Tactics

[UesugiKenshin]

There is a kind of Chinese kung fu created by the movements and antics of monkeys. One technique is called "monkey steals a peach". The monkey seems ridiculous and staggering and foolish, but then grabs forcefully in the groin area in a twisting motion and pummels the same region with the other hand. And fools fall for it as they thought, "Hey this opponent is weak and ridiculous. He's scared of us. He's a coward afraid to fight." Then BAM!

Never let the opponent know what you really are thinking or feeling. Act diplomaticly even if you loathe them for 700 turns. Bide your time and steal a peach.

[UesugiKenshin]

Pompey Magnus was once a greater man that Caesar, but the two former friends have a falling out after Caesar's daughter dies and she was Pomey's wife. So initially Caesar bitzes into Rome with a scant undersized force, but then can go faster, and Pompey who is defending Rome has no trustworthy soldiers and a small force himself. He has to abandon Rome.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=drPv0-1dHXM


He then is chased all over Italy and has to flee to Greece. An overconfident Caesar tries to outmanuever him to force him to fight,but Pompey is smarter than that. This delaying tactic allows Pompey to add fresh troops. Think about the frustration and irritation of Caesar and his forces at being denied victory.

Then Pompey seizes the initiative and Caesar is screwed and tired with low provisions and now fighting against a superior force with far more cavalry.

Now Caesar has to fight and luckily wins because a mishap as Pompey's own cavalry end up crashing into his own troops, and in the confusion, some of Pompey's soldiers run into a flat out retreat.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Pharsalus
The Battle of Pharsalus in which two great military commanders have things go exceeding well and terribly awry and involving mauevering. Small manuevering errors and delays to victory and lack of preparation and overconfident zeal all in a series of famous encounters.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QfLOaunQqxA

[UesugiKenshin]

In chess, a young student tactician will have an epiphany and begin to apply what they learned and execute tactics, but then their plans initially fail. They think, "If only I had begun orchestrating manuevers 2 or 3 moves prior, then I would have a strong defense and launch a withering annihilating attack".

An older veteran grasps this because they once were too slow on seizing the initiative and mustering troops on the chess board...themselves.

I could have; I should have; I would have crushed my opponent.

[UesugiKenshin]

To launch a ground invasion, you need an assault ship escort or an escort of some kind, several transports, and then load them, and then navigate to the sector in question.

You might send a fast fighter having a speed of 4 as if the minor race aliens have a fleet, as they are combined, their likely speed is 2.5 (if grouped with some fast starships, otherwise, they may be slow and less than 2 sectors/turn). If you deployed a highly manueverable fast fighter set to avoid, they might go make a scan their system, avoid a direct confrontation, and by evading then get an assessment of their fleet strength. The problem is they are medium range starships. But then, it's kind of crazy to send a fleet and a ground invasion long range as that is so far away that anything might happen. This is not WW2 and sending something similar to a Pacific island, but sending your troops hundreds of light years away on a fool's errand as every sector is equivalent to 20 light years, and at high turn numbers, long range may be hundreds of light years away.

A riskier tactic is sending in a scout as the scout has a longer range, and probably is slower, and so even set to avoid, they might get caught. I managed to do so in testing when the indicator text was a red 39% indicating they might be killed. I wasn't trying to attack them, just get in and get out.

[Note: as a minor race fleet cannot technically leave their system, entering their system can "displace" them as they try to catch or engage you.]

To do all of the above means you can form fleets, you know how to click empires, then system, then defenses, and sort by number of troops to assess which sector has the most troops...like Malodan.

Or go to empire, then military, then troops, then sort by experience to see which sectors have the most experienced troops.

Or go to empire, then military, then troops, then sort by sector to get an assessment of what overall experience and troops composition is in a sector like Malodan.

Send the most experienced troops to get collected by a group of most experienced transports who have an assaut ship escort.

The real heavy lifting will be done in the first wave by an assault group led by a command ship acting as the flagship and comprised of your most experienced diverse starships.

[UesugiKenshin]

Think about displacement of a minor race fleet as a smart tactic. You might lose a scout, but not a fighter where both are set to avoid. If displaced, then any bonuses that the minor race fleet would have had in the home sector is now negated, right? Any sector defense or a starbase, is now not going to synergistically add to their defenses. "You drew them out into the open, and they stupidly left."

In medieval times, frustrated beseiged defenders might have a powerful cavalry and so their horses are not doing them any good inside a castle. So they might "sally out" and counter attack but never head on as that would just waste their cavalry. Only in dumb Hollywood productions (cough cough Game of Thrones) do cavalry head straight into professional soldiers. Cavalry haven't done that since the early medieval period or risk getting speared by pike or polearms later. See Braveheart.

You don't sally without a valid tactic to make it work for you.

[UesugiKenshin]

In history when the enemy is on the run ie retreating as maybe their attacking commander is a moron and didn't bring enough supplies or has bad weather or has horrendous attrition due to disease or tainted water, then a defending enemy cavalry might chase them down with a devastating flank attack.

Imagine being mired in the muck as it's raining and your tired demoralizing men at arms are now on a forced march back due to your poor planning. Well such soldiers might easily lose and be undisciplined and unable to mount a defense.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobelar
In Irish history, a hobelar was a horse or even a pony that was nimble and might ordinarily be thought of a weak quasi-cavalry unit, but it was tactically suited for operating in marshlands.

