Man, 'merica is 1951 is one tough nut to crack!

[Saltynuts]

Sorry guys, haven't had much time to play the last few days, but I reset the game and I'm building nuclear reactors all in one place like a normal person. A few questions:

1. I've got my nuclear funding slider all the way to the right, but it still says 0. Maybe this is because I am researching, but have not yet achieved my first bomb tech (dirty bomb or what not)? Or is there something else I need to do?

2. When I get the bomb techs, is there anything I need to do to actually have the bombs built? Or will they just build automatically and show up in my deployment screen when done?

3. Sort of an unrelated question, but you guys said nuclear power plants are best avoided. But is this true even when they are at their highest efficiency? I have HUGE oil shortages, and, I'm all tapped out as far as trading goes. I figure if I build enough of these and synthetic oil plants I can fix this.

4. Do rockets use a lot of fuel when they are just sitting in their silos? I've got a TON of them - all I can figure is that is what is causing my shortage (which has been going on for months and months, so not a temporary AI thing).

5. I think Commander mentioned 2 nukes + 50 ICBMs will probably cause revolt in U.S. Is that any size nukes? Or have to wait for bigger ones? I want the secret recipe hahah.

Thanks guys! Down with Amerika!!!

 

[Commander666]

I'm building nuclear reactors all in one place like a normal person.

We'll make a nuke expert out of you yet.

I've got my nuclear funding slider all the way to the right, but it still says 0.

Funding will not take effect until you have achieved 1st bomb tech.

When I get the bomb techs, is there anything I need to do to actually have the bombs built? Or will they just build automatically and show up in my deployment screen when done?

No, just have your funding at max ... and keep constructing nuclear test site to max. It was about a year after Dirty Bomb tech (with Level 5 reactor) that I got first weapon.

... you guys said nuclear power plants are best avoided. But is this true even when they are at their highest efficiency? I have HUGE oil shortages, and, I'm all tapped out as far as trading goes. I figure if I build enough of these and synthetic oil plants I can fix this.

I don't know why you are short if you have conquered SU and puppeted Azerbaijan. Before you go down a road of questionable expenditures, calculate how many years oil you do have at current daily deficit. Can you not puppet more rich oil producers like Georgia, Iraq and Transural Republic to improve the situation?

And just how will Nuclear Power Plants help you get more oil? They increase your energy. Are you saying Germany has a serious energy crisis when you turn up the energy-to-oil conversion slider? If so, turn down the conversion slider, and cut back on the trades where you selling energy. Look at how your fleets operate... and are you really correctly expressing the true situation... or only describing the worst days (when much replenishment occurring)? Much better you make notes of stockpiles on 1st of month and 30th of month so you get a much more accurate picture of total stockpile shrinkage/per month. Based on that - given you must have over a million energy - a proper plan can be formed.

You want to invest spare IC in Energy-to-Oil Conversions Plants, and rush the Synthetic Oil Techs... not nuclear power plants.

Do rockets use a lot of fuel when they are just sitting in their silos? I've got a TON of them - all I can figure is that is what is causing my shortage (which has been going on for months and months, so not a temporary AI thing).

Check Rocket stats in the Production tab. It states their oil consumption. Compare that to a panzer division. I highly doubt rockets use any oil at rest, but if they do it can only be a tiny amount. I wish you would stop expressing useless and incorrect quantities like "a TON of rockets" when an actual figure of the number of rockets would be useful to any reader. The info is most easily gotten by looking at your STATISTICS TAB/National Airforce Comparison where it totals Flying Bombs and Rockets.

I don't know why you suspect rockets being the cause when you haven't considered the tons and tons of moving armor, ships and aircraft you've got. You might want to stop EVERYTHING to learn your base need. Let all ships come into port and get fully replensished. Down your airforce and let it fully refuel. Then record daily oil use. Next, start moving elements (like all your panzers at once) and make meaningful measurements of oil consumption differences.

I think Commander mentioned 2 nukes + 50 ICBMs will probably cause revolt in U.S. Is that any size nukes?

I can't remember but it probably was stronger bomb since also constructing so many rockets takes time... so research probably was further along. I believe I stated I fired 100 rockets, but maybe only 50 will work too.

Down with Amerika!!!

I realize that this is only a game, but your consistent purposeful mis-spelling of America together with a seemingly hateful message expressed many times now is starting to give me some concerns as to your possible inner thoughts. It would not surprise me if you get put on a terrorist watch list.

 

[Pang Bingxun]

1. I've got my nuclear funding slider all the way to the right, but it still says 0. Maybe this is because I am researching, but have not yet achieved my first bomb tech (dirty bomb or what not)? Or is there something else I need to do?

2. When I get the bomb techs, is there anything I need to do to actually have the bombs built? Or will they just build automatically and show up in my deployment screen when done?

The bombs will be built automatically, check the mouseover on the symbol for nukes next to the symbol for dissent. You need to have the needed tech, the needed reactor size and the speed of building bombs will depend on your nuclear funding. Early on your speed may be around 400 days per nuke at 100% spending. Before having the tech for building bombs the funding of the slider may have no use.

3. Sort of an unrelated question, but you guys said nuclear power plants are best avoided. But is this true even when they are at their highest efficiency? I have HUGE oil shortages, and, I'm all tapped out as far as trading goes. I figure if I build enough of these and synthetic oil plants I can fix this.

