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In Progress Hannibal: Rome and Carthage in the Second Punic War

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
Table of Contents

1. Game Settings

Turn 1 - 218 Bc
2. Planning
3. Action
4. Romans

Turn 2 - 217 Bc
5. Planning
6. Action 1
7. Action 2 - "Syphax to the Rescue"
8. Romans - "Fabius shows his competence... Maybe"

Turn 3 - 216 Bc
9. Planning 1 - "The senate decided to skip the dope for once"
10. Planning 2 - "Hannibal and his stupid ass plans"
11. Action 1 - "Yay Spaniards, Nay Navy"
12. Action 2 - "Hannibro on a roll"
13. Action 3 -"More Rolling"
14. Romans - "Fuck the Roman Navy"

Turn 4 - 215 Bc
15. Planning - "Stop showing us plans and kill the Romans!"
16. Action - "The Show Must Go On"
17. Romans - "Hmm"

Turn 5 - 214 Bc
18. Planning - "Pray"
19. Action 1 - "The Senator of shit"
20. Action 2 - "Hannibal"
21. Action 3 - "Hasdrubal"
22. Action 4 - "Leave it to fate"
23. Romans - "214 Bc, Year of Rape"

So this will be my first LP evar. I just bought Hannibal: Rome and Carthage in the Second Punic War and realized that, mostly due to it's fun AI and (simple) mechanics, it would make a good LP. It's also rather obscure which is a bonus. I have only played one game but my initial impression is that this is pretty cool and most importantly: Challenging (Although luck does play a factor)

I'm pretty sure I'll finish the LP as long as it doesn't turn out more tedious then I already imagine it being. I've looked up some screenshot LP tips, and I hope it all works out.

However, I will be playing this on the hardest setting, without save scumming. (except if I make a mistake due to misunderstanding game mechanics or some other shit that is immersion destroying.. I will never reload for strategic mistakes) So chances are that I will either be crushed by the Romans fairly early, or that, in the chance that I make it 20 turns in, we lose by points.

Seeing that I just bought this and have played only one game, you may be able to enjoy me getting my face stomped in.

I'll do my best to explain the rather simple (but involved) mechanics as I play. I'm also planning on making this semi interactive. I'll let anybody who is paying attention to this vote on senate recommendations, my vote will weigh as much as anybody else participating (I'll explain about this senate shit in the first update) and of course planning moves together could be fun (But I have last say on this because I'm an egocentric piece of shit)

Every update will cover one game turn. I may make an exception if something we/I plan goes very wrong, in which case I may make a mid turn update. The game can last a maximum of 20 turns by design.

I haven't started the game yet. I will do that now/today and will make it my first update.

Let me know if i'm massive fag and need to do something different.

So anyways, just to end/start this with a colorful pic:

 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
Game Settings


GameSettings_zps3fb71a8a.png



As said we are playing on hard. The difficulty levels not only effect AI level but also add more 'realism'. On hard you do not necessarily get to decide what theaters to attack or reinforce. This is voted on by the senate and they WILL piss you off. This can be bothersome but is one of the many game play elements that adds a shitton of tension and immersion to the game.

It is not purely random. The senate not only takes the current situation (so it does make some sense... usually), but also your advice, into consideration. The more battles you win the more likely they are to listen to you as well.

We also left 'Use standard move' unchecked. With standard move you always start in northern Italy and the game is 'less random'. Leaving the box unchecked starts you off in spain, adding some randomness by forcing you to cross Gaul and the alps. You'll see why soon.

Now starting on Update 1.

Btw, I planned on making this a bit more funny, with portraits and all that. I *probably* won't for this LP. As it is my first, I'm still working on workflow and I don't want to get fed up with a bunch of stupid shit right off the bat.
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
Turn 1 - 218 BC - Planning

The situation in 218 BC:

StartMap_zpsbf42b667.jpg


I have to splice 2 screenshots to get the whole map, hence the border in the middle.

Edit: The first time i posted a pic here it allowed me to click it to enlarge.. why is this not possible now? The pic, as shown here, is to small to really see things well

Black is Carthagian and red is Roman. The blue/grey in Sicily is Syracusian (Currently allied with Rome). The grey in Numidia is.. Numidian. (Currently Allied with Carthage.) City Garrison banners are displayed in a */* format with the first number being non-militia troops and the second number being militia troops. Militia can obviously not leave the city (Apart from sallying out to break a siege) Field armies are displayed with a single number, identifying the number of units(although not overall strength) of the army. Numbers with an underscore denote a general in the army/city. Armies in the field will always contain a general but meh.


