besiegeing cities

[agv]

Hi!

I'm besieging several republican cities but there're no assaults. Do I have to have the offensive mode on (orange) or the all-out mode on (red) when it comes to the orders of my troops?

And question number 2: how come all my seven units in Jaen surrenders without a single shot being fired? Is there like an event that triggers this kind of things?

thanks

[CheerfullyInsane]

Hi!

I'm besieging several republican cities but there're no assaults. Do I have to have the offensive mode on (orange) or the all-out mode on (red) when it comes to the orders of my troops?

For the siege to carry on, you only need to be on defensive (that is, blue). Actually it's preferable to do so, since you regain cohesion faster in defensive than in attack.
In order for your troops to assault the city, you need to be in All-out (Red), BUT you can't assault until there's a breach in the defences.
For that to happen, you need to wait. Artillery helps, as do sappers (engineers) but ultimately it's a question of patience.

And question number 2: how come all my seven units in Jaen surrenders without a single shot being fired? Is there like an event that triggers this kind of things?

thanks

Impossible to say without more detail.
If there were no enemy units in sight, my first guess would be lack of supply.
I've never seen an event that surrenders units en masse.

Cheerfully.

[agv]

Thank you!

Gotta be patient then...

There were enemy units in sight, that is, enemy troops arrived and my units surrendered en masse without fight. I guess it has to be related to, like you say, a lack os supplies, bad moral/cohesion or a combination of both.... I´ll pay more attention to the info screen next time it happens.

[CheerfullyInsane]

Thank you!

Gotta be patient then...

There were enemy units in sight, that is, enemy troops arrived and my units surrendered en masse without fight. I guess it has to be related to, like you say, a lack os supplies, bad moral/cohesion or a combination of both.... I´ll pay more attention to the info screen next time it happens.

Well, one possibility is that they had low cohesion, and tried to retreat from battle.
But you need at least 6% Military Control over a Region in order to retreat back into it. If you've zipped through a region with relatively small forces, or if the enemy has nipped in behind you, you might have lost that last bit of MC.
And if your troops can't retreat from what they perceive as overwhelming odds, they'll surrender instead.

So protect your Line of Supply. It's a lot more important in AGE, than in most other wargames.

Cheerfully.

[Philo32b]

Thank you!

Gotta be patient then...

There were enemy units in sight, that is, enemy troops arrived and my units surrendered en masse without fight. I guess it has to be related to, like you say, a lack os supplies, bad moral/cohesion or a combination of both.... I´ll pay more attention to the info screen next time it happens.

If your units were inside the city and besieged, there is a chance each round that they will surrender, eliminating all the units and giving the city to the besieger without a shot fired. (Plus the besieger gets 1 NM point.) You can prevent this by have a supply wagon in the city (or at least reduce the risk; I can't remember exactly if it totally prevents it or just reduces the chances.)

The general moral, though, is to not put a bunch of units inside cities. They can get trapped in there and starved out. Or if you try to fight your way out, you will find that the besieger now has entrenched and is the defender with your besieged forces at a disadvantage as the attacker. Perhaps put a single weak unit/brigade in cities near the front so that enemies cannot just drive through town and take over the city, but you may want to leave any real forces outside the city walls.

[ShadowofGod]

I'm rather concerned. I was besieging Zaragoza as the Republicans. I had three divisions, plus lots of artillery and armor. Engineers, communication, medical unit and plenty of supply. I would attack when there was a breach; go on defense if there was not. Month after month the city managed to hold out by itself. I took the Nationalist side off of AI, and what do I see? Two battalions! The garrison unit and a Falange militia. How could such a tiny force possibly hold out like that?

Meanwhile the Nationalists have gone on a general offensive in the South, and chewing up my morale.

[Erik Springelkamp]

I would attack when there was a breach

You mean assault, don't you? Just to be sure.

I have only played as Nationalists until now, but assaults were mostly bloody affairs that were either victorious, or gave the attackers a bloody nose.

[ShadowofGod]

Okay, I got it, red/red. City fell. My mistake.

[ShadowofGod]

--Okay, tried a fresh game. Again, playing the Republicans. This is what happens: Nationalists hole up in cities - four on the board, to be exact - and then have the strength that they can sit there forever if they like. Checking 'the other side' by superseding AI, I see that according to the reports none lose any steps from being isolated at all. And when I assaulted Oviedo, I took massive casualties for very little effect on the defenders, bring my morale dangerously low. With 'Africans' among the defenders of the four cities, the cites could hold out forever, or so it seems.

Mind you, the Republicans have more VP at this point, and more of a VP gain every turn, so the Nationalists have to come out and fight for something sometime. But in the meantime, the game is a real drag. I'm assembling my four or five best divisions to do something, but I suspect I will be left with another Oviedo if I assault. Any suggestions?

[Leibst]

It will be interesting to see the battle report of that assault on Oviedo.
Besieged cities usually surrenders in a few turns, like 5 or 6 turns.