Nuclear bombs vs missiles

[the oob]

Can someone explain to me the advantage of using nuclear missiles over bombs? Bombs are much cheaper, the only advantage I can see for missiles is that they can go on nuclear subs which are less detectable.

Also, can nukes be intercepted, and are missiles less vulnerable to interception? I'm in a space race with India in my current game, they've just built a component and I'm still working on Apollo. They only have 3 non-puppet cities... I think you can see what my plan is

 

[Ddude97]

Nuclear missiles do more damage and can destroy cities, but cost 1 extra uranium, and the detecatbility as you pointed out. I don't know if they can, but probably...

 

[the oob]

I have 6 uranium, 2 of which I'm buying from India , the game is on scarce resources. So I guess I can build 3 ICBMs as I haven't built any nuclear plants. If I use the first nuke to war dec, then I suppose it won't suffer the penalty when India withdraws it's uranium, and then I'll only need 4 anyway for my remaining 2 missiles.

 

[Ddude97]

I have 6 uranium, 2 of which I'm buying from India , the game is on scarce resources. So I guess I can build 3 ICBMs as I haven't built any nuclear plants. If I use the first nuke to war dec, then I suppose it won't suffer the penalty when India withdraws it's uranium, and then I'll only need 4 anyway for my remaining 2 missiles.

Yes, that would work, but make sure you hit their cities fast after nuking so they aren't able to heal and put units back in there. Also, just because it has only 3 core doesn't mean it has a small army.
Edit: lol the wink smiley looks wierd

 

[the oob]

I'm not sure if I should even bother launching an invasion, I just want to slow down their building which will be handled nicely by the population drop and fallout. I'm pretty isolated so I haven't built much of an army to speak of, although I do have a lot of frigates I can upgrade to destroyers if need be.

 

[the oob]

Manual is saying 50% evasion for both missiles and bombs. So I'm leaning towards bombs, my industrial capacity is stretched thin as it is, and it looks like I'll need to make six bombs so that on average 1 will work on each city, whereas with missiles I only have the uranium to make three. Were you saying it's 1U for bombs and 2U for missiles?

 

[Karstedt]

You could just run air sweeps with fighters until you meet no resistance so you don't need more bombs. The AI doesn't typically have fighters ready to intercept anyway.

 

[the oob]

Good point, I suppose I'll do that, it's probably cheaper. One jet for each city or would more be required?

 

[hardcore_gamer]

You could just run air sweeps with fighters until you meet no resistance so you don't need more bombs. The AI doesn't typically have fighters ready to intercept anyway.

According to 2KGreg the AI is suppose to built more (or any, since the AI rarely appears to built any aircraft right now) aircraft once the upcoming patch is released.

 

[jagdtigerciv]

Scarce resources doesn't help either. I find it has a dramatic effect on the usefulness and, in some cases, advantages, of resource dependent military units.

 

[CivFart]

You could just run air sweeps with fighters until you meet no resistance so you don't need more bombs. The AI doesn't typically have fighters ready to intercept anyway.

You can airsweep enemy nuclear missiles too. I've done that, my fighter shot a nuclear missile and it exploded in mid air straight above his own city.

 

[hardcore_gamer]

You can airsweep enemy nuclear missiles too. I've done that, my fighter shot a nuclear missile and it exploded in mid air straight above his own city.

Wait......so if your missile gets shot down by a aircraft then it just goes of in the city it was launched from and destroys everything in and around said city? If so then it makes no sense whatsoever and will make nukes useless once the AI actually starts to build aircraft. Why would anyone want to risk their own cities and units being blown up?

 

[CivFart]

Wait......so if your missile gets shot down by a aircraft then it just goes of in the city it was launched from and destroys everything in and around said city? If so then it makes no sense whatsoever and will make nukes useless once the AI actually starts to build aircraft. Why would anyone want to risk their own cities and units being blown up?

Well, the first time I did that the nuke was shot and exploded. I'm not exactly sure if the nuke did damage because i've already nuked the city before i shot it down so I cant tell if the nuke did any damage, actually I don't think it did, but it surely exploded straight above his city.

I only successfully shot down one nuke, the other times I sweeped his city I only damaged the nukes, they had tremendous damage, several million so im tempted to ask if this is a bug, perhaps fireaxis forgot to remove nukes from airsweep?

 

[Slowpoke]

Btw, for nuke evasion, is it 50% flat or does every intercepting aircraft get a shot at shooting down the nuke? Haven't played any modern era games, so I don't know much about this.

 

[CivFart]

Btw, for nuke evasion, is it 50% flat or does every intercepting aircraft get a shot at shooting down the nuke? Haven't played any modern era games, so I don't know much about this.

I think every aircraft had them damaged. But if there are interceptors in the city you will have to fight them before you get to the nukes. So if you want to protect your nukes, make sure you stack fighters in there, because when you get to the nukes, they will blow in your own city, a huge fireball and gamma rays all over the place, even funnier, my fighter survived the blast, hehe.

 

[Slowpoke]

Wow shooting diwn missiles that haven't fired yet? That's gotta be a bug.

 

[CivFart]

Just keep your nukes in nuke subs, that way you're safe. If your sub goes down, the nukes simply just sink along with it.

 

[GenericPlayer]

I just wanted to point out that nuclear subs are not as stealthy as you think. In one instance, the sub was attacked by city when it drifted within its 2 hex combat radius - moreover other AI frigates saw it and attacked as well. That enemy was backward and did not have a single destroyer. So at first I thought a city could see a sub if it entered the 2 hex combat radius.

If that was not bad enough, yesterday a frigate attacked my nuclear sub and it was not within the 2 hex combat radius of a city, but simply one hex beyond cultural borders. My sub had attacked it in the previous turn, so I don't know if that had anything to do with it.

Because of this, when I want to store the nukes for a while I put the sub deep under the polar ice cap.

 

[hardcore_gamer]

I just wanted to point out that nuclear subs are not as stealthy as you think. In one instance, the sub was attacked by city when it drifted within its 2 hex combat radius - moreover other AI frigates saw it and attacked as well. That enemy was backward and did not have a single destroyer. So at first I thought a city could see a sub if it entered the 2 hex combat radius.

If that was not bad enough, yesterday a frigate attacked my nuclear sub and it was not within the 2 hex combat radius of a city, but simply one hex beyond cultural borders. My sub had attacked it in the previous turn, so I don't know if that had anything to do with it.

Either this is a:

1. A bug.
2. An AI cheat.
3. A poor design decision.

The whole point of subs is that the enemy isn't suppose to see them if he doesn't have any destroyers or subs of his own. If he can just see subs with any kind of ships, then why bother build any subs? They aren't the only vessel that can carry nukes.

 

[GenericPlayer]

Either this is a:

1. A bug.
2. An AI cheat.
3. A poor design decision.

The whole point of subs is that the enemy isn't suppose to see them if he doesn't have any destroyers or subs of his own. If he can just see subs with any kind of ships, then why bother build any subs? They aren't the only vessel that can carry nukes.

Its difficult to report it as a bug because I have no definitive way of telling what the AI can and cannot see.

Its true Missile Cruisers can carry nukes, and they are not vulnerable to destroyers (destroyer combat bonus is only vs submarines).