Any total war experts out there? Empire vsNaval wise how does empire vs Shogun 2 vs Shogun 2 F.O.T.S compare.

[warra2307]

I LOVED the total war series right up until empire. While i loved the ground battles, campaign etc i HATED the naval battles with a passion. :'(

I played well over 100 practice naval battles with 2 ships vs 2 ships battles and won a handful by luck. I understand the principles of winning them.. i just cant do it when it comes down to it lol >< So when it came to the campaign 10 vs 10 ships or MORE i had no chance -_- I ended up having to stop playing it as naval battles were so important to the campaign.

Ill be the first to admit i am not AMAZING at these games lol however I do have a HUGE interest in history and battle strategies that were used.

I always wanted to buy Shogun 2 as i heard it blew Empire/Napoleon out the water.. However the naval battles even harder. Is this true?

Also if i was to buy shogun 2, which would be the best one to get? Shogun 2 or Shogun 2 F.O.T.S?

I have a top of the range PC so system requirements aren't a problem.

Thanks for any help you can give - Adam

[warra2307]

Ops, i ment to say Hey as well im new to the forum lol Sorry for my first post to be a question -_-

[Humble Warrior]

Well naval battles in Shogun are still rather unwieldy and there`s not much big shootiness because the Japanese didn`t really have that much cannon.

FOTS (the add on) has better control of ships due to Steam power and feels much more dramatic since there`s a lot more big guns shooting it out. I find ship battles still too quick and big ships a tad too fragile though. Explosions are too frequent.

[weirdoascensor]

I always wanted to buy Shogun 2 as i heard it blew Empire/Napoleon out the water.. However the naval battles even harder. Is this true?

Also if i was to buy shogun 2, which would be the best one to get? Shogun 2 or Shogun 2 F.O.T.S?

FoTS ships blow ETW and S2TW ships out of the water. Literally. With Explosive Shells...
...but The FoTS ships boilers also extremely explosion-prone under cannon fire...

Harder? in FoTS Naval aspect were more important thsn ever. In Campaign, S2TW and FoTS AI do Amphibious Invasion, and FoTS CAI particularly love to send 1 ship raiding parties to slip past your fleets then bombard your establishments...

[warra2307]

Sooo would you say its easier to win naval battles than in Empire or napoleon? It seemed like if you made one tiny mistake in TWN/TWE you were ed

[Humble Warrior]

Sooo would you say its easier to win naval battles than in Empire or napoleon? It seemed like if you made one tiny mistake in TWN/TWE you were ed

Well that all depends on the individual and skill. I`d say the difficulty is about the same.

The ship AI will stay back on defence and blow you out of the water as you come, so it isn`t just going to let you ride up and kill it.

Build big ships and more than him, then zig zag as you attack.

[SgtLong]

Napoleon was the best Naval battle wise, Shogun 2 is a new perspective with Rome like Naval battles. FOTS is more of a ground breaker for me, I had to relearn all of my tactics and still finding new things all the time.

[DeliCiousTZM]

Defending in FOTS is easier then Empire/Napoleon but attacking is not. FOTS is also alot more sensetive then Napoleon/Empire!

[priam11]

On the battle level I found Napoleon was much better than ETW. FOTS is a different puppy all together. The accuracy of ships is way too high and I have yet to see if weather effects accuracy but I have not played more than a single campaign.

There are some design questions marks I have with FOTS. Increased chevrons only affect crew moral and melee defense/offense. I have yet to see a single case where anyone could actually board a ship. Usually the battle is over before anyone on either side has even a slight chance of getting into position for boarding. It would make more sense if you could knock out guns (which you can) and engines but usually the ship surrenders or sinks. Increase experienced would be better placed in moral, reload rate and accuracy of gunners in my opinion.

Again ramming, never used it.

I do not believe changing course (i.e. zig zagging actually effects accuracy) so positioning has a limited purpose. Basically getting your ships in line to get maximum firepower on the enemy is the standard tactic. I would like to see more damage to component parts of vessels such as steering and engine power that would cause ships to fall out of line or get isolated. Right now its hull strength and/or "crap we are on fire". ETW/NTW at least had sails that could be exploited. If the AI had used more chain shot I would have lost many more battles.

It is in the campaign map that FOTS really shines. The multiple dynamic options of ships are really integrated well. The bombard feature of armies and towns and naval support in battles, added to the standard blockading and naval fights of previous titles, really drive home the need for a strong navy on an island dotted map.

Anyhow, I am not suggesting I do not like the battles in FOTS, I do. But its difficult to compare the two as apples vs apples.

[Humble Warrior]

On the battle level I found Napoleon was much better than ETW. FOTS is a different puppy all together. The accuracy of ships is way too high and I have yet to see if weather effects accuracy but I have not played more than a single campaign.

There are some design questions marks I have with FOTS. Increased chevrons only affect crew moral and melee defense/offense. I have yet to see a single case where anyone could actually board a ship. Usually the battle is over before anyone on either side has even a slight chance of getting into position for boarding. It would make more sense if you could knock out guns (which you can) and engines but usually the ship surrenders or sinks. Increase experienced would be better placed in moral, reload rate and accuracy of gunners in my opinion. Again ramming, never used it.

I agree a lot here. Never boarded, never rammed, usually because the battles are over so damned quickly. Even in later game. You just don`t get the tactical chance to.

I do not believe changing course (i.e. zig zagging actually effects accuracy) so positioning has a limited purpose.

What zigzagging does is reduce your profile when the enemy ship fires back. You go broadside- fire, then you turn towards him as he fires and you`ll find not all his shells will hit. However, this can be quite a lot of work, probably easier if ships andfire re- loading was just a bit slower.

Basically getting your ships in line to get maximum firepower on the enemy is the standard tactic. I would like to see more damage to component parts of vessels such as steering and engine power that would cause ships to fall out of line or get isolated. Right now its hull strength and/or "crap we are on fire". ETW/NTW at least had sails that could be exploited. If the AI had used more chain shot I would have lost many more battles.

It is in the campaign map that FOTS really shines. The multiple dynamic options of ships are really integrated well. The bombard feature of armies and towns and naval support in battles, added to the standard blockading and naval fights of previous titles, really drive home the need for a strong navy on an island dotted map.

Anyhow, I am not suggesting I do not like the battles in FOTS, I do. But its difficult to compare the two as apples vs apples.

One ship fighting tactic I recommend is repairing during battles. It might seem counter intuitive since it stops your ship dead in the water, but if you start to take on water or too much damge, get some sailors doing fast repair then shoot, carry on a bit and repair again. I finally blew up the enemy ship in a one on one by this at long range when normally he would blow me up first.

p.s. Ships blow up too easily, btw. The chance of it happening should be more rare.