EDIT: See 1.05 Patch info below (most recent post).
Steel, check out this new patch, supposed to improve performance across the board.
http://www.battlefront.com/discuss/ulti ... 2;t=003103
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This patch offers big performance and speed increases across the board, and people with both multi-core as well as single core processors as well as ATI and nVidia video cards should now be getting much better framerates. In addition to these highly anticipated technical improvements we have also included substantial AI improvements in key areas like pathfinding, spotting, line of sight/line of fire, soldier responsiveness and behavior. Other tweaks and fixes have been applied to various game elements and players will also notice some improved terrain textures and better visual representation of elevations and distant objects.
We are offering the patch in two distinct flavors as well. A 136 Megabyte ALL-INCLUSIVE patch that will work on ANY previous Battlefront.com version of the game (from v1.01 to v1.03) and a 45 Megabyte INCREMENTAL patch that is meant to upgrade an already patched v1.03 copy of the game to the new v1.04 level.
The v1.04 patches for the Paradox Interactive CD version and the Gamersgate download version were unfortunately delayed but will be released later this week. We also plan to have a Combat Mission: Shock Force v1.04 Updated Demo coming out in the next few days.
--- v1.04 PATCH NOTES ---
PREVIOUS SAVE GAME COMPATIBILITY NOTE:
Save games created with earlier versions of the game are NOT compatible with v1.04. Please finish your in-progress games before applying this patch.
--v1.04 Patch Features--
* CM:SF is multi-processor/multi-core friendly. Workarounds like
"setting affinity" to single-processor are no longer needed.
* Improved frame rate, especially on large maps.
* Improved vehicle pathfinding.
* Various "stuck units" problems fixed.
* Corrected a problem with shots coming through ridgelines.
* Soldiers are much quicker to take up fighting stances and/or open
fire when reaching a movement destination.
* When ordered to stop moving, soldiers halt immediately rather than
look for best positions. This helps them avoid unnecessary casualties.
* Vehicles correctly respond to non-Movement Commands assigned to
Waypoints.
* Area fire versus buildings properly spreads fire versus all
locations on the indicated level.
* Soldiers are more likely to move through breaches blasted in
building walls rather than close by doorways.
* The TacAI is generally more likely to open fire, especially with
heavy grenade launchers. Previously the TacAI tried too hard to
conserve ammunition.
* Troops do a better job facing in the direction implied by the end
of a movement path.
* Troops cannot disembark through walls.
* "Target Light" works properly for infantry.
* Corrected a problem where a vehicle would button up due to incoming
small arms fire, but then become overly reluctant to fire its own
weapons.
* Corrected a problem where troops would not exit a vehicle because
some other troops onboard were considered blocking exits even though
they were not.
* When units are pinned (i.e. they can shoot but will not respond to
movement orders) it is shown in the suppression meter display.
* Corrected some problems where teams within a squad were not
properly coordinated for movement.
* Smoke grenades don't damage vehicles.
* Grenades are used properly (fixed a bug that made the range used
too short).
* Antitank weapons like Javelins are less likely to be used during
area fire (except versus buildings).
* Improved ground textures.
* Distant terrain looks smoother and less "blocky".
* Trenches and roads show up better at longer distances.
* Map elevations are displayed more accurately when viewed from long
distances.
* Brush terrain is drawn out to greater distance.
* Computer player won't hold armored vehicles back so far in the rear.
* Antitank specialist is more likely to be the man who picks up an
antitank weapon (say, when unloading a Javelin from a Stryker).
* Moving vehicles have reduced spotting capability.
* Blown-out building walls don't cause lots of ricochets as if the
wall was still there.
* Fixed a bug that caused problems with splitting squads multiple
times in turn-based games.
* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused a crash during game-save.
* Corrected a problem where multi-unit selecting a shaken/panicked
unit would cause the multi-unit select to be canceled.
* Stryker smoke is now the correct color (white).
* "Game Paused" message is smaller and less obtrusive.
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Combat Mission: Shock Force 1.05 Patch (Updated 12/15/07)
Moderator: RLG MGMT Team
Combat Mission: Shock Force 1.05 Patch (Updated 12/15/07)
Last edited by Softball on 15 Dec 2007, 22:32, edited 4 times in total.
"SILENCE, I KILL YOU!!" - Achmed the Dead Terrorist
AKA: Staark or Staark_RLG
I believe there is a demo out DA. Give it a try and see if you like it. It's a much slower paced game than other RTSs.
http://www.battlefront.com
http://www.battlefront.com
"SILENCE, I KILL YOU!!" - Achmed the Dead Terrorist
AKA: Staark or Staark_RLG
-
Jedi Master
- Posts: 1362
- Joined: 11 Feb 2004, 14:32
- Location: Melbourne, FL
I don't think WIC is a click-fest at all. You play as one role in MP COOP games, and you are given a limited amount of resources (6000 points I believe ? ). The best unit for each role costs 1200 points, so you will only have a certain amount of units under your control. You have to mix and match unit types to get the best results.
Every unit that is under your control has an icon that shows up at the bottom of the screen. Instead of moving the camera around the map to look for the unit you want to select, you simply click on the icon and then give the unit a move command or you can select various unit icons and group them into a single group (CTRL+1, CTRL+2, etc..) and move the entire group with one click.
Sorry, got off topic.
Every unit that is under your control has an icon that shows up at the bottom of the screen. Instead of moving the camera around the map to look for the unit you want to select, you simply click on the icon and then give the unit a move command or you can select various unit icons and group them into a single group (CTRL+1, CTRL+2, etc..) and move the entire group with one click.
Sorry, got off topic.
"SILENCE, I KILL YOU!!" - Achmed the Dead Terrorist
AKA: Staark or Staark_RLG
-
Jedi Master
- Posts: 1362
- Joined: 11 Feb 2004, 14:32
- Location: Melbourne, FL
Steel, FYI.
