Does anybody else do this ?

KenderBane · December 2, 2003, 23:56

Later in the game, when I have the tech to use these units, I will often use ICBMs as 'artillery' to clear a path for ground troops.

Example :

I am invading an enemy continent and my tanks/ modern armor have run into a 'knot' of enemy resistance. Usually a city that has 4 or 5 Mech Inf fortified or something similarly costly to beat down. In order to take such a city, I simply back my tanks away from the target and NUKE the defenders, then move right in. (and my tanks go rolling along).

I've seen many threads that basically say that other people NEVER use nukes under ANY circumstances. They refuse to use them because they are afraid of AI retaliation. I have never experienced retaliation from the AIs I've nuked. Not once. Ever. In hundreds of games. Does anybody else out there actually use ICBMs ?

Catt · December 3, 2003, 00:46

Quote:

Originally posted by KenderBane
I've seen many threads that basically say that other people NEVER use nukes under ANY circumstances. They refuse to use them because they are afraid of AI retaliation. I have never experienced retaliation from the AIs I've nuked. Not once. Ever. In hundreds of games. Does anybody else out there actually use ICBMs ?

I for one never use nukes out of considerations other than any AI response. If I get to the point that I can build nukes, I've progressed in the game far enough that I can win diplomatically, or I am close to a spaceship win, or the sheer power of modern units (MA, principally) in human hands means a domination win is already at hand with or without nukes. In other words, my reticence to use nukes comes from a desire to end the game efficiently (since I've played far too long already) rather than any ingame consequences to actually using the buggers. In this framework, nukes are worthwhile mainly as a deterrant to a similarly-powerful AI and/or as a prebuild for spaceship parts.

Catt

Mad Bomber · December 3, 2003, 01:05

Quote:

Originally posted by KenderBane
Later in the game, when I have the tech to use these units, I will often use ICBMs as 'artillery' to clear a path for ground troops.

Example :

I am invading an enemy continent and my tanks/ modern armor have run into a 'knot' of enemy resistance. Usually a city that has 4 or 5 Mech Inf fortified or something similarly costly to beat down. In order to take such a city, I simply back my tanks away from the target and NUKE the defenders, then move right in. (and my tanks go rolling along).

I've seen many threads that basically say that other people NEVER use nukes under ANY circumstances. They refuse to use them because they are afraid of AI retaliation. I have never experienced retaliation from the AIs I've nuked. Not once. Ever. In hundreds of games. Does anybody else out there actually use ICBMs ?

What level are you playing on? Try playing a game on Regent and see what a nuclear retalitory strike looks like. (hint: A lot of orange goo)

Also I find it hard to believe that any nation that has been nuked has not retaliated in kind if they have any in their arsenel. In my games any time I nuke an AI the entire world (except AI's I am currently allied with) immediately declares war on me.

Donegeal · December 3, 2003, 03:40

I tend to use nukes only as an economic crippler of a civ I am at war with. I usually run around with huge stacks of Artillery that pound city defeneders to one hit point each then come in with tanks/MA to capture the city. If the civ I'm fighting is a production powerhouse, I nuke his core. Not so much to destroy units, but mainly for destroying city improvements and tile improvements (What use is a size 24 city that has the surounding 8 tiles covered in nuclear waste?). With a disabled core, it will be next to impossible for them to build additional units to fight me with in a timely manor.

Mad Bomber · December 3, 2003, 05:41

Quote:

Originally posted by donegeal
I tend to use nukes only as an economic crippler of a civ I am at war with. I usually run around with huge stacks of Artillery that pound city defeneders to one hit point each then come in with tanks/MA to capture the city. If the civ I'm fighting is a production powerhouse, I nuke his core. Not so much to destroy units, but mainly for destroying city improvements and tile improvements (What use is a size 24 city that has the surounding 8 tiles covered in nuclear waste?). With a disabled core, it will be next to impossible for them to build additional units to fight me with in a timely manor.

even better. Nuke the capital. Wait a turn. Nuke it again killing most of the workers trying to clear the pollution from the first strike. Nuke the rest of his core. This civ will now have no production power and very few workers to eliminate the pollution

MrWhereItsAt · December 3, 2003, 07:36

Quote:

Originally posted by Mad Bomber

even better. Nuke the capital. Wait a turn. Nuke it again killing most of the workers trying to clear the pollution from the first strike. Nuke the rest of his core. This civ will now have no production power and very few workers to eliminate the pollution

This, and you, are so very evil.

