Pinned Quickstarter for COW Classic: how to play in the first vital days of the game

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    • BMfox wrote:

      No guide is waterproof as there are countless strategic options and you never know what your opponent does but if you go for a diversified army of 5 AT, 5 arty and 5 LT plus your starting troops you will at least stand a chance.
      building one IC is a good strategy but then you don't have enough rares for knowledge. Infrastructure level 3 is faster build then Industrial complex level 5. I prefer to build an industrial complex only once my Infra is level 3 because both buildings do the same they produce 50% extra.

      It is possible to build a lot of infra if you follow step one which is buy all goods and steel on the market that you can.
      Yes I agree, no starter guide is waterproof. That is why I find starter guides quite hard to get behind. Perhaps unless you reduce it to 'counter whatever your enemy does' which is ofcourse impossible and no help to anyone at that point. As a standard your guide is quite good, though still it does not cover the entire plurality of the game or every play style.

      Hmm well the extra IC makes for quite a big possitive difference in unit production in the course of a week. I would definately advise any player to upgrade their IC after the first infra build. Being able to produce troops faster is an absolute necessity. You should never have more than 2k manpower laying around in the first two weeks of a game. You need fast unit production to achieve that. An extra IC and upgraded IC give you that.
    • Yes for sure the guide is basic and doesn't cover the plurality of the game but that was never the aim. My guide is basic so that any beginner can understand it and has the basics of the game. If I add more, it will become too much for certain players. There is information for those who want to find it.

      As for the extra IC, it's open for discussion. But the upgrading of IC is included in the guide.
      BMfox
      Moderator
      EN Community Support | Bytro Gmbh

      Check out my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/BMfoxCallofWar


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    • BMfox wrote:

      Yes for sure the guide is basic and doesn't cover the plurality of the game but that was never the aim. My guide is basic so that any beginner can understand it and has the basics of the game. If I add more, it will become too much for certain players. There is information for those who want to find it.

      As for the extra IC, it's open for discussion. But the upgrading of IC is included in the guide.
      I find the guide really useful for people that are new. :)
      Criticism is the key to being proud but empathy is the key to being successful.
      Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost
      Ask not what your countrycan do for you, ask what you can do for your country. John F Kennedy
      Time is beyond our control, and the clock keeps ticking regardless of how we lead our lives. Priority management is the answer to maximizing the time we have. John C. Maxwell
    • With enough time, anybody can counter any army.
      Pretty much the only unit that can't be countered is rockets, and even those are dangerous to use.
      General Nightman

      Retired Hero


      "War is fought in three ways. Helping your enemy to lose, helping your allies to victory or helping yourself to win. Any way you take it, you are always helping someone."
    • General Nightman wrote:

      With enough time, anybody can counter any army.
      Pretty much the only unit that can't be countered is rockets, and even those are dangerous to use.
      Why would they be dangerous to be used?
      BMfox
      Moderator
      EN Community Support | Bytro Gmbh

      Check out my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/BMfoxCallofWar


      Found a bug or need help? Send a ticket here!
    • Because they are very slow and vulnerable, both on their airfield and (especially) when being transported.
      When the fake daddies are curtailed, we have failed. When their roller coaster tolerance is obliterated, their education funds are taken by Kazakhstani phishers, and their candy bars distributed between the Botswana youth gangs, we have succeeded.
      - BIG DADDY.
    • K.Rokossovski wrote:

      Because they are very slow and vulnerable, both on their airfield and (especially) when being transported.
      Exactly.
      General Nightman

      Retired Hero


      "War is fought in three ways. Helping your enemy to lose, helping your allies to victory or helping yourself to win. Any way you take it, you are always helping someone."
    • That is a good guide. I have some input below. Apologies if it has already been covered elsewhere.

      A couple of things to be considered may be the importance of upgrading Industrial complex's to their maximum level (or as close as you can) by day 8. This, combined with a barracks will greatly increase the speed as witch units are produced as well as increasing output by 50%.

