Fanclub Das Freakmagazin 1/FANCLUB1.ISO/losung/war2hint.txt

Text File | 1996-05-24 | 42KB | 630 lines

WARCRAFT II Strategy Guide.

Contents:
PREFACE
1.0.  HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
1.1.  SETTING UP CAMP
1.2.  UPGRADING
1.3.  STRATEGY
1.3.1.  Defense
1.3.2.  Offense
2.0.  KEEPING IT
2.1.  CONSOLIDATING YOUR TOWN
2.2.  UPGRADING
2.3.  STRATEGY
2.3.1.  Defense
2.3.2.  Offense
3.0.  A PLAYER'S HOME IS THEIR CASTLE
3.1.  PREPARE YOUR TOWN FOR THE WORST
3.2.  UPGRADE OR DIE!
3.3.  STRATEGY
3.3.1.  Defense
3.3.2.  Offense

Preface
Everyone has an idea of how to win a game.  Any game.  Warcraft II is great
in that it offers many  different avenues for players to achieve that purpose.
The strategy provided here generally favors the  concept of build-up, deny
resources, and finally attack.  This is generally how most real wars tend to be,
 such as the Gulf War.  It doesn't mean that someone with a clever quick-kill
strategy can't do better,  opportunity and a quick mind can upset the best of
plans.  This strategy does offer the reward of longer  play time and more
interesting battle, but that's just my opinion and I'm not putting myself up as
an  expert.  In any case, this is a good way for folks to understand the
concepts of strategy instead of just  running out and getting themselves
smeared. I assume from the beginning that the player already understands the
basics of the game.

1.0.  Humble Beginnings General Grant (that's a
Civil War kinda guy) said something about "getting there firstest with the
mostest".  For us, that means upgrading as fast and furious as possible.
There's nothing that makes the  heart skip a beat than seeing somebody else's
flying machine inspecting your camp while you're still  putting the finishing
touches on your blacksmith shop.  You just know that those sappers are on their
way.   So, what to do?  This section covers the work necessary to get you going
toward an eventual Keep.

1.1.  Setting Up Camp
Your first objective is to get that manpower going.  That means tossing out
a farm and raising more  peons/peasants as fast as possible.  Sure, if you think
you can spare it, throw up a lumber mill in the  process.  Or a barracks if your
opponent ends up being just beyond that thin stretch of forest.  The idea  here
is to gather in resources quickly (hence the lumber mill early on).  Try to have
at least four guys  going for the gold and the same number out after lumber.
Add on to either crew as necessary, depending  on your objectives.   Remember,
using too few folks for harvesting can cost you a game.

1.2.  Upgrading Your first upgrade ought to be the
building of the lumber mill to improve your lumber gathering.  Right  behind it
should be your first barracks, just in case your opponent cares to check you
out.  Coming on its  heels would be the blacksmith.  If oil is on your mind,
then start building that shipyard.  This is even more  important if your battle
will feature some serious ocean fighting. While upgrading, don't forget to see
to your defenses.  Early on, this means archers/ax throwers with a  sprinkling
of basic soldier types.  Keep them coming.  If your opponent likes the
quick-kill strategy,  consider a guard tower and/or barracks before anything
else. Pay attention to your weapons upgrades.  If gold is available, and you're
not hot for a Keep just yet, bring  up your weapons abilities one stage at
least.  Especially if you anticipate early contact with the enemy.  If  you have
a navy, then build that foundry.  Don't bother with the oil refinery.  If you
feel you're in a race to  upgrade to a Keep, then spare the weapons upgrades for
now and go for getting the gold and lumber you  require.

1.3.  Strategy
In the early stages, your goal should be to consolidate and build.  When
you begin preparing for the  upgrade to a Keep, you can start snatching
unclaimed oil and gold resources if you think you can get away  with it.  It's
best at this time to avoid a full-scale war unless you want that quick kill.

