The Forgotten Kingdoms Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 5/10]

It has been a while since we've put up an Epic Hero Special Rule Applicability List. Time has just been flying buy and I am quickly running out of it! Here is the list for The Forgotten Kingdoms' Epic Heroes. For only having 3 Epic Heroes within the list I was surprised at how many special rules and Epic Rules that they have. It looks like their primary focus is to augment the formations in which they are included:

 

So, there it is ... If we look at the applicability column, it is interesting to see that the following spread exists:

• Only the Hero - 4/21
• Hero's Company - 1/21
• Hero's Formation - 9/21
• Target Enemy - 1/21
• All Friendly Formations within Range - 4/21
• Target Friendly Hero - 2/21

As you can see above, 13/21 are Formation-centric and only 8/21 are not. This would be very useful for formation augmentation.

LINKS TO OTHER SPECIAL RULE EVALUATION POSTS

1. Gondor & Arnor Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 1/10]
2. The Kingdom of Rohan Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 2/10]
3. The Elven Kingdoms Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 3/10]
4. The Dwarf Holds Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 4/10]
5. The Forgotten Kingdoms Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 5/10]
6. Mordor Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 6/10]
7. The Fortress of Isengard Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 7/10]
8. The Misty Mountains (Moria) Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 8/10]
9. The Fallen Realms Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 9/10]
10. Angmar Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 10/10]

LINKS TO OTHER UNIT COST ANALYSIS POSTS

1. Gondor & Arnor Warriors
2. Gondor & Arnor Heroes
3. The Kingdom of Rohan Unit Cost Analysis
4. The Elven Kingdoms Unit Cost Analysis
5. The Dwarf Holds Unit Cost Analysis
6. The Forgotten Kingdoms Unit Cost Analysis
7. Mordor Unit Cost Analysis
8. The Fortress of Isengard Unit Cost Analysis
9. The Misty Mountains (Moria) Unit Cost Analysis
10. The Fallen Realms Unit Cost Analysis
11. Angmar Unit Cost Analysis

WFMC - Implementing the Options for Rotation [Part 8/11]

The last three weeks has been busy with real life, so trying to find the time to squeeze in a little bit of coding has been quite the struggle; and to add salt to the wound, the majority of the work that I've been working toward accomplishing has been refactoring code within the Business Logic Layer of the Application, which is non-functional - paying back my Technical Debt over the last two months or so … Long story short - I've gotten some work done on features that are necessary but not super "flashy", but hopefully it will be enough to keep everyone interested until I can unveil more fun and exciting features.

WHERE WE LEFT OFF WITH PART 7/11

Here is what the application looked like on the 20th May 2015.

We had added the zoom in/out capability (in the top right of the OpenGL View. We had also added the code to ensure that the checkboxes for Hornblowers, Difficult Terrain, Enemy Upon Us, At the Double, and Heroic Move were all adjusting the Remaining Move Value to allow them to be fully functional.

MORE PROGRESS THAT HAS BEEN MADE

The first thing that you should notice is the newly enabled feature and the placeholder for a new future feature.

We have enabled the Rotation Radio Button Options in the Center on the Left and added the Clear All placeholder button to the bottom right of the Application. You may have noticed that the Radio Buttons for the Translation Sliders have also been renamed to the function that they are appropriately performing. As of right now, all Translation is Vector Based, so that is the default selected Radio Button.




I had originally intended to also include the functionality for the "Use Vanilla WotR Move Limit Rules" Checkbox in this update, but alas - I had run out of time and that feature is requiring more Non-Functional Refactoring and effort than I had originally anticipated. Perhaps it was the 20-hour SmallWorld ©, Star Wars Epic Duels ®,  & Diablo III © XBox One © Extravaganza I had with my brother over the weekend that consumed all my time … NAH! That couldn't be it.




The first thing I want to show is the changed availability of the Hornblower Checkbox. Previously, it was enabled and disabled only by the selected Desired Formation and Desired Unit's availability.




