Anyone solved the Ragnarok Armada scenario, yet?

[Herman Hum]

I'm into the NATO campaign and am stuck on the Ragnarok Armada scenario. Has anyone been able to solve this one, yet?

This one has two invasion forces. The northern one always gets blasted. There doesn't appear to be any way I can fly in reinforcements or air cover before the Russians sink her.

I've tried a bunch of different things from keeping the northern group silent and ordering the other task groups to radiate their radar in hopes of drawing the attackers to themselves.

Anyone willing to offer a clue as to how this one can be won?

[Ultradave]

So far no luck here. I've put every air superiority fighter in the air, plus 2 E-2s and the AWACs running so I hopefully can see everything. I've been able to handle the air attacks from the TU-50s that way, but the Russian task force coming down from the north manages to get at least one missile through - the first one hits the LHA, game over in defeat. My air superiority fighters have used up a lot of their missiles and have nothing left to handle the waves of SSM coming down from the north at that point, and reinforcing fighters from the TR are nowhere in sight yet.

Have to hand it to the AI - it's a classic attack sequence of overwhelming the missile defenses with too many threats to handle.... so far.

Sorry not to be any help, but at least you know you're not alone.

That's the one good thing about simulations. In real life, you don't get practice rounds.

[JanH]

It is conceivably we've made it a bit too hard... can only wish you the best as it's difficult even when you know exactly where everything is and when it comes.

[genbrad]

It reminds me of the first carrier battle in Red Storm Rising, just a no win scenario.

[Herman Hum]

I found a way. The only possible option (to me) was to have the enemy attack my southern group. I turned on the DDG radar and just let them come at me. The northern group has enough firepower to stop either the aircraft or the BCGN, but not both. I just had to let the bombers fire everything at the southern group so that they wouldn't unleash on the northern group. There are more fighters in the south and able to deal with the missiles.

[JanH]

Brilliant, Herman. Very well done.

[Ultradave]

It is conceivably we've made it a bit too hard... can only wish you the best as it's difficult even when you know exactly where everything is and when it comes.

Don't change it though. No problem with it being hard. Just have to work harder :-)

[AGTMADCAT]

I just wish that those submarines were placed somewhere to be of use! If they were in range or the Kirov-class battlegroup, I could at least detect it by sacrificing an F-35, and then hit it with the submarine. Having the subs two days away seems a bit pointless to me - I've been wondering why they're even in the scenario!

I'll be giving Herman's solution a go, maybe I'll be able to pull it off!

[Boohugh]

I was wondering about the subs too, they aren't even in Tomahawk range of anything!

I managed to finally complete it yesterday by micromanaging my aircraft and ships to shoot down incoming missiles using guns rather than missiles until backup arrived from the aircraft carriers and land bases and I opened a can of whoopass on the Rusky airbases . It feels a little bit gamey doing it that way as some guns are a little too effective against missiles in my opinion, but unless CIWS is made to work reliably automatically there isn't much other option.

[albone20]

I'm glad this thread was started! I have been beating on this mission for most of the day. I too wish the Subs could be in the fight.
I both love and hate this kind of mission I now have a new approach thanks to the fine fleet commanders in this discussion.

[JanH]

Sorry forgot the subs out there from the previous mission.

[xanderf]

I found a way. The only possible option (to me) was to have the enemy attack my southern group. I turned on the DDG radar and just let them come at me. The northern group has enough firepower to stop either the aircraft or the BCGN, but not both. I just had to let the bombers fire everything at the southern group so that they wouldn't unleash on the northern group. There are more fighters in the south and able to deal with the missiles.

This isn't quite doing it for me, but the idea is close.

Initially, I was annoying that the southern landing force had an Aegis cruiser, but the northern one didn't...until I realized that the ships in the Northern fleet do TEND to be more lower-radar-observable.

The trick is thus - don't let the northern force be detected! Make sure they are set to fire 'in self defense only' mode. All radars off. Don't take off too many fighters from them, and DON'T launch the helicopters. Just...sit tight up there, and move towards the landing zone. Most action to take for the first half of the mission relevant to that group is to send a few Growlers up from the nearby carrier to jam, if necessary (also, I fire off all the Tomahawks from the northern carrier and southern landing force at the northern airbase. Normally, that won't be enough to kill it if the Pyotr Veliky group can see what is going on...the Growlers help make sure that doesn't happen so the enemy northern airbase can be destroyed).