1.3.1.  Defense
Don't go looking for trouble unless you just gotta have it.  Identify all
the approach points to your  encampment.  You should be in a limited expansion
mode at this point.  If you think there's a nearby gold  mine, try and find it.
Don't go too far unless you want a real aggressive campaign to deny gold to your
 opponent.   When possible (affordable), build a wall of farms to protect you.
Walls are fine at this stage too, just keep  in mind that these would be
temporary defenses to be discarded when the first wizards make the scene.
Until then, they're just dandy against ground troops and sappers.  Trees are
also good for protection, so  make sure your workers don't chop holes for the
enemy to sneak through. The bulk of your defenders will be archers/axe throwers.
 As soon as your blacksmith is ready, roll out  some ballistas/catapults to
augment your defenses.  You can consider guard towers when your resources  are
doing well.  If you have a shipyard, roll at least one of these heavy weights
out to protect it.  If you  anticipate serious naval action, roll out two in
that area.  Forget cannon towers, they're just not effective  for coastal
defenses.  One-third of your growing army will be basic soldiers to handle
anything that  manages to get through your lines.   Your threat at this point
will be an opponent looking for a quick kill, and hoping you haven't much more
than workers to defend yourself with.  For a very early attack where they get
through to your peons, you  can order the attacked peon to build something.  The
peon automatically takes on the defense value of the  building being built.
(This assumes you have enough gold/lumber for this).  The foe might later try a
serious probe with artillery backed up by escorting soldiers/archers.  You deal
with this by moving your  soldiers out to attack the artillery, backing them up
with archers as well. For the navy, consider sending out a destroyer to guard
your oil platform.   A pair of destroyers would be  wise if you expect your
platform to be contested.  Also, identify the areas of ocean that will become
important in future combat due to their control of both land and sea approaches.
 Send your ships out to  these areas early on the hope that your opponent won't
be so quick to see the advantage.  If your enemy is  already there, you know
what to do...

1.3.2.  Offense Can't wait, eh?  Two things will prod
you into an early fight.  Either you want a quick kill, or you're just  too
close to your opponent's camp and a good-neighbor policy is out of the question.
 Usually such  squabbles begin over a gold mine between you.

1.3.2.1.  Quick Kill
The quick kill is one way to end a game fast, and piss-off your opponent in
the process.  It can be as fast  as sending your initial harvester out to kill
the enemy harvester before any town hall gets built.   Otherwise, you can build
a barracks first and send the soldiers out as fast as you can generate them.
This  means having enough gold harvested, so build up some workers first to get
you that surge of gold you'll  need.  Farms too, don't forget your banzai
troopers will need to eat on their way to Glory.  The art of the  quick kill
generally relies on two things.  First, you're not too far away from your
opponent.  Second, your  opponent is too preoccupied in building things to
bother defending them.  The window of opportunity for  a quick kill vanishes
quickly, unless your enemy is really slow about protecting themselves.  In the
latter  stages of opportunity, when you've got your blacksmith up, you can put
together a team of soldiers and  artillery and pay a friendly visit.  If the
enemy's defenses are less than adequate - game over.  Likewise, if  your
opponent tries a quick kill and you waste his troops with minimal losses
yourself, consider paying  back the compliment.  It's likely that there will be
few defenders to stop you.

1.3.2.2.  Grab Gold
This is a game winner!  By taking most of the gold, you can eventually
force your opponent to use up all  of theirs before you do.  You will win when
they can't make stuff and you can. Early on, you can send out a soldier and a
harvester to find and claim gold mines.  Generally, this is best  done toward
the end of your initial build-up when you're beginning to think of upgrading
weapons and  establishing a Keep.  Or when you feel defensively secure.  When
you reach an unclaimed mine, your first  order of business is to build a
barracks to hold it (unless you know the threat is small).  Then consider the
town hall.  Keeping the mine is a matter of generating enough soldiers to
protect you as you build your  hall.  If you suspect that you're close to the
foe, consider building walls and a guard tower to insure  success.  If the enemy
has claimed the mine already, you have two choices.  You can run back and avoid
a  fight, or you can steal it from them.  If you intend taking it, bring in a
few more troops and another  harvester.  Barracks and towers get built first in
this case, with a healthy wall as well.  Expect to be hit  back.  If you can't
handle an extended fight at this point, consider finding an uncontested mine
instead.   The risks of this strategy generally lie in when you start grabbing
mines.  If you start too early, you can  initiate a fight before you're ready.
You might not have the resources to hold your mines.  Invariably,  full-scale
combat usually begins over a mine, so ask yourself if you really want that right
now.  On the  other hand, you can start grabbing unclaimed mines with little
risk, provided they are not near your foe. If you find yourself on the receiving
end of a gold-grabbing strategy, you have two choices as well.  If you  have
enough gold mines elsewhere, don't contest it.  Just put up defenses nearby to
keep the bad guys  from advancing any farther.  Let them have their stupid
mine...for now.  If that's not your idea of fun, or  you WANT that mine, then
send in the troops.  Build a barracks nearby to support the fight if you have
to.

