Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

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Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Content Feedback »

A Bargain is Struck is the first scenario of the Sceptre of Fire campaign.

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?
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Fosprey
Posts: 254
Joined: January 25th, 2008, 8:13 am

Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Fosprey »

(1) What difficulty levels have you played the scenario on?
highest
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
1
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Very clear, but i had a problem on understand what the human side would do in the battle
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Intersting, but not very clear, i had problems understanding why the elfs woudl involve in such a fight so easy, they looked more like an orc action than elf. And is hard to believe that elf suddenly pooped out such a big of an army, but maybe it's just me, nonenthless , the story looks interesting.
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
Figuring out what should i expect from my ally
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
3 because the lack of timer, with one i would say a 5.
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
Add a timer.
(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?
No
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baro_st
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by baro_st »

(1) Easy
(2) 2
(3) Clear
(4) Funny, especially the negotiation
(5) None
(6) 6
(7) If the elves were more aggressive against caravans, the scenario would be less easy
(8) -
(9) I found a little bug in the WML of this scenario: if Alanin reachs his destination and I kill the elvish leader, then the scenario ends with victory (although caravans are on the road), and Alanin disappears (he'll never be present in following scenarios). I think that the cause is the lack of victory_when_enemies_defeated=no clause in the source code: if I add this clause at the beginning of the scenario, it ends only when caravans reach her destination, even if elvish leader dead.
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zookeeper
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by zookeeper »

baro_st wrote:(9) I found a little bug in the WML of this scenario: if Alanin reachs his destination and I kill the elvish leader, then the scenario ends with victory (although caravans are on the road), and Alanin disappears (he'll never be present in following scenarios). I think that the cause is the lack of victory_when_enemies_defeated=no clause in the source code: if I add this clause at the beginning of the scenario, it ends only when caravans reach her destination, even if elvish leader dead.
Has been fixed already.
vittorioveneto
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by vittorioveneto »

1. 1.5.3 easiest possible
2. 3
3. clear enough
4. Ok
5. The dwarves arrived slowly
6. 6. It was not particluarly difficult and challenging but it was nice.
7. Perhaps it was strange that in an extremely difficult campaign my caravans carrying 10,000 silvers could wander around safely. Maybe I would add some bandits.
8. No
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Turuk
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Turuk »

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?
Lord (Hardest) 1.4.6

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
3. Caravans were well reached where the path meets the hills (and the dwarves) by the time the elves got close enough to harm them.

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Crystal.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Eh. It was good, and helps to lay out the whole idea behind the campaign (making the sceptre), but the haggling interaction seemed a bit bland.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
None really, just keep the caravans north of the path to avoid the elves.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
6. Despite the ease in avoiding the elves, I like the idea of racing your dwarves down to meet the caravans racing to them. Though racing in Wesnoth is not quite that fast. :P

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
Perhaps vary the terrain a bit, or make it so that the dwarves/humans have to fight running battles to protect the caravans.

(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?
(9) If you know a bit of the Wesnoth Markup Language - do you think that the WML of this scenario is clear and well commented? If not which part would you like to be documented better?
Good stuff, sneaked a peek to note down some bits of code.
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Strikur
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Strikur »

(1) Steelclad (Middle option), Wesnoth 1.4.? (I want to say 1.4.4, but I'm not 100% sure and don't know how to check what vers I'm running)

(2) 2, Very easy. All I used was the initial 100 gold. 0 losses, no restarts.

(3) It's clear that you can't have your caravans die, but I won by killing the elf leader (bum-rushed after I saw his huge gold bonus), not by moving the caravans (they weren't even at the river yet when I "won").

(4) The elves seemed a little... uncharactaristic. They're acting more like highway bandits than elves. Otherwise the dialog is sound.

(5) I didn't have any major problems, but I though for a sec that Haldric II might get himself killed (which he didn't). I suppose I might have had some trouble if I hadn't checked the gold levels after the elf brags about his reinforcements.

(6) 6, It's not the most exciting scenario in the world, but I've definately seen worse.

