War on the Sea News

4 New Carriers and UI improvements

For full details on this update, see below:
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1280780/announcements/detail/3055122329837326939

Update 1.08g2 is now LIVE.
This update contains several major UI improvements, 4 new carrier classes along with other general fixes and improvements.


Full change log below:


21 Oct 2021

Roster Sorting
Left click and drag unit tabs to reorder the roster list. Changing the order sorts units and impacts their positions in formations. For example, rearranging the list and placing those units in Line Ahead formation places ships in positions as indicated by the roster list order.
- config.txt added "enableRosterSort":true to enable left click and drag to re-sort unit roster tabs




Roster Shift Click Selection
Shift Click on a roster tab now selects all units between the one clicked and the current player controlled unit. Similarly, clicking a selected unit de-selects these relevant units.




Destroyed units now automatically "fall" to the bottom of the roster list.
- config.txt added "dropDestroyedRosterTabs":true to automatically shift destroyed Ships/Aircraft to the bottom of the roster list.

Mouse over aircraft unit tabs now displays name/type of aircraft

Map Shift Click Selection
Shift click on a map contact now selects/deselects it. Shift clicking on a unit of a different type (Sea vs Air) will switch control to that unit. This makes "Selection" mode obsolete and it will be removed soon.

Map Box Selection
While holding Shift, left click and drag on map for box selection. Units within the box will be selected.
- Selecting units of a type different to the controlled unit, will switch control to the first unit of the other type. For example, if controlling a ship and a selection box is drawn around aircraft, control switches to the first aircraft and any others within the box are also selected.
- If both Sea and Air units are within the selection box, Sea takes precedence.
- config.txt added "boxSelectAutoSwitch":true to automatically switch between Sea/Air units based on selection area. If both Sea and Air units selected, Sea takes precedence. If false, only units of the same type as the current player controlled unit are selected.
- interface/images/map added selectionSquare.png
- interface/styles added "MapSelectionSquare" reference for the selection box




Map Rulers Key Re-mapped
Shift Key no longer displays rulers on tactical or strategic maps, use backslash "\" instead.
- default/interface modified "MapRuler=Backslash" in keybindsNUMPAD and keybindsWASD to remove use of shift key as default and change to backslash



4 New Ship Classes
Lexington, Wasp, Zuiho and Ryujo classes added
- unit/sea added folders for lexington, wasp, zuiho, ryujo
- materials/other added material references for Lexington, Wasp, Zuiho, Ryujo
- language/english/unit/sea added language files for lexington, wasp, zuiho, ryujo
- unit/sea/allUnitsList.txt added references for lexington, wasp, zuiho, ryujo
- campaign/campaignXXX/seaUnits.txt added references to lexington, wasp, zuiho, ryujo to add them to existing campaigns




4 New Single Missions
- language/english/missions/pacific.txt edited mission list to add new Missions and edit names of several existing missions
- missions/pacific added new mission files "coralseaShoho.txt", "coralseaLex.txt", "sinkingWasp.txt", "sinkingRyujo.txt" which involve the 4 new ship classes



GENERAL
Searchlight Lighting added to Options/Video
Options/Video added checkbox for complex searchlight lighting
- optionsDefault.txt added "complexSearchlights":true to have searchlight lighting on by default
- If performance issues are experienced with new searchlight lighting, turn this checkbox off in-game under Options/Video.




Ship Fixes:
unit/sea/aoba/aoba_model.txt corrected cavitation position
unit/sea/takao/takao.model.txt corrected torpedo mount rotations
unit/sea/ corrected torpedo launcher meshes for fubuki, akatsuki, hastuharu

Compartment Repair Times cannot be overridden with a lower value



CAMPAIGN
Day counter added to strategic map time panel to assist with knowing when supplies will arrive at home ports
- language/english/dictionary/general.txt added "CurrentDay=Day:"

Campaign strategic map: Arrow keys pan the map about

This update introduces searchlights into the game. Full change log below:



5 Oct 2021

Placing multiple way points on mini map fixed (bug introduced 1.08f9)

"refundPostRepair:true" correctly refunds multiple merchant ship command point values


Further Searchlights Improvements
Searchlights no longer track sinking ships

Ships using searchlights or illuminated by star shells or searchlights have "illumination bonus" to being spotted and solution calculations applied against them;
- spotted bonus is +20%
- solution calculation bonus is config.txt "tmaIlluminationBonus":0.2

config.txt increased "searchlightDistance":6000 distance in metres at which searchlights are used and provide the illumination bonus
- all ships automatically turn off searchlights if target is beyond config.txt "searchlightDistance":6000 so as not to incurr this illumination penalty for no reason

default/language/english/dictionary/message_log.txt modified AllUseSearchlight to clarify range usage of searchlights

AI retreating ships turn off searchlights

A ship illuminated by star shells, searchlights or using its own searchlights is considered "illuminated" and will not have additional star shells fired at it by AI ships or when using Fire At Will mode




29 Sep 2021 (Beta)

GENERAL

Searchlights Added
At night, searchlights will point at the target of a unit and provide additional illumination bonus to solution if the target is within the specified distance.

