Brass Brigade
Maintenance Update 8/28/23
Change-list for regular quality of life maintenance update:
- Adjusted AI obstacles on Maginot map; should prevent Axis bots from getting trapped in their spawn near the mountain to the left of the main road
- Additional AI obstacles on Maginot map added; should prevent bots from getting spawned in an area they cannot escape from in the town
- Large internal refactor which broke apart map files and gameplay elements; this should have no visible impact on the game to the player. If you notice oddities like artillery guns/tanks/mounted MGs spawning in incorrect positions, please submit a note on the Discord's #bug channel.
- Adjusted camera collision layering; should collide less with other NPCs and reduce rapid zooming in/out when near to lots of NPCs.
More things in the works. Until next time...
Cheers,
Henry
New Map - Crete Invasion & Summer Sale - 30% Off!
Welcome Back
It's been a while. I'll keep this short and sweet since enemy troops are incoming.
I was a bit burned out after over 3 years of extra content delivery for Brass Brigade. After some much needed rest, I am back to deliver some more content for Brass Brigade. I will be better pacing myself going forward - I hope to deliver both new content and to fix some underlying technical issues around Brass Brigade, both to make additions easier & to (possibly) make a better framework for future games based on my codebase. I look forward to creating more awesome Brass Brigade updates in the future.
With that said - on with the briefing...
30% Off for the Steam Summer Sale
From June 29th at 10am PT to July 13th, Brass Brigade will be 30% off for the duration of the Steam Summer Sale. Now is a great time to pick up the game if you haven't already!
New Map - Crete Invasion
Crikey - It's a bloody invasion!
It's early in the war and new strategies and technologies are beginning to emerge for both the Allied and Axis forces. The Greek island of Crete is about to become the site of the first ever large scale airborne operation.
German troops are launching an airborne assault on the island of Crete with the hopes of capturing the Maleme Airfield from the stationed British forces. The Germans are landing in the fields and farmland just outside the airfield. They will need to push through the sparsely covered fields, push through the town of Chania if they hope to surround and destroy the defending British troops.
But it won't be easy. The British troops are armed with a significant amount of armored tanks, mounted machine guns, and fortified defensive positions. The British have significantly more cover, firing from the balconies and rooftops in Chania as well as from their own airfield defenses network. If the Maleme Airfield falls, the Germans will be able to establish an endless supply stream into Crete, and the rest of the island will fall in a matter of days.
Grab your No. 4 rifle and clear the sweat from your eye - the Jerries are comin' from the bloody sky!
Release Notes
- New "Crete Invasion" Map
- New Fallschirmjager (Early War) Axis Team Variant. Mostly the same as the original Fallschirmjager Axis Team variant, except with more period correct weapons (Replaced StG44 -> MP40, and G43 -> K98k).
Enjoy the update & enjoy the Steam Summer Sale!
Cheers,
Henry
3 Years of Brass Brigade: 30% Off Nov 22 - 29 + New Content & Fixes
3rd Anniversary
A quick note - Brass Brigade officially turns 3 years old tomorrow, November 22nd. While the game may be 3 years old to you, it took me almost 2 additional years to produce before releasing it. The last half-decade of my life has been (in large part) defined by my work on Brass Brigade. A huge thank you to everyone who purchased & supported the game. It means the world to a small indie dev like me. I may have put development more-or-less to bed on Brass Brigade, but my head swirls with ideas of future games that I hope to pursue soon enough when the time is right. In the meantime, I couldn't let the 3 year anniversary pass without giving you guys at least a small gift, so, right...on to business.
To celebrate 3 years of Brass Brigade this Steam Autumn Sale, you can pick it up for 30% off!
It's been a while since the last Brass Brigade update. I felt it appropriate to make a couple of adjustments to the game based on some accumulated feedback as well as to drop a new tank into the game to flush out and balance the French faction some more.
