Issues With Artillery Tutorial
Posted: Mon Jun 17, 2013 6:07 pm
Hi Folks-
Received the 4 SOW games for my birthday a few months ago and finally have the time to give them the attention they deserve. I'm currently working through the Gettysburg tutorials and am really enjoying the level of realism, even when it involves the Iron Brigade marching off in full view of the Secesh, turning their backs to the enemy, and leaving my right flank completely unsupported. And I'm really grateful there's only infantry, artillery, and cavalry, and not the goofy chrome units that seem to be all the rage in the Total War games. Each regiment still manages to have more of an identity than their Total War counterparts in any case-no need for Fire Zouaves with a special 'New York Minute' attack. Anyway, on to the matter at hand...
I've finished up the artillery tutorial and while it was completed successfully, I can't help feeling I'm doing something wrong. I'm pretty familiar with the tactics used in the ACW (as are all of you, I'm sure) so limbering the guns, putting them on the road, placing them on the hill, etc, is no big deal. Despite several playthroughs, though, I've never scored so much as a minor victory (just draws). My first playthrough saw a score of 94 and after that it usually runs in the 60's. I'm not moving my batteries around much (don't want to tire the boys out)-usually just once after the targets on the center and left dry up, I'll move over to the hill on the right. Some of the guns in my battery end up with scores of 0 (usually the 12 Lb howitzers) and that's whether I let the AI handle them or I TAKE CHARGE myself. I've got the high ground advantage, leader advantage, etc. The guns are positioned so they're not hitting trees with their shots and the proper ammo is being used, you can see the shots falling right in the lines of the Yanks, and in several playthroughs I've only had one casualty (lucky Union counterbattery fire). So I'm unsure why my battery doesn't seem to be hitting anything.
Now, I'm not naive enough to think 10 enemy soldiers should go flying with every shot-or for that matter you'll even get one with every shot. But when you've been through several playthroughs where a Vermont regiment closes to within 50 yards of the battery and all four guns are firing double cannister-and not a one of them gains a single point despite firing off several such loads (even though the enemy does break and run)-something seems to be wrong. So I have a few questions in mind (along with a couple from the earlier tutorials).
1) What am I doing wrong? Or is this pretty much par for the course for this tutorial?
2) I've noticed that when I click on the battery commander and then hit the button for manual targeting for the entire battery and choose a target-the guns ignore me. Every time. However, when taking control of each gun, this procedure works fine. Is it possible to command an entire battery to fire at one specific target by going through the battery commander? In bigger battles, having to micromanage each gun would be somewhat onerous.
3) Every great once in a while the Central Island box will show an 'aim over' message. Does this mean I'm overshooting the target or firing over the heads of friendlies (something that Confederate infantry absolutely HATED)?
4) It is normal for an ordnance wagon to be weaving at random all over the front lines like a drunken New York City cab driver? Maybe it's a disguised sutler wagon that's peddlin' ice cream.
5) Likewise, is it normal for your officers to trot unconcernedly right through the middle of several enemy units-with said enemy units just watching them? I've heard of Southern hospitality, but one would presume at Gettysburg it would involve a lead enema.
At any rate, I can tell I'm going to love these games. Between this and the HPS sims I'm pretty well covered and from what I've read I enjoy the friendly, mature tone of the board.
Received the 4 SOW games for my birthday a few months ago and finally have the time to give them the attention they deserve. I'm currently working through the Gettysburg tutorials and am really enjoying the level of realism, even when it involves the Iron Brigade marching off in full view of the Secesh, turning their backs to the enemy, and leaving my right flank completely unsupported. And I'm really grateful there's only infantry, artillery, and cavalry, and not the goofy chrome units that seem to be all the rage in the Total War games. Each regiment still manages to have more of an identity than their Total War counterparts in any case-no need for Fire Zouaves with a special 'New York Minute' attack. Anyway, on to the matter at hand...
I've finished up the artillery tutorial and while it was completed successfully, I can't help feeling I'm doing something wrong. I'm pretty familiar with the tactics used in the ACW (as are all of you, I'm sure) so limbering the guns, putting them on the road, placing them on the hill, etc, is no big deal. Despite several playthroughs, though, I've never scored so much as a minor victory (just draws). My first playthrough saw a score of 94 and after that it usually runs in the 60's. I'm not moving my batteries around much (don't want to tire the boys out)-usually just once after the targets on the center and left dry up, I'll move over to the hill on the right. Some of the guns in my battery end up with scores of 0 (usually the 12 Lb howitzers) and that's whether I let the AI handle them or I TAKE CHARGE myself. I've got the high ground advantage, leader advantage, etc. The guns are positioned so they're not hitting trees with their shots and the proper ammo is being used, you can see the shots falling right in the lines of the Yanks, and in several playthroughs I've only had one casualty (lucky Union counterbattery fire). So I'm unsure why my battery doesn't seem to be hitting anything.
Now, I'm not naive enough to think 10 enemy soldiers should go flying with every shot-or for that matter you'll even get one with every shot. But when you've been through several playthroughs where a Vermont regiment closes to within 50 yards of the battery and all four guns are firing double cannister-and not a one of them gains a single point despite firing off several such loads (even though the enemy does break and run)-something seems to be wrong. So I have a few questions in mind (along with a couple from the earlier tutorials).
1) What am I doing wrong? Or is this pretty much par for the course for this tutorial?
2) I've noticed that when I click on the battery commander and then hit the button for manual targeting for the entire battery and choose a target-the guns ignore me. Every time. However, when taking control of each gun, this procedure works fine. Is it possible to command an entire battery to fire at one specific target by going through the battery commander? In bigger battles, having to micromanage each gun would be somewhat onerous.
3) Every great once in a while the Central Island box will show an 'aim over' message. Does this mean I'm overshooting the target or firing over the heads of friendlies (something that Confederate infantry absolutely HATED)?
4) It is normal for an ordnance wagon to be weaving at random all over the front lines like a drunken New York City cab driver? Maybe it's a disguised sutler wagon that's peddlin' ice cream.
5) Likewise, is it normal for your officers to trot unconcernedly right through the middle of several enemy units-with said enemy units just watching them? I've heard of Southern hospitality, but one would presume at Gettysburg it would involve a lead enema.
At any rate, I can tell I'm going to love these games. Between this and the HPS sims I'm pretty well covered and from what I've read I enjoy the friendly, mature tone of the board.