Do you autocalc?

[nightcrawlerblue]

Do you auto your battles or play them? I'm not all that great at battles and also my PC isn't that awesome so I'll usually auto my battles if they're above 300 troops each side.

[octavian]

never ever ever autocalc, i prefer doing my own battles, as i feel quite confident in my abilties as a commander, (although many MP's could kick my a$$) i also enjoy viewing my battles (wins and [very few of these] losses) afterwards. maybe this should have been done as a poll, yes, no, and GAH

[katank]

I never autocalc important battles.

for the first years of empire, every soldier counts so I fight them all myself.

However, in those little battles against rebels or in late game where I can simply out produce everyone, I find it faster to autocalc as I don't get bogged down with too many battles.

if I autocalc a bit in the late game, it's actually feasible to finish campaigns in reasonable time.

[spmetla]

I end up auto calcing the later half of the game because victory is so assured that my marching my troops around just isn't fun anymore because there's no tension in the battle.

[econ21]

Nightcrawler Blue - there usually aren't many battles with under 300 men and so I think you are missing the best part of the game by autocalcing so much. If you are not great at battles, practice - and the space bar - is the best remedy. I sympathise with the computer woes - mine gets a little clunky, but this is a game worth upgrading for (or maybe wait for RTW at this point).

I rarely autocalc as it's normally possible to do better manually. (Although I have come across the odd exception to this.) But then again, I usually burn out on campaigns as the end-game battles are so tiresome. Winning the early game battles against the odds is what makes the game so fun, though.

[nightcrawlerblue]

I just need to get used to the battles. Soon I'll probably switch if I practice through custom battle enough.

I'd love to upgrade my PC (I'm really into PC hardware and my dad is a programmer) but I'm only 13 and at my current allowance it would take 3 years http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/eek.gif... I just have to wait to either get a job or for my parents to get another computer.

[discovery1]

Only if I'm in a hurry. Although I find that the autocalc does produice strange results(Siege weaps getting almost eliminated in a siege, how does that work?)

[Cazbol]

Auto-resolve battles? I never have and I never will.

Fighting is primary, winning is secondary.

[LordChance]

I usually autocalc all battles without great value but most often I let the autocalc rule since then only the strategic skills will matter...

And most often battles are so one sided its not really interesting...

[SwordsMaster]

Usually not,except when there exists a possibility of being defeated..... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smokin.gif

[Crash]

There's nothing wrong with auto-resolving for now. It makes the game go a lot faster, and you can concentrate on developing your strategic game skills. Later on when you get a better computer, you can fight all the battles you want. Don't be afraid of losing battles because that's the only way you can learn.

What's wrong with your computer anyway, maybe all you need is a memory upgrade and memory is cheap these days.

[NewJeffCT]

I prefer to fight my own battles, especially in early. But, there are times when I have 10,000 troops led by an 8 star general and the troops are all master armoured chivalric knights, sergeants and men-at-arms with high valor vs. a rabble of 1,000 spearmen, urban militia & archers, I will auto-calc. No fun in a battle where I lose 12 men and the enemy loses 300 and has 600 captured.

[Basileus]

Not in the begining but later on if its a battle that im not keen on playing a let the auto calc manage..

[Doug-Thompson]

Depends.

If I have 16 or so really good units and the enemy has hordes of really lousy units, I'll fight. I'll rout his first "batch," kill his general and win.

If those tables are turned, and I'm facing a hard-boiled core group of Order footmen and Crusader knights with hordes of Jihad-spawned desert archers and other trash, I'll auto-resolve.

If I'm facing really long odds on defense and there's some good woods and hills for ambush, I'll fight and try to kill the enemy's leader.

I always auto-resolve when defending forts against hopeless odds. I don't like to watch all my men get killed.

I never auto-resolve when I'm storming light fortifications like forts. I usually storm larger fortifications in person too if I have plenty of siege artillery.

Finally, there is the factor of time. Fighting every battle does make for a very long game.

