Siege and harbour defence question

[Aslan Stark]

Hi guys,

it is 1886, just finished fighting a war(which started by a crisis) against the swiss(playing Germany) and making them paying for it over 3 years but i just got the ability to create harbor defense squadrons and soon guard ships... are these ships worth having and if i do recruit them just for the sake of it. Do i just leave them in a harbor and they defend or they need to be in a fleet? Also during a siege, every turn i inflict damage to the enemy units BUT is that from my siege guns alone or from my troops as well? Also, wouldn't it be better just to have siege guns as they are the heaviest and with the most range, despite their slow speed?.

[loki100]

I couldn't see the gain to the habour defense ships - they cost the same as their sea going counterparts, are much slower and limited to coastal waters. Not sure if they add to the coastal fort value to be honest.

All your troops contribute in the siege but you get +1 on the chance to make a breach from siege guns (and sappers etc). Guns on their own are very vulnerable and will not actually take the fort, just knock the walls down

[vaalen]

I couldn't see the gain to the habour defense ships - they cost the same as their sea going counterparts, are much slower and limited to coastal waters. Not sure if they add to the coastal fort value to be honest.

All your troops contribute in the siege but you get +1 on the chance to make a breach from siege guns (and sappers etc). Guns on their own are very vulnerable and will not actually take the fort, just knock the walls down

Actually, harbor defense ships and coastal squadrons can operate on major rivers such as the Nile. Ocean going vessels cannot do that. I found them very useful for fighting in the Sudan, against Mahdist rebels in my British game. They can prevent the enemy from crossing the river, and do some significant damage with shore bombardment. I had a lot of fun using them. But if you do not have a major river you will be fighting on, it is better to get the seagoing squadrons.

[loki100]

Actually, harbor defense ships and coastal squadrons can operate on major rivers such as the Nile. Ocean going vessels cannot do that. I found them very useful for fighting in the Sudan, against Mahdist rebels in my British game. They can prevent the enemy from crossing the river, and do some significant damage with shore bombardment. I had a lot of fun using them. But if you do not have a major river you will be fighting on, it is better to get the seagoing squadrons.

thanks for that, I've been using the earlier coastal monitors for exactly the same thing so I should have guessed that the latter coastal ships had the same trait

[Jim-NC]

Hi guys,

it is 1886, just finished fighting a war(which started by a crisis) against the swiss(playing Germany) and making them paying for it over 3 years but i just got the ability to create harbor defense squadrons and soon guard ships... are these ships worth having and if i do recruit them just for the sake of it. Do i just leave them in a harbor and they defend or they need to be in a fleet? Also during a siege, every turn i inflict damage to the enemy units BUT is that from my siege guns alone or from my troops as well? Also, wouldn't it be better just to have siege guns as they are the heaviest and with the most range, despite their slow speed?.

As to the siege damage, each turn there is a roll + modifiers for each side, if the besieger's value is higher than the besieged, you can create another breach, or do damage to the defender. If the defender's value is higher, they can repair a breach (if there is one). The modifiers are based on things like siege artillery (+1 to besieger), or sappers, or even general's ability. The damage is not related to the units besieging (excpet if they give modifiers)

So you can besiege with just lots of siege artillery to make them surrender faster. However, the defender can always march out of the building being besieged and attack your troops. Siege artillery by itself won't last long in a fight, and will probably be captured quickly. Regular infantry don't help with the siege, but they keep your siege artillery safe in case the enemy attempts to break out of the fort/city. So you need both to successfully besiege.