There are several cases, when you are pounding a factory/base that you
desperately need to acquire; you come across a dilemma as to which
units you should use!
Note: Always use as much surround as possible, before initiating your
attack!
Case 1: Attacking a BASE filled with porcupines!
We begin by mentioning two very popular combinations, though not always
the most favorites of mine! These are the Artillery + mc-31 combo and
the Tiger + Grizzli combo! I choose to favor the first one between the
two! The reason being is that in at least 50% of the cases, a tiger
will not manage to destroy a porcupine, even with 200% surround. I
have not checked through a statistics program, but I HAVE checked through
personal experience! Whereas the artillery has a much greater chance of
destroying a porcupine from the very first blast! What that means, is
that you may eventually need LESS cash to kill all the porcupines in a
base, if you sue the artillery + mc-31 combo, since you will not have
to buy as many mc-31s! Second advantage of the artillery lies in the
fact that it has a greater range, which in most cases, means you can
stack them in a safe city near that base and make your assault from
up to 5 squares away! That may prove useful if you do not manage to break
through, since it will not leave your artillery exposed! The tigers are
almost certainly to be left exposed, unless you own a city adjacent to
the enemy base, due to their limited range!
The cost of the artillery - mc31 combo is (91 + 43) = 134$
and the tiger - grizzli combo (67 + 70) = 137$
A personal suggestion, is to actually use SCUDS! There are probably a
lot of people ready to argue this one, however, Scuds cost 117$ and
with the maximum surround can kill a porcupine instantly! The percentage of
failing to do so is extremely small and can be easily covered with a
handful of mc31s! In addition, their range allows their use from a safely kept
city! The only problem lies in acquiring the Scud technology, since it
costs considerably more to reach the Scud, than to reach the tiger or
the artillery!
To make a sensible judgment between all three tactics:
Tech level Cost Effectiveness Re-usability Possible
required Overall Cost
Tiger + Grizzli Lowest 137$ Lowest Least likely Medium
Artillery + mc31 Middle 134$ Medium Likely Lowest
Scud + mc31 Highest 160$ Highest Most likely Highest
The terms used are comparative towards each of the three combinations!
Now to analyze all the conditions listed on the chart.
The tech level is self-explanatory. It is basically the techs you must
buy / acquire in order to have those units at your disposal!
The 'Cost' is the mathematical addition between the units involved.
That is, the highest cost per porcupine!
Effectiveness is the likelihood that the porcupine will be destroyed
without the necessity of the secondary unit (grizzli; mc331; mc31). The
chances I have encountered so far are (with 200% surround and no
experience):
Re-usability relies on two factors. Whether the unit will survive
during the turn if the attack fails (i.e. BASE is not taken), which is
affected by its range as was previously discussed. Furthermore, how
readily may the unit be re-used for an assault elsewhere. Which relies
somewhat on range yet again, because with a scud you can
attack from up to 10 squares away, whereas a tiger needs to be at two
squares away!
The Possible Overall Cost is affected by all the factors, but mainly, it
is mostly affected by the 'Effectiveness' of each combination! A reminder
is that the artillery and scud may not need transportation, since they
can attack from afar, either due to mobility (artillery has 11 moves!) or
range (scud has 10 squares range!). The tiger is found lacking in both!
Taking the averages from above, we can make the following calculations:
Likely Cost (for every 24 porcupines - to get a good indication):
- Tiger + Grizzli: [(3 x 67) + (5 x 137)] x3 = 886$ at 8
= 2658$ at 24
- Artillery + MC31: [(4.5 X 91) + (3.5 x 134)] x3 = 878.5$ at 8
= 2635.5$ at 24
- Scud + MC31: [(6.5 x 117) + (1.5 x 160)] x3 = 1000.5$
= 3001.5$
Seemingly, the scud seems to be the most expensive one, but lets take a
closer look...
Additional cost of transport (assuming your factory is not adjacent to
the enemy base) - using the number of units above:
- Tiger + Grizzli: 9 + (15 x 2) = 39 units
Likelihood of tigers not needing transport is extremely LOW! Thus, we can
assume that we will need transportation for all units!
Hercules: 39 / 5 = 8 Hercs x 103 = 824$
- Artillery + MC31: 13.5 + (10.5 x 2) = 33.5 units
However, the likelihood that Artillery wont be needing transports is high!
Hence:
Case 'a': Hercules: 33.5 / 5 = 7 Hercs x 103 = 721$
Case 'b': Hercules: [33.5 - (13.5 + 10.5)] / 5 = 2 Hercs (!) x 103 = 206$
- Scud + MC31: 19.5 + (4.5 x 2) = 28.5 units
Likelihood of Scuds not needing transports is high!
Hence:
Case 'a': Hercules: 28.5 / 5 = 6 Hercs x 103 = 618$
Case 'b': Hercules: [28.5 - (18.5 + 4.5) = 1 (or 2) Hercs x 103 = 103 / 206$
In the case of a fortified factory being attacked, instead of a BASE,
the additional damage required, decreases the effectiveness of the tiger
+ grizzli combo even further.
To sum up so far:
- Always use of as much surround as possible, before initiating the attack!
- Make sure you have the desired technology available!
- Plan your attack (i.e. calculate roughly how much you can afford to pay)
- Check how many porcupines exist in the BASE / factory. You can
estimate with a spy (have a look at the scroll bar)!
- Bottom line is, if you are attempting a single turn attack (i.e. kill the
enemy in one turn), then use the artillery+mc31 combo and/or tiger+grizzli
combo. If you are attacking over more than one turn, then use the artillery
+ mc331 combo along with the scud + mc31 combo.
- In the case of attacking a fortified factory, again head for Art+mc31 and
scud+mc31! The tiger is even more ineffective against 240 defenses!
- If you cannot break through in one single turn (assuming you cant double),
make sure you secure all the attacking units you have used in one or more
cities filled with porcupines!
The short-range units will be discussed in 'Part 2'.