Le Quartier Général

The V1.1 patch for Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets will be released soon. Patch Notes are below, but please check out the illustrated PDF version of the Patch Notes which the patch will install in the game and Manuals directory. Version 1.1 will invalidate current PBEM games.
Kharkov version 1.1 Patch Notes

Policy Statement
SSG will definitely be releasing future games and scenarios using the Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets system, which system we propose to rename Decisive Battles on the Eastern Front: 1941-1945. This will distinguish it from previous Decisive Battles games while still acknowledging its heritage.

As we have stated in various online forums, SSG will maintain Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets, and scenarios released by SSG for the Decisive Battles on the Eastern Front system to the latest version of the system. The next commercial release will be Across the Dnepr, a scenario originally created for the Korsun Pocket game. Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets will be updated to take advantage of the improvements made to the system for Across the Dnepr. Both Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets and Across the Dnepr will be updated when future games and scenarios are released.

SSG will also be doing its best to redo older games to the Decisive Battles on the Eastern Front system. The first to be released will be the Operation Husky scenario from the Battles in Italy game. SSG will be releasing this as a free scenario, updated to the current Decisive Battles on the Eastern Front standard, in the not too distant future. The other Battles in Italy scenarios, Operation Avalanche and Operation Shingle will follow later, and will also be released as free scenarios. Older SSG games that were not created at the 4km/hex scale that Decisive Battles on the Eastern Front: 1941-1945 uses are not currently candidates for the upgrade process.

Improvements and Enhancements

1. After long and hard labor the system has been expanded to allow variant units to be added to the Mystery Variant system. This means that in one variant a unit could be overstrength yet in another it could be understrength, thus increasing variability and reducing certainty. The scenario designer can also choose to remove units from the OB.

2. After equally long labor, the system has been expanded to allow entirely new formations, i.e. formations entirely absent from the historical scenario to be included in one or more variants. The 3rd Guards Rifle Corps, a completely fresh formation, will now appear for the Russians in Variant 3 of Kharkov. Furthermore, the starting location of any unit can be changed in any variant.

3. Restrictions have been added to prevent the inspection of enemy OB screens from giving away variant information.

4. Refit is now an explicit action ordered by the player by using a button on the Unit Action Area. To be eligible for Refit, a unit must have a Combat Action, have not moved in the current turn, be in Supply, be in HQ Command Radius, be not adjacent to enemy territory (not just enemy units) and be in a state where it can benefit from the Refit action. The Refit action delivers the following benefits. The unit will Entrench, (but will not Hedgehog). Any Timed Replacements will be accelerated by one turn. If the unit has no Timed Replacements left, and has at least one step loss then there is a chance, that a casualty will be replaced by a free step, this chance is specified by the unit’s HQ. The unit will receive a number of bonus attack bullets (as specified by its formation HQ). There is a display on the HQ Unit Display that shows the chance a step will be refitted and if any refitting has been attempted then a note of the successes is also displayed.


5. A unit that starts a turn in an unsupplied hex has a chance each turn of losing a can of Defensive Supply, (as if it had been attacked), even though it wasn’t attacked in the previous turn. This chance is highest for Sub-standard units, and lowest for Elite and varies by Country. The rule that limits the loss of Defensive Supply to one bullet per turn, regardless of cause, still applies.

6. Any unit that switches enemy controlled terrain to contested terrain control loses the ability to Undo its move. This replaces the previous rule where the Undo was only negated by exposing enemy units.

7. A HQ’s command radius is now extended along Major road, Minor road and Railroad hexes if they are more than 10 hexes away from enemy hexes, allowing reinforcing units to get maximum OP’s when moving up from the rear areas. Lesser roads do not get this ability.

8. If an Artillery unit is spotted by the enemy for counter-battery fire, then each hex that the Artillery unit moves, after firing, has a 25% chance of removing the counter-battery sighting.

9. Placing a Detachment does not get rid of Entrenched status, if the unit is already Entrenched.

10. Any unit at sea is now deemed to be in HQ Command Radius regardless of the state of the HQ. The HQ does not have to be active.

11. Any air dropping unit is now deemed to be in HQ Command Radius on the turn that it drops. The normal command rules apply from the turn after it drops.

12. The Unknown Unit structure has totally changed. There are now Unknown Unit types within the editor that can be applied to the units in the scenario. All previous Kharkov system scenarios will lose their Unknown units, (if they were implemented) and they will have to be re-entered. The good news here is that it is far easier to enter now and much more efficient.

