UPDATES

[Strela]

I had to download Bulge twice as it loads into the wrong folder. It loads into a Bulge '44 folder when the folder should be  Bulge '44 Gold. I assume that the other updates will have the same problem.

It's that way for Smolensk as well. I thought I had named my folders wrong or something! Glad to know I'm not crazy (at least, not completely...)

All,

This is causing a lot of support issues and it’s completely my fault.

When we released the Gold version I created new install paths as some people voiced they wanted to keep old installs as they didn’t necessarily want to load what was viewed as a graphics/content update.

So we ended up with potentially two different installation paths. Now that we have to start patching both communities, we are seeing the problems it’s causing.

With that in mind we are going to change all full installers to have NO ‘Gold’ in the path and all patches will continue with no ‘Gold’, in the path as is the case currently.

As people have pointed out, you can browse to the right path and the patch header warns players to check that as well. There will be a big install base with ‘Gold’ in their installation path, that’s not an issue, you just need to check the path when patching.

Sorry for creating the confusion, Rich has smacked me!

David

[Mr Grumpy]

I used the browse option to ensure the files went to the "Gold" folder and had no issues with DL the S41 files.

Overall the update is a great improvement and I much prefer the new 2D graphics to the Gold ones, however I agree with Bioman that the colour difference between rivers and streams is a backward step IMO, it has always been obvious before, now not so much.........

I used the browse option as well, no problems. I love the update, and the rivers/streams difference is still a bit similar in 2D normal mode, but easy to see in the magnified, which is where I always do my tactical movement anyway.

It will probably come down to eyesight abilities and personal preference!

Of course, the river/streams colour is not a deal breaker at all, overall the new graphics are a huge improvement to my old eyes....

[Outlaw Josey Wales]

I only had a brief look, but, the only thing that looks off to me is 2D zoom where the pieces now look more like a board game. I prefer the Gold look in that respect. My personal preference. I didn't look at the rivers.

Maybe, check to see how much it takes to add graphics 'look' a choice. Put it in the options or something. I don't know what it takes even to see if it is worth it.

[stolypin]

- Change so that detached units will no longer gain replacements.
    - Change so that it is now possible for units to move tactically at night without becoming
      disrupted (70% chance of disruption per hex, rather than 100%), mainly in order to allow
      for night assaults, but also short emergency movements.

Are those real or leftover from FWWC's changelogs?

Do some scenarios modify the disruption-by-moving-at-night rule?  I ask because I just played the Operation Winter Storm scenario in Stalingrad '42 Gold and noticed my (German) units never became disrupted by moving at night.  That makes sense for that scenario given that movement is through completely open, snow-covered terrain and I imagine that in reality darkness was not much of a hindrance.

[Mr Grumpy]

I think this is a mistake in the changes file carried over from the last FWWC update where the night movement disruption percentage was adjusted from 100% to 70% and as this was standard across all three titles this text was included in the changes file.

However as we know that nothing is standard in PzC this text cannot be used for all the titles, if you want to know if the is a possibility that your units will disrupt when moving deployed at night you need to check the PDT file for any PzC scenario you play, here is the value for an original S41 scenario..........

Miscellaneous:
    Foot Speed: 4 km/hr     Infantry Defense: 16
    Digging-In: 10% per turn     Bunker Prob: 0% per turn
    Mine Prob: 5% per turn     Fatigue Recovery: 10     Night Move Disruption: 0%
    Russian Air Availability: 20%     Axis Air Availability: 20%
    Russian Air Interdiction: 0%     Axis Air Interdiction: 1%
    Interdiction Effect: 25%
    Russian Air Interception: 1%     Axis Air Interception: 5%
    Russian Rail Capacity: 10     Axis Rail Capacity: 0
    Railroad Movement: 20 km/hr
    Infantry Strength of 70% men = 90% effectiveness


However when I checked the _Alt version of the same scenario the value was 60%............

Miscellaneous:
    Foot Speed: 4 km/hr     Infantry Defense: 16
    Digging-In: 10% per turn     Bunker Prob: 0.5% per turn
    Mine Prob: 5% per turn     Fatigue Recovery: 10     Night Move Disruption: 60%
    Russian Air Availability: 20%     Axis Air Availability: 20%
    Russian Air Interdiction: 0%     Axis Air Interdiction: 1%
    Interdiction Effect: 25%
    Russian Air Interception: 1%     Axis Air Interception: 5%
    Russian Rail Capacity: 10     Axis Rail Capacity: 0
    Railroad Movement: 20 km/hr
    Infantry Strength of 70% men = 90% effectiveness


So as you see you need to check this value for every scenario you play just to be sure!

[lyndrm]

I agree with all of those who would prefer the rivers and streams to have a more distinctive blue hue to them on both the 2D and 3D maps.