1.3.2.3.  Grab Oil
The strategy here is the same as for the gold.  Take away your opponent's
oil and you vastly limit the  future potential of their navy.  You will need
destroyers to hold what you take, because a good opponent  won't let you get
away with this for long.  Again, don't look for any extended fights unless
you're  prepared for them.  Such battles will delay your upgrading to a Keep and
beyond, unless you pump up  your harvesting accordingly.

2.0.  Keeping It
This section deals with events surrounding the creation of a Keep and
extending up to just before a Castle  is built.  The idea here is to turn the
heat up on your foe by seizing all unclaimed gold mines and oil as  you can.  If
your opponent has weak defenses around a mine, take it as well or otherwise deny
them  access.  This is the Age of the ground troops before the advent of sorcery
and such.  Create as many of  them as you can, because you'll need them.  By now
you should have at least two mines running, more is  better.  If you're
operating only one mine, that's a sure indication that your doom is at hand
unless the  other player is equally foolish.  You should also be chopping wood
like crazy and sucking up oil by the  barrel for high-seas mayhem.

2.1.  Consolidating Your Town Make sure your town
can withstand a surprise visit before going for the Keep.  By now you should
have  walls, farms, and forests blocking attack.  Artillery and archers should
be on the barricades, backed up by  guard towers.  Enough foot soldiers should
be present to defend against a break-through or attacking  artillery.  If you're
satisfied with your defenses and you've the resources, build that Keep!   Are
your frontier gold-mines secure?  Do they have a barracks nearby and adequate
defenders?  If not, you  could lose them during this phase.    You should have
that foundry roaring.  This is the time to trade destroyers for battleships,
perhaps even a  submarine or two depending on your opponent's preparedness.

2.2.  Upgrading
Don't build buildings too close together unless you want to see enemy
sappers get that "Two-fer-one"  special.  This includes farms,
especially those in an "L" formation. You've got the Keep, and with it
the ability to create an inventor for those much needed flying machines  and
sappers.  Start building as soon as possible.   Generate a flying machine first,
and sappers following.  Now is the time to look to the future regarding your
defenses.  Soon you will be visited by sappers and  flying machines.  Start
putting guard towers up around your vital resources, augmenting them with
archers.  These defenses will become vital when the enemy takes wing against
you.  Build walls to prevent  sapper attacks, but understand that these walls
won't have much value when wizards make the scene.  Next on your list is the
ogre mound/stables.  Get it started and begin generating ogres/knights.  These
will  be your troops of choice, with footmen/grunts filling in as cannon fodder
ahead of them.  Make lots of  them. Don't forget your upgrades at the foundry,
blacksmith, and lumber mill!  Ignoring them will cost you the  game.  This is
the time to bring your weapons up as much as you can afford to, with emphasis on
the  weapons you feel you're going to need first (based on your opponent's
actions).  Ideally, you should have  all the upgrades completed that you can
during this phase. Forget the oil refinery.  It doesn't add enough to the game.
Likewise, favor guard towers over cannon  towers.  Cannon towers should be used
only in areas where you absolutely expect a ground attack, and  then these
towers should be backed up by artillery and archers.  When in doubt, don't build
them.  Do not  use them for any coastal defense, as they are meat for the first
battleship that comes along.   Don't build anything of value within cannon shot
of battleships unless you have no other choice.  If that  building is attacked,
don't bother trying to repair it.  Either chase off the ships or take the loss.

2.3.  Strategy
The time for defensive posturing is over.  The key here is containment.
Deny your opponent unclaimed  resources.  Harass their existing resources.  If
you see that they are weak, hit them hard.  Otherwise, keep  them off balance
and hold back for the Big Attack later on. You must try at every turn to control
the fighting.  This means, you must decide where the next attack will  be.  Keep
your opponent on the defensive, make them react instead of act.  This key point
will carry  throughout the rest of the game.  If all you're doing is defending,
generally you will lose the game.

2.3.1.  Defense
You have two major threats to deal with.  Your foe will come after your
mines/oil and, if they think they  can do it, will come after your town as well.
  Normally, you should try and keep them busy defending  themselves instead.
Still, there will be these bothersome probes to deal with.   Something to keep
in mind while you defend is that you can make your opponent bleed gold in
repeatedly  disastrous attacks against your well-built fortifications.  This
weakens them for later.

