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Thread: Great Britain

  1. #1
    The Abominable Senior Member Hexxagon Champion Monk's Avatar
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    Default Great Britain

    Great Britain is one of the 12 major factions, available for play.

  2. #2

    Default Re: Great Britain

    It's hard to know where to start with Britain.

    You're in an odd position, compared to what you would expect. The 13 Colonies are semi-autonomous, and resentful of any attempt to change that fact. This is a challenge, because your goal as the UK is a North American empire under your direct control. However, the only outpost on the North American continent that let's you call the shots is Rupert's Land, Canada. The Colonies can be welcomed into the Empire as equals, but only if you can conquer the Cherokee and New France.

    Because it's so hard to figure out what you're supposed to be doing, I've decided to present four distinct plans which I feel will help define the overall strategy for the ascension of Great Britain during the 18th century, and those who feel overwhelmed may pick one at their convenience.

    I'd also like to note that the first thing you should do, regardless of which plan you choose, is to combine your Caribbean fleets on the first turn. There is a rather nasty pirate fleet headed in the direction of one of them, and you probably want to give them a proper welcome.

    1) War in Europe:

    This is a high risk/high reward strategy, because the fighting takes place in your own back yard, against forces similar to your own. Prussia will soon attack your ally Austria, as the war for a Greater Germany begins. Use this opportunity to declare war on them. Sail an army from England around Denmark, and attack Berlin straight off.

    Berlin is a tough nut to crack. However, taking it early gives you an extra school. Combined with Oxford, and the quickly emerging town in Canada, then you'll be able to develop a significant tech lead (this might also work on France, if you can take Paris, but watch out for your New World holdings).

    From there, ally with Protestant nations, and press Catholic France and Spain in their own homelands. Build up your fleet, so that you can prevent them from returning the favor in your own home island. Once you dominate Europe as the mightiest and most advanced power in the world, then ceasing the helpless colonies of your vanquished foes will be a snap.

    2) Battle for the New World:

    Develop your army in England. Ideally, you'll also want square formation, and a bayonet tech that doesn't suck, if possible. Those Cherokee, they love the horses.

    Once you have assembled your forces, take stock of where you want to insert them. Georgia seems like a good starting point. It's near the Colonies, it's a stone's throw away from Florida, it provides easy access to west of the Appalachians, and it won't trigger an intercontinental war with France or Spain (that's for later). If you don't care about starting such a war, then it might be better to go ahead and knock out New Orleans or Quebec.

    Once you have conquered and developed the Cherokee lands, then you will be on equal terms with New France and the other native . Complete the mission that grants you dominion over the Colonies, and your conquest of the New World will be almost inevitable.

    3) To take Canada:

    War with the Huron Confederacy seems to be inevitable. Head it off by fortifying Moose Factory. Invest in increasing your military recruitment pool. When they declare war, pick their armies off one-by-one, as they assemble to attack your city.

    Once you have artillery, it's time to strike back. Take their camp, and then begin projecting your power in the North. New France is right next door to the best developed part of your empire, so I shouldn't have to tell you what comes next.

    4) Oh Calcutta!:

    I haven't really dealt much with India, yet. If I were to venture a guess, I would say that allying with the Marathan Confederacy in their fight for freedom from Mughal oppression would give you an edge.

    Important in all of these plans is the establishment of trade, which requires a sizable fleet. Remember to open trade routes, develop resources, and research non-military techs.

  3. #3
    Member Member timski's Avatar
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    Default Startup and Strategy

    Some early-game thoughts:

    Starting Position

    Diplomatically, most of central and eastern Europe is friendly towards you, although these need to be handled with care. Diplomatic problems are likely in western Europe. The biggest single problem being France, which is a perfect storm of poor historic relations, powerful military, and proximity to your territories.

    Militarily, Britain has the strongest navy, not least because it starts with a 2nd-tier Dockyard, so can produce 4th and 5th rate ship immediately. There are downsides. Those better ships cost more to make and maintain, yet your starting economy is not healthy. And while Britain is probably best placed to exploit the new world, there is always a danger of spreading yourself "too thin" by trying to cover too many different threates. The ever-present threat of war with France and tendency for European mainland wars to result in European piracy, almost forces you to keep a large navy close to England: A classic cold-war scenario, that ties up a lot of resources without resolution, but does maintain the European status-quo, allowing you to focus major military actions elsewhere.

    There are 2 distinct types of region: Those that can build a wide range of capital buildings, and those that cannot. Ireland is restricted to basic colonial administration, in contrast to Edinburgh, which can build a wide range of capital buildings. The intuitive first move - to try and develop Ireland and benefit from it's large (3 million) population - has limited potential.

    The population of Scotland and Ireland are in decline, while growth in England is very slow. Happiness is not high. At best this means you will not gain new sqaures within the region for development. At worst, you could see a rebellion. Long-term, this will mostly be addressed through research. Short term, consider dropping European lower-class tax slightly. Garrisoning units is not terribly effective, because the upkeep cost often outweighs tax benefit. Ireland is a particular problem, due to its high population, and lack of building potential.

    Britain has a strong trading position, which initially is restricted by port capacity (check the reasons why there is no trade under Diplomacy). You cannot upgrade Greenwich without a lot of research. However, the next harbor to develop is Bristol, which can give England a second trading port. Push for anything that gives improved population growth in the first few turns (reduced tax, farms, related research).