      If you can build ports in provinces with IC's then do so. They only take 15 minutes and give a small resource boost. Something to keep in mind is that ports and barracks use resources (oil and food respectively) and there is an option to disable them if you are running low. This can come in really handy later in the game when both resources are at a premium.

      As an initial naval unit I would recommend destroyers over Subs if you are looking to defend. They are more expensive but in a one-on-one with a sub the DD will always win.

      Airfields and air research should never be overlooked. even a force of 5 interceptors can blunt an attack from a lone Armored car speeding its way to your core.

      Infantry and Militia are better at defending than attacking. If you are going to attack a good rule of thumb is make sure that you have a two-to-one advantage. (three-to-two advantage will work but the casualties will be high).

      Balance your forces. There is no exact art to this but look at the statistics of your units. Should you send those tanks through a mountain range? Should militia (a very slow unit) pair up with Armored cars? if having 23 infantry in a single stack a good idea?

      Understanding the information in the image below and putting it to good use will make you a very dangerous opponent.
      Images
      • tank.png

        438.98 kB, 1,319×864, viewed 68 times

      The post was edited 2 times, last by Ifanwhen: added image. disclaimer in case of duplication added to intro ().

    • Ifanwhen wrote:

      That is a good guide. I have some input below. Apologies if it has already been covered elsewhere.

      A couple of things to be considered may be the importance of upgrading Industrial complex's to their maximum level (or as close as you can) by day 8. This, combined with a barracks will greatly increase the speed as witch units are produced as well as increasing output by 50%.

      If you can build ports in provinces with IC's then do so. They only take 15 minutes and give a small resource boost. Something to keep in mind is that ports and barracks use resources (oil and food respectively) and there is an option to disable them if you are running low. This can come in really handy later in the game when both resources are at a premium.

      As an initial naval unit I would recommend destroyers over Subs if you are looking to defend. They are more expensive but in a one-on-one with a sub the DD will always win.

      Airfields and air research should never be overlooked. even a force of 5 interceptors can blunt an attack from a lone Armored car speeding its way to your core.

      Infantry and Militia are better at defending than attacking. If you are going to attack a good rule of thumb is make sure that you have a two-to-one advantage. (three-to-two advantage will work but the casualties will be high).

      Balance your forces. There is no exact art to this but look at the statistics of your units. Should you send those tanks through a mountain range? Should militia (a very slow unit) pair up with Armored cars? if having 23 infantry in a single stack a good idea?

      Understanding the information in the image below and putting it to good use will make you a very dangerous opponent.
      How do you guys put the picture, i cannot do that. For some reasons it says that a error has occurred...
      Criticism is the key to being proud but empathy is the key to being successful.
      Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost
      Ask not what your countrycan do for you, ask what you can do for your country. John F Kennedy
      Time is beyond our control, and the clock keeps ticking regardless of how we lead our lives. Priority management is the answer to maximizing the time we have. John C. Maxwell
    • RYANWEN wrote:

      Ifanwhen wrote:

      That is a good guide. I have some input below. Apologies if it has already been covered elsewhere.

      A couple of things to be considered may be the importance of upgrading Industrial complex's to their maximum level (or as close as you can) by day 8. This, combined with a barracks will greatly increase the speed as witch units are produced as well as increasing output by 50%.

      If you can build ports in provinces with IC's then do so. They only take 15 minutes and give a small resource boost. Something to keep in mind is that ports and barracks use resources (oil and food respectively) and there is an option to disable them if you are running low. This can come in really handy later in the game when both resources are at a premium.

      As an initial naval unit I would recommend destroyers over Subs if you are looking to defend. They are more expensive but in a one-on-one with a sub the DD will always win.

      Airfields and air research should never be overlooked. even a force of 5 interceptors can blunt an attack from a lone Armored car speeding its way to your core.

