Merchant Marine Diplomatic Trades: Bad Idea In General?

[Anthropoid]

Started up a game as USSR in which I intend to not just do a test and actually try to win. First thing I did was to help out all of my sphere and get more treaties with them.

I traded something like 10 or 12 land and air units to all of my sphere (N Viet; N Kor; E Ger; Czech; Hung; etc.).

This led to a lot of non-USSR units taking a long time to make there way slowly out of the USSR; some by boat, some by land. Most of the ones bound for east Europe seem to have made it there fine; there are lot of the units now inside their home countries.

However, as you can see, even a few weeks later there are still a few lingering inside Russia.



I'm guessing that they are waiting on supplies to be able to leave? Any chance that these units will stay stuck permamently? Is playing with diplomatic merchant marine generally a bad idea?

It seems like a very neat mechanic and is certainly more realistic. The AI also seems to do a remarkably good job pulling it off. But then there are these few stragglers still not moving to their home country weeks after I did the trades.

[Fistalis]

I've seen units (helicopters actually) get stuck forever in my modern world mod.. causes slow down cause they are twitching trying to leave. I suggest ppl play with it off. While I do like it it has the potential to cause some issues.

Peru bought helis from hungary.. and since its land locked they were twitching at the border trying to go home lol

[number47]

Is playing with diplomatic merchant marine generally a bad idea?

Definitely! Would be great if it didn't have few setbacks like:

If you enable diplomatic transport (forget the exact name) then instead of using the "magic transport" where the unit is transferred with damage and goods sufficient to repair it, the unit deploys where it was before being sold and makes its own way home usually by use of Merchant Marine.

This is true IF you are a country with a seaport and you bought units from a country with seaport.
If you are landlocked country you are f**** unless you have transit treaties with your neighbours (and the countries in the chain between you and the seller). If you bought it from landlocked country then you are also f**** because you need transit treaties with neigbours of the country from which you bought the units (and the countries in the chain between you and the seller). In other words if any country in the trading process is landlocked, you are f****! Depending on the country, you might need to befriend from 2 to 4 countries to receive your troops (and if you use AI ministers, he will probably scrap those units before you finish gathering all the needed transit treaties).

For example, look how many treaties with how many countries you need for trade between Hungary and Bolivia...and as the number of landlocked countries rises during game (colonies proclaiming independence) these situations will get only worse (Rwanda - Uzbekistan)

[Anthropoid]

Thanks guys. Too bad. Will restart then

ADDIT: here is another question: how come I see guys saying that they play with Enchanced spotting and Enhanced range off?

Are the enhanced values thought to be unrealistic?

[Aragos]

I never use it. It is way too open to exploitation and the oddness of the game engine. As the USA, lets say you sell DE-5 class escorts to Japan. The ships appear at Washington and try to work their way to Japan. The problem is they can't make it--they run out of fuel before they ever get near the place. The same with short range aircraft, like fighters.

It was a good idea, I think, but it just doesn't work with the current SRCW engine.

[Fistalis]

Thanks guys. Too bad. Will restart then

ADDIT: here is another question: how come I see guys saying that they play with Enchanced spotting and Enhanced range off?

Are the enhanced values thought to be unrealistic?

The enhanced values ARE unrealistic..thats what makes them enhanced, they take the default value which is value that they took the time to actually research then bumps it up by some multiplier..around 45% i think. That option was added because someone at BG felt that the game played better with jacked up fake spotting and ranges.

but uh ya whichever you prefer is fine.. I personally prefer enhanced ranges and spotting Off.

[Anthropoid]

That IS bizarre. All this detail and effort at accuracy and then the default settings take the spotting ranges and jack them up 45%!?!

[Fistalis]

Its spotting and Ranges. As in with enchanced on a jet that should have the stand off range of 50km will have like 70km range. etc.
but ya I never like it but understood the reasoning. See with enhanced off alot of units have less than 16km ranges which means 1 hex. If everything has a 1 hex range there seems like less variation and tactical/strategic choice.

[Anthropoid]

Sooo . . . how many support ships do you need to send along with your naval military in order for them to be able to make a long trip?

In my most recent play as USSR, my first actions were basically to put EVERYTHING into reserve. I just selected it all and told it "Reserve." It took a few days, but this generally worked quite nicely and then I have progressively been redeploying everything to suit my master plan.

However, there are four naval vessels that got stuck out in the middle of nowhere:

One in the Baltic, one off the coast of Spain, one south of Corsica, one ne of Sri Lanka. I tried sending a transport out to each one (actually told it to 'escourt' the stranded ship) and it worked on one of them, but the others it looks like either the transport didn't go because it was too far or something.

I guess re-coaling way stations are pretty important for pre-nuke vessels eh?

[SGTscuba]

Would it be possible to make it so that when aircraft are bought with diplo marine on, that they would go to the nearest port and convert into mm's to transport home. Maybe also have it so that if normally they are unable to fly to the place they need to go, they could go to a port and convert into a mm just like land units do so that they can get to other continents and what not?

[Hullu Hevonen]

I think the merchant marine is generally a excellent idea and think it should expanded upon and improved upon. Think there should be a way to transport air craft to their targets, maybe fly the bought aircraft to an port where it would instantly enter an maerchant marine vessel, transportet to target port and fly to nearest air field?

[SGTscuba]

I think the merchant marine is generally a excellent idea and think it should expanded upon and improved upon. Think there should be a way to transport air craft to their targets, maybe fly the bought aircraft to an port where it would instantly enter an maerchant marine vessel, transportet to target port and fly to nearest air field?

Yeah, that was pretty much the point I was trying to make.

[Hullu Hevonen]

I think the merchant marine is generally a excellent idea and think it should expanded upon and improved upon. Think there should be a way to transport air craft to their targets, maybe fly the bought aircraft to an port where it would instantly enter an maerchant marine vessel, transportet to target port and fly to nearest air field?

Yeah, that was pretty much the point I was trying to make.

and I seconded, though I sould express it better that just "+1"