New Guy, Tactics

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 3:29 am

I am brand new to SPWAW but have always enjoyed a good wargame and am quite a history buff. This game comes highly recommended to me by a friend and I have been browsing the forums here and it would seem that it is quite fun. I was just wondering if any of you could offer some BASIC tips. I have noticed that many of these discussions can become quite in depth but I just want some of the basics for now. Thanks for all of your help.

Later,
Patrick

Don Doom · Post by **Don Doom** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 3:54 am

Just for starters, you need to have a balenced force of armor,infanty, & artillary.
A good mix[combined arms force], will enable you to handle just about anything that your oponet can through at you. Well maybe not what Mr Wild Bill can dream up.
Start with the beginners battle and learn from it. Then try some of the battles that are in the game.
In other words just try a mix of tanks,infanty and artillary and work up to what works best with your style.
You can use the search engin here to find the post on tactics, which will list some good books on tactics your can use. Rommals and Guderians books come to mind.

Good Luck Don D.

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 4:01 am

Thanks Don D. Am still downloading but will try that when I finish. Also do I need to download various scenarios to play the game or are there games/campaigns/scenarios in the downloaded version (4.5)?

Huffy · Post by **Huffy** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 4:35 am

Oh...there are scenarieos a plenty with the game download...plus some campains...and numerous scenario and campain extra downloads you can get and install...you'll be busy...and you'll have a blast.
This forum is very helpful and friendly,...so...you have questions...feel free to ask....and welcome...
Huffy

Dave_R · Post by **Dave_R** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 5:36 am

Stay away from any scenario or Campaigne created by Wild Bill (grins) Not until you've got the hang of the game! He writes lean, mean battles. If you want to know what it feels like to be a piece of meat in a meat grinder, then play his Watchword Freedom Campaigne! (Runs and hides from WB!)

Wild Bill · Post by **Wild Bill** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 5:48 am

Ah, Dave, you killed the "shock" effect

!

Patrick there are probably 70 or so scenarios with the game and at least 2 campaigns, Heroes of the Motherland, and Preparing the Way.

I suggest you begin using the tutorial that comes in the manual and playing the tutorial scenario (the first one)

Now for some excellent scenarios that are not included in the game, book mark these sites:

The Matrix SPWAW Game Depot - Here you find new scenarios and maps if you later choose to design your own.
http://www.matrixgames.com/gamedepotacces.asp
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Rick Cloutier's SPWAW Support Site - Good for maps, scenarios, new icons and other things pertaining to SPWAW...
[url="http://tankhead__1.tripod.com/"]http://tankhead__1.tripod.com/[/url]

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Fabio Prado's Armorsite, with all kinds of good gaming support for SPWAW and other games.
http://www.fprado.com/armorsite/sp_waw.htm

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Bonzo's great site for SPWAW and a Canadian perspective on the war
http://nwbattalion.tripod.com/

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Sarge's site also great and supporting SPWAW
http://www.geocities.com/aurion_eq/index.html

And here are two good sites that are constantly offering new scenarios and campaigns

Wild Bill and the Raiders
http://wbr.thegamers.net

The Steel Panthers Arsenal
http://sparsenal.thegamers.net

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For some good articles on tactics (till Larry Holt has his ready

), go to the SP Arsenal Armory and read those tactics articles by Marc Bellizzi. They are very helpful.
http://sparsenal.thegamers.net/armory.asp

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Now that should be enough to keep you busy for years

Wild Bill

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In Arduis Fidelis
Wild Bill Wilder
Coordinator, Scenario Design
Matrix Games

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 5:53 am

Two more questions. Do I need to download the manual seperate? And, what exactly is a hero? Also thanks for all of those sites. Am about halfway through the download process. It has been about 3-4 hours so far, so it should be done sometime late tonite (I hope).

MindSpy · Post by **MindSpy** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 6:51 am

Originally posted by CINC Patrick:
Two more questions. Do I need to download the manual seperate? And, what exactly is a hero? Also thanks for all of those sites. Am about halfway through the download process. It has been about 3-4 hours so far, so it should be done sometime late tonite (I hope).

A HERO is someone who does what you need to
be done without your direct involvement
- succeeds - causes others to do what needs to be done - succeeds in various degrees and
at no point was he ordered or expected to do as much as was done.

Learning how to play SP:WAW pretty much requires some amount of being the HERO
if you are learning from scratch and
want to become good quickly and still enjoy playing the game just to learn.