We have changed it so that once a formation is Baselined, the state of the Hornblower Checkbox is committed and persisted for the formation. That is to say, there is no way to remove a Hornblower from a formation after it is in play - so why should the checkbox be enabled after the formation is baselined. With leaving it enabled, I was able to check and uncheck the checkbox at my leisure round-after-round (effectively allowing me to add +1" Move whenever I wanted extra Move Value). This defeats the intent of the Application, so it has been locked down once the formation is Baselined. If you then make a change to the Desired Unit, it will re-enable allowing the new formation to be selected for Hornblower availability.


As mentioned earlier, We have also turned on the Radio Buttons for the Rotation Options.

Recall back to previous posts about Rotating via Spinning (which occurs about the center of the formation) and Rotating via Wheeling (which occurs about a specified corner of the formation).

The way that the Application up to this point has been using a combination of the two above, because the formation was rotating about the Origin of the crosshairs (which is actually located at the bottom-center of the Command Company within the Formation. Furthermore, the Expended Move Value for the Rotation had no bearing in reality - and didn't take into consideration the width or length of the Formation for calculating cost. So, basically, we were letting everyone "Get Away with Murder" and not calculating realistic rotation costs! The Translation Costs were accurate and as of today's incarnation, now the Rotation Costs are correct, as well.

The Expended Move Value is still not "compounded" until the Formation is baselined; so any Rotation or Translation or Reconfiguration to orient and place the Formation before Baselining will not occur Expended Move Value Cost (just like before).

Now, this is actually going to be rather difficult to show with static images. I guess I'll just have to give it a shot and see how it goes. I'll start with the rotating about the center option, first. It is the "Rotate via Spinning" Radio Button Option.

Here is the Formation that we were just playing with for the Hornblower. It is a Formation of Minas Tirith Archers in 2x3 Configuration with the "Rotate via Spinning" Option selected. The formation has been Baselined (so it will start to accrue Expended Move Value based upon the dimension of the Formation).

Here we go, I'll move the Rotation Slider and watch how it rotates about the center of the Formation, which is 1 Company in from the left/right sides and 1.5 Companies in from the front/bottom sides.

Hopefully that is enough to give the idea of how it works for Rotating via Spinning about the Center of the Formation. I'm going to Reset the Round (for Round 1) to get the Formation back in its original location and then I'll do the same for Rotating via Wheeling.

Once the Radio Button is changed from "Rotating via Spinning" to "Rotating via Wheeling" the drop down ComboBox under the Radio Button is also enabled (since you have to select a corner via which the wheeling will be applied).

When you select the drop down for the ComboBox, it right now only has the option for the two front corners of the formation. I plan to add the back corners, but I need to think about a cleaver way to do that for non-rectangular Formations.

So, let's start with Rotating via Wheeling for the Front-Right Corner of the Formation:

Here is a Cavalry Formation of Elves in a 5x2 Configuration Wheeling about the Front-Left Corner of the Formation:

A few other minor fixes included the fact that the Zoom Buttons were not working for Cavalry Formation. It was a happenstance that I stumbled upon while testing the Rotation functionality. So, there we go. I guess it wasn't as small of a change as I had originally thought - in fact this filled up a post quite nicely.

Any thoughts or feedback? It's getting close to my original "Definition of Ready" that I had created for myself!!

LINKS TO OTHER PARTS OF THE WFMC PROGRESS SERIES

• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Work in Progress [Part 1/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Update ... Progress still being Made [Part 2/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - WFMC Continuing to Come Together [Part 3/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Formations Look Like REAL Formations and Groundwork for Reconfig Costs Put in Place [Part 4/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Load Previous Data & Reconfig Costs/Restrictions [Part 5/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Fixed Expended Move Costs Round-to-Round and Added Color to the Reconfiguration Combo Box [Part 6/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Movement Modifier Checkboxes Work Properly and Zoom Capability [Part 7/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Implementing the Options for Rotation [Part 8/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Calculating the Translation Distance for Vanilla WotR Rules of Movement [Part 9a/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Calculating the Translation Distance for Vanilla WotR Rules of Movement (Continued) [Part 9b/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Starting the Implementation of the Mobile Version on iPhone/iPad [Part 10/11]
• TBD [Part 11/11]

