Naval Engineers

[Strax]

What do they do.
What should I do with them.
Do they build ships quicker?

[arsan]

They help repair ships earlier.
Usually they are locked on big ports. So just send you damaged ships to repair there (big port level also speed up repairs, even if no engineer present).
Also be sure the damaged ships and the engineers are stacked together. Not sure if they help at all if not in the same stack
Regards

[bk6583]

I'd like to revisit this one. I read in another post about stacking a naval engineer with the naval units you want to repair in a port. When I've done this, the very next turn the naval engineer is "separated" from the naval unit stack and is just sitting alone inside the given port. Can you really stack a naval engineer with naval units (aside from actually wanting to transport it)? My impression is that they work fine if they are inside a port along with naval units even if not necessarily stacked together.

[Hobbes]

I'd like to revisit this one. I read in another post about stacking a naval engineer with the naval units you want to repair in a port. When I've done this, the very next turn the naval engineer is "separated" from the naval unit stack and is just sitting alone inside the given port. Can you really stack a naval engineer with naval units (aside from actually wanting to transport it)? My impression is that they work fine if they are inside a port along with naval units even if not necessarily stacked together.

I would expect this to be the case as well.
Cheers, Chris

[soloswolf]

I have never stacked them, and they have always seemed to do their job.

[Doomwalker]

They help repair ships earlier.
Usually they are locked on big ports. So just send you damaged ships to repair there (big port level also speed up repairs, even if no engineer present).
Also be sure the damaged ships and the engineers are stacked together. Not sure if they help at all if not in the same stack
Regards

OK, now you have me wondering Arsan. I always leave them as a stand alone unit in the port. Now I am going to have to test it some how.

[Jabberwock]

I tried it, didn't make any difference. You can only stack with brigs, transports and blockade squadrons anyway. As bk says, they are booted from the stack at turn resolution.

[Daxil]

I would think justbeing in the same hex would work, or that would make the most sense. I mean, who knows what the designers decided on, but there are hexes with ports and no city where it would make sense that you could station these guys too.

[arsan]

Hi!
Don't take my advice too seriously
I have always used them normally (non stacked)... but some weeks ago i read someone (was it not you Jabber?? ) posting about the need/don't need to stack... and begin doubting myself
I'm glad it works unstacked... i'm in no need for more micromanaging

Cheers!

[Jabberwock]

Someone did, that got me to try it. I may have posted something about it in another thread before I had really tested it.

[Strax]

Thank you gents

[Doomwalker]

OK, glad to see that they work stacked/unstacked. Now I am wondering if anyone has done any testing to see how much of a difference they make. For instance a damaged brig in a level 1 harbor without a engineer, versus the same harbor with a engy; how long does it take that brig to fully repair under both conditions.

[Jabberwock]

Kind of hard to test, since build times aren't static - even for ships built at the same location, the free naval engineers are all fixed, and ships appear at semi-random locations.

As the yankees, In late '62, I usually buy one naval engineer, and run him up and down the Ohio River to wherever I'm building ships. Once I have a sufficient fleet to accomplish my objectives, I put him someplace like Cairo or Memphis, for repair work. Maybe twice I've sent one around to the Gulf.

The amount of assistance depends on how much build time is left, but seems to be about a 15%? bonus. That's a guess. I can generally count on ships built where there is an engineer going into service one turn sooner.

[Doomwalker]

Kind of hard to test, since build times aren't static - even for ships built at the same location, the free naval engineers are all fixed, and ships appear at semi-random locations.

As the yankees, In late '62, I usually buy one naval engineer, and run him up and down the Ohio River to wherever I'm building ships. Once I have a sufficient fleet to accomplish my objectives, I put him someplace like Cairo or Memphis, for repair work. Maybe twice I've sent one around to the Gulf.

The amount of assistance depends on how much build time is left, but seems to be about a 15%? bonus. That's a guess. I can generally count on ships built where there is an engineer going into service one turn sooner.

I was thinking that, that may be a problem. I may try playing around with it tonight when I get home and see what I can find out.

When I play as the Yanks I tend not to build any of them. I may have to ammend my strategy though.

I will post my findings here after I play around with it tonight.

[Daxil]

Now I am wondering if anyone has done any testing to see how much of a difference they make.

One thing I can say is they definitely help with cohesion recovery It takes just a few days to get a ship sea-worthy as oppoised to two weeks or more.

[Chaplain Lovejoy]

I like to send one Naval Engineer to the Florida Keys to keep the Gulf blockade forces in good shape.

[Doomwalker]

OK, I did a small test with Engies to see how one would affect ship repairs. I used Tuckerton, New Jersey which is a Lvl 1 harbor. I sent a fleet against the forts in North Carolina and had the USS Dale come out damaged. I had built a Naval Engineer and sent him to outside of Tuckerton for the first run.

The first run was the port only, NO Naval Engineer. The USS Dale normally has a combat strength of 30, it was 7 when it made it into port. Without the engineer it took 15 TURNS for the Dale to return to 30 on combat strength.

The second run, I used the same port with the Dale down to 7 on combat strength and the engineer. It took only 5 TURNS to return the Dale to a combat strength of 30.

I may run this again as I think I may have missed one turn with the engineer, but this would have only made the test shorter by a turn. Regardless if I did miss the turn, the Engineer definitely makes a difference in repair times. I will be using them more now that I know they work. Especially working as well as he did in a Lvl 1 harbor.

[Daxil]

The first run was the port only, NO Naval Engineer.

Were the engineers in the hex or completely outside?

[Doomwalker]

The engineer was in a separate region.