Questions

[thebull0425]

Question about AI.
I lost Norfolk, but put together any army to retake it. But out of nowhere a confederate corp rails in and defeats me. I have ships off of Norfolk and never saw the confederates do this until I land and attack. I only ask because it seemed like a reactive move.

[Gray Fox]

If the AI force defending Norfolk had a Corps command, then it is possible that Athena could march another Corps to the sound of the guns (MTSG) as a reactive move. If she just happened to rail in a Corps, then its the fortunes of war.

[Captain_Orso]

Question about AI.
I lost Norfolk, but put together any army to retake it. But out of nowhere a confederate corp rails in and defeats me. I have ships off of Norfolk and never saw the confederates do this until I land and attack. I only ask because it seemed like a reactive move.

That wasn't a question

..but I know what you mean .

So, you sailed an invasion fleet into Hampton Roads and the next turn landed in Norfolk? That means Athena had a turn to look at your invasion fleet and consider what you were up to. To extrapolate that you intended on landing in Norfolk would not be that difficult.

I used to wonder that too, but I've been assured by Pocus that Athena doesn't look at your plotted moves before determining what she's going to do. She's just very good at figuring out what you intend on doing.

Think about the situation from the other side of the map. Wouldn't you figure out your plan too?

[thebull0425]

Well the fleet sailed and did the distant offload in the same turn. They would have only known after it sailed and I landed.
Now, if they had a corp march to the sound of battle, then I get it. Just seemed strange.

On another note, how many divisions per corp typically. I've been going 3

How many regiments/ brigades per division?

[Rod Smart]

Well the fleet sailed and did the distant offload in the same turn. They would have only known after it sailed and I landed.
Now, if they had a corp march to the sound of battle, then I get it. Just seemed strange.

On another note, how many divisions per corp typically. I've been going 3

How many regiments/ brigades per division?

Garrisoning Norfolk is a good idea. Perhaps you just ran into an exceptionally large garrison

As many as fit. Check the command points, and load up.

18 elements. Can't answer about the regiments/brigades, because some regiments have a single element, and some brigades have 5.

[Captain_Orso]

Well the fleet sailed and did the distant offload in the same turn. They would have only known after it sailed and I landed.
Now, if they had a corp march to the sound of battle, then I get it. Just seemed strange.

That does sound suspicious

What was in Norfolk the turn you plotted the move?

On another note, how many divisions per corp typically. I've been going 3

It always depends on the situation. In don't have a rule-of-thumb. Generally I try to keep my corps about as strong as the enemy has locally so that no corps is vulnerable. Beyond that I often consider how many corps I need to control the area and not allow the enemy to skirt around a flank.

How many regiments/ brigades per division?

Leader x1
Infantry x10
Sharpshooter x1
Cavalry x2
10lb Art x1
6/12lb Art x3

YMMV

[Gray Fox]

You should ask yourself what you intend the Division or Corps to do and then act appropriately. A Division can have a General and 17 elements (regiments or batteries of artillery). Both sides get a good mix of brigades and regiments. This gives you all sorts of sub-units, like militia, conscript infantry, line infantry, elite infantry, conscript and early cavalry and various artillery batteries. These are the pieces and you must solve the puzzle.

A sharpshooter is a good addition to any infrantry Division, because you get a slight initiative bonus for the whole Division.

A cavalry element or two in a Division grants a better recon ability. The cavalry screens your Division's withdrawal from battle reducing damage and increases pursuit damage when your enemy withdraws.

If you just want a Division to hold a town/depot in a rear area and garrison it from raiders, then a mostly militia Division might be economical.

Entrenched artillery get a bonus to their accuracy. So a Division that you intend to leave entrenched defending a vital region might do well to have some of those 6-lbers that seem to be in most brigades.

If you want the Division to assault your opponent's capital, then a mostly line infantry mix would be better.

Your best Division's should have a sub-unit that has the icon for granting a cohesion boost to the whole unit.

I also add a Marine/Sailor to elite Divisions. They cancel 50% of the negative effect of crossing a river in battle to the Division.

I prefer having an all artillery Division. That leaves room for more infantry in the other Divisions.