LINKS TO OTHER PARTS OF MOVEMENT TYPES AND LIMITS SERIES

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Translational and Rotational Movement [Part 1/23]

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 2-3 Companies [Part 2/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 4 Companies [Part 3/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 5 Companies [Part 4/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 6 Companies [Part 5/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 7 Companies [Part 6/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 8 Companies [Part 7/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 9 Companies [Part 8/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Summary of Infantry Formations by Company Size [Part 9/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Infantry Restrictions of Reconfiguration by Formation Name Summary [Part 10/23]

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 2-3 Companies [Part 11/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised for 4 Companies [Part 12/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 5 Companies [Part 13/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 6 Companies [Part 14/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 7 Companies [Part 15/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 8 Companies [Part 16/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 9 Companies [Part 17/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 1 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 18/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 2 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 19/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 3 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 20/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Summary of Cavalry Formations by Company Size [Part 21/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Restrictions of Reconfiguration by Formation Name Summary [Part 22/23]
• Using WFMC to Verify Movement Examples [Part 23/23]

WFMC - Movement Modifier Checkboxes Work Properly and Zoom Capability [Part 7/11]

The last two weeks has been a struggle with the functionality for the color of the Formation Configuration items in the Combo Box. It was causing crashes and display problems with the view, so I finally decided to comment it out and go back to the straight black text for now - until I can refactor the whole thing and convert it in its entirety over to Attributed Strings (instead of trying to juggle between those and normal Strings). Once I finally gave up on that battle, I managed to make a few other changes that were needed.

WHERE WE LEFT OFF WITH PART 6/10

Here is what the application looked like on the 8th May 2015.

We had added in the Grid Mark Reference Lines and also made the changes for Round-to-Round non-persistence of the Expended Move Value (i.e., so that it doesn't continue to compound).

MORE PROGRESS THAT HAS BEEN MADE

One of the problems that have been in existence since implemented has been the Move Enhancing checkbox options. We put them in back during Part 2/10, but they didn't "do" anything to the Remaining Move Value. I wanted the process of checking the checkboxes to increase/decrease the Remaining Move Value - and when unchecked they could reverse the effect - but not impact the Expended Move Value that had been accumulated.

During the post for part 4/10, we also added the logic to enable and disable the Hornblower checkbox based upon the selected Desired unit (i.e., whether or not the Unit supports it as an upgrade or has it as a default included in the profile).

Here, we have selected the Faction "Gondor & Arnor" and selected the Unit "Minas Tirith Archers" - which allow for the Hornblower upgrade (hence the checkbox is enabled). Notice that the profile's Move Value (just under the Desired Unit) shows the baseline value of 6.00" for the Archers. Since the Hornblower checkbox is unchecked the Remaining Move Value is equal to the baseline profile Move Value (6.00") - since there are no modifiers applied to the formation.



Here, we have checked the Hornblower checkbox. The baseline value for the unit is still unchanged (as expected) and the Remaining Move Value has been updated to include the extra 1" provided by the upgrade (so now it is reading 7.00").



Recall that in order to enable the other checkboxes (which are impacted on a Round-by-Round basis of activation), the first Round must be established by Baselining the Formation and its configuration. The baseline configuration is set to be the 2x3 Configuration of the Formation of 6 Infantry companies.

Next, we checked the "At the Double!" checkbox. From the description in the rulebook on page 64 - this effectively allows the Remaining Move Value to be doubled. Again, notice that there is a Hornblower in the formation, and the formation is performing an "At the Double!". This means that the formation can move its full 7.00" (from the baseline Move Value + the Hornblower) and then move another full 7.00" immediately, again. If you look at the Remaining Move Value for the formation - it is under this combination now a value of 14.00" (double 7.00"). Something else to notice, here, is that before - checking the "At the Double!" checkbox disabled both itself and the Heroic Move checkbox ... this wasn't correct - so that disabling feature has been removed. Just because a formation performed an "At the Double!" does not disqualify it from performing a Heroic move - and checking it by accident should not disallow unchecking the option.



