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Post by klavohunter on Feb 1, 2020 21:09:32 GMT -6
AMCs intrigue me as an option for creating minelayers in the early game, when minesweepers are iffy.
I notably used AMCs in a 1920-start Germany game under the Versailles Treaty. They're way faster to build than submarines, so they're good for getting you back into the raider game quickly during your first war.
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Post by klavohunter on Dec 5, 2019 3:29:23 GMT -6
One thing to maybe consider for the frequency of the event is the size of in-game fleets compared to historical fleets. If the player fleets are smaller than historical fleets then every loss hurts more and has a magnified severity. So it's possible the chance of occurrence might have to be reduced but I don't have enough data to form an opinion on that. I definitely think it should be part of the game though. I can see how the "Sub sinks capital ship" event could be seen as especially punishing for those who play on smaller fleet sizes. However, since I always try and play on Very Large, I wouldn't know quite how it feels.
I seethe in frustration when it happens to one of my ships that I like, but that's why I try and make more than one of whatever I'm building. And it's a wake-up call to get more anti-sub warfare boats and planes operational. Kinda like losing a big ship to mines makes you build minelayers.
I don't savescum on losing a ship to either subs or mines... Generally *that* takes a major night battle or entire war going disgustingly bad
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Post by klavohunter on Nov 28, 2019 14:46:06 GMT -6
Can you add to the OP reccomended or ideal squadron sizes and why they are ideal? Fun fact: Throwing a 20-plane Escort Fighter squadron at the enemy along with your attackers *BLUDGEONS* through enemy CAP.
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Post by klavohunter on Oct 27, 2019 14:27:50 GMT -6
Another thing to keep in mind is the ammo for DP guns. It is possible to run out of HE ammo which these guns use for anti-aircraft fire. If you run out of HE for your DP guns your HAA factor will drop right down to zero. Imagine zinging a 5" AP shell right through a plane
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Post by klavohunter on Sept 6, 2019 13:26:40 GMT -6
Wait 'til you guys see the buffet line on this baby.
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Post by klavohunter on Sept 6, 2019 1:06:36 GMT -6
Reposting from Discord...
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Post by klavohunter on Aug 14, 2019 23:22:12 GMT -6
SAI2 would be more fun if the Germans actually had a navy, lol.
That said, being able to fight the War in the Pacific out in SAI2 would be fantastic.
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Post by klavohunter on Aug 8, 2019 18:09:55 GMT -6
He's just getting with the black and white spirit of the times. Yes, the Confederacy had a very black and white view of society.
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Post by klavohunter on Aug 5, 2019 23:47:48 GMT -6
Yes, yesss, let the hate flow through you!!!
Just remember that you're playing the bad guys.
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Post by klavohunter on Jul 11, 2019 11:21:04 GMT -6
You can't make BBs or BCs at the start. Usually what I aim for first is a bigger CA design after a year, using a Dock Expansion to upgrade the potential tonnage of my nation's ships. A big, fast, well-armed new CA or two can help dominate early wars, but try and not get *too* aggressive with it, or the AI will get lucky and torpedo it instantly dead. Also, make sure you're not short on CLs, DDs, and KEs. Stock up on those now, because once the Dreadnought Race starts in earnest, your entire budget will often go into BBs and BCs for years on end. And have fun!
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Post by klavohunter on Jul 10, 2019 11:12:13 GMT -6
The main consideration of any carrier design is the reality that carrier fleets will spawn no further than 150 miles from each other with respective surface fleets in between them. Proper position of the main force will allow your battleships to tank the majority of the strike and leave little for your carriers to handle, which in my experience means the survivability of a carrier comes second to its offensive power. I've only lost one carrier in an actual fight, and that was because it was run down by sneaky battlecruisers after I stripped its escorting destroyers away to scout. Of course, no amount of armor is going to protect against raiding capital ships, yet speed is incredibly expensive to the point where my carriers don't exceed 30 knots to make room for more planes. The AI is also lacking in its carrier competency, partially caused by the game only giving it 3-4 carriers (including CVLs) in any fight. I've never had the full brunt of the US Carrier Force attack my carriers as Japan so oddly enough the only competitor in this aspect is Russia of all nations. If the AI launches strikes of 30-40 planes, the standard auto assigned airgroups of 1/3rd fighters is enough to mitigate the effects of these strikes on heavy CAP. My experience does come with a caveat in that I've rarely fought wars in the 60s at the peak of technological progress but I will brag that I've fit 282 planes onto a 80,000 ton carrier and have sent strikes from it.
I feel a significant part of the problem is the AI's propensity for wasting a lot of its carrier airpower attacking land airbases that respawn for free after the battle, instead of sending more naval strikes after your fleet.
Because of these relatively weak anti-ship strikes, my carriers' CAP and AA bubble tend to shred attackers, and occasionally a single bomb gets through and does relatively minor damage.
I don't armor the flight decks, and the main deck gets 2" of armor on my full-up CVs. In addition, they only get 5" magazine-box belt armor.
I'm considering making some new, better-protected CVLs dedicated to carrying a 34-fighter CAP, since my OG CVLs are pretty lightly armed and armored. They've easily survived the single odd bomb that hits them, but I'm running out of practical things to spend money on.
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Post by klavohunter on Jul 8, 2019 9:20:17 GMT -6
A late 1940s war as Spain against the UK had some pretty significant battles where big fleets of carriers on both sides exchanged attacks. (Perhaps the AI would have been more successful if they tried sending airstrikes to attack my ships instead of an airbase on land!)
However, there were still gun-ships engaging each other in these battles.
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Post by klavohunter on Jun 29, 2019 16:27:25 GMT -6
As said, bombing the decks of CVs puts them out of action the way that a stray torpedo doesn't. This would be more notable in effect if the AI's CVs were more effective, or if player planes didn't usually find and attack the enemy battle line between them and enemy carriers.
Dive Bombers do a very nice job of cleaning up smaller ships. Reading how a near miss from a bomb buckles the hull and sinks a destroyer anyways NEVER gets old.
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Post by klavohunter on Jun 24, 2019 16:27:57 GMT -6
Praise the Thatcher! lol
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Post by klavohunter on Jun 21, 2019 12:12:58 GMT -6
Kinda a pain in the butt when you have to leave old BCs un-refit so they stay battlecruiser-y instead of transforming into BBs.
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