As mentioned, the boon of a Corps is that you get lots of Command Points. I usually have four infantry Divisions and an artillery Division in a Corps. In addition, a Corps would do well to have an engineer and a pontoon element so that the Corps can entrench or cross rivers quickly. A HQ will increase experience over time and grants CP's and cohesion recovery. Thus a hospital or signal element is not needed. A balloon grants recon ability for your elite Corps. Any Supply Unit has an obvious benefit, but also adds a 10% increase in combat.

[thebull0425]

I need to organize myself so much better in game. I have so many generals sitting around doing nothing. But it's so hard to allocate properly early on and as the game goes on. This game has me hooked, but damn, it's not the easiest. I find the two turns per month very difficult especially when generals are not active for offensive action. When that is the case, if they move, don't they suffer attrition? Which is something I don't want at all.

I need to decide what my overall strategy and tactics are going to be. In my latest game, I built powerful units in Cairo and in Kentucky, but it's slow going. I don't think I build efficiently.

One question, why when it says one turn, does it typically take two? If I have a full queue of units being built, will that delay the build time?

[ArmChairGeneral]

...especially when generals are not active for offensive action.

Yeah, this is a big problem for the Union that clears up over time. 3-1-1s are inactive 40-50% or the time, and Strat of 1 or 2 means they will likely be inactive on the majority of turns. The Union does not have a lot of 4+ Strat generals at the start of the war, which is historically appropriate. As time goes by better and better generals enter the game and the command and activity situation improves. The generals you do have gain experience, and once Corps formation is allowed your Army commanders can improve the Strat rating (and thus the activity) of their Corps commanders.

One question, why when it says one turn, does it typically take two? If I have a full queue of units being built, will that delay the build time?

I consider all the times listed for building things as estimates: the times listed in the Gear menu, times shown in the green boxes in F2 screen, and the times shown on the tooltip when hovering over a unit that is building are all unreliable. The actual build time considers factors like NM, city size, game settings and phase of the moon (I have never seen an explicit algorithm) to determine when the unit actually gets built. Think of the times as being akin to the PWR rating: useful in decision making, but not entirely predictive.

Unfortunately I cannot point to anything that would lead me to recommendations for optimizing the speed at which units get built. I tend to just let them build in whatever time they take, it is only a turn difference, and I just account for the potential to take a bit longer when I am making decisions. There are definitely times when I want a unit to finish quicker so it can fight an impending battle, but I have not come upon a reliable method to get them to do so.

[Captain_Orso]

IIRC on the Reinforcements page (where you buy units), on the Replacements page (where you buy replacements and the training schedule (the table of unit being built)) and units on the map, the tool-tips all say the adjusted number of days a unit needs to complete training/being built; ie adjustments for NM have already been applied.

I believe only locked units tell you the number of turns they will remain locked, because those are event-controlled and the event says that the unit is locked for x-number of turns.

[thebull0425]

So I have been balancing what I have built, but I wonder if early on I should have focused on infantry right off the hop.

Another thing, why do I even build river units when I can't stop the confederates from transporting troops along it when I have all the choke points covered

[Captain_Orso]

8<
Another thing, why do I even build river units when I can't stop the confederates from transporting troops along it when I have all the choke points covered

You can. Set your gunboats to OP so that they attack enemy naval units and land units using the RivTP attempting to move through their river regions.

[thebull0425]

That uses up so much supply and cohesion though. Guess it's got to be done.

[ArmChairGeneral]

Yes, that is a small part of the price that must be paid to do it (ships are also really expensive to build and have limited uses compared to ground troops), but no, it doesn't necessarily have to be done. You want to interdict river movement, yes, but do you want it as bad as you want an extra division for marching on Richmond? There are also cheaper ways than fleets to prevent riverine transport. Try building a fort/stockade/entrenched artillery position along the river, that'll put a stop to riverine nonsense much better than a fleet will!

Also (I'm a broken record on this topic) if you want your river fleets to find and engage RTPers more consistently, put a Brig or two in them. They have a high Patrol value.

[ArmChairGeneral]

So I have been balancing what I have built, but I wonder if early on I should have focused on infantry right off the hop.

The saying "If everything is a priority, nothing is a priority" really applies in this game. If you decide on a limited objective and focus on it you will likely succeed. The trick is making sure that what you get from focusing on something is worth the cost of what you give up to do it.