    The first tier of construction normally gives the most significant individual increase, as well as costing the least to build. So as a rule of thumb, always build on any empty squares before upgrading. England and Scotland start with 2 unused farm squares, so build on those immediately. There are also several unused squares in North America. In a few turns you can increase exports from North America by 3 or 4 times, simply by adding Fur trappers to Rupert's Land and a plantation in the Bahamas. That generates a lot of money!

    Lastly, the first Prime Minister is a liability, and can easily be replaced at the start (you can kick one minister per turn).

    Logical strategy

    It will become apparent that there is more money to be made from trade than taxataion of the population. That shifts priorities away from European conquest, towards new world expansion. Plus the 13 Colonies mission and overall campaign objectives support that expansion. All topped off by the initial naval strength and ease of accessing the new world from Britain.

    It is easy to get drawn into North America, since you start there. But don't leave India to late. It takes years just to travel there, is a campaign objective, and is exploited by other western Europeans.

    It is inevitable that you will get caught up in European wars, but with a strong naval defense, I suspect there is no need to get embroiled in major conquests on the continent. It's important to get away from the "MTW mindset", that immediately propels Britain towards invading Europe, because that's the only place to expand.

    Be careful not to get left behind: Technology and buildings all give exponential benefits. The further the game progresses, the harder it will be for you to catch up. Finding a balance between expansion/trade and the technology/build race is hard: A large geographic empire can easily fall because it is 10 years behind prevailing technology, or lacks sufficient buildings to support a powerful economy. Staying out of Europe (and so not being able to pilfer existing research facilities) can slow the pace of research, so be prepared to steal or trade research (particularly trade with those European nations that are not in the new world, so not likely to be fighting you).

    Great Britain can do almost everything from its starting position, but that does not mean it should do everything! Focus on specific areas for territorial expansion, and coexist with everyone else as best you can.

  4. #4
    Member Member Maleficus's Avatar
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    Wink Re: Great Britain

    Quote Originally Posted by Malkut View Post

    4) Oh Calcutta!:

    I haven't really dealt much with India, yet. If I were to venture a guess, I would say that allying with the Marathan Confederacy in their fight for freedom from Mughal oppression would give you an edge.

    Important in all of these plans is the establishment of trade, which requires a sizable fleet. Remember to open trade routes, develop resources, and research non-military techs.


    From my experience, I found that Neroon Kot is a good place to start your invasion of India, as it, like the other Mughal cities in the north-east, is often lightly defended.
    "Romanes Eunt Domus"

    - Brian of Nazareth


    "We always have been, we are, and I hope we always shall be, detested in France."

    - Arthur Wellesly

  5. #5

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Trade is by far the best money maker in the game.

    Build trader ships and get them to the 4 trade zones asap. With 4 traders in each zone and trade treatys you can easily make 2x as much in trade as you make in taxes. Allowing you to control Ireland by tax rather then occupation. Also Ireland you can build up as a military goverment so you can atleast build troops there faster and it will give you access to better troops. You will get less growth and less money from the region this way but in the long run it will pay off.

    The first priority for me as Britian has been to take out the pirates in the two southern areas. This adds two regions to your empire and gets rid of the only real threat in the trade zones to your trade ships.

    The pirates can be dealt with easily with about 6 line units or so. They have no forts and no land units so they only spawn milita type units to defend with. I sent my units over on a sloop going wide till I could come in close to avoid thier ships. After taking both locations the ships disappear. Removing them as a threat and ending that war. It also gives you a good deal of prestige as well as bloods your units in easy fights.

    Those line units now form the backbone of your expiditionary forces. Where you go from there is up to you. Either stay in europe ( not a good idea IMHO) go to North America or go to india. Both India and North America are good choices as they are both rich areas. North America is my choice simply because with three regions I can get 13+ new regions. I also wait to hit North America and the indians will usally take florida from spain. Then I attack at florida move up to georgia then over to the nation to finish off those requirements. Leaving only New France to take care of. The Iraquoi Nation are good to have as allies as well.

    Diplomacy there are several ways to go with this. Try to ally with everyone that will or try and drop the ones you would rather not be allied to. For example ally with prussia and sweden so you can drop any other alliances. Then drop those alliances and sue for peace. This in effect keeps you out of alot of european wars. But does mean you will have to declare war on France to get New France. You want as many trade partners as you can get and want to make sure you have no unused trade routes as that is just wasted money.

    Your navy doesn't have to be overwhelming just good enough to keep your trade routes open and keep from being ganged up on. I used two fleets around the british isles. Moving one or the other into port as needed for repairs. With the priates taken out the small starting fleet in the American theater was enough to keep what I needed open or provide transport for my troops.

    Technology is by far the biggest factor for britian as you can't really afford a huge army or even a huge navy off the bat. So what you have has to be good and strong. Trade for some technologies if you can. With the money will be making from trade routes you can eventually buy them off other people.

  6. #6

    Default Re: Great Britain

    There is also the question of what to do with Rupert's Land. Eventually, the Huron are going to come for it. There seems to be very little that you can do to stop it.

    One strategy is to build it up and defend it, but this may not always be easy. If you're busy elsewhere - say, locked in a desperate struggle with France - then that money could be better spent elsewhere.

    In my current game, I was at war with France from very early. They had steamrolled the Colonies, and made it as far south as Boston, while threatening the UP's home territory. Defending Moose Factory didn't seem very likely, and wasn't high on my list of priorities.

