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Gave the game a try - 5/28/2008 9:55:50 AM   
goodwoodrw


Posts: 2661
Joined: 2/14/2005
Status: offline 		G'day all,
Bought this game late last year, couldn't get into it. I had few days recently and decided to give it another try, I read the manual from front to back, watch the tutorial and decided to give it another go. First of all I am amazed by the depth of this game, and found wasn't that much harder than COG, (I still play that game more than any other). I lost before the end 1862, None governors liked me very much and my NW, I couldn't get it out of the negative. A couple of questions. is NW and governors attitude linked, NW is that gained just by battles and how do you keep governors happy ? You can't please them every time they ask for something, there isn't enough troops or money to go around.

< Message edited by BASB -- 5/28/2008 9:58:06 AM >

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Formerly Goodwood

Post #: 1
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/29/2008 12:58:45 AM   
Ironclad

 

Posts: 1924
Joined: 11/22/2006
Status: offline 		Governors attitude falls each turn (doubled if opposition party) if National Will is below -6. Other ways to increase/decrease attitude include promotions/demotions, building developments, local victories, enemy occupation, losing brigades/forts, failing to meet Governor requests, unsupported muster/conscription/impressment attempts. See the list on page 230 of the manual plus the earlier section on Governors. For a summary of National Will see the post thread below.

(in reply to goodwoodrw)
Post #: 2
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/29/2008 2:47:47 AM   
Erik Rutins

 

Posts: 37503
Joined: 3/28/2000
From: Vermont, USA
Status: offline 		Hey BASB,

quote:

ORIGINAL: BASB
Bought this game late last year, couldn't get into it. I had few days recently and decided to give it another try, I read the manual from front to back, watch the tutorial and decided to give it another go.


Did you update to the latest 1.10.10 release? A lot of improvements from the original version there.

quote:

A couple of questions. is NW and governors attitude linked


Yes, if your NW gets to -6 or lower it will start to negatively affect governor attitudes each turn, as well as new recruit quality, etc. Low NW is not a good thing.

quote:

NW is that gained just by battles and how do you keep governors happy ? You can't please them every time they ask for something, there isn't enough troops or money to go around.


There's a bit of an art to this. First, don't fight unnecessary battles early on - try to always fight on good terms since battle losses can be the biggest NW swing. In general, if you don't let NW get very low, your governors will be MUCH easier to keep happy. Second, look at your governors and decide which are the ones you really want to keep happy and focus on those rather than trying to make everyone happy. The guys with power and high temper will generally cause more problems for you and if you get enough of those upset with you it can tank your economy and your war effort. The governors of the most productive and populous states are also generally the ones you want to keep happiest.

Regards,

- Erik


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CEO, Matrix Games LLC



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(in reply to goodwoodrw)
Post #: 3
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/29/2008 9:50:25 AM   
goodwoodrw


Posts: 2661
Joined: 2/14/2005
Status: offline 		Thanks folks, pity there is not a button to impeach these less desirable rubber necks, yes Erik I have the latest version.

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Post #: 4
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/29/2008 10:32:24 PM   
Fallshcirmjaeger

 

Posts: 9
Joined: 5/21/2008
Status: offline 		I too, am struggling to learn this game. Just too many choices! And the manual! Egads...a very tough read. I've read through it twice now and have a better understanding of things, but putting them into practice is a whole different banana.

Also struggling a little bit with the interface. Especially when I want to "unload" one container or unit from another. I finally figured out to just click somewhere in the province and it will happen, but I tried a bunch of crazy stuff before I learned.

Still havent figured out how to "predict" income. Advisor's say this amount is our net, but turn reports always say less. I guess the Advisors cannot do simple mathematics, or something. Might have to do with the opponent's turn.

Just little stuff like that. I'm learning faster as I put more hours into it, sort of a snowball effect. The game is very fun and interesting. It bears some resemblance to an old Victory Games Civil War game a friend and I used to while away at for hours on end. That was a pretty fun game, and this game reminds of it a little bit.

Mostly I have been experimenting with the USA side in the Standard Campaign Advanced Game. Options are More Generals, no Random Stats or Start, and Always Detail Combat. I figured why bother with Basic and Intermediate when I really want to do Detailed Combat in some cases? Like the time Longstreet probed into Cumberland with only a division and MacLellan arrived with 60000 regulars in the AotP and captured four of the five rebel brigades! I didnt really want to engage in battle in Early Nov 1861 but just couldnt pass up that opportunity! Those captured horses sure helped out!

Dive right in! The water is only cold for a minute, right? And then hypothermia sets in and all is good....lol.