      Infantry and Militia are better at defending than attacking. If you are going to attack a good rule of thumb is make sure that you have a two-to-one advantage. (three-to-two advantage will work but the casualties will be high).

      Balance your forces. There is no exact art to this but look at the statistics of your units. Should you send those tanks through a mountain range? Should militia (a very slow unit) pair up with Armored cars? if having 23 infantry in a single stack a good idea?

      Understanding the information in the image below and putting it to good use will make you a very dangerous opponent.
      How do you guys put the picture, i cannot do that. For some reasons it says that a error has occurred...
      It would not allow me to upload as a .bmp image (it came up wit "unkown error") so I converted it to a .png. I hope that helps :)
    • Edepedable wrote:

      1 - the unit build depends on your enemy, though as a standard it is decent, there is no sure way to be safe the farther you are away of the start of a map.
      2 - you will not always be able to spend as many goods as is described here. Building infra in ALL your resource provinces when you start might not be in your best interest. Building all the infra might mean that you will not be able to build units, do research or upgrade your IC later on.
      3 - building 1 additional new IC in a core province is a well known starting strategy. Doing this with 1 IC can be of great benefit. Ruling this out all together seems a little short sighted.
      1 - True. The guide is just a start. Success in CoW generally requires the ability to adjust to each situation.

      2 - On most maps, must operate under a budget. Economic development, troop production and research all compete for limited resources. Sometimes must delay one thing to have the resources for something else. Making these decisions is part of the skill of the game.

      3. See #2. As much as I want another IC1 in the core in the first 8 days, it just seems to take too much away from everything else.
    • Nooberium wrote:

      1 - True. The guide is just a start. Success in CoW generally requires the ability to adjust to each situation.
      2 - On most maps, must operate under a budget. Economic development, troop production and research all compete for limited resources. Sometimes must delay one thing to have the resources for something else. Making these decisions is part of the skill of the game.

      3. See #2. As much as I want another IC1 in the core in the first 8 days, it just seems to take too much away from everything else.
      3 is something I nearly always do. Only exception I can think of are historical maps where resources are either super tight or you start with a country that has plenty of IC. It never seems to take away to much from other things to me. Maybe its because I usually push back building most level 2 airports. Some players build those in the first 8 days but I consider tacbombers to be usable only after level 2. I also never build rrg, so that gives me a bit more resources to I guess.
    • Of course, this depends hugely on the map. IC does two things: allows production of units and gives 10% more resources. If you happen to be able to capture a functional IC from a nearby AI (by simply delaying the attack by 1 day) you have the unit production there and you can build 4-5 Infra in the cores instead (much more resources).

      As usual, there is no rule that covers everything.
    • I usually wait to attack AI nations until day 2-4, so that I am sure that the AI has built a level 2 or level 3 IC.
      Sometimes, early game, I hire one intel spy to go around and see what level buildings people have before I attack. Saves me tons of resources.

      Also, with those resources I would have used to repair that complex, I can build an extra industrial complex in one of my resource provinces. Gives a slight edge to my army production.
      General Nightman

      Retired Hero


      "War is fought in three ways. Helping your enemy to lose, helping your allies to victory or helping yourself to win. Any way you take it, you are always helping someone."
    • General Nightman wrote:

      I usually wait to attack AI nations until day 2-4, so that I am sure that the AI has built a level 2 or level 3 IC.
      Sometimes, early game, I hire one intel spy to go around and see what level buildings people have before I attack. Saves me tons of resources.

      Also, with those resources I would have used to repair that complex, I can build an extra industrial complex in one of my resource provinces. Gives a slight edge to my army production.
      You are better of just checking the papers. No need to hire spies, if an IC finishes in a city, cities start with IC, you know its level 2.
    • I may be a bit late with this recommendation ... But I wish somebody had reminded me in my first game that I could buy resources with cash ... I spent a ton of gold winning that long solo victory in the tutorial map, not been aware that I could buy resources with my extra cash! ... ;(