SPWW2 handicaps vs AI

[RightDeve]

I think we can all agree that Z fire is indeed useful for doing "recon by fire" or firing on suspected enemy locations before it's fully identified. Which begs the question: is it really necessary for the Z fire to be able to go past obstacles? Recon by fire usually happens when you have direct LOS to those "suspected locations." I can accept if it's just an obstruction of LOS, like smoke. But going past building blocks and forests?

In a utopian world, in which one can snap a finger and everything happens, here's my suggestion:

(1). Z fire can only happen when the unit has direct LOS to the target hex, which means it's very similar to directed/targeted fire. This way, a unit that does Z firing is not immune from being Op-fired by enemy units. Exception to this rule would be when there's a smokescreen, or technically, non-terrain obstruction of LOS. I'm pretty confident everyone on both sides can agree on this.

(2). Z fire consumes A LOT of Movement Point, thus reducing shot count & movement ability, as Andy previously suggested. Although some would not agree to this.

But then again, Andy is spot on in saying that Z fire is human-only feature... well, what can I say about it...

Originally Posted by gila

Almost always z-fire from from small arms fire results in suppression sometimes maybe retreat if pressed enough very rarely a causality thats b/c guys will lay low.
With aty no matter if your flat on the ground if a round hits close you may or not have causality or two.

Yes that is true, most of the time if the volume of fire is high enough, Retreat status is very common. Which is worse than suffering casualty: with one or two wounded/killed soldiers, a unit may still retain its effectiveness as a whole, but when a unit is flagged as "Retreating", it is practically useless as a whole unit. Now, some may say, "Retreating" is not permanent while casualty is permanent; I'd say, due to the nature of Z fire being ubiquitous and instantaneous, that "Retreat" status may as well become a permanent status.