GB in GC and first thoughts
I started as GB in the GC in medium/medium just to get the hang of this and see the differences with the previous iterations since i haven't played the demo at all.
I like the game VERY VERY much up till now. Of course there are many things i'd rather do without (a terrible CTD in the middle of opponent movements and some temporary loss of sound effects and as far as gameplay, the lack (up till now) of any serious sea threat. No naval invasions of any sort and i've fought two oponents up till now that could possibly mustered such a thing (i did it to them).
Starting the campaign i decided on my strategy. I was quite powerful already and decided on building my alliance to such a strngth that would put off any of the other major nations attacking me. I also decided that i would do as the advisor suggested. I allied myself with the rising power of Maratha Confederency and mad an invasion on the Mughals to secure a foothold in India. The last part of my strategy involved of course the annexation of the thirteen colonies.
So i built an army and invaded Savanah in America mainland starting a war with the Cherokee.
Quickly but steadily my list of allies grew and included many minor nations as well as the standard major ones. Some of the most notable nations of my alliance were Austria, United Provinces, Prussia, Russia, the Maratha Confederency, the Iroquois, POrtugal, Denmark and of course my protectorate the thirteen colonies (and later on my other protectorates Hannover, the Italian States, Savoy and the Knights of St. John).
Based on my previous experience of TW i have to admit that i was a bit surprised that i managed to put up such a huge alliance, but apart from the medium difficulty i also did spend a huge amount of money and technology building it.
The first two wars were initiated by me (Mughals and the Cherokee) but then as my first king Died the Swedes declared war on me claiming the throne of Victoria. I was pleasantly surprised at this, but later on i noticed that you have no such option. A wasted oportunity.
I quickly moved against Stockholm with my large European army and captured it. Then i forced peace on the swedes and they accepted. I kept the province but to this time (after many many turns, i still can't enjoy the income of that territory as i HAVE to keep it exempt from taxes to keep them in check)
I wanted to get even more powerful before i eventually turned on my mortal enemy the French (as i had to capture New France to get the thirteen colonies to join me.). But then the French declared war on the United provincies. My allies did not ask anything so i stayed out of it. Then after a couple of turns the Austrians went into war and they asked me to join. I couldn't turn my back on them so i joined. But then i realised that i didn't get the option to call on all the rest of my allies to enter the fray with me. I was bummed!
So i wish there was a choice, when you followed an ally into war to be able to call on your own allies as well. Also on the diplomatic front, i think that an oprion to force someone to make peace with someone else, is sorely missing. I as a superpower, should be able to force two nations (that wasn't in my interest to be fighting amongst each other) to play nice with one another.
Other than that, i'm extremely enjoying the experience up till now. I imagine that i will enjoy it even more once i go to hard.
I forgot to mention anything about the battles. They are very well done, from what i've experienced so far. I have yet to get the handle of naval battles, but i'll be getting there. There are a few glitches here and there (pathfinding, not properly covered, generals -on medium- charging head on to infantry behind spiked cover etc.), but over all the AI is quite good and the experience very enjoyable.
Re: GB in GC and first thoughts
Quote:
Originally Posted by
alx1078
I started as GB in the GC in medium/medium just to get the hang of this and see the differences with the previous iterations since i haven't played the demo at all.
Man up! Play VH/VH on your first go! :laugh4: (just kidding...or am i?)
Quote:
, but over all the AI is quite good and the experience very enjoyable.
Good to hear!
What are your thoughts on how CA are patching the game, with the speed and approach they have taken?
Re: GB in GC and first thoughts
Quote:
Originally Posted by
alx1078
...as my first king Died the Swedes declared war on me claiming the throne of Victoria. I was pleasantly surprised at this, but later on i noticed that you have no such option. A wasted oportunity.
I've seen a few comments complaining about the lack of this feature and frankly i'm wondering why. You can declare war on anybody at any time, for whatever reason you choose. Would it really make that much difference if you use the normal 'declare war' button or a special new 'declare war because i claim the right to the throne' button? What difference does it make if the AI knows *why* youre doing it or not? The outcome is the same.
If you really want the AI to know why youre declaring war on it, then just tell the computer, out loud. Shout if you need to, or maybe issue a proclamation in an impressive voice, maybe while wearing a special hat. If you feel silly doing this while other people are around, maybe you could whisper it into one of the computer's USB ports, i hear that will do the job. :wink:
Re: GB in GC and first thoughts
Quote:
Originally Posted by
pevergreen
Man up! Play VH/VH on your first go! :laugh4: (just kidding...or am i?)
Good to hear!
What are your thoughts on how CA are patching the game, with the speed and approach they have taken?
I would have started on h/h but i heard many people say that the AI is challenging and since i had no idea on the new features and did not play the tutorial (i always go head on on the grand campaign) i thought i'd start soft. :idea2:
AS for the patches, i did not notice much of a difference to tell you the truth. I haven't played it for that long a time so as to realise if they made any significant change or alteration. It is frustrating though that they still haven't released any patch to correct the CTDs and the glitches.
Quote:
I've seen a few comments complaining about the lack of this feature and frankly i'm wondering why. You can declare war on anybody at any time, for whatever reason you choose. Would it really make that much difference if you use the normal 'declare war' button or a special new 'declare war because i claim the right to the throne' button? What difference does it make if the AI knows *why* youre doing it or not? The outcome is the same.
If you really want the AI to know why youre declaring war on it, then just tell the computer, out loud. Shout if you need to, or maybe issue a proclamation in an impressive voice, maybe while wearing a special hat. If you feel silly doing this while other people are around, maybe you could whisper it into one of the computer's USB ports, i hear that will do the job.
Davey i find it enjoyable to put a little roleplay in the way i play my game. If there is a story connected with my actions then i find the experience all the more enjoyable. So instead of looking at hard data, numbers and just territories for the taking, i like to put a little substance behind it.
For instance something like the Casus Beli feature from the Europa Universalis games would add a lot to my experience of the game. I know it would greatly enhance my experience.
Besides if i could challenge the Swedes for the throne, maybe after i beat them in a couple of important battles, instead of forcing the king to submission, i could force him to relinquish the crown, either to me, or to someone of my choosing, either making Sweden, English territory or at the very least something like a protectorate. Something like that...
Re: GB in GC and first thoughts
My thoughts on my first GB GC were that the game has a lot of potential, but is still missing some major stuff.
I am a TW veteran though, so I am not left at admiring the basic division of strategy and tactics etc. which are all familiar elements from earlier games, and which make the game series one of my favorites.
My problems:
- some bugs, but they will get patched. I am not encountering CTD's too often, so I will not argue about this.
- AI is sluggish in attacking you at normal and even in hard mode. NO NAVAL INVASIONS IS BAD. GB is immune to invasions if you keep out of the mainland territories. This takes any strategical considerations too easy.
- AI economical skills are not good, they will get "locked" with situations where they don't have enough troops to win (evaluating attack potential) and that leave their economy stagnant, so they will never do anything useful (france looks like this often).
- Tactical combat goes to melee mode really really fast. Ranges are a bit short. This was fixed in one mod I play, and I am loving the musket combat now. Even enemies prioritize musket combat more in the mod. Vanilla game is not *special* enough to feel like a different tactic is needed to deal with muskets, compared to RTW or MTW.
- AI artillery is super good compared to player artillery. This is not a good way to fix difficulty.
Overall, I still liked my first game a lot, but it left me aching for some real challenge.
