vassal vs tts for armada

[Uncrustable 37]

Which do you prefer and why?

Which is easier to learn/play?

[clontroper5 4,234]

I perfer tts because it is prettiest. 

Pros of vassal: free, more precise, easy undo

Pros of tts: 3d space makes it more authentic to IRL. Looks better. Better for new players IMO

[Ling27 929]

I prefer TTS... Because I own it an plan on picking up VR soon.

Vassal has a slightly higher learning curve but is better for screen shots and such.

[BiggsIRL 6,754]

Vassal, because:
1) It's what I've known and used for 5 years.
2) The modules are maintained by guys I know.
3) TTS costs money.
4) Because Vassal is free anyone can download it and play.
5) I'm cheap, and TTS costs money.

[LTD 2,297]

Vassal, because the lag on TTS when you are playing across hemispheres is just awful.

[NairoD 217]

Only Vassal IMO as it is:

-free

-no lags

-more clear to me

[clontroper5 4,234]

I wouldn't say vassal is lag free, because it has its own built in slowness which occurs. but yes TTS is not very good on bad internet connections/ high ping

 

[flatpackhamster 700]

TTS because I'm not an old fogey sitting on my porch in a rocking chair with a shotgun in my lap chewing a piece of grass.

[Green Knight 9,800]

Actually, I greatly prefer tabletop  

Jokes aside, I think both Vassal and TTS are GREAT ways to A) connect with a wider Armada community, B) get quality matches in even if you don't have a local community, and C) get any games at all when there's a pandemic going on.

Vassal is free, which is obviously a plus. But TTS isn't that expensive, and since I already own it, I can use it for both Armada and X-wing.

When it comes to Armada, I must say that I prefer Vassal. It's about 50/50 habit (on Vassal since 2015) and the utter clarity and precision of Vassal's top-down presentation.

One of these days, however, I'll get in a TTS game, I swear  

[sasska 93]

I prefer Vassal, because there are a few things that aren't present in tts. It feels like more complete and thoughtful for me. For example you can easily measure things in vassal because you can check the distance bands for everything, including obstacles and tokens. You cannot do that in tts. You can easily measure LoS, in tts you need to use the range ruler, which is not that easy in a virtual table. Yes vassal is harder to learn, but I think it is more rewarding. 

There are few things that is better in tts still, for example movement is a bit simpler and more intuitive. And the the virtual table really looks like an armada game, which is not true for vassal. 

[clontroper5 4,234]

49 minutes ago, sasska said:

. For example you can easily measure things in vassal because you can check the distance bands for everything, including obstacles and tokens. You cannot do that in tts.

you can do this for everythig except obstacles in tts currently

[Gilarius 1,909]

When I was starting to use online play, I had a rubbish monitor that couldn't do Vassal - the resolution was so poor that the game mat didn't fit on the screen, let alone any of the areas for fleets.

So, I got TTS. Since then, I have bought a better monitor and really should try Vassal again...

But I'm old and learning a new interface feels like a hard thing to do when TTS works nicely. However, there is this Vassal World Cup thing due in January and I'd like to take part!

[sasska 93]

1 hour ago, clontroper5 said:

you can do this for everythig except obstacles in tts currently

Oh really? Then apologies, I think Im just a noob then  

[Darth Veggie 1,006]

Vassal. Most reasons have already been mentioned, but what is missing here is that because of an excellent dev it is bleeding edge up to date, whereas it can take some time with tts till updates arrive.

[Flengin 597]

53 minutes ago, Darth Veggie said:

Vassal. Most reasons have already been mentioned, but what is missing here is that because of an excellent dev it is bleeding edge up to date, whereas it can take some time with tts till updates arrive. 

Ahead of date, even! 😁

[flatpackhamster 700]

1 hour ago, Darth Veggie said:

Vassal. Most reasons have already been mentioned, but what is missing here is that because of an excellent dev it is bleeding edge up to date, whereas it can take some time with tts till updates arrive.

