So Bull Run was much harder than it was 6 months ago

[PegLegFatty]

I did my best.  It was not my best fight and I have to say the AI is indeed 100% improved.  When I played this 6 months ago I mopped the floor with the Rebs, today, not so.

The Battle of Bull Run

Edited May 16, 2017 by PegLegFatty

[Bigjku]

I think despite your victory the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War would like to talk to you sir...

No attempt at rudeness but do people really play like that? I found it exhausting to watch all the clicking let alone trying to manage things in that manner. You honestly issued more orders in that battle than I have in the campaign.

If lots of people play like that I am not surprised that you get Melee blobs of the AI that I really haven't been able to replicate.

That was a bit eye opening to me to understand issues some guys might be having.

[jekct1212]

43 minutes ago, Bigjku said:

I think despite your victory the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War would like to talk to you sir...

No attempt at rudeness but do people really play like that? I found it exhausting to watch all the clicking let alone trying to manage things in that manner. You honestly issued more orders in that battle than I have in the campaign.

If lots of people play like that I am not surprised that you get Melee blobs of the AI that I really haven't been able to replicate.

That was a bit eye opening to me to understand issues some guys might be having.

Let the man play how he wants man 

[Bigjku]

Not telling anyone how to play.  Just saying it was eye opening to a challenge in developing the game.  It's a very different play style than what I do and what I figured most did.  I can see how the AI would struggle to respond to it and how it might cause the player issues as the game gets to a larger scale.

[PegLegFatty]

Hey no worries guys.  I wouldn't post videos if I didn't want some feedback.  I will try the broad strokes approach and get back to you on whether or not I like it in the next one. 

[Draluigi]

I play like this too. I pause all the time and make perfect lines. I can take a whole afternoon to complete fredericksburg or antietam as the csa if I try to minimize casualties. But I don't see how it impacts AI response, besides obviously making it less effective because your own troops are better coordinated with better fields of fire

Edited May 31, 2017 by Draluigi

[USPostman]

So I went back and played Bull Run again from a fresh Legendary campaign, and I agree completely.  I felt like my brigades were tossing rocks against the three-star brigades.  Feels like it needs to get dialed back a bit.  Still working at it, but it doesn't seem like you have any shot of taking Henry Hill.  

[Mr. Mercanto]

We are sorry for any inconvenience caused by the improved AI

With Love, 

The Beta Testers.

[Kloiste]

6 hours ago, USPostman said:

So I went back and played Bull Run again from a fresh Legendary campaign, and I agree completely.  I felt like my brigades were tossing rocks against the three-star brigades.  Feels like it needs to get dialed back a bit.  Still working at it, but it doesn't seem like you have any shot of taking Henry Hill.  

What I do is rush to take Henry Hill before their reinforcements arrive and push them as far south as possible, then once they arrive spend the rest of the battle timer suiciding the "free" brigades you have over and over at them as meatshields in heavy forest cover and trade bodies for time. Deploy skirmishers from the brigades, and once they get routed back to their parent brigades, reform them up together and then deploy them again so they get their men replenished, so you would constantly be sending a wave of skirmishers are them. As skirmishers are more spread out they have more cover so they take less losses which allow you to sustain your "meatshield" a lot longer, plus you will have your actual brigades on the side pouring flanking fire down and retreating slowly with your line as your meatshields just die.

A lot of the time its luck and requires a lot of replays to make sure they just don't overwhelm you. The good thing with using skirmishers is if they decide to charge your skirmishers once you engage in melee there are usually 2-3 actual infantry brigades ready to pour a volley down on them and rout them back, allowing you to reform the skirmishers again.

Yea, you pretty much end up wiping out all of your friendly "allies" and it would probably get you court martialed for treating actual men as disposable meatshields but that won be the battle. On the plus side, based on how the game actually works at the moment you get a lot of free rifles "recovered." Make sure to suicide the artillery at the end too for maximum value!

[MikeK]

On 5/16/2017 at 1:10 PM, Bigjku said:

Not telling anyone how to play.  Just saying it was eye opening to a challenge in developing the game.  It's a very different play style than what I do and what I figured most did.  I can see how the AI would struggle to respond to it and how it might cause the player issues as the game gets to a larger scale.

I am curious to understand what you expect or find most players do?  

For feel as much as practicality, on suitable ground  I like to maneuver and engage by divisions and give divisional orders where feasible as it fits the player command level and helps keep troops in good firing lines.  I give corps movement orders on occasion, and have dared to give them independent operational directions at times for a realistic touch of command gastritis as I await results.  I do like the battle to look and feel as a a battle should. But then i have time to do so, as I play at slow speed as that seems the closest to a realistic pace for the stages of an ACW engagement.    

One wish is that the pause function was adjustable.  As I am often subject to frequent interruptions in play, I may easily forget and tap the pause key rather than click on the speed setting. 

What I saw in the video is a lot of quick decision-making and micro control at the brigade level to optimize combats.  and clicking on units to show their movement directions that is a help for the viewer. What other styles are you seeing.