Ironclads

[fantsu]

Spoiler :

Ironclad
STRENGTH 12
MOVEMENT 2
COST 100 hammers
Iron AND Coal required.
Cannot enter ocean tiles
bombards cities -12%

Have you ever used Ironclads?
Did you attack city right after you got steel and steam power?
Did you defend your coastal city from opponents?
What kind of map you played? Because they cannot enter ocean they seem pretty bad.
I have never used them in my life. Cannot even recall myself building them, EVER. It just seems that combustion is never far away to get destroyers and transports.

It is pretty silly that transports are so much more powerful than these. I wonder why.

I would like to find good map to try these out someday...

 

[TheMeInTeam]

They're junky, to the point that most consider them the weakest unit in the game. They're way too close to destroyers in timing (and so much weaker), but they're also slow and can't travel in ocean.

 

[Manco Capac]

Oh, I forgot ironclads ever existed.

 

[Zx Zero Zx]

The only time I have ever built one of them was to get rid of some stupid Privateers.

 

[misterfilmgeek]

In Epic speed games I will build them occasionally. When I do build them, my reasoning is this: Usually I beeline for Steel to get Cannons, then switch to Rifling and Military Tradition. I almost always have Level 3 Macemen and HAs/Curs to upgrade, so I want to start building Cannons sooner than upgrading units. After getting Rifling and MT, I shut down research while I get cash to upgrade. On Epic, this takes a while and I like to have good defenses against Privateers (and if I am in a war, stacks of Frigates), so I will trade for Steam Power if possible (the extra worker speed helps with RRs, which is usually my next tech after MT/Rifling). I don't always go for Military Science, so Ships of the Line may not be available (plus they are more expensive), and ICs are stronger overall anyway. I never build a ton of them, but I will build a few to stick on seafood resources and a couple around my bigger cities to fight blockades. I could certainly win without them, but I do think they can be useful in certain situations, like most units in the game.

 

[capnvonbaron]

^^^ what he said almost to the letter, only thing I'd add is this applies on marathon as well. Its annoying to have some religious troll across the sea DoW you for no good reason and pillage the crap out of your seafood. A couple of ironclads parked on your resources will do wonders to keep them from being pillaged, and ironclads upgrade to destroyers more cheaply than frigates.

Also, on the occasion I settle a coastal city that only has one or two accessible sea tiles, I'll put a few ironclads on those tiles to thwart sneak-naval attacks and keep most of my land defenders in the more exposed seaports.

 

[elmurcis]

Ironclads are not too bad.. if you get +1 bonus movement bonus (from being 1st who buy from others world map to show that world is round), than it can be really great defense against anything.. and because ocean in culture is available for these ships, they are not so weak as it could be.. and its cheaper to have 1 ironclad than 2 frigates if I want to bombard available city defense (allows to avoid counter attacks too if attack main ship port)

 

[damerell]

They're not totally worthless. If you have no Oil and some other clown does, your best bet is Guided Missiles and Ironclads to sink his Destroyers - but I think their real value is simply in coming out earlier than Destroyers. If I can sweep the enemy's Frigates and Ships of the Line away now, who cares that a much stronger unit is coming later?

 

[admtanaka]

I can't remember ever building one.

 

[noto2]

yep, they are a terrible units and horribly unbalanced. Why would they be so slow it makes no sense. They fill no niche role at all and are 100% useless. They are too slow to matter against sailships and destroyers are invincible to all ships that come before them, even ironclads. It's like trying to kill a knight with a warrior. Pointless. It's one of the worst failings in the game design.

 

[TheWilltoAct]

I'm using them in a game, but that is of course unusual. As long as they don't have far to travel and you actually have the required resources (Iron AND Coal? ) from a strength standpoint they have no peer. A drydock + Theocracy/Vassalage opens the Navigation promotion, so you can shoehorn in some extra movement. If you can float to a neighbor close-by, their boats will be useless and you can bombard 12% of their defenses per turn.

For large continents or nearly-attached islands they are comparable to the Ship of the Line.
Where overseas traversal is required, they are all washed up.

 

[Manco Capac]

I guess they are best on slower speed due to tech pace gives enough time to profit from a bad unit.

 

[kremkaiser]

waste of hammers

 

[Bob The Average]

They can be nice for defense. The AI has a nasty habit of sending maurading ships of the line out to kill your fishing boats. Ironclads can sink these with ease and you can park them on top of the fishing boats.

 

[capnvonbaron]

I guess they are best on slower speed due to tech pace gives enough time to profit from a bad unit.

Precisely Epic at least, and marathon is a whole different story. (I often beeline steam power to boost worker productivity on marathon anyway). Normal and quick, fugettabahtit

Someone else here did just make a great point on something I have done on numerous occasions too... they make a pretty good option for sea-siege. If you're invading a neighbor with coastal cities, run a couple of 'clads and frigates down the coast to pre-bombard the city defenses and blockade to kill commerce while your land forces are on the way. You'll be untouchable by the enemy if they are still in the age of sail. That way you can focus more of your land siege heading toward a more important inland target.

 

[Koning]

waste of hammers

Second that. Useful in one out of 100 games.

 

[jarhead_leif]

I disagree with the waste of hammers thing, ironclads are still good for defensive purposes.

I guess you never played on an archi map.

____________

Leif made it for me. Cute^^

 

[jarhead_leif]

They can be nice for defense. The AI has a nasty habit of sending maurading ships of the line out to kill your fishing boats. Ironclads can sink these with ease and you can park them on top of the fishing boats.

I only build few. Sure, it can be easily outrun by a privateer. But they are good sea patrols. A high promoted ironclad becomes powerful detroyer.

__________

Leif made it for me. Cute^^

 

[SnipedSoul]

I will sometimes get a couple if I was the one to circle the globe first. They are just too slow otherwise. They're really good at protecting your seafood, but that's about it.

 

[lindsay40k]

Got Iron and Coal?

FIN and don't want to obsolete Colossus? Or Egypt/Ethiopia and losing UB will set back a culture war, or a GPro you really need to build a Shrine?

Privateers making your life hell? Or want to invade by Galleys without getting massacred by Galleons?

Ships of the Line locking you down, and got no Oil?

There's worse things to build.