Which Difficulty Level To Use?

[robc04_1]

Hi,
I played through the tutorial and got a decisive victory on all scenarios, usually with plenty of time to spare. How much harder is it to get decisive victories in the full 1939-1945 grand campaign?

Should I just leave it at the default Colonel level? I don't want a cakewalk, but I don't want it to be brutal either. I know I make some careless mistakes sometimes so I am probably quite far from being a top notch player. Typically I just play through games on the default level the first time I play them. If I play through a second time (not that common) then I raise the difficulty. I tend to have a short attention span and like to play different games and that is why I usually only do one play though.

Thanks for any suggestions.

[brettz123]

Hi,
I played through the tutorial and got a decisive victory on all scenarios, usually with plenty of time to spare. How much harder is it to get decisive victories in the full 1939-1945 grand campaign?

Should I just leave it at the default Colonel level? I don't want a cakewalk, but I don't want it to be brutal either. I know I make some careless mistakes sometimes so I am probably quite far from being a top notch player. Typically I just play through games on the default level the first time I play them. If I play through a second time (not that common) then I raise the difficulty. I tend to have a short attention span and like to play different games and that is why I usually only do one play though.

Thanks for any suggestions.

You should try on Colonel and see how things go. The big difference I have noticed going up to Field Marshall is you get less time to complete a scenario. If you can get all decisive victories on Colonel or feel it is too easy then bump it up to Field Marshall.

[robc04_1]

You should try on Colonel and see how things go. The big difference I have noticed going up to Field Marshall is you get less time to complete a scenario. If you can get all decisive victories on Colonel or feel it is too easy then bump it up to Field Marshall.

Thanks for the help. Can you change the difficulty level in the middle of the campaign or do you have to start over?

[Locarnus]

I recommend to play a scenario. The later it appears in the campaign, the easier it is in the campaign compared to the standalone scenario, because you have a developed core. Try barbarossa or so, from the mid stages of the campaign.

If you want only 1 or so playthroughs and want to see as many vanilla scenarios as possible, you can try my mod, as it is in the signature.
If you also want additional scenarios fitted in the vanilla campaign, check out the mod section.

You cant change diff within the campaign, afaik.

[Aloo]

The big difference I have noticed going up to Field Marshall is you get less time to complete a scenario.

Are you sure of this? I was thinking on this level the AI acts more aggressive and you get less prestige.

[AgentX]

The big difference I have noticed going up to Field Marshall is you get less time to complete a scenario.

Are you sure of this? I was thinking on this level the AI acts more aggressive and you get less prestige.

I believe Guderian (an unlocked difficulty) is the one that gives you 5 less turns per scenario. Rommel (another unlocked difficulty) is the one that that gives you 50% less prestige than normal. Field Marshall (the hardest stock difficulty) has the aggressive AI plus you earn experience at a reduced rate. I don't believe it has a prestige penalty or less time per scenario.

Thanks for the help. Can you change the difficulty level in the middle of the campaign or do you have to start over?

Unfortunately, you can't change your difficulty level once you start a campaign. My suggestion would be to try the grand campaign on Colonel. You got all DV's on the tutorial, but the campaign will get much tougher as you go along. I also think this will be one of those rare games that you'll want to play through again. You'll refine your strategies and will want to try them out at harder difficulties. Go for Field Marshall on the next play through and try to unlock the bonus difficulties (you have to get on the campaign path that gets you to the US and then get a DV on the West Coast). Then, you may find out that you really like the game and you'll want to go for a third play through on one of the bonus difficulties.

[_Flin_]

Use Field Marshal.

Everything else is for wimps.

Save before you end each turn. Then play until you get shredded to pieces by the Russians and Allied invasions.
Then remember where it all started to go wrong and start to play from there again.

If you play with Colonel you just waste a lot of time. Because as soon as you start Multiplayer your opponents will be as good as possible, punish every mistake you make, play more aggressive than you could ever imagine and build seemingly impenetratable defense out of two pieces of show lace wrapped around a tree.

FM will prepare you for that ultimate challenge.

[El_Condoro]

If you play the standard campaign your difficulty level cannot be changed but if you play the Grand campaigns (DLC) you can reset the difficulty when you start each GC with or without the core from the last one.

[kjeld111]

Everything else is for wimps.

Different difficulty levels are there for a reason ...

FM will prepare you for that ultimate challenge.

Not everyone plays Panzer Corps for competitive multiplayer.
Actually, it is a minority :
viewtopic.php?t=28637

[bebro]

Use Field Marshal.

Everything else is for wimps.

Save before you end each turn. Then play until you get shredded to pieces by the Russians and Allied invasions.
Then remember where it all started to go wrong and start to play from there again.

If you play with Colonel you just waste a lot of time. Because as soon as you start Multiplayer your opponents will be as good as possible, punish every mistake you make, play more aggressive than you could ever imagine and build seemingly impenetratable defense out of two pieces of show lace wrapped around a tree.

FM will prepare you for that ultimate challenge.

I rather play the first campaign on Colonel without save/reload than on FM with reloading all the time when things went wrong.

[Tarrak]

Use Field Marshal.

Everything else is for wimps.

Save before you end each turn. Then play until you get shredded to pieces by the Russians and Allied invasions.
Then remember where it all started to go wrong and start to play from there again.

Everything except Field Marshal is for wimps but always save and load to get the outcomes you like now that Hypocrisy at it's best.

I personally think General may be the best starting difficulty level. The AI already plays at it's best, which still isn't to smart but at least it isn't additionally crippled, but the amount of prestige you get allows for some mistakes and loses. Here a brief description of every difficulty setting from my experience:

On Sergeant all AI units have a -5 penalty which makes it a total pushover and really not worth even considering.