In the following figure, the "At the Double!" checkbox has been unchecked and the Difficult Terrain checkbox has been checked. From the rulebook on page 33, it mentions that Difficult Terrain movement counts as double (effectively meaning that the Move value is halved while in effect). Here we have the formation that still includes the Hornblower (7.00" Move Value) in Difficult Terrain - so the remaining Move Value has been reduced to 3.50" under these circumstances.



Similarly, from page 33 - the same rules apply for the "Enemy Upon Us" condition. here the formation also has 3.50" Remaining Move Value due to those conditions.



If you were curious, yes - Difficult Terrain and "Enemy Upon Us" modifiers do stack. In other words, if both the checkboxes are checked then the remaining Move Value would be 1.75" (one-quarter of the original baseline Move Value + Hornblower upgrade for the Unit).

Note that this is a little controversial of a subject - some would suggest that the rule should not be quadrupled, but instead tripled - meaning if the Formation were moving forward 1", it would cost 1" for the Move, +1" for double cost due to difficult terrain, & +1" for the Enemy Upon Us rule = 3" total cost.

The way that we have treated it is that if the Formation were moving forward 1", it would cost 1" for the Move and +1" for double cost due to difficult terrain = 2" subtotal cost; and then for double cost due to the Enemy Upon Us rule would be +2" = 4" total cost.

Here we have the Formation with a Hornblower Upgrade that has called a Heroic Move via a Hero. According to Page 66 of the rulebook, this effectively triples the Move Value for the formation. So, in this case, the base move Value of 6.00" is upped by +1" for the Hornblower = 7.00" subtotal and then tripled for the Heroic Move = 21.00" Total Move Value.

Now we are talking ... we can perform quite a few of the Reconfiguration Costs with a Move Value like that or we can take full advantage of rotating and translating!



One nuance that we were trying to accommodate for was the condition where the "At the Double!" checkbox had been checked but then as an afterthought it was decided to spend the Might and perform a Heroic Move. In this case, we decided that checking the checkbox for a Heroic Move should "overwrite" the "At the Double!" - so it unchecks the checkbox and disables it (so that you cannot get into a situation where both are checked at the same time.

However, if you then decide to go back and turn off the checkbox for the Heroic Move - the "At the Double!" checkbox is re-enabled and allowed to be re-selected if so desired.

Here is a situation where the Formation started at the location above at the beginning of Round 1. They have a Hornblower, so they had 7.00" Move Value. As they begin to rotate and move to the left and back they expend the entire 7.00" of Move Value, so they decide to call an "At the Double!" (which they roll for [not modeled, yet] and pass). They then continue to move left and down to the current position, with using up 11.26" of their 14.00" of Move Value.

Here is the same type of movement, but this time the Formation is within Difficult Terrain and has decided to use a Heroic Move to accomplish the full move of 10.50" (6" + 1" ==> 7" / 2 ==> 3.5" * 3 = 10.5" Total).

Here we have a Formation of Moria Goblin Warband comprised of 9 companies in 1x9 Configuration. Their base Move Value is 8.00".



Adjusting nothing else, if we attempt to reconfigure this Formation from 1x9 Configuration to 9x1 Configuration, as we saw from Part 5/10 the warning dialog will pop-up to indicate that there is not enough remaining Move Value to accomplish this reconfiguration. In fact, the cost to reconfigure is 25.64" - as indicated in the pop-up.

To accomplish this, the formation has been upgraded to include a Hornblower (now has a 9.00" Move Value) and then uses a Might Point from a Hero to call a Heroic Move (it now has a 27.00" Move Value). This is enough to accommodate the reconfiguration cost of changing from a 1x9 Configuration to a 9x1 Configuration.



Now that there is sufficient Remaining Move Value, the Formation can be Reconfigured!



This led to the next change that I wanted to implement... Notice that the formation is so wide that it now goes off the left and right side of the view. To help with this problem, I added a zoom in/out capability. It is located off to the top right of the view. Clicking + zooms the view in, and clicking - zooms the view out. In the image below, I have zoomed out twice, so now the formation shows up in its entirety within the view again.