13. Areas of Operations now restrict the command radius of HQs.

14. Players may now set the color and the intensity of the shading of Areas of Operation shading in the Options Screen at the start of the game (this cannot be changed in-game).

15. Partisan Interdiction can effect the HQ Command Radius. Suppressed Partisan Interdiction will have no effect.

16. A new button has been added to HQs. It allows the player to set the Leave Flag for all units in the formation with one button click. Once set, the Next and Next/Leave buttons in the Unit Control Area will ignore the units. Once set, the same button on the HQ will clear these flags, thus enabling all formation units to be moved again using the Next and Next/Leave buttons. This is particularly useful when dealing with large numbers of units, some of which may not be able to participate in the battle for some time, such as some Russian formations in Across the Dnepr.

17. Objectives that allow an HQ to choose a new region can be in an AND or ANY state. If in an AND state, all objectives have to be owned to trigger the new AO. In an ANY state, any one objective being owned will trigger validity.

18. Changes have been made to the OMA screen to help identify the on-map location of units in the same Regiment and Formation as an arriving unit.

19. The game and editor manuals as well as the quick reference guides have been updated to reflect changes in the patch. These documents, along with AI and AO editor tutorials, can be found in the Manuals folder of the game installation.

Fixes

1. Surrender in combat, will not cost the attacker any Attack Bullets.
2. Stacks that surrender will not be able to leave Detachments or Combat Residue in their hex.
3. Units which surrender are not eligible to return to the game except HQs which are always allowed to return.
4. Fixed the problem with the AO of the Russian 23rd Tank Corps not changing when Izyum is captured.


Gregor

_____________________________

Vice President, Strategic Studies Group
See http://www.ssg.com.au and http://www.ssg.com.au/forums/
for info and free scenarios.

Matrix Games et SSG ont mis en ligne une nouvelle mise à jour pour : Disaster on the Donets. Ce patch amène de nombreuses améliorations au jeu, une petite vingtaine dont par exemple de nouvelles formations, des variations pour les unités et OOB, une extension du ravitaillement des HQ, un ordre de Refit, des partisans pouvant nuire aux HQ, ou encore une mise à jour du manuel. Quatre bugs sont aussi corrigés. Par la même occasion SSG confirme qu’il réalisera dans le futur de nouveaux jeux et scénarios utilisant le système de Kharkov, système qui prendra le nom de Decisive Battles on the Eastern Front 1941-1945. Operation Husky, un scénario pour Battles in Italy devrait sortir gratuitement et très prochainement. Suivront Operation Avalanche et Operation Shingle. Les jeux n’ayant pas été réalisés sur une base de 4 km par hexagone ne pourront être adapté pour Decisive Battles on the Eastern Front 41-45. La prochaine grosse production sera un remake de Across the Dnepr, initialement un scénario pour le jeu Korsun Pocket. Sommes toutes, une bien bonne nouvelle pour les fans de Decisive Battles.

http://www.cyberstratege.com/magazine/2 ... rkov-dotd/

Pumba1968 a écrit :Un nouveau scénario avec Kirovograd, Ukraine, janvier 1944, jouable en PBEM et contre l'IA.

Pumba1968 a écrit :Tu me diras s'il est bien pour mériter sa place sur mon HD.

Pumba1968 a écrit :Aucune possibilité de manoeuvre restreint mon inventivité; pas terrible comme scénario...

Here at SSG we have a long standing tradition of simultaneously announcing good and bad news.

The bad news is that Across the Dnepr will be delayed until some time next year. The good news is that the heart attack suffered by Ian Trout (which is the cause of the delay), was a very minor one, requiring no surgery or other intervention. It will require Ian to take things easy for a little while, so ATD will take a little while longer.

This doesn't mean that work will stop, Ian tells me that he has created over 400 operations for the Soviet AI alone, and he and Roger have worked out a new AI card that will improve the AI's use of artillery outside of actual combats.

So work continues. ATD is a huge game, and the AI for it is commensurately massive, but as its the last task to do to finish the game, the end is in sight, just not quite as close as we all would like.

Gregor

Between 1st Jan and 15th Mar 1945 no fewer than 5 German offensives took place in Hungary – the destruction of the Garam Soviet bridgehead, Spring Awakening and 3 attempts to relieve Budapest. This scenario recreates the 3 major offensives designed to relieve encircled Budapest and recapture the eastern sector of the Margit Line – Operation’s Konrad I,II and III.