    Instead of trying to fight for it, I traded it to a minor faction. Made them a Protectorate, even. If the Huron take it, I'll just come back when I'm not so busy, and take it back for myself. It's like getting a free protectorate.

  7. #7

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Quote Originally Posted by Malkut View Post
    There is also the question of what to do with Rupert's Land. Eventually, the Huron are going to come for it. There seems to be very little that you can do to stop it.

    One strategy is to build it up and defend it, but this may not always be easy. If you're busy elsewhere - say, locked in a desperate struggle with France - then that money could be better spent elsewhere.

    In my current game, I was at war with France from very early. They had steamrolled the Colonies, and made it as far south as Boston, while threatening the UP's home territory. Defending Moose Factory didn't seem very likely, and wasn't high on my list of priorities.

    Instead of trying to fight for it, I traded it to a minor faction. Made them a Protectorate, even. If the Huron take it, I'll just come back when I'm not so busy, and take it back for myself. It's like getting a free protectorate.
    Giving a region doesn't quite make it free I think...
    Yes, Huron will declare war on you, but a 5-6 unit stack usually is enough to intimidate them if you place it correctly. If you leave them in the city, they will send small raiding parties to your villages. If you station your forces on the villages, then they might go for your city. Anyway, careful intimidation is more than enough to keep them at bay and I don't think throwing away your only mainland colony in america to be a very good idea

  8. #8

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Quote Originally Posted by erebrus View Post
    Giving a region doesn't quite make it free I think...
    It does if I plan on taking it back. I didn't give it away immediately, I waited until they attacked me, and I already had an experienced army in Canada fighting the French. All I have to do is swoop in and beat what's left of their army after they take it.

    So maybe not quite free, but very inexpensive, and it'll pay off in the long run.

  9. #9

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Ok, here’s my take on GB played on H/H.

    You start off with 6 regions, 3 in each of the Americas and Europe.

    Europe - England
    Scotland
    Ireland

    Americas - Jamaica
    Bahamas
    Rupert’s Land

    2 armies in England and Ireland and 4 fleets in the Irish Sea, English Channel, Caribbean and East Atlantic.

    First things first, move Newton into your school at Cambridge and start your research, I went for the college upgrade first but pretty soon you’ll be wanting to research farms to allow your villages to grow. After that just aim to complement your play style, I like to turtle so spread out my research across the different areas instead of focusing on one. If you like to win the game in 20 turns you’ll be wanting the military tech tree, but this approach isn’t for me.

    Next you’ll be wanting to establish long and short term goals I went for integrating the 13 colonies and establishing a foothold in India respectively. The foothold in India I wanted within 10 turns and integrating the 13 colonies within 25, I know, a generous timescale but I like to take my time. As well as these two goals I also aimed to keep a hold of all my existing provinces and try to stay out of large wars, especially in Europe.

    First steps.

    So I’ve got my research started and my goals established. First thing was build a couple of Indiamen in the Americas and 1 in England to send of to the trading theatres asap. I also trained up 3 units of LI in England and 2 in Jamaica. I moved my general and my unit of pikemen into Ireland to help keep the peace and upgraded the happiness building (?) in Scotland and the farm in Rupert’s Land to help Fort Rupert grow. The unit of militia and Yeomen left in Ireland I moved down to England to form part of my expedition to India.

    As for diplomacy, choose your allies carefully as Europe will soon be embroiled in some major land wars, especially between Austria and Prussia and another between Sweden and Denmark. I chose to go with Austria and Denmark to keep Russia off my back and allow the opportunity to raid Sweden’s trade routes and fleets. I also allied with some of the smaller nations and the Maharata in India.

    As for my Regions, England is your big money earner and has a port in Portsmouth that can produce 4th raters straight away although you might be a bit short on cash to begin with. Jamaica is the only place in the Americas where you can produce LI and you’re going to need them against the Cherokee’s. Rupert’s Land is only 5 or 6 turns away from developing Fort Rupert which can either be used for income, priests or research but is going to be getting some loving from the Huron Confederacy pretty soon so you’re going to need some troops there.

    I also rearranged my 4 fleets a bit, the ones near the home countries I kept as 2 but changed some ships around allocating most of my brigs and sloops, and admiral and a 6th rate for my expedition to India, the rest remained to protect Britain. In the Americas I merged both fleets and attacked the pirate fleet NE of Jamaica, make sure you play the battle right through to a Decisive Victory continuing the battle if necessary to allow you to capture any ships that are left. I lost 2 sloops and captured all 3 ships and that Fluyt is very handy at this stage.

    At the end of this turn you’ll get the mission to capture Georgia, Cherokee Nation and New France so that the 13 colonies will join you, they are already a Protectorate. You’ll also get a few wars starting in Europe and maybe the Iroquois declaring against the colonies. I sent my damaged Americas fleet back to Jamaica for repairs and trained another 2 LI there ready for invading the mainland. I also started upgrading my trade buildings trained more LI and 1 cavalry unit in London.

    The next turn is where it gets interesting. Your Indiamen are ready so send them off to Brazil and the Ivory coast to establish trading routes and load up you army from England onto your India fleet and send them on their way. Also embark the troops in Jamaica onto your Sloops and Brigs and send off to the Bahamas to pick up more men and then onto Georgia, I kept the rest of my ships in another fleet to escort my Indiamen past the pirate islands, and I needed them as well.

