Opening Moves

[PRUSSIAN TOM]

The French Corps, as shown, always first occupies the vacant Westwall hex (vacant at start), if not occupied. It then infiltrates, and is easily destroyed. This seems to happen routinely.

I assume the AI will punish the Germans for leaving gaps in their line. I get that, but what happens here is a gift of 1 Corps to the troops on the westwall. Every time I have run this, the french are destroyed, without impeding the invasion of Poland, or causing any problem (that I know of) in the West. [:-]

Does the AI need to be adjusted for this? [&:]

It's not a major loss for the French, and perhaps is necessary to keep the Germans from leaving gaps in their line. Just wanted to mention it.

Great game & great fun...this is trivial, but I know you want feedback.

A couple other points:

1) The 3-d icons are very good; with the NATO counters...I like them, but as a reviewer, they are a little "plain vanilla." All the information is available, but they are a bit more generic than the 3-d icons.

2) I LOVE the feature where you can have available upgrades and reinforcements shown on the counter.

3) Thanks for including carriers, even though they did most of their work in another theater. Having them present keep the player on his toes.[:'(]

4) I do not know how it affects balance, but having the decisions, upgrades, research, diplomacy, and specialized units, plus the dynamic movement & cruse features are a real plus, as far as play and atmosphere go. Great work. [&o] [&o][&o]

[n0kn0k]

Interesting. I have never seen this happen here.

[BillRunacre]

Thanks for the feedback. [:)]

[solipsismMatrix]

ORIGINAL: PRUSSIAN TOM

The French Corps, as shown, always first occupies the vacant Westwall hex (vacant at start), if not occupied. It then infiltrates, and is easily destroyed. This seems to happen routinely.
[...]
1) The 3-d icons are very good; with the NATO counters...I like them, but as a reviewer, they are a little "plain vanilla." All the information is available, but they are a bit more generic than the 3-d icons.

1) fyi, this has never happened to me, in any version.

2) (your 1) while this is subjective, they are supposed to be plain so that a) they look like nato symbols and b) they are easy to read.

[PRUSSIAN TOM]

TY for the feedback. I actually like the counters the way they are, particularly since they can be set to say, "Upgrade/ reinforce me!" Great feature![8D]

The critical unit data is available; more so than many games with lots more script on the actual counters. The counters bring (fondly), to mind the old (cardboard) counters in A-H or SPI board wargames. The remaining detail is a click (perhaps 2) away.

After playing 20 hours, I'm developing a feel for a unit's ability in combat from a fairly small number of parameters (Strength, Unit Type, "health" (green, yellow, red), type of weapons and upgrades). My different Armies develop a "national (and unit type) personality," much more so than in most sims. [:'(]

The French incursion into Western Germany happens frequently (to me). It may be the AI reacting to something I am doing elsewhere in Europe (I throw everything, including the kitchen sink at France), and my fleet (what remains of it) is in hiding. If I leave a gap, the AI routinely infiltrates it (the gap that is in the westwall at the start). I never bother to garrison it, as one Corps is easy to isolate and kill. That same Corps would wreck unholy hell, given unfettered freedom.

By turn 3, the Germans are rapidly moving to the West, and Italy is itching to grab any loose table scraps. [:D] If the Westwall was as lightly garrisoned as German-occupied Poland, it would be a very short war.

If this isn't happening to a lot of folks, it is probably due to the odd way I learn (brute force; I uses a LOT of saves...oops, there goes another Panzer Group)! [:@]

Perhaps the Naval Carrier airstrikes are a bit overpowered (as some say), but it demonstrates the reason England (not to mention the US and Japan) put so much money into their navy. It has forces me to be a lot more careful about positioning fighters. (Actually, the entire system make a great deal out of the differences in aircraft type. Much more satisfying than the cardboard 5-4 (A-H's Third Reich) Aircraft Fleet. Same with the Naval units. This adds a lot of depth without over-complicating things, IMO.

I WAS surprised at the seeming ability of German units to infiltrate and destroy, without receiving horrific damage, but I assume that the various unit upgrades make a big difference. All my experience so far is against Poles, French and (a very few) British. As I recall, the Whermacht pretty much ran wild until late 1941. I haven't got there yet, but I am willing to bet that the Russians (and later Allied) troops don't give up as easily when surrounded. If the die, they'll probably take a lot of the enemy with 'em. [;)]

I concluded that, properly managed, quality is generally more important than quantity. (At least if your troops want to goose-step). That seems to match historical unit performance in WW2. German infantry are not optimally employed using human-wave attack tactics. I DID notice that the Russians can upgrade their infantry past level 2. Seems like a good way to simulate some specific characteristics of the Red Army.

I'm early into the learning curve, and have not figured out how proximity to convoy lines effects sinkage/detection rates, or the best tactics for an unterseeboot (sp? [X(]). I quickly decided (Axis) Surface Raiders often die al la Graff Spee. I probably overreact, but do not like to send (Axis) capital ships out of range of air cover.

I'm not at all sure how to best use the Allied Navy, but I'm sure I'll pick it up. [8|]

One more point...[>:]

The way I've played (so far), the scale and "no stacking" rule make unit placement extremely critical. A bonus for attacking before moving, the movement and logistics rules, and the unit density (al l;east on the Western Front) force me to carefully consider where I put every single unit. I expect this is as it should be...there are no stacks of 20 corps blowing a (25-mile wide) hole in the enemy line. It may be nice to be able to put an air unit on a Corps, but I like the extra stress on unit placement. I would rather spend an additional turn setting up, than open a major offensive before my troops are in position.

Exploiting success seems to favor a more, "balls to the wall," philosophy (again, accurate, IMO).

I read a lot of comments about features which would benefit from an adjustment. Many I agree with; if not, there wouldn't be much point in having a beta). This game game still nails it. I've small quirks; nothing that would disqualify it from "Strategy Game of the Year," contention. (Assuming development continues with the same crew).

Who said war is hell?