A new patch is out, version 1.05 (171MB).
http://www.battlefront.com/products/cmsf/downloads.html
PATCH NOTES
------------------------------------------------
Combat Mission: Shock Force v1.05 Battlefront Version Game Patch (all inclusive)
WARNING! The following patch is only for the Battlefront.com release versions of the game (v1.01, v1.02, v1.03 or v1.04). If you purchased the game from Paradox Interactive, in a retail store, or if you downloaded the game from Gamersgate.com, DO NOT INSTALL THIS PATCH!!! Instead, download the v1.05 patch specific to the Paradox or Gamersgate version.
This patch is all inclusive and includes all the fixes from the earlier v1.02, v1.03 and v1.04 patches.
If you install this patch and then get an error message when trying to run the game that says, "This application has failed to start because elicen40.dll was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem." then you have applied the wrong patch for your game version and will need to download and apply either the v1.05 Paradox Version Game Patch or the v1.05 Gamersgate Version Game Patch.
PREVIOUS SAVE GAME COMPATIBILITY NOTE:
Save games created with earlier versions of the game are NOT compatible with v1.05. Please finish your in-progress games before applying this patch.
CUSTOM HOTKEYS.TXT NOTE
If you had assigned custom hotkeys in the past (available in v1.02, v1.03 and v1.04) then you will want to backup your Data\hotkeys.txt file before installing this patch. Once the patch is installed, simply paste your copy of hotkeys.txt file back into the Data folder and you will still have all of your old hotkey assignments.
MANUAL ADDENDUM
The manuals reference to the eLicense licensing and game activation system (pages 12-15 and 194) is ONLY applicable to the Battlefront.com version of the game. The Gamersgate and Paradox Interactive versions of the game each use their own licensing/activation/protection systems and you should contact those companies directly if you have problems licensing or activating those versions of the game.
TROUBLESHOOTING INFO
Included with this patch is the most up to date troubleshooting guide. It is located in the game folder (filename Troubleshooting Guide.html) as well as in the Battlefront\Combat Mission Shock Force Program Group located under the Start Menu).
HOYKEYS CUSTOMIZATION HELP:
Combat Mission has two distinctly different approaches for using unit Commands via the keyboard; Relative and Direct. The Relative system involves a set of 9 keys centered around three rows of three consecutive keys each. These 9 keys match the 9 Command Buttons in the user interface's Command Panel. Each hotkey controls the commands RELATIVE to the position on the screen. For example, by default the U key activates the Top Row Left-Most key which would be FAST, TARGET, and SPLIT depending on which Command Group is visible (Movement, Combat, and Special respectively). The Direct system, on the other hand, assigns a unique hotkey for DIRECT access to each Command. No attention is paid to the graphical representation on the screen. For example, if so assigned, F would issue the FAST command. T would issue the TARGET command, H would control the HIDE command etc... no matter which Command Group is visible on the screen.
There are pros and cons to each system. The Relative system allows the player to keep one hand stationary on the keyboard and does not require any "hunting and pecking" to find the right hotkey. The downside is that when you wish to use two Commands in a row that are in different Command Groups you have to first switch the proper Command Group (now done using the F5-F8 keys). The Direct system allows you to string Commands together without concern for which Command Group they are in, but does have the drawback of requiring the hand to move and locate a specific key, which may or may not be easily memorized. Which is "better" comes down to personal player preference, therefore both are provided.
Whenever possible, the order buttons under the various Command Panels will display the assigned "direct" key in highlighted green text.
Note, we recommend that you decide which system you prefer and then assign the keys as you wish by editing the hotkeys.txt file. The default key assignments have all 9 Relative keys assigned (UIOJKLM,.) as well as a selection of the most commonly used commands mapped to new Direct keys (Move Fast, Move Normal, Reverse, Target, Target Light, Face, Deploy, Pause, Hide, Dismount, Vehicle Open Up and Pop Smoke) to give you an idea of how the two systems work. We have found that using one or the other systems exclusively seems to have the best results and do not recommend mixing the two systems together. While it's possible to do, it could mean getting the worst of both systems and not really getting the benefits. Therefore, if you wish to use the Direct system we advise that you edit the hotkeys.txt file to unassign the 9 Relative hotkeys. Also, be aware to not double assign any keys to multiple functions.
In order to change the hotkey assignments, please see the hotkeys.txt file located in the game DATA folder.
CHANGING GAME RESOLUTION:
By default, the first time the game is launched, the games internal resolution is set whatever your desktop's resolution is. We have added a two ways to adjust your game resolution. From inside the game, go to the Main Menu, then select the Options panel. From there you can select the game to run at the following resolutions:
Desktop = (the game will run at whatever resolution your desktop is set to)
1024x768
1152x864
1280x960
If you want to run the game in a resolution not listed, you can manually set this by editing the "display size.txt" file located in your game directory. Simply change the two numbers that you see in there with the width and height you wish to run the game.
ex: For 1680x1050 you would delete the two numbers in that file and replace with "1680 1050" (without quotes).
If you put in "0 0", the game will revert to using your desktop resolution.
MULTIPLAYER INFO:
Combat Mission: Shock Force uses the UDP and TCP port 7023 for all multiplayer games. If you are trying to HOST a TCP-IP game make sure and open port 7023 for both UDP and TCP traffic.
GAME LANGUAGE INFO:
You can change between the available languages from within the Options panel however we have only included scenarios and campaigns for English, German and French. If you select Italian or Polish languages you may (depending on what version of the game you own) have to copy the scenarios and folders files from inside the Game Files\Scenarios and Game Files\Campaigns folders and place them into the appropriately named folders for your selected language.
If you make a change to the language setting, be sure and immediately exit the game and then reload in order for the game to properly prepare the language setting and files.