Orders panel added toggle to enable/disable searchlight use by selected units (on by default)
- available only at night and for ships with searchlights specified in ship_model.txt
- default/interface/styles.txt modified CombatTogglesBase and CombatTogglesActive to add searchlight toggle references
- default/interface/images/ui added searchlight.png and searchlightActive.png
- default/language/english/dictionary/general.txt added "SearchlightToggle=Searchlights"

config.txt added searchlight variables;
- "enableSearchlights":true to enable/disable use of searchlights
- "searchlightTint":{"r":230,"g":230,"b":255,"a":204} sets color/transparency of light beams
- "searchlightNumber":2 defines the number of searchlights a ship will aim at target
- "searchlightDistance":5000 distance in metres at which searchlights provide an illumination bonus (bonus = 0.5 x config.txt "tmaIlluminationBonus":0.2)

All default/unit/sea/ship_model.txt files;
- added "searchlightPositions" parameters to specify positions of searchlights
- added "searchlightQuadrants" to specify quadrants searchlights use
- With ship in the middle heading up, quadrants are:

     4
0    ^     2
1    |     3
     5

4 looks in 2 fore quadrants 0, 2 (used to specify lights at the front of a ship)
5 looks in 2 aft quadrants 1, 3 (used to specify lights at the rear of a ship)

AutoGunnery (on player ships) will select the target if there is not a current target selected (or if the ship is not currently under direct player control)

All Drop button now correctly works with aerial depth charges
- language/english/dictionary/message_log.txt added DropAllDepthCharge valriable

Fixed a bug where AI way points were not correctly assigned during retreat actions



CAMPAIGN
Retreating AI Task Forces should no longer get stuck on the strategic map
Fixed a bug where taking over a location could fail resulting in duplication of cargo that was unloaded

This beta introduces searchlights.


To opt into the beta:

1) Right click War on the Sea in your Steam library, go to properties/betas and you should have new tabs listing other available versions.

2) Password to access the beta is: warontheseabeta
Use the pulldown to select the beta version.
It should then begin to download.

3) When you run the game the version number should read the version you selected.

TOKYO EXPRESS MOD (TTE) USERS : Note TTE uses the live version of War on the Sea by default. Unless you are specifically involved in testing of TTE, this beta version is not recommended for use with TTE.




1 Oct 2021 (Beta)

Placing multiple way points on mini map fixed (bug introduced 1.08f9)

"refundPostRepair:true" correctly refunds multiple merchant ship command point values


Further Searchlights Improvements
Searchlights no longer track sinking ships

Ships using searchlights or illuminated by star shells or searchlights have "illumination bonus" to being spotted and solution calculations applied against them;
- spotted bonus is +20%
- solution calculation bonus is config.txt "tmaIlluminationBonus":0.2

config.txt increased "searchlightDistance":6000 distance in metres at which searchlights are used and provide the illumination bonus
- all ships automatically turn off searchlights if target is beyond config.txt "searchlightDistance":6000 so as not to incurr this illumination penalty for no reason

default/language/english/dictionary/message_log.txt modified AllUseSearchlight to clarify range usage of searchlights

AI retreating ships turn off searchlights

A ship illuminated by star shells, searchlights or using its own searchlights is considered "illuminated" and will not have additional star shells fired at it by AI ships or when using Fire At Will mode


29 Sep 2021 (Beta)

GENERAL

Searchlights Added
At night, searchlights will point at the target of a unit and provide additional illumination bonus to solution if the target is within the specified distance.

Orders panel added toggle to enable/disable searchlight use by selected units (on by default)
- available only at night and for ships with searchlights specified in ship_model.txt
- default/interface/styles.txt modified CombatTogglesBase and CombatTogglesActive to add searchlight toggle references
- default/interface/images/ui added searchlight.png and searchlightActive.png
- default/language/english/dictionary/general.txt added "SearchlightToggle=Searchlights"

config.txt added searchlight variables;
- "enableSearchlights":true to enable/disable use of searchlights
- "searchlightTint":{"r":230,"g":230,"b":255,"a":204} sets color/transparency of light beams
- "searchlightNumber":2 defines the number of searchlights a ship will aim at target
- "searchlightDistance":5000 distance in metres at which searchlights provide an illumination bonus (bonus = 0.5 x config.txt "tmaIlluminationBonus":0.2)

All default/unit/sea/ship_model.txt files;
- added "searchlightPositions" parameters to specify positions of searchlights
- added "searchlightQuadrants" to specify quadrants searchlights use
- With ship in the middle heading up, quadrants are:

     4
0    ^     2
1    |     3
     5

4 looks in 2 fore quadrants 0, 2 (used to specify lights at the front of a ship)
5 looks in 2 aft quadrants 1, 3 (used to specify lights at the rear of a ship)

AutoGunnery (on player ships) will select the target if there is not a current target selected (or if the ship is not currently under direct player control)

All Drop button now correctly works with aerial depth charges
- language/english/dictionary/message_log.txt added DropAllDepthCharge valriable

Fixed a bug where AI way points were not correctly assigned during retreat actions



CAMPAIGN
Retreating AI Task Forces should no longer get stuck on the strategic map
Fixed a bug where taking over a location could fail resulting in duplication of cargo that was unloaded

This update further automates scouting. Aircraft take off, fly patrol routes, land at dusk and automatically take off again the following dawn.

