First Impressions?

[Looking]

Just sending DEMO. I love all historical games, especialy-everithing that is connected with Napoleon. Read a lot about him. Waiting for the localisation of this game that should apears at our shops next month only. But, could I ask a little bit not diplomatical question? Is that possible to compare this game (that I am sure to buy) with Crown of Glory (that I play now). For egzample, how is the things with naval part? In COG it lames a little bit and is very schematical. And all the rest?
Due to screens NC looks much better.
Excuse me for such question but should not we be able to compare somewhere the games of similiar pioriod?
Regards

[Looking]

Got the game after all. Nice thing. The interface is very mutch friendly.
But. Is it planned to patch up to "company's" regime (mode). And some diplomatical actions as well? Would be nice

[FM WarB]

Doubling RAM tomorrow, so will be able to run this game. I've looked at the demo and monitored the forum. I have BoA, not ACW.
If I want to be le tondu against Austria and Russia in 1805, why the heck would I want to spend 12-24 gameturns building my army with the presumption that I could do it better than a military genius? I've seen no critique that the oob is incorrect. What's wrong with correct oobs?
This may be the game for me; I'm not an economist or diplomat, nor do I wish to build national economies and armies from the ground up. I do fancy myself a good operational (Land) commander and I'm familiar with the era, so this title intrigues me.

[kondor999]

I judge this sort of game by the historicity (is that a word?) of its results. Having played through a few games as the French in the 1815 scenario, it just seems like units wander around willy-nilly, get into combat, and then retreat all over the place or else advance the same.

By the next turn, you're pretty much looking at a mess. I'll keep at it, but so far it looks like another in a long line of operational wargames that tries to use AI both for the friendly and enemy side. The 1st was "Fire Brigade" by Panther Games back in my Amiga days.

This game has a similar feel. Namely - the friendly AI just doesn't have the intelligence to implement even a common-sense battleplan. And because you have been scripted out of these decisions, you just get a random mess at the end of each turn.

I sure hope I'm doing something wrong here. I'll continue to look at some of the tutorials and such.

But, as an experiment, just load up the 1815 scenario and simply tell Napoleon to seize Charleroi. And then sit back and watch the insanity...

[saintsup]

I'll keep at it, but so far it looks like another in a long line of operational wargames that tries to use AI both for the friendly and enemy side.

AFAIK, there is no such thing as a friendly AI in AGEOD's games. There is random activation, random delays in movement, random delays in engagement, joint movement mode for corps in the same army ...

[FM WarB]

I love the map and wish I could see more of it and I have a widescreen monitor. I like the four types of water and new land terrains.
The UI, while pretty provides alot of duplicate information and takes up alot of space. (Often blank space with no information) This obstructs the view of the map. A problem exists when certain elements panels are overlapped by the Unit information panel and you can not easily click or scroll through elements.
I would like to see strategic cities listed in the leger, as they were in BoA.
This game is sucking me in. I look forward to all improvements.

[kondor999]

AFAIK, there is no such thing as a friendly AI in AGEOD's games. There is random activation, random delays in movement, random delays in engagement, joint movement mode for corps in the same army ...

Then perhaps that's the problem. In any case, when I attempt to apply the same Napoleonic tactics that I've been studying for the past 20 years, I get un-historical results. Simply put, if you're going to cast the player in the role of operational commander, then there needs to be some excellent AI to handle the actual movement and actions of those units which are beyond your direct control.

Most wargames have gotten around this problem by simply having the excellent "AI" of the player themselves handle these tactical affairs. This is not historical, but it seems to produce far superior results in terms of your units behaving in some sort of halfway rational manner.

Case in point: in the 1815 scenario, Napoleon engages Blucher, defeats him, and then the formerly concentrated army proceeds to split up into multiple pieces and gets hammered piecemeal by Wellington. This all happens without any player intervention during the WEGO portion of the turn.

Please - I want to love this game. If someone will tell me what set of orders for the Armee du Nord will produce something even sort of like a historically possible outcome in the 1815 scenario, I would sure appreciate it. I'll keep trying different experiments and hope that there is something about the system that I'm just not "getting".

[kondor999]

I'm happy to say that I seem to be making some progress and had a pretty fun game with the 1815 scenario.

Definitely starting to change my mind! Once I learned how to set up a proper command structure, things stopped looking so random.

[Hindov]

What does everyone think so far?

Great game but also difficult. I'm a new one and I think the tutorial is quite a joke. It learn you something but still there are a lot of things to handdle. I think that I will spend some time to learn all the tricks

[jastaV]

Great game but also difficult. I'm a new one and I think the tutorial is quite a joke. It learn you something but still there are a lot of things to handdle. I think that I will spend some time to learn all the tricks

Welcome!
Select a campaign: 1805 scenarios are good playgrounds!
Play it many times for the same side: french recommended!
Lern from your achivements and mistakes.

