I have gotten to do a lot of late game warring recently, so I thought I would take a deeper dive on the late game military again to see where it stands. I am going to put a star (**) next to units I think could use a look at.
MODERN ERA
Riflemen - G Guns still win the day, but Riflemen can now at least take the pain. Ultimately they are a serviceable, if not exciting, unit for their time.
Landships - A solid unit, the first really capable to taking on G Guns and even machine guns decently well (though still not amazingly)... the recent buff to their defense has made them good units.
**Triplane - So there is no issue with the Triplane per say, its does its job well... its just that at this point, my air slots and oil reserves are generally very limited. I would much rather have a few more bombers. The only thing I could think of that would actually make me consider using them is to make them Iron units instead of oil. Then I could consider Triplane + Landships / Tank as an option. Otherwise, I will always have better uses for my slots and my oil.
**Bomber - A very good unit, and tends to operate with a fair amount of impunity when it first comes out, letting it shake up the landscape. My only thought is to consider a +1 base range.... 6 range is quite small, and I frequently find my bombers in my closest cities to the front still can't always contribute damage. This combined with the limits of 2 slots means that while bombers are good units, I often make just a few because I often have no place to put them that they will be useful.
Paratrooper - Fun tactical unit, not strong enough to compare to regular infantry, but good at getting into key areas, cutting important roads, taking out key strategic resources, and providing the occasional flank.
Artillery - This begins the ascension of the siege unit. Artillery is amazing, and serves as a general counter to navy and ground forces. This is also when you can start applying splash I as a default promotion, which allows you to counter the mass of forces on the battlefield. Artillery are incredibly good, but brittle enough (especially to air) that you have to properly protect them to make it work.... which feels perfect in play.
**AA Guns - I actually think the unit is a bit too good at its job for this era, another reason I never build triplanes. AA Flak historically was effective but still difficult to apply to aircraft, and AA guns create a nigh invincible shield in their area.... as well as being extremely durable and hard to kill. I would consider removing their interception II promotion....they should be good at interception but not so automatic. Or considering lowering their range to 2 instead of 3
**Light Tanks - I do think the unit is underperforming at the moment... but I also think that their is still a bug with the skirmisher doctrine promotion. The combat numbers when I use skirmishers never look right to me, so I'll withhold judgement until that is confirmed or addressed. That said, the fact that the unit costs aluminum instead of oil is a big plus.... giving me the desire to have them on the field with my other forces. They are decent at softening up naval melee that is sieging a city, and that to me is their best role at the moment.
Machine Guns - They have lost a little luster compared to G Guns (because G gun is the height of the ranged paradigm), but they are still solid effective units.
ATOMIC ERA
**Destroyer - I think the ship is overperforming a bit at the moment, as its good at everything. Its strong, its super fast, has a strong withdrawal chance, its highly resistant to aircraft, its really good against subs (properly promoted)....its just does everything really well. I think that its base Air defense should be dropped from 30 to maybe 20.... its interception is good with promotions, but the fact that planes just rip themselves up on base attacks against them I think is the biggest issue. Planes are supposed to be a counter to navy in this era of war, not the other way around.
**Guided Missile - The thing I miss was the missile having evasion on it. Now that interception blocks attacks, the fact that you have to air sweep everything to ensure the missile actually gets value really lowers its effectiveness. That said, I really only use them for taking out city garrisons, but that is still a good niche. I do always chuckle at the "cheap" notion, as they still cost more than a full infantry squad.
Infantry - Though tanks still rule the day in this era, Infantry are good units. I commonly will give them City Assault or amphibious promotions, and they help augment my navy for island taking....something tanks are not that good at.
Tanks - Tanks are awesome! Tanks have good stats, but what makes them so good is the modern battleground, which is littered with pillage sites. The fact that tanks can attack, and have the speed to move and pillage a couple of tiles....means that they stay at peak strength for a long time, making them more effective than their stats might indicate. Tanks do their job very well.
