What do you use to create your orders?
I currently use MEOW since I have a Mac and I do not currently have Excel. Even when I did have Excel, it seemed to have problems running Automagic. I would probably use Automagic if it worked on my Mac, though. The only problem I’ve seen with MEOW is that it does not accept target names with more than one space.
I use JOverseer, works great.
I voted for “Automatic” in the poll above, assuming that choice really meant “Automagic”
I really like automagic. I use it for all my games. I agree that it sucks that you have to buy Excel in order to use it. I tried to get MEOW up and running and could not figure it out. Mike did a great job in creating it.
Scavenger
MEOW + Orderchecker FTW!
I use Automagic… but also edit the output file manually where necessary to amend orders that have been deemed not allowable…
Best not to edit the file, players have been specifically asked not to do so. The reason it has the prescriptions is we just have to do it our end when they come through (it’s error checked the same). If you edit the file and then you get an erroneous result due to it then we won’t fix the results.
Michael - can you point me in the direction of errors that occur within the AM so that we can check?
Clint
Errors in automagic.
Move army with a character
Move character with the same character
You can not give two move orders with the same character. Sometimes I need to do this.
tim
That’s not an error. It’s come up before. You’re not allowed to put in two movement orders. It’s a common mistake that some players make. When it actually gets to us before AM we just had to pick one as the input software (and the rules) precluded it.
Clint
I think that’s a problem. I mean, the rulebook says that you cannot “perform” two movement orders, not that you can’t try to (unless I’m misunderstanding the original intent of that wording). You should absolutely be able to attempt them (at least I think so). In Tim’s example, an army commander could issue both a character movement order as well as an army movement order. If he is still an army commander at the time of movement, then his MovChar should fail, but at this point the character has only attempted to perform a movement order, he hasn’t actually performed one. Then the MovArmy command would succeed, right? And vice versa, if the army is destroyed and the character is no longer an army commander, the MovChar should work, and the MovArmy would fail (either because another movement order has already been performed, which would jive with the rulebook, or because he no longer commands an army).
Yes ,that’s understood. For clarity though, you can only put in one movement order, it’s something that is not clear in the rulebook.
Clint
That’s not clear at all Clint.
Why can you “only put in one movement order” and where does it bounce? Automagic doesn’t accept it, that’s an excel sheet. Order Checker might flag it, that’s Order Checker. What happens on the game program when and 810 and 850 are both issued by a single character in the same game? Will the program reject the input automatically, or will it just produce bad results? There’s a difference. IE - the program won’t accept the input and the turn results show “no order”. Or, the program reads both orders and the results are “your character can’t do 2 skill orders”. Or, the program evaluates 1 order and then the other, but even if the 1st order failed (say, the 810 because he was still an army commander) the 2nd does too (with a message saying you can’t “beat the system” that way"). Or does it actually evaluate the orders sequentially such that If/Then/Else the player will get movement out of his character…??
Brad
Thanks Darrell and Brad, because that is my intent. I am not trying to move both a character and an army with one character, but move the character if he is not an army commander. Automagic does not allow this, as it reads it as two movement orders.
tim
Actually Tim, you can help clear up my questions. You say “sometimes I need to do this”. So what happens when you do do this - in the past…? I believe I’ve either done it or recommended it be done myself, but have forgotten the exact results…
b
wouldn’t the program behave the same way it does when you input 2 agent orders or 2 command orders or 2 emmie orders or 2 mage orders? i.e., wouldn’t it randomly pick one of them and not execute the other? I seem to remember from the dawn of ME time that is what happened if you did this type of mistake.
Dave
Well, does it randomly pick orders perse…? I have vague recollections of similar issues. I know if you give the same order twice it certainly behaves that way (ie, 705…). And of course, it doesn’t matter what order they get pumped into the program in (210/250 or 250/210…)… Sigh, too many pdf’s to save for too many reasons…
Brad
My understanding, from the old days of manual entry, is that the program accepts the first movement order and rejects the second one. By first, I mean the leftmost on the entry sheet, not the lowest number.
As per other posts, amending to do 2 Comm orders or 2 Move orders etc… where each is dependant on other orders happening or events taking place…
I have never had errors on my return pdfs where I’ve done this, and I’ve not seen it go wrong where others have done it in games I’m in.
Clint, I can certainly point out to you next time I do this… although reading this thread, I might just do the pointing after the turns are run 
Regards
Michael