Dynamic Military High Commanders

[Icedkk]

I would like to suggest a nice, (probably easy to implement) feature, which could spice the game up.

So if you start a game as Germany, it is no brainer decision to get Rommel (Armor Genius) as Military High Command, because he buffs all armored divisions +15% attack/defence.

However if you start a game as Netherlands, you have basically none in the country to assign as a Armor Military High Commander. Instead you have to assign the guy, who gives the Mechanise bonuses. This behaviour puts the game a dull way, where you have to go (for example: if you choose Mobile Warfare doctrine) Mobile Warfare - Left, in order to stack bonuses.

A better approach may be: You should be able to assign someone as a commander with Armor-Specialist trait, who may level-up during the time being.

So I get Rommel was an experienced officer, he can start Rank Genius. But other nations should also get such commanders and after sometime they should level up and give the same bonuses as Rommel gives.

This could also applied to the other commanders for all the countries and it would make the game -in my opinion- more enjoyable.

 

[squid_hills]

During the interwar period, Germany was revolutionizing how tanks would be used in battle, while everyone else was either sticking to WWI doctrines (France) or puttering about with no real idea what they were doing (Japan). Germany should be the only country with a high command tank guy, and (IIRC) it is. Other countries, especially minors, shouldn't get high command tank guys, because they barely had tanks, let alone enough experience with using them to justify getting a high command tank guy. True, your tank divisions will never be as good as Germany's, because they have a high command tank guy and you don't, but as a minor power maybe you shouldn't be getting into tank duels with the Germans. That's the kind of thing the USSR or USA are able to do because they have the MIC needed to replace all the tanks that will get blowed up. MIC measuring contests between minors and majors never go well for the minor and usually end with the major annexing the minor's girlfriend.

TL;DR Playing as a minor nation means having to work with sub optimal tools, because that's the whole point of playing as a minor.

 

[el nora]

@squid_hills Russia's got Rokossovsky, who's also a genius. And the minors, Poland, South Africa, Canada, and (fascist) Spain have armor experts. Plus there's a whole bunch of armor experts in neutral countries or countries that barely fought, like Switzerland, Turkey, Afghanistan, Luxembourg, etc.

 

[Marques from Brazil]

@squid_hills
In Brazil there were some commanders who studied combat tactics in Germany,for this reason, they were totally against the use of French doctrines.

They argued that French doctrines were old-fashioned and ineffective in modern warfare, but the rest of the Brazilian armed forces continued to defend the use of French doctrine.

With the outbreak of World War II, all that these commanders spoke of proved to be a harsh reality. General Euclides Figueiredo was one of the supporters of the German mobile war and even used some German tactics during the 1930 revolution against the federal forces.

 

[Icedkk]

@squid_hills

I am aware that Germany and German war industry + doctrines were favoring the tank production and efficient use of tanks in second world war. That is why it is fair that Germany has a Armor-Genius commander. However what I am trying to say is that all countries -even minors- should have atleast a commander, who will have an Armor trait (could be even less ranked than specialist). Additionally these commanders should level up after they are assigned, because they are learning in the job.

I don't understand why PDX forces minors to use some commanders. You may discuss that it is bad to invest into tanks if you are playing Netherlands for example. But I want to have the biggest Tank Army in the World as Netherlands, and have some commander which buffs my Armored units... It does not matter if that would be possible or bad or good... I just want to have an option.

Playing as a minor nation means having to work with sub optimal tools, because that's the whole point of playing as a minor.

Having already less army and factories (more bad case: generic focus tree) means you are already playing with sub optimal tools. But saying in Netherland there are none commander who has an experience with tanks is just stupid. Even there was no -literally no- armor commander at that time, after seeing Germany using those tanks in his army, a country should be able to find a guy who can do that task.

 

[squid_hills]

Having already less army and factories (more bad case: generic focus tree) means you are already playing with sub optimal tools. But saying in Netherland there are none commander who has an experience with tanks is just stupid. Even there was no -literally no- armor commander at that time, after seeing Germany using those tanks in his army, a country should be able to find a guy who can do that task.

The problem is that the world saw Germany using their tanks and their new tank tactics to capitulate France. By that point, the Netherlands had already been conquered, so I don't think they would've gotten the chance to put a high command tank guy in charge of their army. Going from, as you say, literally no armor commander before the war to an occupied and conquered country means there is no opportunity to appoint a high command tank guy. Even if free Dutch forces gathering in Britain to continue the fight decide to adopt German tank tactics, and appoint a general as their high command tank guy, where are they going to get enough tanks for it to matter? They'd be hard pressed to have rifles for the infantry. They don't have an industrial base of their own, the UK has to re-equip its entire army after Dunkirk so you aren't getting help there, and the US hasn't started showering the Allies with free guns to liberate your country with, yet. The DEI isn't going to be much help, either. Their industry is threadbare at best, and they have to worry about Japan who is looking to kick them in the dangly bits.

And similar arguments can be made for just about every other nation in Europe at the time. Even the ones in the Axis. Yes, Hungary would love to field Xbox huge armored divisions and have a high command tank guy, but there is no bloody way their industry is going to be able to manage that, so why waste time appointing the high command tank guy?

I know the player base of this game thinks the only correct way to play is with 24 division stacks of 40 width medium tanks, no matter what country you are playing as, but that's only true in multiplayer games. Against the AI you have far more options, and different countries are supposed to play differently and focus on different things. Some countries focus on tanks, some on infantry, and some get screwed and only have air force and navy high command guys and have to settle for not having any bonuses on their armies. It's not a bug, it's a feature.

Besides, the modding community exists for this game for a reason. I think you can find a custom focus tree for literally every country in the world at this point. Some of them even manage to be balanced and not OP.