21–30 of 77 posts
I love this page. I've used this page as a reference, it saved me a lot of time and left me with a stronger understanding as well. It reminds me of old school web. When google first came on the scene I was amazed at how many informational pages from either hobbyists or professionals existed (but which I wasn't finding with older search engines), where someone just decided to put everything they know about some topic…
I've been on this website so often, and pointed other people so many times to it... I hope this never gets lost and is archived.
If Amit would write a book about gamedev, I'd definitely buy it and add it to my collection.
FWIW, I strongly prefer square grids for tabletop games. Hexagonal grids give you precise measurements in exactly 6 directions. If you approximate sqrt(2) as 1.5 then square grids give you pretty darn accurate measurements in 8 directions, including 2 pairs of directions that are orthogonal, which is good for rectangular features like buildings. Furthermore the distance between two points can be quickly calculated wi…
For a hexagonal grid, the distance is approximated by counting the number of cells of the shortest path. This has <10% relative error (IIRC) from the actual distance.
FWIW, I strongly prefer square grids for tabletop games. Hexagonal grids give you precise measurements in exactly 6 directions. If you approximate sqrt(2) as 1.5 then square grids give you pretty darn accurate measurements in 8 directions, including 2 pairs of directions that are orthogonal, which is good for rectangular features like buildings. Furthermore the distance between two points can be quickly calculated wi…
I agree mostly, though i prefer hex grids for war games and square grids for rpgs/roguelikes.
Hex grids allow for more units in a given encounter, plus, i'm likely biased as the first tabletop war game i ever played was battle masters which used a huge hex grid map and a card draw system for movement with some 'cool skull dice' for battles and big plastic figures on bases with flags for units. There was like 6-7 unique unit types for each side, including a special unique unit for each army with special abilities. You got to build an awesome plastic tower units could occupy, it was basically orcs vs humans like the first warcraft. My 8-9 year old self was pretty stoked.
Also, for some reason i remember there was an elven shortsword item card that had this description
'Light as a moonbeam, sharp as a tiger's claw'
That's really stuck in my head as the definitive description of elvish/elfish(for you pedantic Tolkien fans) weapons.
Just seems fitting.
FWIW, I strongly prefer square grids for tabletop games. Hexagonal grids give you precise measurements in exactly 6 directions. If you approximate sqrt(2) as 1.5 then square grids give you pretty darn accurate measurements in 8 directions, including 2 pairs of directions that are orthogonal, which is good for rectangular features like buildings. Furthermore the distance between two points can be quickly calculated wi…
On the other hand, for movement along the 8 directions the distance is 41% short, for movement along the 4 main directions, the taxicab distance is 41% longer than the actual distance. For a hexagonal grid, the distance is approximated by counting the number of cells of the shortest path. This has <10% relative error (IIRC) from the actual distance.
FWIW, I strongly prefer square grids for tabletop games. Hexagonal grids give you precise measurements in exactly 6 directions. If you approximate sqrt(2) as 1.5 then square grids give you pretty darn accurate measurements in 8 directions, including 2 pairs of directions that are orthogonal, which is good for rectangular features like buildings. Furthermore the distance between two points can be quickly calculated wi…