Notice, I'm an old school bordgamer: I like reading and examining game manuals in detail. That's good to learn game rules, then you have to play to master them.

Updated, exaustive versions of NCP manual are available at this site: I suggest you to download and read it.

[Rafiki]

ltr's walkthrough is very good reading; you can find it at http://www.ageod-forum.com/showthread.php?t=7475

[jastaV]

Here is link to last version of game manual:

http://www.ageod-forum.com/showthread.php?t=6888

[Hindov]

Thank you Rafiki and jastaV for your suggestions and links! Very helpful!

[dakoblue]

I am testing Spanish scenario (long one) currently .
What happened is that I find I have two generals Delaborde (when Grand armee arived).One of them was anchored in Portugal Armee in Bayonne,second one is active with other troops.They have different features.
Could it be bug or two such generals existed?
My other impressions ;
-mowing the troops is sometimes irritating,how to make the order to go to the next nearest province and come back?or I need to make a circle to come back to the same point?
-the move of the troops itself does not give the feeling of moving troops ,I expected something different
-often where there is a battle of big forces like 5000 vs 500 the result is
that small unit is eliminated (500 killed) without any losses from other side .Impossible

but the game itself is very good

[jastaV]

I am testing Spanish scenario (long one) currently .
What happened is that I find I have two generals Delaborde (when Grand armee arived).One of them was anchored in Portugal Armee in Bayonne,second one is active with other troops.They have different features.
Could it be bug or two such generals existed?
My other impressions ;
-mowing the troops is sometimes irritating,how to make the order to go to the next nearest province and come back?or I need to make a circle to come back to the same point?
-the move of the troops itself does not give the feeling of moving troops ,I expected something different
-often where there is a battle of big forces like 5000 vs 500 the result is
that small unit is eliminated (500 killed) without any losses from other side .Impossible

but the game itself is very good

Welcome to NCP!
I please you to report troubles and feedbacks regarding Peninsular War scenarios here:
http://www.ageod-forum.com/showthread.php?t=11184
It's a sort of permanent thread dedicated to PW scenario, and your feedbacks will help fixing and improvements.
There's not a scheduled date for PW scenario Fixing, but a group of volunteers its already at work over that under Pocus supervision.

[dakoblue]

Welcome to NCP!
I please you to report troubles and feedbacks regarding Peninsular War scenarios here:
http://www.ageod-forum.com/showthread.php?t=11184
It's a sort of permanent thread dedicated to PW scenario, and your feedbacks will help fixing and improvements.
There's not a scheduled date for PW scenario Fixing, but a group of volunteers its already at work over that under Pocus supervision.

OK .will do !

[plasticpanzers]

Hello! New here. Got the game a few weeks ago. Very impressive detail and
operation! Look forward to a full blown diplomatic version. Been involved in Napoleonic wargaming for about 40 years (seems longer sometimes! LOL!)
Tim

[Primasprit]

Hi Tim,

welcome to the forums!

Cheers
Norbert

[jastaV]

Hello! New here. Got the game a few weeks ago. Very impressive detail and
operation! Look forward to a full blown diplomatic version. Been involved in Napoleonic wargaming for about 40 years (seems longer sometimes! LOL!)
Tim

40 years of Napoleonic wargaming is not long time, its an eternity!

Hope you'll keep enjoying NCP and you'll like to contribute to NCP improvement, transferring your so long and possibly wide background here!

JastaV

[ExtraCrispy]

Uck. I'm finding this game very frustrating as I have no idea what is going on.

[Carnium]

Uck. I'm finding this game very frustrating as I have no idea what is going on.

Then read the manual first: http://www.ageod-forum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=165

[Sol Invictus]

Yes, definately read the manual several times. I have read the manual two times and played several games in the last few months and I constantly learn something new. The engine is very elegant and detailed and there is alot that goes on under the hood but if you take the time to access all of the information that is available in the tooltips you will eventually get comfortable with it.

It actually took a horrible fiasco to my French Army in Spain in a pbem game before I finally feel like I know the rules well. Think Bailen times six. Tip; monitor Cohesion every turn and don't try to play like you would an old boardgame where you attempt unrealistic actions. The game system will punish such behavior. I found that out the hard way. Also monitor Supply closely and don't charge blindly into enemy territory and into the fog of war.

[Prins van Oranje]

For many years I have bemoaned the dearth of good Napoleonic PC games. The choices have been pretty poor to be honest, and the Strategy First series has been about the only game of this era that came close to catching the colour and the flavour of the Napoleonic Age. This game, I am pleased to report, has finally filled the yawning gap that has existed in the catalogue of PC games for the last 20-odd years. It pushes all the right buttons. The attention to detail and historical accuracy is highly commendable. It captures the flavour of the times through its emphasis on organisation and mobility, and the experience is further enhanced by the colourful map and interface. I am thoroughly enjoying playing it - having played the demo for a few weeks and more recently having purchased the full version.

