AGEOD Forums

Hello to everybody. This is my first AGE-type game, so I'm just slowly (very slowly) learning it. Thus my question is probably lame, but manual is unclear. How do I exactly use air units?

After reading the manual, I got impression that an air unit is a kind of a "fixed" unit in a way that is sits where the airbase is and automatically conducts air missions on its own - being moved only when I want to relocate it to another region. But how do I set what kind of mission an air unit should conduct? I would expect that when selecting an air unit I will see appropriate text in toolips for Postures or Special Orders, but it's still the same as for land units. So, what these stances/orders exactly mean if applied to air units? Or simpler, what exatly should I do to have my air unit on bombard, interception, reconaissance ect. missions?

1) You can't determine which kind of mission air units perform. In my opinion this sucks. There are many times when I prayed for a bombing mission but just got another recon. Perhaps in future games they will introduce this possibility (another AGEOD game, WW I has it, but that one was developped on a different engine).

2) Airfileds don't slow your armies down. Their movement type is wheeled like supplies or artillery.

3) Don't worry about your airforce too much. It is of little importance in this game. In particular, don't waste ressources buying more planes.

OneArmedMexican wrote:1) You can't determine which kind of mission air units perform. In my opinion this sucks. There are many times when I prayed for a bombing mission but just got another recon. Perhaps in future games they will introduce this possibility (another AGEOD game, WW I has it, but that one was developped on a different engine).

2) Airfileds don't slow your armies down. Their movement type is wheeled like supplies or artillery.

3) Don't worry about your airforce too much. It is of little importance in this game. In particular, don't waste ressources buying more planes.

Thank you. But this raises more questions...

- Manual says that air units in passive mode are "grounded". I don't get it. What are the effects of different stances on air units? If I put an air unit into offensive posture, what will it exactly do?

- You say that airfields don't slow my armies. Does it mean it's generaly advisable to attach an air unit to an army or a corps ect. and move it along with this forces? Or it's better to leave it as an independent unit and station it for a longer period at the same region?

What I do know is that they must be stationed with a structure of any kind to be active, so don't attach them to armies. They automatically conduct missions in a one province radius around their station.

I don't know what postures do what (if anything) but I keep mine stationed in garrisoned cities on the front line in offensive posture.

I don't ever build additional air units nor do I buy replacements for them. They don't seem to do an awful lot so it doesn't seem worth the cost. I'd much rather have some more conscript infantry and artillery.

I buy air units and I keep them filled up. I don't think bombing does much of anything (knocks off some cohesion from the target units) but the recon missions are very useful, especially if you have areas to your front where the enemy has a high level of military control.

I'd like to have airplanes with more respectable ranges. The late-war WWI aircraft most of these air forces were flying had ranges about 150-200 km, meaning that if you were operating from Syzran, you could fly missions most of the way to Saratov or Kazan, over Samara and Simbirsk. It would be something to think about modding.

Some of the following things may be up for discussion but here are a few thoughts on air units from my perspective:

1) Defensive posture and bombing: I think the manual is correct. On defensive posture never get bombing missions.

2) Attachment to armies:
I do it however I keep them with armies protecting key cities. My reasons: they need a structure and to be stationary in order to operate. This makes them useless in offensive/moving armies. On the other hand, unattached air units are easy prey for the enemy and are likely to get captured.

3) Buying more air units: I really disagree with TheDoctorKing's point. In my opinion, air units are not worth ressources. Sure they can give you some recon. But they are limited to short range recon which is rarely the problem. Besides cavalry is cheaper, multi-functional and has long range recon ability.
Bombing missions, on the other hand can be really useful.That cohesion hit can soften an enemy considerably. Problem is: if you let air units with armies that defend (meaning they stay put and are in defensive posture, you won't get any bombing mission). I certainly won't sacrifice the entrenchment bonus just to get bombing missions.

I suggest that aircraft should be able to recon all adjacent areas to their base.

This would give them a lot more value and would be more realistic considering that turns are 2 weeks and air units contain multiple planes.

Also maybe the ranges for recon could be increased to 2 areas from base?

. I think air pilots could be very independant with their orders, until WW2 (where it becomes exception), for there were not many pilot schools, they could be seen as a gadget, and still some army generals could not stand giving them orders. So, that's good the AI does whatever mission with.
. Yes, I think too their operation range should be extended to 2 regions (3 is too far).
. Yeay, maybe their reco should be on all the adjacent regions (at least half of them; and only one at range 2).

Thank you all for clarification and tips.

Just one more noobie question, cause I don't want to start a new thread for this. Manual says that when battle occurs, I should see "Battle Circle" (binoculars-like window) where I can observe how it goes stage by stage and after it ends - a "Battle Report". I tried a few battles to see how it works, but only thing I got was a final Battle Report. I did not see any Battle Circle. Should I change some settings in display/game menu options?

Yarpen wrote:Thank you all for clarification and tips.

Just one more noobie question, cause I don't want to start a new thread for this. Manual says that when battle occurs, I should see "Battle Circle" (binoculars-like window) where I can observe how it goes stage by stage and after it ends - a "Battle Report". I tried a few battles to see how it works, but only thing I got was a final Battle Report. I did not see any Battle Circle. Should I change some settings in display/game menu options?

Under "options" you can change whether or not you want to see the battle before the battle report. I personally keep it set so it goes directly to the battle report. There's no point in watching an abstracted battle especially when you cant do anything to alter its outcome.

JUp, I think boosting planes to scout ALLL regions make them much more valuable and realistic (ignoring fact that in my gate planes rarely souts region I need and scouts regions that I dont need), and jup, considering planes performance scouting up to 2 regions make them more relistic too.
And If you kook to histori of WWI then planes replaces cavalary for scounting.