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I have been playing total war games for years, but have only recently gotten Shogun 2, never really played Empire so I never really had to fight in a naval battle. I understand the basics of boarding, wind and fire arrows, but not really any strategy. My basic battle consists of heavy ships in the middle looking to board, light ships on the side trying to get behind and bomb ships laying mines where appropriate. Can anyone offer anything more complex to help me?
Hi,Quote:
Originally Posted by canadian
I'm in a similar situation concerning experience. I've been reading a lot of forum threads on strategy and found this one for naval battles which is very interesting. Maybe it'll be of help to you until a more experienced player answers:
http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=569227
PS- Sorry, it's for Fall of the samurai.. But maybe it'll still be helpful.
(I really wished there were separate forum sections for the different ShogunII games.)
Thanks man that actually a great help, I actually got Shogun 2 and FoTS on a steam sale, figured I would start with Shogun first.
Well most basic principles are the same as in land battles. Concentrate your power and make various types of vessels support each other.
Usually I arrange my heavier ships like medium or heavy bunes in to main battle line and create skirmish line of bow kobayas in the front. If I have firebomb kobayas I lay minefield in front of my skirmish line and hide them behind my main line.
As enemy approaches skirmish line, I fire fire-arrows at him, trying to concentrate fire at single ship. Then I retreat bow kobayas through my main battle line. As enemy approaches main battle line and sails between bunes, hopefully weakened by mines and fire-arrows, I let bunes rain arrows on him and support them with bow and fire bomb kobayas as needed, utilizing special abilities of individual ships.
Example would be to weaken enemy ship with fire arrows of bow kobaya, send sengoku bune to board enemy, support boarding with medium bune war cry and arrow fire and park fire bomb kobaya on the opposite side of enemy to throw bombs at him. No ship save most powerful ones can withstand such combined attack. That is of course ideal scenario, but you get idea. Medium and heavy ships are there to take on enemy, light ships are there to weaken him before and then to support your medium and heavy ones. Since light ships have good speed and manoeuvrability, they are ideal for creating concentration of fire.
Also newer spread your forces too thin, except when you are trying to distract enemy. In which case use fast ships for that so they can not be caught and overwhelmed.
Just like in land battles, perhaps even more so, single most important aspect of battle is morale. Side which can maintain its morale longer usually wins. That is why concentration is important. Try to concentrate your power on individual ships and prevent enemy from doing same to you. Ships which is under attack by superior force loose morale quickly.
Also depending on difficulty, be careful when engaging enemy ships one on one. For example on hard, enemy have slight morale advantage. That advantage is enough to ensure that in one on one fight, you will gone loose. It is important that at the beginning you let your ships gain some experience. Try to let them win some easy battles first or ad green ships in to fleet of battle hardened ones so it can gain experience.
Quote:
Originally Posted by canadian
I have not fought any naval battles in Shogun Two Total War. I have however fought some battles in Fall of the Samurai.Quote:
Originally Posted by canadian
Tips for the fleet:
One; Always try to cross the T first. That means that your ships cross the prow of their ships first, ideally it should look as if it was a large T in the water (with your ships as the large part of the T). This allows you to bring all of your guns to bare upon them while they can offer little or no return fire. As with line battles, getting off the first shot is crucial, (although it is still possible to recover if you are unable to cross the T, it is harder) and can win you the game if you are able to destroy enough of the enemies fleet.
Secondly; you can pretty much skip gunboats, unless you happen to have 500 koku left over, and need an extra ship. Although they work well as scouting ships, and allow you to capture costal emplacements quicker, in the actual naval battle they are near useless (except for hunting torpedo boats), so I generally avoid them, and use my money on ships of the line.
Third; Torpedo boats can, if used properly, be a game changer. If you use them right, they allow you to dictate a significant amount of the enemies naval tactics to them (looks as if they will cross the T infront of you, fire off a salvo or two of torpedoes and watch the enemy ships suddenly change course, if your enemy has their ships already facing yours, watch them move as you fire a spread of torpedoes at them), which allows you significant naval dominance. I generally bring two torpedo boats. First salvo should always aim at a stationary target (as well as very slightly ahead, forcing them to move more, or move in one direction). The second salvo should be aimed at where the ship will be when the torpedoes arrive there. Either this ensures a hit, and/ or it ensures the enemy ship will go the other way. Sometimes they cannot avoid the torpedoes (which is what you want) if they are already engaged with another ship, as this would mean turning away from them.
Forth; Always try to approach an enemy ship from the prow or from the stern. This way you can shoot at them, and they cannot shoot at you.
For fleets, I suggest one Ironclad (Roanoke class), supported by whatever ships you like. The alternative, which I have seen used well, is three of the cheaper ironclads. I would suggest you avoid the warrior for the most part. It is too expensive, and too slow, to compensate for its' price (18,000 koku). However, in a multiplayer battle, if used well, you can still do well.
Last tip; I suggest you unlock as many of the ships as you can through naval battles before you fight a naval battle. The reason I suggest this is the Roanoke class ironclad can completely decimate the starting ships you have access to. In my opinion, without at least a few ships of the line unlocked, you will not stand an even chance at winning.
I do not know how naval battles are in Shogun Two Total War. However, if you can broadside with the ships, then the naval tactics should work here as well. You could also form a screen with the lighter ships, and have the heavier ships in three columns (allowing you to head off, and/ or attack some enemy ships from the prow and the stern at the same time) behind them. The lighter ships engage first, seeking to disrupt the enemies formation, allowing the heavier ships to come behind them and take them out easier.
Good luck with your naval battles,
~John
The Most Optimal Fleet Compositions.
Rise of the Samurai: 1 Samurai Large Ship and 9 Samurai Medium Ships.
Shogun 2: 2 Heavy Bunes (Middle), 5 Medium Bunes (Front Line), and 3 Siege Tower Bunes (Back Row).
Fall of the Samurai: 1 Kotetsu-Class Ironclad and 9 Kaiten-Class Armored Frigates.
If you get access to the Black Ships/ Black Trade ships (might be Radious unit pack for the last one?) then you can just autoresolve your way to success :surprise:
Dont You Ever Auteresolve Naval Battle. Especially with Cannon Ships.
I usually prefer to play my battles lol, ok so I think Im getting a better idea of how to go about this, I think keeping them together is really important as sometimes I send my bow koyoba off to flank on its own and it usually runs. One of the major problems I'm facing now is fight firebomb ships, whats the best way to take them out? Boardings no good as they just tear the ship apart
Little buggers are dangerous. Which fortunately apply when you are using them as well. Best way I found to fight them are fire arrows and bow kobayas. They are also vulnerable to normal arrow fire. Just try to keep your ships out of their range.
NEVER Auto-Resolve Naval Battles. You always end up taking ridiculous amounts of damage even when your fleet has numerical superiority.Quote:
Originally Posted by weirdoascensor
Mobility is a huge factor in Shogun 2 naval battles. I usually split my fleet into two: one squadron of heavy/medium ships and then one squadron of kobaya light ships. Use your light squadron to outflank and surround the enemy and maximize damage from your fire arrows. Use your heavier ships to soak up the enemy fire and get them into boarding range as quickly as possible. Tie down the most dangerous targets with your slower heavy squadron and continue to use your light squadron to harass using their speed. It can take a lot of micro-management, but it's far more rewarding to win a naval battle than a land battle. Experiment with the pre-set formations as well, as they can be quite helpful.
You'll only ever need bow kobayas, with them you can capture virtually anything else you need such as sengoku bunes etc.