hesitant to play

[gwgardner]

Hesitant to invest the time to play, that is. Kind of dumb, I know. I bought the game and have been reading the rules and playing around with the interface for two weeks, reading forums, etc. Every time I think I'll start a game, I get bogged down trying to figure out some new element of the game, like now I'm learning the economics/development part.

Then I read all these threads about the detailed battle system being broken or being wildly dependent on luck.

So what's the deal, could you who have played the game write here about the game overall, what's great about it? Is there anything, like detailed battle, that scuttles the whole game? Etc.

Thanks.

[Treefrog]

I've been playing a few months now and see nothing that totally compromises the game as you ask.

An oft repeated (and I think good) suggestion is to start simple with Sweden and stumble forward. Sweden is small enough that you it is easier to see how the game works. If you're ignoring something pretty soon that should be obvious (i.e. no food for population, no money, labor or textiles to create units, etc.) and you can figure out what to do pretty easily.

Your money, your time, just enjoy.

Good luck.

[Twotribes]

Detailedbatttle isnt broken, it can set up your larger armies weirdly. But that is recoverable if you realize it and act on it.

Word of advice though, when it spreads you out it does it by Corps and also by units assigned to Army but not a corps.

I mean if you have say 2 Corps assigned to your army with 6 or 7 Divisions each and another 4 or 5 divisions just assigned to the corps. It can place those in 3 groups spread across the map. The groups will be by Corps ( 2 areas) and by unassigned in the 3rd area. So dont make it a habit to only have ( for example) artillery unassigned at Army level. Keep things grouped in a combined arms way. Personal favorite is 3 infantry , 2 cavalry, 1 Artillery, changing to 4 infantry if corps will hold 7 units. Then 2 infantry 2 artillery and the rest cavalry assigned directly to army.

[Grand_Armee]

Although the setup for detailed battle may seem weird, it's less trouble than you might think. And while it does give the AI sometimes a chance to catch an artillery unit in the open on it's first move, it's still no big deal.

Once you get tired of the AI...which you will because no AI will be as crafty or cautious...or just plain smart as a human...you can play humans online. It's great fun.

Yes, there are still bugs, but they are being worked on. There's no point in not diving into this game. You learn a lot more by doing than trying to wade through the pondrous manual.

[gwgardner]

Alright. You all convinced me. I'll get started with Sweden. Good to know I didn't waste my money. Thanks for the replies.