Wing Commander Card Game - Is there a digital version?

Welp, I ain't a'gittin' much done on the mod today. I forgot to copy off version 0.7.81 (latest version of the mod) from my home computer back onto my jump drive at the close of business last night - still only have 0.6.78 on my jump drive. Made a lot of changes in those last three builds...

I have been able to find a number of potential bugs this morning and write down the procedures for squashing them. For example, my Markers menu wasn't working properly; that just requires a really quick fix (say if you want to capture a transport or fighter). I realized Battle Damage cards and captured Pilot cards wouldn't work the way they're supposed to - that's a simple matter of removing specific player ownership of those cards. I also realized why the Kilrathi 1 Draw Luck Cards option wasn't included under the "Draft Luck Cards" menu option - simple typo on my part.

Two big things I can try to accomplish today - resizing the Ready Area (which should just require a larger new graphic) and figuring out how to seed Nav Point cards. If I can get that second one down and it's not too much work to replicate when I get back to the most up-to-date mod, I daresay the mod will be ready for a public alpha before the weekend is out.

First order of business when I get home: update the copy of the mod on my jump drive...
 
0.7.88 - This evening I was able to get my copy of the mod at the house updated with all the tweaks I was able to discern at work, which was pretty much everything mentioned in this morning's update. I was able to resize the Ready Area succesfully, and this evening, I have successfully managed to seed the Nav Point Cards; there should be a unique Nav Point card at each Nav Point from here on out.

Which leaves the last piece of business to attend to - I need to get the other two boards into the game, and make the necessary set of tweaks to get what we've got compatible with those boards. The CIC bottleneck should just require the change of scenery. The 4-player board will need more work, since it's a different sized board with more Nav Points. I think I can set up each configuration as a pre-defined setup but I need to research how those work a little more before proceeding.

Almost there, y'all.
 
Last night's report may have been premature. I swear I changed nothing and I did see that damn Nav Point seeding work, but the next time I loaded up the mod, nothing. I'm at a loss as to why it's not working now. Hopefully it was just something as simple as "Java borked" and it'll be working when I fire it up this morning.
 
Gentlemen, we're in business.

This morning I was able to determine that the routine I was using for auto-seeding Nav Points was working properly, but the cards weren't being flipped over as they left the Nav Point 'deck'. I had left the backs of the Nav Points blank so the cards would stay invisible deliberately, so as a result when they were being dealt out they were staying invisible. I fixed the problem by leaving the cards face-up in the deck and then moving the deck way out of sight. Works like a charm.

I also put the other two boards in the game this morning. Found out that my bottleneck template was anything but a bottleneck, so I had to fix that real quick, and then I had to make some quick tweaks to get the 4-player board up and running correctly. Everything appears to be working as it should at this point.

So, version 0.9.98 will be heading up to the VASSAL wiki later this evening. I'm still concerned about the size of the mod (200 MB, huge for a VASSAL mod) as far as their ability to host the mod itself; if necessary, I'll put it up for download at the WCRPG site or I'll request permission to host the file download here at CIC.

I'll let y'all know when it's up so we can give the thing a proper shakedown. I'll also need to post instructions on how to use the interface when the time comes. For now, I've got chores to attend to...

EDIT: after checking the site again, it looks like VASSAL has an active file size limit of 75 MB, but they do have a system in place for hosting larger files. I've contacted their webmaster and we will see what all it will take to get the file up. Might not be today.
 
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The initial page at the VASSAL site for the mod is up - here's the URL:

http://www.vassalengine.org/wiki/Module:Wing_Commander

Not much there at the moment besides a few screenies. The mod itself is certainly not there (not yet anyway - give it time). As I've promised there, though, a "how-to" guide for using the mod is forthcoming.

Meantime - preliminaries: VASSAL has versions for Linux, OS X and Windows on their Download page. VASSAL is dependent on the Java Runtime Environment, so you'll need to install that before VASSAL will work. And you have to have VASSAL installed to run the mod, obviously. I say you have to have it installed - I've successfully been able to use VASSAL from a copy of the thing on my jump drive. Just saying. Windows users will be able to install the JRE during the VASSAL install if it detects that it's missing, Mac users have the JRE natively though if you're not using a version newer than 10.3 you'll only be able to install VASSAL 2.9.9. Linux users may or may not be screwed depending on your distribution; the VASSAL folks have links for the JRE for Fedora and Ubuntu.

Since y'all can't access the mod just yet, I'll leave things there for now. I'm hoping getting y'all access won't take long.

I suppose if you're jonesin' for some VASSAL Wing Commander, there's always the Armada PNP.......

EDIT: For any early takers, the URL was changed overnight; I've updated it this morning. VASSAL has a policy that states a module name must match the game's BGG entry, and on BGG it turns out that WCCCG is simply called "Wing Commander". I was afraid they might do this. No biggie, really; just something to note.
 
