How in the nine circles of the Inferno am I meant to get past the first scenario?!

Seriously, no-one else has managed this? :P

LOL - just haven't played it in quite a while. Can you refresh our collective memories on this particular scenario? If I can remember to do so, I'll fire it up later and take a look.

Edit: Yeah, it sucks. Naval warfare is the hardest part of the game, as far as I'm concerned.

Build a dozen+ tidal gens for your electrical needs, snag every bit of metal you can find (obvious), make an underwater metal storage to help with momentary metal shortfalls, and get to the Seaplane facility as fast as you can. Build torpedo bombers and win. Sub hunters (level 2 submarine) might help, too. Your Commander can't shoot underwater, but it can climb up onto the coral reefs to use the D-gun and laser if need be.

Edit 2: Don't forget some form of air defense. The Core eventually build their own Seaplane Platform

So, how do you deal with the fleet attacks that precede the bombing runs?
Also, do marine dragons teeth stop torpedo's? I was wondering if this was the trick I'm missing, on thinking about it some more-Sure, I build air defense.... and if its skeeters, they get owned by torpedos, and if its defenders, they get owned by artillery AND torpedos.... yeah.

Heh, well, you're definitely going to be rebuilding units. Naval battles are expensive and frustrating: the units cost a mint, they take forever to build, and they die quickly. Micromanagement is key, at least for the faster units like the Skeeter, so you can dodge those torpedoes.

I didn't have a big problem with the first one or two fleet attacks. The first one isn't a big one so a couple Crusaders, four Skeeters, maybe a sub, and the Commander can take care of it no problem. Whe the Commander? Because the AI shoots at the closest unit and your Commander can take more punishment than anything else at that point in the game. Be careful with this as you need to use this opportunity to take out any attacking subs first, since the torpedoes will mess up the Commander (and end the mission) if he takes too many hits.

You can do the same thing with Skeeters, waving one at high speed in front of the submarines so the sub's torpedoes are wasted on a target they probably won't hit.

The other thing you can do, and I mentioned this in the earlier post, is to put the Commander atop the coral reefs and let those attacks come in close enough that he can wipe them out using the D-gun. Note that the D-gun can take out submarines but you'll have to play with the targeting a bit - aim at a spot between the Commander and the sub and the D-gun bolt will travel underwater to hit the sub. If you aim the D-gun right at the sub, it will pass right over the target.

I try to dedicate at least one construction ship or sub to any defending fleets. The ships closest to the attackers will get hit first, so pull them back at half damage (they'll probably get hit again as they pull back) and get them repaired. If you leave them close to the action, they'll still be able to contribute firepower. Just make sure your construction vessels do not become that closest target. The Commander is also good in the repair role since it repairs damaged units faster than the other units can. If you've taken out the attacking subs and are just fighting the bigger depth charge-equipped ships, then you can leave him closer to the action since the depth charges don't cause as much damage.

The dragon's teeth will stop torpedoes, and also keep the subs away. FWIW, I never build any (and maybe I should try it). Might prevent those annoying submarine attacks. They're cheap enough to build so it wouldn't hurt to give them a shot.

Keep in mind that naval battles are kind of paper-scissors-rock, since no unit can can be counted on to handle every type of opponent (the cannons can fire at aircraft but don't count on them for air defense). So when you encounter missle ships and battleships, send in the subs since those ships can't fight back. When subs attack, send your Crusaders, sub hunter subs, and aircraft. When aircraft attack, Skeeters and Defenders are the defense. Need to take out torpedo launchers? Use aircraft. Enemy AA taking out your aircraft? Send in Rangers or the second-tier gunships to hit them from long range, or subs. Or even aircraft - you might lose one or two but it only takes a single torpedo to take out the floating AA unit.

Manual targeting is key here.

With this in mind, it's useful to concentrate your initial fire on one type of attacker. That will take away one leg of the paper-scissors-rock triangle and make it easier to take out the other two legs. If I have aircraft available, I go for the subs first since they're slow and easy to hit, and the aircraft will take them out in one or two hits; meanwhile, their missiles are still harassing the surface vessles

Overall, I like Skeeters: they're fast enough to get out of harm's way, can dodge torpedoes, they have the air defense capability, they're cheap and quick to build, can scout areas in a hurry, and will draw the fire of other units while your heavy hitters do the big damage. You're gonna lose a lot of them, but at least the metal is recyclable.

Oh yeah, once you get aircraft, make at least one aircraft carrier but keep it out of harm's way. You get a bunch of energy production, some radar, and, of course, aircraft repair.

Heh, sounds like I need a bit more practice before taking this on again, what would be your recommendation for the next step up from the basic ARM campaign, in terms of difficulty?

Try beating it on hard difficulty. Human opponents are still the best challenge by far though.

So, ARM on Hard is still easier than the rest on normal? o.O

Depends on the specific mission. In some of them you're hit with gunships and Berthas very early on.

Thats true, Bertha's early on really hurt, but radar jammers seem to cause the AI to slow down?

I've made a video for preparation. I hope it's not awful. You can find it here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eifSWZkYFw

I agree on many parts of the forum post of HereForTheBeer, who apparently is also here to explain Total Annihilation. Many of his proposed tactics are effective. I just wouldn't take construction ships with the fleet, since they perform poorly, when the fleet is on the move. Dragon's Teeth should be left out, because they have no fire-power, cost metal and build time and it might also risk the construction units. The Commander should also not be put in danger. An enemy ship won't lose aim of him. Just imagine a Warlord or Executioner shooting at him from a high range. It would quickly ruin the day.

There's also a mission guide on tauniverse.com:

http://www.tauniverse.com/forum/showthread.php?p=629238

I also comment a few sentences of it.

'1. Be careful not to go too far north, as Sea Serpents patrol there and you’re not ready to handle them.'

That is correct. In fact, it is not required to engage the Serpents early on. They also don't play a large role and will get stomped, once you have a huge fleet.

'2. A three to one ratio of Tidals to Metal Makers will keep your economy going.'

That might be correct, but the ratio doesn't matter much. Just build as much as you need and build a few floating metal makers as well.

'3. Have one Construction Ship build Defenders-NS around the northern edge of your base to help ward off those Serpents.'

Indeed, defenders are pretty effective against Serpents and they are needed against the AIs air assaults.

'4. A trio of Colossi will supply all of your remaining energy needs for this mission.'

Colossi require more build time than Conquerors. Just skip them until the opponent can't harm you any more.


The recording of the solved mission has already been completed and I'll post it in the next days. It will also have a better quality.


edit: First of three parts is up. Maximum video length is currently 15 minutes for me, so I had to re-edit the clips.

I'm finished.

The playlist is there: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eifSWZkYFw&list=PL5hPOqa8YqgeiLT8HEU5Z1BtbiuVy-dxO