    So you’re only 3 turns in and you’ve got 2 expeditionary forces on their way, one landing this turn, had a naval engagement with pirates and had to decide where you stand on European politics, this turn you’re going to have to land you army on mainland America, I chose to land in the 13 Colonies region next to Georgia so that I can declare war and take Georgia in the same turn. Your Indiamen and India fleet will take a few turns to arrive so you can concentrate on the Americas for the present, start aiming Rupert’s Land to building up your military and send the army you landed to take Georgia, if you’re lucky the Cherokee’s will have taken Florida from Spain allowing you to grab this as well without disrupting world politics. If you’re unlucky the Iroquois will have dec’d the 13 colonies and you may need to help them out to preserve your future empire.

    From this point on you will be focusing on India and the Americas while developing your home countries and building up your forces, if you’re more brutal than me you may venture into European land wars or naval encounters but I had enough with India and the Americas to keep me happy, not to mention keeping a handle on pirate raids, I didn’t want to wipe them out as they are a good source of naval combat and prize ships if you can manage it.

  10. #10

    Default Re: Great Britain

    You should get moving on your 13 Colonies mission pretty quickly as both France and Spain accomplish their missions in a few turns. The colonies are usually stupid enough to trade provinces like Maine and New England to the French.

  11. #11

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Quote Originally Posted by quadalpha View Post
    You should get moving on your 13 Colonies mission pretty quickly as both France and Spain accomplish their missions in a few turns. The colonies are usually stupid enough to trade provinces like Maine and New England to the French.
    If you don't get moving on it fast enough, it still works out to your advantage.

    So, the Colonies lose control of a pair of Providences to France. Big deal. You're going to have to fight France to take control of the Colonies anyway, so why not start with an invasion of French-held Boston? It's a very well developed city, and it makes a very good beachhead for any assault on Quebec.

    Landing on Boston avoids a dangerous sea trip up Saint Lawrence River to Quebec, and it gives you control of a well-developed port city on the mainland, and it can recruit Colonial Line Infantry, which will make reinforcing your North American armies easier.

    Once you do gain control of the Colonies, you also gain the Providences that they got from France, which saves you the trouble of conquering some far-flung islands.

    So really, it's nothing to get discouraged about.

  12. #12

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Quote Originally Posted by Malkut View Post
    If you don't get moving on it fast enough, it still works out to your advantage.

    So, the Colonies lose control of a pair of Providences to France. Big deal. You're going to have to fight France to take control of the Colonies anyway, so why not start with an invasion of French-held Boston? It's a very well developed city, and it makes a very good beachhead for any assault on Quebec.

    Landing on Boston avoids a dangerous sea trip up Saint Lawrence River to Quebec, and it gives you control of a well-developed port city on the mainland, and it can recruit Colonial Line Infantry, which will make reinforcing your North American armies easier.

    Once you do gain control of the Colonies, you also gain the Providences that they got from France, which saves you the trouble of conquering some far-flung islands.

    So really, it's nothing to get discouraged about.
    I agree, on my first game, I rushed to try to complete the mission and things got much more complicated. Next time, I went for the pirate islands before. It gave me a small economy boost, rid the seas of pirates (no problems with trade routes anymore) and gave me additional recruiting bases which allowed me to quickly get a big army to land in georgia. The cherokee had since then expanded a bit, but with a big army (and a lot replenish commands) they fell. As an added advantage, I got the extra colonies they had conquered. This allowed me to get florida without going to war with the spaniards. By the time I went for new france, my armies ruled north america and I managed to blitz through the french colonies.

    With the british, being that you have a safe home region, you should focus on economy (and pirates) on the first 10 turns. Then you go for pirates and, using your super economy, built up your fleet in europe. Then blitz through the french colonies and decimate the French fleet in Europe. In less than 10 turns french went from being THE super power, to be a trapped 2-3 region faction.

  13. #13
    Member Member timski's Avatar
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    Default Re: Great Britain

    Early Pirate Gambit

    To expand on the "pirates opener":

    Great Britain starts with a sizeable naval force on the east side of North America, but there is not imediately a lot to do with it. You don't have the troops or technology to start attacking natives on the continent. Fortunately, you do have what it takes to attack some pirates.

    In the very first turn, gather your North America fleets, and attack the pirate fleet (east of Cuba) with everything except one small ship. Move carefully - it is just possible to attack on turn 1. The battle can be won without lose, although the pirate flag ship is tough and needs to be handled with care.

    The one smaller ship acts as a troop carrier, picking up land units from your 2 island colonies. You can even produce extra line infantry in Jamaica in the first turn. Pikes can be left as garrisons if you wish. Clearly this isn't a perfect stack. But you have cannon, line infantry, "anti-router" cavalry, and a commander - they'll get the job done.

    On turn 2, move your victorious fleet to occupy the pirate port on the Windward Islands, thus preventing the sudden appearance of a second pirate fleet. Move your troop carrier towards the Windward Islands, invading the settlement on the third turn. In my experience, the pirates field a lot of basic grunts, with no horses, cannon, or special units to worry about. You can win this with less, better deployed, troops.

    One of the unseen benefits of the "early pirate gambit" is that it gets your military into action on turn 1. Successful military action gives a tangible bonus to happiness levels at home, which you desperately need. Since it takes 2+ years to get extra troops across the Atlantic from Europe, this does not distract from an early continental invasion of North America. It does mean you have an extra island to defend, but you will need a fleet in the Carribean to defend your 2 starting islands anyway.

