April Campaign Game

[pasternakski]

Well Pas, it nice to see you and Jim Burns over here from the WITP Forum, have you given up on them at last as well ? Too bad what they did to WITP.... The AGEOD guys seem better grounded in Historical Reality and creating a fine AI.

Now, now. I have taken the Billy Pilgrim epitaph approach to the past: "Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt." I don't want to come unstuck in time and have to go back, though...

I agree with your comments about the need for the South to keep its already-overloaded RR systerm in operation, but that's part of the price you pay for being Jeff Davis. I am hoping that Pocus's fix for cavalry raids continues to keep them within reason. So far, so good for me. Still, I intend to keep sending the Duke and his raiders a la "Horse Soldiers" to tear up what they can.

As far as the raids, if it makes people happy to ... chase Raiders around Bunsfreeburg Ark. in a Grand Strategy Game that`s fine by me,

Bunsfreeburg Ark., maybe okay. Bugtussle, Ala., no way.

[bloodybucket]

Perhaps instead of "Auto Repair", why not make rail repairs a shopping list item, like transport...this could represent the civilian repair efforts, and maybe limit them to territories that began the war under friendly control? The more you invest, the faster the background repair takes place in areas not under enemy control, up to a certain limit.

That way, the player could pay to make the headache go away to some extent, but still make decisions regarding committing combat forces to repair work in vital rear areas, and get tasked with managing the rail system in conquered areas, a smaller but still critical task.

A frugal leader could still use militia, engineers, cavalry etc to effect repair as in the current system, but those who prefer to delegate could pay to have the civil system take care of things. Raids could still be painful, both in the pocketbook and by cutting supply lines in the short term, and a careless player could have his background repair capacity overwhelmed if he is lax about security, but the player wouldn't be forced to "micromanage" the repair of his rail system if he kept the raiding down to a somewhat historical level.

[Queeg]

I like that idea, it give the player a decision point on how,and if, to use his VP`s or NM.

I wasn't thinking of it that way, exactly. I was thinking that the player could either:

1. Assign a unit to repair the RR (just as it works now), or

2. Do nothing. In that case, the RR would be repaired automatically, but with a delay that would vary in length depending on your VP or NM totals. In other words, the lower your VPs or NM, the longer the auto-repair would take. This would simulate the lower capability of a nation that is losing the war.

Auto-repair also would help the AI keep its RR system intact.

(And having a choice would (might?) satisfy those who like to manage everything themselves.)

[pasternakski]

(And having a choice would (might?) satisfy those who like to manage everything themselves.)

Nah. We're anal-retentive. We're NEVER satisfied.

If we are going to have control over how much to spend on RR repair in order to get it done sooner by "automatons," optional or not, I would also like to see specialized RR engineers that can be mobilized for this purpose. Maybe it's just me, but I don't like invisible people working on my transportation. Besides, don't infantry and cavalry have better things to do (and just maybe lack the necessary skills, considering that there's more involved than the manual labor of re-laying track)?

Say, did you know that there's a game out there that puts you, as the guiding spirit of the Yamato people, in charge of how many aircraft engines are to be produced each month by each factory?

Hated it. Maybe there's hope for me yet...

[AndrewKurtz]

I would like to say why I'm willing to add an option: because this is an option which can reduces micro-managing, so overall it is not a bad idea, indeed it can be a good one even! (and also because I think it can be done somehow rapidly).

I think makes a lot of sense. You have my vote.

[Louis Ste Colombe]

Instead of auto repair, what about buying rail in replacement windows?

Louis,

[pasternakski]

The longuest cavalry raid :

July 1863 General John Hunt Morgan and his guerrilla force of 2,500 Confederate cavalry terrorized towns and farms in Ohio and Indiana. Best known as Morgan’s Raid, it covered over 1,000 miles through Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.

I just think raids are too deep but don't kill them !

I agree. Let's not forget, in passing, that Morgan's raid did not penetrate very far, accomplished almost nothing of lasting strategic value, was severely and ably harassed by Union forces both military and ad hoc, became an adventure in trying to find a safe way back across the river, and ended with the loss of nearly all of an elite force that might have been better employed elsewhere.

