I've been playing AACW for about 2 months now and want to say thanks to all of the developers and players for the excellent posts, tips and guides. This game is excellent but its even better when you have such great resources to help get you up to speed.
I have mostly played as the Union, slowly stepping up the difficulty until I have now gotten brave enough to play as the Rebs and face the logistic and number challenge.
Okay now the question: Playing as the South I often run into the 30 div limit and feel like I need to get creative in my Army organization schemes. My strategy has been to make as many Corps as possible using loose brigades or brigades attached to leaders. I have done this with Stuart as a Corp Commander and filling his Corp with all the Cav I could find and 4 Cav Art (about Division sized: 400 power). Do these loose Cav brigades still receive his Cavalry Man bonuses or does he really need to be a Div commander to provide that?
Also, I have a few Infantry and Art Corps organized the same way (1000 power or so) manning the river lines and place in between stronger Corps. Obviously I am losing the sharpshooter benefits and other bonuses, but I can't find a way around it without pushing the 30 div rule. My typical Corps is 3 div full strength plus one leader attached brigade (usually 5 to 7 element variety) plus some Corp arty. Am I missing something or doing something wrong that is going to get me crushed or is this a pretty standard organization when playing as the South?
By the way: Thanks to the guys writing the AARs and the Grand Campaign group. I have loved reading all of it and peering into the minds of other players.
-
Gray_Lensman
- Posts: 497
- Joined: Mon Jun 18, 2007 4:04 am
- Location: Who is John Galt?
-
Gray_Lensman
- Posts: 497
- Joined: Mon Jun 18, 2007 4:04 am
- Location: Who is John Galt?
Welcome to the Forums, Ejack
Sounds as if you hava a pretty good grasp of the organizational aspects of the game, including using some of the extra leaders with brigades themselves.
You asked a particularly good question, that I don't know the answer to myself, but thought to make a comment to draw attention to it.
In regard to the 30 div limit. At some future point in time, (there are a lot of other priorities first), Pocus has asked me to reduce the War Supplies available to both sides in the game, both at start and turn-by-turn. The 30 Div limit will probably not be so easily attained once those adjustments are made. The game actually had limits of USA 48/CSA 24 in earlier versions, but it was raised incrementally to 60/30 when I discovered some data that somewhat corroborated that 60/30 was closer to historically correct.
Sounds as if you hava a pretty good grasp of the organizational aspects of the game, including using some of the extra leaders with brigades themselves.
You asked a particularly good question, that I don't know the answer to myself, but thought to make a comment to draw attention to it.
Okay now the question: Playing as the South I often run into the 30 div limit and feel like I need to get creative in my Army organization schemes. My strategy has been to make as many Corps as possible using loose brigades or brigades attached to leaders. I have done this with Stuart as a Corp Commander and filling his Corp with all the Cav I could find and 4 Cav Art (about Division sized: 400 power). Do these loose Cav brigades still receive his Cavalry Man bonuses or does he really need to be a Div commander to provide that?
In regard to the 30 div limit. At some future point in time, (there are a lot of other priorities first), Pocus has asked me to reduce the War Supplies available to both sides in the game, both at start and turn-by-turn. The 30 Div limit will probably not be so easily attained once those adjustments are made. The game actually had limits of USA 48/CSA 24 in earlier versions, but it was raised incrementally to 60/30 when I discovered some data that somewhat corroborated that 60/30 was closer to historically correct.
Thanks Gray and Daxil for the replies.
Gray - Yes I actually like the 30 div policy and I think reducing WS would make it harder and maybe more realistic for the South. The limits on divisions make it much more challenging and as I have found make the strategic choices in the South to either go for the kill early and take the fight out of the enemy or really get ready to be outgunned and hope your trenches are deep enough. Both of these options seem pretty realistic to me.
Athena has proved sneakier than I imagined in my last game. She sat back and has allowed both sides to build up strength (which is why I got to 30 divs). In fact I couldn't find an Army west of Grafton to face through all of 62. So I got bold and sent the Johnston's Army of the West and the Tennessee up north to find and destroy the enemy. I got through Missouri and Kentucky and into Southern Ohio and Illinois without difficulty, but then... Pow! 3 40,000+ Corps led by Sherman and Grant came crashing down the Ohio and really tore up my spread out formations and lightly garrisoned supply lines. I can't move on the East Coast because she has about 300,000 troops over the Potomac to my 100,000 dug in, which cannot get much stronger due to the div limits. That's when I thought of the loose Corp formations and it has helped somewhat in providing some good fighting units in the West and holding gaps in the East so I could send divs out to save my Western armies.
