Uggh Need help organizing troops in 61 campaign Union

[jnels80]

Hey guys its me again. I downloaded the patch so I cant form divisions till 62. I was wondering how can I use this cuz I was always used to forming divisions and corps in the 61 campaign. This is a good game and I always havin trouble with organizin my troops and sendin them to the right general its confusin and Ive checked all post and ppl tlk about it like it so easy lol. so if anyone can break it down for me i really appreciate it or what they did as the union the first yr not tryin to copy ur strategie lol just want to see how I can enjoy the gm more. thanks

[caranorn]

Hey guys its me again. I downloaded the patch so I cant form divisions till 62. I was wondering how can I use this cuz I was always used to forming divisions and corps in the 61 campaign. This is a good game and I always havin trouble with organizin my troops and sendin them to the right general its confusin and Ive checked all post and ppl tlk about it like it so easy lol. so if anyone can break it down for me i really appreciate it or what they did as the union the first yr not tryin to copy ur strategie lol just want to see how I can enjoy the gm more. thanks

Essentiallywhat I do is form a number of smaller forces around the better 2* and 1* generals. The norm is probably a force with 4 1* (there is a limit to how many generals can add to command points) generals and as many brigades and other units they can command. Usually my commands have a 10-15% command penalty as I consider that acceptable for the early war. Raising additional communications companies and baloons can be really important in that early part of the game as it will give additional CP...

What you will have to consider with these forces is that even if you have several marching towards the same target, they might arrive in a big mess, and some might attack unsupported etc. So it's probably best to be a bit more cautious than you'd be with corps...

A lot of duties can also be performed by barely commanded forces (aka high command penalty) or individual brigades on garrison duty or raiding/probing...

[Pat "Stonewall" Cleburne]

I usually just cram forces into super stacks. Even with the 35% penalty, the opponent can't stop it without doing the same thing. Form smaller forces as necessary and wait until divisions are active. Form divisions with your best generals and wait for corps to become available.

[Longshanks]

Divisions are allowed by September or so in 61; corps in March or so of 62.

Until then, both you and the AI have to deal with command penalties, and so your stacks have weaker Power than they would have with divisions and corps.

As the Union, you have an additional penalty in that most of your generals will only be active 3/6 of the time, and the highest ranking even less so (2/6). But the game favors the status quo, so when you get one active, he gets a bonus on staying active. However, your troops usually lose cohesion after battles and may refuse to fight again until they regain it.

How do you work these two facts to your advantage? Split your big army in two and when the first army is spent, move the leader over to the second army while he still has the initiative and keep on moving.

It's not perfect, but it helps, esp. against the AI.

Good luck!

[GraniteStater]

If they wanted to tweak the mechanics to reflect the historical reality of most high commanders getting OJT in the first twelve months, they succeeded.

Essentially, do not expect, nor, would I counsel, play for a decision in the early game. I would advise organizing and pouring the concrete for a good foundation for the rest of the game.

[jnels80]

my compliments!