**Special Forces - Though I will upgrade my existing paratroopers into SF (at least the highly promoted ones), I almost never build the unit. The issue is its price tag...it cost more production than a mechanized infantry! Its basically 50% more hammers than a standard infantry, its just too expensive to be worth making. Now in theory it could also be good at island taking with embarked bonuses. In reality though I find infantry with proper promotions and protected by naval ships superior in this role.
Carriers - Do their job well, and now with stronger interception and base defenses are a bit better at holding up against enemy aircraft.
**Battleships - I know some people bemoan that battleships dead end and don't upgrade further, I do find they have some uses even in the late game, as they can just keep bombarding an area over and over again. That said, I do think they come very late to the party sometimes. I wonder if they should come online the same time that destroyers do to give them so more time out on the battle field.
Submarines - My jury is still out on subs. The fact that destroyers no longer innately get their anti-sub bonus by default is a big deal. I haven't found that the loss of the sight promotion has helped much, the AI seems to find your subs one way or the other. So they are better overall, but not sure if they are still worth my hammers vs just building more destroyers or battleships.
Heavy Bomber - Good Unit.
Fighter - This is the height of the fighter line. Its the time when aircraft are prevalent enough, but stealth bombers don't yet rule the skies. This unit finds good work at this time.
Atomic Bomb - The bomb damage is obviously quite good, but I actually find the fallout its strongest tactical use. The AI still has real problems with fallout, it messes with its unit coordination...and often the AI is extremely slow in cleaning it up. I will often use A bombs to create a no-mans land between myself and the enemy that the AI has trouble crossing. So weirdly enough, I find them strong defensive weapons more than offensive ones.
INFORMATION ERA
Missile Cruiser - Decent endgame naval finisher. At this point, I don't mind that the MC has the whole package, as it has to compete with all of the final era toys.
Modern Armor - A solid upgrade to the tank, and often needed for late game city tanking.
Mobile Sam - A decent upgrade to the AA gun, nothing special but it does the job.
Rocket Artillery - RA are basically the end game ranged unit....whether that's good or not depends on your point of view. They are essential against massed navy, cities, and just generally a key unit on the late game battlefield.
Helicopter Gunship - I used to rag on the HG because it has almost no damage increase over the light tank in open terrain...but I have come to appreciate the extreme mobility of the unit, especially its ability to cross coastal waters and attack naval ships. I don't build a lot of them, but they have a niche.
Mechanized Infantry - Again not sexy like the modern armor but is decently cheap and gets the job done when needed.
**Bazookas - These are bad units in general. I never upgrade my machine guns into them, I always have better things to spend my money and hammers on. Its hard being a range 2 unit in a world where range 3+ is becoming the norm.
Giant Death Robot - I know not everyone likes the flavor of this unit, but they are with some recent changes a stable of the final war, and one I have found refreshing. The GDR is overpowered by design, designed to quickly break stalemates and complete wars in the handful of turns the game has left. Though it has a tremendous attack, I actually find its speed one of its strongest features, able to move back and forth across the landscape as needed. That said, I actually use them more on defense than offense, I find them critical garrisons to let your coastal cities survive the end game navies that the AI can use.
**Nuclear Missile - For its cost, its pretty underwhelming, especially as the AI will often have nuke defenses in their cities by this point. You can get 2 GDRS for the price (with some change), and I would rather have the 2 GDRs in almost all cases. I'll just make atomic bombs if I'm going to nuke a city, it does enough damage to meet my needs.
**Jet Fighters - My jury is still out on these as well. They are not great interceptors against stealth bombers, so its really a question for me of using them for air sweeps and whether that is worth the expense to bring them on the board.
Xcom Squad - The ultimate "reach out and bother you" unit...there stats are actually not that great for their cost but obviously their strength is in the ability to go basically anywhere. As the human I don't use them a huge amount...they are just very expensive. But they are good units for the AI to have, ensuring a human can never be too comfortable, and that they have to have the military to fight the "bee hive" if they want to be worthy of a final victory.
Nuclear Sub - Its an ok unit, I just generally have better things to do with my money at this point, as I am steaming ahead to the endgame.
Stealth Bomber - Even with the recent interception buffs this unit is still an end game terror. A squadron of these can murder a battlefield if given enough time.