2.3.1.1.  Defending Against Sappers
Suddenly, out of nowhere, one of your prized buildings goes boom!  No enemy
artillery was close to it.   Nor were their infantry.  Congratulations, you've
just had your first visit by enemy sappers.  How to stop  them?  The answer
comes in the form of archers and guard towers.  One supports the other, and both
are  between your building and the probable attack path.  Ideally, you will have
a screen of archers first, and  the tower second.  They will usually kill
incoming sappers before the target is reached. Now is not the time for tightly
packed formations, either.  One sapper can blow away a group of soldiers  that
just stand there.  Keep your formations loose and well-augmented with archers,
especially when on  the attack.  The same goes for buildings. Walls are great at
this stage of the game.  Don't take too much comfort in them, nor any other
natural  barrier.  Sappers can blow right through them.

2.3.1.2.  Defending Against Formation Attacks Here they come.  One or
more ballistas surrounded by archers and soldiers.  Knights lead what looks like
 a killer punch against your defenses.  Suddenly, from your defenders rushes a
pack of goblins, heading  straight for the formation.  They detonate themselves
in the ranks.  Now the formation is not so formed  up...heh..heh.  Your ogres
rush out to smash any survivors, paying attention to the ballista first.  If
things  still look too equal with the ballista destroyed, you pull your forces
back beneath the umbrella of eager ax  throwers, catapults, and guard towers.
Let them walk into their deaths.

2.3.1.3.  Defending Ship Yards
Cannon towers don't kill ships.  Artillery does.  Wheel out those ballistas
and catapults.  Have a guard  tower around, or an airborne unit, to spot those
submarines.  You can also use your "Attack Ground"  option to try and
destroy subs as well.  Don't think about using archers against ships unless you
like  suicide.
_2.3.1.4.  Defending Ships
If you're outmatched or want to smear your foes, run like hell for shore
where artillery can back you up.   Always have an airborne unit over your ships
unless you like being plinked by submarines.  You can fight  submarines by using
the "Attack Ground" option, assuming you can guess where they are.  If
the fight is  even, then direct all your ships to fire on one target at a time.
Your first priority is to kill subs, they're  easy kills but can do major damage
if left alone.  Then go for the battleships.  It is wise that you  concentrate
on battleships yourself, as destroyers are no match against them.  Consider your
oil platform  as a ship that can't fire back.  You'll need other ships to defend
it.  In the rare instance that your platform  is close to land, roll up some
artillery to provide support fire.   Your submarine is usually only good until
your opponent has air cover.  Do not approach an enemy  formation that has
airborne units or nearby towers.  You will die.  You should go after naval units
that  foolishly wander out without such protection.  Same for shipyards and
other shore facilities.  If your  opponent doesn't pay attention, they will lose
them all to you.  If they use the "Attack Ground" technique,  you must
use hit and run tactics that keep them from guessing where you'll be next.  Once
your opponent  starts using airborne units effectively, you should back off on
building subs except to harass oilers.

2.3.1.5.  Defending Airborne Units
Keep your airborne units above the trees in a forest, safely out of range.
You can set up shop this way and  be virtually untouchable as a forward
observation post.

2.3.1.6.  Preparing for Wizards and Air Attack
This should be done when you are preparing for your own Castle, or when you
see the other player  finishing theirs.  Increase the amount of guard towers and
archers around your valued areas, especially  archers as they tend to be more
mobile (survivable).  Start deploying hunter/killer teams of archers and
knights well-forward of your towns and defenses to find and stop wizards when
they arrive on the scene.

2.3.2.  Offense
This can be a time of great fun for those who love skirmishes and generally
causing mischief without  worrying about wizards and such.  You should be
grabbing unclaimed resources and doing what you can  to prevent your opponent
from doing the same thing.  This is the time to probe defenses in strength,
especially around mines and other strategic spots.  Battles here should be
conducted with some care, as  not to get you draining your resources in a major
battle (unless you think you can win it) before building  your castle.  Attack
strategies gain depth as you employ combination attacks.  The key here is to
keep your  enemy off-balance.  You can lose all your men in an attack and still
win if you managed to greatly weaken  defenses for a second assault.

