Every Artillery Piece and How/When to Use Them (PART 1 / 2)

---DOCTRINE ADVICE---

-Allies-

DO: Get artillery ASAP. You have a speed loss, but the truth is Artillery isn't very fast to begin with. It's crucial to success, and should be one of, if not just the first, things you research.

DO: Get Self-Propelled artillery ASAP. As soon as you can, replace regular artillery with SP variants to close that speed gap.

DON'T: multitask with artillery. Have one of each, and then some infantry to accompany it.

DON'T: COMBINE SP AND REGULAR ARTILLERY. If you do this, I am reserving the right to slap you. It's a stupid, inefficient idea. Stop doing it.

-Axis-

DO: get Anti-Tank guns as the first thing you research. Due to their increased firepower, they become even more broken early game.

DO: use artillery in conjunction with nailing down those weird, hard-to-invade AI countries that got lots of hills.

DON'T: Spam artillery. Your economy can't take it.

DON'T: invest in rocket arty too quickly. Yes, it's effective, but it's only as strong as your wallet.

-Comintern-

DO: get SP-Rocket Arty ASAP. Rockets are your friend, given your cheap production costs.

DO: keep an AA and AT gun in EVERY SINGLE CITY. NO EXCEPTIONS. You need all the defensive power you can afford, given your reduced firepower.

DON'T: let the enemy get too close. This was true before, and it's even more so now, if the enemy approaches your artillery batteries, say goodbye to them. Your firepower is so weak it can't stand up to it.

DON'T: focus solely on one type of artillery. You need to produce all 4. Your economy demands it.

-Pan-Asia-

*sigh* ...Ok. This is a tricky one.

DO: Evaluate your terrain first. What your terrain includes dictates what artillery you need first. Lots of forest? Anti Tank. Lots of hills? Anti Air. Lots of mountains? Artillery Bombardment ASAP.

DO: Experiment with offense stacks. Your increased speed gives you this option, but don't overdo it, or rely heavily on it. Anti-Tank + Militia is a good mix, as is militia + arty.

DON'T: worry too much about rocket artillery. To be terribly honest, I'd just stick with regular artillery, as having a more expensive unit with less hitpoints than normal doesn't seem super worth it to me.

DON'T: worry too much about self propelled YET. I'm having trouble naming countries in the Pan-Asian doctrine with a lot of perfectly level ground, so take some first, then revisit it.

And finally...

-ALL DOCTRINES-

DON'T: NEVER, EVER, EVER leave a SINGLE CITY without an ordinance foundry. You need them in every single one. You never know when you need to conjure some Anti-Air!

Hello! I’m Persia and I’m axis. I’m looking at the stats of Artillery and rocket artillery. Both of my artillery is lvl 2. Should I use artillery as my defense or rocket artillery?

godofthegame2 wrote:

Hello! I’m Persia and I’m axis. I’m looking at the stats of Artillery and rocket artillery. Both of my artillery is lvl 2. Should I use artillery as my defense or rocket artillery?

Ok thanks

Great guide as always Jester!

Just wanna point out some things though:

1. Rocket Art isn't that much more expensive than Art; they're pretty comparable. You may have been comparing their higher levels, in which case, Lvl 2 RA is equivalent in tech level and strength to Lvl 3 Art (by looking at their build times), and Lvl 3 RA equivalent to Lvl 5 Art.

2. I just checked my current game and I don't think AA has stealth capabilities; only AT does.

3. On Pan-Asian (depending on how much you micro I suppose), I much prefer defending with their buffed Interceptors to AA. They have the extra range and speed, which means you can defend a multiple provinces for the same number or fewer units than AA. But offensively, AA is a must unless you can project your air force (which isn't easy if you wanna use Asian speed to blitz )

4. Also Asians have cheaper Art which are also stronger against infantry. This, coupled with their lower HP, would give them the benefit of engaging from range as much as possible and minimizing melee.

Just my two cents'!

JesterTheSheep wrote:

Let's take stock: How many artillery units will this cover?

-Artillery

-Anti-Tank

-Anti-Aircraft

-Rocket Artillery*

*Secret tech.

Now, onto the guide!

---ARTILLERY---

What they can do:

-Attack from a distance. This is their primary function. Artillery are effective in their simplicity: shoot the thing from very far away.

-Defending the home front. Especially with the 1.5 update, artillery can be extremely effective at defending key provinces, as they get the drop on enemy units. If it takes the enemy 1 hour to get from the farthest firing range (50) to the unit, that same unit will be attacked at least twice before it gets there, giving you a serious edge in combat.

What they can do in a pinch:

-Coastal Defense. While their attack values are decent, the range isn't ideal for defending your coastlines. It's not ineffective, but there are better alternatives.

-Siege. For those of you who don't know, a Siege is a long, drawn-out battle to capture an objective. It involves surrounding and bombarding a position for a long time. Sometimes literal days. Artillery can do this, but once again, they are hindered by their range.

What they can't do:

-Defend themselves. While their attack values are impressive, their defensive values are not. You need to station other units with your artillery, or at least build some forts around them.

---ANTI-TANK---

What they can do:

-Defend even the most undefendable province. The defensive values on this piece are absolutely ridiculous against everything with an armor plate. Tanks are very afraid of this unit... and they should be.

-Hide. AT guns are stealth units, and are completely invisible unless scouted. Of course, this only applies in the forests and urban areas, but it helps.

What they can do in a pinch:

Absolutely nothing. The truth is that AT guns are very, very efficient in one area of defense, and virtually nothing else, even at later levels.

What they can't do:

-Anything on an offensive front. These are first and foremost a defensive unit.

-Protect themselves from the skies. Even an interceptor can pick this one off.

---ANTI-AIR---

What they can do:

-Ward off all those damn aircraft! Why do you think it's called an AAA (Anti-Aircraft Artillery) battery?

-Hide. Once again, AAA is a stealth unit, and the same rules apply as AT Guns.

What they can do in a pinch:

-Defend surprisingly well against armored units, especially in areas with a terrain advantage. Now, obviously it shouldn't come to that, but what an AA gun essentially is is just an Anti Tank gun that can point straight up (and the shells are rigged to explode).

What they can't do:

-Ward off infantry. Remember how I said that it's essentially a tank gun? Well, those aren't super effective when the infantry is right next to you...

-Fend off a surprise attack. They don't have very much HP, and if caught by surprise, it's game over.

---ROCKET ARTY---

What they can do:

-Siege. Finally, our first siege weapon! Rocket Arty is devastating to infantry and buildings, even at first level.

-Can be self propelled, just like regular arty. Thank you, Bytro.

What they can do in a pinch:

-Outclass regular artillery early game. This unit is a bit of a weird one: It's the most effective artillery unit against infantry, and the least effective against Armor Units (over time). However, make no mistake, it's almost twice as expensive as regular artillery, when you factor in the idea of using a different building, and its usefulness dwindles in late game. Best if paired with regular artillery.

-Function as an emergency AA battery. Much higher AA capabilities than regular artillery.

What they can't do:

-Anything against a navy. Even at maximum level, the damage output against naval vessels is extremely poor for its range.

-Ridiculously hard to replace. Do its high cost, these are not disposable units. Use with caution.