Running a 350 player Massive Online Cooperative Tabletop War Game... "Week Two"

[@shadowofhawk55]

Holy shit, the Endurance. That’s an old bitch of a ship. Back from the days when Shack was stuck on an Asteroid with an alcoholic, a terminator, and a Frankenstein.

[@Drthnuby]

I wish there was more content with that crew.......

[@Primearch-GG]

@@Drthnuby the rest were alcoholic zombies and ghouls.

[@Raio_Verusia]

Now this takes me back.

[@shadowofhawk55]

@@Raio_Verusia Good. Assuming the name 364th Dagger Wolves does the same?

[@AdmiralRex]

This is Thunderbolt Recon, callsign Lightning, reporting. We are rolling straight into the Citadel, blasting heavy metal. Let the fun begin. (Next round's recap ought to be good)

[@ALX-xl7fr]

Nightfall reporting from Operation Prometheus. The citadel siege is well underway captain. We'll capture Yos in no time.

[@Primearch-GG]

Captain Shack, I have a suggestion for campaign 4, assuming that Armco is successful, that they buy heavy orbital drop pods like the ones described in the Starship Troopers novel where the pods have peeling external armor on them that peels off at different parts of the drop and acts as a form of chaff countermeasure for AA (adding a +1 difficulty per layer of armor with a max of 3 layers) as well as temporary air breaks to slow the pod down to survivable speeds. Drop pod description: similar to W40K drop pods, carry capacity of 1 squad of power armor equipped soldiers. Dice rolls for drop pod: 3 rolls of 1D6 for the air break/peel of chaff armor, 1-3 is failed to deploy, 4-6 is deployed successfully. 3 rolls of 1D4 for emergency purge of air break/peel off chaff armor, 1-2 is fail, 3-4 is success. Each air break deployment and peel off should count as 3,000 meters of height starting at 10,000 meters above designated landing zone. 1 roll of 1D6 for full drop pod purge at 500 meters above landing zone. 1-3 is fail, 4-6 is success. 1 roll of 1D4 for emergency purge, 1-2 is fail, 3-4 is success, if failed drop pod hits the ground and roll 1D6 for damage to pod and squad each, pod damage is 1-3 doors are stuck, 4-6 is doors are fine, squad damage is 1 is immobile, 2-3 injured, 4-6 is fine. If successful, squad deploys jump jets for final slowdown to land, roll 2D6 for squad skill, base is 4, enemy modifiers are: AA +2, infantry +1 per unit firing at squad up to 2 each. Once squad reaches 1 meter above ground shut down jump jets and rolls 2D6 for landing skill check, base is 4, terrain modifiers are: shallow waters +1, sand +1, mud +2, rocks +3, deep waters +3. This is my solution to the heavy casualties taken by Armco forces trying to take the north east airfield due to lack of intelligence, by sending in a fast vanguard unit ahead from orbit the vanguard can then inform second wave forces of enemy positions reducing casualties. Sorry it was a long post, I spent an hour running the situation to lower the dice roll count, and it could probably still be lower...

[@aboubakrouladabdellah6611]

That's actually really cool idea

[@Primearch-GG]

@aboubakrouladabdellah6611 thank you. I'm just waiting for captain shack to respond to see what he thinks of it.

[@aboubakrouladabdellah6611]

@@Primearch-GG np hope he does!

[@darkenergy3742]

Cool idea, but That’s probably way too many numbers for something that’ll be run 40+ at a time. Remember this is all done manually.

[@Primearch-GG]

@darkenergy3742 yeah, I just realized that I forgot to mention that the group's tac-com could roll the dice... My bad.

[@Savno138]

This is Steel Lodge reporting in! Those are OUR potato chips, but we’ll share when we have a chance.

[@Tau_-Volantis]

Cool. Would love weekly updates on this series.

[@makinghistory7663]

This game reminds me a lot of Kriegspiel, its a super old game the Prussian Army used to play. Theres a group of people who play it every week over discord called The international Kriegspiel Society. Made my own version in highschool for an art project.

[@Drakefance5]

Puppet Reporting in o7. Can't wait for the fight for the wall.

[@Zulban48]

This has to be one of the coolest concepts for a game. I love combined arms type games, but they're so difficult to pull off correctly and there's also not that many of them to begin with. Not only that there's a surprising amount of logistics on display here which is often glossed over in favor of combat action, especially in video games. I also love the co-op aspect with a GM (or a few GMs) as referee and decisionmaker. Can't wait to see more of this campaign.

