.

Oh and be aware that what happens in battle is under the fog of war effect so a ship might have actually been sunk even if you see it happen during the battle.You need to go to the intel tab and look under ships sunk to find the exact loses for ships though you can see the scoring on the main intel page.I know once I attacked the Prince of Whales and the Repluse the Whales was listed as sunk the Repluse was the only member of the task force not "sunk" according to the aircrews yet I could not find it again for a few days so I checked the ships sunk list and she was on it along with the score meaning that she had not managed to stay afloat in time to get to a safe harbor.Speaking of staying afloat with damage you must change the task force speed for a damaged ship other wise it might sink.

Also make sure that you turn off auto control of subs other wise the AI has control of them.

@ Fincuan there is an Aleutians scenario? Where is it ?

[Egan]

I never had any real use for Tracker whenever I've played the Allies, and it really isn't needed at all, IMO, for anything outside the grand campaigns. For the Japanese in the Grand Campaigns, though, I can see why it might be pretty well essential at least for dealing with the economy workload.

@Stealhead: The Aleutians scenario is called 'The Thousand Mile War' I think. I've never played it. Actually, I think there are two or three scenarios more than there used to be. I'd like to see one about Leyte Gulf as well. I think that would be a lot of fun - later war action on a reasonably manageable scale and a couple of steps up from the Coral Sea one.

[Stealhead]

That is it honestly I just scanned the description and read South Pacific in it.There is a new one covering "Operation A-Go" or Battle of the Philippine Sea and one covering Operation Buccaneer there is also a version of "A-Go" with better prepared Japanese forces much like the full war version.The text is so small in the main menu section it actually makes things a bit hard to read.

[Krauter]

Hmm, just a question,

Walk me through the general steps you take from start to finish in a turn? What do you check first? Where do you start?

And would anyone want to do play a scenario PBEM?

[Egan]

That's a big question. In general it depends on where you are and what you are doing. Stuff like aircrew training doesn't need to be checked every turn; once a week tends to be enough. Early one that might be even less as very few of your air groups will have enough pilots worth harvesting for maybe the first three or four months of a grand campaign. Some players check every little thing every turn but I don't think this is essential. Some people like to spend a couple of hours doing each turn. That would drive me mad.

Here's a list of things that need to be checked. It's not complete and it's not in any order of importance but all of them need to be done at some point across several turns.

*Check supplies
*Check convoys/convoy routes
*check air crew training. Harvest pilots to the general reserves and replace them with rookie crew as and when needed. Alter training programmes in tandem with you training strategy.
* Check submarine patrol zones. Alter if needed.
*Use Political Points to buy out units in line with strategy and set their preparation for where they need to go. Unless you have a firm idea of what you want to use that unit for I would just leave them or use the PPs for something else.
*Check whether you have any airgroups or ships needing to withdraw. I often leave airgroups until the turn before they leave as they withdraw from what ever location they are in. Ships need to get to one of the big ports in order to do this. I'm not sure of all of the ports, but the ones I know work are Sydney, SF, Ceylon and any off map base. (Might also work in the wormhole but I've never tried it.) Note that ships CANNOT be withdrawn from Pearl.

Also, remember that Land units also withdraw, but they simply vanish from their location without any warning. Plan ahead if you plan to use them in combat or for garrison duty and make sure it won't cause problems when the disappear.

*Check ASW patrols and alter as needed in line with intel.
*Check fatigue of air groups flying missions. Stand down or rescue workload as needed.
*Check whether ships are due for upgrade.
*Check base building
*Scan intel and take note of which enemy units have been reported, where they and what they are doing.


My mind is Sunday-tired so that isn't an exhaustive list, I'm afraid, but it should be enough to give you an idea. The more action you are seeing on the map, the greater your workload is going to be. I also think you need to be alive to the risks of focusing on one area or operation to the detriment of everything else. Whilst you are throwing all your energy into invading some islands in the central pacific, your opponent might well take advantage of the relative quiet to catch his breath else where or launch fresh offensives. In general I would say the best players over at Matrix are those who are able to keep sight of the bigger picture and understand how their smaller, localized operations fit into it.

What scenario were you thinking of playing?

[Krauter]

Thanks for that Egan.

I'm not sure, I was thinking either the Coral Sea or Guadalcanal. Not so much the latter because it's already been done recently. Are any other scenarios good for beginners?

[Captain_Rockwell_Torry]

Thanks for that Egan.

I'm not sure, I was thinking either the Coral Sea or Guadalcanal. Not so much the latter because it's already been done recently. Are any other scenarios good for beginners?