Available Option Cards:


Option cards are game changers for the most part. I will explain them when they are relevant. Keep in mind the Romans also have their own (and they can piss you off badly)

The large army of size 14 in Spain is led by Hannibal who shouldn't need too much of an introduction. Chilling with him, is his brother Mago.



The other, less impressive, army in Spain, consisting of 6 units, is led by Hasdrubal. Another of Hannibals brothers. If I were making a more interesting LP, maybe I would use this to comedic effect. Hint: No



The skill of a general is abstracted into a single number. The lowest possible is 4 and the highest is 12 (Hannibal). In battle, the general with the higher number may rally troops after they rout. It also effects some other things, like whether or not a general manages to force a pitched battle. All general bonuses are void when fighting non-pitched battles (ie. Storming cities and defender sallys). Hannibal is a special case, in that he can use some special battle cards (More on these later). Generals can be promoted a maximum of one time. Some start the game already promoted (such as Hannibro)

Units have an attack factor and a defense factor (left and right number respectively). The way I understand it, every unit has a chance to score a 'hit' (Kill a unit) and a chance to rout a unit. This chance is based on general rating, city level and maybe some action cards. The number is how many times they get to try for a hit I think. A circled number is an attack bonus and acts as a flat bonus of 20% to hit.. I could be wrong on some of this.. it's a bit obscure. But it's close enough. When an army scores 'hits' you must remove units with a defense factor totaling the amount of hits. So if an enemy army hits for '2' you can remove 1 unit with DF 2 or two units with defense factor 1. Battles require more strategy then may be immediately apparent but it isn't anything special (although so far it strikes me as well thought out, if a bit random)

Theater's are all subject to different rules as well. Mostly, they are important for recruiting extra units. As you can see the rules that govern this are different between theaters






Anyways..



Time to fuck up some Romans. 'Commands' are the number of generals or admirals you can move each turn. When you select a general for command he is no longer subject to 'Commands' but follows a different set of (simple) rules for playing out his turn. The senate also votes on where you may send units every turn. The first turn is always the same though (send Hannibal and Mago to Italy). You may not, ever, send units (whether as an attacking force or reinforcements) to a different theater. I can not reinforce Spain this turn, for instance. Units already in a theater, however, are free to fuck shit up as they please.

This is where we raise our troops from Africa at the beginning of every turn. The stingy ass senate has only 'raised' enough funds for two units, so it's a tough choice but I settle on two naval squadrons. We don't have any immediate use for them but they will undoubtedly come in handy later.



And here is our battle plan for this turn. It may, or may not, go as planned. We'll see. I will start every turn with a plan like this and adapt as needed. It may well be that my action updates diverge quite a bit from planning due to shit that I didn't predict.



We have four commands and the plan is

1) Hannibal

a) Move Hannibal to Gaul.
As seen below in the screenshot for the Alps, you can not move directly into the theater unless you control Genua , so we are left with no other option then to take a roundabout way through Asterix territory. This does come with some risks:



The Gauls are bout it bout it and don't like crazy niggers with elephant dicks, on elephants, stampeding through their fair lands, raping the local white maidens. So they tend to fuck you up a bit for good measure. Lets pray that they don't destroy my army right off the bat. Hannibal does get a bonus to this, so it shouldn't be to bad.

b) Capture Turin
Apart from wanting the cities for recruiting, we also do not want to trek through the mountains if it can be helped.



So it makes sense to just storm the lightly guarded city. It is only level 1 with 2 militia and should be no match for Hannibals mighty di.. army. That is if the Gauls don't kill us all.

It must be noted here that generals may only move from one province to another within a command phase or risk attrition if they move farther. We are moving from Spain, then to Gaul, then into Cisalpine Gaul. This is 2 moves and will require the use of an options card to negate the effect. Luckily we always start with the required card.



c) Capture remaining level 1 cities in Cisalpine Gaul.

d) Place Hannibal and his hopefully still mighty army on the field.

You can garrison armies/generals or place them on the field. In many cases placing them in the field makes more sense. This is especially true of Hannibal as all of his tactical genius is lost when sitting around in some Italian shithole. His command rating becomes meaningless, he can not use his battle cards, and no general can intercept another while sitting in a town.

