Steam Community Guide

[Didz]

For your information.

As I've been working through all the set-up notes and guides for the KS Mod and Multi-player I've been compiling a Steam Community Guide. It actually made it easier when I was in game to refer to notes that were in steam. But once I've ironed out the last wrinkles in the set-up I may publish it for general reference unless anyone objects.

[Mr. Digby]

Does this cover general vanilla gameplay or KS Mod gameplay?

[Didz]

It's not really concerned with gameplay at all, its a copy of all the notes on how to set-up the game so that you can play multi-player using the KS Mod.

Basically, everything I've been doing for the past week or so.

So, for example at the minute I'm just in the process of adding my notes on how to set up Whisper Groups in TS3.

[Didz]

Well I think everything is set-up and ready to go now. I completed my PowerServer registration last night and successfully joined the Main Lobby, but nobody was about.

It also means I've completed my Steam Guide now, so if you want me to publish it in the SOWWL Community Guides I can do so. It might attract a few more members, or at least help them set up their games to play MP.

[Uncle Billy]

We don't use the lobby. We have found that it is unstable and leads to crashes. Instead we join by IP. The host gives everyone his IP address which the players input and hit the Join button. The host just needs to press the Host button. Everyone then enters the staging room, bypassing the lobby.

[Mr. Digby]

Is this only visible to Steam players or might it be put somewhere where all players could see it? I don't use Steam much and never got into the community at all so what your describing isn't something I know about.

A bit of a knee-jerk reaction but I think it helps if all KS Mod info is held here on this forum as its the obvious place to come if you need help with it. I don't know if we have anyone in the KS community who is a regular Steam visitor so questions asked there might go unanswered by any of the people involved with the mod's design.

Sorry if my view comes across as a bit negative, maybe its just because I'm unsure how the Steam setup works.

Nevertheless, thank you very much for doing all this work.

[Didz]

No problem.

It served its purpose anyway, i just won't publish it to make it public. There are obviously a lot of SOWWL players on steam (including myself) who bought the game in the recent sale. They obviously don't know this forum exists, in fact, most of them won't visit any external forums or discussion groups because steam provides both in a readily accessible format. I've actually been helping a few of them understand how to instal Mods, because for some reason the game came with the Expanded Toolbar, and Full OOB Mods included, but nobody can get them to work because they don't work with the standard scenario's and the game doesn't include any User Scenario's they will work on.

But steam players are used to mods being DL'd directly from the Steam Workshop, so its proving a headache to explain that they need to go to an external website to DL them and that they need to be manually installed in the games Mod folder.

[King_Rufus]

Hi Didz, and welcome to the KS Forum

Personally I do use Steam, and occasionally the community, and think that anything you can put up there, especially exhortational blurb about the advantages of the ultra-realistic KS fog of war approach, will do a very useful service in publicising the Kriegsspiel community in all its forms; a prominent link to this Forum, being very much the centre of the KS hobby, being obviously a sensible thing to insert.

Didz used to be my nickname at school, by the way, back in the day, so that makes me doubly favourably disposed (though I don’t think I liked it very much).

[Mr. Digby]

Hi David

I take back my remarks. Having slept on this and thought more I realise it was the wrong approach. Please go ahead and make your guide public.

Many thanks as well for your efforts on this, its appreciated.

[Didz]

Didz used to be my nickname at school, by the way, back in the day, so that makes me doubly favourably disposed (though I don’t think I liked it very much).

Hmm! I hope you not the guy thats been nicking my username on all those other games.  I've had to use MrDidz on Elder Scrolls, because Didz was already taken.

But Didz has been my nickname since I was a teenager (45 years ago) my sister started calling me it when she was a toddler because she couldn't say David, and the whole family started calling me it.  My sister is now married with three grown up children and living in Australia, but the name stuck.  Even my children call me Didz instead of Dad.

I take back my remarks. Having slept on this and thought more I realise it was the wrong approach. Please go ahead and make your guide public.

Ok! I'll take another look at it today and make sure its ready to publish, and then whack it on the Steam Community Forum.  If you take a look and decide you want to change something it say or add something it doesn't then let me know and I'll be happy to change it.

I've just publish a text based AAR of one of my recent HITS practices on the Steam Forum, which I may move to the guide section today or tomorrow, and I've also started another AAR of my current 1815 Campaign game.  So, I've got lots of stuff going on on steam at the minute.

As far as KS is concerned #I think I'm about as ready as I can be for a practice MP session, bit nervous about it as I haven't played MP since my NWC days about 20 years ago.

[Mr. Digby]

When it goes up, can you give us a link? I have Steam and use it for a few games but don't get involved in the community, so that's all a bit foreign to me.

Don't panic about MP, we are a very chilled bunch and we all regularly screw things up, its all part of the fun.

[Didz]

When it goes up, can you give us a link? I have Steam and use it for a few games but don't get involved in the community, so that's all a bit foreign to me.

The Kriegsspiel MOD Set-up Guide is now published on the Steam Community. Let me know if you spot any errors or omissions as I'm happy to make changes and want it to be correct.