[@daveslay3449]

Foxhole is a great game on steam

[@Zulban48]

@@daveslay3449 I know, I play it from time to time =p it's main issue is the player limit per hex. It would be a lot better if the loading screens were removed like in Planetside 2 but the engine apparently can't handle that at all. The Foxhole devs are working on another game in a medieval sort of setting that apparently fixes this issue, but unfortunately as much as I'd love for Foxhole to be ported or remade in the engine it uses I don't expect that to happen. The psuedo WW1-WW1.5 setting in Foxhole appeals to me much more than the medieval setting. They recently announced airplanes are coming to the game in summer 2025, and I have no idea how that's going to work with the current hex queueing system the game has now. Either it's going to be more painful than queuing is now, or they have something up their sleeve that hasn't been announced yet.

[@carteradams43]

Rabbit's sole aircraft being named 'Cipher' is absolutely briliant

[@FeyTheBin]

Indeed. Chef's kiss on that one.

[@charadreemurr7546]

Had ragriz running around too

[@carteradams43]

@@charadreemurr7546 saw that one as well!

[@brycencusson7104]

"artillery is a buff/depuffing unit" you've relegated the "king of battle" to a support role lol

[@Drunkendino34]

Essentially how artillery works in larger scale turn based war games like this, multiple consecutive bombardments will result in casualties once the fire is adjusted and entrenchment is removed

[@brycencusson7104]

@Drunkendino34 yes but in real life artillery is one of if not THE highest casualty producing weapon hence the name 'king of battle"

[@cammmwow]

Artillery is a support role though. Artillery battalions in real life don’t deploy by themselves, always in a larger organization to provide support for the combat arms on the line.

[@brycencusson7104]

@@cammmwow yes, but as I said it goes from the most causality producing weapon you have access to to dealing 0 damage.

[@cammmwow]

@brycencusson7104 If a trench gives a 100% bonus to defense and an artillery barrage erases that defense you have either doubled or halved the amount of damage your entire force does depending on which side you are on. I think the question is what is the debuff / buff and is that modifier high enough to reflect the effectiveness of artillery as a support weapon to ground operations.

[@Valhain]

Eager to see this campaign all the way through. I'd like to try my hand at this on the next campaign

[@john_mystery]

I was part of ATC attached to Blackout as the VTOL Dragon Wasps. Fog of war, sensor echos, and general confusion had me in a few different places as once and sometimes the wrong echo was deleted. It’s all good but I hope my VTOL’s chin gun managed to actually render some damage in the confusion.

[@CelesteFlameheart]

I think it'd be really fun to be running a Medical Ship, like a big orbital boy that you can drop detach medic squads, or pick up wounded in large numbers. Basically just running around and prioritizing where you need to be to heal.

[@gideonpeterson6669]

Hi Shack. these videos are awesome. I think it would be really cool if you had sections during the video were you acted like the in universe commander like you do with your empire at war series. it would add another layer of immersion and make it easier to follow along with the story of the battle with so many moving pieces. Keep up the good work!

[@Karagianis]

When you said giant military transport hovercraft first thing I thought of was the old Soviet-era Zubr class. :D

[@CatboyO7]

holy shit shack amazing work as always not only i am eagerly waiting for round 4 up date but for the next campaign for meta keep up the good work on all that you do and for all 350 players give that warlord and his troops hell

[@AonghasMcTavish]

Black widow reporting. Time for operation Freebird, the skies will be ours!

[@terrorlizard]

This looks insane and fun at the same time.

[@aceclub3555]

This is genuinely such a cool project. I can't wait for this to unfold and be more refined in the future.

[@RasakBlood]

I might not have the energy to play anymore. But i love following it like this. More pls.

[@mansad143]

I really appreciate all your efforts in this

[@dakaodo]

The gameplay itself is awesome, but your thought process on the game as you develop it is just as interesting to me!

[@vedritmathias9193]

I know it's more dice rolling, but I like the damage mechanic in the tabletop Battletech. Roll to-hit, roll damage location, count armor damage. If damage rolls over to internal structure, roll for chance to damage internal components. Etc.

[@connerjackson9597]

Hopefully, he makes a stream about all this, and I wanna watch the very first session and see how it goes up until now

[@honidian]

Oracle here. Thank you for the review. Keep 'em coming.

[@gaelicangel4535]

Ive been wanting a game like this for so long and to see it being developed now is amazing. Ive missed the first three campaigns im gonna try and join in for the fourth. Just need to decide wanna i wanna run. Keep up the amazing work

[@KeektheFreekyGeek]

I’m so glad he is doing more of these videos. Hopefully they are doing well on the channel so he can do a lot more of them!

[@nymalous3428]

Very enjoyable. I have always liked After Action Reports, and this was very extensive.