2) Hasdrubal

We will reinforce Emporion with some troops then place Hasdrubal, with his remaining army in New Carthage. Believe me the AI is ruthless and will attack Spain given the chance. Lets see if they dare, and whether it works. I don't exactly have a lot to defend with. The reason I do not place Hasdrupal in the field is simply because I am not sure he could hold off the Romans if they do invade. They currently have six fleets and may raise more in their turn. Every fleet enables one unit to be ferried. So the invading army could be larger than his (and there is no beach assaulting bonus or anything, this isn't D-Day dumbfuck)

3) Send northern 'fleet' to port. They wouldn't be able to hold off the Romans anyways

4) Same with southern 'fleet'


------------------------------------------------------------


I've decided to split turns into three updates a piece.
Planning ----> Action and results -----> Romans & Senate advising

This allows me to update more often and makes sense anyways. Now I'll finally get to playing this turn...
 

Trash

Pointing and laughing.
Joined
Dec 12, 2002
Messages
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Location
About 8 meters beneath sea level.
This game always intrigued me. It's relatively obscure, got good to decent reviews, apparantly is very challenging and has a good AI and has a rather interesting premise. Never bought it myself though. What's your opinion on the game, DakaSha? Anyway, following this.
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
This game always intrigued me. It's relatively obscure, got good to decent reviews, apparantly is very challenging and has a good AI and has a rather interesting premise. Never bought it myself though. What's your opinion on the game, DakaSha? Anyway, following this.


I've only played a single game. Having said that it's my first LP so that should be some indicator of what I think of it so far.
I don't want to jump the gun and claim its AMAZING but it is unique and deserves more attention.

I played it for 8 hours straight after buying it.. thinking long and hard about every action. I don't know if ive ever done that before.

I will say that I know it will not be for everyone though, including diehard strategy fans.
 

Malakal

Arcane
Glory to Ukraine
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Messages
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Location
Poland
Senator Biggus Dikkus demands that you capture all of Cisalpine Gaul, use gallic reinforcements card and raise a formidable army there with which you ca threaten Italy. For Carthage!
 

DakaSha

Arcane
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Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
I'll be adding some fluff to this. I'm not tryharding here so don't expect anything even remotely good. My focus is still on the game itself, but I may as well have some fun. I like being childish. Fuck you.

Turn 1 - 218 BC - Action

Hannibal moves into Gaul and, while crossing through a small Gallic village, makes the a grave diplomatic error of greeting a chieftains daughter with the Shocker. The chieftain isn't very impressed by this, and gives the call to attack. Hannibal loses two Spanish infantry units and his sole elephant unit, all because of a bit of innuendo.

Nevertheless, after impaling the chieftains head on the tusk of one of his dead elephants, Hannibal proceeds with his plan of taking Turin by storm. The loss of some of his men (and elephants), and the food looted from the village, gave Hannibal's men the provisions needed to carry on despite having marched all the way from Spain in such short time.
(Actually he just played the first option on this card, but don't tell anybody.)



I'm not going to take and post pics of every meager battle. Only large/meaningful battles and battles that go very wrong (or very right) will be posted. The game is in no way battle spammy, but I don't want to spend hours on hours to post what is essentially the same thing over and over. Anything interesting will be logged in detail though.

Hannibal's plan is paying off so far. The defenders of Turin never saw what hit them, and the city was taken with no casualties. The losses in Gaul are almost forgotten and Hannibal and his men march on, accompanied by a young, Gallic, chieftains daughter..

You can also besiege towns but there is currently no need for this. I'll explain it when it becomes relevant. Also, I never mentioned it, but Cavalry and elephants are quite bad for storming cities, as is to be expected

The next city on Hannibals list is Mediolanum, and it to falls to the mighty Hannibal without causing any meaningful damage to his army! Hannibro is on a roll.

And the last minor city of Cispaline Gaul too falls without inflicting a single loss! This campaign is starting off great. We may have lost our Elephants and a couple of dirty Spaniards to the pissed off Gauls, but that seems to have hardly mattered.. so far.

Our plan to 'liberate' Cispaline Gaul is going well, and by taking the three cities we have met some recruiting requirements as shown here:



Recruitment happens after your turn, and these extra troops will be of great benefit. Gauls aren't very reliable (they can not be rallied after routing, and if routed during a battle that ends up being a loss, they disappear entirely), but they have a nice attack factor of 2.

