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**cbn** · February 22, 2001, 11:47

Other units in a stack are damaged (collateral damage)but not destroyed if the assigned defender loses the battle. This is unlike Civ where outside a fortress thay all died. Therefore stacking avoids subversion and adds greater protection to less armoured elements without the fear of complete destruction by a single attack. Units in a stack can be destroyed by collateral damage if they were very heavily damaged prior to the attack.

One downside of a stack is an artillery unit can, in one shot, damage all the units in the stack.

I generally do not use bunkers when attacking since I am usually attempting a blitz type attack. Air power creates havoc (maybe cuts roads that reinforcements could use)and eliminates opposing ground units while interceptors cover the stack from air retaliation. On the best attacks the AI does not get to do one attack with a ground unit. They are limited to attempts at airstrikes against interceptor coverage. Any formers with the attack force are usually building roads in the direction of the next assault.

I had tinkered with bunkers a bit on chokepoints when I want to set up a defensible border position against a current friend. I have more often opted for what I call active defense. The idea is to always have enough attackers about to knock the stuffing out of the first few attackers to appear. Against the AI, which has not mastered the idea of marshalling forces and attacking in numbers, this has always been more than adequate.

When I get into MP (I just signed up. Yay !!) I might have to revisit the possibilities of bunkers. Against humans I can see how one might have to do a heck of a lot more defending than one ever did against the AI.

**Dimension** · February 22, 2001, 11:50

No, when one of your units dies outside your base, it doesn't kill the whole stack like in Civ II ... Don't you think you would've noticed by now if it did?

**cbn** · February 22, 2001, 16:25

Ibores & Dimension

I do not know Dimension but do know that he has given incredibly lengthy answers to other questions so he does help people. This board has been pretty polite so lets please try to keep it that way. On the stacking issue question I think that Dimension was just trying to be lighthearted so lets just move on.

I'm not certain on the bombarding in a base issue until I get back to my home comp but I will try to answer . IIRC a unit in a base cannot be taken below 50% strength by bombardment. This might account for the computer not showing each and every unit as it is bombarded.

**lbores** · February 22, 2001, 17:05

quote:

Originally posted by cbn on 02-22-2001 03:25 PM
On the stacking issue question I think that Dimension was just trying to be lighthearted so lets just move on.

Took it wrong and I apologize to the group at large.

quote:

Originally posted by cbn on 02-22-2001 03:25 PM
IIRC a unit in a base cannot be taken below 50% strength by bombardment. This might account for the computer not showing each and every unit as it is bombarded.

Hmm. Seems logical and that was the way my mind was going but I wanted verification.

**Dimension** · February 22, 2001, 21:13

quote:

Originally posted by lbores on 02-22-2001 12:26 PM
Dimension: I'm a physician and if I answered a legitimate question like you did mine - I'd soon be out of patients.

lbores: Excuse me? I gave a legitimate answer to your question. You asked if units all died if the first defender died. I said no. There's your answer.

You have been playing this game quite a bit it seems lately. I wasn't trying to be rude, I was simply pointing out that you probably would've noticed at some point if all your units died instantly.

I have answered many of your questions at length in the past, from telling you exactly where you could find SMAX to making a whole PCX replacement file just for you when you asked for a picture of 7-of-9 to replace the Cyborgs. Do you really think I'm trying to be some kind of an ass? I simply wanted to point out that in your playing of SMAC, and some point you probably would've said, "Man! My stack of units all just died all at once!" if that was the way the game worked.

If you want me to be impolite, I will. Spare the bragging to a college student about your prestigeous medical career. That mind of yours is obviously very limited. Your questions make up a full 50% of new threads on this forum. There are some really good newbie strategy quetsions, but most of it is pretty lame. Some people don't just "figure out" things as well as other, but I would think given your background that you wouldn't be so helpless. You say you are a physician and work for a "major player" in the "medical device field". I would think you've had a good amount of schooling. You say you speak Russian well. I assume you don't have trouble understanding new things. You say you've played CIV2 extensively, and even prefer it to SMAC. I certainly think you should have a feel for the gameplay and concepts involved in SMAC.

But no, you ask questions that are just ridiculous. As I said before, strategy is one thing, and that's what most people are here to discuss, but why would you ask something like, "Does a stack of units die if the first defender dies?" Why don't you try it and see what happens? How about another thread you started, asking [/b]"How do you deploy planet busters? I have 3 and don't know how they work!"[/b] What the hell? Can't you just save the game and try running them into something and see what happens? How about the thread you started asking which SMAX faction is the closest to the University? I answered that one too, but what gives? Why couldn't you just look at the list of factions and say, "Wow, there's only one new faction with a research bonus, that's probably the closest to the University!"

I know you're not trying to be annoying. I'm actually glad to help, and I did notice you even started a thread to thank people for taking the time to answer your questions. So don't take it too hard. You'll know if I'm trying to be an ass, so please give me the benefit of the doubt when I'm not. Lighten up. It's a bad idea to take anything on the net personally, because there are plenty of people who have nothing better to do that try to stir things up. Let it go.

[This message has been edited by Dimension (edited February 22, 2001).]

**lbores** · February 23, 2001, 01:21

quote:

Originally posted by cbn on 02-22-2001 10:47 AM
One downside of a stack is an artillery unit can, in one shot, damage all the units in the stack.

Thnx for your courteous and prompt answer. Which brings up a question about what happens when bombarding a base. I notice that the AI seems to cycle through the units within the base and oftimes will skip one or two. From that behaviour it would seem that the AI will not let you kill a unit through bombardment. True? Not true?

**lbores** · February 23, 2001, 01:26

quote:

Originally posted by Dimension on 02-22-2001 10:50 AM
... Don't you think you would've noticed by now if it did?

Dimension: I'm a physician and if I answered a legitimate question like you did mine - I'd soon be out of patients.

I usually do not respond to discourteous answers such as this but it stands out in contrast to the vast majority of the msgs on this forum.

It's too bad that all of us cannot have your vast store of knowledge of the game and be so eager to share as you seem to be.

[This message has been edited by lbores (edited February 22, 2001).]

**lbores** · February 23, 2001, 12:23

dimension:

I've never encountered 'lame' questions from anyone - just uninformed ones; which is why they were asked in the first place. You'd be amazed at the questions that get asked by ostensibly 'sophisticated' individuals from time to time - we're all human after all.

Let's just agree to disagree shall we?

Live long and prosper.

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