You might want to check out the WITP forums out at Matrix offical site. There are usally new scenarios posted out there or links to download them as well as new ship art and other art for the game. Right now alot more is going on for the War Plan Orange game than WITP because it seems most people moved on to the AE. I for one still think the standard WITP is still better because I like the daily turn system and not the weekly turns of AE. I probably won't ever live long enough to ever really complete a full 4 year war scenario, but I'll have fun trying! However I mostly have concentrated on the later war scenarios myself in the last year. Even creating my own late extended war scenario that lasts into 1946, with alot of never built or late war construction warships finally getting into action! I keep thinking of a conversion scenario for the modern era. Basically something based on a conflict with China in 2020 or 2030, I have the ship and aircraft art, but it would really be an enormous undertaking with the database changes required. It is a dream I have.:)

Regards:
Captain Rockwell Torry

[Krauter]

So what's the word Egan? Or anyone else willing to do a PBEM scenario. Up to it?

[Egan]

So what's the word Egan? Or anyone else willing to do a PBEM scenario. Up to it?

Sorry. I meant to reply sooner but i've been kind of all over the place.

Sure, i'm up for it. Drop me a PM and let me know what scenario you want and what side and we'll take it from there!

I might take a day or two to respond. It looks like i'll be having one of those weeks.

[Krauter]

Sorry. I meant to reply sooner but i've been kind of all over the place.

Sure, i'm up for it. Drop me a PM and let me know what scenario you want and what side and we'll take it from there!

I might take a day or two to respond. It looks like i'll be having one of those weeks.

Ah my apologies. I'll send you the PM. No rush at all. If you like we cans imply postpone this til next week?

[Egan]

Ah my apologies. I'll send you the PM. No rush at all. If you like we cans imply postpone this til next week?

Naah, it's all cool. Drop us a line whenever you can. You only have to apologise if you turn out to be my manager. :)

[Krauter]

Naah, it's all cool. Drop us a line whenever you can. You only have to apologise if you turn out to be my manager. :)

:rotfl2: fair enough.

[Crécy]

You evil bastards! I accidentally bought the damn thing as well. I blame Egan and CCIP for their AARs and a little bit of Krauter because he bought it and made this thread. I also blame Dowly.

But now, if you will excuse me, there's a war going on which needs my immediate and undivided attention.

[Egan]

You evil bastards! I accidentally bought the damn thing as well. I blame Egan and CCIP for their AARs and a little bit of Krauter because he bought it and made this thread. I also blame Dowly.

But now, if you will excuse me, there's a war going on which needs my immediate and undivided attention.

Hah! I am nothing more than the voice of your subconscious wants.....

I think you want a beer too....:D

[CCIP]

I still haven't touched this since we wrapped up our game with Egan! I'm thinking I'll try when I have more time... which right now is booked up with various projects. It's an awesome game. But golly, what a time investment! It still boggles my mind a little that our "little" Guadalcanal game took half a year to play :doh:

It was a good half-year though. I kinda wish I had the time to finish my AAR on it, but I got kind of busy towards the end... still have my notes if I ever get around to it, though!

[Captain Vlad]

I got this game for my birthday. The sheer amount of detail quickly swamped me, but I've slowly gotten used to it, and had a huge rush last night, when, playing the Guadalcanal scenario, S-38 slammed three torpedoes into the Chokai and sent her to the bottom.:arrgh!:

B-17E's out of Townsville actually scored a hit on an IJN transport too, which I'm told is rare. They certainly haven't been able to finish her off, so I was apparently told right.

The supply aspects I thought would be tedious actually sort of help keep the game moving for me, thus far, as it gives me things to check and do when, on some other game, I might just be hitting 'end turn' over and over as my pieces move into position.

I do need to try this against a person when I get the hang of everything.

[Crécy]

I do need to try this against a person when I get the hang of everything.

I volunteer. However, I'm still playing Coral Sea scenario trying to fare in it at least reasonably well (not losing all of my carriers in the first or second day of engagement). So my learning process has just started.

[Krauter]

I volunteer. However, I'm still playing Coral Sea scenario trying to fare in it at least reasonably well (not losing all of my carriers in the first or second day of engagement). So my learning process has just started.

Aye, currently playing with Egan by email. I feel bad because between work and being too scared to touch anything I've returned only one turn. I feel like burying my head in the sand.

[Captain Vlad]

I volunteer. However, I'm still playing Coral Sea scenario trying to fare in it at least reasonably well (not losing all of my carriers in the first or second day of engagement). So my learning process has just started.

We could do Coral Sea since it's short just to get the hang of PBEM, then move on to a bigger one...holler at me when you're ready.

[Crécy]

We could do Coral Sea since it's short just to get the hang of PBEM, then move on to a bigger one...holler at me when you're ready.

I think I'm ready for Coral Sea. Going to suck at it but I somewhat understand how aircrafts and task forces work so in those terms I'm ready. Although, before we start any bigger scenario I have to figure out how the whole supply thing works, how convoys work and how amphibious attacks work...

[Captain Vlad]

Check your PMs, sir.

[Egan]

Aye, currently playing with Egan by email. I feel bad because between work and being too scared to touch anything I've returned only one turn. I feel like burying my head in the sand.

Lol, it's cool. I'll be away for a week or so now anyway so don't worry about it. You did OK on that first turn, though. No bad at all...still, it's the next few turns you have to worry about..:O: