Fallout Tactics Redux Discussion
This page is dedicated to player feedback for the mod Fallout Tactics Redux by Endocore. The mod is currently at version 1.3, and more information can be found on this wiki here.
Comments and Suggestions
Fallout Tactics is a fairly mature mod at this point. The initial release was several years ago, and as the mod has turned out to be quite popular with Fallout Tactics players most of the basic design issues as well as many of the details have been thoroughly discussed in other venues. For the most part, the mod is working the way I want given my overall philosophy of what sort of gameplay Fallout Tactics should offer, but there are still many areas in want of improvement-- and feedback from players is one of the primary means by which I'll be able to improve the mod in the future.
Comments and suggestions from players are welcomed. Please be as specific as you can if offering suggestions-- for example, a generic suggestion like "Add more new maps" isn't very helpful, since I'm already working that. On the other hand, "Because of inherent narrative problem X, the game would be much better if there was a mission Y where storyline Z happens" might turn out to be a helpful suggestion. A generic suggestion like "Change the weapons and damage system" isn't helpful because I'm happy with the overall way weapons are working in the mod and have no plans to change the fundamentals, but a specific suggestion like "The R15 rifle's range should be changed from 30 to 25, because it's too overpowered in relation to the A24 rifle and D82 rifle" would be helpful to me in future revisions of the mod.
Quincy: comment and suggestion (hard difficulty)
The two guards on Georghi are very eager to kill him. My sniper can kill the one with handgun because he can shoot twice (in one shot and required S/L for luck). But the hunting rifle guy still can oneshot Georghi with 44+ damage. So it require even more S/L to ensure that Georghi doesnt die after the initial exchange fire.
Even if I grind all six chars (which I loathe to do), it's not easy to ensure both of them die in the initial salvo. Solution? Stick Georghi in a clutter corner for both range and reduced damage so at least he can survive one round WITHOUT too many Save and ReLoad?Laclongquan (talk) 14:51, July 11, 2017 (UTC)
The six hostaged civilians in power generator building are too dumb to live. Why on earth would they run to attack the guards barehanded after I killed the roving commander and turn off the light? (I let two unsneaks on the backside of those other four guards so let say they are distracted). Unless you have all 6 shooters with high level sneak (100+) in there, there's good chance the guards can retalitate with wild abandon fire and trigger the barrel or explosives. 6 because you need to total block the three routes leading to those 4 guards, so the hostages should have no way to go but runaway. Solution? Other than duplicate all those hostages AI into single script: run toward the stair when the light is out. I dont see what else can be done.Laclongquan (talk) 15:01, July 11, 2017 (UTC)
Thanks for your comments, Laclongquan. One thing to remember about the Quincy mission is that there are varying levels of success possible. Saving Georgi and all six hostages at the power plant are necessary to get the "super duper very best" victory, but neither is required to get a winning outcome in the mission. Thus these two situations are designed to be very difficult in order to reward those who want to go above and beyond their basic orders from HQ.
To have a better chance at saving Georgi, I have two suggestions. One would be to put more people in position to open fire on the guards and kill them both on the first turn; sneak around the vicinity a bit to find some firing angles. Another approach would be to take some shots at them while fending off the deathclaw invasion of Ghoultown-- this will cause them to forget about Georgi and leave their positions to better attack your team. On the hostage situation at the power plant, one need only save three of six hostages to satisfy the mayor. I always save all of them anyway, by sneaking two characters down along the south wall to be in position to get the guards and enemy boss, then sneaking another character around the corner by the stairs (preferably using a shotgun or grenade) to get the two guards watching the entryway. You could also have this latter attack staged by simply hiding behind the corner and stepping out to attack at the appropriate time.
