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Text File | 1990-08-15 | 14.9 KB | 331 lines

8-14-90 ASL Version 1.50b Files included: asl_gen.exe - The Program asl_gen.doc - This doc file table.dat - A table of boards to use (see below) theatre.dat - theatre data file (do not change!) Revision History 9-20-89 Release 1.00 Released on local basis only for testing 4-26-90 Release 1.50 Released to all 4-28-90 Release 1.50a Small bug squashed 8-14-90 Release 1.50b Fixed divide error bug and changed docs Improvements From 1.00 - Added nationalities (Italian, Axis Minor, Allied Minor) - Added North African theatre and boards. - Now determines wind and Special EC for North Africa - Added hooks to incorporate the Pacific/Asian theatre when available. - Added editing features for filename - Added Special Rules to file print - Added Turn Record Chart to file print - Changed the table.dat file format (old ones don't work, sorry) - Squashed a couple of small bugs What is it? ASL_GEN is a program to generate random scenarios for the Avalon Hill board game Advanced Squad Leader. It is very loosely based on an article by Greg Schmittgens and Charles Kibler in AH's magazine THE GENERAL. The program could also be used for the original Squad Leader game with no problem. How do I use it? Just type ASL_GEN at the DOS command line. You will be able to save the results to a file for editing or printing. Normal editing features now work when inputting the filename. If the file already exists, the new data will be appended without confirmation. SET UP: Set up info is now contained in the Special Rules sections included when the scenario is printed to a file. All reinforcements must enter on the long board edge of the players home board. When purchasing forces use the following rules: 1. A player with attack or recon initiative may not spend to increase his SAN. 2. A player with defend initiative is the only one allowed to purchase any fortifications (except "?" counters). 3. Only a side with attack initiative may purchase paratroops or gliders. 4. All purchases should be done in secret if possible. This creates great "fog of war". That is all you need to get started. Go ahead and try it, then come back to the docs when you have questions, or you want to customize the program to include only the ASL boards you own. What does it do? ASL_GEN will generate all of the information needed to play a Design Your Own (DYO) scenario of Advanced Squad Leader. The information provided includes: Nationality Theatre Point Values for your forces Terrain Board Configuration Experience Level Ratings (ELR) Date Game Length Weather, Wind, and Environmental Conditions Victory Conditions It is then up to you to check the setup info in these docs and purchase your forces from the order of battle of the listed nationality. Then blast away on your boards. :Random Notes: Nationality - The following are included: German, Finnish, Italian, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Rumanian, Russian, British, French, American, Belgian, Greek, Dutch, Norwegian Note: Italians are considered Axis only and are not included at all after Italy's official surrender. Theatre - The theatre is chosen from the Eastern Front, Western Front, Italy, or North Africa. For these purposes the Eastern Front also represents all fighting in the Balkans by the Russians (1944 on), and North Africa also includes the fighting in East Africa. Western Front includes Norway and everything else involving the western allies except the Italian front. Italy includes Sicily, Greece/Crete, and Yugoslavia. I did not include the Polish campaign. Point Values - Point values are assigned according to the article in THE GENERAL. A basic point value is assigned to both players and modified according to the players initiative (attack, defense, recon, etc.) Board Config - Alignment of the boards is really up to the players, but if you can't agree use the program. Check the special rules for further alignment options. :The Board Table: The board table file (table.dat) is a text file that is read by the program to determine what boards you wish to use for the various terrains. I have included a table.dat file that contains most of the boards released by Avalon Hill for the ASL system. I know everyone doesn't own all of these, so you can edit the file as you wish. I use a formatted read so don't change the order of anything, or you could likely cause the program to go west. Working from a copy would be a good idea. Only change the board numbers in the columns and nothing else. Do NOT add boards numbered higher than 33 or else the Victory Conditions for your scenario could get screwed up. When new boards are available, I will incorporate them into the program in the next release. Also, adding the river boards (7 and 8) is legal, but scenarios won't be valid unless some other rules are introduced and bridges are added. Read the article from THE GENERAL if you wish to do this. The new format for the table.dat file includes three different tables. The first is the board table for all theatres except North Africa and the Pacific. It is the one following the key text "_ b_norm". The next is the table for North Africa and the third is for the Pacific (when it is released). The tables are layed out as such: Town Village Farm Hills Woods 24 22 4 24 2 17 10 16 4 18 3 4 17 12 5 1 12 11 10 32 22 17 33 17 19 21 16 2 5 5 20 3 18 18 16 23 18 4 32 11 10 24 3 24 17 12 33 17 19 18 24 22 19 3 2 The column heading represents the terrain type. Under it are all of the boards that you wish to use for that terrain type. At least four different boards are required in any column. There's absolutely nothing wrong with using a city board under the Woods column or whatever. For example, if someone only owned the boards from "Beyond Valor", and "Paratrooper", the table could look like this: Town Village Farm Hills Woods 24 22 24 24 20 20 20 24 21 21 21 24 22 22 22 22 24 23 20 23 23 23 21 21 24 21 24 20 23 24 20 20 24 22 21 21 21 20 24 20 22 24 21 24 23 23 22 22 21 24 24 21 23 20 20 As you can see, as long as there are at least four different boards in each column, anything will