2.3.2.1.  Go For The Gold
Send out your airborne units to scour the map for all gold mines the moment
you have them built.  Send  some workers out under armed escort to claim the
nearest ones, then work your way outward from there.   Your first act on
reaching a mine will be to build a barracks, a guard tower or two, and finally
the town  hall.  Start harvesting gold and lumber immediately by generating more
workers.  Use farms as walls  when necessary.  The idea here is to deny your
opponent as much as possible.  If you have to, build  transports to get your
folks there. Sooner than later you will find a mine being used by your opponent.
 Drop back a safe distance and build  a barracks and some supporting towers and
walls.  From this staging area you can start gathering forces to  either take or
harass the enemy position.  Use artillery to kill their workers and knock down
towers.   Guard your artillery with knights and footmen, backed up by archers as
needed.  If necessary, build a  forward staging area of guard towers with some
archers around them to foil sappers.  Behind this  protection you can mass
forces.  You can also limp back to the staging area after a bad day, letting the
hail  of arrows take care of vengeful pursuers.  If you think you can steal the
mine without a major all-out  battle, do it.  Even if you never use the mine
yourself, you can stop the other from using it as well.

2.3.2.2.  Recon And Position
Keep paying your opponent a friendly visit with an airborne unit to see
what they're up to.  Identify  natural attack routes and position your forces to
take advantage of them while blocking an enemy strike  down the same area.  This
is often referred to as going after "choke points".

2.3.2.3.  Fun On The High Seas
Look for enemy ships unescorted by air units.  Send your sub to go play
with them.  Also, look for poorly  defended shore facilities and other buildings
foolishly built close to shore.  If you have an easy access to  these sites,
show the colors with your battleships and level what you can, running away
before the stunned  foe starts bringing up defenses.  Same for poorly defended
oil platforms.  Burn them. If command of the seas is necessary to win the game,
now is the time to find and control those areas you  must have.  This can mean
major sea battles, so be prepared.  An inability to acquire resources because
you can't get across the water can and will spell your doom.

2.3.2.4.  Combined Attack - The Key To Victory
There's nothing better for a defender than to be attacked head-on by small
formations.  They will waste  you every time unless they have the same problem
of too few folks.   First, don't go after the heavily  defended stuff.  Hit your
enemy where they least are ready for it.  When you attack, send in at least a
half- dozen troops at the very least.  The more the merrier.  More importantly,
do not send in the same type of  units.  You will want artillery in the rear to
take out towers before you move in.  You want archers  backing up knights in the
front lines.  They will also defend against charging sappers.  Keep a loose
formation for the same reason, you don't want to be sitting clustered when a
sapper finds you.  Usually,  the enemy will come out to you to take out the
artillery.  Stand your ground and let them get ground up by  a hail of
arrows/hatches and swords.  Then move in.  Never fight a close-in battle with
your artillery, as it  will be destroyed quickly.  Likewise, never assault a
wall unless you can take care of the enemy artillery  and towers first,
otherwise they'll have a field day at your expense.  Never leave artillery
unprotected.   If you've got them, lead your attack with sappers, keeping them
well in front of the main force.  As long  as your enemy hasn't got an effective
defense against sappers, you can use them to soften up your  objective before
you hit it.  This entails running them between farms when those farms are used
as walls.   You can also sneak in by using sappers to blow holes in either
forest or rock shielding your target.  Take  out their towers and you allow your
artillery to concentrate on buildings instead.

2.3.2.5.  Sapper Attack!
By themselves, sappers can practically hand you your opponents head.  The
key is to use them where your  opponent isn't prepared to defend against them.
This may mean running your sappers around defenses  for that back door, but oh
the rewards once they get there!  One sapper can get between two buildings and
do major damage.  A trio of sappers, each spaced apart to avoid getting caught
in the others' explosions,  can decimate prized targets such as inventors,
barracks, and ship yards.  If your opponent is wide-open to  such assaults,
build two inventor buildings and generate sappers from both.  Use air units to
initially scout  the path you intend using, and to watch for blocking forces.

3.0.  A Player's Home Is Their Castle
This is the Dawn of Magic, and combat will never be the same.  The is the
end-game where you wear  down and destroy your opponent.  By now your gold and
lumber should be flowing from as many sources  as the map and foe permits (or
you will be dead soon).  Your workers are legion.  Your frontiers have been
established more or less.  Your army makes the earth tremble.  There can be only
one.