Daxil - Yes the poor man div seems to work in the West and early in the game, but in the East I have no success with them except in Coastal and reaction force duty. I may not be fully utilizing their potential, but I find that the march to guns benefit in the South is critical in holding the river lines.
Gray - Yes I actually like the 30 div policy and I think reducing WS would make it harder and maybe more realistic for the South. The limits on divisions make it much more challenging and as I have found make the strategic choices in the South to either go for the kill early and take the fight out of the enemy or really get ready to be outgunned and hope your trenches are deep enough. Both of these options seem pretty realistic to me.
Athena has proved sneakier than I imagined in my last game. She sat back and has allowed both sides to build up strength (which is why I got to 30 divs). In fact I couldn't find an Army west of Grafton to face through all of 62. So I got bold and sent the Johnston's Army of the West and the Tennessee up north to find and destroy the enemy. I got through Missouri and Kentucky and into Southern Ohio and Illinois without difficulty, but then... Pow! 3 40,000+ Corps led by Sherman and Grant came crashing down the Ohio and really tore up my spread out formations and lightly garrisoned supply lines. I can't move on the East Coast because she has about 300,000 troops over the Potomac to my 100,000 dug in, which cannot get much stronger due to the div limits. That's when I thought of the loose Corp formations and it has helped somewhat in providing some good fighting units in the West and holding gaps in the East so I could send divs out to save my Western armies.
Daxil - Yes the poor man div seems to work in the West and early in the game, but in the East I have no success with them except in Coastal and reaction force duty. I may not be fully utilizing their potential, but I find that the march to guns benefit in the South is critical in holding the river lines.
Hi!
Yes, the cavalryman trait applies always to all the stack. No need to be a divisions. AS you say, only sharpshootres kind of abilities apply only to the unit/division.
Infact, in the cavalryman case (as well that on the artillerist trait and quite a few more) you don't need the leader to be in command of the stack to get the benefit.
Check this abilities list made by Lafrite
http://www.leqg.org/doc/aacw/listability.php5
And check the appliance column. All abilities labeled as "Group" work like this.
The ones labeled as Leader only apply when the guy with them commands the stack
Cheers!
Yes, the cavalryman trait applies always to all the stack. No need to be a divisions. AS you say, only sharpshootres kind of abilities apply only to the unit/division.
Infact, in the cavalryman case (as well that on the artillerist trait and quite a few more) you don't need the leader to be in command of the stack to get the benefit.
Check this abilities list made by Lafrite
http://www.leqg.org/doc/aacw/listability.php5
And check the appliance column. All abilities labeled as "Group" work like this.
The ones labeled as Leader only apply when the guy with them commands the stack
Cheers!
-
Gray_Lensman
- Posts: 497
- Joined: Mon Jun 18, 2007 4:04 am
- Location: Who is John Galt?
-
Daxil
- AGEod Grognard
- Posts: 849
- Joined: Sun Jun 29, 2008 7:55 pm
- Location: Somewhere in the Alleghenies
Daxil - Yes the poor man div seems to work in the West and early in the game, but in the East I have no success with them except in Coastal and reaction force duty. I may not be fully utilizing their potential, but I find that the march to guns benefit in the South is critical in holding the river lines.
Yeah, that's usually what I use them for. In Roman terms, they're my limitinai, the 30 divs are my mobile comitatenses.
"We shall give them the bayonet." -Stonewall at Fredericksburg.
Thanks
Thanks for the help and the useful links.
Rafiki, feel free to edit the silly.
Self-deprecating remarks are a cultural disability of being raised in some of the less civilized parts of the US. I still fall back into that mode occasionally, gentle rebuke accepted.
Rafiki, feel free to edit the silly.
Self-deprecating remarks are a cultural disability of being raised in some of the less civilized parts of the US. I still fall back into that mode occasionally, gentle rebuke accepted.
Return to “AACW Strategy discussions”
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 13 guests