In general, the trouble in the original game with all the Quincy situations was that they were way too easy, and hardly required any thoughtful tactics at all to get complete/"best" victories. My goal in greatly increasing the diffictulty here is to inspire players to give serious thought to how best conduct the numerous breaching actions found in the scenario. Endocore (talk) 16:00, July 13, 2017 (UTC)
Yes! The Gorghi situation, barring repeated saving reload, does require 6 hunting riflemen, because XOR doesnt have the range. They also need to be very quick because the script has a timer I think. Going around doesnt work because script also has a proximity alarm, ie getting past certain distance speed it up. Both limits reduce our tactical option.. It's much harder than the power generator because you can snuck in a lot of sneaker. At worst, two hostages get killed.
--If you're having too much trouble here, you may want to do some random encounters before the mission to level up. Exploring the world map would also give you a chance to hit some Special Encounters and get at least one or two better weapons. I usually just have two troops rescue Georgi, one for each of his guards, and can't recall failing to rescue him in many playthroughs. Endocore (talk) 23:46, July 26, 2017 (UTC)
A suggestion for your further modifications: hostile response team. Each map should have a group heavily armed moving in 3-4 that investigate once sentries in sensitive location get killed. This ensure that the favourite tactic of sending in a special strengthened sneaker to kill them all will get a very hard counter. Of course, the obvious counter to that is to prepare an ambush before killing that canary, but that's all to the good.Laclongquan (talk) 15:27, July 21, 2017 (UTC)
--This is very reasonable. One of the real problems with the game, though, is lack of consideration for noise discipline. In the example you gave, a very sneaky person probably shouldn't get penalized with an arbitrary counterattack (since they've spent numerous skillpoints specifically to become sneaky). One of the things I've been minimizing or eliminating are the many juvenile "gotcha" situations that the original devs attempted to pass off in lieu of actual AI tactics, and which don't really have a place in any decent wargame. Skill, not luck, should decide the day (which is why I never liked Battle for Wesnoth, if you've ever played that game). Endocore (talk) 23:46, July 26, 2017 (UTC)
Problems, Errors, and Bugs
One of the objectives of Fallout Tactics Redux is to fix bugs and errors in the original game's single-player campaign. If you find a problem, error, or bug while playing Fallout Tactics Redux, report the problem you found here. Please be as specific as possible, giving as much detail as you're able-- if I can't figure out what your talking about, I won't be able to investigate your problem. Also, please check the list of "Known, Unfixable Bugs" below before reporting a problem here.
EXAMPLE: In the Field Clinic and Goo Pond Special Encounters, there's an error in the ambient sound files (no commas in the initialization table). Music plays fine on these maps, but ambient sounds are missing as a result.
Note for Windows 8, Windows 10 users: Installing the game itself (as opposed to the Redux mod) on the latest versions of Windows can sometimes be a problem. I recently started using a computer running Windows 10 and had a little trouble myself with a DirectX issue. The fix is easy, and more information can be found in the Steam forums.
Basically, you get an error that says something along the lines of: C:\dev\phoenix\display\directx7\ and the game won't start.
To fix this, modify the shortcut you're using to start the game by adding a -g option to the path. This will allow the game to load, and once that happens you simply use the in-game menus to modify the display resolution. Thereafter, the game will load perfectly every time.
Known, Unfixable Bugs
Fallout Tactics Redux strives to offer players the most reliable, bug-free Fallout Tactics experience ever, but there are some problems about which little or nothing can be done.
Engine Bugs
The Phoenix engine (the code framework that runs the game) has many obscure bugs that cannot be fixed, because the problems are hard-coded in the game exe. Some of these known bugs are:
--Gambling bug. When gambling with an npc, move all the npc's items into the gambling area but put up no stakes of your own. Then just click "Gamble" repeatedly. Eventually, you'll win.
--Recruit auto-levelling. There are many problems associated with the game's system for automatically levelling up recruits in the recruit pool. Happily, almost all these problems have one simple solution: just talk to the Recruit Master again. If you talk to the Recruit Master and hear a "level-up" sound effect, this means recruits have been automatically levelled up, which usually turns out to be undesirable. Exit the conversation and talk to him again-- recruits will be back to their base levels, eliminating most problems.
