The 50th Game

[Ermine]

It's about 2 weeks I've got this marvelleous game now and I'd like to share my experiences with all of you - hoping for some hints to improve my attitude and to enhance my game experience. (GC 1861/ 1.10 - Union Player)

I never made it beyond Jan/ Feb 1862 - most of the games I just aborted (learning new stuff that opens new approaches , Beauregard drinking tea in the Withe House leure: , unhappy with the general state of affairs).

Yesterday I found out that my "grand strategy" is the same I adopted in my very first game;

Some officers forming a few divisions in/ around Grafton (WV) to block advances up to Pittsburgh - normally done with Patterson's troops. The NVA gets 3 Corps (Banks, Hamilton & Milroy - a total of 6 - 7 Divisions). Center (Army) is at Harpers Ferry with 1 Corps, the other two are guarding the roads to Washington.

In the West (Lynchpin Ashland (spelling)) I secure the Ohio River by militia (Ohio, Indiana, Illinios drafts) up to St Louis; Reserves (basically game designed) at Cincinnati, Louisville and Evansville and St Louis.

Missouri; if I get Lyon I usually manage to capture most of the cities, which are getting renforced by militia and General Sumners who is heading down to build a stronghold in Springfield and threatening the north of Arkansas. Iowa & Wisconsin Militia do secure the North West of the game map.

Kentucky I wait till the rebels attack; defending Louisville, taking Lexington and move down from Ashland to capture those cities on the Kentucky side of the Ohio river.

Now, I usually stand still building up my forces along the entire front and to pass winter (normally it's about late september/ early october). ¨

I shall write about the enemy action in a second post.

[Ermine]

The Confederates stay usually calm in Virginia the whole year, with my two corps around Washington I always manage easely to take Manassas and Fredericksburg. I usually need to withdraw as I am lacking forces to keep Washington protected.

However, in each and every game they (Corps, Armies, Divisions, Brigades etc) are swarming deep into Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania; using Beauregard to destroy railways and sieging towns. And I am not talking about that Indian Leader who conquers region in the North West within seconds (sometimes I have the impression he just needs to walk through:indien ; shortly I hold the cities in the Front but loosing everything in the back (regions, states (yesterday I lost Indiana - i.e not clickable in the loyality window )

It clearly demonstrates that by finally being up to build divisions, Corps etc I get even more in troubles

I reckon I must do something terribly wrong. Any sort of suggestions are really more than welcome!?

Ciaoaoaoao

[chainsaw]

Against the AI or PBEM?

Against the AI build Militia - and lots of it!
Place two units and then combine them. Cover the front lines and back 2 or 3 spaces in cities or depots. Place them outside the structure and let them dig in.
Create small "reaction forces" of cav to attack the raiders when they get behind the lines. Don't let raiders get into your supplies because they can keep going just like the damn energizer bunny.

Against a human opponent - stick it to them first!

[Doomwalker]

Against the AI build Militia - and lots of it!
Place two units and then combine them. Cover the front lines and back 2 or 3 spaces in cities or depots. Place them outside the structure and let them dig in.
Create small "reaction forces" of cav to attack the raiders when they get behind the lines. Don't let raiders get into your supplies because they can keep going just like the damn energizer bunny.

I agree with this strategy. It works pretty darn well.

Except here since I cranked the difficulty up, I am getting rather large enemy units roaming in the rears.

[Ermine]

It's again the AI (against a human I'd be a free lunch probably ).

Played another one yesterday, did that tons of Militia and merged the couples.
Result was;

Those gangsters still passed thru my lines however this time their action was by "I don't know" delayed (Militia?? )...so enough time to move divisions up to isolate them. Cool.

However, Athena seems to play quiet a war of campaigns. Those raiding (I repeat they do it in corps size up to Pittsburgh, beyond Columbus etc etc). So in todays new game I will challenge her with an elastic movement - trying to challenge her, sorry.

By the way, where is General Pope?

[Ethy]

The Confederates stay usually calm in Virginia the whole year, with my two corps around Washington I always manage easely to take Manassas and Fredericksburg. I usually need to withdraw as I am lacking forces to keep Washington protected.

