Restricted Units and other questions

[papylon]

Am completly new to this amazing game and have a couple of questions:

- Have started a PBEM game with a friend, the Guadalcanal scenario. Have been trying to load troops from the Australian command onto ships to move them closer to the action, figured I might need some backup further north. Although they dont want to move onto the ships. I have complete control of them in all other regards as well as all the ships and squadrons based in AUS. Is there a restriction on the Austrialian Command troops as well as the troops under Sopac command? Is there any way of transfering them to a command I can actually use? Saw something about political points which only confused me.

- Is there any guide on the economic system or some form of tutorial that can be used in the beggining? The sheer amount of funtions can be daunting, to say the least.

- Is there any sense in doing Ground Bomardments with the early flying fortresses that are based in Rockhampton (I think)? Or are they only useful for strategic bombardment.

- Is there any way of having an overview of the weather?

Looking forward to the answers!

[bradfordkay]

1) Units that are in a restricted command cannot be loaded aboard ship, though they can be air transported to another base under that same restricted command. If, when looking at the unit information screen, the unit's command is in white it cannot be changed. If that command shows up in yellow, you can click on it to change the command to which the unit reports. The new screen will show a list of various commands, and the cost in Political Points (PP) for the change.

2) As the allied player, you needn't worry about the economic model in the game. You do need to worry about logistics, so learning how to deliver and manipulate the supply and fuel levels at your bases is extremely important. In the Guadalcanal scenario, you (as the allied player) are running things on a shoestring budget in the early going. That is to say, you won't have enough supplies or fuel to do everything that you want to do. Think very carefully about what you have to do, versus just what you want to do. Make sure that you supply the operations you have to do.

3) The jury is out on this one. I think that ground bombardments by the B17s help, but the air corps boys are wrong when they insist that you can win the war by bombing alone. I use ground bombardment by the air forces as a method of increasing the fatigue and disruption levels of troops that I plan to attack with my ground forces, or in - so far - vain attempts to slow their march towards my bases.

4) Not really. The weather forecast on the top of the screen is merely an indication of the percentage chance for inclement weather in that are for this day. Each location rolls a die based on this forecast and has weather effects applied to that location. If you hover your cursor over any base, the weather for that base at the moment will be listed in the information shown. You will note that you often will have a base showing "rain" even when the general forecast is "clear".

[papylon]

Thank you very much for the extensive reply!

ORIGINAL: bradfordkay
1) Units that are in a restricted command cannot be loaded aboard ship, though they can be air transported to another base under that same restricted command. If, when looking at the unit information screen, the unit's command is in white it cannot be changed. If that command shows up in yellow, you can click on it to change the command to which the unit reports. The new screen will show a list of various commands, and the cost in Political Points (PP) for the change.

And I assume that both Australian command and the American reserves are regarded as restricted commands? I see the sense in having separete commands, it was simply very new for me not to have full control over the troops. Being a casual wargamer the system was a bit strange, but realistic of course.

2) As the allied player, you needn't worry about the economic model in the game. You do need to worry about logistics, so learning how to deliver and manipulate the supply and fuel levels at your bases is extremely important. In the Guadalcanal scenario, you (as the allied player) are running things on a shoestring budget in the early going. That is to say, you won't have enough supplies or fuel to do everything that you want to do. Think very carefully about what you have to do, versus just what you want to do. Make sure that you supply the operations you have to do.

Is there any way of sending supplies automatically, at the moment I am sending manual convoys from Sydney to Guadalcanal. I have noticed small yellow or red exclamation marks over some of the minor bases which are probably due to a lack or resources.

[Nunya D.]

ORIGINAL: papylon

Thank you very much for the extensive reply!

ORIGINAL: bradfordkay
1) Units that are in a restricted command cannot be loaded aboard ship, though they can be air transported to another base under that same restricted command. If, when looking at the unit information screen, the unit's command is in white it cannot be changed. If that command shows up in yellow, you can click on it to change the command to which the unit reports. The new screen will show a list of various commands, and the cost in Political Points (PP) for the change.

