Making WW1 happen

[loki100]

The attached file is designed to improve the working of the current WW1 chain. This tends to fall apart due to an AI Russia taking no interest in the 1877-9 events. The intention here is to make the game events work as intended, rather than add flavour or new events. In effect, replace the existing 'Balkan Crisis Events' in \VGN\Events with this one (back up the original first). All the events have been tested in isolation and work, but as with the Italian unification events I'd be grateful to hear from anyone who uses this in a real game.

Although this is basically designed for an 1850 start, the post-1877/8 events are also useful changes in an 1880 campaign.

The two events to end the 1912 and 1913 Balkan Wars are copied from Christophe's work.

In the next post is a discussion of what I have changed and why.

[ATTACH]29526[/ATTACH]

[loki100]

evt_nam_RUS_RussoTurkishWar1877

Added new version that tests for Rus=AI, if so the CB is replaced with an active war for Russia

This is called evt_nam_RUS_RussoTurkishWar1877_AI

Event – evt_nam_RUS_RussoTurkishWar1877_War

Changed conditions to relating to any Russian-Turkish war in the period 1877-1890
so removed line
EvalEvent = evt_nam_RUS_RussoTurkishWar1877;=;1
and changed end date

So my version is more linked to the wider chance of a Russian-Turkish war than just to the specific real life events in the late 1870s.

Added, Serbian, Montenigrin and Greek units (so as to compete with the Bulgarian forces that are scripted, uses the 1880 OOB). Since there maybe an existing Greek army, that part of the event starts by killing their existing units, in order to replace with the correct OOB.

This will give a more realistic war and also helps balance the 1912-13 events where Bulgaria tends to win too easily as it has a larger scripted army and the other states only what they have managed to build.

evt_nam_RUS_SanStefano

I've simplified this. As written it relies on Russia taking Adrianople but it is quite likely this will fall to the Bulgarians. If so, the chain breaks, so this makes it more open ended, and, as with the actual war, changes the time frame.

Alterations are, the event is now written from a Turkish not Russian perspective (but coded as CMN so will appear in all country game logs)

removed:

Conditions
EvalEvent = evt_nam_RUS_RussoTurkishWar1877;=;1

EvalRgnOwned = $Andrianople
EvalIsAtWarWith = TUR
MinDate = 1878/06/13
MaxDate = 1879/01/01
Probability = 15

to
Conditions

EvalRgnOwned = $Andrianople; NOT
EvalIsAtWarWith = RUS
MinDate = 1878/06/13
MaxDate = 1890/01/01
Probability = 15
(so in this version, the test is a war between Russia and Turkey and the loss of Andrianople.

evt_nam_GER_BerlinCongress

Small changes to make more generic and follow on from the alterations in the above events. The main change is to make the revised SanStefano event (as above) the trigger, not the original war, and to extend the end date to 1890.

In combination, unless Turkey wins, this should set up the Balkan states for the end of the nineteenth century with each having a decent start up army.

I've then added Christophe's two events to end the 1912 and 1913 Balkan Wars (without these the first won't end and the second is a key trigger for WW1).

These are:

evt_nam_RUS_EndofFirstBalkanWar1912

This one basically ends if the Turks are badly outnumbered.

evt_nam_RUS_EndofSecondBalkanWar1913

This one will fire if Bulgaria is losing (more likely with the changes to the 1878 war above)

evt_nam_RUS_EndofSecondBalkanWar1913_bulgaria wins

This one will fire if Bulgaria is winning

Neither will see any territorial changes.

From CMN_AssassinationArchduke1914 to the end of the chain are untouched apart from correcting a single reversed test (this is correct in the 1.04b beta, but most people tend to use 1.03e for obvious reasons.

In any game you may want to vary some of the final steps for common sense and fit to your world. For example in my last game, there was a stronger logic to a continued UK-German alliance compared to the Anglo-French alliance of our time line. So I shifted the UK DoW to a long term CB.

[Kensai]

Indeed, there should be some sort of Balkans incident before the s$%t hits the fan!

[HerrDan]

The attached file is designed to improve the working of the current WW1 chain. This tends to fall apart due to an AI Russia taking no interest in the 1877-9 events. The intention here is to make the game events work as intended, rather than add flavour or new events. In effect, replace the existing 'Balkan Crisis Events' in \VGN\Events with this one (back up the original first). All the events have been tested in isolation and work, but as with the Italian unification events I'd be grateful to hear from anyone who uses this in a real game.

Although this is basically designed for an 1850 start, the post-1877/8 events are also useful changes in an 1880 campaign.

The two events to end the 1912 and 1913 Balkan Wars are copied from Christophe's work.

In the next post is a discussion of what I have changed and why.

[ATTACH]29526[/ATTACH]

Loki you are amazing! Thank you very much for this!

I was talking with Kensai about having a world war in my game, but the conditions and the sides would perhaps be a little different from what happened IRL, as I have badly beaten the british (indeed in my AAR we haven't reached peace yet, but it'sl coming soon) and there was also a war with Russia where I have fred Finland, also the fact that my support for the spanish in the ASW also means that they would be much more tempted to act against me, but then you have the fact that they had a war with Great Britain as well, so the situation in my game is complex...

But thank you again, as you describe the changes you made are awesome and make the game much better for those who love WW1 (like me).

Cheers,
Daniel.

[Christophe.Barot]

Excellent work
did you test it ? unless I grossly underestimate the strength of Bulgarian (and newly renovated Balkan) army (ies), which is a strong possibility, my main concern is for the whole "taking Adrianople" thing

In my Prussian game, the Russian player did not declare war AT ALL .... actually he had a decent (but not overwhelming) army in Caucasus, a decent one in west Ukraine, and another one further in Russia, guess problem was AI evaluation of success was too low, while in a long war and initial delaying game, Russia would have prevailed in the long run

so I forced the war by script and ..... 2-3 turns after non action, Russia asked for peace, which Ottoman accepted ! you can't force a horse, or donkey to drink

so problem is :
to force Russia to declare war - you did
to make her stay at war (more tricky with AI , evaluation process, and risk of unwanted effects if hardens AI war stance)
to have Russian-side AI WIN (at least take Adrianople) which is even more tricky

besides the great diplomatic lines, we may have to script some basic strategic guidance (in such and such GP alignment, increase some specific areas values, so Russia, among other, concentrate big armies where it is sound (if friend with Germany and not TOO Austrian hostile, besides colonial activity, concentrate in Caucasus, mouths of Danube, and petersburg - at other times, more troops in Poland and Galicia, at other add Baltic states or far east)

problem is one of AI traditional weaknesses are long rtun strategic management, and for a wide nation with shortage of railroads, it's especially penalizing

still your work is a giant step in the good direction - (happy my work could be of use), congrats !