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Hello everyone,

I must admit first - I have lost a game.. I was playing on Extreme, start Tech 3, Slowest game and my capitol was bombarded with nukes 4-5 times. From 350k population to 13k. My HQ could not deliver anything and I was unable to move it later (too much stuff on it). I have decided to make 2nd HQ just to support troops but It was too late - my whole army starved everywhere. Local supply could not satisfy the need.

In future update AI is nerfed according to beta log

So my question is -> is there any possibility to defend against nuclear strikes? Aircraft could intercept? Air defense could hit it? Maybe bunkers or shield can reduce the damage? Or maybe future update could give us some spies-sabotage? Do you have any idea?

Bunkers help though you'll need high level bunkers against nukes. The best thing to do is to win or get ICBM before the enemy does, there's not a lot you can do against it.

(another kinda long one...)

Muad89 wrote: Sun Sep 08, 2024 4:07 pm my whole army starved everywhere. Local supply could not satisfy the need.

Sounds like a realistic outcome, 'Twilight 2000' style.

I've never actually played an SE game that far. ;p

But dealing with ICBMs irl is typically very difficult. I believe the physics and the math; the probability of intercept, strongly favours the attacker. Thinking back to the 80s popular discourse on nuclear war, I recall something like: "in the event of a full scale strike, only about one in four incoming ICBMs could be expected to be successfully intercepted, in the most [wildly] optimistic assessments". iirc

The whole Cold War strategic paradigm , along with 20 or 30 years of modern history, was determined by this one figure: 4:1. Since interceptor missiles, or Anit-Ballistic Missiles, or ABMs, are much more difficult to design, manufacture and field than ballistic payloads, let alone to test and operate, the Cold War nations depended on an attack-saturation strategy. In other words: 'Build More Nukes, Stupid!" By the mid-80s, the CCCP and USA militaries each counted some 10,000 individual high-yield nuclear ICBMs at an ongoing *ready-to-go* status.

Hence the 'Missile Command' cabinet game

Another thing I remember: Despite all the science and engineering, no one ever had any appreciable degree of certainty about how a given Strategic Missile Defense system would work in an actual scenario.

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In video games usually and in Shadow Empire too, Nukes are modeled as very expensive-to-build single rounds. In actuality, each single ICBM is relatively cheap, and its theoretical effectiveness depends (primarily) on how many more like it there are at the ready, at any given time.

Hence M.A.D.

I hope SE has something special in store for us the late game that is to do with nukes. For now, it sounds like bunkers, more bunkers, mass starvation, and some kind of post-nuclear war survival strategy for the ground forces are what we have to play with.

Its interesting, Maud, that your army did as well as it did, and that it sounds like reforming your SHQ faster could have saved the game.

I think the Secret Service Council should have an expansion. Both to spy and sabotage key technology of enemies. Currently you have almost no information if something is coming for you - and building bunkers post-strike.. it doesnt work xD

Also, I do not know how precise the first ICBMs are - in game terms I see it should miss a target sometimes - adjacent hex maybe. This would save my life but from the other hand you can't miss a city.

And of course we wait for politics expansion

A "Missile Command" Council would be nice - I will add it to a list of ideas (hope Vic will look at it somewhen). Still waiting for some SOF ideas

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In my game I should make 2nd HD faster - I was already fighting on 2 fronts. However, the 2nd front was smaller and It did not take some much of my logistics. In late game it is hard to manage logistics I you are attacking. I had 10 level train in Capitol and I made additional train+truck in adjacent hex (it doesn't work like you think..). I could only deliver food, fuel and some ammo - no reinforces.. My army was all veterans because enemy was fighting with recruits in mass. The problem on the front was I could not kill them all - my enemy had 4 clonning facilities and his capitol had 2 Mln people...

Late game requires Enforcement - it give +50% logistics. I did not have it