Desert War Mechanics: Battle Intensity

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Let’s talk about Battle Intensity in Desert War 1940-42.

This is one of those game mechanics that requires some ‘splainin’ and some thought; but mastering Battle Intensity can be decisive in your game-play. So what is it?

There are 5 levels of Battle Intensity:

• Very low
• Low
• Medium
• High
• Extreme

The higher the Battle Intensity, the more casualties are inflicted/suffered on both sides.

How is it determined? More on this later, but the bottom-line--The higher the average Attacker’s Unit Quality and Readiness, the higher the Battle Intensity.

Can the player influence Battle Intensity? Yes. The decisions you make in committing units to an attack, can influence the final Battle Intensity level. Figure 1 illustrates how Player Actions influence Battle Intensity:


[Figure 1.]

Note: The modifiers listed above will never reduce a Battle Intensity level to below Low.

How can I see the differences in Battle Intensity?

Well...Check out the Ground Combat Result Table [Figure 2]. You can access this during game play by pressing the i2 button on the left side of the game screen. Select the Battle Intensity you are interested in to see how casualty percentages are influenced.

So, in the table below (Medium Battle Intensity), combat odds of 3 to 1 and a Die Roll of 1 means the attacker will lose 19% and the defender 33%--assuming both sides are Regular Quality units.


[Figure 2.]

Now let's look at the same situation but with Low Battle Intensity. A die Roll of 1 means the attacker loses 13% and the defender 22%. That's a percentage loss drop of 6% for the attacker and 11% for the defender.


[Figure 3.]

Bottomline: The lower the Battle Intensity the fewer the casualties for both sides.

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How is Battle Intensity determined?

Here's the basic equation (see Note):

Battle Intensity Factor = Attacker Quality Factor x 2 x Attacker Readiness Factor

Let's plot that out on a spreadsheet to see what that means. In the figure below, the second column shows the numerical Attacker Quality Factor. This number is multiplied by 2 to yield the Modified Quality Factor (coln 3). The Modified Quality Factor is multiplied by the unit's current readiness percentage. For example:

A regular quality attacking unit at 50% readiness = 3 x 2 x 50 = 300


[Figure 4.]

Comparing a Battle Intensity factor of 300 to the figure below we see that the Battle Intensity is Medium. This of course is subject to modification per the Battle Intensity Shifts shown in Figure 1.

[Figure 5.]

So what can we learn from this?

* Without any Battle Intensity Shifts, Conscript units can only generate very low or low intensity attacks. Green units can get to medium intensity. Regular units can achieve high intensity attacks. Veteran and Elite quality units can generate extreme intensity attacks.

* The lower the quality of attacking units, the higher the attacker's casualties, and the more turns required to take a position. The higher the quality, the higher the intensity, the faster a position can be taken.

Note: The basic equation shown above gets very complicated when considering attacks involving units with different quality levels and % readiness. Will look at that later...but this game engine reveal will get you in the ball park of how Battle Intensity works.

More to follow...

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Post expanded above.

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bump.

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bump.

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Always a good read for those new to the system.

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Going up?

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ORIGINAL: bcgames


Let’s talk about Battle Intensity in Desert War 1940-42.

This is one of those game mechanics that requires some ‘splainin’ and some thought; but mastering Battle Intensity can be decisive in your game-play. So what is it?

There are 5 levels of Battle Intensity:

• Very low
• Low
• Medium
• High
• Extreme

The higher the Battle Intensity, the more casualties are inflicted/suffered on both sides.

How is it determined? More on this later, but the bottom-line--The higher the average Attacker’s Unit Quality and Readiness, the higher the Battle Intensity.

Can the player influence Battle Intensity? Yes. The decisions you make in committing units to an attack, can influence the final Battle Intensity level. Figure 1 illustrates how Player Actions influence Battle Intensity:


[Figure 1.]

Note: The modifiers listed above will never reduce a Battle Intensity level to below Low.

How can I see the differences in Battle Intensity?

Well...Check out the Ground Combat Result Table [Figure 2]. You can access this during game play by pressing the i2 button on the left side of the game screen. Select the Battle Intensity you are interested in to see how casualty percentages are influenced.

So, in the table below (Medium Battle Intensity), combat odds of 3 to 1 and a Die Roll of 1 means the attacker will lose 19% and the defender 33%--assuming both sides are Regular Quality units.


[Figure 2.]

Now let's look at the same situation but with Low Battle Intensity. A die Roll of 1 means the attacker loses 13% and the defender 22%. That's a percentage loss drop of 6% for the attacker and 11% for the defender.


[Figure 3.]

Bottomline: The lower the Battle Intensity the fewer the casualties for both sides.