V1.05 PATCH NOTES
v1.05 EXTRAS
* Two new Mod Tools (RezExplode and RezPack) along with a 'how-to' doc file included in the Mod Tools directory. These files allow modification to various game sound and graphics files located in the data .brz files.
* Two new Scenarios (Following the Euphrates and Guarding the Far Flank). Note: Scenario text has been localized for German and English languages. All other language versions of the game will display these scenarios in English.
* Eight all new Quick Battle Maps plus Seven updated and improved original Quick Battle Maps.
* Added all of the Quick Battle Maps for Spanish language version.
v1.05 NEW FEATURES:
* Flashes of light appear on objects near gunfire, explosions, rocket/missile flame, and burning vehicles at night and in low-light conditions.
* When placing a Target order, the LOS line turns yellow if it's generally clear, but not perfectly so. This means either *some* soldiers in the spotting unit may not have a clear LOS or *some* of the target zone may not be visible.
* If you point the cursor at a weapon in the "soldier display" user interface panel, the name of the weapon is displayed and that soldier is subtly highlighted in the main 3D display.
* A radio "squawk" sound plays when reinforcements arrive, when a "Touch" objective is touched, and when internet/LAN chat messages arrive.
* Artillery and air support targeting lines "highlight" to match the currently selected support unit in the "roster" view, so you can see who is shooting where.
* Added a hotkey to toggle camera shake on/off.
v1.05 IMPROVEMENTS:
* Soldiers do a better job moving to the "near" side of an exterior building corner not "beyond" it.
* Soldiers do a better job recovering important weapons and equipment from fallen comrades.
* Soldiers do a better job regrouping when separated from team members.
* Soldiers will make minor position adjustments to gain clear line of fire when possible.
* Soldiers using Hunt movement react quicker to incoming fire.
* Improved ammo selection logic versus armored targets whose armor has a mix of strong and weak points.
* During the process of placing waypoints, if you choose the Face command the last waypoint will automatically be highlighted so the Face command will apply to that last waypoint, not the current position. You are still able to manually select a waypoint and issue a Face order from there.
* Heavy weapons may now Deploy their weapons on rooftops.
* Marksmen, SAW and MG gunners open fire at longer ranges.
* M4A1 and AK-74 series small arms have effective range increased to 500m (from 400m). M4A1 rifle with scope effective range increased to 750m (from 600m).
* Troops try not to fire more than one guided missile at a time against a single enemy vehicle.
* Crew and passenger survivability increased when vehicles are knocked out, especially for Strykers, Bradleys, and M1 Abrams.
* Effectiveness of slat armor versus RPGs is increased.
* When acquiring (passenger) antitank weapons from a vehicle, infantry units use better logic to give "important" antitank weapons (e.g. Javelin) to the antitank specialist, even if it means he must swap other antitank weapons that are less important (e.g. M136/AT4) with other soldiers.
* Conscript and green troops have less discipline to conserve ammunition.
* It's slightly easier to spot soldiers who are firing their weapons than before.
* Buildings are harder to demolish by explosions.
* Accuracy of M229 Hydra-70 air-to-ground rockets (carried by US helicopters) is improved.
* Squads and Teams with orders to embark-move to a vehicle that has movement orders normally move to the spot where the vehicle has also been ordered to move, in order to meet up at the destination. However, if the vehicle is currently under "pause" orders, the squad/team will move directly to the vehicle's current location.
* Gunners on vehicles with autoloaders (M1128 Stryker MGS and T-72 tank) are less likely to switch over to using the MG immediately after firing the main gun.
* "Unit Lock" camera angles are improved, and track a vehicle's turret more than its hull facing.
* When a targeted unit disappears from line of sight, the targeting order is canceled (there is no longer a target line to the vanished unit's actual location)
* For nearby trees, the Alt-T tree hiding option does not hide the tree entirely; it just hides the leaves.
* When plotting artillery and air strikes, an invalid map click (e.g. out of LOS) is simply ignored rather than bouncing you out of the input sequence.
* You can embark troops on a vehicle by clicking the vehicle's icon (as well as the vehicle itself).
* Control-clicks on buildings move the camera position just like control-clicks on terrain (this feature is switched off inside the editor).
v1.05 BUG FIXES:
* Line of sight to buildings and rooftops works correctly now.
* Corrected a bug that allowed LOS/LOF to pass through the tops of tall walls.
* Corrected a problem that sometimes allowed spotting of vehicles through buildings.
* Corrected a "stuck soldier" animation issue (e.g. a soldier who could not move out of a trench).
* Corrected issues where individual soldiers would incorrectly move away from their teams.
* Improved stability for Internet/LAN games.
* Corrected a problem where some members of a vehicle team would take an unrealistically long time to bail out.
* When firing antitank rockets and missiles, soldiers who are not antitank specialists receive an accuracy or guidance penalty (exception: "secondary" launchers like the M136/AT4 and the RPG-18 can be fired by anyone without penalty).
* Corrected a problem where certain external doors to buildings would never be used.
* Soldiers make proper use of "interior" doors and open spaces between building units instead of moving the long way around.
* "Group box selecting" works better in Elite mode.
* Grenades explode correctly on building roofs.
* Vehicles are not shielded by hiding behind knocked-out armored vehicles.
* Smoke from a burning vehicle does not block mouse clicks to place waypoints.
* Fixed a bug that caused battles in Elite mode, on maps with lots of trees, to run very slowly.
* Corrected a problem in Elite mode where one could spot friendly soldiers but not the vehicle they are riding in, causing the look of "levitating troops".
* Vehicles with badly shot-up engines and/or running gear (but not quite immobilized) can still move (at a very slow pace) up hill or in rough terrain.
* Corrected a slight aiming problem versus buildings as area fire targets.
* Victory points are awarded for an "Occupy" objective only if the objective is totally cleared of enemy troops and friendly troops remain inside the objective at the end of the game.
