New Multiplayer Mod Released

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I am pleased to announce the release of The Multiplayer Front (TMF), a new 1936-1947 mod exclusively for HoI (v1.06) multiplayer games. The goal of TMF is to provide a multiplayer game that is a more historically accurate grand strategy economic, political and military simulation of World War 2. It is an attempt to simulate the major political, economic and military constraints of the major powers. It is also a multiplayer mod. It is not designed for single player games. Because TMF focuses exclusively on the major powers of the period and on the multiplayer aspect of the game, we have been able to implement entirely new design concepts that are not contained in any other mod currently available:

1. A unique economic model that does not rely on the conversion of coal-to-oil or oil-to-rubber.

2. A completely new method of representing synthetic oil and rubber production.

3. A totally revamped industrial tech tree containing shipyards, port facilities, light, medium and heavy industry, electricity production, aluminum production, among others.

4. Numerous manpower related technologies and events, such as partial and full mobilization, women entering the factories, calling-up skilled factory workers, expanding the draft age, eliminating draft exemptions, and calling up young boys and old men.

5. Hundreds of scripted events simulating trade relations of the period, including US-Japanese steel and oil trade, Japan-Dutch East Indies oil and rubber trade, Sweden-Germany steel trade, Britain-US trade, German-Soviet trade, German-Italy trade, etc.

6. A novel approach to garrisoning requirements and partisan warfare.

7. Dozens of new or improved historical military and political events.

8. Several new military technologies, including photo reconnaissance, denial and deception, searchlights, barrage balloons, and air defense observer posts, among others.

The one thing that makes TMF especially unique is our 23 page Player’s Guide that explains, in plain English, the ins-and-outs of the changes we have made. No more scrolling through pages and pages of scripting language to find out how events or technologies work. You can download the Player’s Guide, installation instructions, and the necessary files at:

www.gridcogames.com\HOI\TMF_1.5_public.zip

We hope you enjoy the mod!

 

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This mod looks interesting. Would any of the other European players like to give it a try? We need 8 fairly committed players and so the DEG/39er regulars will probably all be needed. And with a full 8 players, we'd probably want a high-bandwidth host.

Given that the mod changes a lot of fundamentals and is designed to be balanced then I suggest we avoid additional house rules. Perhaps Dog Red can tell what house rules were used during the development of the mod, if any.

Andrew

 

[jgbaxter]

Hmm, looks interesting, now if I could only clear my schedule a bit.

 

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This mod looks interesting. Would any of the other European players like to give it a try? We need 8 fairly committed players and so the DEG/39er regulars will probably all be needed. And with a full 8 players, we'd probably want a high-bandwidth host.

Given that the mod changes a lot of fundamentals and is designed to be balanced then I suggest we avoid additional house rules. Perhaps Dog Red can tell what house rules were used during the development of the mod, if any.

Andrew

Colonel, the group I'm in uses a number of house rules--some of which are standard, others rather unique (such as our own war entry system). However, TMF is not dependent on any of them. This was intentional so that different multiplayer groups could apply their own house rules to their TMF games. Perhaps the only "house rule" that I would recommend is that the USSR be considered on the same "team" as the Allies from the beginning of the game. Having the USSR join the Axis is simply too unbalancing in my opinion.

Another house rule that I am particularly fond of is no Allied country can send resources or supplies to a non-democratic government unless both the donor and recipient are at war with the same adversary. This means that the Allies cannot flood the USSR with resources and supplies prior to Germany (or Japan) being at war with both. Again, however, TMF is not designed with this rule as a requirement.

As an aside, you can certainly play TMF with 6 instead of 8 players. In our games, we have a human play both Canada and Hungary in addition to the major powers. Because Canada and Hungary have complete control of all alliance forces, we find that the the minor country players have a significant impact in every game. In a pinch, however, the AI can play Canada and Hungary.