Everything still works ... I can rotate and the zoom factor does not change any of the functionality.



Here we have zoomed back in after performing the rotation.



One more cosmetic change that I wanted to point out - if you look at the line for Rotation, I've change the degree symbol to actually be superscripted (instead of just an "o") - so it looks a little more pretty.

So, there we have it. Hopefully everyone reading this is just as excited about this as I am ... It is really starting to come together - and become something that could be useful!

LINKS TO OTHER PARTS OF THE WFMC PROGRESS SERIES

• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Work in Progress [Part 1/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Update ... Progress still being Made [Part 2/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - WFMC Continuing to Come Together [Part 3/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Formations Look Like REAL Formations and Groundwork for Reconfig Costs Put in Place [Part 4/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Load Previous Data & Reconfig Costs/Restrictions [Part 5/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Fixed Expended Move Costs Round-to-Round and Added Color to the Reconfiguration Combo Box [Part 6/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Movement Modifier Checkboxes Work Properly and Zoom Capability [Part 7/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Implementing the Options for Rotation [Part 8/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Calculating the Translation Distance for Vanilla WotR Rules of Movement [Part 9a/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Calculating the Translation Distance for Vanilla WotR Rules of Movement (Continued) [Part 9b/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Starting the Implementation of the Mobile Version on iPhone/iPad [Part 10/11]
• TBD [Part 11/11]

LINKS TO OTHER PARTS OF MOVEMENT TYPES AND LIMITS SERIES

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Translational and Rotational Movement [Part 1/23]

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 2-3 Companies [Part 2/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 4 Companies [Part 3/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 5 Companies [Part 4/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 6 Companies [Part 5/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 7 Companies [Part 6/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 8 Companies [Part 7/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 9 Companies [Part 8/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Summary of Infantry Formations by Company Size [Part 9/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Infantry Restrictions of Reconfiguration by Formation Name Summary [Part 10/23]

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 2-3 Companies [Part 11/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised for 4 Companies [Part 12/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 5 Companies [Part 13/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 6 Companies [Part 14/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 7 Companies [Part 15/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 8 Companies [Part 16/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 9 Companies [Part 17/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 1 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 18/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 2 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 19/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 3 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 20/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Summary of Cavalry Formations by Company Size [Part 21/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Restrictions of Reconfiguration by Formation Name Summary [Part 22/23]
• Using WFMC to Verify Movement Examples [Part 23/23]

The Misty Mountains (Moria) Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 8/10]

The nice thing about the Misty Mountains is that there are only two Epic Heroes in the baseline version of the rules. This made the list nice and short and easy to compile! Let's get right to it … here is the list of Epic Hero Actions for Moria and the intended re-write of the rules and rule applicability.

There we have it … In spite of being few in number - it looks like the majority are intended for Full Formations to be within range (i.e., the only one that isn't formation targeted is Iron Fist - although I guess you could argue that it would imply that other formations with Heroes would have to be at least close together).

I guess that this makes sense given that Moria is typically a swarming Army and having multiple formations would thusly be implied.

LINKS TO OTHER SPECIAL RULE EVALUATION POSTS

1. Gondor & Arnor Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 1/10]
2. The Kingdom of Rohan Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 2/10]
3. The Elven Kingdoms Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 3/10]
4. The Dwarf Holds Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 4/10]
5. The Forgotten Kingdoms Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 5/10]
6. Mordor Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 6/10]
7. The Fortress of Isengard Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 7/10]
8. The Misty Mountains (Moria) Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 8/10]
9. The Fallen Realms Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 9/10]
10. Angmar Epic Heroes' Special Rules [Part 10/10]

LINKS TO OTHER UNIT COST ANALYSIS POSTS

1. Gondor & Arnor Warriors
2. Gondor & Arnor Heroes
3. The Kingdom of Rohan Unit Cost Analysis
4. The Elven Kingdoms Unit Cost Analysis
5. The Dwarf Holds Unit Cost Analysis
6. The Forgotten Kingdoms Unit Cost Analysis
7. Mordor Unit Cost Analysis
8. The Fortress of Isengard Unit Cost Analysis
9. The Misty Mountains (Moria) Unit Cost Analysis
10. The Fallen Realms Unit Cost Analysis
11. Angmar Unit Cost Analysis