TTS has all the new Republic and Separatist squads in already.  I played with them on Saturday. 

That may not always be the case with TTS, I don't know but on this occasion you can play with the pretend ships before you own the real ones.

[bkcammack 472]

I’ve tried TTS a few times, and I’m just not sold on it. I find the way to make fleets odd and difficult (I really dislike the bags within bags thing). Also, I HATE the physics of the program. It can be really difficult to place things precisely, and heaven help you when you overlap or bump something. Also, the dice kinda go flying everywhere and can be a pain to gather and to read. Also, I don’t like how the ships lock into place once the shields are set. 
 

I fell like Vassal’s engine is more intuitive, and it’s more user friendly. The dice window makes reading the dice very easy and clear. The log helps you track exactly what’s happened. The range measurement is pretty easy, and it’s nice to be able to measure range from obstacles and tokens. 
 

If I want to pretend I’m playing Armada, TTS’s 3D helps. If I actually want to play the game, though, I think Vassal is better. 
 

 

[TheWampa 189]

For me its TTS, because the overall vassal interface just feels like some homebrew 1992 program (not being able to scroll and zoom quickly really kills it for me, e.g. with ASWD or the middle mousebutton/scroll wheel - or am I missing something?) ... and I only have one screen at home right now, so maybe it would be more comfortable with two available.

For TTS, I really recommend to lock everything and always roll dice with the "roll shortcut" (press the "r" key, I think), never use the physics roll.

I just whish there was some way to import lists more quickly...

Edited December 1, 2020 by TheWampa

[Beginner2Winner 54]

Why versus? Just play both!

TTS looks better and has a very nice gameplay. Vassal is free and is (at least for me) a bit more intuitiv. Furthermore it seems a bit more accurate (as you cannot shift dice for example).

What I am missing in TTS is a better chat-function and mostly an overview of the server with all games. I love to see other games in Vassal and just be a viewer. With TTS it is more private servers for which I need an invite. 

Edited December 1, 2020 by Beginner2Winner

[187-Leon 42]

I prefer Vassal, because its much more precise and I am not beeing forced to have a "voice-chat" with a person i dont really know.

[Uncrustable 37]

I was able to learn tts armada very quickly after just getting TTS (which is 10$ right now and with how many games you can play for that price seems like an amazing deal). I really like it overall, especially how much of it is automated and easy to learn and execute. But I haven't played vassal yet. It seems like even installing vassal is complicated so I haven't tried yet lol.

In tts I really like that you can lock everything in place so things don't get bumped/moved even by a missclick. The buttons for movement/range are very easy to use the cdials go right into place automatically.

One thing I don't like is it seems difficult to tell ships apart (running 2+ of one ship) without coloring a whole ship blue or something (which looks ridiculous).

Also it is difficult to tell sqaudrons from one another without constantly zooming all the way in.

Another thing I've noticed is sometimes your list will spawn upside down lol and you have to move everything around and rotate it to fix it (is there a way to easily fix this)?

[TheWampa 189]

9 minutes ago, Uncrustable said:

Another thing I've noticed is sometimes your list will spawn upside down lol and you have to move everything around and rotate it to fix it (is there a way to easily fix this)?

Are you playing in Australia? (I'll show myself out...)

[Uncrustable 37]

USA

[icedbecker2007 44]

Both seem fine and players seem to like both once they have familiarized themselves with it.

However, one thing I don't see people ever mention is that X-wing and Legion have largely moved over to TTS. (I am not sure Legion ever was on Vassal). If we want to grow the game and secure Armada's future for 2030, we need to attract X-wing and Legion players. TTS helps to do that.

This could just be me being in a TTS bubble, but I think TTS attracts  much more newer players more than Vassal. Vassal does a good job at securing the old guard.

[EBerling 190]

As someone who Vassal'ed for years, TTS is far superior.