My only concern is that some of the support for it seems to be dropping-off. I notice the mods are no longer available, and the creators have now moved onto other projects. This is a shame, because a game like this should have a life of many years. The final patch, after all, is less than a year old so the game is, in effect, still very young. Perhaps its popularity will increase in the near future? If so, will those devleopers and modders come back to the fold?

Nevertheless, this is best Napoleonic PC game ever made - by a long stretch. My thanks to the developers.

[PhilThib]

Thank you

[Pocus]

Thank you too
There is no final patch for NCP, if someone reports a crash in the game, we will make a patch, rest assured. What NCP sorely needs is an active community though...

[Prins van Oranje]

Thank you too
There is no final patch for NCP, if someone reports a crash in the game, we will make a patch, rest assured. What NCP sorely needs is an active community though...

That would be great. I must admit I was mildly surprised at how sporadic the activity is on this forum, in particular the decline in use after early 2008. It probably comes down to how much exposure the game has received. In my own case, I have never seen it 'on the shelves' down here in Nouvelle Zealande. I really only stumbled across it whilst looking through the catalogue at Gamers Gate. So if my own experience is anything to go by, you may find that sales remain steady for some time, as word of it starts to reach participants outside Europe and the States. I certainly think the game is good enough to sustain a dedicated following. Unfortunately I have no experience with modding or tweaking games - although I'm always keen to learn - so my contributions here will be tend to be of a passive type.

Thank you too
There is no final patch for NCP, if someone reports a crash in the game, we will make a patch, rest assured.

That is good to know. It speaks to the games quality when its creators/developers still take an active interest in the games progress.

[Prins van Oranje]

I am still lovin' this game. I've probably played the 1812 scenario about 50 times in the last few weeks - of which I have admittedly only taken to conclusion about one quarter. Finding the 'perfect' strategy has been nigh on impossible. Has anyone playing as France managed to hold both St Petersburg and Moscow? If so, I wonder how many 'rehearsals' were needed? I have a feeling the perfect strategy for me is still another 50 games away, at least. A wonderful challenge!

[Didz]

First Impression - was pretty good.

Went through all the tutorials and everything seemed to be working as expected and the 1806 campaign seemed to work.

Second Impression - WTF

Tried to play the 1815 campaign, which happens to be my favourite campaign of the Napoleonic era. First disapointment was that basically the entire campaign takes place in a single map zone called Brussell's, so no room to maneouvre at all.

I was also a bit confused by the strange French army structure with three armies instead of one, and the fact that the French were scattered all over the map.

Nevertheless, I set about getting the French Army concentrated south of Charleroi where they began the campaign. But as soon as I pressed the Next Turn button Wellington and his entire army came hurtling over the border smashed to French Army south of Charleroi. In my last attempt, Napoleon literally disappeared at this point, leaving Vandamme in charge of France.

I can only assume that Wellington and his army were poised on the French border waiting to pounce on turn one, which means the opening situation was the exact opposite of the historical one where the French caught the British scattered all over Belguim.

Anyway. Wellington then proceeds to fly back and forth all over France like some sort demented bull in a china shop, goodness knows what he's using for supplies, the French Army literally ceases to exist by turn 3, although Vandamme's Corps did manage to sneak to Brussels only to find Blucher in residence.

As a campaign it just doesn't work. and one must assume if 1815 doesn't work the other must be equally flawed. So, I've given up on it.

[arsan]

As a campaign it just doesn't work. and one must assume if 1815 doesn't work the other must be equally flawed. So, I've given up on it.

Wrong assumption. Don't measure the whole game by his worst scenario.
I guess the 1815 scenario was included because... well, Waterloo have to be on a Napoleonic wargame.
But as you have seen, nor the game's time scale (one week turns) nor the map region sizes are ideal for it.
I mean, the real camping lasted like 4 or 5 days and was fought in about a couple of game provinces. The 1815 campaign ask mainly for a tactical game engine.
NCP is operational and shines on the longer scenarios, with more time and space to move around. You have seen it on the 1806 campaign.
IMHO the very shot scenarios (4-6 turns) on AGEOD games are only for learning the game.
So give on it if you want, its your call, but you are losing some great scenarios (1805, 1806, 1809, Peninsular Campaign, Russain inavsion, 1813, 1814...)

Cheers

[Matin]

I like this game, especially the optical appearance. I'd love to see a future game with a similar style..

i have one suggestion:
why not implement a kind of suitcase with medals you get for winning a scenario...
i know, 90% of the players will say this is useless, but it should be easy to implement..