* Corrected some problems with awarding points for Destroy, Preserve, and Touch Terrain Objectives.
* Fixed a crash problem that affected artillery in internet/LAN games.
* In turn-based mode replay, the 3D icon for vehicles does not prematurely show an infantry symbol if the vehicle is destroyed in that turn.
* Fixed a bug where in turn-based playback, sometimes a vehicle passenger's position would "lag" slightly behind the moving vehicle.
* Fixed various problems with 3D objects not reverting to their original states when replaying a turn-based turn's resolution.
* Soldiers animate correctly when prone and turning to the left; when exiting down a vehicle ramp; and at the start of the play-by-email replay phase.
* Corrected a problem where some squads suddenly lost Command & Control for no good reason.
* Weapons acquired from a vehicle are correctly loaded (e.g. M136AT4 launcher stored on Bradley).
* Fire and smoke from a burning vehicle appear in the correct location.
* In two-player games, player #2's initial camera view is placed correctly according to the scenario design.
* Fixed a problem with the choice of "mixed branch" in Quick Battles.
* Javelin flight path improved for short-range shots.
* Corrected an issue with the muzzle flash on the M1114-M240 vehicle.
* T-72M1V tank commander buttons up to use the remote-controlled 14.5mm MG.
* Haze graphics smoothly fade as the camera view moves up to higher elevations, allowing for better player control at long distances. It also corrects an issue where high camera elevations could not see map terrain at all under haze conditions.
* Fixed an issue that was causing the in-game FSAA option not to activate FSAA if the video card's control panel was set to "application controlled".
* Intro video plays on certain video cards where it was previously not visible.
PREVIOUS PATCH NOTES
--v1.04 Patch Features--
* CM:SF is more multi-processor/multi-core friendly. Workarounds like "setting affinity" to single-processor should not be needed any longer, although your system may be different.
* Improved frame rate, especially on large maps.
* Improved vehicle pathfinding.
* Various "stuck units" problems fixed.
* Corrected a problem with shots coming through ridgelines.
* Soldiers are much quicker to take up fighting stances and/or open fire when reaching a movement destination.
* When ordered to stop moving, soldiers halt immediately rather than look for best positions. This helps them avoid unnecessary casualties.
* Vehicles correctly respond to non-Movement Commands assigned to Waypoints.
* Area fire versus buildings properly spreads fire versus all locations on the indicated level.
* Soldiers are more likely to move through breaches blasted in building walls rather than close by doorways.
* The TacAI is generally more likely to open fire, especially with heavy grenade launchers. Previously the TacAI tried too hard to conserve ammunition.
* Troops do a better job facing in the direction implied by the end of a movement path.
* Troops cannot disembark through walls.
* "Target Light" works properly for infantry.
* Corrected a problem where a vehicle would button up due to incoming small arms fire, but then become overly reluctant to fire its own weapons.
* Corrected a problem where troops would not exit a vehicle because some other troops onboard were considered blocking exits even though they were not.
* When units are pinned (i.e. they can shoot but will not respond to movement orders) it is shown in the suppression meter display.
* Corrected some problems where teams within a squad were not properly coordinated for movement.
* Smoke grenades don't damage vehicles.
* Grenades are used properly (fixed a bug that made the range used too short).
* Antitank weapons like Javelins are less likely to be used during area fire (except versus buildings).
* Improved ground textures.
* Distant terrain looks smoother and less "blocky".
* Trenches and roads show up better at longer distances.
* Map elevations are displayed more accurately when viewed from long distances.
* Brush terrain is drawn out to greater distance.
* Computer player won't hold armored vehicles back so far in the rear.
* Antitank specialist is more likely to be the man who picks up an antitank weapon (say, when unloading a Javelin from a Stryker).
* Moving vehicles have reduced spotting capability.
* Blown-out building walls don't cause lots of ricochets as if the wall was still there.
* Fixed a bug that caused problems with splitting squads multiple times in turn-based games.
* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused a crash during game-save.
* Corrected a problem where multi-unit selecting a shaken/panicked unit would cause the multi-unit select to be canceled.
* Stryker smoke is now the correct color (white).
* "Game Paused" message is smaller and less obtrusive.
-- v1.03 Patch Features --
* LOS/LOF issues improved around areas like walls, buildings, and earthen berms.
* Fixed a bug that caused orders given in the setup phase to be ignored in Play-By-Email games.
* Vehicle pathfinding improved. It is important to note, however, that the slower speed commands will yield better results in more restricted terrain.
* Infantry no longer tends to wander into buildings except when specifically ordered to.
* Improved terrain graphics (the degree of improvement depends on your Texture Quality option, but note that the higher quality options run more slowly).
* Better unit placement in Quick Battles.
* A new "Show All Move Paths" key added to the Hotkeys Menu.
* Fixes to the "stuck soldier" problem.
* Fixes to the "stuck unit" problem.
* By default, infantry moving "Slow" (i.e. crawling) do not stand up and run to their destinations after halting for any reason.
* "Adjust Artillery Mission" function is fixed, along with other minor artillery bugs.
* Gunners are less likely to use high-explosive rather than armor-piercing ammo against armored targets.
* Improved anti-tank missile accuracy, especially with the Javelin ATGM.
* Clicking on enemy soldiers that were not previous spotted are no longer shown.
* Very slight downward adjustment to M1 Abrams tank front armor strength.
* Javelin missile armor penetration increased modestly.
* Speed of the autoloaders on the T-72 and the Stryker MGS are reduced.
* Soldiers do a better job staying prone when under fire in the open.
* TacAI is more likely to fire on prone infantry.
* Computer player is less likely to use slow/crawling movement with its troops.
* Syrian troops (except forward observers) cannot call in artillery.
* Blast movement now works properly.
* Fixed a bug where a soldier sometimes uses a Blue Force specialty icon in the UI when it should be Red, or vice-versa.