Somua S35
Previously, the only tank the French had access to was the FT-17. While this small tank was certainly iconic in the Great War, it was obsolete by the time of the Second World War. Outgunned and under-armoured compared to their contemporary counterparts, the French developed several other tanks which found their way into battle.
Among these was the Somua S35, a medium sized cavalry tank comparable to the German Panzer III. Made between 1936 and 1940 (and used through 1945), this tank would prove maneuverable and tactically effective in the early stages of the war. Considering the French battles depicted in Brass Brigade take place in the earlier parts of the war, this made the Somua S35 a perfect addition to the French arsenal.
With a reasonably powered 47mm cannon and turret mounted machine gun, the S35 will prove to be a new deadly threat the Axis will need to watch out for. While it sports almost twice the hit points of the FT-17 and more powerful weaponry, its larger silhouette and slower speed makes strategic positioning more important.
Other Changes
- DP28 & PPSH 41 (Soviet weapons) have received slight damage increases to closer align them to German counter parts.
- German AI made slightly less aggressive to balance them against certain allied factions
- New Soviet Winter faction. This lets you play in winter themed maps with Soviet troops that look more historically appropriate for the environment they are in. Note* - no map uses them by default, you must select them manually from the Battles menu.
- Special troops can now be recruited (previously, ammo troops, medics, snipers, and anti-tank troops could not be commanded. This meant that the number of recruitable troops was low and led to players thinking the recruit function was broken).
- Flags on control points now switch to reflect the nationality of each faction being used (lots of people asked for this one - sorry it look so long to get implemented!)
Map Tweaks
- Ponyri: Raised artillery gun at center base camp to shoot over barbed wire
- Battleaxe: Adjusted terrain around rear Flak guns so they have clear lines of sight
- Kursk: Moved MG slightly away from artillery piece on ridge line
- Iwo Jima: Added blocking volume above bunker near Plane Crash to prevent AI from getting stuck on bunker roof
Thanks to all the feedback on the Discord that led to these changes. Hopefully they further improve your experience.
Until next time,
Henry
Quality of Life Improvements - AI Adjustments
This is a smaller update, but hopefully a welcome one none-the-less. This update focuses on improving the AI's responsiveness & aggressiveness across the game, as well as offering a broader range of difficulty depending on where the player sets the CPU Time sliders when starting a battle.
Change list:
Bug Fixes:
- Medic and ammo bots should not stand still as frequently as before when assessing who they should approach next to reinforce
- Fixed a bug where medic and ammo resupply bots would no longer attack objectives in rare circumstances
- Sniper bots no longer crouch walk the entire way to their sniper spots.
Adjustments:
- Ammo bots will wait until allies have half of their maximum ammo capacity before attempting to resupply.
- Bot peripheral vision can range from 30 degrees to 270 degrees depending on the VISION slider (up from 30 - 180 before). This means that bots are more perceptive to threats around them as the VISION is increased.
- Bot AI sampling rates adjusted more noticeably with the CPU TIME slider. Turning down the CPU TIME slider means bots will wait longer between AI sampling ticks, making them less responsive & less aggressive. Turning the CPU TIME slider up will make them more responsive.
I did my best to try and preserve the scaling of the AI - my internal testing shows nearly identical performance metrics and (to my eye) the AI plays much more responsively and violently. Let me know your feedback in the Discord and Steam Discussion threads!
Cheers,
Henry
Medic Update Hotfix
Quick hotfix for Medic & Ammo Runner Update.
- Fixed Allied bots not wanting to occupy tanks on Anzio - Day 1. Thanks to ✵HERETIC✵ for spotting this.
- Bots who are defending a point (ex. Axis on Normandy) will now move around within their capture point rather than standing still for so long.
- Strengthened CPU Time effects to increase performance when bot counts are very high. Should result in a slight performance bump.