Contrary to popular assumption these offensives were not intended to rescue the garrison; but move further forces into Hungary for Hitler’s final stand, however, with a view to giving the Axis player 2 paths to victory – both strategies can be successful in this recreation.

Players familiar with Kharkov will notice a few design elements that are quite different to what they may be used to. I will attempt to clarify them here so you can appreciate the thought process behind them.
1. Only the Budapest Garrison and 8th and 20th Panzer Divisions are worth vp’s if eliminated. The idea here is to allow the Axis player a way to keep a sizable vp total out of Soviet hands and a chance of a victory if he feels he must evacuate Budapest. Budapest is quite valuable, but its capture will only give the Soviets a crushing victory if they reduce the garrison too. The 11th and 20th Panzer Divisions are withdrawn mid-game. By allocating points we can stop the Axis player committing them to destruction before withdrawal and resulting in unlikely last minute offensives. This feature was debated hotly as I know many players like to get points for unit kills, but I hope you can understand the reasoning and the way it makes the Soviet player focus on the objectives rather than taking the easy option of concentrating all forces on the relief and none on the siege.
2. Last turn VP point for objectives. Many locations in this game award vp’s only if held at the end of the game. As you play you will notice a tendency for the Axis to make rapid advances, capturing a lot of territory in a few turns. Generally, by the end of the game, the Soviet player will have recaptured most of these. Last turn only points ensure the Axis fight to keep hold of territory gained and the Soviets race to the more distant locations as the clock runs out – ensuring a well paced game. There are some locations that give a one off vp dump to the Axis if captured. These represent locations that if captured indicate the Axis offensive is going to plan. The big ones (Szentrendre and Erd) were locations that if captured provided an anchor to keep the city open, they are big rewards for difficult objectives and ensure the Soviet player keeps the locations defended to the last – but after the locations fall the Soviets need to reassess their offensive objectives since it’s likely the Budapest ring defence has been broken. There are also 4 supply points on the outskirts of western Budapest. If captured these will supply the garrison after their initial supplies run out. They start off in Soviet hands and it is wise not to lose them once the German breakout is triggered by the approaching relief forces; to do so will make it very hard for the Soviets to reduce Budapest. These locations do not represent a cache of supplies and weapons etc, however, are an indication that the ring around Budapest has been broken and supplies are getting in – either by air now airfields are out of Soviet artillery range or through gaps in the Soviet line.
3. Terrain: The major river is the Danube and is impassable except at fords or bridges. Fords are represented as discoloured river sections and have the same penalties as minor rivers. Some hex sides are rugged and afford the same benefits as the full hex hex side. Play with ‘cliffs’ on to see them easily. The battle took place in snowy conditions; however, I have reserved the white map for periods of heavy ground snow. The top of the map is east.
4. Units: All units are based on a direct comparison to the standard soviet infantry unit and the T-34/76 from Kharkov. Direct armour defence has been given to units equipped with Schurzen and of course, heavy tanks like the IS-II and King Tiger. The comparisons were done with the aid of ASL references and do highlight some interesting differences in the way these units should now be used.
Also included are 5 extra scenarios designed to challenge the experienced player or explore a number of plausible ‘what if’ situations
1. Additional German Forces: 10th SS, 20th Pz, 3rd Kav, 257th VG, 79th VG, 167th VG are available. This assumes that some of the units fed into the Ardennes offensive (to little benefit) were used to bolster the attack in Hungary.
2. Larger German Offensive: 10th SS, 76th and 167th VG at start BUT 20th Pz and 3 Kav are not received. Soviets do not get 104th,122nd,35th gds, 113th and 74th rifle, 23rd Tk Corps. This assumes an earlier Frehlingserwachsen. Including attacks by 2nd Pz armee and Armeegruppe F on the RHS of the map.
3. The soviets prepared:All 18th Tk Corps are set up near Bicske. 32nd Mot Brigade replaced by 10th Gds Rifle. 1st Mech set up west of Danube at Szent Endre. Reinforcements are 1 turn earlier. No german surprise.
4. As above but with surprise (Soviets partially prepared).
5. Operation Paula – main attack from the south (right of map), but fuel problems occur 2 turns earlier and the game ends 2 turns sooner.
An AI is included for the main game only and will be improved over time.

Pumba1968 a écrit :Celui-ci incluera les 3 scenarii gratuits...