And I assume that both Australian command and the American reserves are regarded as restricted commands? I see the sense in having separete commands, it was simply very new for me not to have full control over the troops. Being a casual wargamer the system was a bit strange, but realistic of course.

If the unit commard name has a big (R) after the name, it is restricted.

2) As the allied player, you needn't worry about the economic model in the game. You do need to worry about logistics, so learning how to deliver and manipulate the supply and fuel levels at your bases is extremely important. In the Guadalcanal scenario, you (as the allied player) are running things on a shoestring budget in the early going. That is to say, you won't have enough supplies or fuel to do everything that you want to do. Think very carefully about what you have to do, versus just what you want to do. Make sure that you supply the operations you have to do.

Is there any way of sending supplies automatically, at the moment I am sending manual convoys from Sydney to Guadalcanal. I have noticed small yellow or red exclamation marks over some of the minor bases which are probably due to a lack or resources.
[/quote]

Yelow ! means: Starting to run out of supplies, but not urgent.

Red ! means: Will be completely out soon...Urgent.

[bairdlander2]

What threw me off with resticted command was the ability to set their ops.If they are restricted shouldnt that option be white instead of yellow?

[bradfordkay]

"Is there any way of sending supplies automatically, at the moment I am sending manual convoys from Sydney to Guadalcanal. I have noticed small yellow or red exclamation marks over some of the minor bases which are probably due to a lack or resources."

There are a couple of ways you can go about doing that.

The simplest is to setup a Constant Supply (CS) convoy. The way to do this is to make a cargo convoy, choose a destination for it and then slick on the "human control" words (in yellow). Click twice, and it will switch from "human control" through "computer control" to "CS:destination" (the actual destination written out such as CS:Lunga). The CS convoy will load supplies, take them to its destination, unload, return to home port, load supplies, take them to its destination, unload, return to home port, ad infinitum.

OOPS! The second method is not available in the small map Guadalcanal scenario. It involves setting up the auto convoy system, but I won't go into that right now because 1) it isn't used in the GC scenario and 2) I've never used it so I'm probably one of the last you want to take advice from on autoconvoy.

So, back to the system you can use. It does have a downside. In the GC scenario the Japanese AI has a tendency to show up with carriers when you can least afford it. When you leave the computer to run your resupply convoys you will likely lose a lot of valuable transports. If you keep them under human control you give yourself the ability to more quickly react to the Kido Butai's schedule (japanese carrier Striking Force). Basically, it comes down towards Guadalcanal, bombing everything in sight for a few days and has to withdraw to either Rabaul or Truk for replenishment. Against the AI, my trick is to pull my transports back towards Luganville until the carriers leave and then rush them back to Lunga while the KB runs home for fuel.

The second part of this is that your supply convoys are likely to meet up with IJN Surface Combat TFs at Lunga at night. If you're running CS convoys to Lunga and do not have an SC TF either following your CS convoy or waiting off Lunga on its own, your CS convoy is likely to become fish food.

Thus, all said, I prefer to control the resupply efforts without the use of CS convoys (except in rear areas, such as maybe Brisbane to Noumea or Brisbane to Townsville).

[bradfordkay]

ORIGINAL: bairdlander

What threw me off with resticted command was the ability to set their ops.If they are restricted shouldnt that option be white instead of yellow?

A restricted command just means that those troops are restricted to operations in the area under that HQ's control. You can still move them by land or air transport within the area that HQ controls. That is why you can set their operational orders.

[bairdlander2]

Playing GC scenario as Allies.I took Lunga and Tulagi and want repair the port/airfield.Problem is the only eng i have are at bases in Noumea.Are they not a base force required to stay at Noumea to maintain that base?Or should they be noved to Lunga/Tulagi?I also need more support troops but dont seem to have any.Re restricted units example I can use Australian troops in their command zone,but couldnt use them say to defend California for example.

[bigred]

- ORIGINAL: papylon

Is there any way of having an overview of the weather?

I believe the big map is divided into 9 weather zones. sometimes u can see a weather front as it moves thru the map day to day. I could be wrong on this but I noticed the possibility..