The Like/Hate Thread

[Pinky]

when you "launch" a mission on the campaign, the game will load. there are two distinct areas on the screen: the "battlefield" on top and the "command bar" at the very bottom of the screen.

command bar: broken into three different sections from left to right.
-resource counter. the money you use to deploy combat units. More resources come at intervals you can see how much money you'll get next interval and how much time is left before it comes. the longer the battle goes on the slower the clock counts down.
-units that you select on the battlefield can be given different orders. most units have the "advance" order by default, but more can be acquired via upgrades.
-unit deployment. click unit portrait you want to deploy, then click on the battlefield. once a unit is deployed, you must wait for a cooldown period before being able to deploy the same type of unit again.

battlefield: broken into three different vertical elevations that run horizontally, top/middle/bottom. when you choose a unit that you want to deploy, you click on one of the three key battlefield elevations to place them.

if you're from the Allied Forces, your units begin on the left side of the screen and move right, if you're from the Axis then its vice versa. deployed units will automatically move until they either reach a "strategic point" (something to hide behind) or until they confront the enemy.

if the unit is entrenched at a strategic point they'll remain there until you select the unit and choose "advance" from the unit orders on the command bar. units at a strategic point benefit from improved defense, but if one unit is occupying the point then all additional units will automatically advance beyond it.

when units come into attack range of one another they'll automatically fight to the death, and will be unable to advance until one side wins the clash. units from adjacent elevations will fight one another, too. this means that the central elevation zone will confront every enemy unit, but units advancing along the top will not fight opposing units at the bottom or vice versa.

there are two ways to win a battlefield: one unit must reach the opposite end of the middle elevation zone, or the first side to lose all morale will automatically surrender. losing a lot of units, the enemy having more units deployed on the battlefield, and enemy units reaching the end of the top/bottom elevations (flanks) will all lower morale.

units:
-Riflemen. 200 resource points, has the shortest cooldown. 5-man unit with balanced attack range, strength, health, and movement speed.
-Assault. 300 resource points, has the "suppression fire" order. 4-man unit has the shortest range, moderate attack power.
-.30 Cal. 400 resource points, has the "suppression fire" order. 2-man unit, slow moving, one with a machine gun and another with a rifle. the machine gun is very strong vs infantry.
-Sniper. 500 resource points, one-shot kills. single man unit, slow attack, uses a very strong long-range rifle.
-Bazooka. 400 resource points. 2-man unit, slow moving, one with a bazooka and another with a rifle. RPG's take a long time to reload, tend to perform poorly against small units, but are very strong against armored units.
-Mortars. 500 resource points, considered a "support" unit. single man unit, slowest attack, slow moving, longest range, least accurate, very strong against all units.
-Officer. 400 resource points, can call in various "support" strikes. single man unit, the weakest unit in the game, not meant for direct combat. calling for support strikes consumes resources.
-Tank. 800 resource points, most expensive unit. strongest in all attributes, essentially invulnerable to small-arms fire. has a main cannon that fires high-powered explosive shells, but it has a "minimum" range that cannot hit targets that come too close. has an additional machine gun mounted on the front which is strong vs infantry. can attack while moving. weak against Bazooka, Mortars, and other support strikes.

upgrades are also very important. you collect experience by successfully finishing missions (killing enemies, completing missions efficiently/quickly boost XP gains) which can then be spent acquiring the upgrades on a very basic tech tree.

1XP training upgrades.
-Ballistics. +15% rifle/SMG damage. leads to assault tactics.
-Take Cover. +10% defense for all infantry. leads to hit 'em hard.
-Red, White & Blue. +10% starting morale. leads to secure flanks.
-Post Haste. -10% deployment cooldown. leads to resupply inbound.
2XP training upgrades.
-Assault Tactics. +10% damage for Assault unit. leads to fire support.
-Hit 'Em Hard. +10% damage attacking other elevations. leads to fire support/GOGOGO!
-Secure Flanks. -20% morale loss when flanked. leads to GOGOGO!/in good supply.
-Resupply Inbound. -15% deployment cooldown. leads to in good supply.
3XP training upgrades.
-Fire Support. +40% damage for .30 Cal unit.
-GOGOGO! +20% faster infantry movement speed.
-In Good Supply. -25% Unit Cost. (must have full cash available, though)

1XP equipment upgrades.
-Grenade. Infantry order "grenade", 50RP/use. leads to smoke grenade.
-Mortar Accuracy. +25% mortar accuracy. leads to smoke mortar.
-Air Support. adds "air support" to Officer orders, 400RP/use. leads to artillery.
-Engine Upgrade. +25% tank movement speed. leads to anti-infantry.
2XP equipment upgrades
-Smoke Grenade. infantry order "smoke", 50RP/use. leads to explosives.
-Smoke Mortar. adds "smoke" to Mortar orders. leads to explosives/barrage.
-Artillery. adds "artillery" to Officer orders, 500RP/use. leads to barrage/armor.
-Anti-Infantry. +30% tank machine gun damage. leads to armor.
3XP equipment upgrades
-Explosives. +25% grenade/bazooka/mortar damage.
-Barrage of Fire. adds more shells to Officer's artillery order.
-Armor Production. -25% tank deployment cooldown.