[Gray Fox]

As to the build time for units, if you Control+left click a city, you get the menu for all the structures located there. Some of the structure menus have an entry like "land units constructed" or the same for naval units, with a number. Is this the total number of those units that can be built without causing delays? I put a Marine unit (75 days to build) alone in a region that had a number of 6 and the unit was going to be completed in 72 days. I've always wondered what the numbers mean.

[Captain_Orso]

As to the build time for units, if you Control+left click a city, you get the menu for all the structures located there. Some of the structure menus have an entry like "land units constructed" or the same for naval units, with a number. Is this the total number of those units that can be built without causing delays? I put a Marine unit (75 days to build) alone in a region that had a number of 6 and the unit was going to be completed in 72 days. I've always wondered what the numbers mean.

That parameter is something which is used in other games. It's only displayed in CW2 because otherwise Pocus would have to make a change to the engine that it isn't displayed in CW2. But it has no meaning in this game.

The only thing I know of which influences built time in NM.

[Gray Fox]

THanks, that's good to know.

[Straight Arrow]

Well said; a very clear thread.

[thebull0425]

Silly question, NM?

[Captain_Orso]

Silly question, NM?

No silly questions, only silly answers ... or something like that

NM = National Morale

[thebull0425]

Are depots good for 2 provinces around? Meaning let's say St. Louis, the supply from the depot would stretch two pieces of territory around?

[Durk]

Three regions in good weather and good terrain. That is, if a wagon or depot has three regions between them, supply is conveyed. In winter and rough terrain this is not true.

[ArmChairGeneral]

Imagine a wagon that can travel from the region with a depot out to wherever it needs to go. If the wagon can reach the region in 15 days or less, that region's wagons and structures can receive supply from the depot. In Clear weather and Clear terrain, the imaginary wagon could travel three regions. In Hills and Mud a wagon cannot even travel one region. (This is literally how the supply engine works, by creating ghost wagon agents to determine whether supply can flow.)

Rail and River supply distribution are handled with an extra layer of rules, but still within the overall framework of notional wagons.

[Gray Fox]

In addition, supplies cannot transit through regions with less than 26% friendly Military Control. Also, enemy units in the intervening regions stop supply flow, so crush those raiders.

[Mickey3D]

[...] If the wagon can reach the region in 15 days or less, that region's wagons and structures can receive supply from the depot[...]

And the destination region if not farther than 5 regions from the source.

[Mickey3D]

[...]Also, enemy units in the intervening regions stop supply flow[...]

If ennemy unit is alone.

[Captain_Orso]

You guys are getting really good at this

Imagine a wagon that can travel from the region with a depot out to wherever it needs to go. If the wagon can reach the region in 15 days or less, that region's wagons and structures can receive supply from the depot. In Clear weather and Clear terrain, the imaginary wagon could travel three regions. In Hills and Mud a wagon cannot even travel one region. (This is literally how the supply engine works, by creating ghost wagon agents to determine whether supply can flow.)

Rail and River supply distribution are handled with an extra layer of rules, but still within the overall framework of notional wagons.

Actually, RivTP and RailTP allow for using Rail and River movement for supplies for as long as there are points available during each supply phase. Basically their usage is tallied during each supply phase and their usage is subtracted. Once a pool has been used up only the other pool or 'normal' transportation by wagon is used.

In addition, supplies cannot transit through regions with less than 26% friendly Military Control. Also, enemy units in the intervening regions stop supply flow, so crush those raiders.

Yes, but only 'unopposed' enemy units (of any size) block supply.

And the destination region if not farther than 5 regions from the source.

Yes, and I believe this also pertains to supply using the RivTP and RailTP. So even if supply could hypothetically be moved much further by Rail or River it is still restricted to 5 regions.

Also, the code checks to see how many 'ticks'--basically days for supply movement--it takes for supplies to move from A to B. The lower the number of ticks the more supply which can be moved from A to B per phase.

MC may also influence the amount of supply, but I'm not absolutely sure of that.

If ennemy unit is alone.

Yes, unopposed enemy units block supply. If there are both friendly and enemy units not in PP in a region, supply can move into and through that region. This is valid only for units in the field. If the enemy has forces in the field and you only have units inside a town, depot, fort, etc., and are thus besieged supply will be blocked and not reach the region, except through an un-blocked harbor.