[Mr. Digby]

Wow, impressive. That's a very thorough guide. Thanks very much.

[Miko77]

Didz, this is Great

[Mr. Digby]

David, at the moment the only thing I can suggest to be added is a comment that the AI behaviour file (SowAiInf.dll) has been heavily modded and the AI now behaves quite differently from the vanilla game.

A comment that a set of correct 1806 Prussian sprites in soon to be released might hep as well.

When the Prussians are ready a new mod version will be issued to include them, AI.dll updates, updated 1815, Peninsular 1809-1812 and Spain 1808 OOBs and some new maps.

[Uncle Billy]

Indeed, it's a very thorough description. Very impressive. I'd add one more item. For Steam players, they should disable their Steam connection when playing MP. It causes lag and can crash the game.

[Guest]

Dave here is a link to putting Steam in offline mode.



STEAM offline mode intructions

[Didz]

David, at the moment the only thing I can suggest to be added is a comment that the AI behaviour file (SowAiInf.dll) has been heavily modded and the AI now behaves quite differently from the vanilla game.

I could perhaps add that to the already impressive list of KS Mod features that I copied shamelessly from your forum thread, but to be honest I think you have already done enough to sell the KS mod to anyone with more than a passing interest in Napoleonic warfare.  There is a danger over-egging the pudding and I'm not sure what someone who hadn't already played the KD Mod would gain from reading it.

Is there anything specific in these new AI behaviours that is remarkably different and worthy of special mention, such as the Artillery changes you have already listed.  Simply saying its different doesn't really impart any knowledge of what to expect.

Indeed, it's a very thorough description. Very impressive. I'd add one more item. For Steam players, they should disable their Steam connection when playing MP. It causes lag and can crash the game.

I'd like a second opinion on this before I post as a requirement to play MP on the KS Mod.  Apart from the obvious likelihood that it will put potential players off and inhibit the taking of screenshots and the like during the game which are good publicity, I have just tried it myself and switching to offline mode immediately crashes my game.

I've tried what the Steam guide suggests, which is to start the games you want to play whilst online, and then switch steam to OFFLINE mode, and for me that instantly crashed SOWWL.

I've also tried switching to OFFLINE mode and then starting the game using the icon on my desktop, which is what you suggested last night.  This actually seems to work, but I think it's lying.  Although Steam still claims to be OFFLINE, and I can't access discussion forums or guides etc.  I can still take steam screenshots and bring up the overlay, which suggests to me that launching the game invoked the launch of steam as it normally does. I reckon its just pretending to be OFFLINE in the hope that you don't notice.

Perhaps someone else with a Steam version of the game could give it a go and see if they get anything different.

[Guest]

It is my understanding that when you are offline with STEAM you can still use the functions and access the features but unless you click on something that requires an active internet connection it will stay offline.

When I use offline mode I no longer have an active connection with STEAM, so STEAM will not be actively pagin your PC for new info etc.....

[Didz]

Well if that's the case then the only way to do it, is the way you suggested, which is to switch steam to Offline mode, and then start the game from the desktop.  That in turn would mean that the player will need to first create a desktop icon so that they can start the game without accessing steam.  Which isn't the normal way for a steam player to start a game, the usual approach is to execute from the steam library.  But i'll write it up and add some instructions on how to create a desktop icon for those who didn't create one when the game was installed.
++++
Just a quick update to confirm that I have added a section to the guide this morning.  'A Special Note for Steam Users.' which explains the problem and explains how to create a desktop icon and switch steam to OFFLINE Mode.

Mr.Digby, if you want to provide me with an updated list of KS Mod features including the new AI improvements I shall add those also.

[Mr. Digby]

Mr.Digby, if you want to provide me with an updated list of KS Mod features including the new AI improvements I shall add those also.

Uncle Billy is better qualified to do that - Kevin?

EDIT: David - I have worked out why the QB DLC causes a conflict with the KS Mod in MP. Its a quality control failure. A bogus Logistics folder is included in the DLC. All it has in it is a unitglobal.csv file and all that contains is a 1-line entry for Marshal Ney - nothing else, so its a mistake.

All owners of the QB DLC should just delete the logistics folder inside the DLC.

I've raised the issue with NSD and Matrix. Matrix are already escalating it.

[Didz]

So, shall I assume that they will correct the error their end and patch the DLC. In which case I can just deleted that section of the guide when its no longer an issue. i think I'd rather do that than start suggesting to players that they go it and start editing the official game folders. Sounds decidedly dangerous

[Mr. Digby]

The interim fix will let players use the game online in the meantime. I think it should be made public otherwise people with the DLC can't play the KS Mod - or indeed any mod that uses a modified unitglobal.csv.

...it could be some while before an official fix arises.

[Didz]

I've already covered that in the KS Mod guide and provided the solution, so we got that covered. The only problem that might arise is if someone wanted to use the KS Mod to play a standard Quatre Bras scenario, which would be a bit pointless as it wouldn't work anyway.

[Uncle Billy]

Does that Logistics folder contain any other csv files?

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