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Author |
File Description |
shieldwolf23 |
Posted on 01/23/12 @ 12:25 PM (updated 02/05/12)
File Details |
Style: |
Mix |
Needs AoC?: |
No |
Civility of War II: The Blue and The Gray
After the series of defeats inflicted by Gen. Robert E. Lee, the Confederacy's victory is certainly expected. However, no one foresaw the tenacity of the defense of the Union's capital, nor the treachery lurking within Richmond.
The balance of power is shifting, the scales of battle swiftly locking in one side's favor. With the international community, specifically England, France and Russia in the poise of entering the conflict, both sides know that they can't sustain any longer an extension of this war. It has to end, and fast.
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Special Thanks to:
- Altec Tek, for the inspiration, playtesting and support
- Soty, for the blank map of the eastern United States and feedback
- SinisterX, for the textures
- Spearhead123, for comments and feedback
Special Features include:
- Unique state support
- Morale and popularity
- Supply and maintenance
- Strategic and tactical gameplay
>>> Notes on version 1.5 (5th Feb 2012) <<<
- Administration building as per Soty's suggestion
- Victory options per Spearhead123
Not for the faint of heart! :D
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Author | Reviews ( All | Comments Only | Reviews Only ) |
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Spearhead123 |
Posted on 02/03/12 @ 05:12 PM
Playability: 4.7
My first reaction when I saw the uploaded file was: ‘let’s play rebel yells vs. Yankee doodle’. Shieldwolf strikes again with another massive scenario that provides a unique and challenging experience where a whole historical era is pressed in a few hours of gameplay that can be enjoyed at least twice due to shieldy’s ‘copyright pattern’ of allowing the player to try both sides of the conflict.
Balance: 4.7
I cannot deny that it is potentially hard yet not excruciatingly so. What worked for me: while doing the ‘State hopping’ I left 7-10 ‘veteran infantry’ (the non-trainable units) in each State protecting the politicians. These were more than enough in taking out the occasional annoyances of partisans, raiders and British infantry while most importantly they secured the instant death of the re-spawning assassins. Apart from the troops given occasionally under player’s command I only trained 3 carabineers (‘mounted’ infantry’s revenge on sword cavalry in a way) 5 siege cannons, about 20+ musketeers and assorted number of citizens and politicians for their relevant duties. All forces minus the garrisons organised in two armies (not banner armies) of which one was constantly advancing while the other was either supporting or fairly close to States that could be attacked be significant enemies. So in the end of day it was ‘easy’ in that I managed to complete the scenario without being infuriated by too-annoying-annoyances or any lost major battles. To quote Soty’s second comment: ‘Probably it's not that "hard" as I said’
Creativity: 4.7
You really need to read any comments in order to make sure that you should expect something creative? One thing that deserves mentioning is that even though the imperial-industrial EE units can offer little in the way of variety, and while the overall main objectives are alike, the actual experience of the game differs significantly for the two playable sides. The US civil war was the first ‘modern war’ not in that it saw the dawn of several industrial means of killing or because we got a lot of photographs from its time. It was the first of the new age in that it was won by the side that boosted more production and numbers while it was lost by the side that boosted better tacticians and (fairly) better soldiers. That had something to do with most West Point graduates ending up in the Confederacy early on. You can view this in-game where the Greys have a slight advantage in fielding elite guards and imperial cuirassiers against the Blues’ grenadiers and renaissance cuirassiers (question to the author: did you do this deliberately?).
Map Design: 4.8
Map by Soty (perhaps that’s enough said and no; I am not trying to sweet-talk our administrator). Suffice to say this: you will enjoy looking at this map both in your immediate gameplay screen and in the mini-map. It is not easy to achieve a convincing real world map in any case.
Story/Instructions: 4.8
As always you will never be in the dark given the author’s directions, hints and strategy guide. Beware though: he is not giving you a step-by-step walkthrough that could jeopardise the fun; the player will enjoy making choices and facing surprises (enough said). When I played the Blues I finished in a bit less than two hours with quick victory conditions (QVC). It feels as if those conditions are more easily met than the default victory ones (DVC). So here is a challenge I suggest to all who read these lines: attempt to achieve DVC in less than 120 game minutes before the QVC end the game. Francis Miles Finch’s single most famous poem is more adequate to be in the history section of this scenario than anything else conceivable. Allow me to comment on the emancipation option while playing the Blues: by the emancipation proclamation of January 1863 the Union declared the freedom of the slaves they could not free (those of the southern states) while not bothering yet with the slaves that they could free (those of the Union states). A diplomatic manoeuvre to avoid issues arising in the home front in wartime when there still were significant numbers of slaves in States loyal to the Union. So how about allowing this (the in-game FREE trigger) to only take place in initially confederate States since the vast majority of African-Americans to dress up in blue were escaped slaves from the south. A handful of others, blue-dressed-ex-slaves of the north, were freed privately from their latest masters, merely. Now, go after watching my favourite film with a US Civil War theme; Glory.
Additional Comments:
In view of all you read above I do not think this scenario needs to be revisited because it is one great experience as it is (I do acknowledge that revisiting it would only make it even better because it is shieldwolf we talk about). I only gave it 4.7-8 so that I do not anger shieldwolf with any rating higher than that (no, I am not joking).
Thumbs up for:
Altec Tek, for being an inspiration
Soty, for being a map maker
Shieldy, for being trigger happy
[Edited on 02/06/12 @ 01:32 PM]
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HGDL v0.8.2 |
Rating |
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4.7 | Breakdown |
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Playability | 4.7 | Balance | 4.7 | Creativity | 4.7 | Map Design | 4.8 | Story/Instructions | 4.8 |
Statistics |
Downloads: | 989 |
Favorites: [] | 2 |
Size: | 2.37 MB |
Added: | 01/23/12 |
Updated: | 02/05/12 |
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