  14. #14

    Default Re: Great Britain

    My experience as GB on VH/H

    1. Early (1700 - 1703) on I decided North America will be a purely defensive theater; as my main trouble was France, i had to look for ways to undermine them:

    a) Disbanded troops in rupert's land, although built a military governor house to enable faster recruiting
    b) Completeley ignored the mission from 13 colonies. At the time I was thinking to start the mission from the war with france and continue towards the indians later on
    c) Ignored the Carribean and the pirates; sent my NA flee to brazillian (mistake) and african theaters together with several indianmen.
    d) Started recruiting in Britain to form a full stack together with my existing armies

    2. As France had several full stacks on the continent, i decided against attacking it directly; rather, I went for the "belly of the beast" in southern europe (1706 - 1713).

    a) I landed an expeditionary force to capture Rome, Venice and Genoa; luckily Savoyan idiots attacked me so they became wormfood as well. Note: the battles were tough and I ad to change my general due to "too many casualties in battle" or sth like that trait he developed. Nonetheless, Italy was mine
    b) I spent all the cash i could scramble on upgrading my economy, until
    c) the Hurons declared war on me, so I started recruiting in Rupert's Land to form a force of 5 Hessians and three militias. While the main Huron armies were further away I managed to destroy two smaller forces and defed my towns in Ruperts land.
    d) Due to investments into NA (should have given the Ruperts land up, i think) I could not fund the war against france; moreover, I was heavily spending economy. Moved my expeditionay force from Italy to Barbary states and destroyed them. Built church schools and left them there.
    e) captured the Huron settlement in the great lakes and Tripolitania at about the same time; my stack in NA was decetly mixed and already experienced. moved it back to ruperts land, built a sloop and took them to take the last huron settlement. had my nastiest battle there - a bunch of indians managed to slip past me (i slipped past them while they were hidden), so they destroyed my artillery and charged the rear of my line. crappy stuff, but the line infantry held and general had his share of battle

    3) Spain declared war on portugal (my ally) and was joined by France (doh!). I faced a choice of getting into a war I was not ready for or, if I broke the alliance with Portugal, get Portugal destroyed and Spanish getting stronger (making the French-Spanish alliance stronger). I joined the war against the Spanish and the French; Austrians broke the alliance and didn't declare on the french (1712-1714).

    a) My italian force capture Milan from the spanish and i started to recruit land troops in italy and navy in Britain.
    b) Blockaded the French capital port while spanis and french navies were trying to get back from North america
    c) built 1 sloop to blockade the french port in the south; the idiot french sent a FULL STACK against it and wasted like 3 turns to get to it from the atlantic.
    d) gave a nice big cash boost to portugal to help them in the war and offered peace to spain two turns later. they accepted.
    e) started marching my NA force from Ruperts land to Quebec and Monreal.

    4. The strategic objectives all achieved, being one-on-one with the french, their economy blockaded and having 2 armies (the veteran expeditionary force and the freshly recruited italians) i though I have decent chances defeating the frence and taking over their colonial holdings (1712-1720)

    a) attacked Strasbourg from italy. Had a nasty battle at the star fort bear strabourg, but grapeshot and my veteran troops ruled the day. my fresh troops started marching on paris to deter the french from counteratacking strasbourg
    b) while my veterans were healing wounds in strasbourg my new recruits got attacked by full stack of french line infantry and lots of cannons. luckily, found a decent spot for the cannons and managed to defeat the french (with many casualties on both sides).
    c) the french navy got to my blockading force, so I had to eithe fight the battle half stack against full stack.. or run. I ran, of course, who cares about their navy when they are losing on land
    d) My NA stack reached and captured Monreal. A nice battle there, lots of harrasing with the indian musket cavalry and beautiful bayonet charge by several most veteran troups.
    d) In Europe with my veterans healed and some horse artillery added to the stack, I attacked Paris. The battle was rather easy, and I took the city. Suddenly, France is no more.

    5. Destruction of the french caused United Stated to appear, as well as some little nation calling themselves Quebec. All Europe became horribly pissed and Paris public order was... well...horrible even without taxing that unruly bunch (1720-1728)

    a) NA stack attacked quebec, autoresolved as the forces were far from equal. took the city and started marching towards maine and boston (previuosly french, currently - US)
    b) started buildign my economy in GB and in NA with every spare coin I had, giving state gifts to Austrians, Swedes and Russians to avoid another big war in Europe.
    c) built several church schools in france and north africa to get them all to be protestant
    d) destroyed United States, marched my NA stack to georgia and captured it. now waiting to recruit some more troups and will be moving southwars (to cherokee - held florida) and later on to cherokee territory

    6. Strenghtening position in Europea and North America. Teching like mad

    e) got Poland Lithuania and Wuttenberg (idiots!) declare war on me. Sent one force to capture Gdansk and another to keep Wuttenberg from taking Strasbourg.
    f) had one of the most exciting battles against 2 times the forces I had agains wuttenberg. kicked their tails, althoug it was a very costly victory; capture wuttenberg afterwards, though
    g) took Gdansk, traded it to swedes for some tech, gave several state gifts around europe and got war declared by Bavaria. luckily, one of the last gifts I gave was to the Austrians, so the Austrians decided to fight Bavara on my side. Their first stack got beat, the second one is several turns away, hope they will get beat as well and I will capture Bavaria with the minimum involvement in the fighting.
    e) most of the time I spend managing the economy, research and building. Got 5 univeristies for reasearch, moving through the tech tree really fast and turning my mind toeards india and the seas.

