Question about HQ

[marcus7]

ok, new user to the game here. I'm playing the Spanish Peninsular game and being new (and an idiot) I've managed to lose an entire army three times (twice as Spanish, once as French)
Now I can see that corps can be rebuilt easily enough but I cannot rebuild an army because although I have a 3* general around, I have no HQ.

Is it possible to build HQ units so that I can rebuild my armies?

Second question. As the French, when my divisions were under 50% strength I detatched them from the corps and moved them back to France (Bayonne, Perpignan etc) to rebuild.
Although I made sure I moved the divisions into the cities (1 div per city), the strengths never managed to increase? The divisions have been sat there for about 6 turns now and the strength seems to be the same?

[PhilThib]

Waht version of the game are you playing with? Patched ?

[marcus7]

Hmm, Download version of last week (whichever version that is?)
Patch 1.04 installed.

Edit :- I started the game and the only thing I saw was 'NCP1.04' displayed at the bottom right as it was setting up the game (loading textures etc)
Any other way of checking?

[Primasprit]

Hi!

Although I made sure I moved the divisions into the cities (1 div per city), the strengths never managed to increase? The divisions have been sat there for about 6 turns now and the strength seems to be the same?

You have the correct replacements in the replacement pool? Do you play with the historical attrition option?

Edit :- I started the game and the only thing I saw was 'NCP1.04' displayed at the bottom right as it was setting up the game (loading textures etc)
Any other way of checking?

This is the perfect way to check the version of your game.

Cheers
Norbert

[marcus7]

ok, I don't mean adding new regiments or reinforcements to my existing divisions. Do the existing regiments ever regain any of their former strength?
It's a good idea though, I will read up about how to add reinforcements to my divisions.


Any ideas on the HQ question? Can HQ's be built/rebuilt?

[arsan]

Hi!

Not sure about the HQ... but i fear they are lost for good leure:
Depending on the scenario, you may get new army hq as reinforcements later, but not sure.
About the units regaining strength, that is just what replacement are for.
Replacements are used for regaining lost hits (the red part on the elements) and also to recover full missing elements that your brigade or division has lost on battle OR was missing since the start of the scenario (that is what you call reinforcements regiments i think). So if a brigade begin the scenario with all his regiments in place, they will not gain new ones no matter how many replacements you have on the pool.
For this (full elements regaining) you must be on a depot if playing with hardened attrition settings enabled. If not any 3+ town is enough.
For hits regaining, even the countryside is enough, but it will be very slow. Better to go to a town (the bigger the better) or depot.
Regards!

[marcus7]

ok thanks. Shame about the HQ's but at least I now know not to risk battles with Cuesta, Castanos et al.
The risk to the HQ's is too much!

[Nikel]

marcus7, your question about losing the HQ is very good, and I have not the answer


But in the game, the HQ is supposed to represent the administrative staff, so they are people, subordinate generals, officials, support,.... I do not know how many times this happened in the real napoleonic wars, but we may imagine that they can be attacked or ambushed by enemy forces, even though they were usually in the rearguard.

Napoleon was always escorted by Imperial Guard Chasseurs a Cheval, but arsan, it was you who posted that in the russian campaigns he was nearly captured or killed by a band of cossacks?

[arsan]

Yes i read it somewhere. Cossacks were very sneaky guys
Can't recall if this was on the Russian campaign or in the 1814 one.
Marcus7, i have few play hours with NCP, but a lot more with AACW and i can't hardly recall an instance of a destroyed HQ except on sieged or cornered units.
They usually manage to survive even very hard battles.
How did you lose this HQ?
Regards

[marcus7]

Yes i read it somewhere. Cossacks were very sneaky guys
How did you lose this HQ?
Regards

I know 2 (probably all 4) were lost in sieges or cornered battles. Those french corps just managed to kick my ass again and again in the same turn, turning my 20,000 strong spanish corps and wiping out in 1 month.

I lost the 'King Jerome' HQ army by getting caught by massive forces in Oct 1808 around the Madrid area.
Strangely I think Madrid is a good area to get caught out like this, 2 of my 4 destroyed HQ's were there in different games.

[arsan]

Putting forces inside towns is a very risky situation sometimes. It can be good if the city has high level fortification and you want to hold it at all cost, but as you have experienced, a strong and determined enemy will trap your forces there and destroy them to a man. leure:
Many times is better to defend outside the town (specially in non fortified ones) so if you lose the battle, your remaining forces will be able withdraw to another region and fight another day.
As a rule of thumb i would only put armies and corps stacks inside cities in very special cases.... all or nothing situation.
Of course you can and should garrison towns with garrisons and even put big garrisons inside important locations... but not units and leaders you cannot afford to lose for good.
Regards!