* Improved seated poses for certain crewmen of M1 MBT, pickup trucks, taxis.
* MMGs rarely, if ever, fire single-round bursts.
* Clicking on an enemy's C2 display no longer switches to its HQ unit.
* Fixed "choppy" sound from vehicles when turning.
-- v1.02 Patch Features --
* For recent ATI video cards a new option for "ATI left-click compatibility" has been added in the game Options Panel. Setting this option to ON (default setting is OFF) solves a crash problem unrelated to Combat Mission. If you have an ATI video card, yet never experienced mouse click problems with earlier versions, it is recommended that you do not use this feature because clicks are not registered as precisely. We are in contact with ATI and hope they fix the problems with a new driver release sometime soon.
* New game "Priority Setting" option setting has been added in the game Option Panel. This option instructs Windows to assign "normal" application priority or "high" application priority to the game when it is run. The "normal" setting can fix lagging mouse and/or keyboard input issues for some systems. The "high" setting is recommended if you have not experienced any input lag problems. The "high" priority option allows Combat Mission to use more system resources and may result in better performance.
* Alt-Tab now resets the screen to the original desktop display resolution (and back again) if different than the screen resolution setting in Combat Mission's Options Panel.
* Better vehicle defensive TacAI.
* Corrected a longstanding problem with sporadic inaccuracy of ATGMs. It was the result of the dust kicked up from the missile's own launch backblast. Sometimes it obscured the gunner's vision and (unfairly) stopping him from guiding the missile properly.
* Corrected bugs in smoothness of ATGM flight path.
* Infantry ATGMs reload more slowly.
* Shaped-charge explosives (such as ATGMs) have a reduced radius of effect for shrapnel/fragments.
* Infantry will often seek better nearby cover on their own if they come under heavy fire.
* TacAI is more likely to open fire on enemy armored vehicles.
* Commands may be issued when paused in Elite mode.
* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused smoke to not block LOS when it should have.
* Fixed a bug that caused parts of weapons to be positioned in strange ways during the reload animation.
* Support units (e.g. artillery) in the process of receiving a cease fire command cannot be given further orders until the cease fire occurs (this also fixes a crash bug).
* F5-F8 keys are now Command Category Keys and will jump directly to the Command Panel.
- F5 Brings up the Movement Command Group
- F6 Brings up the Combat Command Group
- F7 Brings up the Special Command Group
- F8 Brings up the Admin Command Group
* New customizable hotkeys with more "direct keys" added. These keys issue a specific command no matter what command group is shown in the onscreen command panel. See further below for more information about editing hotkeys.
* Blank entries are now allowed in the hotkeys.txt file. In the past this would cause a crash when loading a battle.
* After using a "high level" menu button (e.g. Save) in the command panel, the display flips back to command buttons.
* Replaced English language Tutorial Campaign with a native French language one for the French version of the game.
--------------------------------------------------------------
A new patch is out, version 1.05 (171MB).
http://www.battlefront.com/products/cmsf/downloads.html
PATCH NOTES
------------------------------------------------
Combat Mission: Shock Force v1.05 Battlefront Version Game Patch (all inclusive)
WARNING! The following patch is only for the Battlefront.com release versions of the game (v1.01, v1.02, v1.03 or v1.04). If you purchased the game from Paradox Interactive, in a retail store, or if you downloaded the game from Gamersgate.com, DO NOT INSTALL THIS PATCH!!! Instead, download the v1.05 patch specific to the Paradox or Gamersgate version.
This patch is all inclusive and includes all the fixes from the earlier v1.02, v1.03 and v1.04 patches.
If you install this patch and then get an error message when trying to run the game that says, "This application has failed to start because elicen40.dll was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem." then you have applied the wrong patch for your game version and will need to download and apply either the v1.05 Paradox Version Game Patch or the v1.05 Gamersgate Version Game Patch.
PREVIOUS SAVE GAME COMPATIBILITY NOTE:
Save games created with earlier versions of the game are NOT compatible with v1.05. Please finish your in-progress games before applying this patch.
CUSTOM HOTKEYS.TXT NOTE
If you had assigned custom hotkeys in the past (available in v1.02, v1.03 and v1.04) then you will want to backup your Data\hotkeys.txt file before installing this patch. Once the patch is installed, simply paste your copy of hotkeys.txt file back into the Data folder and you will still have all of your old hotkey assignments.
MANUAL ADDENDUM
The manuals reference to the eLicense licensing and game activation system (pages 12-15 and 194) is ONLY applicable to the Battlefront.com version of the game. The Gamersgate and Paradox Interactive versions of the game each use their own licensing/activation/protection systems and you should contact those companies directly if you have problems licensing or activating those versions of the game.
TROUBLESHOOTING INFO
Included with this patch is the most up to date troubleshooting guide. It is located in the game folder (filename Troubleshooting Guide.html) as well as in the Battlefront\Combat Mission Shock Force Program Group located under the Start Menu).
HOYKEYS CUSTOMIZATION HELP:
Combat Mission has two distinctly different approaches for using unit Commands via the keyboard; Relative and Direct. The Relative system involves a set of 9 keys centered around three rows of three consecutive keys each. These 9 keys match the 9 Command Buttons in the user interface's Command Panel. Each hotkey controls the commands RELATIVE to the position on the screen. For example, by default the U key activates the Top Row Left-Most key which would be FAST, TARGET, and SPLIT depending on which Command Group is visible (Movement, Combat, and Special respectively). The Direct system, on the other hand, assigns a unique hotkey for DIRECT access to each Command. No attention is paid to the graphical representation on the screen. For example, if so assigned, F would issue the FAST command. T would issue the TARGET command, H would control the HIDE command etc... no matter which Command Group is visible on the screen.
