How to put the Swedes in their place

**Cap'n Ahb Veeus** · February 15, 2010, 12:50 AM

I'm playing as Prussia and I'm in year 1723 of the long campaign. I spent the last 18 or so years fighting a war with Poland, Russia, Saxony, Courland, and Sweden. I did go to war with the Inuit Nations as well, but it wasn't really a war..told them to become a protectorate, they said no, so I took their one city. My ally Hannover controls a large empire (after I gave them the Inuit place so I could pull my troops out of America, they conquered Westphalia, Bavaria, Wurtemburg, and managed to tick off France and Sweden) but their cities are starting to rebel and they can't send armies to help up north. My ports are all blockaded, my fleets wiped out in a single battle, and they control the sea and all the trade that goes with it. I'm getting about 600 gold per turn with the expense from my huge land force moving to take Denmark from Sweden and relieve some pressure on my western ports. Well, I destroyed their army that was heading down to conquer Hannover, and their remaining guys fled to Denmark..where a full army of line infantry, heavy cavalry, 6 cannons, missile cav, dragoons, and one militia await me. Inside their fully or nearly fully upgraded city walls. I saved before attacking, then went at it; horrible losses. Lost all my veterans, my shock troops, my two world-renowned and feared generals who hadn't lost a battle to date; gone, and they had another full stack coming down to Hannover. I loaded my save back up and I'm stuck as to what to do, now.

Sorry for the long story, but that's how it goes.

**ndefontenay** · February 15, 2010, 01:21 AM

Hi.

What is your army made of? Any howitzers at this stage? If you got only demi cannon, put them as close as possible to their city wall and pounder it. If it's not at range pounder in front, balls will bounce and hit the wall anyway. Do that on left and right.

This will:
Hopefully kill some of their units packed on the wall.
Mobilize units to protect the breach, releasing pressure for your units to climb some over walls.
Allow your cavalry to get in if a breach get emptied.

Have your units to climb on the wall from flank where they are not expecting you. It will force some of their guys to run around.

Also before battle. try to siege them and wait that they leave the city for a confrontation outside, on your ground.
If re-inforcement is coming for you, wait a bit before attacking
If they got re-inforcement coming attack immediately.

It varies widely but you got a saved game, so try multiple approaches

This seems a pretty exciting battle. Let us know how it went. A little thing can change the whole battle.

How did you manage your first attempt?

**BlueHawke** · February 15, 2010, 01:22 AM

I'm going to hope here that after your wars you actually have enough provinces to supply yourself off tax for a while! But you are in a dandy of a pickle because you will not be able to invade Sweden without going through Russia... who I doubt will let you after your war with them.

But your more pressing matter of the siege... Don't attack their walls! especially when they have a full complement unless you are ubertastic brilliant (and guessing from your defeat already that is not the case). So stay there with your army and keep it under siege until it breaks. If you get assaulted while you are there you will be on a more even stance with them... and if they come with their second stack they can still only have a maximum of 18 units on the battlefield at once so you might have to fight outnumbered, but they will only be attacking in 1's and 2's so you should easily win AND totally defeat them in the arena.

Long term though you want to look at declaring peace and building a bigger navy so that you can go to war again and invade them... or going to war with russia and send an army around the baltic (which takes FOREVER!!!) and is not recommended unless you have alot of troops to do it... However if you win then Sweden has a massive town wealth so $$$$$$$$$$$$...

Good Luck

**Cap'n Ahb Veeus** · February 15, 2010, 01:37 AM

Whew, I did it. It took me a few tries, definitely, but on this last one got the reaction I needed. I had two large armies so while one army raided the farms and ports and then took control of their smaller town, my other army waited off the way a bit until they sent in their 10 stack reinforcement army. I jumped them with my veteran army and slaughtered their fresh faced recruits, and Sweden came crawling to me with a peace treaty because they couldn't afford any more losses like that. Luckily for me they didn't know that in another turn I'd have had to disband my entire army, being that I was down to 3 gold..