[Lonster]

I agree. Let's not forget, in passing, that Morgan's raid did not penetrate very far, accomplished almost nothing of lasting strategic value, was severely and ably harassed by Union forces both military and ad hoc, became an adventure in trying to find a safe way back across the river, and ended with the loss of nearly all of an elite force that might have been better employed elsewhere.

....just some thoughts....

that right it was ably harassed by Union forces........which means we as players need to leave some forces in these non-front-line areas. I think, as gamers, we suck in any available force and send them to the "front" and then are surprised when the enemy is running amuck in our backyard.

I'd disagree that the raid didn't accomplish much. It distracted troops from other places, and I am quite sure it had some impact on the people in towns "far" from the front.....fear or galvinizing them I not too sure.

[pasternakski]

Completely sensible comments, sir, although I would argue that I said not much was accomplished "of lasting strategic value." Obviously, as you point out, the effect in the short term was significant.

[Asa]

2: Build lots of cav in those two states -- put a 2 regiment team in Winchester, maybe one in Loudon (if you hold it) and have them assigned to kill raiding cav. Their presence will prevent some raids, while if raids do get through, you have mobile forces right there to counter it. Put them under a commander as well, adds some punch.

You're joking, right?

I've almost never intercepted an enemy raid, in Virginia or anywhere else, even with my own cavalry! I've tried everything: 1 cavalry regiment, 2 cavalry regiments, 1 cavalry division, 1 general led cavalry division... And results have always been the same: "chance of success 0%". Only Indians under Stand Watie command have met some success...

leure:

[Jabberwock]

I think I like the idea of auto-repair, with a variable delay tied to VPs or NM. In a perfect world, I think I'd like to see the game combine both: the player could repair the RR right away by committing a unit to do the repairs or do nothing and wait for the RR to be repaired automatically with the timing being uncertain and tied to VPs or NM.

Wouldn't it make sense to tie it to the rail pool? If you are buying more locomotives, you are more likely to have specialized workers repairing track.

[McNaughton]

Really? I tend to have pretty good success in eliminating raids completely in the East, and eventually can track down and eliminate the odd unit that breaks through in the West. Once you effectively garrison your frontier (by the end of 1861) the raids tend to stop. Focus on river lines and choke points, set up pickets there and eventually the enemy cavalry does not have a way to move through your lines. I have effectively engaged enemy cavalry with cavalry and infantry.

What really becomes important in anti-cavalry raids is knowing where they are going. Cavalry is attracted to weakly defended cities. In fact, you can very easily set a trap for raiding cavalry, by purposely leaving a target empty. They take it, and you can easily crush them. You need to think a bit to destroy raiders, you can't just assume they are easy to take down.

[Levis]

I think the raiding rules work pretty well as they are now, although as others have mentioned, it takes a little experience to learn how to deal with them. Auto repair of the railroads would we all right, provided there were substantial penalties in time, morale, and/or supplies. Otherwise, the game would become seriously unbalanced. By 1864 the south had little ability left to repair its railroads.

[richfed]

You're joking, right?

I've almost never intercepted an enemy raid, in Virginia or anywhere else, even with my own cavalry! I've tried everything: 1 cavalry regiment, 2 cavalry regiments, 1 cavalry division, 1 general led cavalry division... And results have always been the same: "chance of success 0%". Only Indians under Stand Watie command have met some success...

leure:

Have you actually dragged your intercepting force TO THE UNIT [not simply the region] you are attempting to intercept? In attack stance, I am often successful.

[Black Cat]

I won`t keep beating on deadhorses here , but first the advice up-thread to set your Cav. to auto intercept ( the red area on their tab ) raiders in their Regions doesn`t work because:

1: They often won`t do it unless the enemy unit is right next to them.

1: They will sometimes in the AI phase re-set themselves to a defend ( blue ) stance, so the raider will sail past into the next region. I had one get all the way from the Ohio Border to Chicago in 2 turns in Sep. 1861 and he took the city. It would _seem_ to me, seeing the distances they move, they are using Rail Movement in your Regions.

3: Because of the complex " Small Regions" type Map layout, as well as the way Roads & Rails run, you would need, as the Union, at least 15+ Cav. to have one in each Border Region just starting at Harpers Ferry going West. and at least 3-4 behind them. Now that`s fine for the North with all their $$$, even thouh it will probably take until Sep-Dec of `61 to build them, but the South just cannot afford to buy that many Cav. early war.