However, in each and every game they (Corps, Armies, Divisions, Brigades etc) are swarming deep into Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania; using Beauregard to destroy railways and sieging towns. And I am not talking about that Indian Leader who conquers region in the North West within seconds (sometimes I have the impression he just needs to walk through:indien ; shortly I hold the cities in the Front but loosing everything in the back (regions, states (yesterday I lost Indiana - i.e not clickable in the loyality window )

It clearly demonstrates that by finally being up to build divisions, Corps etc I get even more in troubles

I reckon I must do something terribly wrong. Any sort of suggestions are really more than welcome!?

Ciaoaoaoao

sounds to me that you aint building enough malitia in the west.

but your right stand watie the indian guy is more than a compitent comander and wreeks havoc in the west

[Ermine]

sounds to me that you aint building enough malitia in the west.

but your right stand watie the indian guy is more than a compitent comander and wreeks havoc in the west

Yeah that old buccaneer.... however I can tackle him if I get early my hands on Springfield, evacuate the indian villages and destroy the structures...in two games I noted him running into Lyon between Springfield and the border of Arkansas....later on I see the indian symbols while battleing division sized forces (like Athena put him into a stack) in that area....but not him plundering on his own....that Texan Cavalry cluster is the other devil.

It looks like Athena doesn't like areas with no cities, depots within 2-3 regions.... guessing from an ignoramus...

It's really a challenging sort of a game I must admit...cool.

[Mangudai]

As the Union I like to destroy all the depots west of St. Louis and all the Indian villages. This supports a more concentrated offensive strategy.

[Doomwalker]

As the Union I like to destroy all the depots west of St. Louis and all the Indian villages. This supports a more concentrated offensive strategy.

Ah yes, very interesting. I will have to try that.

[Ermine]

Playing now all nights and evening,weekends and bank holidays I feel advancing further.....

however, still there are some new findings - like

Until yesterday didn't figure out that industrialization doesn't need to be maintained permanently (came up to 270 WS a turn and decided to reduce it again by switching off my "factories" - then saw that nothing changed except there are no running costs anymore)

I don't build any militias anymore. Instead I produce Brigades (the small ones for guarding towns and harbors; the big ones (those with 2 Inf & 1 Cav) to guard strategic towns. All the Light Infantry given for free is used for garrison duty. ( Since inception I didn't loose towns in the rear anymore, even if - a teleported * Officer can organize much quicker a "response force").

The main issue, however, was the calculation that 1 Infantry Brigade doesn't cost really more than those two militias in order to be merged.

Tonight I try further to use only Banks as Corps Commander together with the NVA, the Rest is spent as Independent Divisions and Independent Brigades.

I play/ played now defensive for the whole 1861 (securing Missouri without Springfield; control of Louisville and defending/ attacking on the line Winchester Manassas). For some reasons the AI doesn't attack with full force.

Divisions have always 1 * Star General to serve as Brigade Element in case of need (temporary garrison duty, tracing & chasing a beaten enemy element or simply using it to attack a town that is defended by 1 Milita, right )

In March 1862 I have normally 2 Strong Armies (Potomac - supported by the NVA, as sadly I didn't figure out how to merge Armies ) and the Western Command, a total of 25 relatively strong Divisions (8 Corps, 9 divisions, and 6 Brigades). And by then usually I start building up Naval Forces, further until July I manage to take the 2 forts (Island 10 and "Henry?"), Nashville & Kentucky secured by August).

Any comments, fears, predictions & acclamations on this?

Oh, a thing that I have yet problems is that my ships are consistently running out of supply (in the boxes specially) - any hint to avoid it?

Ciaoao

[Spharv2]

You'll still probably end up needing those militia, once you start moving your armies forward, you'll start losing troops, and you'll be pulling those garrisons in the rear to reinforce your front line armies. Generally, you'll need most of those brigades for your armies more than you will as garrisons.

As for the AI being a bit passive. Well, it sounds like at the moment, the AI is winning. The South doesn't need to invade to win, it just needs to hold on to it's territory and it wins. You have to take it to them. (As for merging armies, you basically just deactivate one army and then form it as a corps of the other. It'll cost you politically though) If you haven't moved the AI back from their positions, by now, they most likely have some wicked entrenchments you're going to have to break through. You're usually okay taking your time in the West because there's so much room to maneuver you can usually get the opponent out of their entrenchments, but in the East, sitting still generally leads to some wicked bloodbaths.