Not only has Hannibal managed to secure some ground in Italy, but the chieftains daughter who has been swept up by his battle prowess and.. other qualities, has been explaining to him the intricacies of Gallic diplomacy. The shocker is a big nono he learns. With the knowledge gained, Hannibal manages to gain the locals respect, leading to Gallic Aid (yes, it was just a card):





This is definitely useful. The card has brought Hannibros army size back up to where it was before entering Gaul, and it will be of great benefit. Both Placentia and Genua contain armies being led by Generals. The two generals are:



In Genua, and:



In Placentia

Neither one of them is a match for Hannibal (as if anyone was), but Rome can quickly raise massive armies. Any help we can get from Gaul is going to be extremely important.

There is a cool dynamic going on behind the scenes in this game. The AI doesn't just do 'what is right' but is also effected by a couple of other factors. For instance, the Romans start off underestimating all your generals and are more likely to make bad attacks. However, as your generals win battles, they will earn the Romans respect and may be avoided int he future. This can be used to gain the upper hand, but can also become very aggravating when the enemy refuses to fight on 'fair' terms.

Also, to my knowledge, each of the roman generals has a personality and will favor certain strategic options over others. So afaik that description in the General screen isn't just fluff. Some are more reckless than others, some fear Hannibal, etc.

Hannibal does consider attacking Genua, as opening a direct passage from Spain to northern Italy this early in the war would be of great benefit should he need reinforcing. However he decides against it. Genua is heavily fortified (level 2 city out of 3), and has a decently sized garrison. Hannibal could probably win the battle, however this would most likely severely cripple his army, allowing Servilius to storm through Northern Italy, taking back all that we have gained.

And the last thing Hannibal needs is to lose to that fool Servilius and his horrible general skill of '4'. Especially in front of the girl.

Hannibal sets up camp in Northern Italy and awaits the Romans reaction..

---------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile Hasdrubal carries out his brothers orders and reinforces Emporion with one infantry unit and one Cavalry, then heads off to New Carthage on his elephant for some R&R in the brothels.

The two puny 'fleet's also carry out their orders to retreat to port.

---------------------------------------------------------------

The current situation



We end this years campaign, happy with our results.

We draw a card (happens after every turn)



And it's a good draw.

We also get to recruit units in Spain and Cisapline Gaul now. I actually made a small mistake though:



You are able to recruit an extra unit in Spain if you have a General in the field, which I do not, as he is busy in the brothels of New Carthage. I don't think it really matters though, he would have still been putting himself at risk by staying in the field. I hope this is the safer option.

I select one Spanish infantry for Hasdrubal instead of a cav, seeing that he is a bit on the defensive now.

Hannibal also takes two Gallic Infantry. He has plenty of cavalry and may want to storm a city some time soon.



And now to see how the Romans respond to all this Barbarism. Dicks, shockers and brothels. pff.
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
Senator Biggus Dikkus demands that you capture all of Cisalpine Gaul, use gallic reinforcements card and raise a formidable army there with which you ca threaten Italy. For Carthage!


Was already carried out when the message reached me :salute:

Also am just now noticing that most of what you see are those boring, brown message boxes. I may start posting more map pics, but it could also just be that it looks bad because I'm posting things that need to be explained for now. As the game progresses and anybody reading gets to understand how everything works, there may be less boring pics, leaving mostly the Situation and planning maps to look at.

I personally don't like LP's that take a pic of every single event so I'm trying to avoid that.
 

Erebus

Arcane
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Jul 12, 2008
Messages
4,763
Can fleets be used to carry large amounts of troops ? Could Rome use its superior naval power to attack Carthage directly during the first turns of the game (in an early version of the Battle of Zama) ?
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
Can fleets be used to carry large amounts of troops ? Could Rome use its superior naval power to attack Carthage directly during the first turns of the game (in an early version of the Battle of Zama) ?


Every squadron (of which Rome currently has 8 if you count the syracuseian ones, with the potential to raise more with cards) can carry one unit. So Rome could currently carry at most 8 units which would not be enough to take Carthage. However, they could take utica, and more importantly they could destroy the 3 agricultural sites in Zeugitania. The Romans also have roman villas that can be destroyed.