ZargonX · December 3, 2003, 11:42

Oohhh... that's pretty wicked, Mad Bomber...

MoonWolf · December 3, 2003, 13:03

Hardly get to the point where I'm able to build nukes (or I don't build them untill the AI starting to "nuking up"). But I might use them if a civ continously declare war on me and I have no interesest or ability to start an invasion of it's territory. Using Mad Bomber's (!) strategy is good then, yes (or I'll often bomb away the airport, harbor and roads of the capital. Quite effective in slowing a warmonger)

Mace · December 3, 2003, 14:45

Using Mad Bomber's strat would mean a lot of pollution, and no workers to clean it up! Wouldn't this be bad for you, the human player, since your world might experience global warming?

Mace · December 3, 2003, 14:51

Concerning Nukes, I have used them to take out concentrations of NAVAL units; the advantages here are:
1) No pollution to worry about, unless it's next to a coast.

2) a good way to eliminate several powerful naval units (Battleships) in one smackdown.

Usually the AI can't replace it's battleship or AEGIS force very quickly, allowing you to march on in, if you so desire.

Arrian · December 3, 2003, 16:10

I actually used nukes in my last game. I almost finished the tech tree

The reason was that I decided to win via 20,000 culture in one city, and well, even with a rockin' city that takes a while.

The turn before I won via culture, I decided "what the hell" and dropped 2 ICBMS on the Sumerian capitol. I didn't like that city. It was taking up the #2 city spot on the F11 screen. It had to go. And so it did, along with the northern 1/3 - 1/2 of the Sumerian empire. Then F11 looked right. Iroquois purple top to bottom.

If I had been fighting Sumer for real (instead of just doing as much damage as I could 1 turn before winning the game), I would not have nuked them. That's just pollution I'm going to have to clean up, which is irritating. Further, if the game had been closer (this was a blowout), I wouldn't have wasted the shields building nukes in the first place.

-Arrian

QuickGold · December 3, 2003, 16:16

"Do you know what those things can do? Suck the paint off your house and give your family a permanent orange afro."

Brundlefly · December 3, 2003, 16:26

Quote:

Originally posted by KenderBane
Later in the game, when I have the tech to use these units, I will often use ICBMs as 'artillery' to clear a path for ground troops.

Does anybody else do this ?

No, but I can do this:

Does anybody else do this?

KenderBane · December 3, 2003, 23:50

bfg9000,

I don't know if I can do that, but I can pat my head and rub my belly at the same time ... but so can a whole lot of other people, too.

Mad Bomber,

Quote:

What level are you playing on? Try playing a game on Regent and see what a nuclear retalitory strike looks like. (hint: A lot of orange goo)

I always play on Regent level or higher. And I've never seen the AI launch a retalitory strike ... probably because my tech lead lets me know where the Uranium is before they can use it, and I conquer all the Uranium tiles before anybody else has the chance to build nukes. But that's a different storty

anteos · December 4, 2003, 08:33

can people post some pics of the nuclear strikes? Before and after maybe

vulture · December 4, 2003, 09:21

Here's an image (from the long ago 'Babylon and On' mini tourney). The glorious Babylonian empire recently nuked parts of China during the course of an invasion (to get rid of a stack of doom), and in response I got plastered by half the civs on the planet. Had SDI, but 6 missiles got through (another 15 or so didn't IIRC, or else I'd not have any island left at all).