Scenario Design & Discussion

Hello, I´m just back to Harpoon after a pause of several (eight I think) yeras. Though I´m focuse on Harpoon Classic and on my way finishing a scenario I think it coould be fun to design one for ANW, too. Is there anyone left playing Harpoon 3 occasionally?

File Name: Mark´s H3 ANW Scenarios for the HUD 4 File Submitter: JSF File Submitted: 05 Aug 2014 File Category: BattleSets Mark Gellis has written over 60 scenarios for H3 ANW. He is a master of small, chalenging scenario setups. All his scenarios are bundled, including a dsd-file, thus making a battleset out of them. Enjoy! Click here to download this file

I'm suddenly having the devil's own time making boarding/takeover missions work. I designed a small Persian Gulf scenario loosely based on one we used when I worked in Saudi Arabia at the Multi Environmental Trainer. When I originally built the scenario, I was able to launch a CH-53 loaded with Marines from my airfield and capture an enemy comm center and a UH1 Iriquois from a Medina class FF to board and take over an enemy tanker. After applying some update or other somewhere along the line, I lost the scenario and had to redo it. Now, the shore based raiding party won't capture the facility, but insists on attacking and destroying it. The helo from the ship acce…

File Name: The Haruyuki Saga (2015) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 16 Sep 2013 File Category: Scenarios For my 30th scenario of 2013, I tried something different. This is actually a trio of scenarios, following the Japanese destroyer Haruyuki (DD 128) through one fateful week in 2015, as she is suddenly thrust into the center of a conflict between Japan and North Korea. Since the events take place over the course of only a few days, the Haruyuki and the submarine assisting her, the Wakashio (SS 587) are not able to resupply, and so they will have fewer and fewer weapons as the scenarios progess. This was accomplished by using the logistics editing …

File Name: Gray Hermit (1984) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 31 Aug 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 29th scenario of 2013... This Cold War scenario assumes the Soviets have stealthily moved a couple of submarines into Hudson Bay. Canada considers this intolerable and acts to remove this threat. I think this one turned out quite well. It might work well as a scenario for people getting used to Harpoon ANW because it is a straightforward search-and-destroy mission and you only have a few ships and aircraft to control. The only drawback, and this is often the case with an ASW scenario, is that there can be a lot of waiting while you search. …

File Name: Baltic Squeeze (1980) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 11 Jul 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 24th scenario of the year... A nice, basic Cold War scenario, set in 1980, in which West German forces must ambush a Soviet convoy headed for East Germany. It's one of those scenarios where, if you are careful, it is not too hard to win, but if you are not careful, it is very easy to lose. Image: West German guided missile destroyer Lütjens (D185) (Source: U.S. DefenseImagery photo VIRIN: DN-SC-89-03687; Author: PH3 Haley, USN) Click here to download this file

File Name: Vivid Sentry (2018) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 24 Aug 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 28th scenario of 2013... In the near future, tensions have increased between the Netherlands and Venezuela. The Netherlands sends a small task force to Aruba to "show the flag," and hopefully discourage Venezuela from any aggression, and to gather intelligence. But things may not go as smoothly as planned... (This is another scenario that I think shows how good Harpoon ANW and the HUD-4 are at modeling small battles where both sides only have a dozen or so units. It is not too hard to win, but you have to pay attention to what is going on b…

File Name: Black Rooster (2018) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 13 Aug 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 27th scenario of 2013... In the near future, France must help its ally Gabon in a conflict against Angola. It must help protect a Gabonese air base from attack and destroy an Angolan air base and Angolan SAM facilities in Cabinda. Image: The French Command and Projection Ship Tonnerre (Official Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Alicia R. Giron) Click here to download this file

File Name: Ike Goes Solo (1982) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 27 Feb 2013 File Category: Scenarios My sixth HUD-4 scenario of 2013… This scenario assumes that hostilities erupted between NATO and the Warsaw Pact in 1982. It falls to the Eisenhower, her battle group, and several squadrons of Greek and U.S. Air Force aircraft to solidify control of the Eastern Mediterranean in the early hours of the war. Image: An elevated view of the forward section of the flight deck of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (U.S. DefenseImagery photo VIRIN: DN-SC-84-02031; Author: PH1 Dave McLean, USN). Click here to download th…

File Name: Coast Bronco (2015) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 26 Jul 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 26th scenario of 2013... In the near future, a small American task force must take on a drug cartel operating out of Costa Rica. (This might be a good scenario for people getting used to Harpoon ANW...it is not hard to win as long as you are careful and don't take unnecessary risks. It is, I think, a good example of how Harpoon ANW does well with small scenarios and in modeling low intensity conflicts; I also had fun mapping out part of the Western coast of Costa Rica using online resources to identify where beach resorts, etc. were located).…

