Greetings

It is my great pleasure to introduce to you, one of the three Mods that qualified for the final round of the mod competition!

This mod is being developed by:

-David Lüscher
-Frank Liepert
-Tom Babilon

Code Ares

1.) Overview
     a.) Name of the Modification
     b.) Short Description
     c.) Graphic Style
     d.) Mode
     e.) Playing Style
     f.) Game Modes
     g.) Fractions
     h.) Roles
2.) Features
     a.) Experience
     b.) Troops Bonus
     c.) Heroes
     d.) Tactical Help
     e.) Mobile Weapon Systems
3.) Roles
     a.) Infantry
     b.) Tanks
     c.) Support
4.) Scenario
5.) Technical
     a.) Preparation of the Unit
     b.) Game Mode: Objective
     c.) Command Posts and Fortresses
     d.) UI
     e.) Ranking

All text herein is the original work of the authors and represents their own vision and description of the Mod they are currently working on.

Overview

1A.) Name of the Modification

The modification is called Code Ares. The god Ares from Greek mythology serves as a symbol for the warlike conflict.

1B.) Short Description

Code Ares relocates the player from the time of the Cold War back to the beginnings of modern warfare – in the Second World War. We focus on the combat in the burning desert sands of Africa, the Mediterranean island of Crete, on the beautiful Sicilian country and on the exhausting path to Italy.

1C.) Graphic Style

With the graphics we orient ourselves very strongly to the World in Conflict, that is graphics which are close to reality, breathtaking atmospheres and the love of detail.

1D.) Mode

The modification is exclusively developed for the Multiplayer mode.

1E.) Playing Style

A great amount of playing fun, a fast pace and tactic processes are intended to characterize the game. Therefore the modification will go strongly in the direction of Arcade.

1F.) Game Modes

In all, four game modes are planned. Frontline will be very similar to the game mode "tug of war". Also Conquering, which is very close to the game mode "attack". New is Objective. With this mode the fractions must alternately protect target objectives from being destroyed. A victory can only be reached with a good interaction. The proven game mode Domination rounds off the package.

1G.) Fractions

Two fractions can be selected, the Axis powers and the Allies.

1H.) Roles

The number of playable roles is reduced to three. The air unit role is removed.

Features

2A.) Experience

On the battlefield, each unit collects experience points. The more experience the unit has collected, the higher the military rank. With certain promotions, there is the option of improving his unit. Ammunition with more penetration force or new equipment for the infantry unit are just one of the many possibilities.

2B.) Troops Bonus

If several units of the same type are next to each other in a specific radius, these units receive a troop bonus. This bonus can for example increase the damage potential or also improve the armor. The level of the bonus is determined by the average collected experience points of the unit which is being given a troop bonus. The troop bonus cannot be added up.

2C.) Heroes

In the strictly limited edition, hero units are also available. Friendly units in the vicinity receive a bonus. This is not identical to a troop bonus. As a particularity, opposing units which are within a specific field of vision of the heroes receive an extra premium. The amount of the bonus is determined by the collected experience points. The bonus of the heroes cannot be added up, the highest bonus counts.

2D.) Tactical Help

The tactical help is divided into two categories. On the one hand the offensive abilities. These contain for example artillery fire, bomber attacks or the dropping of paratroopers. On the other hand the player can reinforce his troops in battle or weaken opposing units using the passive abilities. The abilities are adjusted to the respective nation. The effect is however extensively the same or balanced in such a manner that no fraction is at a disadvantage.

2E.) Mobile Weapon Systems

This unique category is a mixture of infantry and heavy cannonry. The infantry unit serves as the occupiers. They are able to maneuver heavy weapons across the battlefield. This only occurs at a moderate pace, but the weapons have a high penetration force.

Roles

3A.) Infantry

The infantry will be developed similar to the original game, however with a serious difference. The pioneers will be the only unit which his capable of repairing motor vehicles. There will also be no tactical help abilities in order to repair bridges. Only pioneers can face this task. Thus a closer cooperation between the tanks and infantry is reached.

3B.) Tanks

With the selection of tanks of the respective fraction, there will be some differences. However these will by far not be so great as they were in reality in order to make a fair game possible. Thus each tank will find an equal opponent on the battlefield. As a special characteristic, a tank can respectively transport an infantry unit, which should lead to a closer cooperation between infantry and tank.

3C.) Support

The repair as well as the air raid defense vehicles will be omitted. As a result, the player can concentrate more on his task as an artillery supporter. In addition to heavy and light artillery, the player can also access mobile weapon systems. In particular, the supporter must rely on the cooperation with infantry and tanks since only these can serve as scouts.

Scenario

Similar to World in Conflict, the Second World War was a war which caused misery and destruction to the whole world. It was practically fought in Europe, Asia and in all oceans. It should not derogate the diversity of our cards that we limit ourselves to the Mediterranean region, because especially this location is diverse like no other. The player will have to arm himself for battles with a great distance in the relentless heat of the desert or for relentless urban warfare as well as the assault of the mountain passes like in Monte Cassino in Italy.

Also invasions of the coast of Italy and Sicily are no stop. Crete will be a special treat, where the players must prepare themselves for the German paratroopers who can land on the map and thus challenge the players from the allied side to cooperate. All in all, it is one of our most important goals to allow the maps to be played in a diversified manner at original locations.

There are however no overpowering maps which gives one party an especially strong advantage. We don't want to have maps where the outcome of a round has already been decided due to geographic conditions.

Technical

5A.) Preparation of the Unit

The units are no longer dropped by the airplane using parachutes. Instead, for each fraction there are several depots which are placed on the map. Around these depots, there is a rather small zone which the player can select as a dropping point for his unit. After a short waiting period, the units are ready for battle. Depots cannot be destroyed. With the game mode conquering, the depots change depending on who posseses the flags.

5B.) Game Mode: Objective

With this game mode, objects which are marked on the map are destroyed or defended. The attacking fraction must attempt to conquer certain command posts which are located in the direct vicinity of the target object. As soon as the posts are in the possession of the attacker, a timer starts. This is set for x minutes. While the timer is running, the target object is gradually damaged.

The longer the post is continuously held, the more the probability that critical air or artillery attacks on the target objects speed up the timer. Especially good cooperation should thus be rewarded. In case posts are lost, the timer stops, but continues to run if the lost command posts are conquered again. For the defending fraction, only one thing is valid: to prevent the opponent from gaining control of the command posts.

The units of the players cannot damage nor repair the target objects. In case the defender has pushed back the attackers, the target objects can easily be repaired. This only holds as long as the attacker is being held off.

5C.) Command Posts and Fortresses

The command posts are changed both in their appearance as well as in their function. What this looks like in detail depends on the playing mode. The fortresses are in addition adjusted. In addition to the classic MG position and tank defense canons, a type of field hospital is being planned which can slowly heal individual units.

5D.) UI

We pay a great deal of attention to keeping our user interface as simple as possible and as extensive as necessary. We will concentrate on the essential elements in order to not make the entrance in the modification unnecessarily difficult. The graphic design of the user interface should harmonize with the scenario being dealt with.

5E.) Rankings

In so far as it is technically possible, the existing ranking will be taken over and modified.
Ranks, badges, medals etc. will be correspondingly designed. We deemed this to be
necessary since the ranking is a great stimulation above all for occasional players. We
thus want to cover as many player groups as possible.