This is especially true for the 3D maps where the rivers can be hard to distinguish from the primary roads. I would suggest making the primary roads on the 3D maps the same color as they are on the 2D maps. This would help in distinguishing the rivers from primary roads.

The rivers on the 2D maps are easier to distinguish due to the primary roads being a totally different color than they are on the 3D maps. But for me, the rivers and streams could still have a more pronounced blue hue to them on both the 2D and 3D maps.

Thank you

[phoenix]

I don't have any probs distinguishing the rivers and so on. I think they all look great. This is the first time I've ever been happy playing any JTS title in vanilla form (using the hexless graphics provided). I wonder why I don't see the prob. I'm colourblind, red-green, which does not mean mean I can't see red or green or see everything black and white, but I wonder if it means that it's possible this combination of colours works for me.

Not sure from the sense of some of the comments above if everyone realises that the old Gold graphics are available in a folder in the Map folder, and are very easy to swap out. There is now even a new 2d zoom level for the gold graphics too.

[Plain Ian]

I'm in the middle of a pbem game of Bulge and I guess we are both using 2.01 Gold.
I'm thinking of installing the new update so I can try out the new 2D zoom. 

I've ran through the rest of the changes and I think I can only see two which would impact my game?

- Change so that detached units will no longer gain replacements.
    
This appears to change an old change from Bulge '44 1.09 which said -
    
- Change so that Disrupted units do not receive replacements and
Detached units receive replacements at one-fourth (not one-half) the
normal rate.

Ok not sure why we've now decided not to allow any replacements but I guess this is coming from FWWC? So if I update and my opponent doesn't he gets 1/4 of 'the rate' and I get 0. 

There are a couple of other changes in 2.02 but i don't think they will impact my game?

- Change so that it is now possible for units to move tactically at night without becoming
      disrupted (70% chance of disruption per hex, rather than 100%), mainly in order to allow
      for night assaults, but also short emergency movements.
- Change so that Siege Guns have 10x their nominal fire value when firing at bunkers, rather
      than having no increase. That said, Siege Guns are still less effective versus bunkers than
      redoubts and forts because bunkers are much smaller targets to hit.

Night disruption has been clarified above and in fact its set at 40% in the scenario pdt I'm playing. 
Siege guns? Well I've checked and the Germans do have artillery labelled as siege guns but I am not holding any front line bunkers now as the Germans have captured all of them so no problems here. 

Now ideally I'd like to install a second copy of Bulge Gold on to my PC but......the initial installer I downloaded doesn't allow you to change the install folder? Duh? What if I renamed the folder my games currently are in as "John Tiller Software old" and ran the Bulge installer again. Will all my games in John Tiller Software old run ok now? As an old DOS/Windows 3.1 man I seem to remember lots of problems with Windows registry so I'm a bit wary trying this?

Apologies for long havering message.....

[-72-]

[quote pid="441753" dateline="1609104612"]
Now ideally I'd like to install a second copy of Bulge Gold on to my PC but......the initial installer I downloaded doesn't allow you to change the install folder? Duh? What if I renamed the folder my games currently are in as "John Tiller Software old" and ran the Bulge installer again. Will all my games in John Tiller Software old run ok now? As an old DOS/Windows 3.1 man I seem to remember lots of problems with Windows registry so I'm a bit wary trying this?
[/quote]

Right click your existing folder - then paste it -- creates an entirely new game folder with all its guts - rename it to whatever you want -your suggested one would work.

Both will run fine. I do it all of the time; did it when working on a Musket and Pike project as I needed an untouched backup, one that was for the compile (without all of the junk I was working on), and one where I was just playing around with ideas ( a draft folder).  No need to run the installer. 

In my case I just let the update exes point to a c drive and copy/paste only those files I want.

[Plain Ian]

[quote pid="441753" dateline="1609104612"]
Now ideally I'd like to install a second copy of Bulge Gold on to my PC but......the initial installer I downloaded doesn't allow you to change the install folder? Duh? What if I renamed the folder my games currently are in as "John Tiller Software old" and ran the Bulge installer again. Will all my games in John Tiller Software old run ok now? As an old DOS/Windows 3.1 man I seem to remember lots of problems with Windows registry so I'm a bit wary trying this?

Right click your existing folder - then paste it -- creates an entirely new game folder with all its guts - rename it to whatever you want -your suggested one would work.

Both will run fine. I do it all of the time; did it when working on a Musket and Pike project as I needed an untouched backup, one that was for the compile (without all of the junk I was working on), and one where I was just playing around with ideas ( a draft folder).  No need to run the installer. 

In my case I just let the update exes point to a c drive and copy/paste only those files I want.
[/quote]

Good to know and of course it works a treat. The older I get the less likely I am to potter about on my PC. I just want to install and play now.

I've got a question about the Siege Guns change I mentioned up above but I'll put that in a separate thread.