WFMC - Fixed Expended Move Costs Round-to-Round and Added Color to the Reconfiguration Combo Box [Part 6/11]

While I was on travel with my company I actually did not get as much time to dedicate to working on WFMC as I had hoped - although I did get a few wandering eyes in the Houston Texas Airport during my 6 hour layover ... lol. Let me run through the changes which have been made over the last two weeks, though, and hopefully it will still not disappoint since there are some pretty cool changes.

WHERE WE LEFT OFF WITH PART 5/10

Here is what the application looked like on the 25th April 2015. Where we left off with it from the Part 5/10 post is shown below:

The goal that I had set for these last two weeks was:

• Color code the Formation Config Combo Box's Values to show what needed to be done to allow for the reconfiguration costs to be met
• Black = Current Baseline Configuration
• Blue = Requires at least an "At the Double!" to perform the reconfiguration
• Orange = Requires at least a Heroic Move to perform the reconfiguration
• Red = Impossible reconfiguration due to too high of a reconfiguration cost

The good news is that I've gotten more than just that put in, so let's go through some of the changes - I will cover them in detail since several of them require smaller/discrete steps.

MORE PROGRESS THAT HAS BEEN MADE

So, it turned out that the Expended Move Value (in the bottom middle of the dialog) was getting compounded round after round. This effectively made it so that any additional translating or rotating that was made was "cost" relative to the initial position of the formation at (0,0) and 0-deg of Rotation. That didn't work for using the End Round Button and increasing Round Numbers.

So the first thing that I did was not accrue cost against Move Value while placing the initial position and rotation of the formation. This way the formation could be placed at any location and the Remaining Move Value would not look "funny" as you were trying to get it into position.

Once the initial position has been set, and the "Set Baseline ..." button is clicked, the normal pop-up appears to ensure that the baseline will be committed.

Clicking OK on the pop-up commits the Baseline Configuration for the Round and added the Round Number (see the top right).

Now that the formation has been baselined, it will start to cost Move Value to move the formation. Here the formation has moved down and to the left, but maintained its configuration and rotation orientation. It has used up all 5" of its Move Value to get to this location.

Since there is no Remaining Move Value, we click the End Round button, which gives the Pop-up for that ...

Clicking OK on the pop-up increases the Round Number to 2, and resets the Expended Move Value and Remaining Move Value for the formation.

This time the formation has used its entire Move Value to Rotate Clock-Wise to change its heading, but has remained in the same translational position.

Again, since all the Move Value has been used, we End the Current Round (Round 2) again ...

Clicking OK, the Round Number is increased to 3 - and then Rotates Clock-Wise a little more, and translates to the left. (If I had not made the fix, the Expended Move Value at this point would be something like 15.0").

And finally Ending Round 3, it is progressed to Round 4 and here he has move more to the Left, again.

So, as you can see, Round after Round the Move Value costs are "reset" and allows to track how much has been expended within only the current Round. This makes a big jump forward in the actual usability of the application.

The next feature that has been added (as I'm sure you have already noticed in the screen shots from above) is that the 1" Grid Mark Lines Option has been implemented. The checkbox option is down in the bottom left of the dialog and is active at all times. When you check the checkbox, it draws in 1" reference lines that are to scale with the formations within the OpenGL View. Here is an example of the grid lines checked and displayed:

Ok, that's interesting, but let's see it with an actual formation drawn ...

I think that this helps to give more of a perception of "how big" formations are, and "how far" they are actually moving when reconfiguring and translating.

Finally, let's go over the color coding of Reconfigurations within the Formation Configuration Combo Box (which ironically was technically the only goal that was set for the last two weeks). The first thing that needs to be done is that the Faction, Unit, Number of Companies, Initial Configuration all need to be selected.

