Question: Supply Rules Again...

[vonTirpitz]

I am playing the Russians in a 1940 campaign, controlling both combat and production, Normal difficulty with advanced supplies turned OFF (so auto suppy and area supply have an 'X' in them and can not be changed). For the first year or so, I build up supplies, research Infantry evasion and build the occational Infantry unit.

My question is that every turn all of my units start out are unsupplied (i.e. no supply barrels) so I click and select each one of my combat units along the German lines and supply them in anticipation for the coming invasion.

Is this actually necessary since the Germans will invade on the next turn anyway? I can't really tell any difference from the few combat scenarios I have seen between manually supplying them versus not supplying them each turn.

I have read that units need at least one supply to defend properly but I am not getting the impression that I am doing the right thing. I would have thought that with adv. supply rules off all units would automatically be supplied each turn but since the barrels dont show up I guess they aren't.

Once again forgive me [&o] if I am making this more complicated than it needs to be. Maybe I just need a pop up warning message that says that there are 'Unsupplied Units' before I leave the turn.

Summarized, once again...plus some.

1) Do I have to supply each unit manually all the time?
2) If I do supply a unit and they are attacked before my next turn are they actually still supplied?
3) Do I need to ensure that a unit has "barrels" before I move them to attack another zone?

Off Topic) Are aircraft subject to Opportunity Fire when flying over enemy zones towards a target zone?

Thanks again for your responses and patience and I am truly sorry if I am beating the proverbial "horse". Really, I am trying to figure it out... [8|]

Confused on the Eastern Front...

[willgamer]

The fast answer is that you only need 1 supply truck in the same or adjacent area to supply any number of units for any number defensive battles in any 1 area. You do not supply each unit individually.

Offensive is similar but requires 1 truck/unit.

Using the supply button on the right to assign a specific supply is only for some unusal circumstances.

Page 90 (10.3) of the manual explains this. Especially note that Autosupply only comes into play at step 5 after "manual", really semi-automatic, supply happens.

HTH!

edit: to extend and revise my remarks.... [;)]

[carnifex]

I've never played with Simple Supply but I assume if you don't actually have to move your supply trucks on the map then all supplies will come out of a central pool. So that means if your unit is attacked, it should be automatically supplied from the pool as long as it can trace a line to....ummm...somewhere. Lol

[Dalwin]

Also, don't interpret the need for one supply to defend as a cost that you pay in advance.

Just have the supply available. If your troops get attacked, they will use up one supply. If they do not get attacked, that one supply will not have been spent and you will still have it.

As a matter of fact, you cannot spend this in advance. There is nothing you can do during your turn to take care of your defensive supply needs other than making sure that supplies are available if needed.

[Joel Billings]

If using the Standard supply rules (not Advanced), you should never have to supply a unit manually. Supplies will be pulled from the supply pool whenever needed for movement/attack or defense. I strongly suggest playing this way if you are new to the game as then you just need to worry about making sure you have enough supplies (trucks) to do what you want to do and won't have to worry about the details of how units get supplied.

With Advanced Supply you still don't need to supply units manually, either just make sure supply is nearby (in the area or an adjacent area) when you are going to be attacked or want to move units. Calling this semi-auto supply is a good way to put it.

[vonTirpitz]

Okay. I can accept those answers. Thank you!

So, when is it necessary in either supply method to actually click the supply icon to make the 3 barrels show up on a unit icon? Is that the equivalent to taking extra supplies with a unit into a new zone?

[MButtazoni]

In the last 11 months of playing GGWAW i have never used the "Supply Unit" button. Just make sure u have supply in the area (or adjacent Area) with units that might need supply. (That's assuming Advanced Supply option)

[ratprince]

Von;

It can be useful to use the "supply unit" button when you have supply on a land area AND an island (like for japanese islands next mainland) and you want the ship in the sea area to use the supply from a specific area, not the computer to pick.

Also, I ALWAYS use the supply button when attacking russia. You see, the computer uses supply from the area your unit is in first, then picks from adjacent areas if no supply there. I always use the supply unit button to grab supply from the rear areas PRIOR to the area the unit is in. THis way, you can attack and then move up the supply tactically that was in the area with the unit initially. THis method keeps supply up and moving with the front line.....

hope that helps...

Mike

[willgamer]

It's going to be rare. You're opting to choose the region the supply truck comes from rather than letting semi-auto choose.

Semi-auto will pick from the region you are in first, followed by the largest supply source among all adjacent regions. See 10.3 for details.

A hypothetical reason to do this could be that: A. all strategic movements have been used in the relevant regions; B. there are 5 supply in one adjacent region that you want to save for whatever reason; C. there are at least 1, but less than 5 supply in another adjacent region. So you use the Supply Unit button to take a supply from that region (with fewer supplies).

Not very likely.....

[ratprince]

Will;

Actually, not to be argumentative, but I ALWAYS use the supply unit button. To reference your letters, letter B) is pretty much the applicable one. I think, that you should always use supply adjacent to your unit location (if on a front line) Ultimately then moving the supply with the unit forward once the unit attacks. This saves on rail (as supply tactical movement is free) and lets your rail net transport replacement troops, et al.

Letting the AI pick your supply locale is handy and easy but not the most strategically sound. When winning with the axis comes down to, literally, individual supply points and rail nets, every bit counts.

I regularly operate with an average (for the Germans) of about 35 supply. I simply efficiently manage the distribution.

later!

Prof. Mike

[willgamer]

I like it!

Thanks! [&o][&o][&o][&o][&o]