Two unrelated questions, RE: naval units and Areas

[grimjaw]

- What is the reason for multiple-boat/ship squadrons? I'm referring to the brig/frigate/gunboat/transport squadrons. Is this for some kind of gameplay balance? To assist the AI? Do the two-element ship squads fight as a unit while in a stack, or is all naval combat done at the individual element level?

It's very annoying when one of the free rebel brigs comes into port for repairs and gets tied up for multiple turns while a new ship is generated. Or if only one ship is damaged, two are still tied up while the other's health replenishes. If it won't adversely affect the AI, I'm going to mod most of the ship-building to one element, halving (or quartering in the case of transports) the cost. At least then the rebels can afford to build some gunboats, and I'll have more flexibility on force deployment.

- Is it possible to redefine one or more areas *after* the start of a scenario? Specifically, I want to alter values generated by areas.ini, preferably by scripting an event. I'm assuming that the game doesn't repeatedly reference areas.ini after a scenario is started, but instead uses values stored in the .hst. It's always irked me that West Virginia has already become a de facto state at the start of the full campaigns. I'd like to define both areas VA and WV, but give all the regions to VA at start. Then depending on conditions (X number of cities in Union MC and loyalty, etc) redefine VA, adding the regions to WV, previously defined as empty.

edit: I actually meant to post this in Mods

[Gray Fox]

I'm not a modder, but one good thing about two brigs or four transports together in one unit is the replacement chit rule. If you lose one brig element or three of the transport elements, with a little luck a single chit of the required type will replace them all and cost you nothing. Your single ship units would have to be rebuilt from scratch.

[grimjaw]

That is something I hadn't considered. However, it seems like the replacement costs for brig and transport elements is the same as buying new elements. If a single transport replacement chit will replace multiple missing elements from the same riverine transport squadron, I can see that making a big difference. But unless you're saying that a single brig replacement chit will replace missing elements from several brig or ocean transport squads simultaneously, it's the same cost in that case.

[Captain_Orso]

- What is the reason for multiple-boat/ship squadrons? I'm referring to the brig/frigate/gunboat/transport squadrons. Is this for some kind of gameplay balance? To assist the AI? Do the two-element ship squads fight as a unit while in a stack, or is all naval combat done at the individual element level?

It's very annoying when one of the free rebel brigs comes into port for repairs and gets tied up for multiple turns while a new ship is generated. Or if only one ship is damaged, two are still tied up while the other's health replenishes. If it won't adversely affect the AI, I'm going to mod most of the ship-building to one element, halving (or quartering in the case of transports) the cost. At least then the rebels can afford to build some gunboats, and I'll have more flexibility on force deployment.

Multi-element naval units will only attempt to receive a replacement element if they are in PP (Passive Posture) when in harbor. Naval units neither recover cohesion nor are repaired quicker if in PP compared to DP.

- Is it possible to redefine one or more areas *after* the start of a scenario? Specifically, I want to alter values generated by areas.ini, preferably by scripting an event. I'm assuming that the game doesn't repeatedly reference areas.ini after a scenario is started, but instead uses values stored in the .hst. It's always irked me that West Virginia has already become a de facto state at the start of the full campaigns. I'd like to define both areas VA and WV, but give all the regions to VA at start. Then depending on conditions (X number of cities in Union MC and loyalty, etc) redefine VA, adding the regions to WV, previously defined as empty.

edit: I actually meant to post this in Mods

Just guessing, but it should be possible to change VA's constituent regions mid-game[SUP]1)[/SUP]. What you would do with WV... possibly simply leave it as it is; overlapping areas are not uncommon and I don't know of any special restrictions with states. You'd really have to try it out.

[SUP]1)[/SUP]Of course the change is game-wide as there are no scenario definitions for areas.

[grimjaw]

What you would do with WV?

The idea would be to define (paraphrasing the code, I know this isn't the proper syntax):

[area]
VA = all of the VA and WV regions
[/area]

[area]
WV = NULL
[/area]

I wouldn't change the loyalty and military controls values much, if at all. Then when the WV statehood event fires, repeat previous except then place the regions in the [area] where they would be after de jure statehood. This would involve some other work with unit home areas, state capitals, etc.

[Captain_Orso]

What you would do with WV?

The idea would be to define (paraphrasing the code, I know this isn't the proper syntax):

[area]
VA = all of the VA and WV regions
[/area]

[area]
WV = NULL
[/area]

That would leave the Union units which can be build in 'western Virginia' with no place to be built. I believe West Virginia would have to be left defined for at least that reason.

I wouldn't change the loyalty and military controls values much, if at all.

That you can do on a per scenario basis and during a scenario.

Then when the WV statehood event fires, repeat previous except then place the regions in the [area] where they would be after de jure statehood. This would involve some other work with unit home areas, state capitals, etc.

I'm not sure, but the event in '63 which welcomes West Virginia to the Union may already push up some loyalty in West Virginia regions.

Personally I wouldn't push loyalty up so much. Either the population is loyal or not. I feel statehood is more an affect of the loyalty than the other way around.