Turn Phase Question....

[Sgt_Rock]

Guys - here is the REAL answer.

MOST of John's games have a PDT file. In that file is a value near the top that is for the FIRST player in a scenario. NOT the first player to start the scenario.

Example:

In the Nap series the value of "0" in the PDT file for the First Player Side is for the French and a value of "1" is for the Allies.

So lets say that the value is "1" - this means that if you have the French go FIRST in a scenario then the SECOND part of turn 1 will be when the French player moves his units. The main program will SKIP First Player Phase - Turn 1 for the Allies. The first time that the "First Player" (that is, the Allies) will go is in turn 2, First Player Turn.

So for review:

Scenario setting for First player means the player that plays FIRST in the scenario.

PDT file value setting is for the FIRST PLAYER in a scenario.

If the value in the PDT file were "0" then you would have the French moving first AND they would play the FIRST PLAYER Phase of turn 1. The Allies would go second and would play the SECOND PLAYER Phase of turn 1.

As there are a TON of nationalities in the REN game John Tiller chose to use a "SIDE 1" and "SIDE 2" format. Thus I believe that the PDT files for this game are similar. Substitute "French" for "Side 1" as far as the value of "0" on the appropriate PDT file line. And "Allies" for "Side 2" for a value of "1."

I use the value of "1" a lot in Campaign Eckmuhl as the Austrians initially were the aggressor army. Later on I reverted to using a PDT file known as "French First" or something like that. (My work PC is down so I cannot verify this)

For info on which line to look for the "FIRST PLAYER" value in the PDT file check out one of the newer JTS Nap titles (Leipzig, 1814, Bautzen) for the line number where you will find this value. I am not sure that it is different in REN. The line has a single numerical value of 0 or 1 so it is pretty easy to spot.

Here is something that is VERY important: the Scenario Editor setting for First Player has a direct corollary to the Victory Conditions. Thus if you have Side 1 be the First Player in the Scenario Editor then you will read the Victory Dialog in relation to Side 1. Thus a Minor Defeat means that Side 1 suffered a loss.

So if you design a scenario for REN keep this in mind. If you want the weaker player to MOVE FIRST, then you must keep in mind that the victory levels are for the first moving side - NOT directly related to the FIRST PLAYER setting in the PDT file.

Thus if Side 2 has the larger army you probably would NOT want Side 1 to move first. Either that or you must assign values for Side 1 that compensate for their lack of numbers. (usually most designers relate the victory levels to the player that has the larger army so it is wise to stick to that standard)