Then, all you have to worry about is the swarm of Tu-22s circling over the coast between the airbases. This is the tricky part - if they get detected, by anything (including, say, the southern landing force or any aircraft including AWACS), they will flip their radars on. As soon as they flip their radars on, it's game over - they see the northern landing force, salvo off a hundred or so KH-15 Kickbacks, radio to the Pyotr Veliky group and another hundred or so missiles come from that direction, and...that's that.

So I'm finding that you really just need to make sure EVERY radar that could POSSIBLY detect that Tu-22 group stays off ALWAYS. If they get detected, by anything, anywhere, it's game over.

It seems easy enough to get the enemy attention on the southern group (which, as you note, is pretty easy to defend) just by shooting down the Russian AWACS that starts by them and putting up a huge fleet of aircraft over the southern enemy airbase.

[sadsid]

It is conceivably we've made it a bit too hard... can only wish you the best as it's difficult even when you know exactly where everything is and when it comes.

I to can only last 7 minits on easy mode it
would be nice if easy was just that to give people like me the learning curve.

[JanH]

Thanks for feedback, sadsid. We'll see what we can do.

[sadsid]

Thanks its is a really good game and enjoying it I am sure there are more like me out there
that play on easy level till they feel confident enough to go and get a real pasting
Sadsid

[Stealth17]

Nice strategy Xanderf! I havent finished the scenario yet but this will surely improve my odds . Go in stealthy, jamm the hell out of bombers, tomahawk strike and finish up. Nice .

[xanderf]

Nice strategy Xanderf! I havent finished the scenario yet but this will surely improve my odds . Go in stealthy, jamm the hell out of bombers, tomahawk strike and finish up. Nice .

Well, it's really "jam the hell out of the Pyotr Veliky" that is the trick. If the BCGN has fully functional radar and can see the Tomahawks coming in, it'll shoot them all down with no problem. If you jam it as the Tomahawks are entering its missile range, you'll be fine - it'll still shoot most of them down, but enough get through to kill the airbase.

The bombers you just gotta ignore. With the Northern base knocked out by the Tomahawk strike, and the half-dozen land-attack Poseidons from your two airbases hitting the enemy southern airbase, you can knock their air power out without TOO much difficulty. Then, just try to sit tight an hour or so (in-game time) until all their aircraft run out of fuel and crash, and you have the basic run of the place.

It sounds much easier than it is - the thing is that any detection is going to make the bombers flip on their radar, and even a stray T-50A roaming around part of the map may trigger some fighter you didn't turn off 'attack on sight' for...once weapons are inbound, radars start coming on, the Northern landing force is detected, and quickly sunk.

One other tip I've found handy - the southern carrier group has a half dozen F-35s currently tasked for 'naval strike'. This is kinda useless, as the carrier cannot get them in range of any enemy naval assets anytime soon. As soon as the mission starts, re-task these as 'air superiority (SR)'...by the time they are ready to take off, you'll be out of missiles on everything already flying!

[stormridersp]

If that extremly close Kirov wasnt enough (Dont know how many Kirovs I'd killed during the campaing), but the game becomes unplayable frame rates, even with 3d turned off.

[stickactuator]

I made it! Thanks to ypur tips, and a personal twist.. First i launched tommahawks on the north airbase, then sent all the poseidon land attack towards the south base. Did that asap because it takes time before the missiles/planes get the job done. For air-to-air i launched my stealth aircraft, and here is the trick.. Quickly setup caps far enough forward which can fire on the TU bombers just before they launch. Oh, and turn off all radars and do not allow your northern vessels to fire! That should keep them undetected.. But in the south, radars on!

Back to the fighters.. Navigate around the enemy fighters (scary, but rely on stealth) and kill the bombers! Just dont shoot at them while they are close to your northern ships.. Then you will be hit hard in the north.. I had almost no missiles being launched from TUs, and once their fields were taken out, it was a walk in the park..

Good luck!

[xanderf]

Yeah, it's weird because the mission is SO MUCH harder than anything else in the campaign, but...

...it does have that 'final boss fight' kind of feel to it. So I rather like that it took me about as long to beat this one as every other mission combined...it made it just feel like that much more of an achievement! (That said, I *would* rather have had the difficulty somewhat ramping up to this one...it kind of came out of left field how hard it was...)