PP's (political points) a discussion

[Blackhorse]

ORIGINAL: Chris21wen

ORIGINAL: MakeeLearn

I would spend all my Political Points for the entire game to have Jody drafted, in uniform and sent overseas.[;)]

Is that a US thing? Who the h%^% is Jody.

Absolutely. Jody is the protagonist of many of the favorite marching songs in the Army. He's the 'friend' who stayed at home after you joined the service. Sample marching lyrics:

"I used to drive a Cadillac . . . now I'm marching there and back."
. . .
"Ain't no use in going back . . . Jody's got my Cadillac.
Ain't no use in going home . . . Jody's got my girl and gone."

If you were in the Army, Jody was not a popular guy.

The cadences soldiers sing while they march are known as 'Jodies'.

[Yaab]

Don't forget the PP cost per device which seems unreasonable.

tm.asp?m=3418333

[geofflambert]

ORIGINAL: Kull

To me the only thing that seems problematic is being able to assign units to HQs which aren't on the map yet.

A lot of units start the game that way, don't they? I don't pay much attention to HQ assignments.

[geofflambert]

One thing that may be out of balance, or not, buying out engineers and some of the artillery and flak units are ridiculously cheap, I think. I strip those out of Manchukuo real fast.

Also all the armor and cavalry.

[wegman58]

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel

The PP system is rather elegant and effective. It takes thought, creativity and management. It doesn't make things impossible, but instead challenging. I like it 100%.

The only tweak I'd make is to allow units to increase prep time while aboard ship sailing for some distant shore. If not at the usual rate, some dampened rate. And possibility the rate would be more dampened for an xAK than for an APA.

I was unaware of that, are you sure? When I played Allied I thought they did prep in route. Now that I play Axis I mostly don't prep since half the time it becomes intelligence for the allied player, what the target is, what the targeting unit is and a rough idea of when.

And by in route I meant shipboard. They definitely prep on the march. I turned 60 recently and you can't trust my memory but it seems to me that I could check their progress shipboard and it did advance.

I'm playing now and I have some Prep 0 shipboard, so it doesn't advance.

AND - I spend a reserve active duty period on a Viet Nam era LPA (USS FRANCIS MARION - LPA 249). I'd like to know WHERE you would prep. And I imagine the WW II LPA/APA were even more cramped. NOT like the modern ships with large open spaces.

[witpqs]

ORIGINAL: wegman58

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel

The PP system is rather elegant and effective. It takes thought, creativity and management. It doesn't make things impossible, but instead challenging. I like it 100%.

The only tweak I'd make is to allow units to increase prep time while aboard ship sailing for some distant shore. If not at the usual rate, some dampened rate. And possibility the rate would be more dampened for an xAK than for an APA.

I was unaware of that, are you sure? When I played Allied I thought they did prep in route. Now that I play Axis I mostly don't prep since half the time it becomes intelligence for the allied player, what the target is, what the targeting unit is and a rough idea of when.

And by in route I meant shipboard. They definitely prep on the march. I turned 60 recently and you can't trust my memory but it seems to me that I could check their progress shipboard and it did advance.

I'm playing now and I have some Prep 0 shipboard, so it doesn't advance.

AND - I spend a reserve active duty period on a Viet Nam era LPA (USS FRANCIS MARION - LPA 249). I'd like to know WHERE you would prep. And I imagine the WW II LPA/APA were even more cramped. NOT like the modern ships with large open spaces.

The preparation in the game is not really - or only to a very small degree - simulating anything IRL. The developers have been clear that preparation is implemented as a game tempo limiter. IIRC at one point preparation did advance aboard ship but obviously that got changed. So in terms of what it simulates it would be OK to have preparation advance aboard ship, even if at a reduced rate. But what about the developers intent: limiting game tempo?

As a player of course it would be nice if preparation advanced aboard ship, but I can live with it the way it is and it certainly does work to limit the tempo of advance as the developers intended. I'm fine with it as is, YMMV.

And of course there is little prospect of such a think being changed now.

[geofflambert]

Prep is staff work mostly, there's no reason I know of it can't proceed aboard ship. The soldiers don't have a clue where they are going, whether by foot, by sea or by air.

[geofflambert]

Air crews train shipboard. And I mean when their planes are crated. WTF?

[geofflambert]

When the staff is prepping on the move, by land, they're lucky if they can do it on a truck, rather than while they're marching.

[witpqs]

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

Air crews train shipboard. And I mean when their planes are crated. WTF?

Haven't you ever watched old movies?

"Rrrrrr, dut dut dut dut dut, ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR, BRCHHHH!!!"

[:D]

[witpqs]

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

Prep is staff work mostly, there's no reason I know of it can't proceed aboard ship. The soldiers don't have a clue where they are going, whether by foot, by sea or by air.

I think our posts crossed. It's not really prep work.

[geofflambert]

Planning session scheduled. "Oh, let's see, can I work that in between tanning in a deck chair and my shuffleboard tournament?

[geofflambert]

I was reacting to the previous poster, not you. Agree with you. So I'm not delusional? Once upon a time prep did advance shipboard?

[rustysi]

I see this most often when combining three regiments or brigades into a division - whereupon the AI chooses the least competent commander of the three regiment COs to be Divisional Commander. And then there are all the ones who have some bizarre number like 30 or 50 or even 250 as their PP value,

Happens all the time as Japan also, though I've never come across one that expensive. At least with Japanese units, some of the Chinese fighting for Japan are that way, but who cares, they're nothing better than garrison troops anyway.

[rustysi]

I've never really found a hardship in finding enough PPs to meet my needs and find some of the mods with inflated PP rates per day over the top.

Yeah, I meant to mention I was speaking about stock scenarios as that's all I've played so far.

[rustysi]

The only thing I think is wrong with the PP system, in broad strokes (I've got quibbles beyond this Big Quibble), is that Japan starts with a bank of them while the Allies do not. The Allies should start with at least 200 PPs, IMHO.

Japan starts with 500 PP's IIRC. That's not even enough to buy out a Brigade, so I don't think its that bad. Though I'd have no problem with the Allies starting with a few points as well.

[rustysi]

ORIGINAL: spence

The thing I really don't know about is how restrictive this may be the the Allied OOB.

Back to the original question about the restrictiveness of PPs re the Allied OOB.

The following early reinforcement divisions are assigned to the West Coast Command:
27th, 32nd, 40th and 41st...IIRC one can buy them out at reduced cost at less than TO&E saving 500 PPs or so on the first one (but they will have poor experience and morale).

The Americal Division starts out needing to have the 164th Regt bought out - the other regiments are already in a non-restricted command (forget which one).

Each of the Divisions in Hawaii at start are assigned to the restricted Hawaii Command but each contains only 2 regts. The third for each is assigned to a non-restricted command (forget which one).

The 2nd Marine Division has one Regt assigned to the West Coast at start and lacks the 6th Regt which enters at reduced strength some months after the start.

Thus the US has no major combat formations that may be immediately assigned to a non restricted command except for 1 Marine Regt and two Army Regts.

Thanks Spence, that's good info of which I was unaware.

[rustysi]

The deployable Chinese forces were meant to be purchased 'on the cheap'.

Exactly what I thought, and no problem or argument here.

[rustysi]

buying out engineers and some of the artillery and flak units are ridiculously cheap,

Artillery seems rather expensive to me. I don't buy much/any out early.

[rustysi]

I should add is my biggest headache is when I have bought out regiments to only discover that one part of a division is assigned to a different HQ. There is 700 PP down the toilet...

[:D] Been there, done that... [:(] Lessons learned, always check a units' component assignments before committing to a new HQ.