Waypoints?

[jeffreysutro@jeffreysutro.com]

I have recently been playing CLGA 1805/1809 and have been enjoying it very much. I have noticed, however, that when I send an order to a corps or division the computer picks the route and I don't seem to able to modify it. Does anyone know if there is some type of waypoint feature whereby I can specify the route I want the unit to follow? If not, I think that would be a useful feature to add to the next edition. Also, I think that the inteligence report (which gives a report from your army's "spys" as to where they think the enemy troops are located and in what strength) could be easier to use. As it is now I have been writing down all the information (a list of a dozen or so towns and estimated numbers of troops) and then closing the report so that I can zoom around the map to each town. This is admitedly a minor inconvienience (and the information doesn't seem all that useful in any case), but an easier to use system would be nice. Thank you for any help you can give me.

All My Best,

Jeff Sutro

[EricLarsen]

Jeff,
Long-distance movements can be a problem when the computer picks the route and there may be several possible ones to choose from. One thing I always do in a case like that is to test that movement out in no FOW to actually watch the units move turn by turn to see the exact movement path they will take.

If the movement path is not what I want then I give the formation HQ a shorter movement path and I also send an additional order, to be enacted after completing the first order, that completes the movement to where I want those units to go along the path I desire. I find that it is best to only give one additional order at a time, and to wait until I see that formation actioning it's last orders I sent before sending another additional order as I have seen that with more than two additional orders in the queue the program may not execute them in the order you desire.

Using additional orders to establish "waypoints" is an easy process and is a way to ensure units take the movement path you want them to.

Take the intelligence reports with a grain of salt. First off most of those reported enemy sightings tend to be false, especially in Full Fog of War. I only use them occasionally as it is more reliable to find the enemy with cavalry recon. The Full Fog of War is the best feature of the game and it's a lot of fun trying to figure out where the enemy is and where to bring him to battle.
Eric

[jeffreysutro@jeffreysutro.com]

Eric:

Thank you for your advice. I will try your technique of using two shorter sequential movement orders rather than one longer movement. One of the enjoyable features of the game (as well as one of the most frustrating) is not knowing for sure how a unit will respond to your orders, so the results should be interesting. Full fog of war also sounds interesting too, and I'll be sure to give it a try.

All My Best,

Jeff Sutro

[Spartan07]

The manual seems to suggest that the chosen route should be highlighted by arrows. This would be nice but I dont see it happening.

[Caranorn]

The chosen route is indeed highlighted right after you have clicked on your objective. This highlighting will disapear once you click on anything else (like assigning a retreat point).

For the rest, I agree with the original poster's request for a simpler system to use waypoints (as even at a short distance some odd paths can be chosen (like an Austrian retreat from Ulm along the north bank of the Daube in the 1805 scenarios)). Representation of the inteligence report on the map would be nice as well (and more important then the waypoints, as you can indeed use multiple orders to work around that problem for long distance movement). Possibly a new unit icon (bearing a simple ?) could be created which when clicked on provides the estimated number of enemy troops in that location. That way you could visuallise the situation better.

Marc aka Caran...

[MarkT]

This MAY very... in different FOW settings.

[Caranorn]

True, I thought of the different FoW settings after my post. I only played with the enemy settings so far and will go for complete once I get the hang of the system[:)]

Marc aka Caran...

[Didz]

In practice marching orders were very specific about the route and order of march. Dictating which towns etc were to be reached by which time and where each division was to be deployed within the order of march. It would make sense to be able to do the same when giving orders to your units in the game.