(7) Instead of having the elf leader get a bunch of gold, I would have made a second leader appear in the forest nearby, with his own gold. It would make more sense to have another guy actually show up than have the existing elf suddenly get a huge pile of gold. I might also buff Haldric somewhat, seeing as he's a level 3 unit with crap stats.

(8) No, but like I said above, Haldric II gave me a brief scare.

(9) Eh, it's fine I guess, WML doesn't really need much commenting, as it's pretty straightforward.
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Astoria
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Astoria »

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?
Medium, 1.5.8
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
2... Haldric can kill them all... I only needed a few fighters for fun...
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Clear
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Clear.
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
None.
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
6, it's too easy.
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
More gold for the elves!
(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?
Formerly known as the creator of Era of Chaos and maintainer of The Aragwaithi and the Era of Myths.
Benefuchs
Posts: 54
Joined: February 24th, 2009, 9:40 pm

Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Benefuchs »

(1) medium, 1.6
(2) 2
(3) rather clear. I just expectet the caravans and Alanin to be controlled by Haldric.
(4) clear and nice. The elves, well... it's not the first scenario containing elvish rebels harassing everyone.
(5) none, Haldric cared for the elves.
(6) 6, the idea is nice but I hardly did anything but attack and kill the elvish leader from the mountains behind him.
(7) Make the map smaller or give the caravans one more MP. This way, I didn't fight at all for about nine turns!
(8) no.
(9) N/A
shadowblack
Posts: 368
Joined: April 15th, 2010, 3:03 pm

Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by shadowblack »

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?
1.8.2, Steelclad (Challenging)

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
Depends on what you want to do:
- If you want to protect the caravan – probably 10
- If you want to kill the elf leader:
-- 3 if you manage to kill him by the end of turn 10
-- ? if you take longer (I didn’t, so I have no idea)

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
For the most part – crystal clear. The only confusing part was when at turn 10 elvish reinforcements arrived, yet I couldn’t see them anywhere on the map. I realized what had happened only when I looked at each team’s gold.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Interesting and clear (except for the elvish reinforcements – see above).

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
Killing the elf leader on turn 10, before he could make use of the gold he just received. With just 3 units that could reach him on that turn it took some luck.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
7+

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
Make the “elvish reinforcements” part more clear, for example:
On the 9th turn 2/3/4 (depending on difficulty) Elvish Scouts arrive and head directly for the elf leader. As soon as one of them enters the keep the elf gets his 500 gold.

(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?
No, but only because I got lucky and killed the elf leader on turn 10.
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monochromatic
Posts: 1549
Joined: June 18th, 2009, 1:45 am

Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by monochromatic »

Mythological wrote:A Bargain is Struck is the first scenario of the Sceptre of Fire campaign.

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?
Normal 1.8.4
(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
5 - Haldric's AI is broken, which forced me to think differently. His forces didn't move for the first 5 or so turns, leaving my caravans utterly exposed. The dwarves cannot get there fast enough, so the only choice I had was to hide the caravans and use Alanin to lure the elves to Haldric's castle.
(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Didn't read the objectives carefully, but I don't think I remembered seeing if killing the elvish leader would finish the scenario.
(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Average.
(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
Keeping the faster elves off my caravans and dealing with Haldric's stupid AI.
(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
3 at first, then 6 - Frustrating looking at the buggy AI, but after figuring a solution it was quite fun. The reinforcements were a nice touch.
(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
Fix Haldric's AI, and maybe make his forces a teeny bit weaker?
(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?
Numerous times in the beginning.
(9) If you know a bit of the Wesnoth Markup Language - do you think that the WML of this scenario is clear and well commented? If not which part would you like to be documented better?
Didn't check.
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Maiklas3000
Posts: 532
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Maiklas3000 »

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?
Most difficult; 1.8.4

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)
10 if you try to run the caravan, 3 if you do leader assassination

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?
Clear.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?
Long distance conversations get really ridiculous when a third party is listening in and joins into the conversation. You could fix it by having a human and dwarf parlaying in the center, near the elves, and maybe have a ranger pop out of the woods.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?
The main challenge was to realize that it was probably futile to move the caravan and the only way to win is leader assassination, which is quite easy.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)
4. Two Scouts and a Fighter run to the Elf leader and kill him on the second turn of their attacks. Not much fun.

