‘Cause that’s what FRIDAYS are made of

[Sir Slash]

Ladders Kill!!! You might as well be climbing up a crocodile with C4 strapped to it.  :hide:

[JasonPratt]

Ladders don't kill people.

Sufficiently high impact vectors kill people.

[Gusington]

My work is done here.

*falls off ladder*

[JasonPratt]

I ended up spending a GENUINELY STUPID amount of time playing Ultimate General Civil War yesterday, messing with various campaign builds. I was able to win victories at the first Grand Battle, 1st Bull Run (aka 1st Manassas), with each of my three builds.

The first build is a joke: how close can I get to developing an "artillery only" group in the campaign game? (Of course, setups for custom battles can be arty-only easily.) This turns out to be strictly limited by the number of available cannons in various types -- completely aside from the feasibility of doing so! -- and there just aren't enough guns in during the 'first' campaign to make even a technical stab at it. Nevertheless, I endeavored to persevere, and despite losing most of my guns during the second fight, I was able to bring one full 24 gun battery and something like a 12-gun battery (of better guns) to 1st Bull Run, where sitting on the ridge off to the flank of the breastworks guarding the exit of the notorious stone bridge, they just MELTED Unionists trying to cross the bridge or setting up to take shots at my short-brigade (good veterans and tricked out with Miss-41 rifles). The computer at one point got desperate and ran a cav brigade across the bridge in front of my defensive line in order to charge my guns -- which worked! The good howitzers got annihilated. (I restarted the fight several times testing various theories. ;)  But I kept that in mind for later in case I ever needed some work done by guest cav.)

Going into the setup fights for Shiloh (aka the 1842 Western Campaign), I'm bringing a whole "division" of four gun batteries (not really a division of course), none of them full up I think, some at the minimum of 4 (but that 4-gun battery uses the best in the game by my stat calcs), plus two batteries topped off in my first division; and then 3 pumped up infantry brigades (two with Lorenzes, the other with Miss-41s), plus if I recall correctly a full skirmisher regiment of 500 with the best skirm guns (stat-wise) in the game. (Which also happen to be the second cheapest skirmish guns! But their damage-output-on-target is the most cost effective; and there aren't enough more costly guns with the better damfirhit stats to decently flesh out a skirmisher unit.) They're bringing a freakishly silly amount of supplies, so I'll probably never come close to needing an ammo cart nearby!


Second are the Mass Volunteers, based on the idea of getting as many troops as possible to the fight with the best equipment, leaders, supplies, and as many vets, as I feasibly can -- but numbers take precedence. For the 1st Bull Run fight I had to borrow some artillery, but we still came through okay, thanks to good defensive play: rotating out brigades on the wall, and keeping the others ready to run down the hill to help concentrate fire defense when necessary. Going into the Western Campaign, I'm able to bring all 10 allowed brigades (across three divisions) topped off with 1500 men (mostly, one brigade is a little short, but not much and I gave them Lorenzes), with mostly decent commanders, and with mostly good equipment (though I've got two trash brigades as my 3rd Division, using Springfield 41s, about the 3rd worst gun in the game.)


Third are the Volunteer vets, based on the idea of bringing as many quality troops as possible: the best weapons available, the most veterans possible, the best leaders, and decent supply (I try to keep $1000 per group for supplies, at least). Numbers of troops on the field are still important, although spread out in groups (up to 10 theoretically for the Western Campaign), so I don't just made a short company carrying 40 buffalo rifles as one of my groups! This crew did the most damage in my 1st Bull Run fight (albeit borrowing arty and cavalry again from reinforcements), actually assaulting BACK ACROSS THE STONE BRIDGE toward the end of the fight, running the remnants of the Union off the map! To be fair, this meant they took more casualties than the other two builds, and had I played more conservatively I still would have won without that happening -- possibly saving enough replacement cash, relatively, to afford another group or two for the Western.

Going into the Western Campaign, I'm bringing 8 of my theoretical 10 maximum -- six infantry brigades and two skirmish regiments -- but they're all topped off at full strength (aside from the second skirmisher) with the best commanders and the most cost-effective available gear. (I could only find enough good skirmish guns for a half-strength second skirmisher, more or less.)

I have to admit, I'm not good at using skirmishers, whether dedicated regiments or spawned off as part of a brigade (mainly to guard my rear or flanks of course). They require a lot of micro, which I'm usually too busy to bother with. (And the computer seems to know when I'm off looking over the map somewhere else...! -- which of course it does, and might be passing information back to the AI forces!) Cav is the same way, but at least they're faster for getting out of trouble: I can run a cav company or two all around the map screwing with the enemy.  >:D

But I figure if I can practice with them, I'll learn better; and I just didn't have the cash remaining to kit out another full brigade with good weapons compared to using mostly captured ones for this purpose.  :arr:

[CJReich46]

Update on my Diablo game - Roisin  The Rogue.

Yesterday after getting my ass handed to me and (after multiple reloads) I took a more cautious hit, run, hit, and then back to town for more potions - I managed to clear level 15. So I thought, "Why not take on the Archbishop Lazarus? The Unholy Altar is opened." So I decided to give it a shot.

After three attempts. The Archbishop Lazarus is dead. Lord Diablo awaits.

[Sir Slash]

Sounds like fun Reich. Get that bad boy! Diablo's no match for a Grog.

[JasonPratt]

Not comparable to setting up on Diablo, but all three of my Confederate Corps-builds are proceeding on in the 1862 Western Campaign -- and the Arty Corps build has already won pretty handily at defending the Corinth supply junction!

Not that I have a dedicated artillery-only corps yet, but that could be easily coming soon (and is probably the best I'll be able to manage for my 'artillery only campaign' challenge). Next up will be Shiloh (only an hour and a half drive south from where I'm sitting), and the game is opening up a quantum leap from 10 groups (for the first two 1862 fights) to 20 groups. I'll need that second Corps (which means I'll properly have an Army, too).

The Mass Vols and the Vet Vols are doing okay, too, although I'm worried that I'm hitting a limit to what I can do with the Veteran (high quality) build. Still, I expected that build to get this far. I'm surprised the Arty Vols have gotten to Shiloh.

[Gusington]

I had to stop playing Resident Evil 7 for now...it got too gross and disturbing. Not sure what to play next...need a breather for a few days, I think.

[Sir Slash]

Spring Break!  :D

[Gusington]

You are Florida Man, aren't you...

[JasonPratt]

THE SABOTEUR!

It's like going on spring break in Paris, except you're also dynamiting Nazis.

[Gusington]

Not ready for that yet. Still coming off a winter full of WWII gaming.

[Sir Slash]

Well there's always that creepy, 'showering with Daddy' game or, for a reset, how about growing some corn in Farm Simulator?  :dreamer:  Mmmm.... corn.

My recent trip to the past with Neverwinter Nights 2 was a great way to pass some time while re-tooling my brain to jump back to today's titles. So, maybe something retro?

[Gusington]

I may try Vampyr again. It was a damned near impossible boss battle that stopped me the first time, but since emerging from that really tough Resident Evil 7 chainsaw duel victorious, I may be ready to rip Vampyr a new one too. Typical Guslike behavior though to finally beat a boss in a game and then grow exhausted with it, unwilling to go on :/

Maybe Vampyr, a bit of Hellblade and a dash of TW Warhammer II and I'll be ready to go whole hog into Thrones of Britannia.