MODERN ERA
Riflemen - G Guns still win the day, but Riflemen can now at least take the pain. Ultimately they are a serviceable, if not exciting, unit for their time.
Landships - A solid unit, the first really capable to taking on G Guns and even machine guns decently well (though still not amazingly)... the recent buff to their defense has made them good units.
**Triplane - So there is no issue with the Triplane per say, its does its job well... its just that at this point, my air slots and oil reserves are generally very limited. I would much rather have a few more bombers. The only thing I could think of that would actually make me consider using them is to make them Iron units instead of oil. Then I could consider Triplane + Landships / Tank as an option. Otherwise, I will always have better uses for my slots and my oil.
**Bomber - A very good unit, and tends to operate with a fair amount of impunity when it first comes out, letting it shake up the landscape. My only thought is to consider a +1 base range.... 6 range is quite small, and I frequently find my bombers in my closest cities to the front still can't always contribute damage. This combined with the limits of 2 slots means that while bombers are good units, I often make just a few because I often have no place to put them that they will be useful.
Paratrooper - Fun tactical unit, not strong enough to compare to regular infantry, but good at getting into key areas, cutting important roads, taking out key strategic resources, and providing the occasional flank.
Artillery - This begins the ascension of the siege unit. Artillery is amazing, and serves as a general counter to navy and ground forces. This is also when you can start applying splash I as a default promotion, which allows you to counter the mass of forces on the battlefield. Artillery are incredibly good, but brittle enough (especially to air) that you have to properly protect them to make it work.... which feels perfect in play.
**AA Guns - I actually think the unit is a bit too good at its job for this era, another reason I never build triplanes. AA Flak historically was effective but still difficult to apply to aircraft, and AA guns create a nigh invincible shield in their area.... as well as being extremely durable and hard to kill. I would consider removing their interception II promotion....they should be good at interception but not so automatic. Or considering lowering their range to 2 instead of 3
**Light Tanks - I do think the unit is underperforming at the moment... but I also think that their is still a bug with the skirmisher doctrine promotion. The combat numbers when I use skirmishers never look right to me, so I'll withhold judgement until that is confirmed or addressed. That said, the fact that the unit costs aluminum instead of oil is a big plus.... giving me the desire to have them on the field with my other forces. They are decent at softening up naval melee that is sieging a city, and that to me is their best role at the moment.
Machine Guns - They have lost a little luster compared to G Guns (because G gun is the height of the ranged paradigm), but they are still solid effective units.
ATOMIC ERA
**Destroyer - I think the ship is overperforming a bit at the moment, as its good at everything. Its strong, its super fast, has a strong withdrawal chance, its highly resistant to aircraft, its really good against subs (properly promoted)....its just does everything really well. I think that its base Air defense should be dropped from 30 to maybe 20.... its interception is good with promotions, but the fact that planes just rip themselves up on base attacks against them I think is the biggest issue. Planes are supposed to be a counter to navy in this era of war, not the other way around.
**Guided Missile - The thing I miss was the missile having evasion on it. Now that interception blocks attacks, the fact that you have to air sweep everything to ensure the missile actually gets value really lowers its effectiveness. That said, I really only use them for taking out city garrisons, but that is still a good niche. I do always chuckle at the "cheap" notion, as they still cost more than a full infantry squad.
Infantry - Though tanks still rule the day in this era, Infantry are good units. I commonly will give them City Assault or amphibious promotions, and they help augment my navy for island taking....something tanks are not that good at.
Tanks - Tanks are awesome! Tanks have good stats, but what makes them so good is the modern battleground, which is littered with pillage sites. The fact that tanks can attack, and have the speed to move and pillage a couple of tiles....means that they stay at peak strength for a long time, making them more effective than their stats might indicate. Tanks do their job very well.
**Special Forces - Though I will upgrade my existing paratroopers into SF (at least the highly promoted ones), I almost never build the unit. The issue is its price tag...it cost more production than a mechanized infantry! Its basically 50% more hammers than a standard infantry, its just too expensive to be worth making. Now in theory it could also be good at island taking with embarked bonuses. In reality though I find infantry with proper promotions and protected by naval ships superior in this role.