The best advice that I can think of comes from my days as a twelve year old playing with Squad Leader's: Cross of Iron.
The game is similar up to a point with SP:WAW except it was made of cardboard and required alot of lucky dice nearby to keep things
H E R O I C (the style of play I liked most as a youngster). In this game the rules were programmed. So much at a time, and units in pre-made scenarios to illustrate the units and rules/combat gradually progressing to greater and greater complexity within a simple game system.

When you finally have the game and you are not tired or just reading the rules GO DIRECTLY TO THE SCENARIO EDITOR FROM HOTSEAT PLAY. Always use the same format when you go to play. Select only certain units. Place them close together on the smallest map you can make and then go at it taking turns being each side. Short of someone teaching you in person you just can't do any better than to just play WITH CONSTRAINTS YOU CREATE and then just learn from them !!

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 7:00 am

So is a hero someone that is in a unit that you control? 213 MB Downloaded. Getting close by the minute.

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 7:22 am

My computer froze and I lost all of my work, is there anyway to recover my 200 and something MB's of files and resume from there?

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 7:28 am

It will take 7.5 hours at my current rate to download the whole thing again.

Wild Bill · Post by **Wild Bill** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 8:06 am

Patrick, I hope you are using a download program. This is very important. In the case of a computer freeze, a download program will save what you already have and resume when you go back to the download.

It will also give you a better guarantee of getting the entire program. Nothing worse than getting "nearly" all of it. Good luck!

WB

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In Arduis Fidelis
Wild Bill Wilder
Coordinator, Scenario Design
Matrix Games

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 8:33 am

I am not using a download program. Is there a way to start using one once the download has already beugn? If so where can I get one?

kao16 · Post by **kao16** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 8:55 am

Originally posted by CINC Patrick:
I am not using a download program. Is there a way to start using one once the download has already beugn? If so where can I get one?

My understaning is NO. The download programme manages the download and must be running from the start.

The Matrix site links to GetRight - this seems to nbe one of the more popular download managers (tis cheap at zilch for the one that shows ads)

Pack Rat · Post by **Pack Rat** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 10:12 am

For starters play against the computer, get comfortable with the buttons. Give yourself some equal points as the computer and setup a defensive game, decrease the points as you get better. Try different units, read the encyclopedia as a bed time story, KNOW YOUR ENEMY. MOve to the delay game, then to the meeting and so on. About the time your into the meeting game hook up to Combat Command and start meeting fellow gamers and have even more fun. Good hunting.

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Your mine is a terrible thing to lose.
Pack Rat

Pack Rat · Post by **Pack Rat** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 10:21 am

Oh yeah, as far as an actual tactic goes, there are several I use depending. The one I like best is engage keep em busy but thrust else where. Pick your spot for the engagement becuase some tanks/units you just can't stand toe to toe with, shoot and scoot in other words. You'll also be surprised at the fear smoke can invoke, add a little real HE and you'll have made the enemy commit to that area for an expected attack, strike else where. Anything you can read that happened for real will transfer nicely to SPWaW and don't mean just WW2 tactics.

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Your mine is a terrible thing to lose.
Pack Rat

CINC Patrick · Post by **CINC Patrick** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 10:28 am

Well it messed up, again. However, I did download Gozilla and not only will it save it if it screws up but it is going much faster. It says that it will only take 2 hours to complete and am already 40% done with 1:15 till completion. I should be able to play tomorrow and will just let it go thorough the night. Thanks for all the help everyone. Will keep in touch.

Patrick

Drex · Post by **Drex** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 10:35 am

CINC Patrick another definition of a Hero is the one used by Tankhead on his site: A "Hero" has acquired 2o or more kills in a scenario or 50 or more kills ina campaign. Once you have a hero you can submit him to Tankheads site for proper decoration and admission to his "Valhalla". truly an accomplishment to have a hero.

Captn_Jack · Post by **Captn_Jack** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 10:56 am

Originally posted by Pack Rat:
For starters play against the computer, get comfortable with the buttons. Give yourself some equal points as the computer and setup a defensive game, decrease the points as you get better. Try different units, read the encyclopedia as a bed time story, KNOW YOUR ENEMY. MOve to the delay game, then to the meeting and so on. About the time your into the meeting game hook up to Combat Command and start meeting fellow gamers and have even more fun. Good hunting.

PR...you forgot to tell him that once he moves onto human competition, to throw everything he learned while playing the AI out the window...cause it's a whole new ballgame!

CJ

skukko · Post by **skukko** » Thu Dec 28, 2000 1:55 pm

And after played few games pbem or online, he ain't never getting back to AI opponent. Except for soulfeeding: Buy lot's of best and kill every AI:s men. It's something that is hard to do against human. Welcome to the crew.

mosh