Unity of Command II - this time it's 3d

Games
#78

Turn 7:

The west is basically a mop up operation.

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I emergency supplied my forward infantry unit and pushed forward. The US HQ will be able to keep 3 infantry supplied in the mountains as they approach “E Breach Central Apeninnes”. We’re on turn 7, so there should be more than enough time to take that objective.

In the East, things are a bit more messy.

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Still, we have some turns left for accomplishing our objective in Rimini.
So we’ll focus establishing the supply line and see if we can set up positions for pushing across the river separating us from Rimini next turn.

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With airstrikes and my elite armour I had a fantastic roll and managed to dislodge the armour unit next to Rimini! And this allowed me to push past the bridge!

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My supply line is now secured. And I spend my emergency supply to supply selected units.
We are well placed to capture the objectives.

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#79

Turn 8:

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The AI counter attacked and managed to dislodge my unit from next to Rimini! I also lost 2 steps from my elite armour unit.

But they had achieved that by shifting their armour unit from the mountain Apeninnes, which will allow me to walk into it.

My supply line on the east is also very frayed. So I’ll reduce my supply depot in the west to 1 point so that I can deploy the trucks in the east the next turn.

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There was fierce fighting across the river and I managed to dislodge the armor unit guarding it.

Apeninnes was captured but because my units are out of my emergency supply zone… which will pose some issues for me.

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We’ll see how the next turn play out.

#80

Turn 9 starts with them positioning an attack on Apeninnes and fortifying Rimini.

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I’ll attempt to take Rimini and see if I can rotate my infantry units in Apeninnes.

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Rimini is captured. And hopefully I can hold out Apeninnes and end the scenario with all objectives captured.

#81

There was no attempt to attack my infantry at Apeninnes and the game ends in turn 10.

Note that this is Easy Mode, so we may face more difficulty in harder game Mode. I think I’ll try a normal campaign next round.

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#82

That was great @cicobuff, thanks.

#83

Good stuff, cicobuff. On ‘easy’ the AI mostly seems docile, you can make risky moves and probably not pay for it. I’ve mostly been playing ‘normal’, and the AI definitely will snatch loose VP locs and cut supplies whenever able.

#84

I’ve been playing Classic and the enemy unit density is certainly higher. Just finished the Normandy part of the campaign (those 3 missions).

Also, I didn’t get to choose the rush to the Apenines, probably because I missed an objective.

Moreover, units persist after a conference, so I might have painted myself on a corner by overextending myself on the previous leg of the Italian campaign.

#85

I think the difference is with the Objective timers and the number of units they have. The way I approached it, my own supply line is secure.

I’ll be restarting the campaign in normal to see if there is any other difference.

Edit: I’ve restarted a new campaign in Normal. The turn limits are lower and starting Prestige is lower but the enemy count seem the same in the starting scenarios. I’ll play more to see if there are other differences.

#86

Mmmm. Some of the Normandy missions get a little too creative with the one unit per hex conceit. You need to play a puzzle game to be able to rotate units into and out of combat…

#87

I found myself doing that a lot in Italy as well.

#88

Yeah, that stuff is not something I love about the game. By and large, though, I like it.

#89

Have you guys ever been on a hill or area with another unit. Even just in training exercises, it’s a complete horrible mess with people standing around totally confused doing nothing.

Instead of “one unit per hex” conceit, I’ll say it reflects the reality I experienced while doing my National Service and reservist stint.

#90

I think a one per hex crowding limit is pretty reasonable. I’m less convinced that it’s realistic to rotate 4 or 5 divisions to sequentially attack a town from the same location within one “turn”, but that’s the way turn-based games work.

#91

Yea, capturing the time in strategy battles as turn may indeed turn into an issue. But it’s an abstraction chosen by the design.

And rotating units, as long as they have unspent actions seems reasonable. Since the action points is basically an abstraction of how much a unit can do. The “rotating” mechanism may seem gamey, but it can reflect the massive amount of time needed to coordinate a large number of units to launch an attach from a single point.

It’s how we view the abstraction. Not much difference from a design that allow massive stacks to be placed in a hex, if you ask me.

#92

I just feel stacking or allowing multi hex attacks is a more elegant, or less puzzly, abstraction most of the time.

Anyway, it’s a nitpick, the game is otherwise great. I think I’m reaching the end of the campaign on Classic.

#93

Wow, thanks so much @cicobuff - I’m playing on Normal, and the resistance up the west side of the mountain range between Route 76 and the western side of the map is proving super stiff. I’m going to borrow a few things from your approach and see how that works!

#94

By all means, borrow away! :)

Sometimes, all that we need to know is that it is possible. And our brains will figure out the rest.

#95

I finished the campaign on Normal. As a Unity of Command veteran, it was pretty easy overall, especially once I realized there was no reason to hoard prestige. My favorite mission was The Battle of the Bulge – it was easy too, but the AI hit me hard with all its armor.

Classic is a bit too punishing. You don’t get any extra turns to take the final objectives. Miss one right at the end (inevitably with an expired unit standing right next to it) and you’re starting all over. That’s how the first game was too. I don’t mind it per se, but I’ll need a break first.

#96

I’m at the battle of the Bulge in classic, and having gotten both optional objectives in Hurtgen (so I get a better starting position).

It seems hard. Played just one go at it, but the Germans have SO MUCH stuff. However, it feels quite manageable, not really a lot of ground to cover, but you don’t have the good offensive units in place.

Anyway, Classic is really difficult, and the campaign structure with unit persistence means you can easily get hosed beyond possibility of relief.

I only won Hurtgen because I had the 101 airborne unspent and ready, so I could, after seven attempts, create a pocket early enough as to being able to clear it before turn 6.

#97

That doesn’t sound like the difficulty level of the first game, which is what Classic supposedly is. That sounds like what you had to do sometimes to get a brilliant victory – annoying but completely optional. Like you said, maybe it’s because of unit persistence grinding away your resources.

I don’t understand why Classic doesn’t give you extra turns to take the final objectives. You already get a score and prestige penalty for it. That would also help with the persistence problem because you wouldn’t feel compelled to throw your units at hopeless odds.

The other problem with units carrying over is it seems like some of the missions might be balanced that way. I tried the Scheldt scenario, which is where you go if you fail Market Garden. I didn’t come close to beating it even on Normal. I watched a YouTube video for that map and the guy had a bunch upgraded armor divisions from the campaign. But surely they balanced the scenarios one at a time, so that doesn’t make sense.