There are pros and cons to each system. The Relative system allows the player to keep one hand stationary on the keyboard and does not require any "hunting and pecking" to find the right hotkey. The downside is that when you wish to use two Commands in a row that are in different Command Groups you have to first switch the proper Command Group (now done using the F5-F8 keys). The Direct system allows you to string Commands together without concern for which Command Group they are in, but does have the drawback of requiring the hand to move and locate a specific key, which may or may not be easily memorized. Which is "better" comes down to personal player preference, therefore both are provided.
Whenever possible, the order buttons under the various Command Panels will display the assigned "direct" key in highlighted green text.
Note, we recommend that you decide which system you prefer and then assign the keys as you wish by editing the hotkeys.txt file. The default key assignments have all 9 Relative keys assigned (UIOJKLM,.) as well as a selection of the most commonly used commands mapped to new Direct keys (Move Fast, Move Normal, Reverse, Target, Target Light, Face, Deploy, Pause, Hide, Dismount, Vehicle Open Up and Pop Smoke) to give you an idea of how the two systems work. We have found that using one or the other systems exclusively seems to have the best results and do not recommend mixing the two systems together. While it's possible to do, it could mean getting the worst of both systems and not really getting the benefits. Therefore, if you wish to use the Direct system we advise that you edit the hotkeys.txt file to unassign the 9 Relative hotkeys. Also, be aware to not double assign any keys to multiple functions.
In order to change the hotkey assignments, please see the hotkeys.txt file located in the game DATA folder.
CHANGING GAME RESOLUTION:
By default, the first time the game is launched, the games internal resolution is set whatever your desktop's resolution is. We have added a two ways to adjust your game resolution. From inside the game, go to the Main Menu, then select the Options panel. From there you can select the game to run at the following resolutions:
Desktop = (the game will run at whatever resolution your desktop is set to)
1024x768
1152x864
1280x960
If you want to run the game in a resolution not listed, you can manually set this by editing the "display size.txt" file located in your game directory. Simply change the two numbers that you see in there with the width and height you wish to run the game.
ex: For 1680x1050 you would delete the two numbers in that file and replace with "1680 1050" (without quotes).
If you put in "0 0", the game will revert to using your desktop resolution.
MULTIPLAYER INFO:
Combat Mission: Shock Force uses the UDP and TCP port 7023 for all multiplayer games. If you are trying to HOST a TCP-IP game make sure and open port 7023 for both UDP and TCP traffic.
GAME LANGUAGE INFO:
You can change between the available languages from within the Options panel however we have only included scenarios and campaigns for English, German and French. If you select Italian or Polish languages you may (depending on what version of the game you own) have to copy the scenarios and folders files from inside the Game Files\Scenarios and Game Files\Campaigns folders and place them into the appropriately named folders for your selected language.
If you make a change to the language setting, be sure and immediately exit the game and then reload in order for the game to properly prepare the language setting and files.
V1.05 PATCH NOTES
v1.05 EXTRAS
* Two new Mod Tools (RezExplode and RezPack) along with a 'how-to' doc file included in the Mod Tools directory. These files allow modification to various game sound and graphics files located in the data .brz files.
* Two new Scenarios (Following the Euphrates and Guarding the Far Flank). Note: Scenario text has been localized for German and English languages. All other language versions of the game will display these scenarios in English.
* Eight all new Quick Battle Maps plus Seven updated and improved original Quick Battle Maps.
* Added all of the Quick Battle Maps for Spanish language version.
v1.05 NEW FEATURES:
* Flashes of light appear on objects near gunfire, explosions, rocket/missile flame, and burning vehicles at night and in low-light conditions.
* When placing a Target order, the LOS line turns yellow if it's generally clear, but not perfectly so. This means either *some* soldiers in the spotting unit may not have a clear LOS or *some* of the target zone may not be visible.
* If you point the cursor at a weapon in the "soldier display" user interface panel, the name of the weapon is displayed and that soldier is subtly highlighted in the main 3D display.
* A radio "squawk" sound plays when reinforcements arrive, when a "Touch" objective is touched, and when internet/LAN chat messages arrive.
* Artillery and air support targeting lines "highlight" to match the currently selected support unit in the "roster" view, so you can see who is shooting where.
* Added a hotkey to toggle camera shake on/off.
v1.05 IMPROVEMENTS:
* Soldiers do a better job moving to the "near" side of an exterior building corner not "beyond" it.
* Soldiers do a better job recovering important weapons and equipment from fallen comrades.
* Soldiers do a better job regrouping when separated from team members.
* Soldiers will make minor position adjustments to gain clear line of fire when possible.
* Soldiers using Hunt movement react quicker to incoming fire.
* Improved ammo selection logic versus armored targets whose armor has a mix of strong and weak points.
* During the process of placing waypoints, if you choose the Face command the last waypoint will automatically be highlighted so the Face command will apply to that last waypoint, not the current position. You are still able to manually select a waypoint and issue a Face order from there.
* Heavy weapons may now Deploy their weapons on rooftops.
* Marksmen, SAW and MG gunners open fire at longer ranges.
* M4A1 and AK-74 series small arms have effective range increased to 500m (from 400m). M4A1 rifle with scope effective range increased to 750m (from 600m).
* Troops try not to fire more than one guided missile at a time against a single enemy vehicle.
* Crew and passenger survivability increased when vehicles are knocked out, especially for Strykers, Bradleys, and M1 Abrams.
* Effectiveness of slat armor versus RPGs is increased.
* When acquiring (passenger) antitank weapons from a vehicle, infantry units use better logic to give "important" antitank weapons (e.g. Javelin) to the antitank specialist, even if it means he must swap other antitank weapons that are less important (e.g. M136/AT4) with other soldiers.
* Conscript and green troops have less discipline to conserve ammunition.
* It's slightly easier to spot soldiers who are firing their weapons than before.
* Buildings are harder to demolish by explosions.
