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Blackhorse -> RE: Divisions under Air HQ, Gamey or not? (2/24/2012 10:07:49 AM)
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The # of Political Points (PPs) were set so that the Allied and Japanese players could "release" restricted units into theater at about the rate they did historically, and to allow for some flexibility -- freeing up an extra Australian Division early means delaying a US Division on the West Coast, fx. However, the model only works if the players pay 'retail' (full cost) to change units from restricted to unrestricted commands.
By that standard, everything else is gamey, even though the game mechanics make it possible. The PP and HQs changes were never fully implemented. The dev team did not have time to implement and test every desired change* -- and other things had priority.
You can see the glimmers of what was intended. The goal was to allow transfers of LCUs between unrestricted Command HQs at 1/4 cost, by assigning LCUs to subordinate Army/Corps, then shifting the HQ to another command. But as a game mechanic it allows a player to reassign an unrestricted HQ to release restricted units at a reduced rate, which was not the intent.
In real life, what became the I Amphibious Corps started the war assigned to the West Coast Command. In AE, it starts attached to the Pacific Fleet precisely to avoid having the West Coast divisions released at a reduced PP cost. From the designer's intent, transferring an unrestricted Corps HQ to a restricted command in order to attach LCUs and release them at the 'wholesale' (reduced PP) rate is another loophole -- though a more realistic one than attaching combat units to Air HQs, or to unrestricted HQs that haven't arrived yet, and won't arrive until 1944-45.
To see what was intended within a restricted HQ, look to China: the NCAC HQ arrives already attached to China Command, a restricted HQ, but the NCAC can be transferred to an unrestricted command HQ. This was meant to allow Chinese divisions (there are nine eligible) to transfer to the NCAC at the reduced PP cost, then have the HQ transfer to a Burma/India Command.
My house rules to enforce "Original Intent" would be:
1. Restricted LCUs may transfer to any on-map Corps, Army or Command HQs (only).
2. HQs may not be reassigned from an unrestricted Command HQ chain-of-command to a restricted Command HQ chain-of-command.
3. Engineer-type units, including base forces, can be assigned to any on-map HQs
Having said all that, I don't think it affects play balance all that much (in Scenario 1, at least) if players are using the loopholes to release ground units more rapidly; as long as both players are aware of the loopholes and are using the same ones.
*= participating in AE development was an eye-opener for me. I never appreciated how much time and testing had to go into verifying even minor changes, especially in a code-complicated game like AE, where 'unintended consequences' were constantly cropping up.
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ORIGINAL: aphrochine
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ORIGINAL: CV 2
Why? I mean really if someone wants to "get around" the PP cost of units, its doable.
What I do, and would certainly be allowed under any "house rule" provision, is to transfer 14th army to Korea, 15th army to China, and 16th army to Japan. This allows me to move those units into an unrestricted army command from any place restricted units come from.
As allied I transfer 1st Amphib corps to the west coast. Does the same thing.
So really, the only time I pay "full cost" is when Im assembling units that are broken down under multiple commands. Like the Jap 55th div or Aus 8th div.
Same thing can be down with army or corps headquarters. Move the corps hq to the (R), transfer all intended troops, then move the corps HQ to the destination HQ (SWPac for example), transfer them all out. Much cheaper.
But to the more gamey question...having 10 divisions and 38 individual fighting elements under the US I Corps is a bit gamey imo. But I think it's a legit to do move units in an out of theatres. Really, the best way to just formally form the Corps as a fighting unit, and then move the entire Corps between theatres as needed. I think a reasonable Corps size is ~4 divisions and maybe a doezen individual elements (AA, ART, Eng).
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