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Tips for new players


Koro

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5 hours ago, Koro said:

The developers are probably too bored to even read these jokes. 

If the developers are sitting around reading jokes or taking seriously any suggestions we may have INSTEAD of cranking out that patch early this week so we can all enjoy a nice holiday week with the new content, I will be rather disappointed. Because if it's not here by Tuesday, it'll be after the New Year. 

Even coders have families. I think. 

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Just now, Andre Bolkonsky said:

If the developers are sitting around reading jokes or taking seriously any suggestions we may have INSTEAD of cranking out that patch early this week so we can all enjoy a nice holiday week with the new content, I will be rather disappointed. Because if it's not here by Tuesday, it'll be after the New Year. 

Even coders have families. I think. 

I was just trying to extend the lifetime of the bad joke :). I'm pretty sure the developers are NOT bored :).

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Just now, Koro said:

I was just trying to extend the lifetime of the bad joke :). I'm pretty sure the developers are NOT bored :).

I'm just making sure the boilers are lit and we have coals to Newcastle, hoss. 

I've got a few days coming up, I'm looking forward to spending some time on your YouTube channel between Christmas cocktails, btw. 

I'll make sure I hate everything and leave a bunch of flaming posts, a little gotterdamerung to help you celebrate the New Year. ;) (kidding)

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7 minutes ago, Andre Bolkonsky said:

I'm just making sure the boilers are lit and we have coals to Newcastle, hoss. 

I've got a few days coming up, I'm looking forward to spending some time on your YouTube channel between Christmas cocktails, btw. 

I'll make sure I hate everything and leave a bunch of flaming posts, a little gotterdamerung to help you celebrate the New Year. ;) (kidding)

Hopefully Fredericksburg will be up by then.

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My tip for new players after a few play throughs is to make use of the detach skirmishes function. Not only do they increase your view range but they can tie up or distract whole brigades, buying your defenders extra time. Using them on maps like Shiloh allows me to hold both Shiloh church and Spain field until reinforcements arrive. They also cause a good number of casualties to the USA and stops them flanking me.

On the attack they can work with your cavalry to recon ahead of your brigades and cover your flanks from enemyskirmshers.

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I don't know if this will work for everyone but here's my strategy for beating Antietam as the Confederacy. Pull back. Create a defensive line in the town (think the Fishhook at Gettysburg) with as many cannons as possible as close to the front line as possible and sufficient units as a reserve. Keep maybe a division or, if you can swing it, a Corps in the woods directly west of the town. Hold the line, crushing as many Union brigades as possible. Definitely keep some melee cav there as well. With about 130 left on the clock use the units in the woods and push out the far left flank. The infantry is just a distraction while the cavalry takes the objective. Victory is yours.

 

P.S Should note that you pull back after the attack on the stone bridge begins.

Edited by Sgt Shriver
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Best tip I can recommend is flanking or as I call it "The flank and wank." 

If you have even a skirmisher unit adding some extra firepower in the flanks of a unit it makes it far easier to break the unit and push it out of position. 

Also I found reading up on the German "schwerpunkt" tactics to be quite useful (ie focus an attack where you can achieve local superiority of numbers and break through their line before rolling it up). 

I also found practicing delaying tactics to be useful (use of skirmishers and fallback mainly)

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One thing that I have trouble doing is the envelope. I have tried doing  it in this game but I can't find a stationary store that does an envelope big enough to fit even a brigade let alone a division or a corps. I also hear that the golden ideal of army generalship is the double envelope so I'm guessing that you need something like 2ply, card or those weird parcels that have that weird asbestos-ey looking lining in them for that. Also I'm guessing that you get the envelopes on the economy screen when kitting your boys out but again I can't seem to see it. Can someone help me with this as Im struggling. Don't know how Napoleon managed it. 

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27 minutes ago, Keepbro said:

One thing that I have trouble doing is the envelope. I have tried doing  it in this game but I can't find a stationary store that does an envelope big enough to fit even a brigade let alone a division or a corps. I also hear that the golden ideal of army generalship is the double envelope so I'm guessing that you need something like 2ply, card or those weird parcels that have that weird asbestos-ey looking lining in them for that. Also I'm guessing that you get the envelopes on the economy screen when kitting your boys out but again I can't seem to see it. Can someone help me with this as Im struggling. Don't know how Napoleon managed it. 

Lol and double facepalm :)

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On 03/01/2017 at 8:50 AM, Keepbro said:

Also I'm guessing that you get the envelopes on the economy screen when kitting your boys out but again I can't seem to see it. Can someone help me with this as Im struggling. Don't know how Napoleon managed it. 