work. Having the same boards more than once in a column is not a problem. WARNING: Desert boards do not work very well except in the North African theatre. WARNING: The table.dat file must be present for the program to run. The defender's home board is always the westernmost (leftmost) board. The attacker's home board is always the easternmost (rightmost). Weather - The weather is chosen depending on the date and the theatre according to a modified chart based on the ASL rulebook. This is an optional rule. Wind is also determined along with any Special conditions related to North Africa. Initiative - The initiative of the different nationalities are used to determine the type of scenario to be played. The initiatives are based on historical data although local situations on the scale of ASL could (and should) be radically different. Game Length - game length is between 5 and 10 turns. Victory Conditions - Most taken from the article, although there are some new ones, and some were thrown out based on my individual tastes. A Word About Play Balance I've played many of these scenarios and balance will largely depend on your purchases of forces. Remember your task (victory conditions) when purchasing forces. If you're going to have to control buildings, then by all means get some infantry. If you've got to cover four boards in six turns, then you'll probably want enough transport for your forces. Still, some scenarios will be unbalanced. Better to play each scenario twice (switching sides) in tournament situations. When you play a few of these, you'll be better able to pick out the unbalanced ones and not even bother setting them up. Why did I write it? Two reasons. First to learn a little more about 'C' for work. Second, because I liked the aforementioned article from THE GENERAL, but it seemed to take a long time to generate the scenarios, and then we might not want to play them for various reasons. The computer allows us to go through many situations quickly and then pick one we like. Also, if you're a true ASL fan, DYO is a great way to use the weapons that aren't included in the scenarios. AH's DYO rules are nice for purchasing forces, but players can rarely agree on Victory Conditions, board layout, game length, etc. This program does all of that randomly. :Future Enhancements and Projects: ASL_GEN will no longer be supported, as I will be channeling all future efforts into my upcoming release of the ASL DYO Assistant, a comprehensive program to incorporate more scenarios, more configuration options PLUS the ability to purchase forces from any of the released nationalities. The program leads the user through the entire purchase, performing all calculations for such items as bonus infantry, leaders, armor leaders, rarity factors, etc, as well as keeping track of your total purchases and points remaining. The user is presented with a list of ordnance and vehicles that are correct for that theatre, date, and rarity factor. The program provides a colorful menu driven interface for all of these tasks, and supplies a printout at the end of the session containing everything needed to play the scenario, from board layout, to weather, to the actual forces involved. I think all ASL players will find this program to be extremely useful. I plan to release the ASL DYO Assistant in the very near future. It will be a shareware release with a cost $25. I plan to release the program with a couple of data files (British and Italian) to let users try it out. Look for this file on local bulletin boards soon under the name asldyo10.zip. Any users of the ASL_GEN program who have provided addresses will receive notification through the mail. Those who register the ASL DYO Assistant will receive the remaining data files and the latest release of the program. Club discounts are available. Call or write for details. If you would like to find out more about obtaining a copy of the ASL DYO Assistant, please call or write me at the address below. KNOWN BUGS: IF THERE WERE KNOWN BUGS I'D HAVE FIXED THEM!!! Actually, if you find any, let me know. PRICE: Nothing, but if you really like the program and want to see more utilities for AH wargames, send me a note to let me know what you'd like to see. Any donations would be graciously accepted as they allow me to support my habits, but just a word of thanks would be sufficient. This program is not shareware or public domain. You may use it for its intended purpose as long as you do not change any of the associated files included in the archive. All parties are encouraged to distribute this program wherever they see fit as long as all files are included and remain unchanged. Acknowledgments: I just wrote the program. The real work was done by the folks at Avalon Hill. Thanks to them for creating a wonderful game! Special thanks to Greg Schmittgens and Charles Kibler who wrote the article that inspired this program. ------------------------ Copyright and Disclaimer ------------------------ Both ASL_GEN and this documentation are copyrighted by the author. ASL_GEN IS INTENDED FOR YOUR PRIVATE, NONCOMMERCIAL USE ONLY. You may make copies of the ASL_GEN program and documentation files for your own use, and you may copy the files for others. You may not, however, charge for such copies, or in any other way sell the program or otherwise attempt to make money from it or any modified version of it. ASL_GEN has been tested on as many different configurations as possible, however, it is impossible to test all. I do not warrant that the documentation is accurate, or that the program operates as designed. I will not be liable for any damages of any kind sustained through the use of the program. By using the program, you agree to this. Your comments, suggestions, and friendly criticisms are welcome. The best way to contact me is via U.S. Mail, although you may find me hanging around local (Rochester, NY) bulletin boards, Usenet, or other shady electronic areas. Advanced Squad Leader and Squad Leader are Trademarks of The Avalon Hill Game Company. Both ASL_GEN and this document are: Copyright (c) 1990 by Timothy J. Kitchen 152 Cadillac Ave Rochester, NY 14606 (716)426-5245