Help with automated troops

[Arie90]

Dear hoi3 players,

Currently I am playing as Germany. I am about to invade France with 3 armies. I have set them on automatic and attacking stance. I've set the objective as Paris. However all my troops are just standing idle near the maginot line, they just do nothing...do you have any tips to make my armies active?

 

[browd]

Try DOWing Belgium and the Netherlands....

 

[Arie90]

What do you mean with DOWing? Can you be more specific?

 

[kriegkopf]

declaration of war, set war-goal to conquer. Take out Luxembourg also. And make you sure you have Netherlands covered.

 

[browd]

Sorry, DOW = Declaration of War. To invade a country, you have to declare war (or become at war by virtue of alliance or faction membership, but all that means is someone else has triggered the war). I assume you're actually at war with France, but not at war with the Netherlands, Belgium or Luxembourgh. Those countries are not automatically members of the Allies, so they do not automatically become at war with Germany when the Allies DOW Germany (following Germany's DOW of Poland). Without a path through the Low Countries, your automated troops are reluctant to attack the Maginot Line. You could change the theater command from Attacking Stance to Blitzing Stance (forcing the AI to endure more casualties and, therefore, commit troops to attacking the Maginot Line, but if that works, beware that will chew through your manpower like no tomorrow). Or you can do what happened in real life -- bypass the Maginot Line by going through the Low Countries.

 

[Arie90]

Aha, so because they're reluctant they won't fight. Didn't know the AI would take that into account.Makes totally sense. I have to admit my Polish border troops are automatically moving but that's because they don't have a maginot line. Thanks!