Whats the combat like?

[Spectarofdeath]

I was a huge fan of Koei's PTO series and I did some searching and found this game, I just have a few questions that weren't really awnsered for me really well....1. What is the combat like? 2. Do you get to decide what you want for your fleets (basically do you control production)? Thanks

[aletoledo]

no you don't get control over production of ships, except as japanese you can decide to halt or accelerate any of your ships. you might be wondering why you don't get to decide, well thats because they put every historical ship into the game. therefore there is no need to decide what to build, you get them all!

combat is basically dice rolls, but you do get to see animations representing combat, but you don't get any direct control of the ships. the most influence you can have over combat is chossing the make-up of your task forces, choosing the mission type and then picking the leader for them. there are a lot of other things that go into getting good results in combat (such as supplies and morale), so there is a lot behind getting good results.

overall this is a huge game, its not a game to be played in a few days or weeks, but rather you play it over months and years (real time that is).

[Mifune]

This is a much bigger game than the Koei PTO series. Of which I have not played since PTO2 (both PC and SNES). I do miss the monthly strategic meetings and the ability to choose specific upgrades for ships from that series. But you are dealing with a much bigger beast with WitP, the scale and detail of WitP is incredible, Romance of the 3 Kingdoms does not even compare(which would be the closest Koei has to offer). Even with that said WitP has grown in leaps and bounds since its introduction. Besides combat fleets you have to work with convoys as well. You are in control of thousands of ships not just a couple of hundred. Also you are dealing with accuracy over play balance. Another thing to bear in mind, I am sure that you noticed as you went through this forum the devoted rabid fanbase of this game.

[Spectarofdeath]

When you say you get them all, you mean they are just built automatically according to how they were built historically? So you don't get to decide that you just want to have a huge battleship fleet rather then carriers or that kind of decision?

[dtravel]

ORIGINAL: Spectarofdeath

When you say you get them all, you mean they are just built automatically according to how they were built historically? So you don't get to decide that you just want to have a huge battleship fleet rather then carriers or that kind of decision?

Correct. You get what the real world combatants got when they got it. This is not an "empire" game where you are the leader of the nation, directing R&D and production. This is a "wargame" where you are a theatre commander working with what you are given.

[dtravel]

Oh, and to answer your question about what combat is like it basically consists of you "tasking" your units. 
 
You assign ships to Task Forces (TFs) that are given a mission such as Bombardment, Transport, ASW, etc. and a target or destination.  The TF will then go off and attempt to accomplish that mission basically on its own, you do not have detailed control.  Ship vs. ship combat is all handled by the program with no input from the player.  (But you get to watch a pretty little animation.)
 
Air units are squadrons and wings/groups.  You move them to the base you want them at and then give them a mission assignment, telling them to attack airfields, ports, ships or ground units (if bombers) or concentrate on defensive CAP, escorting friendly bombers or seeking out enemy fighters (if fighters).  Giving them a specific target is optional.  They will then fly missions on their own, deal with defending enemy fighters, getting shot at by flak and using their bombs or torpedoes with no input from the player.  (But you get to watch a pretty little animation.)
 
Ground units (aka Land Combat Units aka LCUs) are basically regiments, brigades and divisions.  They can be carried by ships or march overland to the destination you assign.  If there are enemy units in the same hex you can take up a defensive stance or attack at one of three levels of intensity.  Once those orders are given they will then fight with no input from the player.  (But you get to watch a pretty little animation.)
 
However, the biggest thing to keep in mind is that the emphasis of the game actually isn't on combat (strange as that sounds).  The player's biggest concerns are on Operations.  You need to keep your units supplied, provide aircraft mechanics to keep your planes flying and build up bases to support your forces.  The battles afterwards are just interesting footnotes.  [;)]  Hope that enlightens you.

[pasternakski]

ORIGINAL: Spectarofdeath

I was a huge fan of Koei's PTO series ...

You won't like this game.

[Grotius]

I am only vaguely familiar with Koei's game, but my understanding is that PTO featured some 40-odd bases around the Pacific.  Well, War in the Pacific has hundreds of bases.  For example, WITP models not just Pearl Harbor but also bases at Lihue, Kona, and Lahaina (the other 3 big Hawaiian islands).  WITP has a gargantuan map with hexes 60-miles across; it stretches from San Diego to Karachi.  WITP features every ship in the theater, not just carriers, cruisers and battleships but also every individual destroyer, tanker, oiler, auxiliary, gunboat, submarine.  The game models every significant aircraft squadron, down to the level of individual pilots and planes.  In WiTP, you control merchant shipping, and it's up to you to move oil, resource, supply and fuel (four different types of cargo) around the world, unless you make the mistake of assigning this important duty to the AI.  You set altitude for aircraft on various missions (combat air patrol or CAP, bombing, escort, ground attack, city attack, naval-target attack, etc).  You assign ships to Task Forces, and you assign leaders to those TFs.  Each turn represents one day of real time, and it takes a minimum of 20 minutes to do a routine turn -- and several hours to set up the first turn.

Yes, you have some control over production, especially as the Japanese player, but within certain boundaries.  You won't have the option to build 20 new carriers as Japan, but you can accelerate historical ones.  With aircraft, you can expand factories producing certain engines and airframes in order to produce more of a particular aircraft, and you can conduct research to slightly speed the appearance of various models.  All of this requires a great deal of attention to detail, and it's pretty confusing at first, but people on this forum are great about answering questions.  And there are handy tools at third-party sites like Spooky's WITP website.

Anyway, this is a traditional, detailed, grognard's wargame.  It's not for everyone.  If you prefer a lighter, faster-moving game, this is not for you.  Even against the computer, a full campaign game of WITP will take months.  In play by e-mail (PBEM) games, we're talking years.  The game has its share of flaws, although at least the major bugs have at last been ironed out.  For a serious treatment of the Pacific War, this is the PC game to have.  But there's no sense in having if it if it's not your cup of tea.

[Mifune]

Spectarofdeath, did we answer your questions or scared you off?

[dtravel]

*blames Pasternakski for scaring him off*

[pasternakski]

ORIGINAL: dtravel

*blames Pasternakski for scaring him off*

 

[Knavey]

ORIGINAL: pasternakski

ORIGINAL: Spectarofdeath

I was a huge fan of Koei's PTO series ...

You won't like this game.

Not necessarily true...I enjoyed PTO and I enjoy WitP.

[Naskra]

And the land combat is an appallingly crude siege system -- bring more stuff and win.
Skill can only alter the tempo.

[Mifune]

This general would scare me more

[demonterico]

I loved PTO and I really love WitP, but thats not to say they are simular.  An amazing thing about WitP is how it highlites the power of the PC.  Here I am sitting at my desk singlehandedly running half of WWII in minute detail.  A job that required hundreds of senior officers and staffs the size of regiments.  On the allied side side you'll be sitting at the desks of Halsey, MacArthur, Mountbatten, and all the other allied CinCs in the PTO.  WitP is a bean counters dream.   

[Tanaka]

ORIGINAL: pasternakski

ORIGINAL: Spectarofdeath

I was a huge fan of Koei's PTO series ...

You won't like this game.

 
Not true! Koei's PTO series started it all for me! WITP was the answer to my PTO dreams!!!