Basically both sides have an abstracted 'resource' that can be pillaged which changes how the senates of both republics vote.

The AI can be tricky so I will not be so bold to say they wont try that. But if they do there isn't much I can do about it now. And it wouldn't necessarily benefit them as it would just leave the Italian theater open for destruction
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
This game looks good! And it would be great to see ANY battle just to see how it works. Anyway: MOAR!


I'm playing the Romans turn now. You'll get to see a pretty big battle that acts as a good showcase of some more game mechanics in the next update ;)
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
Turn 1 - 218 BC - Romans

The Roman senate deliberates on it's strategy for the upcoming campaign and decides on pulling some strings to allow for single extra unit to be raised. Hannibal at their doorstep has probably caused some of the pompous fucks to shit their togas.



The fool Servilius is the one to receive the reinforcement. This is fine by Hannibal. Give it to the dumb fuck. Nothign like beating up on a loser to impress the white bitch.

Every time either the player or Hannibal plays an option card, the opposing side may play one in response. I decide not to in this instance, however.

Remember when I said that the Romans start off underestimating Hannibal? Also remember when I said that Servilius is a fool? Well..



This is quite retarded even by his standards. He has pulled his troops out of Placentia and moves into northern Italy despite the presence of Hannibals much larger army... Talk about having something to prove. Due to being on the field Hannibal may now intercept



Ah. When moving in to intercept, Servilius tried to disengage. My guess is that he wanted to either force Hannibal to fight on his terms (making us storm his camp which is similar to storming a city), or gain time by forcing us into a deadlock.

If you look at Cisalpines Gauls Info:



You can see that the terrain allows armies to disengage quite easily. However Hannibals massive co.. general skills and Servilius tiny d.. utter retardation have obviously offset this fact. It makes more sense than previously thought.

Still, in the words of the mighty Hannibal: 'It was fucking retarded either way, but not as retarded as I had originally anticipated. Yolo I guess'

And here is the battlefield after both sides decided on which forces to send to the front line



Hannibal has the larger army and is by FAR the better general. However it is still slightly scary.. Servilius has a more disciplined and defensive army than Hannibal does. His front line is much stronger (Defense factor 2 units) and they are more likely to hit than Hannibals (Attack bonus indicated by Circles over attack factor)

Again as simple as they look, the battles are more strategic then it may seem. The game abstracts discipline and defense quite well using only a few rules.

Hannibal decides on a balanced front line, containing a good mix of Attack factor (Gauls), Discipline (Spaniards) and Defense (The African infantry). He has also sent his Companion Cavalry to the front line, as they are the overall strongest unit in the game.

The decision is now whether or not Hannibal should use one of his punic tricks/cards. He can win this battle without them.. But if we can derisively win, with few losses, it would give us the momentum we need to take Italy with a large force, before the Italians can reinforce.

None of this is fluff btw.. the game is very involved in its simplicity. Decisions like this mean a LOT

Hannibal decides that the Romans need to be taught a lesson. The mere action of sending such a fool with such a pathetic army to confront the mighty Hannibro is an Insult worth punishment. Hannibal decides to Ambush the poser (He also wants to show how the game works).





As Servilius' army, proudly approaches what they believe to be the battlefield, Hannibal springs his trap. It's an incredible success. His army scores 12 hits in the very first round of combat, and multiple routs, and only sustains 3 hits and one rout in return!

That is pretty massive



Hannibal raises the shocker in salute to the men that died in this glorious battle. An African infantry unit and a Spanish cavalry (this totaled 3 DF) had to pay the price, but their names will not be forgotten and all that jazz.

This is what the front line looks like after the first combat round



Servilius was utterly destroyed in one fell swoop.

Each round you are allowed to reinforce the front line with your remaining troops, or to rally a routed unit if you are the better commander (however this lowers your command rating for the next round as explained above). Hannibal sends in 2 Gallic infantry and one Spanish cavalry to finish off the single cav that punk Servilius has left. At this rate he wont even be able to retreat

This battle went almost to well. I wanted to show how retreating and pursuit works but it probably wont happen. The enemy can not retreat until turn 2, at which point your cav and the enemy cav have a separate battle to determine whether you kill more troops or not

Hannibal destroys the remaining cavalry unit. In the midst of battle, Servelius is spotted, waving his gladius while screaming like a little girl. Hannibal sends the girl to finish him off which she does promptly, she then resumes picking daffidolls while the manfolk do their man things.