Thanks,
Henry
Medics & Support Troops Join the Ranks of the Brass Brigade
I can't seem to tear myself away from working on Brass Brigade. Primary development stopped after the "Victory" updates (which added the Streets of Berlin and Okinawa maps, check them out if you haven't yet!), but the Christmas season made me feel really grateful for all the blessings I have in life. The success and love you all have for Brass Brigade made me think of adding something a little different in this update, but I'm sure you'll love it. In-line with the theme of Christmas - a time of year where we give to those we love - this update doesn't bring lethal new weapons or a dangerous new battlefield to traverse. Instead, this update focuses on medics and ammo runners. What other gifts could a soldier on the battlefield need more than some first aid and extra bullets?
New Classes - Medics and Ammo Runners
A medic approaches a wounded machine-gunner to give first aid.
Medics are the newest addition to all teams in Brass Brigade. Medics typically carry rifles and handguns to give them some semblance of chance in the thick of battle, but their focus won't be on charging enemy lines or hoping into tanks. Rather, medics will roam the battlefield seeking out other allied troops (player included) who are hurt and will automatically approach them and give them both an immediate health refill plus an extra med-kit on the ground. They're easily identified by their distinct Red Crosses around their arms, helmets/hats, and backpacks. If you get hurt and don't have a safe path to an aid station, seek cover and look for any nearby medics who are making their way to you. If a medic is engaged in battle or helping another soldier, you can also bring up the Troop Command Menu (default key: X) and select the new "Medic!" button to summon a nearby medic to you immediately. Note that medics will only approach you if you're hurt and are within range. If you're too far away to get their attention, you may need to close the gap before they'll notice you're hurt!
A German medic heals the player. Time to get back in the fight soldier!
Also, keep an eye out for other wounded allies who might be retreating! If an ally gets hurt and a medic is approaching them, the wounded soldier will crouch down and attempt to retreat a small distance & then wait for a medic. If you see a comrade hiding, try to cover them until a medic is able to get them back in the fight!
A French support gunner drops an ammo box for the player!
In a similar fashion, classes who had an Ammo Box as their special ability will dispense the ammo cans at the feet of other bots who are low on ammo. They will seek out other nearby troops who need ammo. The player can call out for ammo with the Troop Command menu as well. These troops however still prioritize fighting over seeking out other allies to re-arm. Their resupply cooldown is also considerably longer than the medic, meaning they can't dispense ammo as frequently, helping to keep them focused on fighting first and resupplying second.
Wrapping Up
This update really was focused on improving the team dynamics of the AI bots, and I think you'll be pleased with the results. It's pretty neat to be fighting on the front lines with 1HP and a dream when a friendly medic comes up from behind and gives you enough health to make the heroic breakthrough. It also seems to help slow the battles down a bit as a proportion of each team is now preoccupied healing & resupplying their comrades. It's a nice change of pace away from the constant blitzing for the next flag.
All in all, I hope you enjoy this new update. I know I sure do. AI is perhaps the most difficult thing to work on but also the once that I find the most rewarding when it works. To that end, I'm fairly happy with the outcome of these new AI troop types.
I hope you have a wonderful, happy, healthy, and peaceful holiday season.
Merry Christmas,
Henry
Machine Gun Update Hotfix
Quick hotfix for some feedback received on the machine gun update.
- Fixed camera jittering in First Person Mode w. Soviet Army troops (Thank you Redemption for identifying this and reporting it)
- Possible fix for "ghost machine guns" - mounted machine guns could occasionally continue firing after the soldier manning it was killed. As spooky as this was, it was in fact, not meant to be part of this Halloween update & was unintentional. (Thanks to Just Mob for identifying this and reporting it)
- Made mounted machine guns twice as accurate as they were initially
- Made swivel speed of mounted machine guns twice as fast (up to 60 degrees/second from 30 degrees/second)
- Adjusted placements of mounted machine guns on a few maps
- Adjusted camera placement in first person mode of mounted DP28 to align the front sight closer to the center of the screen
- Small adjustment to AI bot behavior which reduces the frequency they throw grenades before shooting at you when both options are considered valid by their script.
Feel free to post further feedback here or on the #bug-report channel on our Discord.
Thanks & Happy Halloween,
Henry