Truism
Member
Very much enjoying your simulation, and will freely admit that I'm no expert with this software with only a few dozen hours of experience, but wrangling the UI remains a constant challenge, reliant on a very intimate understanding of the locations of features and their interpretation in the current UI even for someone with a good grasp of operational planning. Two features in particular are particularly challenging, managing unit attachments and coordinating actions between subelements in time.
Firstly, the current orbat editor in operations can be very difficult to grasp and very finicky. Its presentation as a list in text format limits the ability to determine what attachments have been made, since the attachments will appear detached from their parent, but not attached in the orbat panel to their new HQ. The system of attachment is also counter-intuitive to someone used to using taskorg matrices; rather than selecting all units to be grouped, then issuing an order, it would be more intuitive to establish the force's organisation first and then to issue orders to those task organised elements.
The best solution to this that I can think of would be to replace the current orbat UI with either a German-style task organisation matrix where elements can be dragged and dropped in the matrix, or a wire diagram model that permits dragging and dropping. This would make the processes of establishing and determining attachments, detachments and command relationships far easier, and is far closer to the model used by staff in the period (and now).
Secondly, coordinating related actions in space is straightforwards in the current system, but coordinating them in time is difficult. Tasks laid out for multiple elements are each required to be interrogated in multiple menus to verify or attempt to establish synchronisation. The UI also doesn't allow for easy ways of verifying the synchronisation of preliminary actions across units, the integration of reinforcing units into existing plans or the establishment of conditions based tasks. The last is the most complex to solve in my opinion and is outside the scope of pure UI changes, so I'll refrain from commenting on it, except to say that it's an important missing element that currently requires micromanagement to alleviate.
The best solution that I can think of to this is to replace the current orders panel with an operational timeline showing when different unit's tasks and preliminary actions are planned to occur, preferably one that is interactive so that timings can be shifted in that panel or right clicked to go to the normal task info panel. If possible, the ability to establish branch and sequel plans in this panel, segregated by command decision points that would automatically pause time would be ideal. Such predetermined plans would better permit the integration of reinforcing units in future plans, and should be able to be worked on by HQs with spare time during or between tasks to reduce subsequent orders delay (as is much of the point of such plans).
Ideally, I would like to be able to set detailes plans up at the beginning of scenarios up to a few days in length, and then to watch them play out without interruption.
Please feel free to tell me I've missed things or that my suggestions are bad.
Firstly, the current orbat editor in operations can be very difficult to grasp and very finicky. Its presentation as a list in text format limits the ability to determine what attachments have been made, since the attachments will appear detached from their parent, but not attached in the orbat panel to their new HQ. The system of attachment is also counter-intuitive to someone used to using taskorg matrices; rather than selecting all units to be grouped, then issuing an order, it would be more intuitive to establish the force's organisation first and then to issue orders to those task organised elements.
The best solution to this that I can think of would be to replace the current orbat UI with either a German-style task organisation matrix where elements can be dragged and dropped in the matrix, or a wire diagram model that permits dragging and dropping. This would make the processes of establishing and determining attachments, detachments and command relationships far easier, and is far closer to the model used by staff in the period (and now).
Secondly, coordinating related actions in space is straightforwards in the current system, but coordinating them in time is difficult. Tasks laid out for multiple elements are each required to be interrogated in multiple menus to verify or attempt to establish synchronisation. The UI also doesn't allow for easy ways of verifying the synchronisation of preliminary actions across units, the integration of reinforcing units into existing plans or the establishment of conditions based tasks. The last is the most complex to solve in my opinion and is outside the scope of pure UI changes, so I'll refrain from commenting on it, except to say that it's an important missing element that currently requires micromanagement to alleviate.
The best solution that I can think of to this is to replace the current orders panel with an operational timeline showing when different unit's tasks and preliminary actions are planned to occur, preferably one that is interactive so that timings can be shifted in that panel or right clicked to go to the normal task info panel. If possible, the ability to establish branch and sequel plans in this panel, segregated by command decision points that would automatically pause time would be ideal. Such predetermined plans would better permit the integration of reinforcing units in future plans, and should be able to be worked on by HQs with spare time during or between tasks to reduce subsequent orders delay (as is much of the point of such plans).
Ideally, I would like to be able to set detailes plans up at the beginning of scenarios up to a few days in length, and then to watch them play out without interruption.
Please feel free to tell me I've missed things or that my suggestions are bad.