On Lieutenant you get so swamped with prestige you never ever have to worry about losses and can always field the best equipment. Additionally i think the AI has a prestige penalty and it's ability are further reduced.

On Colonel the prestige is far more balanced but still quite plenty. The AI is sadly still a bit crippled which makes this setting fine for real beginners with no experience with Panzer General or similar games before or if one wants a "easy mode" playthrough.

General, as i already mentioned, seems well balanced in terms of prestige. You can afford some losses and mistakes and still be able to compensate for it without to much hassle. The AI plays here without any artificial crippling. All in all a fine setting if you want a hard but not overly challenging game.

On Field Marshal apply everything i said for General but prestige for you is lowered and the AI seems to be getting a bonus. This causes two things: First you can't afford to many losses and upgrading your units becomes more and more difficult. You will have to let your finger of the elite reinforcement button and probably as well use the "disband unit to get money back and then buy new one instead of upgrading when doing it outside of the same family" trick. Second: The AI prestige bonus often causes it to mass spam cheap units units at last victory hexes forcing you to rush for it before this happens. All in all it is quite well balanced and it's perfectly possible to win the stock campaign but be ready for a few attempts on the harder scenarios and the invasion of the USA becomes a nightmare.

The early years of the Grand Campaign seems a bit easier then the stock campaign tho which may make it worth to start on FM but i personally think it becomes harder and harder with time but then you can always reduce the difficulty level when starting a new DLC.

[VPaulus]

I rather play the first campaign on Colonel without save/reload than on FM with reloading all the time when things went wrong.

Ditto.
I'm a wimp.

[Aloo]

I know some time ago there was a post with the exact differences in diff levels. Can anybody point me to it or write here what the difference is? This should be visible also in game, when choosing the difficulty setting. Not everybody enters the forums.

[VPaulus]

I know some time ago there was a post with the exact differences in diff levels. Can anybody point me to it or write here what the difference is? This should be visible also in game, when choosing the difficulty setting. Not everybody enters the forums.

I think you'll find in the Common Question stick thread.
viewtopic.php?t=27283

[Aloo]

I know some time ago there was a post with the exact differences in diff levels. Can anybody point me to it or write here what the difference is? This should be visible also in game, when choosing the difficulty setting. Not everybody enters the forums.

I think you'll find in the Common Question stick thread.
viewtopic.php?t=27283

Yes its there - thanks.
Are there any solid numbers for this? How much less xp do we get?
"On Field Marshal, there are no strength modifiers, but the player receives a negative experience modifier..."

[_Flin_]

Everything except Field Marshal is for wimps but always save and load to get the outcomes you like now that Hypocrisy at it's best.

It's not hypocrisy. It is just being careful. If you want to see and play the other scenarios, this way you can go back everywhere. I did that in Stalingrad, when I figured: Oh, my mistake was not sending one of my three Paras to a city that my main force could reach easily, while Baku was too hard to take on time with only two Paras and planes. So I can go back to Stalingrad turn 7 and change that decision if I want to get a decisive victory.

You like to play every scenario again from the start to reach a different branch in the campaign tree? Well, go ahead. Play Poland, Norway and Low Countries for the 15th time. I do not have that much time, and neither do I like these scenarios well enough to do so.

All in all it is quite well balanced and it's perfectly possible to win the stock campaign but be ready for a few attempts on the harder scenarios and the invasion of the USA becomes a nightmare.

As I said: Everything else...

EDIT: FM is easy enough. And you learn the game way better. You need to plan your strategy, advance if possible, manage your resources. Sometimes you get your ass handed to you on a plate. Well, that's great, isn't it?

Even on FM, playing a scenario is only hard for the first time, and sometimes not even then (Norway, Low Countries, Barbarossa).

What use is it to play the game when you can afford lots of losses, play bad and sloppy, make a lot of mistakes, waste time on your way to victory and still win decisively? I prefer to play a scenario, lose, play it again, maybe lose again, or, if I thought I made one deciding mistake, go back to the turn in question and play from there. Having Savegames for every turn you played just makes it possible to start from wherever you want and not having to repeat things you already did very well. And I like to have savegames for every beginning turn in every scenario.

Made a mistake early in the campaign? Well, tough luck, go back to Norway and play again, spending your money more wisely this time.

My first campaign ended by being stomped into the ground by the Red Army in Operation Bagration. After that was over, I could choose where to start anew. So don't tell me I always reload if things don't go my way.

[VPaulus]

@Flin
Whatever.
But call the other players wimps, because they are not playing in higher levels, it's not really courteous. It's a little arrogant.

[_Flin_]

@Flin
Whatever.
But call the other players wimps, because they are not playing in higher levels, it's not really courteous. It's a little arrogant.

Should have added a to that, that is right.

[nikivdd]

I test all my scenario's on colonel difficulty.

Campaigns should also be enjoyable for beginners and not only for the veterans among us.

[_Flin_]

I test all my scenario's on colonel difficulty.

Campaigns should also be enjoyable for beginners and not only for the veterans among us.

Yes that is true.

I also want to apologoize to everyone who was offended by my use of "wimps", it was intended as a tongue in cheek mockery.

People like to play games differently. If someone is a newbie, likes to play and win and move on without getting involved to much, easier levels will probably be the right choice. If someone wants to delve into game, learn the nuts and bolts, strategies and tactics, compete with other on multiplayer, and feel enormous sense of accomplishment after finally beating the game, Field Marshal is the way to go.

None is "better" than the other, just a matter of personal preferences.