As for the naval supply issue...what do you have your naval supply settings set to? There is an option that lets you leave units in the boxes at reduced effectiveness without bringing them back in to refit and resupply, unless you have that checked, you actually do need to run your ships and fleets in and out of port to keep them in good shape.

[Ermine]

I see, , you're right - Athena was ahead 100++ VP, and still adding up each turn something like 8 VP's.

I was just happy not being pushed around in the West the whole time by putting down this brigades, and start building up the Forces in the East.

Nevermind, will think about another strategy for tonight... .

Moving the ships in and out is ok for me - at least it reminds me that there is a Naval War going on too....(maybe the day I master that game ).

Many thks for the quick answer.

[Ermine]

Finally I reputate myself as being in to the matter, although I still loose games (2:1) within the 1st quarter of rounds - I guess I am still to much in an experimental mood, regarding my tactics.

However, a couple of questions arised during the last couple of games;

Movements

How does the engine calculate/ simulate the time needed to move into a target zone? (I tried different approaches to pursue enemy formations - if I am send out my corps I normally catch those bandits up at Eire/ beyond Pittsburgh; sending out taylored forces divisions/ single brigades they are for sure to weak to delay/ halt the enemy advance ) Is anybody spending its time on this thoughts or am I throwing my intellectual ressources in a waste here ?

Repair of Railway/ Destroying Depots

What are the calculations here? Under bitter tears I learned that while I have forces repairing railways or destroying deposits using up to 2 turns the enemy spreads through (Light Forces and very speedy indeed, however medium sized)...Anybody forming Repair Columns, with properly skilled units in it in order to keep your line formations busy with the enemy instead of rails?


Athena

Is there a way to read her? I have a sort of impression that if I am pulling out my big guns she launches those knifes of hers into my back ....Do I go for a little matrix and securing truely what I have now, she grabs Washington DC..or should I just don't bother thinking about her potential moves as it can't be taken into considerations anyway (unlike for example if you play against a human).

Although knowing it might be unqualified as testimony but she'd being a real time thing I'd beaten before having build up my very first unit.

Should I stretch out this thread I ask pardon but thought it might be better to keep my processing within one thread.

Ciaoaoo

[W.Barksdale]

Movements

How does the engine calculate/ simulate the time needed to move into a target zone?

Movement looks at the type of unit, its cohesion, terrain, weather and conditions, the presence of roads, leaders activation and abilities. There may be more.

Repair of Railway/ Destroying Depots

An engineer will increase the chances of repairing rails. I always have a few repair teams just in case. The best thing to do, however, is prevent your rails from being cut in the first place. Use milita, cavalry and light guns to chase raiders and keep key depots adequately defended.

[Yellowhammer]

Ermine - if you haven't already read the AAR's, I recommend doing so.

Here are some things I do as the USA in the first year of the Grand Campaign:
- industrialize NY and MD (they make money), plus 'Excellent' states when I can afford it.
- use militia to garrison OH, IN, IL, IA (note that militia can 'train' into regulars, basically adding 33% more power for free), with strongholds (under Generals) at Cincinatti, Louisville, Evansville, Cairo, and St. Louis. Build infantry regiments to garrison / keep / take IA, KS, MO.
- 'pacify' (burn) IT (but keep US KS) Indian villages (US and CSA).
- entrench troops from Alexandria to Harper's Ferry, while building up and organizing (Divisions and Corps) the NVA / AOTP (I only use one Army in NoVA at the beginning). Protect Grafton WV and Pittsburg PA. I also use a Division to change the loyalty of regions on the rail line between Harper's Ferry and Grafton.
- reinforce Ft. Monroe and Ft. Pickens (be sure to send troops plus a Supply unit to Pickens).
- organize Navy into fleets adequate to defend / blockade Hampton Roads and Richmond. The Gulf Blockade fleet needs to be brought home for resupply, I usually reorganize and rotate the Atlantic and Gulf Blockade fleets into the Atlantic blockade box.

[TheDoctorKing]

I generally try to take Norfolk during the fall of 1861. It appears to be very valuable to the CSA as a source of WS, and a base for raiders as well. And then if I can mass extra guys I go south along the Carolina coast towards Wilmington and Charleston in 1862. No point in attacking in Northern Virginia.

[madgamer]

make sure the units are in attack or enemy troops can pass right through

Madgamer