nukes

[yaksack]

I have not yet been able to build nukes, but in my current game I think I will be able to.


My question is can I destroy units with nukes. For example if the Arabs have a stack of tanks coming to kill me can I destroy the troops in that stack with a nuke?

[ainwood]

Yes. But its not that advisable! IIRC, if you use a nuke, all civs not allied with you will automatically become 'furious' and will declare war on you.

For destroying a stack of tanks, the best option is to use artillary to knock them down to a single HP, then finish them off with your own tanks / cavalry.

[kokoras]

That's the idea,no?
Anyway try it and if something else hapens load the turn again.

[yaksack]

If I have nukes and the others do not, are they a little more less likely to declare war on me, out of fear that they may get nuked as well?

[ainwood]

Whilst in non-competitive games reloading may be OK if you want to see what the rules are, having a good strategy is (IMO) a better solution!

[Goober]

Actually, I find when I Nuke, non-aligned Civs will not declare war upon you, but merely become Furious with you. I only really Nuke if things are getting really desperate, or I am not happy with another Civ, they have pissed me off.

[Balao]

Nukes are also nice for that advancing enemy fleet you can't stop, or to keep that nuclear sub alive (like if it just found 3 enemy ageis cruisers).

[Balao]

I would not use nukes to wipe out land units unless I had no choice. It does waaaayyyy too much damage to land I might want.

[Mr. Cackle]

Originally posted by Balao
I would not use nukes to wipe out land units unless I had no choice. It does waaaayyyy too much damage to land I might want.

Actually, I have used nukes tactically on numerous occasions. Let me give an example:

There were three superpowers of around equal size, Me, the Spanish, and the Celts-- Me communist everyone else Fascist. It was a bit like 1984 in that the alliances shifted every so often, but at the moment I was allied with the Spanish against the Celts.

Well, I decided to take a few strategic Celtic cities (actually English cities that had been captured) because they allowed me to pass through the continent (like a canal). So, I bombed and whatnot and then walked in unharmed with some marines.

Next turn, because the Celts were fully railroaded, I saw two stacks of around 40-50 infantry and 10-20 tanks EACH appear at my doorstep. Luckily, I had two nuke subs within range and another two able to hurry and make it over. I evacuated the city and nuked the two stacks. It killed an average (between the two stacks) of 60% of the units. The rest had one or two health. Then, since I had around 30 bombers off the coast, I easily killed off about 25 units, and finished em all off with one final nuke. Thus, about 100-140 units were wiped out, amounting to the destruction of 75% of his military, including the people he puts in his bases for defense. Although I was unable to wipe him out because it was an overseas war and he could still draft many units, the Celts had basically lost all offensive power and I was able to move about freely in his home continent. Because I killed so many Celtic people, as well as the fact that the world was split between the Celts and the Spanish-Dutch (Me) alliance, everyone was either Furious or Gracious with me.

[Balao]

I see your point, but that sounds like a "no other choice" deal. If it's lose a strategic city or use a nuke I'll empty the silos or subs every time.

[yaksack]

Cackle you mentioned "Then, since I had around 30 bombers off the coast, I easily killed off about 25 units, and finished em all off with one final nuke." How do you destroy units with bombers (or ships) or artillery. I have never been able to do it.

[Speedo]

He probably means in Conquests. In vanilla Civ bombers don't have any lethal bombard, but in conquests they do.

[Mr. Cackle]

Originally posted by Balao
I see your point, but that sounds like a "no other choice" deal. If it's lose a strategic city or use a nuke I'll empty the silos or subs every time.

True, but I can use it effectively. Just bomb the tiles outside of the city radius of the city you are going to attack (to prevent fast units from taking the city first turn), use amphibious assault and then wait for the enemy to send all their units right outside the gates of the city. After that it's just a one-two punch of nukes and bombers and you've wiped out a huge amount of their military.

Edit>> yacksack, I have Conquests (2nd expansion for Civ3). Bombers just own everything in the game, it is awesome.