Well that was a success.. No idea what the AI was thinking. My guess is that it was a combination of the AI underestimating Hannibal (as it is supposed to) and having the luck that that idiot Servilius who is the worst commander in the game, was in charge of Romes largest starting army. We did also get a bit lucky with being able to force the pitched battle. If he had managed to evade us, things would not have gone so well.

There is however one drawback. Servelius is now dead. That means we will never again be up against such an incompetent dumbfuck. This actually matters.

For winning this battle (against another general) we get to draw another option card. We draw a decisive senate influence card. This may come in handy in the future, when the senate is to busy eating grapes or whatever it is they do, instead of listening to Hannibro as they should be.



----------

So.. bro Erebus
This should be interesting to you:

The Romans actually DID send a force, led by Livius, to attack Carthaginian soil right off the bat.. it's only a token army, usually not enough to take any cities but the Romans were known to be masters at siege warfare and it's abstracted by use of this card:



They took Utica without even having to fight (that card just destroyed the militia) and, as semi predicted, went on to destroy the agricultural estates (circled)... This sucks.. And i now suck my own dick..



About the agricultural estates:



They reduce the amount of reinforcements you get (In Carthage) and they influence the senate. what this means is that when the senate votes on the next years action, it will favor being defensive as opposed to sending troops to other theaters. They can be rebuilt in a turn, but this may turn out to be a setback.

On the plus side, there are now much fewer troops in Italy..

-----------

Now the Romans have begun rearranging their fleets. They moved their 2 squadrons from the Ligurian Sea, and combined them with forces in the Tyrrhenian.



And did the same in the south, moving moving some ships from the bay of Tarentum to the Ionian sea.



This combined with the troops we already have on Carthaginian soil, is going to make it really hard to get troops from the father land onto Italian soil.

-----------

Grachuss has reportedly moved from Rome to the city of Ancona in Umbria Samnium (Eastern Italy). He is presumably there to recruit troops.

-----------

And with that the Romans end their campaign phase and draw, and also play, a card:



Meh, as Hannibal likes to say.

They also conclude their normal recruitment around their republic (I'm not going to take pics of this every time.. it will just be tedious.. I will however list it)

Ancona: 1 Latin Legion
Asculum: 1 Latin Legion
Rome: 1 Latin Legion, One Roman Legion, 1 Roman Cav, 1 Latin Cav
Syracuse: 1 Squadron
Tarentum: 2 Squadrons (meh!)

And here are their election Results for this turn:



The Romans are pretty crazy in that they scramble to elect a 'dictator' during times of crises. This allows somebody to get shit done without having to go through a shitload of red tape. They have a term of 6 months (presumably so that they cant become 'real' dictators). The mechanics behind this are fairly straightforward I think:

a) The command of armies changes every turn. If an army is led by a strong general you can opt to fight a war of attrition or use the Fabian strategy until a faggot like Servilus shows up.
b) I think that they actually influence overall AI strategy. I'm not 100% of this but everything points toward it. This is def a cool feature if true.

Anyways.. The Romans have elected a bunch of pathetic faggots this year. Hannibal grunts in pleasure.

-----------

Now comes the time to advise the fat slobs that rule the republic. What shall we do? Hannibals current standing with the Senate is 'Fair'




Reinforcing or sending troops is essentially the same thing except that in one case you already have troops there and in the other you don't. For this reason ill always use this one screenshot for this phase even though the wording may be different in some cases. It doesn't matter. Mechanically its all the same

As said previously, the senate will make up their own mind but they will take Hannibals advice into consideration. This doesn't count as much as you might hope. They, obviously, think they know better than some dumbfuck ruffian

-----------

The current situation



Overall we have done well I think. The Romans caught me (not Erebus apparently) by surprise but in doing so they left Italy virtually without defense. I'm interested in how this will play out. The fact that they elected a bunch of shitheads this year will not help them.

Before I/We can plan on exactly what we should do next, we need to know how the senate will vote, but first we need to advise them so I'll explain what the options mean:

The first three options + the fifth essentially just mean the senate allows you to send forces to the given theater. You may never send forces to a theater without approval (but again, troops already stationed there are free to do as they please). Keep in mind that the oceans also belong to theaters and the same rules apply for fleets.

