Conscripts Issue w/ 1.5 RC4

[richfed]

Thanks, Pocus.

[richfed]

Well, I am back again ... "new" issue.

I am sorry, I didn't realize this was happening ... hope I am not too late ... this all occurred over several turns:

• KY Event fired normally
• I made a small division out of KY Volunteers & other militia at Bowling Green, KY
• I noticed that the unit panel had everything "redded" out again ... I suspect the 2 are related - KY event w/ no units available to build [as in post #2 above]
• The KY event appeared in the message panel again on a subsequent turn
• All KY units on map [via event] duplicated - note Madisonville militias in .jpg, as a example

Something else to work on, Pocus! You're welcome!! :-)

PS - I challenge SOMEONE to play the full campaign as the CSA - set attrition to "Historical" & automated replacements to "15%" [maximum allowed]. Just play thru quickly, if you want, at least as far as the KY event. See if you find display & unit problems.

[richfed]

I went back to playing version 1.04. There is no doubt, in my mind, that there is a major difference in how conscripts are generated in this version. It is a much more playable game. I am confident that 1.05 has some great improvements, but CSA troop numbers is not one of them. In 1.04, I am able to keep my field units out of the "red" - I mean, they will turn red after battles and such, depending on the losses, but I don't have to spend every dollar just to replenish and consequently not be able to build anything new. In 1.05, there is a chronic problem with this. It's one or the other, and minimally at that.

I hope that this is fixed - I realize that the CSA should have a disadvantage in the manpower part of the game, but it IS still a game and a CSA player needs something to work with. I don't know if this is a purposeful change or if it is something askew in how the AI is handling this aspect of the game, but it is a very different game from 1.04 --> 1.05.

For the record, I am playing the full April campaign as the CSA. I use historical attrition for both sides an have the automated replacements set at the max, 15%.

[AndrewKurtz]

Any chance 1.04 automated replacements didn't work correctly and have been fixed?

Have you confirmed whether or not using auto replacements causes it.

[richfed]

That is possible, Andrew ... however, there is no mention of "fixing" that in the change log. 1.04 plays a lot more like AACW, where there were no automated replacement options at all, so, I imagine it was working properly UNTIL 1.05.

I've been meaning to restart a game with auto-replacements "off" ... will do that soon. Again, I'm not sure where, under-the-hood, the problem is. I can just see the game results, and there is quite a noticeable difference from one game version to the other.

I get he feeling that I am a lone wolf on this.

[AndrewKurtz]

I get he feeling that I am a lone wolf on this.

I either play with no auto replacements or only 5%. I do not like the idea of giving the AI a chance to decide where I spend. Usually, I play with it off as I have to review it each turn anyway.

[richfed]

I started a new April campaign with 1.04 & turned off auto-replacements ... have run through to July and I really don't notice a difference. There are replacements for all units except elite ... which I always have to initially build, even with it fully turned on. It's giving me a headache! Everything seems the same, with the possible exception of artillery. I will have to venture a little further ... after the headache subsides. :-) After that, I will try the same with 1.05 RC7.

[richfed]

With auto-replacements turned OFF -- units are still automatically being replaced, it appears to me. All except Light Infantry & Elite [I purchased 5, 2 are left]. Also, on he next panel, artillery does not get replaced. This is with 1.04. So, at either setting, I have enough resources to play the game. It really does not make a major difference either way ... even set at a 15% replacement rate, I have always had to supplement the artillery frequently. So .. maybe it is not working correctly.

I will now experiment with the RC version of 1.05 Past experience tells me the CSA is hurting badly at 15%. I will try with NO replacements generated.

[Captain_Orso]

What you reported in your last two post is normal. You always get some replacements at scenario start and early in the grand campaigns you will get some more.

As long as you have replacements they will be used to replace hits, per the replacement rules.

Neither of those have to do with auto-replacement.

[richfed]

You know a lot more about that than I do. This thread has gone off course and is now somewhat outdated as there is an RC7 now. But ... what I know is this [after playing for years almost always as the CSA, and almost always the full 1861 campaign]: whether playing AACW or CWII - through version 1.04 - with or without auto-replacements - I have always been able to keep my replacements in reasonable shape while building new units, at least through the first half of the game - often longer. Oh sure, there are turns I run low and have to skip any recruitment for a turn or two [sometimes because I was low on money; sometimes WS; and sometimes conscripts]. With 1.05, I can not seem to keep replacements at a level where my on field forces can really benefit AND try to build new units, as needed.. And it is nearly always because of lack of conscripts in the pool. There is a huge difference in the behavior from all previous versions of the game, and I am just trying to determine if it is WAD [I suspect not] or not.