 

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Colonel, the group I'm in uses a number of house rules--some of which are standard, others rather unique (such as our own war entry system). However, TMF is not dependent on any of them. This was intentional so that different multiplayer groups could apply their own house rules to their TMF games. Perhaps the only "house rule" that I would recommend is that the USSR be considered on the same "team" as the Allies from the beginning of the game. Having the USSR join the Axis is simply too unbalancing in my opinion.

Another house rule that I am particularly fond of is no Allied country can send resources or supplies to a non-democratic government unless both the donor and recipient are at war with the same adversary. This means that the Allies cannot flood the USSR with resources and supplies prior to Germany (or Japan) being at war with both. Again, however, TMF is not designed with this rule as a requirement.

What about tech share ? ... This is the number 1 issue in MP games

 

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What about tech share ? ... This is the number 1 issue in MP games

Tomar, my group does not allow tech sharing except that the UK can trade 5 per year to Canada and Germany can trade 2 per year to Hungary. But again, TMF is not designed for any particular tech sharing rules to be required.

I do want to highlight one additional house rule that I think makes playing TMF even more fun: no trading by human players on the world market. This makes the economic part of the simulation both quite historical and challenging.

 

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What about tech share ? ... This is the number 1 issue in MP games

An issue that's even more important than tech share is the issue of the teams. The game, as designed, has three separate alliances and the countries other than the alliance leaders are not bound to join a particular one or work together any predetermined way. You usually impose house rules to constrain the possibilities and force the Allies and Comintern to work as one. I would prefer a more open game. It's a shame that this mod doesn't seem to advance this or any other house rule issues. I'm not so interested now that I perceive that there's still lots of DIY required.

Andrew

 

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An issue that's even more important than tech share is the issue of the teams. The game, as designed, has three separate alliances and the countries other than the alliance leaders are not bound to join a particular one or work together any predetermined way. You usually impose house rules to constrain the possibilities and force the Allies and Comintern to work as one. I would prefer a more open game. It's a shame that this mod doesn't seem to advance this or any other house rule issues. I'm not so interested now that I perceive that there's still lots of DIY required.

Andrew

Just a disclaimer....players should definately understand that this is a historical mod; if you desire a game with ahistorical alliances, such as the USSR joining the Axis, or Germany joining the Allies, this isn't the mod for you.

 

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Just a disclaimer....players should definately understand that this is a historical mod; if you desire a game with ahistorical alliances, such as the USSR joining the Axis...

The Soviet Union did regard itself as allied to Germany during the period of the M-R pact and the counrties cooperated more closely than Japan ever cooperated with Germany. Anyway, I'm not an expert on the German/SU options in standard HoI but know that Tomar thinks the MR pact isn't quite right in the standard game. Your mod does quite a bit to the MR Pact, it seems. From the documentation, it sounds good. But it's hard for me to tell how much it still relies upon house rules too.

Andrew

The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (MR Pact)

The MR Pact has been changed considerably. In July 1939, Germany will have the option of offering the MR Pact to the USSR, so long as Germany is at peace with the USSR and has not conquered or allied with Poland. The USSR then has the option to sign or not sign. Signing the MR Pact has costs and benefits for both countries. If the USSR signs, then (1) the Soviets gain claims over the Baltics, as well as claims in Finland and Romania; (2) Soviet dissent is reduced by 3; (3) the Soviets ship 2500 oil, 2000 steel, and 1000 rubber to Germany in exchange for importing from Germany 500 supplies and 2 ICs in Moscow, which reflects the relatively small trade credit deal that was part of the MR Pact. The Soviets also gain a new technology, called “The Effects of Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact”. This tech gives a 10 point organization reduction to all land units, but also grants a 5 percent increase in ICs and supply production. This is designed to represent the poor state of readiness that Stalin actively promoted in the Soviet military following the MR Pact. Stalin did not want to provoke Germany and took steps to prevent the military from responding to the growing German threat. At the same time, however, Stalin began preparing the Soviet economy for war by shifting production to military equipment.