Currently I am following the advice a future opponent and just clicking through turns. Not trying to win or even do well, just experiencing the flow and features of the game. Very nice! Much fun and the hours just pass away! I can see myself playing this game for a long time to come.

Probably the worst thing I have done is actually read through some of the War Room and Northern Strategy posts. Yikes! I just cannot see how all of that gets accomplished in such a short timespan! Where do the resources come from? Looking through those posts I can see I have a lot of education in front of me if I ever hope to compete against some of those veteran players. It is good stuff and I thank all those for sharing their experience, and also for setting a high standard.

~ "Now git down in dat town an' git dem shoes!"

(in reply to goodwoodrw)
Post #: 5
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/29/2008 11:49:21 PM   
Gil R.


Posts: 10821
Joined: 4/1/2005
Status: offline 		BASB,
I'm glad that you gave the game another shot. You're part of a growing trend I've noticed of people who initially did not like "Forge of Freedom" and put it aside, but now are giving it another shot and finding that they like it. While I think that the initial release was a perfectly good game, we have put A TON of new stuff into the game, a lot of it based on customers' suggestions. And we're not through embellishing the game further, though I think that our best ideas will probably have to wait for an expansion.

oldSundown,
Some people jump right into the advanced game and find themselves frustrated and overwhelmed, so I like your attitude. If you don't mind being frustrated and overwhelmed at first, that's a perfectly fine way to learn the game. As for the contradicting income figures, if I understand correctly what you're referring to my guess is that when you have less income than expected it's because something happened to block some of that income, such as partisans or raiders doing their thing, unrest hitting one of your cities, etc. Could that be what you're experiencing?

< Message edited by Gil R. -- 5/29/2008 11:50:27 PM >

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Post #: 6
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/30/2008 12:30:21 AM   
Fallshcirmjaeger

 

Posts: 9
Joined: 5/21/2008
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Gil R.
oldSundown,
Some people jump right into the advanced game and find themselves frustrated and overwhelmed, so I like your attitude. If you don't mind being frustrated and overwhelmed at first, that's a perfectly fine way to learn the game. As for the contradicting income figures, if I understand correctly what you're referring to my guess is that when you have less income than expected it's because something happened to block some of that income, such as partisans or raiders doing their thing, unrest hitting one of your cities, etc. Could that be what you're experiencing?


No frustration...more like fascination/anticipation. As an old board wargamer (A3R, 3R4, ASL) and veteran of hundreds of Civ/SMAC wars/scenarios I am somewhat accustomed to steep learning curves. Its easy to get all caught up in organization and sweating over details and potentials when sometimes the best thing to do is to click the END TURN button! At this stage of my "OCS training" this is likely the most valuable tool in the game! That and prudent use of the Backspace key...lol.

The income numbers probably are modified by partisan and raider activity. Didnt think of that! See? It's just that kind of stuff that just takes time to learn and absorb. Bring on the CSS Hunley!


~ "Damn the torpedoes! Full steam ahead!"

(in reply to Gil R.)
Post #: 7
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/30/2008 2:42:49 AM   
Mad Russian


Posts: 13256
Joined: 3/16/2008
From: Texas
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Gil R.

Some people jump right into the advanced game and find themselves frustrated and overwhelmed, so I like your attitude. If you don't mind being frustrated and overwhelmed at first, that's a perfectly fine way to learn the game.



The only frustration we found with going straight to the advanced level is that the rules don't support that method of play. They suppor the learning from the bottom up style. The frustration then occurs when you try to find an answer to how things work in the more advanced level in the rule set. That can be extremely frustrating.

Good Hunting.

MR

(in reply to Gil R.)
Post #: 8
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/30/2008 10:02:14 AM   
GShock


Posts: 1245
Joined: 12/9/2007
From: San Francisco, CA - USA
Status: offline 		I never even saw the basic and intermediate but the only thing i got tired up of quickly is the detailed combat. I think most players quit playing the game because they can't select a proper level of difficulty to make the game challenging.

I've found mine and i posted about it. As CSA i am in dramatic situation, as USA i have to fight an easier but longer war...the game is good, actually it's a loss that WCS moved to other projects i hope they can come back sometime and give another go to make it even better.

(in reply to Mad Russian)
Post #: 9
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/30/2008 10:43:21 AM   
Gil R.


Posts: 10821
Joined: 4/1/2005
Status: offline
quote:

I've found mine and i posted about it. As CSA i am in dramatic situation, as USA i have to fight an easier but longer war...the game is good, actually it's a loss that WCS moved to other projects i hope they can come back sometime and give another go to make it even better.