    7. Plans

    a) leave 2 stacks in continental europe (1 in france, another one in Italy). Be friendly with everyone, but have a punch just in case.
    b) get another stack in Quebec or Boston in NA. To be on the safe side there as well.
    c) the remaining money (after construction) is spent on the navy and preparing 2 stacks for the invation of india.


    Comments on campaign:

    - this is my first campaign, so I was unaware about the value trade brings. next time would use the naval advantage to its utmost
    - I am still behind the spanish in prestige and military numbers; they have a better navy, but they ARE really stretched thin
    - despite not using the trade up to its most, still have more income than I can spend if I don't recruit


    Comments on tactics:
    -strategic offence, tactical defence with grapeshot cannons along my infantry line.
    -2 grenadier units cleaning up the massed enemies where the cannons cannot reach
    - screw square formation; well timed fire will devastate cavalry charges
    - melee poorer quality infantry with your line troops. while militia can shoot, they cannot stand the bayonet
    - anchor flanks to houses and impassable terrain.. otherwise, yes, do use the square sometimes
    - DISABLE fire at will for your cannons!!!
    - do retreat veterans from battles to avoid losing them. better lose the battle than the troops!
    Last edited by Monk; 03-13-2009 at 11:58. Reason: language

  15. #15

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Continuing from the previuos post:

    8. Attacked by a protectorate
    a ) Sneaky americans! I free them from the French, I protect their trade and their lands from the Indians and they repay me with what? Sneaky sneaky sneaky...
    My two NA armies both destroyed: one by my protectorate, another one - by three stacks of cherokees. They did not go down cheaply, but they did.
    b) sent one more stack, re-took Boston, defended montreal from the siege and charged down to new york. a nasty battle with 70% casualties for the enemy and like 50% for me. The AI did REALLY well on that one, with false retreats and constant harassing with skirmisher units.
    c) captured Wuttenberg and Bavaria in europe, half the italy is protestant now and most of the northern africa as well. france and my capital region are growing and giving me insane tax revenues, making 38 000 per turn

  16. #16

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Actually I made great use for the square formation in breaking up those annoying lancer charges on my sides/rear after my artillery,these nothing quite as annoying in finding 3 lancers squadrons hitting you from behind,while I'm busy dealing with the infantry swarm. Also I used my artillery on fire at will and explosive shell mode exclusively, that decimates the cherokees and they seem to like ginding in the open with a lancer unit in front,trying to get you to charge them first..

  17. #17

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Early war with the Huron Confederacy doesn't seem to be inevitable, although it does happen often. In my last short campaign, they didn't declare war until something like 1747, shortly after I finally invaded Quebec.

    Anyway, so far it seems better to go for India rather than North America super early. The Mughals are much weaker than the Cherokee, and you'll earn a lot of money from your Indian plantations to finance the war in NA. Taking out the pirates ASAP is a very good idea, especially if you're rushing Indiamen to the trade routes as you should be. I haven't tried taking on the Barbary States yet, but it may be wise.

  18. #18

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Sending a stack under Marlborough on some military adventures in Eastern Europe early in the game can be a great way to pick up some tech and cash and get yourself a nice experienced army as a bonus.

    Ally with Prussia, Austria and Poland and wait till the inevitable war kicks off then snag some provinces to trade to the land hungry AI.

  19. #19

    Default Re: Great Britain

    TRADE TRADE & INDIA.

    My strat was probably similiar to others but its worth notcing you get a bonus tech at the game start and diplomacy is infinite (so much better than m2tw in that regard) . I used this to trade for as many tech as I could from others I also used cash to prise any outstanding techs. I then sold that tech to every one and I came out with a profit + about 4 techs tight at the start. (NB selling techs seems you have to keep dropping the price steadily as you go through them ) Set up extra trade routes if possible taking note that Turkey is a suprisingly good trade partner. (maybe there is a distance scarcity relationship). I also befriend maratha & persia ( my new neighbours)

    In all of the commercial ports I built the indiaman ship. (500 gold + 3-5 turns for position then at least 300 annual return is a no brainer you got all your money back in 7 or so turns) You don't really need a church in oxford so knock it down for a school. I initially researched the college tech but in hindsight it may of been better to get commercial port tech. This tech will ultimately net an additional trade route per port. Which would mean additonal 3(4 when bristol comes online) trade routes.

    All my european friends I befriend and I do my level best to stay out of continental affairs if they can see me simply as a trader and ignore me that would be nice. So with that in view I am looking at india. First step is to pack every single force I have on the boats leaving a small channel fleet. I build extra line infantry in port royal and collect them as the fleet from above cuba comes down.

    I attack the Mughal empire as quickly as possible starting with the Port city on the west side. The main objective is hindustan. Fortunately when I took hindustan it was well fortified and had a second level arsenal.

    I continue building up my traders steadily ( this is the primary objective!) and also trading any tech I get as soon as I get it. For some reason it gets hard to buy their tech so I don't always get it. After getting the college tech I go for the ring bayonet tech and eventual the military doctrine tech + carbines ( I love the mobility of dragoons ).

    In order of importance:

    Continue dominating the trade arena NB you can stick mulitple ships on trade port (balance them once they are all full I managed all bar 4) you also need a few fleets to deal with pirates. When knocking out and capping pirates simply redirect the captured Fluyts and Galleons to the nearest trade area. (I don't bother repairing them trade is more important and it doesn't appear to factor damage into trading capacity). Ultimately I plan to keep sending ships until they amount gained by the extra ship is little more than its upkeep. I don't where this is even 5 ships on a square seems to make decent money. NB the true Trade power is not just what appears on the trade leg, there is also a great deal of cash involved in the trades. I also plan on going for max commercialized ports.