Carriers - Do their job well, and now with stronger interception and base defenses are a bit better at holding up against enemy aircraft.
**Battleships - I know some people bemoan that battleships dead end and don't upgrade further, I do find they have some uses even in the late game, as they can just keep bombarding an area over and over again. That said, I do think they come very late to the party sometimes. I wonder if they should come online the same time that destroyers do to give them so more time out on the battle field.
Submarines - My jury is still out on subs. The fact that destroyers no longer innately get their anti-sub bonus by default is a big deal. I haven't found that the loss of the sight promotion has helped much, the AI seems to find your subs one way or the other. So they are better overall, but not sure if they are still worth my hammers vs just building more destroyers or battleships.
Heavy Bomber - Good Unit.
Fighter - This is the height of the fighter line. Its the time when aircraft are prevalent enough, but stealth bombers don't yet rule the skies. This unit finds good work at this time.
Atomic Bomb - The bomb damage is obviously quite good, but I actually find the fallout its strongest tactical use. The AI still has real problems with fallout, it messes with its unit coordination...and often the AI is extremely slow in cleaning it up. I will often use A bombs to create a no-mans land between myself and the enemy that the AI has trouble crossing. So weirdly enough, I find them strong defensive weapons more than offensive ones.
INFORMATION ERA
Missile Cruiser - Decent endgame naval finisher. At this point, I don't mind that the MC has the whole package, as it has to compete with all of the final era toys.
Modern Armor - A solid upgrade to the tank, and often needed for late game city tanking.
Mobile Sam - A decent upgrade to the AA gun, nothing special but it does the job.
Rocket Artillery - RA are basically the end game ranged unit....whether that's good or not depends on your point of view. They are essential against massed navy, cities, and just generally a key unit on the late game battlefield.
Helicopter Gunship - I used to rag on the HG because it has almost no damage increase over the light tank in open terrain...but I have come to appreciate the extreme mobility of the unit, especially its ability to cross coastal waters and attack naval ships. I don't build a lot of them, but they have a niche.
Mechanized Infantry - Again not sexy like the modern armor but is decently cheap and gets the job done when needed.
**Bazookas - These are bad units in general. I never upgrade my machine guns into them, I always have better things to spend my money and hammers on. Its hard being a range 2 unit in a world where range 3+ is becoming the norm.
Giant Death Robot - I know not everyone likes the flavor of this unit, but they are with some recent changes a stable of the final war, and one I have found refreshing. The GDR is overpowered by design, designed to quickly break stalemates and complete wars in the handful of turns the game has left. Though it has a tremendous attack, I actually find its speed one of its strongest features, able to move back and forth across the landscape as needed. That said, I actually use them more on defense than offense, I find them critical garrisons to let your coastal cities survive the end game navies that the AI can use.
**Nuclear Missile - For its cost, its pretty underwhelming, especially as the AI will often have nuke defenses in their cities by this point. You can get 2 GDRS for the price (with some change), and I would rather have the 2 GDRs in almost all cases. I'll just make atomic bombs if I'm going to nuke a city, it does enough damage to meet my needs.
**Jet Fighters - My jury is still out on these as well. They are not great interceptors against stealth bombers, so its really a question for me of using them for air sweeps and whether that is worth the expense to bring them on the board.
Xcom Squad - The ultimate "reach out and bother you" unit...there stats are actually not that great for their cost but obviously their strength is in the ability to go basically anywhere. As the human I don't use them a huge amount...they are just very expensive. But they are good units for the AI to have, ensuring a human can never be too comfortable, and that they have to have the military to fight the "bee hive" if they want to be worthy of a final victory.
Nuclear Sub - Its an ok unit, I just generally have better things to do with my money at this point, as I am steaming ahead to the endgame.
Stealth Bomber - Even with the recent interception buffs this unit is still an end game terror. A squadron of these can murder a battlefield if given enough time.
against gunpowder units that made them the deadly weapons they were in the Great War. This would also remove the "malus" from upgrading to Bazookas.