Okay, I was bored and I put together some tables for randomly generating scenario ideas. I figured I would share them with folks. Use as many as you need to come up with a good story. Enjoy! I hope they inspire many fun scenarios! First, we need to know when the story takes place: Year of Crisis 1-2: Cold War: 1970 + 1d20 3-4: Turn of the Century: 1990 + 1d20 5-6: Present and Near Future: 2010 + 1d20 (This gives us a range from 1971 to 2030, which is actually beyond the official range of the HUD-4, but allows for more historical and speculative scenarios. There are enough older platforms in the HUD-4 that one can handle a lot of the 1970s p…

File Name: Crocodile Snare (1980) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 17 Jul 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 25th scenario of the year... This scenario assumes that the brief war that took place between Egypt and Libya in 1977 has continued and that Italy has tried to broker a peace between these two nations. However, when Egypt begins preparing for a new offensive in 1980, Italy decides that further aggression against Libya is unacceptable and decides to intercept an Egyptian convoy carrying vital supplies to the occupied port of Tubruk... Image: Italian destroyer Impavido (DD 570) (Source: Click here to download this file

File Name: Lion's Last Roar (1971) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 05 Jul 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 23rd scenario of the year... This scenario assumes that, in 1971, the United Kingdom tried to enforce an arms embargo on South Yemen, which it believed was creating instability in the region. The Soviet Union, an ally of South Yemen, refuses to recognize the embargo and has sent several merchants, some carrying weapons, to South Yemen; with them are several Soviet warships. Can the United Kingdom enforce the embargo, boarding and seizing those ships carrying contraband? This scenario was an attempt to demonstrate the flexibility of the H…

File Name: Gallic Spark (1984) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 27 Jun 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 22nd scenario of the year... In 1984, a coup took place in Guinea. This scenario assumes that French businessmen were arrested by the new government, charged with espionage, and executed. France wants revenge... (As is often the case, the real challenge, and part of the Victory Conditions, is not just achieving your goals but doing so with minimal losses. This scenario has already been updated to the new version of the HUD-4, v1.2, so you will have to download that. With other scenarios, remember, since a new version of the HUD-4 is out, y…

File Name: Nettle Meerkat (2018) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 24 Jun 2013 File Category: Scenarios In expectation of the June 28 release of the next version of the HUD-4, my 21st scenario for 2013... In the near future, with fish populations collapsing, tensions are rising around the world over accusations of illegal fishing. Fearing that Mozambique (which has recently acquired ships and aircraft from China) will take violent action against South African fishing boats operating in its EEZ, South Africa is sending two of its new frigates and a submarine to patrol the area... (My experience testing this is that it is not too hard to win, but …

File Name: Sidra Piper (1985) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 17 Jun 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 20th ANW/HUD-4 scenario for 2013... This Cold War scenario involves Portugal undertaking a training exercise in the Gulf of Sidra. Libya has warned that it will fire on ships violating what it considers its territorial waters. It is possible that this exercise could turn into a very special learning experience for Portugal... (This one turned out to be a surprisingly challenging one when I tested it. The trick is to keep in mind that the two Portuguese ships only have guns for anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense and the Portuguese A-7s, while …

File Name: Operation Southern Guard (1985) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 10 Jun 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 19th scenario of 2013... This "what if" Cold War scenario assumes World War III took place in 1985. It also assumes that, in case the Suez Canal becomes unusable, some merchant ships and tankers are taking an alternate route around the southern tip of Africa. Soviet forces operating out of Angola will attempt to disrupt Allied shipping. Dutch, South African, and American forces in the area must protect the merchants and destroy the Soviet task force. Image: Dutch frigate HNLMS TROMP (F-801) (Source: United States Navy.) (I hope p…

File Name: Istiqlal on Patrol (2015) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 01 Jun 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 18th scenario of 2013... In the near future, tensions between Iran and Kuwait have increased. Kuwait sends a few of its vessels to "show the flag" by patrolling the Eastern part of its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). But will Iran consider this a provocation and use it as an excuse to attack? Image: Kuwaiti patrol vessel Al-Garoh. (Source: U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 1st Class Kevin H. Tierney.) (Author's note: I found this one surprisingly challenging when I was testing it, perhaps because it is one of those small scenarios…

File Name: Defending Dili (2018) File Submitter: Mgellis File Submitted: 23 May 2013 File Category: Scenarios My 17th ANW/HUD-4 scenario for 2013... In the near future, a civil war is raging in East Timor. Indonesia has formally recognized the rebels and Australia is concerned it will enter into the conflict. The Australian government makes the decision to move forces into the area and to protect the city of Dili if Indonesia decides to attack. Image: Two RAAF F-18s (Source: U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Matthew Bruch.) Click here to download this file

File Name: Mark's H3 ANW Scenarios for the HUD File Submitter: JSF File Submitted: 05 Jan 2013 File Category: BattleSets This Battleset includes all scenarios Mark has written for H3 ANW so far. All scenarios are written with and for the official H3 ANW/HUE database, the HUD series. I´ve rebuilt all of them with the latest HUD 4 version, 1.11. Don´t forget to download this latest HUD 4 version. Have fun with Mark´s masterpieces! Installation guide: Just unzip the file under your ../databases\HUD4\scenarios folder. I`ve created a battleset file, the dsd-file. Click here to download this file