How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE?

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How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE?

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All Forums >> [New Releases from Matrix Games] >> War in the Pacific: Admiral's Edition >> How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE?

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How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE? - 11/25/2009 3:10:31 PM

Riko

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How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE?

First of all, I'd like to say that I enjoy playing WitPAE as well as it's whole concept and presentation.
Nevertheless I'm unsure and got some questions:

1. Why don't battles show the factors that influence it's results? How should one analyse and improve in tactics without knowing these?
2. Why are battles fought in sequence one unit after another? The fighting in battles happens simultaneous and units influence another.

Don't knowing all the factors and getting different results each time, makes me feel like combat depends too much on dice and chance.
I really hope I'm totally wrong about this.
The game including shipment to Germany costed 83� that I wouldn't have paid for a Panzer General style game.

Please excuse me if there's allready a similar topic. I'm German and couldn't find one.
Thanks in advance for your replies.

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RE: How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE? - 11/25/2009 3:28:07 PM

jwilkerson

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Riko
How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE?

Very much! Each turn contains 1000s and 1000s of die rolls - hecque - each battle contains 100s of die rolls. Of course these "die rolls" are made "against" factors like unit experience and the condition of the unit and many other factors - but there is a whole lot of randomization going on under the hood.

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RE: How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE? - 11/25/2009 3:39:49 PM

Swenslim

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Hm... like in real life everything very much depends on dice and chance. All major naval battles in Pacific were won with much influence of dice and chance.

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RE: How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE? - 11/25/2009 4:44:12 PM

Grotius

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On the other hand, while there are lots of dice rolls, the player has many ways to increase the odds in his favor. More generally, better play will tend to generate better outcomes, especially as the game wears on. Over the long run in AE, luck plays less of a role and skill more of a role.

As golfer Ben Hogan once put it, "the more I practice the luckier I get." (Actually, this quotation is various ascribed to Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, and Tom Watson, but I think Hogan said it first.)

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RE: How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE? - 11/25/2009 5:02:42 PM

pad152

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Luck plays a part in specific battles but, not the war, that's up to you! I don't understand why anyone would want to play a game where the results for the same event are always the same? Just like in real life, sometimes you get lucky

and sometimes you don't

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RE: How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE? - 11/25/2009 5:46:28 PM

Riko

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Thanks for these fast replies!

OK, I agree that theres got to be luck somewhere.
F.ex. it was pure luck that the Bismarck's steering was hit by a single torpedo which led to its sure destruction and this surely had some kind of impact on the war (not much so I guess...).
But I think luck isn't of very high relevance at the strategic/operational level.
That might be even more true at air and land battles than at sea.
Luck can't influence numbers like manpower, caliber, armor but only some variables like hitchance or personal/tactical decisions.
Even so I understand the importance of unforseeable variables in an otherwise fixed environment it would be great to know how big their influence is (percentage?).

My point is that luck should never be a decisive factor or the other game aspects (as great as they may be) become unimportant.
And what's about my 2 Questions.
Why aren't the variables influencing combat shown on the battle screen?
Is the battle calculated as a whole and just shown sequently?

And, yes I would like about same results if all battle-conditions stay the same...
But how about a lot of conditions that vary and are unforeseeable...
F.ex. your base units/officers experience is high. So you got a high chance that they make good decisions which to some degree positively influence the combat.

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RE: How much luck-based is combat in WitPAE? - 11/25/2009 5:49:17 PM

jwilkerson

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Riko
And what's about my 2 Questions.
Why aren't the variables influencing combat shown on the battle screen?

They are - at least for land combat.

quote:

Is the battle calculated as a whole and just shown sequently?

Definitely not - each battle involves combat between individual elements - the result is the combination of all of these individual combats. Turn on animations and watch the air and naval battles and you will see this happening.

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Post #: 7