Proper blockade

I usually don't bother with doing this, but would like some input from those who have used this tactic before. Do you have to blockade all the water tiles in the cultural border? How is this done?

 

I think you need to blockade all the seatiles that border a land tile that ships can enter (cities and forts).

 

Blockade all sea tiles, click on a ship cannon pic, it shows a hatched area of all your ships blockading-- 2 ships could get 3 cites even 4, watch out for cities with a backdoor seatile, adjust your ships till the hatched area suits

 

So blockading all cities (+coastal forts) constitutes a full blockade? How does AI react to this (ie do they build new forts, do they try to dislodge, does it count towards war success)?

 

Will strongly disrupt an intercontinental trade economy. Among other things I'm sure.

 

Also, if an enemy depends on foreign strategics, esp. oil and/or uranium, this might be a good way to keep the blockade as without either you can't build any modern ships.

I have to say I've never actually tried this, but in certain circumstances it might work well. Has anybody actually used the blockade features?

 

how do they respond --- don't pay any attention, to sink your ships.

often they do nothing ---- but this Has lead to a surprise seaboune assalt on MY Cities, you get use to believing the AI CAN NOT handle this --- IT can thoe its unusaul

Remember even if their trade routes are still open, Their cities are mostly starving no sea tiles (fish etc.)to work, I've reduced size 12 cities to size 2 if on an island

 

I've used them, but only focused on them on Archipelago maps or with Privateers as Privateers peace time blockade is far stronger than warships!

All blockades affect an area extending 3 tiles in every direction from your ship.

I think of blockade doing 3 seperate and independant jobs:

1) Prevents blockaded tiles being worked by any city.
Obviously nice to block fish resource/Maori or Dike tiles.

2) Blocks trade networks passing through blockaded tiles. Trade networks being what resources and trade routes are formed along.
This ones more awkward to make use of as an intercontinental route could still be formed through other coastal cities overland, through a river OR even through another civs coastal cities. It is however very easy to cut small islands off from the mainland.


For Privateers the above 2 are far more powerful as they block networks and tiles indiscriminately (All other ships only affect your war target) and as such can damage global trade a lot. Also you can blockade your own island with Privateers to prevent intercontinental AIs profiting from routes to you, your routes will still be allowed through regardless!


3) Privateer at peace only

• Blocks trade routes from a city inside the blockade zone (i.e. city square itself must be blockaded)
• Gives you gold
• This only affects trade routes, not the network so resources still get through unless you have used 2) to block it entirely.
• Does not work if you declare war on the civ you are blockading, though 1) and 2) still apply and affect everyone.

The only AI reaction i've seen is spamming boats to try to kill them.
I don't think it has any bearing on War Success directly, but killing the economy as well as removing food and potential resources can lead to fewer troops for you to fight so a higher K/D.

 

The Privateer strategy article claims the AI will not attack a stack of three Privateers as long as one is at full health (until the AI builds Frigates, that is). I've never tried the strategy, as I tend to run them in pairs for blockades and caravel/Galleon sniping.

 

The AI will indeed allow a stack of three privateers to blockade unchallenged until they develop frigates. I even played a game where I blockaded something like 15 caravels into a city - easily double what's needed to kill the three privateers.

When doing this kind of thing, I generally let the caravels/galleons out and killed them for the xp when the target starts researching chem. This way, some of the privateers end up with barrage and can be upgraded to scary destroyers (albeit very expensively). It also forces the AI to build rather than upgrade for frigates.

 

The trouble with privateers as apposed to early ships is ALL AI"S will go after them. you need a tech lead against all other CIV's not just the target Civ and a stack of 3 on one tile limits you to 1/2 cities blockade. unless you spam them, that just gives exp to the frigates that are coming one day, i just love hunting them down, payback time to the AI

 

I bring them back to my cities (where they will patrol for incoming galleon invasions) when I start seeing enemy frigates. With the sentry promo, and the +1 move I almost always get for circumnavigation, it's rare to lose many priavateers to slower frigates.

If I do have a big tech lead, I do spam privateers, as they can allow for some pretty impressive results. I've managed to isolate whole continents to take without diplomatic penalty, on prince level. I do this most commonly when I have the glh, and beeline astronomy...chemistry is pretty easy to get with that kind of commerce. Then surround one backwards continent (1-2 civs who have probably been warring for the whole game) and sack the whole thing with Curassiers. By the time any other civ finds the continent, it looks like it was always mine (aside from the out of-sync city names). I haven't pulled this off at monarch, but it would be possible with an ideal glh start.

 

what a conquered, nation keeping its cultral identiy,
I rename all the cities, even if I'll vasslize them latter
Complete and utter total world domination

IN multi player its the first thing i do with any human player city
" Kosioskograd, St kosioskobergh, New kosiosko"

it seens to cause an attack of suicidal attack units without defence units with them

 

The AI frequently does that even when there is no renaming. Watching HAs or knights attack rifles...it's comical.