++NOTE: the old mechanism of FTBOS use in autolevel recruits is pretty well understood and can be manipulated as you see fit (see my FT BOS recruit faq on gamefaqs for example). However, your Redux recruits seem to have problems. Let's take Steffie and Helen for two sample, or Harold for ghoul. If you take them out when their XP near level up and do something to get xp (unlock a door in Quincy, or science the info terminal in bunker), they auto level like the game treat them still in the pool. Meanwhile Jack has no problem at all, ie acting in the exact known way of old. Take him out, level him up, use one or two skill point. The game will remember that xp and skill set of his. The next you visit Recruit master with high xp gain, he level up but doesnt spend his point or perk at all. Take him out, use one or two point, no need to even choose his perk, return. With this, other 4 recruits like Jack can be used as reserve squad for late game. THIS is the old FTBOS method we use to manipulate the engine.Laclongquan (talk) 15:22, July 23, 2017 (UTC)
---I've never noticed this and wasn't aware of any issues like that, but on the other hand this is an unavoidable trouble if you're trying to exploit an unfixable bug in the game engine. I think most players (including myself) have no interest in having soldiers auto-levelled instead of built according to player choice, so I don't fool with the bug at all. If I talk to the recruit master and hear a level-up noise, I just exit and talk to him a second time; this is what I recommend everyone do in all cases. Thanks for the report, though, I'll take a closer look at what you've reported to see if anything can be done. ~~~~
--Tank cannon can't be fired. When using the tank (or any other vehicle with a weapon mounted on the vehicle), after arriving at any new map the character using the vehicle mounted weapon must exit the vehicle one time, then get back in, before the weapon can be fired.
--Tank turret graphical redraw errors. Sometimes in bunkers or other maps, the tank turret will disappear. It's still there, and if you move the tank a little it will reappear. Other times, a duplicate tank turret will appear somewhere near the tank. It's not a real turret and can't be interacted with; just scroll around the screen a little and the display artifact should disappear. These are purely display problems, and neither affects actual gameplay in any way.
--Power Nodes and Vehicles don't display destruction notification in PipBoy log. These are two separate problems with two different causes, even though the result is the same. Nothing can be done about either one.
--Flamethrower weapon gets two attacks. I can't figure this one out, so it's probably an internal engine bug that can't be fixed.
--Leaky walls or holes in tiles. Historically, all tile-based games have suffered this problem to some extent, but Fallout Tactics was particularly notorious in regard to the issue. Sometimes, you can shoot enemies or they can shoot you through walls or other obstructions. In a few particularly severe or important cases I addressed this problem by making double-thickness walls, but for the most part it's something that should just be accepted about the game. If it really bothers you, think of it this way: the post-apocalyptic world is a crumbling junkyard. Everything is rotten and full of holes.
--Medical item usage in turn-based play. In turn based play, when using the First Aid or Doctor skill during combat your medic must have fewer AP than he needs to use the first aid kit or doctor's bag. For example, if Stitch has a use cost of 8 AP for a First Aid kit, if he has 8 or more AP he can't use the First Aid kit. He will appear to use it, but will do nothing-- he will repeatedly play a "use item" animation and no healing will occur. If he has 7 AP or less, everything will be fine. If you need to heal someone and have more AP than the healing item requires, take a few steps back and forth to lower your available AP first.
--The Slayer and Silent Death perks only affect weapons using the Unarmed skill, and don't work with weapons using the Melee skill.
--Many perks don't work. I've made an effort to add notes to all the perk descriptions, clarifying their details. If a perk says it's broken and you shouldn't pick it, then don't. These problems cannot be fixed.