The fifth option is almost the same thing but 'Reading Corsica and Sardinia' has a small change in rules.

a) All oceans surrounding the two islands may be entered event though they technically belong to different theaters
b) Usually armies/squadrons may not move back into a theater they previously occupied that turn (So you cant move from span, to Italy, back to Spain). However when selecting this option, fleets may move into the surrounding waters, then back to where they were previously if needed. Only fleets may do this, not armies.

The last option is a special case in that you may not send/reinforce anything. However it does up the chance for more Carthaginian reinforcements that turn (and less commands).

It should also be said at this point, that you may ALWAYS move forces back to Africa when needed.

The theaters are relatively self explanatory except for 'Gaul' perhaps, Ciscapline Gaul is part of the theater of Italy. Not Gaul.

As the Romans have destroyed our agricultural estates, the senate is more likely to play defensively and vote on reinforcing Africa.

-----------

I'll also use this attack by the Romans to highlight how Numidia works:

Syphax is in charge of Numidia



He is usually inactive unless specific requirements have been met (they have now)

Due to this mechanic the Romans on our soil are less of a threat then perhaps is apparent (although it will slow us down no matter what)

If Syphax should die, then I think Numida becomes allied with Rome. Rome also has an interesting card that starts a rebellion in Numida, spawning a rebel army that then causes havoc in Africa (possibly leading to Syphaxes downfall)

-----------

Anyways, what are your guys thoughts on senate advise? I honestly am not super sure what to do right now. I think I'm leading towards reinforcing Africa, as we seem to be doing fine in Italy. Also the Romans are building a massive fleet.. we could do with some more ships ourselves. If they control the waters then reinforcement becomes extremely difficult if not impossible.

Reinforcing Spain wouldn't hurt either though. If we can solidify our hold on both Spain and Northern Italy, we will start receiving a lot of reinforcements. Of course, to move between Spain and Northern Italy freely, we will have to capture Genua
 

Malakal

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Glory to Ukraine
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The Senate is pleased by your victories. Obviously following the orders given and focusing on Cisalpine Gaul has yielded the results, even if our armies are led by such a mediocre leader as Hannibal...

However senator Biggus Dikkus is concerned about the diminishing number of grapes, a issue related to recent Roman invasion of Africa. Therefore his fraction will support an invasion of Sicily, to secure the best grapes and the best wine for the senate. Plebs may burn and be crucified by Romans in the countryside, no one gives a fuck.
 

DakaSha

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Messages
4,792
The Senate is pleased by your victories. Obviously following the orders given and focusing on Cisalpine Gaul has yielded the results, even if our armies are led by such a mediocre leader as Hannibal...

However senator Biggus Dikkus is concerned about the diminishing number of grapes, a issue related to recent Roman invasion of Africa. Therefore his fraction will support an invasion of Sicily, to secure the best grapes and the best wine for the senate. Plebs may burn and be crucified by Romans in the countryside, no one gives a fuck.


You wouldn't know this, as you are to busy stuffing your face with grapes I haven't explained everything in detail yet, but invading Sicily is currently close to impossible. Not only is our force too small (3 Spanish infantry and one Spanish Cav in Carthage), but the Romans have stationed fleets in the waters off the Island.

In order to move troops by boat, you need to (duh) cross the waters. If the quickest (in this case only) rout is blocked by enemy fleets, then you are subject to more attrition (if they even spot you.. which, given the small size of our force, is actually fairly low).

The other issue is this:



Sicily will only benefit us with Units grapes if we hold Syracuse. This is not happening any time soon unless we:

a) Get a much stronger force to besiege the city
b) Other 'interesting events' that I will explain, should they become relevant

As one of Hannibal's Advisors (keep in mind that I am advising the senate.. so I guess your role in this LP is somebody who advises me on how to advise the senate), I will count your final vote in any case.

Currently the vote is:

1 (me) for reinforcing Africa
1 for invading Sicily.

Remember: The Senate decides this, we are advising the Senate at this point. What we decide on is not necessarily going to happen.

edit: We do have 3 (4 if we count the sleet in spain) squadrons, with the potential to raise more next turn... We could *potentially* attack the fleets in Ionian, but it will be a battle based on luck. It's a gamble. But if we manage to destroy the roman fleet there it could benefit us. So attacking the Sicilian Island proper may be a bit crazy, but a successful fleet gambit is possible.
 

