Matrix Games Forums

Hi!
Well, I've bought WITE at day 1 and played lets say... 3 hours!
Ok, I'm a bad, really bad, player, but I do like to get into uber complicated games, still, I feel like WITE si WAY too complicated (for me).
Let me explain.
I get the most basic elements of the game, I can even ending up playing a decent game using the basics, you know:
1) moving troops around;
2) attacking;
3) advancing and stuff like this.
It's just that... I feel like I'm missing MOST of the COOL aspects of the game! At the end of all, I feel I'm just moving counters around and attacking other counters.
Is there any tips experience players can give me to enjoy the game at its fullest? May sound stupid question, but this really look like an outstanding game, and I'm just not enjoing!
My biggest problem is to understand information correctly and sort the ones that are important for the game, I just feel overwhelmed. E.g. Air attack, I manually select an air unit to perform an attack, I only want that unit to attack, ok? I perform the attack, and I see that like other 300 planes from other airbases joined the attack, and there's black lines all over the maps showing from which bases they came from... I mean, why?
This is just an example of the many "What is going on" moments I have while playing the game.

Sorry if this message doesn't make too much sense. Feel free to not answer and/or mocking me! [:)]

Thanks,

Ricroma

Your message makes perfect sense, but I wouldn't even know where to start helping you as I just finished typing a rant about the game design being way too complex.

Air attack, I manually select an air unit to perform an attack, I only want that unit to attack, ok? I perform the attack, and I see that like other 300 planes from other airbases joined the attack, and there's black lines all over the maps showing from which bases they came from... I mean, why?
This is just an example of the many "What is going on" moments I have while playing the game. [:)]

Thanks,

Ricroma

Select the airbase, then press SHIFT and right-click on your target and you'll get a list of available air groups to choose from. Otherwise the computer just picks a number of them.

To the rest of your post: I've played a lot of games covering the war on the eastern front, and feverishly read anything about it I can get my hands on. I feel I personally know every Ivan in my rifle corps. I guess that helps the enjoyment of the game.

One of the best ways to learn the game is to read an AAR and to ask questions about how things are done.

Another way is to play a learner game against a human opponent who will help you understand that kind of thing.

Playing "Road to Leningrad" while following dlazov66's great "Operational Boot Camp" is the best way to learn the game imho.

ORIGINAL: Blubel

Playing "Road to Leningrad" while following dlazov66's great "Operational Boot Camp" is the best way to learn the game imho.

+1

ORIGINAL: ricroma

.. .Is there any tips experience players can give me to enjoy the game at its fullest? May sound stupid question, but this really look like an outstanding game, and I'm just not enjoing!...
Thanks,

Ricroma

Check the stickies at the top of The War Room forum. There are some good, if somewhat old, guides there that might help. I thought Don's Boot Camp guide was very helpful for new players.

From what you wrote the problem maybe the scale of the game. Maybe something at a tactical level will get the imgination fired up? I find games at this scale somethines to end uo feeling like I'm just pushing counters around especially ones with step losses (not the case here thankgod). I find ones (like this game) that actaully give you results in troops lost etc help put it all into perspective and at this scale.

The just pushing counters is for me a big problem with many wargames. Thats why I have to be into the theatre, have some knowledge of it and it must have enough chrome\info\details to fill my imagination. This game has all these but is probably a little to big rather than to complex for me. SO on the whole it's squad to battalion level at the max for me.

I agree that reading a book covering a scenario in game then playing it will help loads. Your knowlegde of the battle will help you interpit the map\counters and your imagination will kick in.

Thanks everybody for the help!
I'm reading the "Road to Leningrad" strategy guide and I must say it's really helpful! Completely missed it!

This also help me to be more specific on the topic.
My next question is SUPPORT UNITS.
Ok, so, I'll try to be as precise as possible, even tough I don't have the game under my hands right now and I may not get all the terms right.

1) When I assign 3,4 or whatever number of support units to an HQ it means that I'm really attaching 3,4 or whatever of EACH KIND of units available. What does it means exactly? Assume that I set the number to 3 support units for an HQ with 6 already attached (3 of two kinds: AAA and ART):
a) the HQ will receive 9 support units the NEXT turn, 3 of each kind avaible (SPG, AT, ENG). Therefore the HQ will have 6+9 attached units at the end (3 AAA, 3 ART, 3 SPG, 3 AT 3 ENG).
b) NEXT turn, the HQ will only receive 3 support units of a singular kind, that added to the 6 already attached will end up in a total of 9 support units of 3 different kinds: 3 SPG 3 AAA 3 ART.
c) none of the former, so I guess I'm missing all the point here.
d) When I decrease the number of support units attached I presume that they will return to a sort of invisible "force pool" to be reassigned to other HQs. Right? Is there such a force pool that I'm just to stupid to find and/or how can I figure out which support units will kick in the next turn, how many are available and stuff like this? What I mean here is basically this: why shouldn't I set the maximum for all the HQ? The only scenario I can picture is that I only have a limited amount of SU, therefore I should prioritize certain HQs, but where I figure out how many SU I actually have and/or I will have?

2) What are the "rules" of attaching SU to higher HQs? I mean, if I set a ARMY HQ to 3 Support Units, and one of its CORPS HQ to 6 what it will happen?

3) How do SUs act exactly? HQ has 3 SUs, 1st ID attack, the HQ sends its SUs to help. Right? What about another attack? Are SUs always sent to attacking divisions or they have limited AP? And in this case, how can I figure out which SU is "avaible"? Lets say I want to assault a 3 points fort, I will want my attack to be supported be engineers, so I want to be sure that they can be sent in the combat.

4) SU can also be directly attached to divisions, right? Now, the SU I'm attaching to a specific division is one of those that the HQ already has or is a new one?

Well, this is it for now. I'm sorry for the longest post ever, and also really complicated. I repeat I don't have the game here, and I'm trying to pull out stuff from a really weak memory. Again, no worry about not answering and/or mocking!

Ricroma

1) a-c) What you are talking about is the automated support unit allocation. The AI will indeed try to fill the HQ with the number of each support unit. However, as there are only so many support units this will most likely not fill the HQ with all of them. The stock number of all HQs is 3 of each, which will not be available.
1) d) If you decrease the number they will go to fill out the HQs, which do not have enough of them. If you decrease enough of the HQs numbers, they should end up in OKH.
You can filter through all units in the commanders report, giving you a good picture of what is available.
3) IIrc SUs are commited to battle with an innitiative check of the commander. In hasty attacks, they are only commited, if the HQ has not moved in the turn. If you want to make sure they participate, you should attach them to the division.
4) It's one existing in the HQ.
The Soviets can build additional ones, the Germans can't.

Note that you can also lock the AI shuffling of SUs. It can be done either in the options menu "Lock ...." or for everey HQ seperatly. You can also spend AP to move SUs between different HQs.

The AAR's really help but they don't always give you the nitty-gritty about the mechanics of play. You may learn how one person likes to do things but not always why. I found it helpful to play each of the smaller scenarios in turn starting with Road to Minsk all the way up to Barbarossa. Play around with the attachment process & the air side. Read the manual & tutorial manual through then keep manual open & read pertinent junks at a time when questions come up. Try switching sides. All this is from a non-Grognard who learned mostly by playing. I tend not to be able to assimilate a lot of technical stuff by simply reading. I have to see things in operation. Hang in there. Have fun!

Ill throw my q in here as well:

The RR units, will they assist in fort building if they are attached to army HQs? Or even corps? Will the labour flow evenly between units digging?