For Germany, signing the MR Pact will result in imports of 2500 oil, 2000 steel, and 1000 rubber, while supplies will be reduced by 1000 to reflect shipments of machine equipment to the USSR. Another benefit, of course, is that the organization of Soviet land units will be reduced by 5 points. When Germany annexes Poland, the USSR will get the eastern half of Poland along historical lines.

Signing the MR Pact also fires a series of additional trade events between Germany and the USSR. Historically, the Germans and Soviets negotiated a long-term trade agreement, which was separate from the trade credit deal that was part of the original MR Pact. The German-Soviet Trade events fire twice per year, once in February and once in July, so long as the Germans are at peace with the Soviets. The trade events start in 1940 and continue until 1945. Each event reduces Germany’s supplies by 2000, but increases steel by 2000 and oil by 4000. The Soviets gain 1000 supplies and 2 IC for each event, but lose 2000 steel and 4000 oil. Historically, the trade agreements involved the Germans giving the Soviets access to their warship and aircraft designs. To reflect this fact, the Soviets will gain two techs as part of this series of events: “basic warship design” and “improved aerodynamic design”.

 

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The Soviet Union did regard itself as allied to Germany during the period of the M-R pact and the counrties cooperated more closely than Japan ever cooperated with Germany. Anyway, I'm not an expert on the German/SU options in standard HoI but know that Tomar thinks the MR pact isn't quite right in the standard game. Your mod does quite a bit to the MR Pact, it seems. From the documentation, it sounds good. But it's hard for me to tell how much it still relies upon house rules too.

Andrew

I think a better way to describe the MR Pact is a non-aggression treaty that divided eastern europe into spheres of influence and led to a series of trade agreements. In contrast, Germany's Tripartite Pact with Japan could be considered more of a traditional "alliance" in that it required Germany to come to Japan's assistance if Japan were attacked. No such commitment was made as part of the MR Pact. The distinction between the two is subtle, but nevertheless significant.

As for the MR Pact events in TMF, they do not rely on any house rules, except for the assumption that ultimately the USSR player is on the same "team" as the UK and USA player. The MR Pact events give both Germany and the USSR incentives to honor the Pact (resources and reduced Soviet unit capability for Germany; increased supplies, IC production, and technology for the USSR). But either country is free to violate the Pact at any time.

 

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New TMF Version Now Available

A new version of The Multiplayer Front (“TMF”) is available for download from the link provided below.

www.gridcogames.com/HOI/TMF_v1_5_files.zip

The new version contains numerous new events, a new unit type, and new technologies. Among the highlights are:

1. A series of additions to more accurately depict the Battle of the Atlantic. These include a new destroyer unit available to Germany called “Merchant Raider,” increased speed for German submarines, cruisers and battleships, new convoy technologies, and new technologies and events to simulate Allied success and Axis set-backs during the Battle.

2. The technology trees have been reworked to prevent tech rushing.

3. A new series of events that model pre-war opposition to British rearmament.

4. Diplomatic related events for the Anti-Comintern Pact, Pact of Steel, Tripartite Pact, Atlantic Charter, and Teheran Conference.

5. New trade events between Germany and Yugoslavia.

6. The elimination of the Mass Combat Minister for human players.

7. A new event and technology for Germany’s conquest of Norway.

8. A new event for the British attack on the Vichy French fleet.

9. A list of suggested house rules in the Player’s Guide.

As always, you can find a detailed description of these changes (and others) in the Player’s Guide, which is included with the download.

To install TMF, simply copy and paste the "config" and "db" folders in you HoI directory. Then copy and paste the "TMF" folder and "The Multiplayer Frong.eug" file in your "HoI/scenarios" folder. It is recommended that you install TMF on top of a clean install of HoI. TMF has been tested using the HoI 1.06 patch on account of the fact that our group finds the later patches bad for gameplay in multiplayer games due in large part over micromanagement that results from the air stacking penalties. However, later patches do not appear to contain any changes that will negatively impact TMF.