Once that is all done, the "Set Baseline ..." Button is enabled and the formation's position can be Baselined (as it has worked in the past). This then re-populates the Formation Configuration Combo Box with the list of "valid" reconfigurations now color coded based upon the feasibility of performing the reconfiguration. Here is the list for the Formation of Citadel Guard that are shown above after Baselining.

Notice that being an Infantry Formation comprised of 6 Companies in 3x2 Configuration, the formation cannot reconfigure to any of the other configurations, since the move value cost of all of them will exceed the 6" Move Value of the Formation. However, the 2x3 Configuration and 4x2 Configuration can be performed if the Formation performs and passes an "At the Double!", increasing their Remaining Move Value to 12" (hence they are colored Blue). Likewise, if the Formation declared a Heroic Move, increasing their Remaining Move Value to 18" they could reconfigure to the 5x2 Configuration or 6x1 Configuration (hence they are colored Orange). Notice that the Baseline Configuration (3x2 Configuration) costs 0" to reconfigure (which is less than the remaining Move Value), so it is thusly still colored Black.

Below is another example of a Formation of Mordor's Mordor Orc Warband comprised of 9 Companies initially in 1x9 Configuration. Notice that the Reconfiguration to the 5x2 Configuration would exceed 19" (performing a Heroic Move and including a Drummer), so it is not even feasible in the current 1x9 Configuration (hence it is colored Red).

Similar to what we had 2 weeks ago, if you attempt to select any of the colored reconfiguration options, the application will still display the warning dialog pop-up and provide the cost to perform the reconfiguration. For example, we selected the Blue configuration from the list and the following warning pop-up was displayed:

Is everyone getting excited, yet? The only problem is that the colors are still a little buggy ... I get cases where the selection has its color attributes associated to it and the OpenGL View doesn't know how to "draw" it properly with the color tag ... I think I know how to fix it, but it's going to take a lot more refactoring to get it in entirely.

LINKS TO OTHER PARTS OF THE WFMC PROGRESS SERIES

• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Work in Progress [Part 1/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Update ... Progress still being Made [Part 2/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - WFMC Continuing to Come Together [Part 3/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Formations Look Like REAL Formations and Groundwork for Reconfig Costs Put in Place [Part 4/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Load Previous Data & Reconfig Costs/Restrictions [Part 5/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Fixed Expended Move Costs Round-to-Round and Added Color to the Reconfiguration Combo Box [Part 6/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Movement Modifier Checkboxes Work Properly and Zoom Capability [Part 7/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Implementing the Options for Rotation [Part 8/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Calculating the Translation Distance for Vanilla WotR Rules of Movement [Part 9a/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Calculating the Translation Distance for Vanilla WotR Rules of Movement (Continued) [Part 9b/11]
• WotR Formation Movement Calculator - Starting the Implementation of the Mobile Version on iPhone/iPad [Part 10/11]
• TBD [Part 11/11]

LINKS TO OTHER PARTS OF MOVEMENT TYPES AND LIMITS SERIES

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Translational and Rotational Movement [Part 1/23]

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 2-3 Companies [Part 2/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 4 Companies [Part 3/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 5 Companies [Part 4/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 6 Companies [Part 5/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 7 Companies [Part 6/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 8 Companies [Part 7/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 9 Companies [Part 8/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Summary of Infantry Formations by Company Size [Part 9/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Infantry Restrictions of Reconfiguration by Formation Name Summary [Part 10/23]

• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 2-3 Companies [Part 11/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised for 4 Companies [Part 12/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 5 Companies [Part 13/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 6 Companies [Part 14/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 7 Companies [Part 15/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Cavalry Formations Comprised of 8 Companies [Part 16/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Movement of Infantry Formations Comprised of 9 Companies [Part 17/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 1 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 18/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 2 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 19/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Movement Example 3 from Page 33 of WotR Rulebook Analysis [Part 20/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Reconfiguration Summary of Cavalry Formations by Company Size [Part 21/23]
• Movement Types and Limits Series - Cavalry Restrictions of Reconfiguration by Formation Name Summary [Part 22/23]
• Using WFMC to Verify Movement Examples [Part 23/23]