Hi folks,
Spent most of the weekend playing this game and loving every minute of it. I'm currently playing the alternate grand campaign as the Axis. The manual is not terribly clear though on one item and that is railroad repair. There are some detachments that the ai automatically creates to repair the railroads but there are some units (FDR battalions I think they're called) that the player can use to manually repair rails.
Trouble is I can't figure out how to make them work. All of my FDR units are attached to Army HQs and well within their HQ command radius. All my FDR units start on good fixed European gauge rails hexes. I manually move them one or two hexes onto adjacent broken rails but nothing happens. What am I doing wrong? When I move the FDRs I notice no change in the rails. They're still broken on the current turn and again on the very next turn.
You have to press a button to make them repair. it is somewhere in the unit info box. it's just some initial as far as I recall like RRC
I HATED railroad repair!! I never had enough units and it was "move, click, move, click" iirc
Yes! That was what I was missing. I needed to click on the RRC tag in the unit display box when there was a numerical value next to it. I can now play Sid Guderian's Eastern Front Railroad Tycoon! Thanks O0
You're right JD, it is "move", "click", "move", "click". I'm sure I'll tire of it after a while but right now I'm so happy to now be able to get my supply network optimized. I've got a lot of panzers on the front line with only 30% supplies and fuel left. I need to get to Moscow before the snow sets in!
Great to see others are enjoying this game considering it often gets negative comments in other posts. The railroad repair process is easy to overlook and yet quite important. Maybe the day will come when I can afford War in the West...but for this will do nicely.
Quote from: Rayfer on March 17, 2015, 07:49:48 PM
Great to see others are enjoying this game considering it often gets negative comments in other posts. The railroad repair process is easy to overlook and yet quite important. Maybe the day will come when I can afford War in the West...but for this will do nicely.
It's interesting but I've also seen those negative comments as well in other threads/posts and I just don't get why. This game is really beautiful. The fact that it's more than just roll the dice on the highest odds table you can get. The simulation takes into account all of your elements within a units moral and experience not to mention supplies. I see a lot of combat where I have a unit with 12000 men attack a unit containing 17000 men and pushing them back. I lose 60 men but kill 700 of theirs and then that enemy division breaks and retreats. The odds shown in the combat box was something like 1:1.2.
Then the ai brilliantly adds support units to your attack when he sees you're trying to do something important. I love those message screens that let you know that an extra land brigade and or aircraft are being sent by army hq to help out. This game is strangely compelling and like a good book I can't seem to put it down.
Don't even mention the casualty report screen either. Staring at the number of losses I've inflicted and the much smaller number of losses I've taken is mind blowing. I'm sure my losses are going to mount fast however as it is now October 1941 and mud and foul weather must be around the corner and my men are starting to experience supply shortages.
The haters are usually one of these three types:
- those overwhelmed with monster games
- those rivet counters who want 100% historical accuracy
- axis fan boys
Here is a game mechanic I discovered accidentally this evening. If you select a stack of units then press and hold the shift key and hover the mouse over an adjacent stack those units will then be added to your attack. OMG I wish I knew that earlier! Now I know why my panzers never reached Moscow before the winter of '41-'42 set in.
Quote from: W8taminute on March 27, 2015, 05:12:59 PM
Here is a game mechanic I discovered accidentally this evening. If you select a stack of units then press and hold the shift key and hover the mouse over an adjacent stack those units will then be added to your attack. OMG I wish I knew that earlier! Now I know why my panzers never reached Moscow before the winter of '41-'42 set in.
Lol! That is an essential feature. O0
Quote from: W8taminute on March 27, 2015, 05:12:59 PM
Here is a game mechanic I discovered accidentally this evening. If you select a stack of units then press and hold the shift key and hover the mouse over an adjacent stack those units will then be added to your attack. OMG I wish I knew that earlier! Now I know why my panzers never reached Moscow before the winter of '41-'42 set in.
LOL...I take it you never did the tutorial? It's covered there!
Quote from: Rayfer on March 27, 2015, 05:51:22 PM
Quote from: W8taminute on March 27, 2015, 05:12:59 PM
Here is a game mechanic I discovered accidentally this evening. If you select a stack of units then press and hold the shift key and hover the mouse over an adjacent stack those units will then be added to your attack. OMG I wish I knew that earlier! Now I know why my panzers never reached Moscow before the winter of '41-'42 set in.
LOL...I take it you never did the tutorial? It's covered there!
The funny thing is I first played the tutorial but wondered why it was not telling me anything, like how to play the game. I just figured since it was a very small scenario they left it up to the user to figure it out. Have barely even cracked open the manual either. My bad. :-[
lmao - that IS an essential part of the game! :2funny:
Grouping attacks.
My main problem seems to be not knowing how to attack.
For example, there some enemy units in a hex. I might even have some idea of the enemy value (but not really). I never really know whether to perform a hasty attack (will that be enough? I have no idea what the enemy is like...strength, dug in etc, etc), a deliberate attack with one group (will that be enough? I have no idea what the enemy is like...strength, dug in etc, etc) or a group deliberate attack (will that be enough? I have no idea what the enemy is like...strength, dug in etc, etc)
In other words, I don't understand how to gauge the enemy unit and therefore what kind and size of attack I can perform.
Oh - by the way W8taminute that "group" feature only works for a deliberate attack. Hasty attacks can only be performed by 1 hex.
^ oh - and I meant to say, that's my fault. I've not really taken the time to understand unit strengths, fortifications, quantity of troops (size of unit) etc....
