Random Battle Balance

[wulfir]

Originally Posted by Ravindau

In my experience the balance in non-ME Random Battles with all-default settings (100 %/XXX) is pretty much off.

Player experience is probably the most important factor.

What map size and battle points are you using?

[Ravindau]

Originally Posted by wulfir

Player experience is probably the most important factor.

What map size and battle points are you using?

I am not very experienced with SPWW2, but I am not arguing that the game is too hard, period. I am arguing that defending is relatively hard and attacking way too easy.

Latest game: German Assault against Ancac Defence, May 1941 (Tobruk). 2000 vs. XXX pts (740, I think), 30x30 map.

Shotgun V-hexes, 20% AI advantage. (Contrary to what the manual says, AI extra pts are also given in quick battles, not just campaigns.)

This means, as the Germans I was actually at 2000 vs. 890 or so, but still the Aussies didn´t stand a chance.

The game gave me 40 turns to achieve my objectives, all the time in the world, no need to hurry.

AI defended well, did a good job with its meagre points, but to no avail. It just didn´t have enough to work with.

I attritted the poor Aussies away in 23 turns, they had no choice but to surrender. Final tally was 4000 : 300 or so. But I didn´t defeat Ancac, their points allotment did it.

[Ts4EVER]

2000 points on a 30 x 30 map? (desert map at that, I am guessing?) That doesn't seem right tbh.

[Ravindau]

Originally Posted by Ts4EVER

2000 points on a 30 x 30 map? (desert map at that, I am guessing?) That doesn't seem right tbh.

Tobruk is rather difficult terrain, rough and hilly.

A larger map would help the attack even more -defeat the puny defenders in detail.

No, I think 1.5x1.5 km is *just* right if you consider that the Australian defenders have only 2 Coys or so.

[scorpio_rocks]

Originally Posted by Ravindau

20% AI advantage.

Just a quick check: you do mean 120% and you aren't actually setting it to 20%?

[DRG]

Originally Posted by scorpio_rocks

Just a quick check: you do mean 120% and you aren't actually setting it to 20%?

Yeah there is something VERY SERIOUSLY wrong with the info given here as described

A normal P1 Assault with 2000 points vs a P2 defend set to XXX will give the dug in defender a HQ plus 666-670 points.....that's with "AI advantage" set to 100%

*IF* "AI advantage" is set to 20% as claimed the AI ANZAC defender would only get a HQ and 94 points ( which would go a long way to explain why it was easy to beat )

IF that 20% was a mistype and 120% is correct there is still a problem as 120% only gives 859-863 give or take a point or two ( 813 or so plus the HQ ) not 890 and that held true over a half dozen tests

AND..... I would like to know where in the manual it says AI advantage only interacts with campaigns

Don

[Ravindau]

Originally Posted by scorpio_rocks

Just a quick check: you do mean 120% and you aren't actually setting it to 20%?

Yes, *definitely* 120%, and the AI *got* close to 1.000 pts, but that was not nearly enough against my 2.000.

BUT my point is not that I am pretending I am such a great attack player. I would have done nearly as badly had I played Ancac against the force I bought for Germany.


In fact, defending against the AI, it depends upon what the AI buys.

Defending against tanks is easy, they die like flies. It´s defending against an infantry horde with artillery support which is near impossible. In other words, WWI generals were right, after all.

[DRG]

You may indeed have found a bug........we'll look into it......

[DRG]

NO BUG from the info you described but one was found unrelated to the issue you raised.

The critical item you mentioned was in your first line in post 4 "I am not very experienced with SPWW2"....... note others have said it's their experience the problem is the other way round......everyone is different and it's impossible to build a game that will satisfy the rookie player and the very experiences one at the same time.

THAT is why there are a host of preferences to adjust to suit your style of play....... if you don't like the points allotted then set up preferences to give you what you want... right now with 10 games under your belt you think the attacker gets too many points the games are too long. If you think the proportions should be 2:1/3:2 then simply change them with proference......If P1 ( you defending ) gets 2000 points and you want P2 to attack with 3:2 then set up preferences so that P2 is given 3000 points .....and if you think the games are too long you can adjust the game length at the start as well......it can all be taylored to fit individual taste but we are not re-ordering a game structure that has worked for decades.

Don

[Mobhack]

30x30 is a bit small, but would do for a company or 2 if it is a "leg" battle. For a mechanised force it is a bit of a postage stamp really. It may do for a particular scenario that focusses on a small area of a city map (like the tractor factory in Stalingrad) perhaps.

You could increase battlefield depth a bit if the enemy is expected to use AFV, and also to allow for an artillery park to be deployed that's outside of HMG range of the defenders.

I use an 80x80 map size for battalion-sized core forces (generally 3 rifle coy, 1 tank coy) when I am using leg infantry supported by tanks. That gives a large enough space for manoeuvre without too long a trudge for the infantry, but if it were a snow battlefield or an impenetrable jungle I may want to reduce width to say 60 hexes or so.

I know that Don likes to play games on postage stamp maps, but that's not my particular preference. But the point of our version of the game is to provide the end user with choice. At the end of it all then it is down to personal preference, there is not really one "right way".