Matrix Games News Release
For Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets


Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets Gets a Major Update
A major new update to the famed gaming system is advancing side-by-side with the newly released expansion!

Matrix Games and Strategic Studies Group (www.ssg.com.au) are pleased to release the comprehensive 1.20 update for Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets. The update includes three new free scenarios (Operation Konrad, Operation Husky, and Kirovograd), several major rule changes, UI and controls improvements like an "Entrench All" button, and some bug fixes.



The update's release coincides with the release of Across the Dnepr: Second Edition a new expansion for Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets!





David Heath, Director of Operations at Matrix Games, said "This is a gigantic update for Kharkov fans. Apart from reaping the benefits of all the engine improvements SSG has been hard at work on for Across the Dnepr: Second Edition, the three new free scenarios will surely keep armchair generals busy for quite a while! We hope that this encourages Kharkov owners to also try the new Across the Dnepr: Second Edition expansion, which presents players with one of the best operational challenges in wargaming."



Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets is the latest strategy title from the award-winning team at Strategic Studies Group. A synthesis of the very best elements of two critically acclaimed and top-rated game systems, Decisive Battles and Battlefront, and a successor to both, the new Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets brings to life a campaign of epic scale and dynamic battles on the Eastern Front of World War II.



Command the Soviet forces, newly confident after stopping and throwing back the Barbarossa offensive, or try the elite and seasoned German army now reconstituted after winter losses and ready to regain the initiative. Two separate forces prepared offensives in the same area in the spring of 1942. When the dust had cleared the Germans had managed a great victory that opened the doors to the drive on Stalingrad. But the outcome was far from certain and in Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets, history is yours to rewrite!



Get the update here. This update is comprehensive and will bring all previous versions to 1.20.


Kharkov: Disaster on the Donets

Discussion Forum

Lafrite a écrit :Pour ce prix là tu as un rise of prussia 'pas WW2' flambant neuf

Lafrite a écrit :Pour ce prix là tu as un rise of prussia 'pas WW2' flambant neuf

Pumba1968 a écrit :Entre le système des DB, de K: DotD et TOAW3, il n'y a pas photo...Je préfère largement les premiers!!! C'est comme comparer une RR à une 2 CV... SSG Power... J'ai beau lire et relire le manuel de TOAW3 afin de m'imprégner des règles, il subsiste néanmoins des aspects nébuleux. Et ce n'est pas un problème de langue...

Pumba1968 a écrit : Faut que je me fasse une PBEM de K: DotD pour enfin découvrir le jeu

Pumba1968 a écrit : Faut que je me fasse une PBEM de K: DotD pour enfin découvrir le jeu

ça m'intéresse si ça te dit

Pumba1968 a écrit :Tiens jagounet, t'as jeté un oeil sur le scénar de 500 tours sur le Vietnam? Sur un tour/sem, je pense que l'on peut rattraper des erreurs alors que sur un tour/mois, cela doit être rédhibitoire...Est-il seulement jouable en PBEM?

Pumba1968 a écrit :

Pumba1968 a écrit : Faut que je me fasse une PBEM de K: DotD pour enfin découvrir le jeu

ça m'intéresse si ça te dit

Tu veux jouer les Rouges ou les nazis? K: DotD, le scénario classique avec météo aléatoire. Rythme tranquille, 2 à 3 tours/sem. Au fait, c'est qui l'attaquant déjà?

jmlo a écrit :

Pumba1968 a écrit :

Pumba1968 a écrit : Faut que je me fasse une PBEM de K: DotD pour enfin découvrir le jeu

ça m'intéresse si ça te dit

Tu veux jouer les Rouges ou les nazis? K: DotD, le scénario classique avec météo aléatoire. Rythme tranquille, 2 à 3 tours/sem. Au fait, c'est qui l'attaquant déjà?

Le russe (que j'aimerai bien jouer ) mais l'allemand peut contre-attaquer au bout de quelque tours.

Pour rythme ça me convient (tout me convient du moment que c'est pas trop intensif ! )

jagermeister a écrit :

Pumba1968 a écrit :Tiens jagounet, t'as jeté un oeil sur le scénar de 500 tours sur le Vietnam? Sur un tour/sem, je pense que l'on peut rattraper des erreurs alors que sur un tour/mois, cela doit être rédhibitoire...Est-il seulement jouable en PBEM?

On sera morts de vieillesse avant d'en venir à bout.