Paratroopers - do you use them (and how) ?

[sorinache]

Hi,

I am bothered because I have this option to build paratroopers yet I haven't yet been able to work out how to use them so that they become a viable build option (instead of their cost equivalent, the marines).

I remember in Civ II there would be this AI coastal city, or city surrounded by mountains with forts manned by fortified riflemen and I would kill all defending units with battleships or bombers and then occupy it through a paradrop.

But in Civ IV and BtS you can't kill defending units with ships nor bombers. You need ground troops. Besides, the para range has been halved to 5 (it was 10 in Civ II). Now imagine I do a "Dresden" bombing on an enemy city and after my bombers are gone there are, typically, 4 defenders at strength 2 - 3. I would need to drop at least 5 paras to take them out and then occupy the city. Possibly more because of a possible counter attack the next turn. And all this while my border is at most 3-4 squares away (the paras are in a city and the city adds at least one-two tiles more to my territory). Why bother ?

Hence the question : do you use paras ? In what circumstances do they offer a valuable strategic option ?

[slnz]

They're not that useful for the paradrop - not because ships/planes can't clean up a city, but because they really suffer from interception due to SAMs or Fighters. The inherent bonuses from (non-American) marines aren't that good either though, so I often end up building both if I have Industrialism&Flight&Fascism.

In the late-late-game you could use Gunships for the initial cleanup and then conquer the cities with paradrops, similar to CivII. Wouldn't usually be the optimal strategy though.

Sometimes they can be useful against a tech-backwards Civ to conquer islands without the need to transport units overseas.

[rah]

I have never built one.

[Blaupanzer]

Built a couple as flexible defenders when enemy all interlaced in my territory while my one of my stacks races back to kill this crap. They can jump city to city at a distance of 4 or 5. Never actually done a drop. The theory seems to be you can drop them on choke points like RL rangers; they'll hold out long enough for you to consolidate behind them. Just not that many places where infantry won't do the same.

[Ming]

With the shorter range, I've never really found them to be very useful. I've built a few just to see what they would be good at, and figured out they really weren't needed or important

[Seedle]

I actually use paratroopers, though I certainly don't build as many of them as I do infantry/sams. Mainly use them when I take out an enemy stack with tanks/gunships in enemy territory and can't get any other defenders to guard the now injured units. This can also happen in recently conquered territory where other AIs have pillaged the roads/railroads. They are marginal, but there are occasions where they are worthwhile.

[Felch]

I use paras, but I'm a bit more sandbox/roleplaying than some others around here. It pisses me off that they can't attack after jumping. That's exactly what I'd use them for (if your SoD is out of steam and needs just a little push to break through).

Otherwise, they're useful mostly for looking cool.

[self biased]

I have never built one.

same here

[wodan11]

Paratroopers are a cute mechanism.

('nuff said.)

[Blaupanzer]

I actually use paratroopers, ... Mainly use them when I take out an enemy stack with tanks/gunships in enemy territory and can't get any other defenders to guard the now injured units. This can also happen in recently conquered territory where other AIs have pillaged the roads/railroads. They are marginal, but there are occasions where they are worthwhile.

This is good thinking. I had two opportunities in the game last night to do this with a couple of paratroopers. Both times the paratroopers got killed, but the two took 3 or four enemy with them and saved a lot of the wounded stack.

If I send 2, that's a pair of paratroopers. So, if I send 4, is that a pair of paratrooper pairs, undsoweiter?

[Boracks]

So if you use them to guard wounded so they can repair, does that make them repairatroopers?

[Theben]

Only if they have the medic promotion.

[Blaupanzer]

So if you use them to guard wounded so they can repair, does that make them repairatroopers?

A pair of pairs of repairatroopers!

[Hauptman]

Oh they have thier uses! and if you dont use em, well then im sure id whoop yer arse inna war =P

Use #1. str 24 is stronger than infantry. The AI's LOOOOOOOVE cavalry. anti cav para's last a bit longer. of course marines are also str 24. but i usually can make para's first.

Use B) When assaulting a numericaly powerful civ blitz style, where u have no intention of waiting for him to send his stack to you so you can killit before you launch your attack. Build hill defense and/or forest defense para's. drop them scattered about in defensive points NEXT to enemy cities 4 or 5 strong. Move main attack stack into enemy territory imediatly well asured it is safe from whatever artilery is in the neighborhood. The AI's will waste em on the para's as they directly threaten cities.

And the most fun use, is map dependant. Terra style maps wich i have been playing most as of late. tectonics creates lots of impassable mountain ranges, as well as a mediterainian sea. Marines are good for coastal cities, but place that enemy city away from coasts and it's safe right? WRONG! First come the fighters. Sweep the skies clean of defenses. Bombers pin any and all stacks as well as working over target cities. Para's drop in force, preferably onto good defensive tiles. They can drop and move (but not attack) thus they are safe from SAMs. Next turn, Bombers can knock down defenses further, chop up defenders and make easy pickings for your now placed Para's. Especially good when you have an overland attack coming in from a completely different dirrection, as in jumping in from north Afrika whilst your main attack comes in from asia minor. The enemy cannot counter both threats.

[Hauptman]

Oh yeh couple more uses popped up...

Para's are the ONLY industrial defensive unit that can keep up with tanks. Have a lot of culture to cover? will Your tanks be in enemy land without cover for too long? drop para's on them and defense is assured.

So you marines crossed the sea and captured a city... what now? You could leave those marines to defend it, or... Airlift is only 1 unit per turn, no good for holding that shiney new city against counter attack. Paradrops can be done countless times. Remeber troopers can launch out of forts, so use forts to extend the range.


One of my most enjoyable Eeropeen* (inside joke) invasions had marines landing in scandinavia, infantry/tanks in from the Urals and paratroops coming in on Greece/Italy. The most powerful AI in that game dropped faster than a 2 dolla.... errm language!