Matrix Games Forums

Can it be done? I've been playing France in the campaign game, fighting battle after battle...nevermind keeping my whining frogs happy with luxury items and spice (What is this, Dune!?!...just kidding)

Anyway after beating Austria into surrender then kicking some British tail, I'm beset by an ever regenerating Russian army. I never seem to have any money to build more units despite the fact that my citizens have thought of renaming France "Taxachussetts"...and I have tons of severely depleted divisions.

HELP!!!

Thanx in advance to my overdramatic plea

Stick a depot in a province with your troops. In the next turn you'll see your units get some replacements.

Depleted units that are in supply should automatically be reinforced from your Draft Pool. Plop a Depot down near your depleted armies and see if that helps bring them up to strength.

As for building more units...well, that depends on having a healthy econ, something which I have yet to be able to master consistantly. But the big things you need to bolster the army on the cheap is Labor, some Iron, and about 50 cash. That should get you an Infantry Division in a few turns. Build up those resources and keep pumping out some Infantry Divisions. Add them to your Corps, and then build armies from your Corps.

If you want Cav or Arty, you'll have to adjust your econ so you are getting lots of Horse or Iron (and Textiles if you want the specialist troop-types).

Hope it helps!

Major help, Guys! I had a theory that depots might be the trick, but was so busy getting flogged and dealing with a less than happy citizenry and advisors every turn that I really didn't formulate a way of checking anything out. Thanks!

Also need to make sure you have enough money to pay for the draft pool costs: if this isn't paid then reinforcements aren't issued. (This could be a bigger message in the events report.)

Um, guys - the presence of a depot will raise these units in the priority list for receiving reinforcements, not make it possible at all.

For example: with all my unit FULL except for the army taking foraging losses in enemy territory without a depot, ALL my reinforcements went into that army.

ORIGINAL: Ralegh

Um, guys - the presence of a depot will raise these units in the priority list for receiving reinforcements, not make it possible at all.

For example: with all my unit FULL except for the army taking foraging losses in enemy territory without a depot, ALL my reinforcements went into that army.

Odd...

In the supply button at the bottom of the map screen that pops up, I never see replacement go into a unit unless that unit is with a depot or adjacent to one.

Add into that fact that my units remain at low strength until I put a depot in the same province with them or adjacent to them and something seems off.

Either I am misunderstanding what's going on or it isn't working as intended.

ORIGINAL: Reiryc

ORIGINAL: Ralegh

Um, guys - the presence of a depot will raise these units in the priority list for receiving reinforcements, not make it possible at all.

For example: with all my unit FULL except for the army taking foraging losses in enemy territory without a depot, ALL my reinforcements went into that army.

Odd...

In the supply button at the bottom of the map screen that pops up, I never see replacement go into a unit unless that unit is with a depot or adjacent to one.

Add into that fact that my units remain at low strength until I put a depot in the same province with them or adjacent to them and something seems off.

Either I am misunderstanding what's going on or it isn't working as intended.

I'm in the same boat. I never see any divisions receive any automatic replacements, and I've not been using depots. I assumed that the answer given here was correct and that adding a depot would enable that function, but now Ralegh says that's not the way it works. [&:]

ORIGINAL: Reg Pither

I'm in the same boat. I never see any divisions receive any automatic replacements, and I've not been using depots. I assumed that the answer given here was correct and that adding a depot would enable that function, but now Ralegh says that's not the way it works. [&:]

The only way I've seen it work is with depots... otherwise I've never seen my units recover men either in report form or by inspecting the units in the field.

Agree. I have units that forage with no losses and no nearby depot. They NEVER receive any replacements. I believe this is likely a bug as that is different than the behavior described in the manual (section 8.1.6 page 62).

I have seen this behavior as well. No depot = no replacements. This must be a bug if the intent of the design is otherwise.

The only way I've seen it work is with depots... otherwise I've never seen my units recover men either in report form or by inspecting the units in the field.

I concur. In addition, I have already notified Ralegh that there is a bug with Turkey where no matter what the supply setting on the army/corps/div is, if there is a depot in the area it will buy supply and not forage--there is no stopping it. I don't know whether it applies to other nations, as I only played France and Turkey and never noticed it with France.

The manual states: "divisions in home territory receive the largest disbursement of reinforcements" with no specifics on supply status. But it later goes on to say that "divisions outside of home territory and out of supply receive only a minimal amount of reinforcements" so clearly the intent was to reinforce unsupplied units. The meaning one would normally infer is that divisions in home territory receive full replacements regardless of supply status but at a minimum one should be able to assume that unsupplied units at home will receive reinforced no worse than those in similar circumstances away. I have to assume that receiving none at all is a bug.

Grrr. Thats the problems with these complex games - something gets tweaked, and things that used to work stop working! I know it used to work the way I described - and I certainly believe you all. Eric will no doubt get it in the patch.

ORIGINAL: Ralegh

Grrr. Thats the problems with these complex games - something gets tweaked, and things that used to work stop working! I know it used to work the way I described - and I certainly believe you all. Eric will no doubt get it in the patch.

To be honest, I'd hate to see it changed to the way it is in the manual.

Having to protect your supply lines to ensure you get replacements to the front through a line of depots adds to the depth of strategic decision making. It means that you will have to protect that supply line, especially against a human opponent when they can use the avoid battles selection and have a 50% chance of getting through the province without being engaged.

Please change it to the way its described in the manaul.

To say that replacements only go to a depot then stop doesn't make any sense. Are feet for marching only issued when they reach their unit? Yes, replacements should get more efficient and numerous if you are in your home country, a bit less so if you are out of country but near a depot, and even less numerous if you are not near a depot. But there should still be some replacements reaching units that are out in the field. From what I read of the Russian campaign, French replacements were marching behind the army, following the line of depots. But I don't believe they just stopped at the last depot (Smolensk I believe). I'd think Napoleon got some replacements after Borodino, and he didn't have to retreat to Smolensk to get them. He'd have gotten more if he'd retreated back towards his depot, but I'd think the replacements were marching towards him anyways.

If its done right, you shouldn't see your divisions magically refilled far from a depot. But you should see some replacements getting out there.

I'm ok with unsupplied units getting a few replacements but they should get far fewer than supplied units, whether in national territory or enemy territory. Ideally, there should be a random determination as to whether they get any or maybe a few.

I'm ok with unsupplied units getting a few replacements but they should get far fewer than supplied units, whether in national territory or enemy territory. Ideally, there should be a random determination as to whether they get any or maybe a few.

Mostly agree...after the war is over and I move groups back to the home country, getting reinforced should be much easier whether there is a depot or no. Unsupplied and far from home should be difficult but not impossible.

Well, I don't like much this system for refills . I 'd much like to just have draftees accumulate in cities and be manually sent where I need them, taking attrition losses if applicable, and using depots as intermediate waypoints, so I could myself reinforce the units I want to, rather than relying on a seemingly random or hard to understand refill algorithm...
My 0.02 €