Something I do need to remedy before I actually get properly into the game.
One thing I don't want (and didn't like in other games) was the "percentage win" mechanic, where you selected your units and hovered over the enemy and it told you what percentage chance you stood of winning...I don't like or want that. I just need to understand the mechanics so I can gauge my chances like real life commanders - by numbers and quality and faith. ;D
If I remember correctly there's a button along the top tool bar that shows fortification levels, 1,2,3,4 or 5, of hexes you face.
yes there is. also hovering over the hex shows the fort level.
Thanks for the tips Judge. I noticed that those grouping attacks all are deliberate. I was wondering if it was possible to do a group hasty attack but I guess not.
The way I determine how strong an enemy hex is mostly based on previous hasty attacks against it. I compare several factors. How many men, guns, and vehicles do I have compared to how many they have. Then I look at the enemy numbers printed on the unit itself. I know the first number represents the units attack and the second number it's defense. This is for the Russian units. I'm not sure if you are playing as the Russians what numbers you would see on the German units.
There are so many other factors to consider as well. For example morale and experience must have some influence from what I notice. Playing as the axis I notice that the Italian units are worthless on the defense and just ok on the attack while the Hungarians and Rumanians are slightly better troops.
I really do think that you can't just look at numbers on a chit and pick a bunch of units that will total 3 or 4 to 1 on an odds table. It's mostly about how many men vs how many men and how trained and motivated your men are vs theirs. I haven't even talked about terrain influence either but you have to consider that as well.
My overall land combat strategy is to conduct a series of small probing attacks to get a feel for what I'm dealing with. I look at the size of the unit I'm about to attack. If it is a brigade level unit and I've got a division attacking it I go for the deliberate attack. If I have two infantry divisions vs an enemy infantry division plus a tank brigade I check to make sure my attacking units have plenty of guns with them before attacking. In cardboard wargames you look at numbers, add modifiers to the dice roll, then look up the results on a table. Great fun if you're a mathematician and enjoy working with numbers. But this is the first computer wargame that actually makes you look beyond the numbers. Since every man is kept track of in any given unit you have a lot more to consider than just comparing numbers. I need to see if my unit in question is up to full strength or not. Are the men tired? What is left in the unit? Do we just have a few rifle squads and some bicycle scouts or do I have 75% of the rifle squads the unit should have plus all the support equipment.
This is why I called this game beautiful in my original post. O0
Now that I know about group attacks I'll be unstoppable. ;D
You would see the same numbers because when looking at your units you see attack and movement values. When you look at the enemy units you see attack and defense.
And thank you...that's what I keep forgetting...that enemy units show attack and defence. Also I think iirc that the horizontal bars between the numbers is the fortification level
Ok - I'm not playing WitE I'm playing WitW but the question would apply...
WTF are the two bars on the unit icon between the CVs (Combat Values)? I thought they were the fort level, but I'm not sure having seen a shot in the manual where units appear to be on a hex with no fort level and yet they have the 2 horizontal bars and I've seen units with 2 horizontal bars sitting on a level one fort...
And one other thing. Something I NEVER remember is scale which is why I'm often getting my arse kicked. I seem to be sending a battalion against a division etc. Does anyone know of a handy site that shows very clearly the hierarchy of WWII units so I know and can access when required? All I see is 4 crosses, 3 crosses 2 crosses etc....and I have known these in the past, but can't seem to retain the info.
Thanks
Looking at the player guide, the two bars may just be and indicator to inform you it's showing the combat and defence values??
Nevermind about the unit size - Appendix A in the main manual (I hadn't got there yet!) has the list :knuppel2:
Quote from: JudgeDredd on March 31, 2015, 12:57:40 AM
And one other thing. Something I NEVER remember is scale which is why I'm often getting my arse kicked. I seem to be sending a battalion against a division etc. Does anyone know of a handy site that shows very clearly the hierarchy of WWII units so I know and can access when required? All I see is 4 crosses, 3 crosses 2 crosses etc....and I have known these in the past, but can't seem to retain the info.
Check this out
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO_Military_Symbols_for_Land_Based_Systems
Right at the bottom of the page, is the Unit sizes table.
Quote from: JudgeDredd on March 31, 2015, 12:57:40 AM
WTF are the two bars on the unit icon between the CVs (Combat Values)? I thought they were the fort level, but I'm not sure having seen a shot in the manual where units appear to be on a hex with no fort level and yet they have the 2 horizontal bars and I've seen units with 2 horizontal bars sitting on a level one fort...
Its been a while since I've dabbled in WitW, but if I'm reading you correctly, I think this thread will answer your horizontal bars question
http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=2648552&mpage=1&key=�
"Numbers below are Attack value - Move points. If you see 23=45 that Attack and defence value. "
Attack - Move
or
Attack = Defence
^ yep - what I eventually thought - thanks.
Quote from: spelk on March 31, 2015, 05:33:32 AM
Quote from: JudgeDredd on March 31, 2015, 12:57:40 AM
And one other thing. Something I NEVER remember is scale which is why I'm often getting my arse kicked. I seem to be sending a battalion against a division etc. Does anyone know of a handy site that shows very clearly the hierarchy of WWII units so I know and can access when required? All I see is 4 crosses, 3 crosses 2 crosses etc....and I have known these in the past, but can't seem to retain the info.
Check this out
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO_Military_Symbols_for_Land_Based_Systems
Right at the bottom of the page, is the Unit sizes table.
Great link - thank you! Bookmarked. O0