As a matter of fact you can, especially for china and soviet union this can be an option. Germany however may lack the needed manpower. 2 manpower per nuclear power plant are needed. The output is 1.5 energy per nuclear power plant. techs increase that by up to 400% to 7.5 energy. Also provincial effeciency applies. At 200% infra provincal efficiency can reach 130% at zero factories, 143% at 10 factories, 156% at 20 factories, 169% at 30 factories, 182% at 40 factories, 195% at 50 factories and 260% at 100 factories. 100 factories is the maximum of factories a province can have, practically speaking you will not reach that number, usually you are lucky to reach 30. Also there is a maximum of 10 nuclear power plants per province. 10 of them at 500% tech modifier and 169% provincial effeiancy will produce 126.75 energy, that is 24.0825 oil with 1945 synthetic oil or 6.1009 rares if you further convert into rares. All that at the price of 20 manpower for the nuclear power plants alone and an investement of 12000 icd prior to sliders discounts. You will probably use 20% discuount reducing the later figure to 9600 icd. Still that is 19200 energy you could have "gained" by wasting those icd. Wasted ic does not consume resources, also ic put on repairs does not.

4. Do rockets use a lot of fuel when they are just sitting in their silos?

Rockets donnot consume any oil or supplies.

5. I think Commander mentioned 2 nukes + 50 ICBMs will probably cause revolt in U.S. Is that any size nukes? Or have to wait for bigger ones? I want the secret recipe hahah.

ICBM donnot matter, nukes do. Nuke alone donnot matter much, only the permanent damage counts, as such H-Bombs do the most permanent damage. Permanent damage determines the dissent caused:

dissent = 1% x permanently destroyed manpower + 0.5 % x permanently destroyed factories

You may want to read the following article. It is very outdated, but may still hold some truth:
http://www.paradoxian.org/hoi2wiki/index.php/Nuclear_Weapons

 

[Commander666]

It was about a year after Dirty Bomb tech (with Level 5 reactor) that I got first weapon.

To clarify, you need Level 5 just to get opportunity to be able to unlock Dirty Bomb tech. So it was about a year later after I had Level 5 reactor... so Dirty Bomb tech could be achieved and so permit Nuclear Test Site to be increased to Level 6. Six days after completing Level 6 is when I got first bomb. Meanwhile I was funding 100% since Dirty Bomb Tech achieved.

The short answer is first bomb will come after you achieve Waste Bomb tech AND Level 6 provided enough funding has been given. As regards this last condition, I would think maximum funding right after Waste Bomb achieved is best.

There is another way to build (as you did first time) by advancing Basic Nuclear Power so Level 8 reactor can be built.... but that is useless for weapons production without the Waste Bomb tech achieved (and also would be much slower as it needs 1951 tech instead of only 1944 Waste Bomb technology which lets reactor advance to size 6).

 

[Saltynuts]

Well, America is finally down! I had over 200 rockets, so I just started rocketing the heck out of it (including making sure to hit DC once per day), and attacked all over, and slowly wore them down. I attacked before i had nukes (since I was hemorrhaging oil so bad - it was indeed mainly my army that was using it (even though neither it nor my air force nor my non-existent navy was moving at all). But, after I took out the U.S. I developed the nukes - first the one that I could only load on my strategic bomber, then the smaller one that I could fit on my rocket - and nukes the heck out of Rio de Janero. So I've at least achieve novice nuke/rocket status!

Thanks so much guys - on to a new game, with more to come!!! I really appreciate yall walking me through everything.

 

[Commander666]

It's good you still had one enemy left to drop your bomb!

 

[Commander666]

BTW, I backed up a year on my USA game and flipped it to playing as Germany - to better get handle on your resource problems. So it's June 1946 and the Axis hold the Euro-Asia land mass in a very secure grip. Germany has 723 IC... but lost 59 of its 60 U-boat flotillas and every capital ship. It doesn't have a single destroyer even, and its largest navy component are its 5 transports - stuck in the Black Sea. The USA (played by Commander666 for past couple years) likewise sank all the rest of the Axis member navies except for some of the worst stuff that probably survived so far because nobody would every really use such crap when better ships existed!

The USAAF (built up by C666 also last couple years) is based in England... and pounding the crap out of me. Fortunately, the German AI (while I was still playing as USA) did put up eight lines of INT-VIII.... and my challenge is to try and turn the game around... stop those Allied bombers, and prevent the coming D-Day from succeeding on any of my many shores. I've had to re-organize the whole world... get the Zeros back to Japan.... shore up the Philippines with only one TP left...while praying that the IJN doesn't run into one of Nimitz' many CTFs. India is still my puppet.... and if I can get their troops out of Europe and back to India maybe that puppet can be saved....provided I can even gather all my far-flung and hopelessly scattered panzer units to form up a sizeable force that could bolster the sub-continent defense. Portugal I might save if the Portuguese in Africa can get to Lissabon on time. I tell you - if you want to have a mighty royal mess - take over an AI played game.

ANYWAY, I too am experiencing huge resource deficits. It is natural just moving an army the size they are by then if not eliminated. But it doesn't bother me that I am -200 daily on everything because:

1) I have 1,5 million energy stockpiled, and my least resource is rares at 325K.
2) My puppets regularly give me up to 150 daily of energy and/or metal for free when they can if I really running extremely red.

But I also improved the situation dramatically by setting the conversion sliders correctly .... and - once I went to manual convoys - I nearly eliminated being in the red for the better part. So I conclude that auto-convoys can seriously contribute to the situation you were describing. I control the Middle East, Ceylon and Java which is a lot of extra oil and rares coming in. But, if the auto is not working right... and those resources aren't getting picked up properly... then that is a huge factor contributing to the massive resource shortages that can be experienced in late circa games.

On the "learning side" I just placed Level 3 on my ONE NUCLEAR TEST SITE... and hope to better co-ordinate with the techs to get a nuclear device asap .... cause I know when the USA got its first bomb... and Berlin is definitely "in range".