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Version 0.9.99 of the mod is now available for download at the VASSAL page. The module itself is over the size limit the VASSAL folks have in place, so for now the mod is being kept at Dropbox. I'm hoping that changes some time in the very near future (and that I'm not inadvertently breaking any rules by taking this route). A full how-to is now available on the page as well.

Looking forward to playing a few rounds with y'all soon.

http://www.vassalengine.org/wiki/Module:Wing_Commander
 
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And now I need to build a few decks...

Here's a question for y'all - what's your typical deck size? I'm an old Star Trek CCG and MTG player, so I usually go for sixty card decks when I play CCGs in general, but running some numbers this morning that size of deck for WCCCG looks a little...anemic. IMHO.

Maybe 75? That'd be a standard MTG deck plus its sideboard, I suppose.
 
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It's crazy how fast you work...I am really amazed. I don't when was the last time I put my mind to something and just made something...if ever.

Anyway, it's been a very long time since I played but I think I also played with 60 cards.
 
Just came across my RL WCCCG card collection - not the ones I have in collectors sleeves, the ones I would have played with had I ever found an opponent. Definitely going to have to let my six year old beat the crap out of me now (so he'll play it with me again).
 
Mekt-Hakkikt said:
It's crazy how fast you work...I am really amazed. I don't when was the last time I put my mind to something and just made something...if ever.
Click to expand...

Thanks. To be honest, I probably spent more time working on it that I should...proving the old adage that "A man can accomplish anything he sets his mind to, so long as it's not what he's supposed to be doing..."

Don't tell my boss that, m'kay?

Mekt-Hakkikt said:
Anyway, it's been a very long time since I played but I think I also played with 60 cards.
Click to expand...

Same here. But as I've said before, I've only ever played the CCG once, and that with a crazy guy who didn't want to play by all the rules (leading to a boring time). I set up two 60 card decks for me and my son tonight - I wonder how he'll react to me putting the Confederation cards in red sleeves...he's kinda anal-retentive, and he's only six...
 
Been putting together a couple of basic decks for y'all tonight. They're pretty simplistic decks but I did follow the "theme deck" ideas off the CCG page here at CIC. The "Four Arrows" deck looks promising. "Rachael and Her Toys" not so much.

I have noticed that when the moderator optimized the card files, he reverted the Stealth Tech cards back to their original printing. I'm going to have to see what I can do about that. Tomorrow.
 
I've downloaded it. It looks good. I just have to figure out how to actually play now.
 
capi3101 said:
I have a wordsy how-to guide up on the module page at VASSAL. Pretty much tells you everything that you're being forced to learn you need to know. Plus you need VASSAL and Java to make it work.
Click to expand...
I did download Vassal and load the mod file. I just have to find time to read the instructions (heh). I'll get to it eventually. It will be fun to attempt to look like I know what I'm doing if I ever get a chance to play against another wingnut.
 
New mod version is up - this one basically just restores the Stealth Technology cards to their proper stacking-with-other-Weapons-Technology-cards goodness. Would've overwritten the other one entirely except for VASSAL's policy about keeping all the older versions public.

I have four new play decks up for download this morning as well - the "Rachel and Her Toys" themed decks. I think the Cats have the more effective deck in this case.
 
Played my six-year old tonight - the real deal. I was the Cats. Let's just say that when Thrakhath put in the supply requests for Sivar's Glory, he failed to include useful things such as pilots and fighters (they were there, but I got clumped - something else I remember from my MTG days...).

On the plus side, I'm pretty sure he'll want to play me again. Wasn't too sure about that when I took out one of his Hellcats at TCS Victory...we had a bit of a screamin' fit.
 
Found some bugs in the mod today - the cards for crew and pilots in the Kilrathi 2 draw deck weren't behaving properly, and then I also realized today that the Return to the Draw Pile function wouldn't have worked properly for those same cards in the Confederation 2 deck. I'll be putting up a revised version of the mod today at the VASSAL site and I'll let y'all know when it's up. Nothing I can do in the meantime besides recommend folks not play with the Kilrathi 2 side. I'll have to see later if the K2 decks I've built so far work or if I'll have to rebuild them. Hoping for the best there....

EDIT: v. 0.9.103 is now up on the VASSAL site. If you've downloaded a previous version of the mod, you might want to update it.
 
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Pyrrhic victory for me today. My kid was not as thrilled about how the game was going and quit about midway through it. I will say I've become a believer in the Four Arrows strategy. At the same time, I am now sans an opponent again......

Need to play one of y'all I think.
 
Just curious if any of y'all have had a chance to fiddle around with the mod at all, and what your experiences have been with it so far (is it easy to use, hard to use, confusing at all, etc.).

I've also been looking for opponents/playtesters lately; I'll probably be on #wingnut at several points today (let's say around 1600-1630Z, 1815-1900Z, 2100-2130Z and 0230-0300Z), so if any of y'all are interested in a game, y'all can either PM me or look for me there. I have yet to actually try out the mod under real working conditions.
 
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