Stronger Player - Turtle vs. Hare

[Ferret]

we really have to get you in a hotseat game ATPG, Zim blitzed me very effectively during a crusades one, not that I'm a hard player to beat lol.

[Zim]

we really have to get you in a hotseat game ATPG, Zim blitzed me very effectively during a crusades one, not that I'm a hard player to beat lol.

The funny thing is that in SP I'm far more of a turtle. Keeping up a blitz gets tedious to me after a while if my only opponenent is the hapless AI.

ATPG would probably approve of that game. I used a Jihad to make up for the large distances I had to cross (and took advantage of the free upkeep to hire a much larger army than I could normally afford), managed to get myself a ton of generals, maneuvered my armies to make sure I had overwhelming numerical superiority in any battles I initiated. And I've never even blitzed before.

Overwhelming numbers doesn't always beat quality in autoresolve, though. In the Teutonic hotseat game in one of the battles where my force was much bigger, the TO's auto resolve superiority won them the day (with oddly few casualties for the losing side, though).

[Askthepizzaguy]

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

The funny thing is that in SP I'm far more of a turtle. Keeping up a blitz gets tedious to me after a while if my only opponenent is the hapless AI.

ATPG would probably approve of that game. I used a Jihad to make up for the large distances I had to cross (and took advantage of the free upkeep to hire a much larger army than I could normally afford), managed to get myself a ton of generals, maneuvered my armies to make sure I had overwhelming numerical superiority in any battles I initiated. And I've never even blitzed before.

Overwhelming numbers doesn't always beat quality in autoresolve, though. In the Teutonic hotseat game in one of the battles where my force was much bigger, the TO's auto resolve superiority won them the day (with oddly few casualties for the losing side, though).

I approve of jihads as a means of troop recruitment and fast marching.

I approve of massively overwhelming the enemy and crushing them under the pure weight of numbers.

Blitzing can be boring if you're only attacking on a single front. Try blitzing against the entire map as soon as possible (and as soon as you've extracted whatever you can through diplomatic means from your enemy) and DO NOT STOP the blitz... ever. Not until every province is securely in your hands.

Tip: Save Rome for last.

Auto-resolving doesn't get you as many prisoners. If they can rout, they can escape. The computer seems to end the battle as quickly as possible...

Oh and by the way

The computer has a BIAS against your first few units. If you have a weakened peasant unit or two in front of a stack of useful troops, and you beseige someone who has serious defenders (but you should theoretically still win easily) guess what... the computer will make your whole army rout.

Pretend the computer is comparing them, one at a time, lead unit versus lead unit. Thats why you don't lead with cavalry. Thats why you don't lead with weakened infantry or peasant archers. Too easy to rout your army in auto resolve.

Test it for yourselves. I took Vilnius with a vastly superior force and I lost the battle every time on auto resolve because I had religious zealot peasants as my lead troops and mercs and crusader knights in the back of the stack.

Ummm bad idea. Lose every time to routing. But on a human-controlled battle, I won EASILY every time.

[Zim]

Well, it's a Crusades hotseat, so I have to autoresolve and there's no Rome. I'll have to remember that about autoresolve. It could very well have been the reason I lost. I had a general as the first unit, but number two was a kazak, whose crappy stats couldn't have helped any.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

I approve of jihads as a means of troop recruitment and fast marching.

I approve of massively overwhelming the enemy and crushing them under the pure weight of numbers.

Blitzing can be boring if you're only attacking on a single front. Try blitzing against the entire map as soon as possible (and as soon as you've extracted whatever you can through diplomatic means from your enemy) and DO NOT STOP the blitz... ever. Not until every province is securely in your hands.

Tip: Save Rome for last.

Auto-resolving doesn't get you as many prisoners. If they can rout, they can escape. The computer seems to end the battle as quickly as possible...

Oh and by the way

The computer has a BIAS against your first few units. If you have a weakened peasant unit or two in front of a stack of useful troops, and you beseige someone who has serious defenders (but you should theoretically still win easily) guess what... the computer will make your whole army rout.

Pretend the computer is comparing them, one at a time, lead unit versus lead unit. Thats why you don't lead with cavalry. Thats why you don't lead with weakened infantry or peasant archers. Too easy to rout your army in auto resolve.

Test it for yourselves. I took Vilnius with a vastly superior force and I lost the battle every time on auto resolve because I had religious zealot peasants as my lead troops and mercs and crusader knights in the back of the stack.

Ummm bad idea. Lose every time to routing. But on a human-controlled battle, I won EASILY every time.

[Askthepizzaguy]

Well, it's a Crusades hotseat, so I have to autoresolve and there's no Rome. I'll have to remember that about autoresolve. It could very well have been the reason I lost. I had a general as the first unit, but number two was a kazak, whose crappy stats couldn't have helped any.

Lead units should be your HEAVIEST and highest morale infantry, followed by your heaviest cavalry, and at the last should be your insta-rout units, such as peasants, militia, weakened units, and all your French mercenaries.

Alternatively, you can lead with a strong general and then your heavy infantry, or several generals and then heavy infantry.

Ugh... auto-resolving every time? That takes away from the most critical aspect of gameplay... using your jedi skills to win impossible battles.



If I had to auto-resolve every time I would go crazy and they would need to give me happy drugs until I began to see pink elephants and walk out in front of traffic and get hit by a semi.

_______________________________________
Insert relevant smiley face here.

[Zim]

It's a pain, especially when my horse archers that get slaughter in autoresolve could turn the Order infantry into pin cushions in a real battle, but I think it's worth it to play against human opponents. I can't really play SP anymore, it doesn't hold my interest.

[Alpedar]

How can i reorder units in stack?