3.1.  Prepare Your Town For The Worst
The next shadows filling your sky won't be those stupid air machines.  New
arrivals will breath fire and  roar with lightning.  Death will rain down from
wizards.  Are you prepared?  By now you should have  built everything you could
short of a castle (except the refinery which you don't need).  You should have
enough ground troops to repel the most determined attack.  You should have
resources enough to build  both the castle and the much needed enhancements.
First comes the castle.  As fast as you safely can, follow it with a wizard
maker and the alter of  storms/church.  Save your dragon roost/griffin roost for
later unless you just gotta have them, because  there are upgrades enough to
spend your gold on.  Space these buildings out and make sure they have  guard
towers and archers to protect them.  Finally, when you've done all your
upgrades, consider a roost if  you've got the gold. Keep your barracks
generating troops!  It's the ground-pounders who will win you the war, so don't
forget  them. Get your wizards out early.

3.2.  Upgrade Or Die!
Visit your local blacksmith shop, lumber yard, and foundry.  Go for the
defensive upgrades you haven't  finished, unless you're going to get medieval
real fast on your foes.  The point is, upgrade until you can  upgrade no longer.
 If you're not fighting much of a sea battle, don't bother with the foundry
upgrades. Bring your wizards up to speed.  The must-have spells are those
area-affect spells like fog and blizzard.   Polymorph is good too for those
special flying targets.  Fireballs?  Nah.   Your ogres need to become magi and
turn knights into paladins.  Get all their spells going, because they  can be
the key to wining battles. Upgrades all done?  Lots (and I mean lots) of gold?
Fire up the roosts.  Get yourself some real airpower.

3.3.  Strategy
This one's easy.  Attack.  Find where they're weak and attack.  Control the
game.  Make them defend.  If  you play a defensive game, you will die unless
you're lucky enough to see them run out of gold first.  An  indication of that
is when they stop attacking you with anything meaningful.  Your turn!  When you
attack, go for vital assets like wizard buildings, churches, and stuff like
that.  Blow away their ability to  harvest resources.  In short, have fun
raising hell.

3.3.1.  Defense Don't do too much of this if you can
help it.  By that, I mean make the other person do the defending.   Still, some
bad guys are bound to get through.  Don't rely on walls at all, because they'll
go away with the  first blizzard or fog.  You need a more mobile answer now.
Here's what to do.

3.3.1.1.  Anti-Aircraft
It's your worst nightmare.  A dragon is "downtown" and grinning
hungrily at your wizard's tower!   Maybe two dragons.  Maybe a whole damn flock.
 The unprepared player is about to become toast.  The  prepared player just
giggles and has fun.  Fun?  Oh yeah! Welcome to the three-tired anti-aircraft
defense, guaranteed to make the other player wonder why they  ever wasted gold
on something that took moments to destroy.  Your first line of defense is guard
towers  around your important buildings.  These towers will have overlapping
fields of fire so a target is being hit  by at least two.  Around the buildings
and towers - archers upgraded to the max.  Lots of them, and not in  pretty "kill
me" lines but scattered about.  Finally, and foremost...wizards, more than
a few too.  Orcish  sorcerers can death-coil griffins silly.  Mages can slow the
dragons down and let the other defenses turn  them into lizard steaks.  Mages
can also polymorph them.  The net result of this defense is that I've seen
flocks of griffins go downtown and get creamed within moments.  Dragons become
sheepish.   Your  opponent ends up spending rivers of gold on weapons systems
that never deliver what they promise.  They  can rapidly lose the game this way.
Gage the amount of defenses you need by the number of roosts your enemy has
built.  Multiple roosts  imply mass-attack.  Greet them with ranks of archers
and a wizard convention.  Remember not to group  your units (especially wizards)
too closely or in a line. Air attack is also a major concern on the battle
field.  Here, you're less likely to have guard towers except  at forward staging
areas (hint..hint).  The key here is plenty of wizards safely behind the lines
but within  range with their magic.  Archers are also a must, though you can
hold the line with wizards if you have  enough.  Never let your front-line
troops go in without anti-aircraft units unless you know your opponent  has
stopped making them.   You will need lots of replacement wizards, so have at
least two wizard  buildings in operation at all times (as gold permits).  This
is also the time to bring in your own dragons or  griffins in a ground-support
role to fend off attacking air units.  As your units will be over friendly
territory, they are less likely to get nailed. At sea, you're more at risk to
air attack.  Battleships are dead meat because they can't shoot back.
Destroyers finally come into their own as mobile anti-aircraft units that can
quickly turn dragons into fish  food.  If you are under threat by air, have
destroyers move close to your battleships.  Notice I use the  plural.  I find
four destroyers more than a match for some winged wonder. What?  You've got
cannon towers?  Not for long, because they can't shoot airborne targets.  You
lose.   Putting bloodlust on trolls is a great way to chase off those unwanted
flying pests.
_3.3.1.2.  Defending Against Bad Weather Wizards
We're talking blizzards and fog here, the most potent city-buster your
opponent has in their arsenal of  horrors.  Three wizards acting in concert can
reduce your town to so much rubble.  Easily.  You have one  real defense against
these wand jockeys.  Kill them before they get within range.  Fortunately, you
have  the tools to do so. Air units will provide early warning and targeting
information.  Ranger-class archers with long eyesight  will spot them on the
ground.  So will towers in advance of your strongholds.  The key here is to
extend  your defenses into a protective screen, much like modern-day naval ships
have radar pickets well before  the fleet.  Ground units should be comprised of
a spotter (ranger) and a soldier to make the kill, preferably  a fast unit like
a knight.  These teams should be put well enough forward to keep these wizards
out of  range.  Be in position for taking out a wizard fast, especially when
that wizard sneaks in with invisibility.   Sooner or later you will get hit.
Most of the time the computer will move your troops out of the way,  unless
you've foolishly ordered them to stand their ground.  Artillery usually won't
get out in time.  In any  case, there's little you can do except insure that
your assets get out of the area if they can.  What you  should be doing is going
after that wizard with everything you've got in the area.  Knights/ogres move
fast  and can hunt them down.  They'll also move faster if you can use a haste
spell.  Airborne units are ideal  for close-in defense and can find/kill wizards
quickly. In the battle area, a wizard attack can reduce your well-planned attack
into either a hasty charge or retreat.   Before taking an objective, find and
kill those wizards if you can.  Send in units using haste and/or  invisibility
to take the wizards out.  If you get hit, and you're up against some heavy
defenses, run  away...if they let you.