We haven't moved on from FOF permanently. Similar comments were being made by "Crown of Glory" players when we had "moved on" to FOF and weren't making further improvements to that game. Now that we're working on the COG expansion (plus a secret project, though that's on the back-burner as we finish the coding on COG:EE) it looks like we've moved on from FOF. But we expect to return to it before too long, even if at the moment we have no "official" plan to do so.

_____________________________

Michael Jordan plays ball. Charles Manson kills people. I torment eager potential customers by not sharing screenshots of "Brother Against Brother." Everyone has a talent.

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Post #: 10
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/30/2008 3:58:17 PM   
morganbj


Posts: 3634
Joined: 8/12/2007
From: Mosquito Bite, Texas
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: BASB

Thanks folks, pity there is not a button to impeach these less desirable rubber necks, yes Erik I have the latest version.


To be honest, I usually just turn them off on the options screen. I find them too distracting, realistic in a lot of ways perhaps, but distracting. Besides, If I'm supposed to be an all powerful president that controls every detail down to which city builds what, and where each individual brigade moves (and what weapon they have, etc.), then I can just ignore the governors and their effects. <Click!> Done. "Now, what jerk did you want posted to the ANV headquarters?"

(in reply to goodwoodrw)
Post #: 11
RE: Gave the game a try - 5/30/2008 5:34:14 PM   
GShock


Posts: 1245
Joined: 12/9/2007
From: San Francisco, CA - USA
Status: offline 		Perhaps you should post a poll to see if there's interest around a FoF expansion

(in reply to Gil R.)
Post #: 12
RE: Gave the game a try - 6/1/2008 5:49:23 AM   
Gil R.


Posts: 10821
Joined: 4/1/2005
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: GShock

Perhaps you should post a poll to see if there's interest around a FoF expansion



Oh, we suspect that there's interest. Whether we produce an expansion depends partly on how "Crown of Glory: Emperor's Edition" does, since if it sells well we'll know there's similar potential in a FOF expansion. But also, there's the question of what our next FOF-related product should be -- an expansion on the current strategic+tactical game or, as has been suggested, some stand-alone historical battles using just the tactical engine? We can do either, of course.

_____________________________

Michael Jordan plays ball. Charles Manson kills people. I torment eager potential customers by not sharing screenshots of "Brother Against Brother." Everyone has a talent.

(in reply to GShock)
Post #: 13
RE: Gave the game a try - 6/8/2008 7:03:05 PM   
Odox

 

Posts: 34
Joined: 3/1/2006
Status: offline 		Greetings Gentlemen,

I too am one of those that set aside FoF at first and then returned to the game with pleasure many months later.

Frankly, the graphics were initially (and still are) garish and repugnant to me. The game presented itself visually as far too cartoonish and simple for my tastes. The thick-bordered primary-color appearance of the main map and detailed battle screens wanted for a great deal of refinement, and the juvenile little figurines on the main map was straight out of Civilization. When those that have been enamored with the appearance of Civ finally see a higher plane and move on, FoF's appearance will unfortunately be very dated. We have, after all, come so much further in graphical presentations in computer simulations (think TC2M), so much so that one would think Hex Wars would have been retired from programmers' minds after SMA/SMG.

I won't even consider purchasing AGEOD. It reminds me too much of that old kid's board game Candyland being crossed with Stratego. Absolutely awful stuff! I'm still hoping for an enthusiastic fan of FoF to come forward and mod a much-improved main map, much like the excellent options that have been created for WITP (sigh).

But the mechanics of FoF....ahhhh....it DOES have a surprising amount going on under the hood, and it performs smoothly and cleanly. Several pages of charts, graphs and calculations later, I'm really enjoying myself. I think what motivated me to look into the game once more was a recent road trip. I drove from central Virginia through east and west Kentucky and Tennessee, to Arkansas and Oklahoma; finally meandering down through east Texas and finishing in San Antonio. Being a lover of history and having had so many miles to travel before me, I think it was inevitable I would spend many hours prior to returning to FoF just driving along wondering, "....hmmm....what if...."!

Warmly and with thanks,

Odox


(in reply to Gil R.)
Post #: 14
RE: Gave the game a try - 6/9/2008 2:14:53 AM   
pkpowers

 

Posts: 412
Joined: 12/12/2000
From: midland,TX
Status: offline 		I won't even consider purchasing AGEOD. It reminds me too much of that old kid's board game Candyland being crossed with Stratego. Absolutely awful stuff!

just looking at a screen shot doesn't give AGEOD's game justice ; I've played both and AGEOD is a great Civil war game

next time try the game before slamming it so harshly...

(in reply to Odox)
Post #: 15
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