PS- When others post, or try to, do you oftn find that what yo type looks something like this when you look p at your scree?? :-)

[Captain_Orso]

I was wondering about how many conscripts we'd been getting playing the Union. Some time ago I went back and compared with some old AACW saved game. IIRC the cost in $ and WSU has go up nearly double, but income too, but conscripts had stayed pretty close to the same, both in their cost per element as also the income. I can't really say much about the South.

I generally watch what I'm writing while I write it, but I can't count how many times I've written pop-ip, waht, with (when--seems my fingers have a mind of their own), int he (in the), beofre , pr jad pme jamd pme ley kpff tp tje sode befpre mptocomg (or had one hand one key off to the side before noticing)

[richfed]

I think it's the forum ... especially in Quick Reply. I use IE11. Sometimes, when I first type a post, it runs vertically right down the left side of the text field. One letter on top of the other.

[Captain_Orso]

ehhhhh WAHT?

I use Firefox. The only complaint I have is that I can't use my scroll wheel to scroll the text box for a bunch of months now. I have to point-left-click on the scroll bar and drag it.

Do you have a good anti-virus application running?

[richfed]

Yes ... I have Norton Security w/Backup [their latest product] and Malwarebytes Pro. My system is clean as a whistle. I did a factory restore about a month & a half ago to boot. Since I retired, I restore folks computers after they run into infection issues. It's just strange ... tha PS line I typed abpove was as it happened. I didn't do it on purpose. Was just wondering if anyone ese has isues posting. Tis last bit, I just left as is ... everything before the word "Strange" I ah to go bck and insert spaces, letters and the lik. 'm goning to try Firefox.

[richfed]

Here I am on FireFox. Too early to tell if what I am typing is actually showing up, but it seems OK so far. What I really want to focus on is CONSCRIPTS ... that is, lack of for CSA, at least, with the 1.05 builds and auto-replacements turned ON.

Yeah ... it is an IE11 - Windows 8.1 - vBulletin issue. Firefox is going fine.

[Captain_Orso]

One issue you might have is a bad USB port or keyboard cable with a broken wire.

Generally I've found that if a USB port is bad that what ever device is attached through it will periodically just disappear. Windows will inform you of this saying that device abc has been disconnected. But if there is, for example, a broken transmit wire which losses contact periodically through minor--or larger--movement of the cable, when you press a key the signal created by pressing a key might just get garbled or lost and thus be ignored by the windows driver.

--

Pocus said he was going to add something to display purchases made by auto-replacement. I think before that, any observations will be speculation at the very best.

Basically what you are observing is this:

A: [Conscript production - not seen by player] -> B: [auto-replacement purchases using some of the produced conscriripts - not seen by player] -> C: [conscripts available to player]

In this situation you are speculating that "C" is incorrect. Without knowing "B" to extrapolate "A" or having "A" presented directly, there is now way to make an informed opinion on whether "A" is too low or not.

I can suggest 2 productive things you might do under the current circumstances, both of them with AR turned off.

1) Run a couple of turns of a scenario--the best would be from the middle of a running scenario in the middle of summer--without issuing orders to either side--do not allow the AI to create orders--so that there is as little interaction between both sides as possible. Do this by loading first one side and clicking 'save orders' and then loading the other side to do the same. Then return to the side you are observing and execute the turn. Now check conscript production.

Do this for a couple of turns to see if production remains more or less stable and record the levels are.

2) Copy a saved scenario into a previous installation--you may have to reinstall an older version into a unique folder (I ALWAYS install into a folder name representing the installed version, for example "CivilWarII v1.05 RC7-PB 1 Test")--and do the same as in 1) using the exact same starting point. This will give you something with which you can compare.

I can heartily recommend using this method for making screenshots to record your observations: How To Make Screenshots and Post them in a Thread

[Pocus]

What happens without auto-replacements and you buying them? Are things make sense? Also remember that any replacement bought can be eaten away before you have a chance to see it in the new turn.

[Captain_Orso]

This is correct. If you have, for example, 5 line infantry replacement CC's and purchase another 5 and then run the turn, of the 10 then available a number of those might be expended thus leaving less than 10 in the pool.

What is really confusing, is what exactly AR is doing and when, and exactly what affect it has on resources.

[richfed]

At this point, using RC7 - I just now downloaded 8 - I am playing with Auto-Replacement set to OFF. Everything seems fine. [one year played] I am able to purchase replacements & reinforcements at a reasonable rate. Very happy about that. Why there is such a difference with it ON - between versions 1.04 & 1.05 - is a mystery to me. On other issues, I have yet to have a crash - game seems crisp and stable. RGD display issue still present. Like that you fixed that Alabama regiment. NM I still slightly off-center -- needs a nudge to the left.

Captain, regarding the typing issue: I am fairly certain it is a forum issue, as I participate in other forums - including my own - and experience no similar sues. It seems more common in the Quick Reply box. No biggie ... I can deal with it or use Firefox.