[AWBW FFA Spoilers] CH is prodded into a lost cause

[Cheater Hater]

I wonder if the tradition of putting filler posts as the first post is warranted for AWBW--it's not like the first turn is ever meaningful, as we have map knowledge and the first move is always build X Infantry, where X=the number of bases you have (barring gimmick maps like the Emigration map that was offered in the main thread).

[Cheater Hater]

Well, that metagame choice didn't work out the best--I was expecting more damaging COs due to the number of players, then picked Sami in part to avoid that hassle during captures, and that was a complete miss. Sami's still good, but when the map is going to have a considerable air component, along with multiple opponents completely outclassing you in direct combat, I think I might have a disadvantage when we start fighting--I'm going to have to use my indirects wisely in that case. I'm wondering how much I can rely on Missiles on this map, and if sea combat is practical even considering 1500G per city (which just means Eagle and Max get faster Bombers). My neighbors are Lash and Eagle, so I can't even exploit Max

Whenever I get the turn I think I want to use my FTA Infantry to head for the base, then just use my two new infantry to capture the nearby cities on T2. T3 is interesting, as I can build both Infantry as well as a T-Copter, and I don't know what I want to do with that--head for the center, head to the Seaports, try to snipe Lash's base (along with a Recon--I can build that on T4 I think)? We'll see.

[Mardoc]

I wonder if the tradition of putting filler posts as the first post is warranted for AWBW--it's not like the first turn is ever meaningful, as we have map knowledge and the first move is always build X Infantry, where X=the number of bases you have (barring gimmick maps like the Emigration map that was offered in the main thread).

Pretty sure the tradition is already somewhat pointless as a result of the upgrade to the forum software which removes the mouseover text from thread titles .

[Cheater Hater]

We've finally finished Day 3 (maybe starting a FFA on Memorial Day weekend wasn't the best idea ), and something interesting is finally happening!


Not only am I building a recon, I'm leaving a base empty to do so! This is obviously a big risk to try to take ipecac's extra base, but in an FFA I need to take risks to try to get ahead, especially since my combat stats are going to be weaker. I feel like it can't go that badly though--next turn I can build a tank that's ready to move to that side along with two infantry in the other two bases, and the turn after I can build an AA to guard against a possible B-Copter (though I don't know how much Lash will build air units, as AFAIK they don't benefit from her passive at all). If ipecac isn't there yet I can start capturing the base on T5, though unfortunately I won't get visibility on the base until then (the recon's vision range is one square away), but again, risks. Even if I don't get to capture it right away, I should be able to harass the capturing infantry unless ipecac went right to the base like I did.

[Cheater Hater]

Well, I made some moves and things seem to be okay...


Oh. I slightly miscalculated, and yes ipecac can have the base completed on T4 (build T1, move T2, capture T3 and T4). I didn't get this report written for a bit, and ipecac's made his T5 move--let's see how he reacts:


That's interesting--he wants to get rid of this threat immediately. That's most of his funds for the turn burned on that early AA (probably the two infantry at most, though I don't know what he did with the surplus I've used on the T-Copter and Recon), and while it'll probably be good against Sami regardless (since it does well against foot soldiers), it doesn't match up well against my tank. I have three choices here:
1. Attack his infantry with mine, leave the T-Copter where it is, hide the recon in the woods (either 2N or 2W, probably the former). This obviously loses the T-Copter, but barring something in the fog, this saves my infantry (not counting a suicide attack from the damaged infantry).
2. Attack his infantry with mine, retreat the T-Copter, then either move the recon next to the infantry or kill the opposing infantry (obviously going recon-first). This saves the T-Copter along with the infantry, but at the cost of some damage to my recon, and the recon's probably the more-important unit to have health on at the moment. It's also closer to the action if it attacks the infantry, so it can be attacked by something from ipecac's middle base. This line also has the option of attacking with the recon and capturing with my infantry instead, as I think the AA only has 2 vision (but I need to check that) and won't see it. The details of this line need damage calculations (I think the AA deals less than 50% to the recon assuming ipecac doesn't leave the base blocked, which is probably fine), as well as details from what the recon sees.
3. Load the infantry into the T-Copter, retreat it (probably dropping the infantry onto the Port by my HQ/Lab), move the recon into the woods (probably 2N or 1NE). This is the safe plan, but it doesn't gain much tempo other than forcing the early AA.

My gut says some variation of 2, but as I said, I need to check the AA's vision range and do damage calculations.

[Cheater Hater]

We're in a bit of a blitz, so let me get a lot of updates done:

When we last left, I was ready to go and push ipecac--turns out AAs are better against recons than I thought, so I decided to retreat
Not much else, so let's go to the end of the next day:

Building from all four of my bases, we have I'm starting to encroach on Fenn's territory--nothing can go wrong, right? We can also see the ghost units screwing me over for the first time, preventing me from dropping on the northern port and being able to capture in the center.

Uh, where did my infantry go? Add another thing to the list of awful changes in AWBW--I should know what I could see in the fog if I was watching the turn! I mean, most of it I can guess--nothing can one-shot an Infantry on a city at this point, so it's probably something in the woods (almost certainly the infantry that was capturing last turn, though I didn't think of that until after the turn), as well as an indirect, but if it was two indirects I should get to know that! Anyway, let's see how the turn turned out:

That's an aggressive spot for that artillery, and Fenn's paying the price. Granted, I'm assuming there's more backup coming (chunking my tank down if nothing else), but that Artillery that was just built means Fenn might not have been expecting my invasion so quickly. His HQ is actually very exposed--obviously that won't be a concern until I get my SCOP, but that sneaks up on you.

