A few suggestions
Posted: Tue Sep 01, 2020 11:39 am
First-off, I have to say that Unity of Command II is an inspired wargame, deftly dealing with complex operational issues. Awesome work by the Devs, especially considering they have a fraction of the resources of the big firms.
I have some suggestions to improve what really does feel like something close to WW2 gaming perfection (although I realise that the Devs are busy on the expansion, so to the extent any are considered worth taking up it may be a while):
1. Tank suppression. Tanks of the era were fragile, with panzer units often reporting sharp reductions in combat-ready tank strength due to breakdowns after a matter of a few days' combat. Equally, tank units had mechanics that could, with adequate supplies of spare parts and the like, bring those tanks back to effectiveness in a matter of days. This could be reflected in game terms with a independent risk of suppression for some of the tank and armoured AT units whenever they are used in attack, particularly some of the underpowered heavy tanks, reflecting a temporary loss of strength until refitting could occur. This suppression risk would occur independently of how one-sided the attack was. At the same time, this would mean that some heavy tanks that have been placed in the front of the loss queue, such as the Konigstiger, could be pushed slightly further back. That is, I think the Konigstiger is in slot 1 to reflect its breakdown risk, but being in slot 1 also means that it is likely to be killed rather than just suppressed. Given how well-protected the Konigstiger is (I believe that there are no documented cases of a 17-pounder successfully penetrating the Konigstiger's frontal armour), this is a bit harsh.
2. Some armoured AT seem too close to the front of the loss queue on attack. It becomes especially difficult to use Stug- and Jagdtiger-equipped units in an attack, since the armour shift provided by these units isn't effective. The Germans didn't use self-propelled guns as the tip of the spear in assaults, so they shouldn't really be in slot 1 on attack. (True, there was a ex-panzerjaeger unit that was given Elefants at Kursk and, overestimating their protection, they drove them straight at the Russians and suffered disastrous losses, but on the whole the comment stands.)
3. Engineers are rightly in slot 1 when their abilities are being used. But if their abilities aren't being used then the risk of loss becomes too high, and it feels like attaching engineers becomes an expensive risk should a bad combat result come about. If attacking an unfortified unit with no amphibious assault required, the engineers should drop to slot 3 or so.
4. Specialists have been given fairly strong powers in the recent upgrades. That leaves their relative usefulness rather too high compared to engineers for my liking, but one aspect that stands out is their position in the loss queue. If Rangers are with a unit such that the unit avoids both entrenchment and amphibious penalties, the Rangers shouldn't also be in loss position 3 by inspiring the regular GI's to do great things and take the losses in front of the Rangers. I suggest that all specialists should be no lower than loss position 2 on attack.
5. AI reinforcements can be permanently blocked by sitting on their entry hex, allowing for some cheesy tactics. To reduce this effect, the AI should be able to bring the units at a wider range of entry points a turn after the first, and maybe wider still the turn after, and also to be allowed to enter a player-controlled entry hex as long as that hex that isn't physically occupied by a player unit.
6. Probably the most complex fix, but also the most frustrating: If a player unit disappears from the game, or is to be rebuilt, the temptation is to strip the unit as far as possible. (True, if you don't like the cheese, don't eat it, but still the temptation is there...) To avoid this, the unit should disappear from the game along with all steps and specialists that a player has stripped from the unit. Equally, if the disappearing unit has been buffed with extra specialists, those extra specialists should not disappear with the unit, as otherwise even a player that doesn't want to be cheesy is penalised. The same goes for paratroopers that have had specialists added, but which are withdrawn for a jump - the specialists should go back to the pool.
Thanks again for a superb game.
Rob
I have some suggestions to improve what really does feel like something close to WW2 gaming perfection (although I realise that the Devs are busy on the expansion, so to the extent any are considered worth taking up it may be a while):
1. Tank suppression. Tanks of the era were fragile, with panzer units often reporting sharp reductions in combat-ready tank strength due to breakdowns after a matter of a few days' combat. Equally, tank units had mechanics that could, with adequate supplies of spare parts and the like, bring those tanks back to effectiveness in a matter of days. This could be reflected in game terms with a independent risk of suppression for some of the tank and armoured AT units whenever they are used in attack, particularly some of the underpowered heavy tanks, reflecting a temporary loss of strength until refitting could occur. This suppression risk would occur independently of how one-sided the attack was. At the same time, this would mean that some heavy tanks that have been placed in the front of the loss queue, such as the Konigstiger, could be pushed slightly further back. That is, I think the Konigstiger is in slot 1 to reflect its breakdown risk, but being in slot 1 also means that it is likely to be killed rather than just suppressed. Given how well-protected the Konigstiger is (I believe that there are no documented cases of a 17-pounder successfully penetrating the Konigstiger's frontal armour), this is a bit harsh.
2. Some armoured AT seem too close to the front of the loss queue on attack. It becomes especially difficult to use Stug- and Jagdtiger-equipped units in an attack, since the armour shift provided by these units isn't effective. The Germans didn't use self-propelled guns as the tip of the spear in assaults, so they shouldn't really be in slot 1 on attack. (True, there was a ex-panzerjaeger unit that was given Elefants at Kursk and, overestimating their protection, they drove them straight at the Russians and suffered disastrous losses, but on the whole the comment stands.)
3. Engineers are rightly in slot 1 when their abilities are being used. But if their abilities aren't being used then the risk of loss becomes too high, and it feels like attaching engineers becomes an expensive risk should a bad combat result come about. If attacking an unfortified unit with no amphibious assault required, the engineers should drop to slot 3 or so.
4. Specialists have been given fairly strong powers in the recent upgrades. That leaves their relative usefulness rather too high compared to engineers for my liking, but one aspect that stands out is their position in the loss queue. If Rangers are with a unit such that the unit avoids both entrenchment and amphibious penalties, the Rangers shouldn't also be in loss position 3 by inspiring the regular GI's to do great things and take the losses in front of the Rangers. I suggest that all specialists should be no lower than loss position 2 on attack.
5. AI reinforcements can be permanently blocked by sitting on their entry hex, allowing for some cheesy tactics. To reduce this effect, the AI should be able to bring the units at a wider range of entry points a turn after the first, and maybe wider still the turn after, and also to be allowed to enter a player-controlled entry hex as long as that hex that isn't physically occupied by a player unit.
6. Probably the most complex fix, but also the most frustrating: If a player unit disappears from the game, or is to be rebuilt, the temptation is to strip the unit as far as possible. (True, if you don't like the cheese, don't eat it, but still the temptation is there...) To avoid this, the unit should disappear from the game along with all steps and specialists that a player has stripped from the unit. Equally, if the disappearing unit has been buffed with extra specialists, those extra specialists should not disappear with the unit, as otherwise even a player that doesn't want to be cheesy is penalised. The same goes for paratroopers that have had specialists added, but which are withdrawn for a jump - the specialists should go back to the pool.
Thanks again for a superb game.
Rob