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?
The human leader needs to move his troops more quickly. The elves need to be less strong. Maybe add a swamp or some other obstacle to make it more time-consuming to get to the elf leader.

(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?
Yes, the human leader was assassinated by the elves before I could do anything, so I restarted from turn 1.
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Thrash
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by Thrash »

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?

1.8.4, Hard, 100 starting gold (fixed)

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)

8

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?

Very misleading. When I tried to move the caravan the elves just swarmed it before the dwarves could get to it and Haldric's men just sat in their keep and watched. What I figured out is you have to get elves close enough to Haldric's troops to get them to engage. What I finally decided was best was not to advance caravan at all, but to move it to west side of Haldric's keep, which caused the elves to move close enough so that Haldric's units actually did something.

Haldric's men also get their butts kicked by the elves, so this really turns into a game of "dwarves must kill the elf leader before the caravan dies".

So the objectives are misleading as they make you think you should be moving the caravan.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?

"Ha! Our reinforcements have arrived." - more accurately, they'll be here in a turn. This is confusing as written.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?

Figuring out how to get Haldri'c units to engage.

Figuring out that trying to advance caravan was hopeless.

Then figuring out Haldric's units were no match for elves and what I really had to do was get the dwarves to elf leader as fast as possible before Hadlric was overwhelm or some other loss condition happened.

I also found you just had to be really conservative with Alanin because the elves could just decide to swarm him at any point.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)

2, looks like the elves have been beefed up and it's really unbalanced right now. It's a pure race to kill elvish leader.

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?

Have Haldric's men always move to engage the elves instead of requiring the elves to come close to them. Or just give player control of Haldric's men - I don't understand this fascination with making a player depend on an AI that is brain dead.

Maybe have the elves split their forces and go after dwarves and humans more evenly? The dwarves only got token resistance getting to the elvish leader while the humans get their butts kicked.

(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?

Several:

First time I advanced the caravan and watched the elves cut it down while Haldric's men stood and watched from the keep. Tried several more times to advance caravan, figured out you had to entice elves close enough to Haldric to get his units to engage. But even with that, attempts to move caravan all ended in caravan unit being killed. Then I started hiding caravan west of Haldric.

Alanin got killed once when humans moved away leaving him out in the open and he got swarmed by elves.

Then elves got through Haldric's men and killed a caravan unit (which I had put west of Haldric's keep) before dwarves could get to elvish leader.

(9) If you know a bit of the Wesnoth Markup Language - do you think that the WML of this scenario is clear and well commented? If not which part would you like to be documented better?

What the heck does "terrain=Aa^Fpa" and similar lines mean?
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monochromatic
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by monochromatic »

http://forums.wesnoth.org/viewtopic.php ... 15&start=0

The AI error has been fixed in trunk. I assume in 1.9.x it is fixed as well.
bobby
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Re: Scenario Review: SoF 1 - A Bargain is Struck

Post by bobby »

(1) What difficulty level and version of Wesnoth have you played the scenario on?

1.8.0, Medium

(2) How difficult did you find the scenario? (1-10)

6. I moved caravan up and dwarves raced to kill elven captain.

(3) How clear did you find the scenario objectives?

Clear enough. Though it looked really daunting to move caravan to keep.

(4) How clear and interesting did you find the dialog and storyline of the scenario?

I was expecting the elven reinforcements around turn 10 to materialize in units, not gold. The bargaining process at the start was a bit long.

(5) What were your major challenges in meeting the objectives of the scenario?

Getting enough units to the elven captain by turn 10, otherwise it became a survival exercise while caravans slowly moved towards my keep.

(6) How fun do you think the scenario is? (1-10)

5.

(7) What, if any, are changes you would have made to the scenario to make it more fun?

Human just sat there for awhile. That gold reinforcement for the elves is just too much, it became tedious to move the caravans.

(8) Was there any event that caused you to lose the game and forced you to reload or restart the scenario?

Couldn't get to elven captain by turn 10, didn't want to wait for caravans to move or start next scenario with low gold.
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