--Game crashes if too many Special Encounters are found. See the FOT Redux documentation for more details. If by some chance this should happen to you (and in FOT Redux the conditions are now quite rare for the expression of this bug), I made a file called SEcrashfix.cam that is included in your FOT Redux installation at \core\campaigns\. Rename this file to bos.cam (and rename the original file bos.cam to something else like realbos.cam) to fix the problem in your current game.
--Unable to leave map when revisiting Special Encounters. I got rid of most of these problems, but a few remain and I haven't been able to find a solution since the problem appears to be somewhat random. If for some reason you want to return to a Special Encounter map for a second visit, save your game first. Fortunately, the Trader maps are not affected to my knowledge, and those are the only ones there's really any reason to revisit.
--Quest items don't disappear from inventory if the character holding them is inside a vehicle when leaving the map. The engine has problems calculating containment, and nothing can be done about this.
--Invisible enemies attack player. A basic design principle of some of the later missions is surprise ambushes, with enemies suddenly appearing from nowhere. The enemies are always present even if they can't be seen, and under some circumstances will attack. I've been trying to reduce this functionality in Redux, because it's bad game design, but I haven't eliminated it yet in all the maps (which is my goal). This should only happen rarely, but not much can be done about until all the maps are fully revised.
--Crawl Into Vehicle bug. If characters are crouching or crawling when they enter a vehicle, and that vehicle leaves the map, their stats will be permanently screwed up. Always stand before entering a vehicle.
--Demotion bug. If somehow your main character gets demoted in rank (which is fairly hard to accomplish by accident), and other squad members have a higher rank than the main character, you'll have all sorts of crazy problems (duplicate team members, non-responsive team members, etc) if you attempt to return those higher-ranking squad members to the recruit pool. Nothing can be done about this problem, so you should reload from an earlier saved game or just keep your current team until you get enough promotions to outrank them all once again.
Other Issues
There are a few other problems experienced by some players during gameplay.
--Slowdowns. Some players report significant slow-downs, even to the point of unplayability, particularly in large maps with many tiles. In all cases, these problems are attributable to some problem or incompatibility on the user's own computer and have nothing to do with the game itself. If the game seems to be running slow for you, the top solutions to check are:
a) Using the in-game sound options, switch the sound from Miles Sound System to DirectX. b) Make sure the file permissions for bos.exe are set to administrator or equivalent. While playing the game, log on to Windows on an account with administrator or equivalent privileges. c) Don't install the game to Windows locations like Program Files, Documents and Settings, etc. Windows tries to "help" you by scrutinizing and preventing changes in these directories, which directly interferes with game performance. d) If you usually play the game in a window, try playing in full-screen mode. Bos.exe doesn't natively support a windowed mode, and add-on programs are necessary to play that way. e) If you're running many programs while trying to play the game, close all the other programs and just focus on playing FOT. If you use resource hog programs such as Norton Security, temporarily disable them while playing the game. f) Using the in-game display options, turn off "Anti-aliased tiles" and "Anti-aliased characters." Also, check the settings on your graphics card. If you're using 32-bit color, try switching to 16-bit color while playing the game. If your system display resolution is greater than 1024 by 768, try setting your display resolution to match the resolution the game uses (found in the in-game display options). g) Unpack all the game's *.bos archive files. Years ago when the game was new, hard-drives were small; today, storage is practically unlimited. The *.bos archives contain all the game's resource files, and they are simple zip files that can be opened with Winzip or 7zip. Note that if you do this, your game will revert to its original "factory condition," without even the Microforte 1.27 installed, so you'll have to re-install any patches as well as Fallout Tactics Redux after you unpack your *.bos archives. The game engine is satisfied by either files named *.bos OR by folders named *.bos, so after unpacking to appropriately named folder directories you can safely delete the actual files called *.bos if you're short on space for some reason.
