I’ve created a new .VMOD with added small colored stripes through all the German divisional unit counters. I was finding it more than tedious to try to match up battalion breakdown units as well as find the proper HQ during solo play. The worst was the 198th and 196th, both light divisions with identical counter mix, and the scanned counters are a tad fuzzy, so I was having a lot of trouble!
I’ll do the same for the identical Allied regiments; the two French mountain and the 2-3 brit regiments that are all the same ( 3 x 3-4). But I don’t know how to post this “improved” module - happy to have it reviewed by others, first.
I’d like to make a few other changes, but one small step at a time!
A good tool in VASSAL, to help users locate units, is the Game Piece Inventory Window. Using that, you can make a hierarchy of pieces based on properties defined in the pieces. For example, you could have
Piece: German 19th infantry division HQ
MarkTrait: name = Faction, value = German
MarkTrait: name = Division, value = 19
MarkTrait: name = Type, value = headquarters
MarkTrait: name = Echelon, value = division
Piece: German 196th infantry battalion, 19th infantry division
When a user double-clicks the entries, the map will scroll to put that unit into view.
You are a bit out of luck, because of VASSAL’s Switching to the New Module Library. Previously, what you would need to do was to follow this page, but all that will soon change. How that will change is, as yet, unknown. Hopefully we will know more by the end of May 2025.
Given that you are modifying an existing module (Narvick), perhaps you should try to get hold of the author (@lasse_espel) and see if there’s something you can collaborate on.
Thanks @cholmcc I will reach out to Lasse and try to follow the formatting guidelines. VASSAL is a terrific tool a great gateway for the broader gaming community. So, the change will happen by this summer?
@lasse_espel I’d like to try to update the Narvik module. I’ve already color-coded the German’s divisional units, and will finish up the French and British regiments.
First tips I’d ask for:
confirmation that I can mess with the v0.3 module all I like on my own;
any way to version proof changes to be compatible as the Engine updates;
best, simplest developer tools for a guy who hasn’t written code in over a decade.
Though this message was meant for Lasse, I’ll give a few thoughts. Perhaps you want to Private Message Lasse - either through the forum or by email. Oh, and perhaps make your modified module available so that people can take a look and give suggestions.
Chances are, that most of what you do will be forward-compatible - at least until VASSAL 4 is a reality
To increase the probability of forward compatibility, reduce the amount of Java custom code - if any. Instead, try to use VASSAL traits, elements, BeanShell, and so on. If you do use Java custom code, make the source public so that others may do the actual rebuild - for example by including the code in the module directly, or via some public (Git) repository.
Hi @cholmcc. Sorry to be such an immature user, but how do I upload the image files for others to review? This app window will only accept .jpg or .gif file types, not .zip’s or a document folder. I can upload just the changed images for those parts (G-divisional units, Fr/Brit regimentals), or the entire set of 408 images. @lasse_espel any preference?
Last answer: no, I’m not sure at all I’d have to write code to add click-boxes to the module, and I’d rather not! It was an example; please point me to the simplest module-tool given the fact I don’t write code.
Module files are ZIP archives. If you open a module file in a program such as 7Zip, you’ll see an images/ directory inside it, which is where the images are.
I don’t think this forum is the right place for that. Perhaps you can put the images - if not the entire module - on some file-sharing platform a la Google Drive, Dropbox, or something like that.
What do you mean by “click-boxes”, exactly? And where in the module do you have a need for something like that? I’m not sure what you are asking about.
