Paths of Glory
Tips When Updating Module
Vassal Module development is a bit "wild west", in that anyone can jump in and do it, and anyone can upload a new one to the server! So by all means jump in and help! BUT, there are a few "delicate" aspects of updating a Paths of Glory module, and this file lists a few steps that "if followed" will make everyone's life easier. They are also documented here lest we forget them ourselves! -- Brian Reynolds, 2019
FIRST AND FOREMOST!
Most importantly, the three "Scenario" saves must be created afresh whenever there have been any significant changes to prototypes and internal logic. The "Refresh Counters" function is NOT sufficient, as there are aspects which this cannot touch! Therefore each of the three scenarios must be created again manually - frustrating, but only takes about 5 minutes.
Step 0 - (Optional-but-Recommended) See if the coast is clear!
- Email the person listed in the "Credits and Docs" entry as the current maintainer of the module and make sure they're not about to drop a giant new version or something. You don't want to do a bunch of work for nothing, etc. If two people are going to do work on the module, it's best for them to trade it back and forth for periods of time so that only one person is editing the module at the same time -- there is no practicable way to "merge changes" between two versions.
Step 1 - Update Deluxe Historical Scenario
- Start with a "fresh VASSAL boot" of the module
- From File/Scenario menu, select "Custom Game". Do NOT select the Deluxe Historical Scenario, which will load the old now-tainted save!
- Join as "observer" and select "Deluxe Historical Map".
- Click on any unit to select it, then press Alt+Shift+Ctrl+C. Wait a few seconds. This will force all units to be "recentered" in their spaces, and will prevent the arrival of new reinforcements/rebuilds/etc from failing to stack with units already on the spaces. This is necessary because the "At-Start Stacks" can only be specified in X/Y coordinates rather than by the proper region names.
- From the CP Mobilization deck, fish out the Guns of August Card, and if necessary put the rest of the cards back.
- Right+Click Guns of August card, and select "Play Event". This will put GoA card in Removed pile and update war status.
- Manually put a Destroyed Fort marker on Liege, preferably "artfully covering the fort number but not the space name", and a CP Control marker as well.
- Move GE1 and GE2 to Liege, preferably stacking GE1 on top.
- Activate the Liege and Koblenz stacks for attack (select each stack and press Ctrl+A).
- "Save Game As..." and pick an appropriate save file name e.g. DeluxeHistorical9-2-3
- In the module editor, find the "Scenarios" entry at the bottom.
- Edit the Historical Scenario (Deluxe Map) entry
- Use the "Select File" button to replace the save with your newly created one.
Step 2 - Update Campaign (Classic Map) Scenario
- From File/Scenario menu, select "Custom Game". Do NOT select the Classic Scenario, which will load the old now-tainted save!
- Join as "observer" and select "Classic Map".
- IN THE MODULE EDITOR, find the "Variant" entry near the top of Global Properties. Temporarily change this value to 0 (it's normally 1). This will display the "classic" VP sites rather than the "historical" ones.
- Click on any unit to select it, then press Alt+Shift+Ctrl+C. Wait a few seconds. This will force all units to be "recentered" in their spaces, and will prevent the arrival of new reinforcements/rebuilds/etc from failing to stack with units already on the spaces. This is necessary because the "At-Start Stacks" can only be specified in X/Y coordinates rather than by the proper region names.
- From the CP Mobilization deck, fish out the Guns of August Card, and if necessary put the rest of the cards back.
- Place the Guns of August card on the Discard Pile.
- "Save Game As..." and pick an appropriate save file name e.g. Classic9-2-3
- In the module editor, find the "Scenarios" entry at the bottom.
- Edit the Campaign Scenario entry
- Use the "Select File" button to replace the save with your newly created one.
- VERY IMPORTANT! Change the "Variant" entry back to 1! Do this AFTER saving out your Game but BEFORE saving the module or proceeding to step 3 below.
Step 3 - Update Historical (Classic Map) Scenario
- Start with a "fresh VASSAL boot" of the module
- From File/Scenario menu, select "Custom Game". Do NOT select the Historical Scenario, which will load the old now-tainted save!
- Join as "observer" and select "Deluxe Historical Map".
- Make sure the Historical VP sites are showing (e.g. Kovno should be a VP site, Minsk should not) -- otherwise make sure "Variant" entry in Global Properties is set to 1.
- Click on any unit to select it, then press Alt+Shift+Ctrl+C. Wait a few seconds. This will force all units to be "recentered" in their spaces, and will prevent the arrival of new reinforcements/rebuilds/etc from failing to stack with units already on the spaces. This is necessary because the "At-Start Stacks" can only be specified in X/Y coordinates rather than by the proper region names.
- From the CP Mobilization deck, fish out the Guns of August Card, and if necessary put the rest of the cards back.
- Right+Click Guns of August card, and select "Play Event". This will put GoA card in Removed pile and update war status
- Manually put a Destroyed Fort marker on Liege, preferably "artfully covering the fort number but not the space name" and a CP Control marker as well.
- Move GE1 and GE2 to Liege, preferably stacking GE1 on top.
- Activate the Liege and Koblenz stacks for attack (select each stack and press Ctrl+A)
- "Save Game As..." and pick an appropriate save file name e.g. Historical9-2-3
- In the module editor, find the "Scenarios" entry at the bottom.
- Edit the Historical Scenario (Classic Map) entry
- Use the "Select File" button to replace the save with your newly created one.
Step 4 - Optional But Recommended - adjust Change List and Credits
- Extract the "notes.html" and "changelist.html" from the vmod file. (You can temporarily rename the .vmod to a .zip file to make it easier to view/extract files, then rename it back)
- Update the notes.html as appropriate. Add your name to the credits near the top. Mark yourself as the current maintainer of the module ("you break it, you buy it!")
- Update the changelist.html to add your new changes to the top. Leave the old changelist notes there (unless you're doing a sweeping revision).
- In the Module Editor, find the "Help Menu" section near the top. Edit the "Credits and Docs" and "Change List" entries, and use "Select File" to insert your new versions of each file.
Step 5 - Save Your Module Out
Step 6 - Test Module Even More ("Just In Case")
Step 7 - Upload to the Paths of Glory Vassal Module page
Step 8 - Relax and Enjoy!