--Random crashes to desktop (CTDs) Fallout Tactics is an old game, made to run on Windows 98, and was not a particularly well-made game (from an engineering standpoint) in the first place. Once in a while, the game is going to randomly crash on modern operating systems-- not much can be done about this. The most important thing about CTDs is repeatability. If the game consistently crashes on a particular map, while performing a particular task, then it's a problem that can probably be fixed. If the game randomly crashes, giving a CTD one time when you do something but not giving a CTD the next time you do the exact same thing, then that's life and nothing can be done about the issue. If you get a CTD, there's no point in reporting it here unless you can duplicate the problem, because if you can't duplicate it then I won't be able to either. If you have frequent CTDs, my top suggestion is to use the in-game sound options and switch from Miles Sound System to DirectX.
--Backward weapon sprites The artwork for most weapons in the game is backward-- the images are slanted in such a way as to directly obscure the AP cost and usage mode information in the active item slot. In theory this could be fixed by simply mirroring the affected artwork, but I don't have the ability to make sprites, so I can't do it.
Non-issues
There are a few other issues that some players report as problems, but are not in fact problems at all.
--"Characters with the Fast Shot trait and the Bonus Rate of Fire perk can shoot pistols for 1 AP. That's dumb!" RTFM. My redesign of the weapons system in FOT Redux required this unfortunate side-effect, but overall the system works sufficiently well that it's not a problem I intend to do anything about at this time. The solution is simple: don't give your characters both the Fast Shot trait and the Bonus Rate of Fire perk, or if you do then don't give pistols to such characters to prevent giving them an unfair advantage.
--"The Fast Shot trait and Bonus Rate of Fire perk don't work on heavy weapons. This is scandalous!" RTFM. That's the way I designed the mod-- I'm not changing it, it's working the way I want.
(## While people appreciate the work on fixing the bugs, this change makes me not want to use the mod - everything else looks good. This is a play-style change, at least let people know how to undo it. I personally think sniper perk and energy weapons should be removed from the game because they are irrational - single shots on armored foes will just bounce off, and energy weapons might exist but they should be the 'musket' version and be heavy, low power and consume incredible amounts of energy cells. It's just completely out of whack, but I am not forcing those idea's on others. I want to play only heavy weapons in the end game, as I think it is the only realistic scenario, and I would like to use this mod and have my weapons work as expected. ##). I'm happy with the way the mod works, and so are most players. Feel free to make your own, I'm not changing mine. ~~Endocore
--"There's this great add-on program called FT Improver that would solve so many problems for you. You should check it out!" FT Improver does not meet the overall needs of my mod in its current form. I'm familiar with the program and its functionality, but at this time I have no plans to use it in conjunction with Fallout Tactics Redux.
--Dead robots block doorways, sometimes preventing access to important areas. This change was introduced by Microforte in the FOT v1.27 patch. I like it-- one of the goals of my mod is to encourage tactical thinking, and this unusual element of realism complements that goal. I have no plans to make any changes to this element of the game.
--"On map X, some enemy is in an inaccessible area. You need to add a ladder so I can get up there and loot his corpse!" Trust me, you're not missing anything important. The most commonly mentioned areas have already been examined and addressed. As for the rest, the game is awash with loot already, and there's no need to make significant map changes just so players can get a few extra pre-war donuts and barbed spears.
--"You should use the -path option, because the mod overwrites the original game files." No. Also, RTFM. The mod is specifically designed to overwrite the original game's files, which are loaded with bugs and problems. The current installation method is the best method for easy use by the vast majority of end-users, and at the same time does not preclude those with technical knowledge or special needs from using their own methods of installation. Most people don't have any idea what a command line is, how to specify usage options, and so forth. There is perhaps a valid objection that my installation method causes problems in multiplayer games, but this mod is a reform of the game's single-player campaign and has little concern for multiplayer issues. Furthermore, my documentation specifically recommends making a duplicate install of the game for use with this mod, which would prevent any interference with the multiplayer aspect of the game (if anyone actually even uses multiplayer anymore).