That's a secret recipe we French keep only for ourselves ;). We actually kept it so well that by the 1940s nobody could remember where it was hidden. 

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Thanks for the FAQ. 

 

I played CSA for the first campaign. I did OK until I drew at Shiloh, then by Gaines Mill I just didn't have enough troops. My best division was three infantry at 1500 each, and three batteries of Napoleonsx2, and 10lb parrots. I'll probably restart and focus on Army Org first, and see where that gets me. 

Overall I like the game very much. 

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I found maxing logistics skill very helpful. Takes the pressure off my supply wagons with troops carrying lots of ammo. Also, ammo is also a factor in the "condition" calculation.

 

fall back is key command to rest troops to get morale and condition up. I try to get at least two units firing on one to wear it down faster. When it pulls back I advance with the least damaged unit and rest the one that took the most. The swap back and forth as I advance or pull back. I try to keep them at least at 50% condition where possible.

 

Try to keep your artillary massed at key points and in range for grape shot at key attack or defend points in your line.  A twenty gun howitzer or napoleon battery firing grape will melt units.

 

dont forget cavalry. Great distractions. Wonderful at capturing supplies and forcing generals away from the battline to drop their unit effect.

detaching skirmishers early is very useful but later when the main battle line is formed I found it best to reform them into their original units to bulk up the numbers. Units on flanks will still find detached skirmishers valuable in spotting and screening. skirmishers also useful at helping to protect supply wagons  and artillery from raiding cavalry. Can by time for the units to escape or turn to react.

 

 

Edited by Temijin
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2 things that work really well in your favor, ESPECIALLY for the major battles, is to target enemy supply wagons and generals. While it can be useful to capture supply wagons and use as your own, it can be hard to do without taking a lot of losses. Sometimes its easier to target with 2 or 3 artillery units and in a couple salvos, supplies gone. Same with general.

You will see a BIG difference in how fast you route the enemy with no general and when they are flashing "ammo".

While this can work for any scenario, usually the battles where you have a longer timer and units can run out of ammo is where it will make the most difference.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 12/22/2016 at 10:29 PM, waldopbarnstormer said:

My tip for new players after a few play throughs is to make use of the detach skirmishes function. Not only do they increase your view range but they can tie up or distract whole brigades, buying your defenders extra time. Using them on maps like Shiloh allows me to hold both Shiloh church and Spain field until reinforcements arrive. They also cause a good number of casualties to the USA and stops them flanking me.

On the attack they can work with your cavalry to recon ahead of your brigades and cover your flanks from enemyskirmshers.

Pretty much this. On the first day of Shiloh my skirmishers were permanently detached from my brigades until they either got too damaged to operate effectively or the mother brigade took too many causalities to be effective and they were reattched. At the end of the first day reviewing my well micro'd skirmishers showed that for most it was something stupid like 600 kills to 80 deaths or the like because they were permanently waylaying advancing enemies, holding vulnerable flanks, and constantly shooting and scooting before return volley fire or were always taking fire when in heavy forest cover making their losses per enemy brigade volley something stupid like maybe 1 or 2.

They are the most valuable thing I have, particularly this early in the Union campaign where your manpower and funds should be directed mostly at building up infantry brigades rather than dedicated skrimisher units. In the end I have a single dedi skirmisher and in day 1 he took 50/50 KDR because he was less experienced than my vet brigade skirmishers who had good muskets.

In the end for building your Union army up to Shiloh at least you can basically only focus on making your divisions have nothing but infantry and one cannon unit and do anything asked. Skirmishers offer all the needed intel that cavalry afford you at no extra cost due to being organic to your brigades and tend to be far more survivable than low veterancy cavalry as well. They're excellent for holding a thinning line as you withdraw and they are excellent flank cover. The detachable skirmishers are the single greatest feature added to this game moving ahead from UGG. Suddenly when yo ustart using them all those battles where you're under manned waiting for reinforcements you can hold a much bigger space than if you kept them attached.

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On 12/1/2016 at 3:00 AM, Koro said:

I like to choose 1 or 2 pet brigades that I only buy veterans for and then buy rookies for the other brigades. You keep these two brigades in reserve for when you really need them - to hold this important point right now or you might lose the entire battle - or to put against the enemy's flank, just at the right time for that extra special damage that only comes from your veteran troops. I name my elites "The Danish Brigade"; so sue me :).

This is actually one of the best tips I've seen b/c when you get your elites... they can turn the tide of battle really really quickly.

Of course, as CSA, when you get money but not so much manpower... you might want to invest into more vets, but yeah, Koro's absolutely right. you want to get 2 - 3 star elites ASAP

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15 hours ago, vren55 said:

This is actually one of the best tips I've seen b/c when you get your elites... they can turn the tide of battle really really quickly.

