Another game that modeled ammo relatively well was the Close Combat series.
- Each unit started the battle based on their pre-battle supply condition. So an isolated unit would start with less than full ammo. This addresses the strategic supply situation.
- Units can salvage ammo from sources such as dispatched enemies (assuming same ammo type), or be resupplied from nearly friend units such as another fighting unit or a supply unit (at cost to the friendly's supply). This should alleviate units standing around doing nothing once out of supply.
- A floor replenishment rate can be implemented so if an out of supply unit has been resting for a while, it can scrounge enough ammo for 1 or 2 shots as self defense (idea already mentioned already in this thread).
- The AI has a non-linear response to supply, resorting to conservation only if supplies go below a certain threshold. More experienced units can have higher accuracy / "know when to shoot", which increase their effective supply. This is such that AI would not aggressively conserve ammo to the detriment of game play.
- Low ammo count should factored into morale as opposed to it's own category. Anything above [1/4] supply should have no affect on supply. Below [1/4], the unit's moral is lowered similar to in TW when a unit is "concerned about casualty / flanked". In this case, it would be "Low Ammo". However, if the unit is winning decisively, even with low supply, the moral bonus from winning should outweight the moral penalty of running low on ammo so the unit would still advance. In this case, the AI shouldn't be trying to optimize supply by resorting to charges. But when supply is low, the unit AI would be hindered to advance until it is resupplied. Having a floor replenishment rate can help in that a unit's morale penalty from being out of ammo would decrease over time, enabling it to get back into the fight after a rest. This is to implement ammo in the AI in a manageable fashion (I hope).
Discussions appreciated.