[nightcrawlerblue]

Quote[/b] (Crash @ Mar. 26 2004,07:21)]What's wrong with your computer anyway, maybe all you need is a memory upgrade and memory is cheap these days.
Mine? It's just outdated. I got a 1 ghz CPU but a old Geforce 2 graphics card. I'd like to update my RAM (I only hav 256 MB) but SDRAM is expensive ($50 for a lousy stick of 256 MB) I could still afford it after some saving and I might eventually get some. I'd love to get a new Graphics card (the 9600SE is an OK card but it's dirt cheap at $70).

I can actually play the battles pretty well if I pause a lot but then what's the point? If you pause a whole lot then it's like watching a whole bunch of screenshtos Where's the fun? I prefer strategic side for now.

[Crash]

Using the Pause is a whole other issue. You sometimes have to use it in certain types of battles. See the thread on Horse Archers. There's nothing wrong with using the Pause button, do a search on "pause" and you will see all the other threads on it.

Your computer actually has a better CPU than mine, and almost as much memory. If your graphics card can work with DirectX 9.1, then you should have no problems, but DirectX 8.1 works fine too. I only have 32 MB on my graphics card and MTW/VI runs great.

[Tricky Lady]

I usually try to fight as much battles as possible, but sometimes I get tired, and want to quit the game, but just then you get invaded by 7 different factions at the same time (so to speak) --> that's when I hit the auto-calc button... Coz then I only can think of http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/gc-zzz.gif

[nightcrawlerblue]

Quote[/b] (Crash @ Mar. 26 2004,13:23)]Your computer actually has a better CPU than mine, and almost as much memory. If your graphics card can work with DirectX 9.1, then you should have no problems, but DirectX 8.1 works fine too. I only have 32 MB on my graphics card and MTW/VI runs great.
Hmmm... I have a Geforce 2 MX 400 64 MB. Maybe RAM plays a large part in MTW?

[katank]

RAM is pretty big. Getting 512 instead of 256, it loads a lot faster. Hard drive speed is also important. Graphics runs fine with my Geforce 2 GTS 32 megs.

[nightcrawlerblue]

I'll probably upgrade my graphics card eventually. I'd love to get a 9600SE. They're only around $70 on Newegg.com and it should be a HUGE upgrade for my Geforce2. However, I still need to make sure that my PC's compatible.

[Lacker]

I'll auto calc in a few situations.

1.) I GREATLY outnumber them and it's obvious I'll spend an hour chasing down some freaking HA or something.

2.) Defeat is assured and I just want to take a few of them with me. I do this with crusades I've designed to weaken an advancing invasion. Target some impossibly distant land and just keep sending them in.

3.) Depending on the situation, I'll auto calc suicide missions designed to pillage, destroy, and weaken the enemy.

NEVER auto calc a defense where odds are 1:1 or worse. A CPU can lose with a larger force and I have beaten back 4 times my numbers.....who would YOU trust?

[VikingHorde]

Allmost never autocalc. I can do better than the computer and my losses are much lower.

[Lord Godfrey]

Autocalc only when fighting the battle would be a waste of time (huge disparity in my army vs. AI) or when the game is more strategic in nature and I just want to move on.

However, if you autocalc you need to respect the outcome and not reload if you lose.

[DeadRunner]

in heavy battles with large armes i have to do autocalc (my pc start to breack dance),but soon i will make some imporvemnets in my old pc =))
until them play like i do now auto in big fights and fight with light armies http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/frown.gif

[PseRamesses]

I only auto-calc on one occation: assaulting castles and upwards with only foot-soldiers and without siege weapons.

[katank]

in addition to castle assaults, I tend to autocalc with mercs as I don't care about casualty rates for them.

[gaijinalways]

I autocalc when

1) sieging as I usually get better results (cheesy I know)

2) if I have far greater numbers on defense or offense

3) Later game when I want to speed up the process as you near the end and it is a numbers game

I don't autocalc if

1) I am outnumbered (the computer doesn't calc tactics and terrain/weather factors)

2) I am defending in a siege as I find I can kill more men when I control the defense manually and often hold out (I know, cheesy again, the AI sucks sometimes at conducting sieges)

3) there is a bridge battle. Tactics are important in single or multiple bridge battles depending on the composition of your and the AI's troops