Of course, as CSA, when you get money but not so much manpower... you might want to invest into more vets, but yeah, Koro's absolutely right. you want to get 2 - 3 star elites ASAP

However, if seeking the feel of the war avoid excess on this for there was no equivalent of Napoloen's Old Guard, kept out of battle in reserve except at a few selected times. Which does not mean that unseasoned troops should not be sent in to open the fight and gain seasoning in relatively low stress situations, or chosen for highly dangerous assaults where veterans  might lack the needed dash - it being wisely said that recruits can attempt the impossible with more dash and vigor than veterans - once. 

For the CSA, manpower is not so readily available as to be able to withhold many brigades from battle. This may argue for more political skill.

 

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On 1/28/2017 at 1:19 AM, MikeK said:

However, if seeking the feel of the war avoid excess on this for there was no equivalent of Napoloen's Old Guard, kept out of battle in reserve except at a few selected times. Which does not mean that unseasoned troops should not be sent in to open the fight and gain seasoning in relatively low stress situations, or chosen for highly dangerous assaults where veterans  might lack the needed dash - it being wisely said that recruits can attempt the impossible with more dash and vigor than veterans - once. 

For the CSA, manpower is not so readily available as to be able to withhold many brigades from battle. This may argue for more political skill.

 

Oh I agree it's absolutely vital in CSA to max out that Politics shortly followed by Medicine. The main reason for this is that while there appears to be a sudden army manpower hike after Shiloh where you can expand your army to about 3 corps before Antietam (i got mine to 71 thousand). The subsequent battles will... challenge you. I forgot my stats for Fredericksburg but at Stones River I was only able to field about 69 thousand men and by Chancelloresville I could only field 56 thousand. This is despite winning all the battles... The problem is that to win the grand battles of Chancelloresville and Stones River... you kinda need an excess of manpower since the developers haven't yet fixed the annoying cover mechanic, which basically allows brigades behind cover to shoot all the time without any flanking bonuses (even when you stick brigades directly behind them). It's that reason that I took so many casualties at Stones River and well... Chancelloresville is a pain in the ass for CSA due to the fortified position you're assaulting. 

Edited by vren55
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As far as determining how many Infantry brigades vs Artillery and Cavalry when making up your Army I have come up with a formula that I use. Wether it's 8, 12, or 15 brigades use this formula. Infantry = .6, Artillery= .2, Cavalry= .16, and Skirmisher= .04. This is your multiplier. So if you have let's say 12 brigades and your wondering how many Infantry just simply multiply by .6 for your answer of 7.2. Rounded down 7 brigades of infantry. The Cavalry and Skirmisher numbers can be skewed to your liking but I never go heavy with Skirmishers as I detach them when I need them usually. Have fun!

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6 hours ago, srgoens said:

As far as determining how many Infantry brigades vs Artillery and Cavalry when making up your Army I have come up with a formula that I use. Wether it's 8, 12, or 15 brigades use this formula. Infantry = .6, Artillery= .2, Cavalry= .16, and Skirmisher= .04. This is your multiplier. So if you have let's say 12 brigades and your wondering how many Infantry just simply multiply by .6 for your answer of 7.2. Rounded down 7 brigades of infantry. The Cavalry and Skirmisher numbers can be skewed to your liking but I never go heavy with Skirmishers as I detach them when I need them usually. Have fun!

Good thought, but a little confusing. Are you suggesting ratios as a rule of thumb - e.g., for 10 brigades take 6 Infantry :/ 2 Artilllery: 2 Cavalry or Skirmishers (or extra Arty for special situations)?    Or for 12 take 7 Inf, 3 Arty, 2 Cav/Skir?

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20 hours ago, MikeK said:

Good thought, but a little confusing. Are you suggesting ratios as a rule of thumb - e.g., for 10 brigades take 6 Infantry :/ 2 Artilllery: 2 Cavalry or Skirmishers (or extra Arty for special situations)?    Or for 12 take 7 Inf, 3 Arty, 2 Cav/Skir?

 

On 1/31/2017 at 4:16 PM, srgoens said:

 

As far as determining how many Infantry brigades vs Artillery and Cavalry when making up your Army I have come up with a formula that I use

 

*blinks* i would never use that many skirmishers.. or cavalry. Hell I've won all my battles without any cav or skirmishers apart from detach skirmishers. 

That being said, I am interested in knowing how do you use cav and dedicated skirms. I's something I've never experienced with because I found that they were way too expensive and simply having 4 inf and 1 artillery per division always worked for me. I've heard people massing cav charges and I used Forrests' brigade to scout, but how are you supposed to micromanage all those units? 

Edited by vren55
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