    Finish off the mughals they have 2 cities in the north west and 2 cities in the north east.

    Give Mysore all tech that will help them in their initial fight with maratha ( the real problem in india). Anything that gives Maratha a hard time ultimately will help in I hope in consolidating the continent.

    Give the protectorate all the tech you have spare this I hope and pray will enable them to resist north american problems until India is completed.
    Last edited by Nepereta; 03-17-2009 at 13:12.

  20. #20

    Default Re: Great Britain

    I expanded in North America against the inuits, got a few provinces, then traded Ruperts Land with Portugal for Goa. They act as a buffer against attack, 13 colonies are watching my left flank so I can focus my attacks against France through the centre of North America.

    I expanded from Goa against the Mugals and now have a base in India.

    In Europe I took Iceland (from Denmark who only have 2 provinces) and otherwise have just developed the homelands.

  21. #21

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Eastern Europe is a gold mine of tech.

    I waited till the Polish-Austrian war kicked off then attacked the Poles in West Prussia, lightly defended so it fell to direct assault with no losses.

    Traded that to the Prussians for half their tech advances (mostly agricultural) then took Lithuania and swapped that with them for the other half (the military stuff) and some cash to retrain my army.

    Then it was off to Podolia which fell and was traded back to the Poles for their tech and a peace treaty which teleported my now well experienced 2 chevron troops back to London.

    In the Spanish War a few years later I picked up Hispaniola and Cuba then conquered Flanders with my Polish expeditionary army and swapped it with the Dutch for Ceylon. Also captured the entire Spanish Fleet in an epic battle somewhere around Trafalgar

    By 1720 I have 15k or so a turn profit and am madly upgrading all the plantations and ports I now own.
    Ceylon should give me a good jumping off point for India (I'm supporting the Mughals financially against the expanding Marathas).
    The only current war I'm in is against the last remnants of the Huron in the NW Territories who I'm using to level up a Canadian stack for the longer term war against the French.

    Halfway or more up each tech tree when my own research is combined with the captured techs.

    Now if only the AI would give me a reason to have to defend all those islands...

  22. #22

    Default Re: Great Britain

    Final step of the game:

    EUROPE
    own france, italian and german states as well as south africa
    NA
    The spanish are in mexico and the pirates now see 2 fleets fo 2-rates bringint 2 nice experienced armeis towards their bases.
    INDIA
    Captured calcutta, two inital armies on defence, sepoys and the newly recruited fellows go bleed the enemy.

    ECONOMY
    I don't need trade; I get aroundn 100 000 k from taxes. Spend around 80 000. The 40 000 trade income is just a nice bonus :)
    I found that once everyone starts hating you, investing into taxes is a better idea than buying presents for them. Now I just don't care about anyone else anymore.

    TECH
    2 or 3 techs remaining. whatever.

    ARMIES
    4 stacks in NA, 2 to be moved to capture pirate bases and returned back; 2 to be moved to india.
    4 Stacks in Europe (Munich, Rome, Paris and Southern France)
    3.5 stacks in India, kicking poor indian ass.
    2 fleets in Europe
    1 fleet in NA
    2 fleets in India
    2 fleets keep travelling, killing enemy shipping, protecting trade theaters and transporting troops


    After I achieve my objectives and win the campaign, I think i will declare war on everyone and see ho that goes

  23. #23

    Default Re: Great Britain

    What d you end up doing with Ireland?

    Myself, i change their trade port to a dockyard as the trade port only adds to the region wealth of Ireland which to be fair is nothing compared to having another trading port in England which then also adds more sea trade lanes and therefore trade agreements.

    Anyone else do the same? and do you think its worthwhile changing Portsmouths dock into a trading port for more trade agreemenst at the start too?

  24. #24
    Member Member anweRU's Avatar
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    Default Re: Great Britain

    AFAIK, Ireland is connected to England via a land route (the double arrow), and hence the trade port counts towards your available slots. I would have to check when I get home in ~ 9 hours or so.
    Last edited by anweRU; 03-25-2009 at 17:40.
    Ancestry: Turkish & Irish. Guess my favorite factions!

  25. #25
    BrownWings: AirViceMarshall Senior Member Furunculus's Avatar
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    Default Re: Great Britain

    First Turn:
    > put english army on channel fleet and set sail for the north-eastern most indian province (calcutta?)
    > recruit two infranty units into the irish army from dublin
    > demolish oxford

    Second Turn:
    > rebuild oxford as a school
    > start teching social and economy trees
    > start upgrading economy buildings

    Third Turn:
    > use english army in the channel fleet to take calcutta
    > put irish army in the north-sea fleet and set sail for new-france

    Fifth Turn:
    > use irish army to take new-france, and then immediately sue for peace, the french will accept

    Turns Six to Twenty:
    > consolidate gains, upgrade territories, continue teching society and economic trees exclusively

    Turns Twenty to Fifty:
    > take all of mughal northern india
    > take all of central canada and northern united states
    > destroy fishing ports and replace with trading ports

    Turns Fifty to Ninety:
    > take rest of non UP north america including the two remaining mission territories
    > take rest of mainland india by destroying marathra, mysore and portugal
    > start teching up military tree
    > destroy fishing ports and replace with trading ports

    Turns Ninety to One-Hundred:
    > take remaining mission territories of windward isles and gibralter for the 1750 mission
    > start building up fleets of four 2nd rates and four Indiamen

    Turns One-Hundred to One-Twenty:
    > send 2ndRate/Indiamen to forcibly remove NPC's from trade-zone spots
    > upgrade foreign ports to at least the 3000 gold upgrade level

    Turns One-Twenty to One-Forty
    > build fleets of 1st rates and place them atchoke points such as the channel, gibralter, transfer zones, etc
    > strangle the world trade of your enemies and reap the benefit of owning every single trade-zone point.

