Basics for sea boxes

[BigDuke66]

What goes on inside the boxes still is a dark spot to me, espeically as some things work a bit abstract like posture that does not really matter.

1. Posture does not matter inside the boxes(well offensive takes a higher toll on supply but doesn't seem to help in any way)?

2. Should I make one big or several small fleets inside a box?

3. How should they be composed, a bunch of small ships(brigs or blockade ships) lead by some of frigates?(just like the normal blockade flotilla is?)

4. Should I group the transports with warships or is it enough to have some inside the same box?
For example the shipping box is full of Union transports and also 2 frigates & a brig under Palmer, is that enough or should I merge them with the transports together to protect the transports?

5. Do warship fleets in the boxes need transports for their own supply or are they supplied over the sea transport capacity that also supplies ports along the coast?

[Jim-NC]

Which side?

1. Posture does not matter. All that offensive gives you is cohesion losses. Keep the USA on defensive, CSA on passive.

2. USA - big fleets better. CSA I prefer individual ships, that way if caught, they all don't get sunk.

3. depends on side.

4. Transports need protection, so some warships should be with them.

5. Transports help them hold supplies. You need to rotate out transports to keep your warships supplied. At some point, you will need to send your warships back home to recover cohesion, ammo. Ammo can only be resupplied in a port. Even in defensive/passive, your ships suffer cohesion losses/hits (by storms or battle).

[BigDuke66]

Thanks, well Union would be important at the moment but I would like to know for both sides.

[Pat "Stonewall" Cleburne]

As far as #2 goes, I prefer one large group of brigs playing as the south. If you have 30+ brigs, the union will never be able to sink them as a group as the hits get spread out too much.

[Mickey3D]

I prefer to group brigs and to add Semmes with his bonus to evade ennemy fleets.

[enf91]

The biggest thing in favor of keeping blockade runners separate is that each Union stack can engage only 1 CSA stack at a time, so all your other ships remain unscathed.

[Carrington]

As far as #2 goes, I prefer one large group of brigs playing as the south. If you have 30+ brigs, the union will never be able to sink them as a group as the hits get spread out too much.

I've noticed!

[Peissner]

#5. Do ships ever recover any cohesion at all when not in port?

[DooberGuy]

Thanks for posting this thread, I was confused as heck as well. One question doesn't seem to have been answered, or at least not answered clearly. In the union shipping box, is it better to defend transports by placing your frigates in the same group as the transports, or is it okay to leave them in a separate group in the same box.

[Jim-NC]

IMHO, you should have a few frigates with the transport fleet.

If you notice, when there is a battle in the box, it says that fleet xx has found/engaged fleet yy, doing damage and receiving damage. If you just have transports in the fleet, they don't do much damage. The other fleet (your warships) will attempt to engage the CSA raiders.