[@Codeman1930]

This series is awesome! I want more to come out and for this to keep going so badly!

[@sillerbarly4927]

This is Bonesaw from operation Blackout (was misnamed as Boneworks), we currently are cutting the power to the citadel

[@anirudhchari4201]

Music choices are great as always!

[@EvelynNdenial]

you could probably swap the d4 model with one that is transparent save for 4 polygons with the numbers written on them inside the pyramid each facing a point. so the number will be viewed straight when looking from above. like this under each point: /-\

[@360tan]

Pegasus of Atlas reporting! o7 You keep the fighting going and we'll pass the ammunition along!

[@EthanB-n3t]

Just found you and this seems awesome. I hope to see more soon!

[@sierranevada4601]

Haldora reporting for operations! We're storming the inner citadel.

[@DysphoEupho]

Yes, please more!!!! This is so good!

[@zoehltsen83]

this is so cool, cant wait to see more!!

[@gabrielc7861]

30:20 Nice, an ace combat level furball

[@ravidroseman]

as representative of BlackWing Company, We wished we brought AP Bombs XD

[@dacotaneafsey4772]

Honestly really love this idea I will be watching this epic

[@Т1000-м1и]

This series updating is certainly going to be a big highlignt for many people

[@ElNacho38]

I’m sure all those pilots were delighted when their gambit paid off and destroyed all those enemy fighters. I sure hope at least one of them started listening to Showdown from Project Wingman when the intel was received

[@rightfool6436]

Love this, jumped on discord to try and get in on the next one :)

[@McLainCraft]

Really interested in joining the next campaign.

[@theelectricgamer9889]

This is Blaze, my F-14s are currently repairing and hopefully I can get some intel from the pilots.

[@AonghasMcTavish]

As someone who has been in tge north east exclusively it's nice to get a rundown of what's happened. I mean ive been looking at the map and the midround events but I never know entirely whats going on.

[@thegamingallosaurus7281]

Callsign Airbus, were getting Yos soon

[@MrSHADOWANGEL999]

Truly glorious

[@aaronpaul5990]

Love it ^^ I do wonder how often will damaged vehicle/tanks be abandoned vs destroyed and if there is a way for them to be reactivated by engineers. Like if infantry takes out a AA there is a high chance they just killed the gunner/power and can enable it for the own side vs being bombed from orbit by a diving bomber ^^

[@killerhellhound]

In the rules on the discord engineers can rebuild vehicles with supply if the crew is still alive. Stealing vehicles would be great and might be made in the next set of rules

[@changeling5984]

I cannot wait for the next one!

[@wolfcommando8467]

(I will say, I do not know the rules of the game, these could already be in the game, I have no idea, just an idea I had that I thought could be cool) Perhaps there should be a mechanic for when fighting "high quality" (Non-reserve, assuming that all of these leftover soldiers sitting around were recent conscripts, typical of warmongers) troops. And when I say fighting, I really mean blitzing, trying to push the enemy back. If the enemy (trained soldiers, bloodthirsty brood, etc.) is dug in, (houses, trenches, old castle walls, etc.) they should be able to resist and/or completely negate being forced out of something by a blitz order. Perhaps, (mainly if you have the time lol) some individual units could end up falling back from their overall infantry squad, especially likely if they are wounded or have been in heavy fighting. Another idea I just thought of while writing this, is that it would be cool to potentially see hidden emplacements inside of the city, things like artillery, howitzers, HMG's, and anti-tank cannons hidden inside of buildings, perhaps the leader of the warmongering nation is more paranoid than he presents...

[@azaun6916]

This is SAND from operation blackout now we just waiting sipping on whatever coffee we have before Yos west forces hit our location LONG LIVE OPERATION BLACKOUT BABYYYYYY YEEAAHHHHH

[@WeirdPros]

29:29 Editing Note: It might have been a good idea to scroll DOWN during this bit, as halfway through reporting on the air fuzzball, we're not seeing half the planes anymore.

[@NinjaSniperKiller65]

this is awesome

[@thezezurianknight]

Kappa reporting - Final stretch, let's snatch and grab

[@Skitkat101]

Love these videos! The music is a little loud in the mix relative to the volume of your voice; It's especially troublesome when there are words or shouts in the song choices. Makes it tiring to focus on your words and a little harder to parse without CC.

[@birdoh4446]

I would love to for Prometheus to get some screen time but we have just been walking for most of it

[@speckmarine6557]

lets go another drop

[@jasoncox4640]

I love this!

[@CylonFox]

More! I need MORE!!!