3.3.1.3.  Defending Against Combined Attacks
You're about to be hit by a formation consisting of the usual toughs who
are now made tougher by magic.   Your first objective will be to get your
front-line troops supported with either bloodlust or healing when  they need it.
 If you see a wizard in that formation, you'd best kill him quick.  Orcs, you
can cast ruins  with your ogres to block the advance and use fog to ruin their
formation.  Either spell can also be used to  block a retreat, insuring their
destruction.  Keep that bloodlust coming, and add in some haste as well.
Humans, you too have recourse.  Mages can wreak the same havoc with blizzards,
and can cast a fire  shield onto a center enemy unit.  That unit will gleefully
destroy all others around it.  Paladins can  continually heal front units.

3.3.1.4.  Defending From Invasion By Sea
If the only way you can be hit is from the sea, be prepared.  Your
coastline should be thick with artillery,  backed up by wizards and infantry.
Air units play a big part here in engaging wizards as they are off- loaded from
transports.  Obviously you can attack with sea units, but an invasion implies
that it's already  too late for that.  Your wizards can pummel invaders with
blizzard and fog.  Make sure that you get the  enemy wizards before anything
else.

3.3.2.  Offense
This is what you've been waiting for.  You've got magic on your side now,
enough to demolish even the  stoutest defense.  Your objective is to hit your
opponent where it hurts.  Take out his important buildings  and roll over weak
defenses.  Smash his major positions into rubble before coming in for the kill.
Make  your foe spend so much time rebuilding that there's no time to mount a
credible counter-attack.  To  accomplish this, your barracks and wizard
buildings should be pouring out replacements as fast as you can  afford them.
Now is the time to spend all that gold.

