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Bean965

DEADLINE TOMORROW! Scenario Design Feedback ***PRIZES***

I just wanted to remind folks that the deadline for feedback is tomorrow, Friday, 6/19.

I'm a new scenario writer/designer. I've enjoyed doing it and it's really reinvigorated my interest in the game, AND...

...I want some more feedback on my efforts so far. I'm not trying to be an attention hound, I'm just a newbie designer who wants to find out if what he's writing is balanced, playable and fun.

I know folks are busy and they'd probably rather play than write, and there's a lot of great scenarios out there, but I really want some input, so here's what I'm going to do:

I'm working on my third scenario right now - it'll probably be play-tested and done in two weeks.

Between then and now, I'm looking for feedback on my first two scenarios:  "Operation:  Caged Phoenix," and "The Lost Battalion" (both are posted in ForumMINI).

Feedback consists of three things:
1) an after-action report from a play-test,
2) an account of things that worked well/you liked, plus things that didn't work well/you didn't like, and
3) recommendations for specific changes you’d want to see made, if any.

I'm offering up three prize packages:  

1) a handful of v2 vehicles - Morris Recon Car, Cromwell, a Soviet Lend-Lease Valentine and a Panzerspahwagen plus v1 M18 Hellcat (sized suitably for v2 play!)

2) a pair of v2 vehicles - an SS Jagdpanther and a Carro Armato M11/39

3) a handful of units suitable for use with my next scenario: a v2 North Africa Panzer IV E,  an Sd Kfz 231, a v1 BMW R75, a v1 ME 110 and a set of three surprise non-AAM minis that proxy for a special unit in my third scenario.

Anyone who sends me feedback, using the guidelines above, on BOTH of my first two scenarios, will be eligible for a prize package. That is, if I receive more than 3 sets of feedback, I'll draw winners at random, like a raffle.

Feedback can be posted or PMed to me until 6pm PDT on Friday 6/19 and prize winners will be determined on Monday, 6/22.
Steel_Panther

Can you provide a link to the 'Lost Battalion' scenario? I cannot find it in the forum...Embarassed
Pasalades

Ha, I was planning on playing your scenarios anyway since they seemed so interesting.  I don't need a prize, but I will post an AAR sometime soon.  Although... it is my birthday today.
Bean965

Here it is

http://aaminis.myfastforum.org/about7273.html

Thanks for the interest!

Steel_Panther wrote:
Can you provide a link to the 'Lost Battalion' scenario? I cannot find it in the forum...Embarassed
Bean965

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Pasalades wrote:
 Although... it is my birthday today.


HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Doing anything good for it?
general Hoth

Pasalades wrote:
Ha, I was planning on playing your scenarios anyway since they seemed so interesting.  I don't need a prize, but I will post an AAR sometime soon.  Although... it is my birthday today.


Happy Birthday! Cool

I told Sharpe tonight it's a pity we dont have a Canadian with us on our trip to the beaches.
armchair general

re

General Hoth:

Please tell Sharpe "hello" from his local AAM group if you get a chance!

Thanks!
general Hoth

Will Do. Cool
Snippersly

Lost Battalion:

We finally got to play the Lost Battalion Scenario, after a couple weeks delay.  Overall, it was a great play, though the Americans suffered heavy losses.  The German side had some great rolls, which really made a difference, even when the Rhino came into play.

The only negative thing I have to say is about the maps used.  No one among the 6 of us there had Baker 3 & 4 maps where the objective was.  The folding and turning of the smaller maps was a mess so we improvised with tiles.

I like scenarios that do not have custom maps, they are easier toplay for the rest of us that cant afford large printing services.  Your maps were not too bad, just a lot of them, that most players may not have in thier collection.

Thanks for making it and posting it.  It was a good time for our group.  I will look for Caged Phoenix and see who wants to play that one sometime over the next couple weeks.

Snippersly
Bean965

Thanks, Snip

Appreciate the feedback. I'm getting mixed reviews on the maps - some people have really liked them and others have had your experience. (You're not going to like the map for my next scenario - it's the most complex yet!)

Part of it for me is that the current selection of units is sufficiently played-out, so new maps and funky terrain feels like one of the things I can intorduce to make a scenario unique and interesting.

In the future I'm going to try to use more of the standard 3" maps

Do any of you other scenario designers have advice for how you design scenarios that represent historical battles but stick to more "conventional" map selections/set-ups?
general Hoth

I know this is an "edgy" situation with the few available maps we have at the moment.

This is how i assembled the maps for Hill 112.

First i had a look at the real maps from the books i used as sources.

I knew there was a river just behind the hill (well a few kilometers at the rear...)

I knew there was another hill just close by (hill 113)

I also knew that the battle site looked like the surface of the moon due to artillery bombardements (hence all the shellholes)

and i knew the brits had to approach through open terrain.

Then i used (like i usually do) Sarge Fury's thread with all the maps and messed around until i was happy it did look "similar" (very hard with the scale we are using) to the real battlefield.

I hope it helps Bean! Cool
Bean965

General,

Sounds similar to what i do, but I'm getting feedback from some folks that they don't have copies of all the maps and don't want to use the ink to print them, so I might have to choose between the most realistic representation of the site of the battle and having the most people try out playing the scenario.

Bean
Pasalades

Bean965 wrote:
General,

Sounds similar to what i do, but I'm getting feedback from some folks that they don't have copies of all the maps and don't want to use the ink to print them, so I might have to choose between the most realistic representation of the site of the battle and having the most people try out playing the scenario.

Bean


When I was writing scenarios for WotC we got a lot of feedback on the scenarios as well.  Most people found new maps a fuss to print out and it didn't help that they were mis-scaled compared to the other 2 inch maps.  When the expanded rules came out, the focus was shifted to designing scenarios that gave an incentive to use the new maps.  WotC-Bob and I loved designing new maps for scenarios but it was time consuming and most people we happy with maps that were 'close enough'.  Since then I just tried to find the maps the closely approximate the battlefield I am trying to recreate.  The are a few really good scenarios that have not been published due to new maps being used, included one with the layout of Arnhem that I was quite proud of.
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