* Accuracy of M229 Hydra-70 air-to-ground rockets (carried by US helicopters) is improved.
* Squads and Teams with orders to embark-move to a vehicle that has movement orders normally move to the spot where the vehicle has also been ordered to move, in order to meet up at the destination. However, if the vehicle is currently under "pause" orders, the squad/team will move directly to the vehicle's current location.
* Gunners on vehicles with autoloaders (M1128 Stryker MGS and T-72 tank) are less likely to switch over to using the MG immediately after firing the main gun.
* "Unit Lock" camera angles are improved, and track a vehicle's turret more than its hull facing.
* When a targeted unit disappears from line of sight, the targeting order is canceled (there is no longer a target line to the vanished unit's actual location)
* For nearby trees, the Alt-T tree hiding option does not hide the tree entirely; it just hides the leaves.
* When plotting artillery and air strikes, an invalid map click (e.g. out of LOS) is simply ignored rather than bouncing you out of the input sequence.
* You can embark troops on a vehicle by clicking the vehicle's icon (as well as the vehicle itself).
* Control-clicks on buildings move the camera position just like control-clicks on terrain (this feature is switched off inside the editor).
v1.05 BUG FIXES:
* Line of sight to buildings and rooftops works correctly now.
* Corrected a bug that allowed LOS/LOF to pass through the tops of tall walls.
* Corrected a problem that sometimes allowed spotting of vehicles through buildings.
* Corrected a "stuck soldier" animation issue (e.g. a soldier who could not move out of a trench).
* Corrected issues where individual soldiers would incorrectly move away from their teams.
* Improved stability for Internet/LAN games.
* Corrected a problem where some members of a vehicle team would take an unrealistically long time to bail out.
* When firing antitank rockets and missiles, soldiers who are not antitank specialists receive an accuracy or guidance penalty (exception: "secondary" launchers like the M136/AT4 and the RPG-18 can be fired by anyone without penalty).
* Corrected a problem where certain external doors to buildings would never be used.
* Soldiers make proper use of "interior" doors and open spaces between building units instead of moving the long way around.
* "Group box selecting" works better in Elite mode.
* Grenades explode correctly on building roofs.
* Vehicles are not shielded by hiding behind knocked-out armored vehicles.
* Smoke from a burning vehicle does not block mouse clicks to place waypoints.
* Fixed a bug that caused battles in Elite mode, on maps with lots of trees, to run very slowly.
* Corrected a problem in Elite mode where one could spot friendly soldiers but not the vehicle they are riding in, causing the look of "levitating troops".
* Vehicles with badly shot-up engines and/or running gear (but not quite immobilized) can still move (at a very slow pace) up hill or in rough terrain.
* Corrected a slight aiming problem versus buildings as area fire targets.
* Victory points are awarded for an "Occupy" objective only if the objective is totally cleared of enemy troops and friendly troops remain inside the objective at the end of the game.
* Corrected some problems with awarding points for Destroy, Preserve, and Touch Terrain Objectives.
* Fixed a crash problem that affected artillery in internet/LAN games.
* In turn-based mode replay, the 3D icon for vehicles does not prematurely show an infantry symbol if the vehicle is destroyed in that turn.
* Fixed a bug where in turn-based playback, sometimes a vehicle passenger's position would "lag" slightly behind the moving vehicle.
* Fixed various problems with 3D objects not reverting to their original states when replaying a turn-based turn's resolution.
* Soldiers animate correctly when prone and turning to the left; when exiting down a vehicle ramp; and at the start of the play-by-email replay phase.
* Corrected a problem where some squads suddenly lost Command & Control for no good reason.
* Weapons acquired from a vehicle are correctly loaded (e.g. M136AT4 launcher stored on Bradley).
* Fire and smoke from a burning vehicle appear in the correct location.
* In two-player games, player #2's initial camera view is placed correctly according to the scenario design.
* Fixed a problem with the choice of "mixed branch" in Quick Battles.
* Javelin flight path improved for short-range shots.
* Corrected an issue with the muzzle flash on the M1114-M240 vehicle.
* T-72M1V tank commander buttons up to use the remote-controlled 14.5mm MG.
* Haze graphics smoothly fade as the camera view moves up to higher elevations, allowing for better player control at long distances. It also corrects an issue where high camera elevations could not see map terrain at all under haze conditions.
* Fixed an issue that was causing the in-game FSAA option not to activate FSAA if the video card's control panel was set to "application controlled".
* Intro video plays on certain video cards where it was previously not visible.
PREVIOUS PATCH NOTES
--v1.04 Patch Features--
* CM:SF is more multi-processor/multi-core friendly. Workarounds like "setting affinity" to single-processor should not be needed any longer, although your system may be different.
* Improved frame rate, especially on large maps.
* Improved vehicle pathfinding.
* Various "stuck units" problems fixed.
* Corrected a problem with shots coming through ridgelines.
* Soldiers are much quicker to take up fighting stances and/or open fire when reaching a movement destination.
* When ordered to stop moving, soldiers halt immediately rather than look for best positions. This helps them avoid unnecessary casualties.
* Vehicles correctly respond to non-Movement Commands assigned to Waypoints.
* Area fire versus buildings properly spreads fire versus all locations on the indicated level.
* Soldiers are more likely to move through breaches blasted in building walls rather than close by doorways.
* The TacAI is generally more likely to open fire, especially with heavy grenade launchers. Previously the TacAI tried too hard to conserve ammunition.
* Troops do a better job facing in the direction implied by the end of a movement path.
* Troops cannot disembark through walls.
* "Target Light" works properly for infantry.
* Corrected a problem where a vehicle would button up due to incoming small arms fire, but then become overly reluctant to fire its own weapons.
* Corrected a problem where troops would not exit a vehicle because some other troops onboard were considered blocking exits even though they were not.
* When units are pinned (i.e. they can shoot but will not respond to movement orders) it is shown in the suppression meter display.