In addition there is now the option to "Repeat" a course allowing ships or aircraft to continuously patrol a plotted course.

Change log below:



23 Sep 2021 (BETA 21 Sep 2021)

GENERAL
default/unit/air/aircraft/aircraft_data.txt new variable for weapon assignments;
"lockBombBay":0 - nothing
"lockBombBay":1 - bomb doors locked in closed position
"lockBombBay":2 - bomb doors locked in open position
"lockBombBay":3 - bomb doors removed

Torpedo mounts no longer apply their scale to launched torpedoes


CAMPAIGN
default/campaign/campaignXXX/setup.txt
- added new variable for sub specific post-engagement cooldown "postEngageSubCooldown":14400

Any destroyed compartment will force an AI Submarine to return to base post engagement
AI submarine groups check remaining torpedoes and return to base if necessary post engagement
AI Sea Groups check primary ammunition AP, HE reserves and return to base if necessary post engagement
AI Carriers assess air group numbers and return to base if insufficient




BETA 17 Sep 2021

COMBAT
On activating gyro, torpedoes recalculate a path if intercept point is within turn radius to prevent unpredictable circular paths

When firing torpedo tubes; calculate if intercept point is within torpedo turn radius and display "TorpedoInGyro" message if so
- default/language/english/dictionary/message_log.txt added "TorpedoInGyro" variable

NEEDS VERIFICATION: second round of torpedoes fired from submarines should no longer take unintended paths



CAMPAIGN

Automated Scouting Improvements
config.txt "autoScoutWithPayloads":true set to true to allow AutoScouting with payloads

AutoScouting available from airfields
AutoScouting aircraft return to base when reaching a waypoint outside of allowed Air Op hours
AutoScouting aircraft land upon returning to base if outside allowed Air Ops hours
At dawn, all AutoScouting aircraft re-launch and resume their patrol routes if the airfield/ship that created them is still owned by player


Repeat Course
Repeat Course toggle added to Sea and Air groups
- any plotted course will be repeated upon reaching last position
- repeated course highlighted in bright yellow
- ships "repeating" a course return to the first waypoint upon reaching the last
- aircraft "repeating" a course act as if AutoScouting and land/re-launch according to Air Ops hours

interface/styles.txt added variable for CampaignMapRepeatPathColor

default/language/english/dictionary/campaign_message.txt added messages:
- NotEnoughWaypointsSea - at least 2 waypoints required for a Sea group to transit between
- NotEnoughWaypointsAir - at least 1 waypoint required for Air group to transit to and from via home base
- FirstLastTooFar - cannot repeat due to no valid path found from last waypoint back to first

Course line turns black when over an invalid course position, no input accepted to prevent setting courses with "broken legs"

default/interface/styles.txt added reference for RepeatPath button
interface/images/ui/repeatPath.png sprite added


Air Escorts / Patrols
Air Group panel added "Escort / Patrol Over" dropdown to choose a friendly air or sea group to fly with/over
- selecting a friendly group to escort/patrol over clears all other navigation data
- plotting any course or setting AutoScout waypoints defaults Escort / Patrol Above to "None"
- default/language/english/dictionary/general.txt CMobileAirHeaders added new header for "Escort / Patrol Above"
- default/language/english/dictionary/general.txt added escortNobody reference
[Note: It is possible to set a slower group to escort a faster group; not recommended as they will not catch the faster group. E.g. setting bombers to escort fighters]


Improved Selection Of Map Objects
Added new cycle through buttons for;
- individual group type (key 1), for example, Scout, Carrier, Submarine etc.
- friendly locations (key 2)

interface/styles.txt added;
- CampaignMobileFilters
- CampaignMobileFilterColors
- GoToGroup

default/interface added "NextFilteredMobile" to keybindsNUMPAD.txt and keybindsWASD.txt
default/interface added "NextFriendlyLocation" to keybindsNUMPAD.txt and keybindsWASD.txt
default/language/english/dictionary/general.txt added "NextFilteredMobile"
default/language/english/dictionary/general.txt added "NextFriendlyLocation"

Sea and Air Groups added "Go To" button in header to move map to location of group and zoom in on it.
- default/interface/styles.txt added reference for "GoToGroup" button


Campaign sea missions with "terminateIfUnsafe":true for "requiresSafeLocations" will no longer be generated if a specified location is unsafe

campaign/setup.txt added new variable "removeAirOnTakeOver":false
- upon takeover of location all aircraft are destroyed and replenished as per setup.txt "replenishLimitAircraft" and "replenishDailyAircraft" settings