3.3.2.1.  Air Power
I love how Warcraft II handles dragons and griffins.  They are exactly like
today's modern fighters - very  expensive and highly lethal in the right
situations.  Remember the Gulf War?  Here is where you find out  why we didn't
send expensive F-15 fighter jets into downtown Bhagdad.  Why the British stopped
those  stupid low-level attacks in the face of heavy fire with their
multi-million dollar Tornadoes. Air units cost you big time, so use them
sparingly where they will do the most good.  Don't send them  against a target
brimming with archers, guard towers, and wizards because they will die before
doing  anything worth their cost.  Don't send them in major numbers against that
same type of target, you'll still  end up getting far less bang for the buck.
These positions must first be softened up by ground troops to  remove those
threats.  Don't send air units against destroyers for the same reason.  You die.
Do send them against poorly defended positions, taking out what will hurt you
most before hitting that  juicy target.  Your "strike package" should
consist of two air units, maybe three.  Any more than that and  you risk their
hitting each other.  Pick your approach to avoid wizards and towers when you
can.  Once  you arrive over the target, find and destroy wizards immediately.
Next take out the towers and archers  around your intended target.  Then bag
your primary target.  Again, this assumes something less than a  killer defense.
Never view your air units as a primary weapon.  Look at them as surgical strike
units for badly defended  strategic targets as mentioned above.  They also come
in handy for close-in ground support of your  defenders where there is less
likelihood of a stiff anti-aircraft defense among the attackers.  This is
especially true when you need to ward off your opponent's air attacks and you
haven't enough defenders  to do the job in time. Dragons and griffins are great
against shipping, provided your targets are not destroyers.  Only destroyers
can shoot back at you. Keep your air units to a minimum.  Remember, they are
very expensive.  Pull them back if they're getting  nailed.  Paladins can heal
birds too.  Orcs, get the most out of your lizards by augmenting them with
magic spells before they go out.  Unless you've got tons of gold, building more
than one roost is an  invitation to defeat.  Keep your units behind the lines as
defense when you have no missions for them.  Air  units are a wonderful defense
against wizards attacking your town.  Just make sure you get them before  they
get you.

3.3.2.2.  Wizard Power!
Say what you want, but in my game the wizards are the heavy-hitters.  Not
the dragons or griffins.   Wizards are the SCUD missiles of Warcraft II.  If you
can't find and destroy them before they launch a  blizzard, the damage you get
is enormous.   Town-busting is where wizards make their offensive power shine.
Like sappers, you must insure that the  wizards can safely get to their attack
area.  Send some knights/ogres along to protect them from ground  attack.  You
can even send another wizard for wiping out air threats.  Invisibility is a
great way to  infiltrate enemy lines unseen.  Like sappers, there is strength in
numbers.  A trio of wizards can rain death  and destruction on a target.  Once
you get to your spot, you have blizzards and fog to do your deed with.   If
self-sacrifice is your bag, send an invisible wizard(s) into the center of the
enemy target and have them  bring a storm down on themselves (and target).  They
won't be hurt by the storm, and it's hard for the  enemy to attack them through
it.  Afterwards, you'll probably never get out alive. You can wreak havoc on
enemy shipping using these mass weapons as well, even to the point of turning
back an invasion force.  Don't bother with that whirlwind, orcs.  It's pretty
useless, much like the fireball  is.

3.3.2.3.  Blood Lust Hey you orcs!  Nothing wreecks like a bunch of
ogres, unless those ogres have been enchanted with  bloodlust before going into
battle.  Paladins have no matching spell, so use this to your advantage.  It
works on anything living, including dragons.   Use it often.

3.3.2.4.  Combined Attacks Using Magic
Ahead of you is a wall.  Behind that are archers pumped up to the max.
Towers are waiting to blow you  away.  Artillery is aimed.  Into the valley of
death...   You can change this scenario real fast.  Bring up   your wizards and
reduce those walls to rubble, along with anything else in the way.  Follow up
with  sappers to get those stubborn spots.  Engage wizards with your own wizards
or air units.  Don't let the  enemy have enough manna to hurt you with.  Use
your artillery to pave the way ahead of your  knights/ogres.  If you're
attacking orcs, have some cheap footmen advance ahead of you to "find"
any land  mines (runes).  Now hit them hard with the main body.  This is how
major emplacements can be engaged,  although it takes some amount of control to
pull it off.  You deal with softer targets in the same fashion,  providing just
the right mix to deal with each situation.

3.3.2.5.  Hitting The Beach
One of the most difficult jobs to pull off is an organized landing of
troops against a prepared foe.  Always  try for a less-defended beach.
Otherwise, you need to soften up the defenders before your attack.  Send in  air
units to defeat wizards and paste shore defenses with battleships under the
cover of airships.  Only  when you've removed most of the front-line positions
should you bring in transports.  Your knights/ogres  should hit the beach first,
quickly augmented by archers and artillery.  Wizards are next to blast defenses,
 power-up fighters, and counter enemy sorcerers and air units.  All of this
should happen together, no  small challenge to your skills.  With any invasion,
numbers count.   Don't hit the beach with no air  defense in the face of
griffins or dragons, because you'll get kicked back into the sea very fast.
Always  scout ahead of your invasion fleet for changes that demand your pulling
back.  Oh, one assumes that  you've control of the seas in this area.  You
don't?  Kiss your transports good-bye.