The main concession I'm making is the west--my tank's going to be chunked down, but the AA being attacked means my B-Copters can help on that front (though they also want to help against Fenn's Artillery spam). We'll see what happens next.

Edit: ipecac was on while I played, so I got to see what's going on in the west--and it isn't pretty:

Another Tank showed up--I'm thinking I need to set up some protection around my HQ, and give up most of the remaining territory, hoping I can quickly get rid of Fenn and use that to get back control.

[Cheater Hater]

While Brick is apparently away from AWBW for a while (first time I haven't woken up to a turn in a while), let's do a bit of catch up. Let's see how it looks at the start of my Day 8 turn:

Neither front looks that good unfortunately--I've talked about the west, but in the east Fenn showed up with a Tank and B-Copter along with a bunch of Infantry and the previously known artillery. Let's see how I handled it.

The west is very simple: retreat! I need to set up some defenses around my HQ, but I've ceded most everything else. Of course, the more-interesting front is the west, and that's also where I made my first big mistake--I attacked the artillery with my tank assuming I would send a recon as well, but it did less than I thought, and that's basically a tank lost for almost nothing. Otherwise the turn went well as I moved up my infantry and got a bunch of attackers in position. Since Brick is third in the turn order, we can see how my neighbors reacted:

The west is very scary--I'm assuming those tanks moved into the bushes by the city ipecac just captured, and thus I need to assume there are a ton of units in the area (maybe even prepping a Rocket or something?). The west is more interesting, as while I did lose my tank (while causing the Artillery to retreat, at least into the woods 1N), Fenn also managed to put a B-Copter into the range of my newly-built AA!
(I wonder if you consider that, even if you don't have vision of my base--even if I don't see the B-Copter you moved up, I know you're Eagle).
I also have the option of moving my B-Copter to attack his tank, though that means I probably lose it to the other B-Copter--then I can probably kill that with my AA, though then he'll probably have a Tank in the area by then (though it appears he built another Artillery).

Another interesting option is that I can start capturing his HQ with a full-health infantry--obviously it isn't surviving the turn, but it could serve as a good distraction. If we assume the two Infantry we see can't get it to 3 health (which they honestly might be able to), he either needed to have the Artillery in the woods 1N, or send the B-Copter or Tank after it. If I wanted to really go for the gambit, I could park a unit 1W of the HQ (probably the damaged Recon, and I get some chip damage on the Infantry on the Port as a bonus), and then he almost certainly needs the Artillery to be in the woods for it to work. I also can use the T-Copter as a sacrificial lamb, either to block the tile 1E of the HQ or reveal the woods. I can even pop my COP in order to get some extra defense! I shouldn't be talking myself into this, but I think it might work!

Seriously, play your turn Brick--I'm almost ready to start some battle simulations

Edit: Back to reality--an infantry attack plus a real unit (tank, AA, or B-Copter) most likely knocks it down to 3 HP--yes, it distracts a lot of units if the artillery isn't there, but I'd lose a bunch of units (most of the capturing infantry, the damaged recon, the T-Copter), and thus it doesn't seem worth it, (especially since all the close results need my COP, and the SCOP can guarantee a capture if I'm planning around it).

[Cheater Hater]

Brick finally played, so I got to play my turn--not much unexpected happened

The one surprise is that my B-Copter did more to Fenn's Tank than I expected. Otherwise I got ambushed in the west, but that isn't a big deal (especially if he keeps the AA there and lets it get hit by my Artillery). We'll see what happens next turn in the east--hopefully I get my SCOP before Eagle can clean up with Lightning Strike (and he's careless with his HQ).

Speaking of fighting with Fenn, we have that duel I started with him. I feel like I'm doing well, though with fog it's a lot more difficult to know. I have a bunch of pictures here, though obviously there are spoilers if Fenn sees this before it ends. If anyone has any questions let me know (probably in spoiler tags just in case).

[Cheater Hater]

I waited a bit for this report, as the turns have slowed to a crawl (at best one turn a day). Let's see how things are at the beginning of the turn:

Nothing special there, so let's see how I played it:

The west is fairly boring--ipecac's actually played Day 11 at this point, and other than moving up a tank (and taking a chunk out of mine) nothing else has really changed. However, the most important conflict is what's going on with Fenn in the east. Sure, we haven't seen that much right now (other than the Artillery), but Fenn's Lightning Strike is fully charged now. That means most of the west stuff is going to be wiped out (note the tank he just built that faded into the fog). Fenn has to be very careful though--if he's crazy enough to not leave a unit on his lab, I'm getting Victory March next turn, and that should be a win (as I doubt he can kill all five infantry in range), and probably a win overall (as it'll be a virtual 2v1v1 at that point) if I can survive ipecac for a couple turns. I do need to be at least a little careful on that side though, killing/wounding all of ipecac's infantry in range, as he has Prime Tactics up as well.

While this game has been going slow, the annoying thing is that Fenn's been busy, and my duel has slowed to a crawl as well. This feels bad, as I've broken through, capturing properties on Fenn's half of the map, and still have a ton of units. It's not like the SCOPs can break through either, as Fenn just went with the COP in a desperate effort to turn the tide, while I just used my second SCOP. Fenn did just build a Medium Tank, but I'm feeling like I might start to build some of the bigger units soon (maybe even a Bomber? That feels reckless, but it would take forever to get a Neotank to the northern front. I'm not supposed to build a Battleship in my newly-captured Port, am I?). Then again, this is close to the point where Bob conceded in our duel, though I don't know how many units Fenn has left (is there a unit count in AWBW?).

Edit: Of course, as soon as Fenn finally does play I start moving stuff, then AWBW goes down
Edit 2: AWBW went back up, and Fenn did play his turn--and left his lab free when I have a full meter...Play quicker Brick!