    Turns One-Forty Onward:
    > blockade all european ports and strangle all european trade.
    Last edited by Furunculus; 03-25-2009 at 18:19.
    Furunculus Maneuver: Adopt a highly logical position on a controversial subject where you cannot disagree with the merits of the proposal, only disagree with an opinion based on fundamental values. - Beskar

  26. #26
    Gognard Member MikeV's Avatar
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    Default Europe and religion

    Quote Originally Posted by Malkut View Post
    ally with Protestant nations, and press Catholic France and Spain
    Folks haven't discussed the religion aspect much in these forums, but this is an important point. When playing a Protestant faction, the Catholic factions will never like you very much. But the other Protestant factions seem much more agreeable, at least in the beginning.

    I've tried a round of Diplomacy at the start of the 1st turn, setting up alliances and trade agreements with as many other factions as possible, except France and Spain. Whenever a war breaks out, I tend to honor the alliance, if it doesn't put me in an impossibly vulnerable position.

    War against France or Spain is a great opportunity ... to gobble up their overseas colonies! It's also a good way to strangle them economically (by blockading their home region's port and/or raiding their trade routes, and kicking them out of trade spots).

    The only thing to watch out for is the population unrest when capturing a region with a different religion that your own (also true vs. the Islamic factions). It's important to destroy the region's Religious building and replace it with one of your own. It's also useful to repair and keep the Happiness building, if their is one: worker strikes can escalate into full-blown Rebellion, if they get too unhappy.
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  27. #27
    Gognard Member MikeV's Avatar
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    Default Re: 2) Battle for the New World

    Quote Originally Posted by Malkut View Post
    Develop your army in England. Ideally, you'll also want square formation, and a bayonet tech that doesn't suck, if possible. Those Cherokee, they love the horses.

    Once you have assembled your forces, take stock of where you want to insert them. Georgia seems like a good starting point.
    More specifically, develop your army's technology in England. Britain can be a good example of quality over quantity, especially vs. the natives in the New World.

    The other thing to keep in mind is that Britain is the emerging naval superpower of this era. The sea is your highway -- getting involved deep in land-locked territory severely limits your flexibility.

    One thing you can do to reinforce Rupert's Land is to use the Caribbean force that just defeated the Pirates. For that reason, it's useful to capture Trinidad and Tobago first, then the Leeward Islands, then head north.

    Once you've dispatched the Hurons (and/or the Iroquois, depending on how restless they get), it's time to sail back south. Georgia is a good choice, because it's one of the two Cherokee regions required to fulfill the mission -- which you want to do, as it increases your revenue from the 13 Colonies from 50% to 100%, and gives you full control over what they build.
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  28. #28
    Gognard Member MikeV's Avatar
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    Default Re: India

    Quote Originally Posted by Malkut View Post
    I haven't really dealt much with India, yet. If I were to venture a guess, I would say that allying with the Marathan Confederacy in their fight for freedom from Mughal oppression would give you an edge.
    In between the two, Mysore is a 1-province minor. It requires a 2-stack force to conquer them, but you need a lot of troops in India, anyway. From there, you can operate against either the Empire or the Confederacy.

    One thing to keep in mind, the latter has more coastal provinces: easier for a naval superpower to take.
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  29. #29
    Gognard Member MikeV's Avatar
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    Default Re: Trade

    Quote Originally Posted by Malkut View Post
    Important in all of these plans is the establishment of trade, which requires a sizable fleet. Remember to open trade routes, develop resources, and research non-military techs.
    Money, money, and yet more money! Ca$h is king, and trade spots are key.

    As a naval power with plenty of trade ports at start, Britain can build and send Indiamen to three of the four trade zones right away. The Portuguese start in one spot off Brazil, but the others are available. They start in two spots off West Africa, but the others are open. East Africa is open, but Portugal, Spain, and Maratha race to get there. The Dutch and Maratha usually end up with the spots in the East Indies.

    Still, being prompt can net Britain the majority of trade spots, and a healthy economy, for the rest of the century. Also, war with Portugal, Spain, and the Dutch can increase your share.

    Although the exact mechanics of trade aren't documented well, it's important to remember that the trade has to flow to and from the faction's home region. Expanding the number and size of trade ports there increases the faction's overall trade capacity (and, therefore, income level).
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  30. #30
    Gognard Member MikeV's Avatar
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    Default Re: What do you end up doing with Ireland?

    Quote Originally Posted by Siven View Post
    Myself, i change their trade port to a dockyard as the trade port only adds to the region wealth of Ireland which to be fair is nothing compared to having another trading port in England which then also adds more sea trade lanes and therefore trade agreements.

    Anyone else do the same? and do you think its worthwhile changing Portsmouths dock into a trading port for more trade agreemenst at the start too?
    Seems like a good move. But, every faction that has a water-accessible home region has a shipyard. Is this just stylistic, or is there some connection (research?) that requires it?
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