Erebus

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The AI seems to be acting rather boldly, if not wisely. I suggest reinforcing Spain to make sure we don't lose such an excellent source of mercenaries (and also wine, which is indeed essential).

As far as generals are concerned, does Fabius have some sort of special ability ? And is Scipio available to Rome right from the start ?
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
The AI seems to be acting rather boldly, if not wisely. I suggest reinforcing Spain to make sure we don't lose such an excellent source of mercenaries (and also wine, which is indeed essential).

As far as generals are concerned, does Fabius have some sort of special ability ? And is Scipio available to Rome right from the start ?




Fabius is allowed to retreat at any time, like Hannibal. I suppose it is to reflect his cautious nature.

I think Scipio is 'available' at all times, like all of the generals. The question is whether or not he is elected to any position.

edit:
Current votes:

Sicily 1
Spain 1
Africa 1

I am thinking about changing my vote to Spain as well.. Syphax may be able to deal with Africa. I'm not sure yet though
 

DakaSha

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Messages
4,792
Apparently I was right about the Roman senate:



That is pretty cool
 

Trash

Pointing and laughing.
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Location
About 8 meters beneath sea level.
The AI seems to be acting rather boldly, if not wisely.

From what I've read the AI actually goes through a few states to mimic the Roman stance from history. Very boldly at first, more cautious later. It also gets more and more better leaders and lots of troops as time goes by. The Carthaginian senate is also supposedly quite a bitch to work with for Hannibro. Methinks those burned farmlands might bite Dakasha in the ass quite badly. Game defenitely seems something fresh.

No massive Carthaginian fleet tho? That's what they were famous for and the Romans learned some harsh lessons before finally trumping them on the waves.

Anyways, what are your guys thoughts on senate advise? I honestly am not super sure what to do right now. I think I'm leading towards reinforcing Africa, as we seem to be doing fine in Italy. Also the Romans are building a massive fleet.. we could do with some more ships ourselves. If they control the waters then reinforcement becomes extremely difficult if not impossible.

Reinforcing Spain wouldn't hurt either though. If we can solidify our hold on both Spain and Northern Italy, we will start receiving a lot of reinforcements. Of course, to move between Spain and Northern Italy freely, we will have to capture Genua

Kick the Romans out of your backyard, build a fleet to rule the waves and start taking Italian cities asap would be my primary goals. Reinforcing Spain is a nice idea, but the theater is at the moment quite relaxed. I'd go for more immediate hotspots. Since the senate is so important I'd make sure the Romans would be removed from their porch asap. Won't a Roman army near Carthage give them all sorts of perks while saddling you with negatives?

And do try to diminish a number of Italian cities. If I'm right you'll need them for extra forces and territory as the Romans will soon start pumping out armies like mad.
 

DakaSha

Arcane
Joined
Dec 4, 2010
Messages
4,792
Anyways, what are your guys thoughts on senate advise? I honestly am not super sure what to do right now. I think I'm leading towards reinforcing Africa, as we seem to be doing fine in Italy. Also the Romans are building a massive fleet.. we could do with some more ships ourselves. If they control the waters then reinforcement becomes extremely difficult if not impossible.

Reinforcing Spain wouldn't hurt either though. If we can solidify our hold on both Spain and Northern Italy, we will start receiving a lot of reinforcements. Of course, to move between Spain and Northern Italy freely, we will have to capture Genua

Kick the Romans out of your backyard, build a fleet to rule the waves and start taking Italian cities asap would be my primary goals. Reinforcing Spain is a nice idea, but the theater is at the moment quite relaxed. I'd go for more immediate hotspots. Since the senate is so important I'd make sure the Romans would be removed from their porch asap. Won't a Roman army near Carthage give them all sorts of perks while saddling you with negatives?

And do try to diminish a number of Italian cities. If I'm right you'll need them for extra forces and territory as the Romans will soon start pumping out armies like mad.

The only real negatives occur when Rome destroys those agricultural centers. Carthage is fine, as a republic, as long as their Capital is fine. The agricultural centers get rebuilt in one turn, so the real goal is to keep them from being destroyed every turn (or camped so that they do not rebuild). The Romans on our soil definitely have to be dealt with, but it is not as bad, mechanically, as you may think (again, as long as I don't let them have those centers any longer)

Keep in mind I have bro Syphax and his army right around the corner ;)

I'm almost ready to post the next planning update.
 

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