[@NaNA-cb4vz]

About how long is this campaign expected to last? I was hoping to join but it seems I am too late and will have to wait for the next.

[@AdmiralRex]

In my estimation, we are no more than 3-4 weeks from being done. However, there is no set time between campaigns, I would expect one starting next Jan at the earliest tbh

[@NaNA-cb4vz]

Thank you, I will wait and watch eagerly until then.

[@Meanme223]

You forgot Vulkan. VULKAN LIVES!!!!

[@shayminthedoctor9663]

Damn! This sounds like a hell of a lot of fun! Are more players going to be allowed in? I'd love to join up for something this unique, I've never seen anything like this before

[@rommelscat4795]

Aufklärer reporting. Shit’s crazy in the labs.

[@morgansgames]

More please!!!

[@jasonnguyen350]

So sick

[@Ok_stopmotions]

I love this 😁

[@dadzawa2951]

Out to curiosity why wouldn’t helicopter have the ability to do what the light vehicles do? (Skirmish mode) (eg the little bird)

[@john_mystery]

Skirmish against what? The fighters that are faster than us and can actually shoot us while we can only shoot ground targets?

[@spindogg8814]

Must protect the nest!!!!

[@JamesSarantidis]

BEARDS mentioned

[@perrinwolflord1156]

I’ll take the generic HAT callout 😊

[@Owen902]

Engagement for the algorithm

[@JohnDoe-ut7cq]

Norton Sling wings Reporting for duty bombs in 1 round or your money back.

[@garicb9271]

Are there any particular GM tools or rpg system rules you're using or were inspired by?

[@alexkompare-pavlic3935]

Ohhhh is tis an actuall round per round cool

[@PandorasBox7777]

To prevent assault maneuvers from just pushing units out of defensive positions would you be looking to add an order like "Hold Ground" that would prevent the unit from being forced to move but double the damage they'd take?

[@sierranevada4601]

"Hold" already exists and gives a defensive bonus of 3, which means as long as they take 3 or less damage they can't be pushed. Also Hold Ground would totally be used offensively.

[@killerhellhound]

@@sierranevada4601 Also that is on top of any other defence bonuses so if they have engineer support and good cover it will be near impossable to force them out without heavy vehicles or artiliery. The reason it was so effective is because the defenders were caught by supprise and werent expecting a fight so were not set up

[@murielarundel5511]

Wait I have a question so if a guy dies in their unit thing does that mean he’s out fr ever and u can only buy more units with the money u get from completing a mission and if h take control of an infantry unit do u have a squad or one guy sorry fr the eassy

[@connerjackson9597]

Hopefully makes a stream of campaign one

[@Perryverduijn111]

Will there be titan sized mechs as well?

[@skyjr13]

I want in on this so bad. It reminds me so much of Red Rising! Anyone else?

[@FrostSckullGamePlayz]

Hey shack! So I'd love to be in the META campaign but it appears that I can't get in to the ARMCO discord, I was pervisuly in it, I didn't do much of anything mostly due to the lack of time I could do anything. I'm not sure if I got kicked or banned but I'd like to come back and join up and help fight them bugs and pirates!

[@sierranevada4601]

Define "can't get in." What error message does it give you?

[@CaptainShack]

Discord Name?

[@FrostSckullGamePlayz]

@@CaptainShack FrostSkullGamePlayz_YT

[@FrostSckullGamePlayz]

@@sierranevada4601 Unable to accept invite

[@hellhoundgaming3410]

Shack how did you make this? the map, the model, just everythings, how did you make this?

[@darkenergy3742]

TTS

[@hellhoundgaming3410]

@@darkenergy3742 TTS?

[@SalkolianLegion]

How much does it cost to join? yearly, monthly?

[@paulborisiv519]

Okay, I'll be the one to ask, how does one join this awesome war game?

[@michaelmrozek604]

Hey how do I get into the discord. The invite ain’t working

[@Nitram4392]

I will be dissapointed, if nooe did a "All call signs, check in"-joke when all the fighters were together.

[@TheHaunter_]

Can anyone tell me how I can get involved in this because it looks super fun!

[@Ben71246]

Please cover prometheus

[@Warork41]

Is there a way to join?

[@nightlord251]

First let's goooo

[@MrSnowmanFR]

where do I enlist sir ?

[@trilxgyz]

How can I join?

[@minoreror9961]

I think you should tone down the music, it's a bit distracting

[@Plagueis10]

Can I help you w your grid map and layout. This is atrocious, what youre showing and what youre saying are not equally reflected at all.

[@Savno138]

This is Steel Lodge reporting in! Those are OUR potato chips, but we’ll share when we have a chance.