Basics
From Gamedozer
Contents |
Controls
Movement
Attacking
Capturing, Building, and Understanding Income
Using Terrain to your advantage
Units
Infantry
While the world of Battalion only has two types of Infantry units, their usage in a game can affect the overal result of a map. They have two bonus above that of normal units:
1) Infantry can cross mountians, albeit at a slower rate than over normal terrain.
2) Infantry units can be loaded into Transports, ASW's, and Heavy Scorpions
AT Commando - Or Anti-Tank Commando, is the basic Infantry unit. The AT Commando has the ability to Capture, or take possession of Buildings (Cities, Factories, Ports, and Air Bases). The main weapon of an AT Commando is a machinegun that is quite capable against other infantry units and can moderately harm Low-Flying Aircraft. The secondary weapon is a bazooka that is able to damage any Armoured Vehicle, this attack does a decent amount of damage to units of the Light and Truck armour classes.
Naplam Commando - This unit is the cheapest unit in the game. Its attack, while weaker than the AT Commando, is capable of negating Terrain Defences, basically meaning that a Scorpion on a Capitol, with a Terrain Defence of 4, fairs just as well as one on a Road, with a Terrain Defence of 0.
Tanks
Their are six different tank units in Battalion. While this may sound intimidating, each tank has a specific use that distinguishes it from all of the others.
Scorpion - The Scorpion is the lightest and cheapest tank, and arguably the tank with the widest range of uses. It has the capability to move 6 squares over roads and grass, making it one of the fastest ground units in the game. Scorpions are best used in tandem with other scorpions, as three full health Scorpions usually can take out many much more expensive units.
Surface-To-Air Tank, or STAT - The STAT is a fast and specialized tank. While most tanks are armed with Cannons, the STAT is armed with a Vulcan. This high-speed machine gun is highly effective against Air and Infantry units, but wanes when attacking most Armoured foes, such as the Scorpion. The Armour of an STAT is less than that of a Scorpion, requiring a first strike method of attack for maximum effecteviness.
Heavy Scorpion - The Heavy Scorpion is the slower, more powerful, and more expensive counterpart to the Scorpion. Its armor gives it a greater defense, but it is still vulnerable to weaker units like Scoprions and AT Commandos if it is not situated on a high defense tile like a forest or a building. The Heavy Scorpion has the capability to transport one Infantry unit, making it useful in situations where heavily defended choke points are very close to an enemy's capitol.
Annhilator - The Annhilator is the one Premium Unit that is available to all players in Battalion. The Annhilator is the most expensive ground unit in the game, costing an enourmous $22,000 to produce. The Annhilator has extremely heavy armor, but it is still vulnerable if it is attacked in multiple directions on weakly defended tiles like roads, plains, and shores. Since the Annhilator moves very slowly, opponents usually have a chance to prepare for its arrival and build countering untis like Mortar Tanks and AT Arrays. While new players may be tempted to rush to building Annhilators becuase of its apparent strength, they should be warned that its immobility and huge price is not very cost effective when compared to, say, three Scorpion Tanks.
Hovertank - The Hovertank is a Premium-Only unit. It has the same stats as a regular Scorpion, but it gains the added ability to hover over water. This can make the Hovertank very valuable on maps where a small amount of water seperates a base from an important region to control. However, large distances over water should be not forged by Hovertanks due to their slow movement while hovering above water. The Hovertank moves very slowly over Forests and cannot move over mountains. The Hovertank is also qutie expensive, so it is advised that they should be used only in special circumstances.
Hovertanks have the interesting property of being the only units that can be unloaded on to water from a Carrier. Carriers can be used in tandem with Hovertanks to assault parts of islands with no shores, for example.
Shadow - The Shadow is another Premium-only unit. It has the special property of being able to cloak itself until its energy runs out. Activating the cloak on the Shadow costs 20 energy, and each turn that the cloak is on it loses 10 energy. When its energy reaches 0, it automatically uncloaks. When uncloaked, the Shadow gains energy back at a rate of 10 per turn. While cloaked, the Shadow is extremely deadly. Its firepower doubles, making it able to assassinate vulernable units like AT Arrays. The Shadow is a great unit to sneak behind enemy lines. In addition, the Shadow can also be used to block choke points when an enemy has only one unit that it can use to reveal the tank. The Shadow will also remain cloaked if it successfully destroys its target when attacking.
Indirect Units
The four Ground Indirect units (the only Naval Indirect Unit, the Frigate, will be covered in the Naval Section) have a unique method of Attack, by indirectly engaging the enemy, hence the term. While the uses of these units are boundless, there are a few conditions that must be met:
1. A unit must be within the range of the Indirect Unit, meaning an enemy
must be close enough to be Attacked
2. The Indirect Unit's weapon must be able to Attack that class of
unit, meaning that an Indirect Unit with a Cannon weapon, it
CANNOT Attack an Air.
3. An Indirect Unit cannot Move AND Attack. NOTE:
To Attack with an Indirect Unit, you must select it and then
click it again and select Attack, which will only be available
if there are units in range.
Mortar Tank - This is the basic artillery piece used in Battalion. It can Attack any unit that is 2 or 3 Squares away from it. It has a moderately strong Cannon, able to damage a Sorpion almost as much as an actual Scorpion. Its Armour is less than that of a Scorpion and is thusly held just off of the front lines to provide support for the main force.
Anti-Tank Array, or AT Array - This is pinticle of Ground Indirect units. It has a superior range than that of a Mortar Tank, reaching targets 3, 4, and even 5 Squares away. Its reach comes with powerful Rockets, which while doing great damage to Tanks and other armoured vehicles, is less proportionally less effective on Infantry units. But its Armour is its main weakness, being much less than that of a Mortar Tank and of the class Truck. Most any Attack by a reasonably strong unit is capable of almost crippling this unit, almost forcing a commander to withdraw the unit for repairs.
Anti-Air Array or AA Array - This unit is higly specialized and darn good at what it does. With the ability to Attack any unit 3, 4, or 5 squares away, while it does sound like the AT Array there's one small catch. The AA Array uses Missiles which tear any and all Air units to shreds. Its Attack is so devastating to Air units, under normal circumstances, an AA Array can destroy any and all Air units.
Longbow Artillery - This Premium unit has the best of both worlds, it can Attack, with its Cannon, any Ground or Naval unit and, with its Missiles, any Air unit. While this lovely little package can Attack any uni, at long range, the power of the Attack suffers.
Transport
The Transport is a unique unit, in that it is the only Ground unit that can carries Infantry units (Even though a Heavy Scorpion can carry one Infantry unit it is better catagorized as a Tank). It also has healing capabilities, able to heal all player Ground units directly adjacent to it in the horizontal and vertical directions (but not diagonally) by 10%. It continues to set its self apart by having no armaments really solely on its Armour for protection, which is equivalent to that of a Scorpion.