* Corrected some problems where teams within a squad were not properly coordinated for movement.
* Smoke grenades don't damage vehicles.
* Grenades are used properly (fixed a bug that made the range used too short).
* Antitank weapons like Javelins are less likely to be used during area fire (except versus buildings).
* Improved ground textures.
* Distant terrain looks smoother and less "blocky".
* Trenches and roads show up better at longer distances.
* Map elevations are displayed more accurately when viewed from long distances.
* Brush terrain is drawn out to greater distance.
* Computer player won't hold armored vehicles back so far in the rear.
* Antitank specialist is more likely to be the man who picks up an antitank weapon (say, when unloading a Javelin from a Stryker).
* Moving vehicles have reduced spotting capability.
* Blown-out building walls don't cause lots of ricochets as if the wall was still there.
* Fixed a bug that caused problems with splitting squads multiple times in turn-based games.
* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused a crash during game-save.
* Corrected a problem where multi-unit selecting a shaken/panicked unit would cause the multi-unit select to be canceled.
* Stryker smoke is now the correct color (white).
* "Game Paused" message is smaller and less obtrusive.
-- v1.03 Patch Features --
* LOS/LOF issues improved around areas like walls, buildings, and earthen berms.
* Fixed a bug that caused orders given in the setup phase to be ignored in Play-By-Email games.
* Vehicle pathfinding improved. It is important to note, however, that the slower speed commands will yield better results in more restricted terrain.
* Infantry no longer tends to wander into buildings except when specifically ordered to.
* Improved terrain graphics (the degree of improvement depends on your Texture Quality option, but note that the higher quality options run more slowly).
* Better unit placement in Quick Battles.
* A new "Show All Move Paths" key added to the Hotkeys Menu.
* Fixes to the "stuck soldier" problem.
* Fixes to the "stuck unit" problem.
* By default, infantry moving "Slow" (i.e. crawling) do not stand up and run to their destinations after halting for any reason.
* "Adjust Artillery Mission" function is fixed, along with other minor artillery bugs.
* Gunners are less likely to use high-explosive rather than armor-piercing ammo against armored targets.
* Improved anti-tank missile accuracy, especially with the Javelin ATGM.
* Clicking on enemy soldiers that were not previous spotted are no longer shown.
* Very slight downward adjustment to M1 Abrams tank front armor strength.
* Javelin missile armor penetration increased modestly.
* Speed of the autoloaders on the T-72 and the Stryker MGS are reduced.
* Soldiers do a better job staying prone when under fire in the open.
* TacAI is more likely to fire on prone infantry.
* Computer player is less likely to use slow/crawling movement with its troops.
* Syrian troops (except forward observers) cannot call in artillery.
* Blast movement now works properly.
* Fixed a bug where a soldier sometimes uses a Blue Force specialty icon in the UI when it should be Red, or vice-versa.
* Improved seated poses for certain crewmen of M1 MBT, pickup trucks, taxis.
* MMGs rarely, if ever, fire single-round bursts.
* Clicking on an enemy's C2 display no longer switches to its HQ unit.
* Fixed "choppy" sound from vehicles when turning.
-- v1.02 Patch Features --
* For recent ATI video cards a new option for "ATI left-click compatibility" has been added in the game Options Panel. Setting this option to ON (default setting is OFF) solves a crash problem unrelated to Combat Mission. If you have an ATI video card, yet never experienced mouse click problems with earlier versions, it is recommended that you do not use this feature because clicks are not registered as precisely. We are in contact with ATI and hope they fix the problems with a new driver release sometime soon.
* New game "Priority Setting" option setting has been added in the game Option Panel. This option instructs Windows to assign "normal" application priority or "high" application priority to the game when it is run. The "normal" setting can fix lagging mouse and/or keyboard input issues for some systems. The "high" setting is recommended if you have not experienced any input lag problems. The "high" priority option allows Combat Mission to use more system resources and may result in better performance.
* Alt-Tab now resets the screen to the original desktop display resolution (and back again) if different than the screen resolution setting in Combat Mission's Options Panel.
* Better vehicle defensive TacAI.
* Corrected a longstanding problem with sporadic inaccuracy of ATGMs. It was the result of the dust kicked up from the missile's own launch backblast. Sometimes it obscured the gunner's vision and (unfairly) stopping him from guiding the missile properly.
* Corrected bugs in smoothness of ATGM flight path.
* Infantry ATGMs reload more slowly.
* Shaped-charge explosives (such as ATGMs) have a reduced radius of effect for shrapnel/fragments.
* Infantry will often seek better nearby cover on their own if they come under heavy fire.
* TacAI is more likely to open fire on enemy armored vehicles.
* Commands may be issued when paused in Elite mode.
* Fixed a bug that sometimes caused smoke to not block LOS when it should have.
* Fixed a bug that caused parts of weapons to be positioned in strange ways during the reload animation.
* Support units (e.g. artillery) in the process of receiving a cease fire command cannot be given further orders until the cease fire occurs (this also fixes a crash bug).
* F5-F8 keys are now Command Category Keys and will jump directly to the Command Panel.
- F5 Brings up the Movement Command Group
- F6 Brings up the Combat Command Group
- F7 Brings up the Special Command Group
- F8 Brings up the Admin Command Group
* New customizable hotkeys with more "direct keys" added. These keys issue a specific command no matter what command group is shown in the onscreen command panel. See further below for more information about editing hotkeys.
* Blank entries are now allowed in the hotkeys.txt file. In the past this would cause a crash when loading a battle.
* After using a "high level" menu button (e.g. Save) in the command panel, the display flips back to command buttons.
* Replaced English language Tutorial Campaign with a native French language one for the French version of the game.
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"SILENCE, I KILL YOU!!" - Achmed the Dead Terrorist
AKA: Staark or Staark_RLG