Many a foolish English knight might be humilated by a wise hobelar. The English wore heavy armor and if the ground was dry and firm and with a slight decline, they could mount a tremendous temporary force. They are not so great going uphill as they lose momentum and the horse is not nimble and can't change direction very fast.

[UesugiKenshin]

The Welsh light cavalry had a crazy technique that worked. Ordinarily when retreating on horse you have a terrible disadvantage. Well some Welsh light cavalry learned to artfully hurl short spears backwards. Many light cavalry hurled short spears forwards or were horse archers and did so to great effect. In western civilization, only the Welsh managed to make this work for them.

Imagine some heavy cavalry is chasing a light cavalry unit so less armor, say leather, and is not weighed down. So it's harder to interdict them. But then the overconfident heavy cavalry rider then takes a spear to the face or body as the Welsh soldier hurls it accurately. It was rather surprising and humilating and the Welsh might get away.

[UesugiKenshin]

To make a lance work on a heavy cavalry actually consistently penetrate takes a remarkably trained strong horse but they are not very fast. It required stirrups and "couched lance" techniques and armor got heavier and heavier and so they were not as fleet and so impact force could actually diminish.

It takes a long time to teach a professional soldier that which is why medieval tournaments became popular as how else do you train them outside of war?

Bigger and heavier is not necessary better. Long times to train soldiers is not necessarily better.

[UesugiKenshin]

If you want to start trying tactics, I suggest you save your games and export them to your device. Then load the beta version. Then try the turn #700 advanced save game.

For example, the Yimada's fleet attacked an innocent Omega Alliance colony ship. I sent a mixed fleet that could easily destroy them along with several transports who could do the ground invasion. Both sides are at fault as I drifted into their system. I tried sending a customized scout set to avoid, but it has a speed of 2 and is not very manueverable (it is long range though so has a niche purpose). That was able to avoid, but they attacked it and then were displaced from their home sector.

My fleet is not only incredible strong and outclassing them in every way except they have cloaking. I would rather get them as willing members than use the tip of my sword to get them to bend the knee.

So I sent in a customized fast fighter set to avoid. They didn't bother to attack it as I entered the battle menu, reinterated "avoid" and hailed them. That worked. They weren't happy,but didn't attack, and were not displaced, and so diplomatic negotiations shall proceed.

There is more than one way to skin a cat.

If I really wanted to make a gunboat diplomacy statement, I could have configured very fast ships in my fleet, such that as they are customized, the Yimandar are no match, set to avoid, and let them stew as I just hung around until they made the first diplomatic gesture.

BotEgives you many options.

[UesugiKenshin]

Just to also add to my advantage, I surrounded the Yimandar sector with customized Omega battleships, had they tried to leave their system, as they had against my customized scout, those were set to "attack".

If I wanted to, I could leave one sector open to "funnel them" where I want them. I could have built a starbase there, and their only option was to evade to an Omega sector protected by a starbase versus a head on battle in which they had no chance of winning.

Directing an enemy is often done in chess when putting the enemy into a disadvanted position when they must get out of check. That left their homesector terribly unprotected, and any modifiers that did confer a defensive advantage were neutralized.

[UesugiKenshin]

A military commander should play aggressively, protect their units with reasonable levels of risk, and use psy-ops rather than humilate the enemy. You can be ruthless and still benevolent. You never want an enemy to think they have to fight. That can fire them up and and add spirit in formerly demoralized soldiers. "We got to fight to defend our honor."

I do not want genocide. I want to add their strength to mine and have their fleet intact.

[UesugiKenshin]

I used less aggressive tactics with the Ankara as we have had no contact and no hostilities.
http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... #Ankaraner
I sent in another customized fighter set to avoid, that is very fast and very manueverable and is quite strong on its own. Anyone would be proud to fly it. Well they opened diplomatic relations and did not attack.

They have fine scouts and fighters that are quite manueverable. I hope they end up joining on their own,rather than me forcing them to.
http://birth-of-the-empires.de/wiki/ind ... #Ankaraner
You can play a 100% peaceful BotE game or all along a continuum until you are annihilator set to exterminate anyone. It's entirely up to you.

[UesugiKenshin]

Don't underestimate the strength and ability of minor race ships. They may be antiquated ships by the time you engage them, with titanium single hulls when your customized ships have hardy resilient iridium double hulls.

They are defenders, possibly with military academies so mounting up the experience and may have special project defenses. Sure a single fighter that is very fast and very manueverable can dart around...until waves of torpedoes and beam weaponry fry them to a crisp.

A stunt pulled against the Yimander likely won't work against the Brane. Pay attention to what your setting is (avoid, attack, cloak, etc) and when interdicted, then enter the menu to reiterate your standing orders and hail them.

A very red low number and you just sent a very expensive starship and an irreplaceable pilot to their doom.

[UesugiKenshin]

That is like bombing missions. Yes, some air support needs to soften up defenders but most are just civillians. Those are your future members and families and the miners who make you income. They is no need to be grotesque and annihilate them. It actually outages Khaoran troops when a commander does that as they prefer to fight with honor. You just tainted their mission...and they are not amused.

[UesugiKenshin]

Displacing a tough enemy that likely has"home court advantage" by special defenses, should be displaced. It's a gutsy move as a fast fighter draws them out into an ambush. That is hoary tactic that has been used to get impetuous units into hot water by overconfidence.