[GS] Is a Military victory still possible ?

[Captain Pugwash]

I just played as Zulu, prince level and tried a war (which I have done many times before in the Civ series) but had no luck. I had 2 Field gun armies, a Cavalry army and a Musketeer army with also a Great General in support. The city had zero defending units, just Medieval walls but I was unable to make progress attacking it.
The defending Civ was Mapuche who got +10 strength because I was in a Golden Age.

Is the military system unbalanced now ? Anyone else think so ?
As Zulu, there is little choice but to pursue a military victory.
(Sorry, I'm still playing Rise and Fall expansion not Gathering Storm Yet so title not right)

 

[Victoria]

Is the military system unbalanced now ? Anyone else think so ?

Quite the opposite. Mapuche is a pain but not to the level you have.
You have forgotten a Ram or Mortar to take down the walls... no siege equipment. Field artillery is for fields.
If you had a Ram you would waste the city in a turn or 2

 

[Captain Pugwash]

Yah I did try a bombard but they have range 2 same as the defending city and so when you get them close enough, the city strike damages them before you can get enough shots in. In practice, they don't seem effective to me. Also, if you don't build the battering rams/siege towers early enough, then they are no longer available in the build queue. Surely success can't rely totally on stockpiling battering rams. I still say they haven't got the balance right.

 

[Zdarg]

Two field guns armies? What prevents you from having six?

 

[Disgustipated]

Using a battering ram, especially with the Zulu is key to success. At Prince level you really don't even need to diversify. Build one battering ram (more if you want to take 2 cities at a time), and nothing but Impi. Not just 2 or 3, but 8 should just obliterate the ai.

 

[OmegaDestroyer]

Domination is probably the easiest victory path and laughably so with the Zulu.

You just need some rams, siege towers, or bombards to tear down the walls and the rest is clear sailing.

 

[Melliores]

If you want to make progress in your current game, just bring two bombards (siege units) at a time. Even if one of them gets hit, the second one will get a shot and bring by 1/3 to a half the walls' hitpoints. Combine that with enough melee and other units to put the city under siege and chip away at the remaining hitpoints and in 3 to 4 turns you should be taking the city.

Like with most domination strategies, you really do need some good numbers when attacking cities. Also it might help if you bring a fleet (ranged naval) for coastal cities. That helps a lot.

 

[Victoria]

battering rams

They cost 260 gold, many good players just but them when they need them. They are useful for a very long time. By then you are nnear artillary and with a loon they are untouchable.

 

[Infixo]

Yah I did try a bombard but they have range 2 same as the defending city and so when you get them close enough, the city strike damages them before you can get enough shots in

AI strikes back... Literally unplayable

 

[Tech Osen]

Yah I did try a bombard but they have range 2 same as the defending city and so when you get them close enough, the city strike damages them before you can get enough shots in

Bring more than one. With a general they can also move and shoot on the same turn as long as you have enough movement points left.

 

[Victoria]

Even better, bring 2 scout/skirmish/rangers, they will target them first
The AI does not realise they have already been discovered.

 

[gunnergoz]

Sometimes you just want to bust stuff up. I think its time to make war fun again...in Civ VI, not in real life.

 

[MrRadar]

Surely success can't rely totally on stockpiling battering rams.

With the current mechanics, it totally can rely on one single battering ram, nobody needs a stockpile. One ram adjacent to a city is effective for all melee units attacking it from whatever direction.

The city had zero defending units, just Medieval walls but I was unable to make progress attacking it.

Bear in mind that city defence is based on the best melee unit that civ has built, garrison presence and walls come as modifiers on top of that. Beeline to a strong melee unit yourself, bring one ram and multiple melee and see their walls melt down.

Two rams might be necessary, if you attack on wide front and want to beat down loyalty pressure quickly.

Three rams might be needed if you are an evil genius and want go to war on three fronts at once.

And if you like ranged artillery so much, look what are you going against. If you bring a fresh bombard, but you've already glimpsed a cavalry among your opponent's troops, know that your cannonballs will mostly bounce off harmlessly even from the ancient walls. You already need to bring something stronger.

 

[Captain Pugwash]

OK, thanks for the replies folks. I did wonder if anyone else had encountered the same situation. I will take rams more seriously in future.
Still not impressed with the balance though.

 

[Prester John 2]

I really think rams should become obsolete after medieval era. They are just overpowered in the hands of a human player. Bombards should fill in. As a comprise, a miner/driller support unit could replace the ram but would have to be less effective (only applicable to the melee unit it is attached to, for instance).

I also think that fortress, buildable by military engineersm should get a one strike capability, making them more useful. They would have to get a minium distance between them, say 2 tiles.

 

[Weraptor]

... and I still don't know why cavalry units benefit from Rams/Siege Towers. And why they don't get a debuff vs cities

 

[Infixo]

Even better, bring 2 scout/skirmish/rangers, they will target them first
The AI does not realise they have already been discovered.

I think it has rather to do with the fact that these units are fairly weak and easier to kill than e.g. standard melee.
The AI prioritizes attacks in such a way to try and eliminate units entirely if they can.
The only exception are city defenses which go for siege units first.

 

[Victoria]

Well weirdly, when they can kill an archer they would rather damage a scout, I do it lots of time, in game.

 

[Infixo]

Well, I don’t usually use scouts in battles, but certainly ranged units are a priority to kill, too.
And since Civ6 has lots of glitches and errors, maybe those scouts are somehow bugged, who knows?

 

[Infixo]

Could be that they think it is a barbarian scout, those are attacked on sight and it is ok. But for non-barbarian scouts this would be a bug (i.e. not checking if this a a barbarian unit).